SUCCESSFUL AUCTIONEERING COMPANY.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 556, 5 April 1913, Page 6

SUCCESSFUL AUCTIONEERING COMPANY.

WAIKATO FARMERS' CONCERN,

AN 8 PER CUNT. DIVIDEND.

The annual general meeting of shareholders of the Farmers' Auctioneering Co. was held at; the offices of the company on Saturday. There were about 40 shareholders present.

Mr Shepherd said he was interested to know that the Southdown works were to be increased, and suggested that grain-cleaning machinery should be installed. The chairman said that as soon as the company saw the necessity for grain-cleaning machinery, the same would be considered.

The report and balance-sheet were read and adopted unanimously. Speaking in regard to the retiring director, Mr John Knight, the chairman spoke in eulogistic terms of the services rendered by Mr Knight, to whose efforts, he said, the company's existence was in some measure due. The speaker welcomed Mr D. R. Caldwell, the new director, and thought the company would have no reason to regret his appointment. Mr McMicken said the shareholders had no notification of the retirement of Mr Knight until that meeting. It seemed to him a rather irregular proceeding, as the shareholders were supposed to nominate the directors, but to be more observed in the breach. In the present case the shareholders had had no notification whatever of the retirement or appointment of a director. The speaker moved that in future notification of the name of the retiring director be advertised a week before the date of the annual meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr Pemberton and carried. Messrs English and Bruce were reelected auditors.at a remuneration of £l5O a year. , Prior to the close of the meeting the chairman moved a vote of thanks to the staff. SPECIAL MEETING. A special meeting was afterwards held for the purpose of revising the articles of association. Mr Hawkins moved that the following clauses be added to the articles: —• 135a.—There shall be two auditors for the company, both of whom shall retire annually (at the ordinary general meeting), and both of whom shall be eligible for re-election. 135b.—N0 person shall be eligible fur election, or re-election, as an auditor unless he shall have been previously nominated in writing. Every such nomination must be made and signed by a member of the company and must have endorsed thereon the consent in writing of the person nominated. No nomination paper shall be received unless the nominator has previously paid all calls (if any) then due by him. Every nomination paper must be left at the office (addressed to the secretary, and marked "Nomination paper for auditor") at least 28 days before the date appointed for the meeting at which the election is to take place. 135 c—lf the number of eligible persons properly nominated does not exceed two the persons so nominated shall be deemed and declared to be duly elected as auditors, and in such case it. shall not be necessary to take any poll or show of hands for such election.

135d.—1n the election of auditors the provisions of Articles 90 to ,98, both inclusive, which articles '"deal with the election of directors, shall (mutatis mutandis) apply. The effect of the addition, said the mover, was that the election o± the auditors would be on the same footing as the election of directors, that was, the shareholders would have a voice in the nomination and election of the auditors. The motion was seconded by Mr T. Paterson and carried. On behalf of Mr F. R. Seddon, who was absent, Mr Primrose moved that section 81 of the articles of association be deleted and the following substtuted: "The directors (other than the said Arthur James Storey and William Hamilton Hume) shall be paid for their services a remuneration out of the funds of the company. Unless and until otherwise determined by the company in general meeting the annual remuneration of the chairman of directors shall be £l5O and his actual out of ppcketß expenses, and the annual remuneration of each of the other directors (except aforesaid) shall be £75 and his actual out of pocket expenses; all such remuneration and expenses to be payable at and whenthe directors may decide. If at the request, or by the direction of the board of directors, any director or directors shall make any special journey to perform anv special service on behalf of the company, such director or directors mfy be paid such reasonable additional remuneration and expenses therefore as the directors may determine."

In speaking to this motion, the chairman said that during the whole of bis period on the directorate., he had never heard one single director mention remuneration, and the motion came to him as a great surprise.

The motion was carried unanimously. - Mr J. Gordon thought the directors should consider the question of a revision of the salaries of the staff, and he felt sure the shareholders would support him in recommending a revision to the directorate.