CANTERBURY SALEYARDS COMPANY.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11505, 11 February 1903, Page 3

CANTERBURY SALEYARDS COMPANY.

ANNUAL MEETING.

PROPOSED AMALGAMATION WITH THE MIDLAND COMPANY.

The annual meeting of shareholders <vf the Canterbury Saleyards Company was held yesterday. Mr £.' G. Staveley, Chairman of Directors, wan in the chair, and there were about fifteen shareholders present. The Directors, in their report, congratulated the shareholders on another successful year, having received more stock than during any previous year; at the same tiihe "the accommodation at the yards had been well maintained and increased, to meet the growing requirements of the business. It was -with sincere regret that they recorded the decease during the year of the. late Mr Wm, Henderson, who had acted as Chairman so efficiently for the last twenty-one { years. The Directors had! chosen Mr k. G. Stxveley for the position of Chairman during the remainder of the year. During the past year the Directors had been approached by the 'Midland Saleyards Company, with a view to amalgamation, so that for all time tnere might be one Metropoltan Saleyards, even if it became necessary to discontinue the sales at Addington. bo far, preliminaries had been agreed to on a basis of the subscribed capital of each company, end it now only remained for the shareholders of each company to agree to the amalgamation by giving power to the Directors to carry out the scheme. The profit and loss statement, after providing for depreciation, showed a profit of £1027 ISs lid. which,, with £22 Is Id brought over from last year, gave a credit of £1049 16s lid; of this ;jum an interim dividend of 4 per cent, was paid in July, absorbing £510, leaving a balance of £539 16s lid, to be dealt with, which the Directors recommended should be appropriated aa follows : —£510 for payment of a dividend of 4 per cent, on the paid-up capital, making a total dividend of 8 per cent, for the year, leaving £29 16s lid to be carried forward to new account. The quantity of stock passed through the yarSs during the year was. 124,088 sheep, 23,255 pigs, and 22*322 cattle.

The capital account showed that the iiiibilities amounted to £13,045 6s lid, and the aseete to £13,585 3s 10d. The profit and loss statement showed that £1901 0s 8d had been received in fees during the year, and £505 la in rents, making tne total receipts £2406 Is Bd. .Of this sum' £1378 5s 9d had been expended, which included £351 10s for salaries and wages, £108 8s for directors' and audit fees, and £579 16b 10d written off to allow lor dilapidation. - The balance thus carried down was £1027 15s lid, which, with £404 lie, last year's balance, made a total of £1432 6s lid. £892 10s of this had been paid in dividends, and a balance of £539 16s lid remained. ' The Chairman, in moving the adoption of the report and balance-sheet, said that it was his pleasant duty to congratulate the shareholders upon the most successful year that the Company had yet experienced, and that despite the opposition of a business character and otherwise, to which the Company had been subjected. They would observe from the figures of the reserve fund, in which they had in round numbers £6000, equal to about hail tne paid-up capital, and the value of the freehold property, yard*, etc., that the Company now occupied an exceedingly strong position. For some time past very strenuous efforts had been put forth in various directions, and very etrong influence had been brought to bear to hamper, if not to crush, the business of the Canterbury Saleyards Company. Those ef-

forts, fortunately, had been hitherto unsuccessful, and he lor one, earnestly hoped they always might be/ so. He should much deplore any course of action which would result in. the destruction of the, metropolitan market of Canterbury, .which woe-regarded, and justly, aa. the leading market in Jthe. colony, ana the waefcly -quotations froni which were iJmn*diately telegraphed to all the stock-dealing centres, and looked upon'as a reliable basis of the values ruling for fat Btock. The mattei was one of the greatest importance, not only to the shareholders, but to every farmer and producer in New Zealand!. He did not, himself, anticipate 'that they should ever be forced to relinquish the position they now held, but he did foresee that the time might come when, in the interests of their business, it might 'be expedient to go further afield. Holding those views, he felt constrained to impress strongly upon them the benefits which he considered would be derived from the proposed amalgamation with the Midland Saleyards Company, negotiations for which had been for some time proceeding. It

was a movement which he felt sure would have had the hearty support of their late Chairman, Mr William Henderson. He took it that it would be to their advan-

tage, provided that equitable terms could be agreed upon between the two Companies, to haiv* one large and powerful Saleyards Company, rather than two working in opposition, that they ehould etill be able to maintain the advantage of holding their metropolitan market, and, so far as the Canterbury Saleyarde Company was concerned, they would get the benefit of a largely increased shareholder!:' list, and consequent extension of connection. With regard to the removal of the business to S-ckbern, it appeared to him that must be largely influenced by the success or otherwise of the municipal abbatoirs, and he was intormed on "what !he considered reliable authority, that the butcher as a whole were not satisfied with the presen.6 abbato'r arrangements, and many of them were not disposed to transfer, their killing business from the freezing factories, while the latter continued to do their work efficiently at a moderate cost, and under Government inspection, thus complying with/the requirements oi the law. He did not hesitate to recommend the shareholders to give the directors the necessary power to prooeed with the proposed amalgamation, towards which object a resolution would be placed before them. It might be found advantageous, in the event of the amalgamation being carried out, to continue the sales of fat stock at Addington and stores at the Sockburn yards. Such a course would largely modify the inconvenience complained of owing to the travelling of numerous mobs of cattle and sheep on the roads, within the more populous districts near the city. , t The motion for the adoption of the report and balance-eheet was seconded by Mr J. G. Thompson, and carried unanimously. It was decided not to fill the two vacancies on the directorate, but to allow the number of directors to remain at five. Messrs Ollivier Bros, were re-elected auditors. Mr H. H. Pitman moved—"That the directors are hereby authorised to negotiate with the Midland Saleyarda Company for an amalgamation of the two Companies, and to; enter into a preliminary agreement which shall be submitted to an extraordinary general meeting for approval." The motion was . seconded by -Mr J. Overton add carried unanimously.