gestions with regard to the direetors' fees and scerctarial expenses, and other matter concerning the Jmanagement of the company, were put to the directors of the Senagnea Rubber Ca, Lid, at the annual aect-Ing held at 93 Canton Road, on Monday, Dee. 23. The direct were Messrs. A. J. Welch LB, Canning, and ¥. Kadoor!
C.F. Shackleton (secretary), 'There was a share representation of 427,100, Mr. 8. M.S, Gubbay said It ws 0 tasse not facing facts: the company had pot paid a dividend sixes 1027. In spite of this, the directors' fees were! excessive. He quoted Agures shu ring the directors' fees and secre'at expenses since 1932, when they "ere respectively Ti 1,800 and Tls. 2.088. These figures had now chanced to $1573.43 and $45€301. In return for all these expenses, the shareholders, had received nothing. The financial situation was much worse than was a year ago, and the company'# assents, had dwindled, "To put the situation bluntly," do-telared Me. Gubbay, "this "company has become a distributary centre for the expenses for the directors, secre-aries and. various other dependents of the company." This was not what shareholder put his money into a company for. He expected a return for his money, and if he did not get would protest against the man-Jagement. If he hed been on the board, he would have fiked to come forward and say:-"You shareholders have not had any money, so will cut four salaries." 'Because of the present directors' fees, there was no hope of the company paying a dividend until 1918.""He appealed for bigger div-dands for the shareholders, We could not understand why the Jallang programme was not pursued more energetically at first, as he wus fold that oven stight in attention Jeaused further expenses. Tt seemed to him that someone was to. blame for allowing the estate fo. get into this condition, either the mianacer of {the estate, the agent, or the directors Jand local secretaries. Tt was a most Jdesporate state of affairs, and would ko to know what would be. the cost of eradicating the lallone from. the 69 acres that remained, Further. he required an estimate of expenses for the next six months on this estate, and would supzest that the shareholders be circularized in a letter giving this information, reply. It was stated. that the previous manager was to blame for this Hate of altairs. The reason the programme had been so slow was that the slump intervened, and thay did not have enough money to carry out the full programme.
ite. Soyka said that, in consider fon of the fact that they were net Ing at the same time as two ollier companies and that it was settlement Jday, he proposed the meeting Lo ad-
Mr. Gubbay, seconding the amendment, said the shareholders would act under the Ordinances, and get what they wanted. Sooner or later, they would have to take reeautse to the JOrdinances. Tie called on two of the Jdircetors to resign, and other dircetors to be elected with more interest the company. and asked that, a "The amendment was lost, In his report, the chairman tid:
The accounts now before you unforttunately show a loss of ShS14710.94, Jas compared with a profit for the preceding year of Si4795!. This the fact that the -state Whilst the receipts in. the Straits, afier paying for the export rights only Ste 67782 expenditivre occur are. super fence. which shows 2 total ineresce. 'SU$9.157.64, made up as follows ~T-Jmananer wat away on leave for sie months in 1934 and his salar: was pald out of reserve for leave my, ithe acting manager in the meantime receiving a smaller salary than the Jor the increase. Tue clerk and the conductor hod their salaries miced, {which accounts for zaother $700, The reserve for leave vay is higher by
which it was calculated "and the bonus fo the estate staff for the pre~ jeeding year recounts for $265.04. Gen feral charees show an inereace of 'S:$3,007.07, of which St$605.10 was for recruiting, St, $128851 for thy wceessars upkeep of "mildings and /StS56697_ for upkeep of the water supply, The telephone subscription showed an increase of St$180.67, All these increases were unavoidable, but} are not cumulative.
"The programme for the eradication Jor tall any which was commenced in Yosu' was somewhat yceelerated and [the expenditure was $154,681.90 more [han in the previous year.
This work ig now nearing completion and experature on the upkeep of the gardens should shaw a very consider-fable decrease in future sears, The expenditure on tapping and collecting eas St$111300 higher. partly faeeount of the larger ezop, and partly fon account of the standard wages having been raised. Other items expenditure on harvesting and manu facturing the crop were higher fo. sinsiar seasons, During the year, the Government cess on rubber was raised (0.70 of a St, Dollar cent por 1b, and this heading showed an me srease of $131,472.47 over the previous year.
In. Shanzhal, the offic" expenses.
Practically the same og for the previous year.
'The vaeoney on the Board created by the death of Mr. A. K. Craddock Zas not filled and consequently tac ditestors' fees show a decrease of Sh.$524.47. Th short, the presen: cour.s show a loss of Shsi4.720 against a profit of Sh$5.480 last year, thus a difference of $h$20,200. This Li'made up by Increased expenaitirr2 Sh-$14.530, lecrensed sales $h.86,050, making a total of Sh$21,200, lose the Goereased—Shanghai "dvdits of Sh.$1.000, Turning to estate matters, there was a very" marked iniprovement in the nature of bark and bark renewal in the areas now treed from latlang, and at the end of September only [about 70 acres remain ut to be cleaned fof this noxious weed, Installed in the manager's bungalow.
The yield from the coconut arca is stil disappointing the net profit being Sh40051 and the cran is mot expected to be more than 70,000 nuts for the current year. The estate has vastly improved by the cleaning up programme and the trees have made Fapid response, the sri conditions [being as good as on any estate in the district. "The management of the estate "during the past. depression, Whilst a Reavy cleaning-up pro-Jgromme was being undertaken, as focken far from easy and our' best thanks are die to the Visiting Agent, the Penang assents and to the inane Jager for the ood work they have [done on belial? of the estate, 'The following resolutions were passed:—"That the sectors' report and statement of counts for the year fended Septembwr 30, as presented, be Jadopted and. j.assed,"—Proposed "by Mr. A, J, Welch, and seconde by Mr.
Canning "That Mr. A. J. Welch be elected a Jairector of the company"—Proposed. by Mr. KO Dong amd seconded by Mr. Quincey Wu.
"That Mosirs, Thomson end Ca. be re-elected auditors of the cumpany"—Proposed by Mr. $, Mf, S, Gubbay and seconded by Mr. L., Soyka,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.