THE NEW ZEALAND SHIPPING COMPANY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1402, 11 December 1884, Page 2

THE NEW ZEALAND SHIPPING COMPANY.

An extraordinarygeneral meeting of k( j a shareholders of the New Zealand Shipping j ßa Company was held at Christchurch yeater|D day. Mr J. L, Coster, Chairman of rOB Directors, presided, and opened the pro* ; n . ceedings by explaining that the object of » the meeting was to make amendments in the Articles of Association recommended ' by the Company’s English solicitors, to ja g make the Articles applicable to present a circumstances, and for a similar reason the Q( j Memorandum of the Association required . „ amendment to make things undoubtedly ire c * ear f rom an English point of view. For a( j this purpose a Private Act had bean iss P session of Parliament, and jj 0 the Company’s borrowing powers, which was the matter in doubt, have been per* 0 fected. Following this Act the various ■ g3 amendments to the Articles which had is been duly advertised were proposed. The |l a meeting was fully corqpsteut by reason of the num- er of shareholders present In person and by proxy ta deal with the j ‘ matter as the directors had proxies repre* lj seating 368 votes in addition to those J held by individual shareholders. e _ It was decided to take the resolutions " in globo. | The Secretary having road the adver* 1 tisemeut convening the meeting, it was resolved on the motion of the Chairmen, seconded by Mr H. Murray -Ay nsley— “That the resolutions as printed be [ 8 passed,” 3 The Chairman said these resolutions , would be submitted for confirmation at a ' meeting of shareholders, to be field on December 24th. They would be glad to j hear that the Directors had completed the* _ mail contract with the Government for five years. The first steamer to be dea* patched from the colony would be the ’ Kaikoura, on December 20th, which, ’ notwithstanding a slight accident to her ’ machinery, had averaged 13.3 knp‘a on the passage to Hobart. The out contract commerced also on the 20.>>h of this ’ month, when the Aorangi would leave f Plymouth. The time was 45 days opt- , ward to any New Zealand port, and the homeward time was 42 days to Plymouth, with a bonus for speedier and a fine for longer passages. The passage * would not be longer, perhaps, to any Netf Zealand port except Auckland. The Directors recognised that Auckland was entitled to fullest consideration by the service of . direct 1 steamers, and it was contemplated that periodically, and as frequently as might be found possible, steamers should makh Auckland a port of call, though from its position at the extremity of the island, It was very difficult to conveniently servo that port with one steamer. Auckland bad not been overlooked, and the Directors took the trade of the colony as a whole and endeavored to meet the requirements of all the principal, parts. Since the meeting began he had received a telegram that the Kaikoura was ten miles west of the Bluff, and should therefore arrive at Port Chalmers in the evening, having bo far made the quickest paq>

sage on record. The Tongarito, now on her way out, was under the command of Captain Bone, the first master bred in t ie Company’s service to whom they had given the command of a direct steamer. No doubt he would prove an ornament to the Royal Mail lino and a credit to himself. The affairs of the Company were progressing satisfactorily and the earnings continued good. A vote of thanks Chairman closed the proceedings.