The Company's attitude was apparently based on its assumed liability for the tax and the provision of Clause 13 in the 1980. Franchise Agreement. The Treasurer and Controller, however, was of the opinion that this Clause covered only. local ates, taxes and royalties and not the US."tax which the Company was called upon to pay for the first time some four' years after the agreement was concluded, and. that subscribers should not liable for this indeterminate charge arising from American registration. As regarded depreciation, at the end of 1993 the Company, by means of loans arranged with the Council, was able to substitute a silver indebted-hess for the gold dollar liability on portion of its capital outlay, and the resultant silver liability was apreliably lower than the" previous American dollar debt. In the Trea-Surer's opinion this reduction should reflected in a corresponding diminution in the book value of the assets, Lo, about $3,000,000, which would result in an appreciable saving in the annual depreciation charge. The Company appeared to recognize the position in 1933. when it appropriated Tls. 2,231,883. to depreciation reserve, but it now contended that this sum was a Fealized profit, having no bearing on plant values or depreciation, which should remain as a Depreciation Reserve Account to strengthen the financial position and be available for such contingencies as exchange Joss on the raising of further capital na foreign currency.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.