'A general meeting of the shareholders of the Tiram Estates, Ld., (in liquidation), was heid on Wednesday afternoon at the offices of the liquidators, No, 44 Szechuen Road, Mr. E. Mortimer Reid. one of the Liquidators, occupied the chair, and there were shareholders present representing 20,530 shares in the Company, The notice convening the meeting having been read, the Chairman explained that in order to comply with the—Companies Ordinance of Hongkong it was necessary for the Liquidators, the winding-up continued for more than a year, to summon a generat meeting at the end of the first year, or as soon thereafter as may be convement, and to lay before the meeting an account of their acts and dealings during the preceding year, Continuing, the Chairman said:—Before submitting an account of receipts and disbursements since the commencement of the liquidation, I will briefly recount the circumstances which led up to the Board recommending the steps taken at the extraordinary general meeting held in June of last year, namely, to Wind up the Company.
You will remember that in 1916 the Company found themselves very short of working capital and with a large overdraft. at_ the Hongkong " Shanghai Bank (about Tls. 18,000) requiring repayment. A five years' lease dating from January 1, 1917, was entered into with Mr. 8, M.D. King, the former manager of the estate, whereby he paid off the whole of the overdraft in yearly instalments antanding over tive years and. rental of §.$7,000 per annum for the last two years, he to take the whole of the output during the tenancy. This method of provision for the repayment of the Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation was approved and accepted by them. Mr, King, however, had not kept his agreement, having paid approximately one' year's rent only; he pleaded inability to continue payment owing to the low price of rubber and the very high price of silver. The Bank declared they would wait no longer, and if some steps were not taken to repay them, they would take possession of your "property and sell it. This step was avoided in March, 1919, by two shareholders lending the Company Ts. 4,000 which was paid to the Bank.
This was how matters stood with the Bank and Mr. King, when the shareholders met in extraordinary general meeting on June 18, 1919, to decide upon liquidation. At that meeting there was also submitted with the view to reconstruction a report upon the value, the earning capacity and gener: condition of the estate from Messrs. Sime, Darby & Ca. This firm valued the estate at 55.000 Straits dollars (say Tis, 25,000). The approximate position of
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.