ALBION BREWING COMPANY.

Evening Star, Issue 4101, 19 April 1876, Page 2

ALBION BREWING COMPANY.

The adjourned general meeting of shareholders in the above was held in the brewery premises yesterday afternoon. There was a very numerous attendance,, and Mr H. S. Chapman, Chairman of the Directors, presided. The report was read, as follows :

Since the sth April, 1875, malting has been carried on up to the present time, showing a fair profit njou the sales made. Brewing was commenced on the 4th September, 1875, bat no sales of beer made until December. The company has therefore been in full work between three and four months only, a period far too short to test the future operations of the company. The balance-sheet from April, 1876, to February 29 last showed a debit balance on profit and loss account of L 2,806-

The Chairman*, in moving the adoption of the report, said :—While the expenditure of the company has been going on for ten mouths, the receipts have only been coming in for something Uke three or four months. Under these circumstances the first year’s transactions in a business like this cannot be taken as a fair test of what the future result inaj r be. During the current year, the ex* p,?n diture and receipts will go on concur* re»ul :ly, and it is safe to say that the appearand es at the end of the second year wiU be much better than the directors have been able to disclose in this report of the first year • There is no doubt the premises here are exceedingly large, and probably a brew ing business sufficient for the whole wanti 1 of the community might be carried on in premises of much smaller extent; but tht' directors had to take the place as tb«v So unc * land is undoubtedly very vak an( l kas always a tendency to increase W* va l ue » and that circumstance ou"ht to be into consideration in judging of the futu re Papeete of the company. Possibly a vb^ v % ■»* “““

convenient property, into two porti6ns,attd 'to‘ie3l or let one portion of it, confining "the brewery pormuch narrower limits. The directors have akeafiygiven great consideration to the reduction of expenditure, and are determined to do so in fttmSs. The adoption of the report having been seconded by Mr MKteKron* an amendment that it be not received Was moved by Mr M'Larsn, who maintained that the actual deficiency was something like L 6,000, and seconded by Mr Eskdale. A lengthy discussion followed, MessrS'Fish, Eskdale, and M‘Loren being the principal speakers. The amendment having been carried on the voices, Mr Fish said he thought., that amendment had been earned it plight be looked upon as an expression of dissatisfaction, and the best course would be to appoint a committee to investigate the affairs of the company. " " ’ ‘ ' ” The Chairman remarked that the resolution just passed threw such an obstacle in the way of carrying on business that they might as well stop at once. It was simply a stoppage of the company, and everybody must see that.

Mr Walter condemned Mr BrOdrick’t appointment as managing director, 'and thought the directors ill qualified to manage a brewery. - / Mr Brodrick said when he took the post it was his intention to give it up as soon os possible, but at present he did not think it would be advisable for him to do so, owing to the financial affairs of the company, which required looking after. It would be very foolish indeed to wind up the company at the present moment, because the company would thus make a loss of from L 5.000 to L 7,000. But if gradually wound upthat amount might be saved. He would roeqmmend them to go on in a small way. And reduce the salaries as much as possible, and feel their way in future. When they •commenced operations they had somethinglike thirty men in pay, but now they had been reduced to under a dozen. When he first took charge the pay-sheet was about LBS a week, but now it was about L4O a week. After further discussion, Messrs Anderson, Hogg, and Scoular, the who did not join in the guarantee to the bank, were called on to resign, and Messrs J. M‘Gregor, W. H. Reynolds, and J. Wain elected in their stead. It was also resolved that a report should be furnished to a general meeting of the shareholders at aa early a date as possible.