Patea Steam Shipping Co.

Patea Mail, 1 May 1882, Page 3

Patea Steam Shipping Co.

PROPOSALS FOR FUTURE WORKING- ;

The annual meeting of shareholders in the Patea S.S. Company limited was held on Friday’ afternoon, at the company’s office. , Present, Messrs Terment (in the chair), Gibson, Richards, R. A. Adams, Gower, and E. 0. Horner (manager). The report and balance sheet were read. ■ FINANCIAL POSITION. The amount earned for freight during the year ended March was £4,852 19s lid, and for passengers £1097 15s 9d ; also for .towage -£49 10s, mail gratuities £9 5s 3d, interest on invested loans &c. (for reserve* fund) £26 12s od ; also outstanding accounts and cash £384 11s Id; making the total earnings £6,036 3s 4d. From this deduct wharfages and charges incidental to forwarding through goods, also accounts outstanding, £1683 8s 3d. The year’s earnings thus amounted to £4,352 15s Id. The company had also called in a reserve investment of £2OO, to meet loss by casualty. / A... / The expenditure showed—coal and : water £B3l, 9s 3d, repairs; £321 8s 3d' : stores £271 16s, commission £69 Is 2d, salary • arid; wages- £1319, providore £671 2s 6dj stationery; advertising, and stamps' £l5B 14s;'Id,'port dues £l2O 14s lOd, insurance £240, and other small items, making t ,the . total- .outlay £4,045 15s. The net result is shown by adding to the expenditure £2OO carried to reserve fund, £2OO loan, £471 2s Id cash, and : smaller items, these making the balanced total £4,937 6s 2d. ■’ * . The ■ company’s property was valued on March 31st; .(before the Patea’s wreck) at £4,300, allowing for depreciation. The whole result showed a credit balanceof £436 0s 4d, : and but,of this the directors intended tb declare a dividend—the second in three years. , Mr Tennent proposed that, the report and; balance sheet be adopted. He said : The Patea steamer was lost since ; the end .of the financial y.?al At that time . we . had every, hope of meeting the directors with “a very favorable balance sheet, and we 'Could : have declared ; a substantial dividend and . ca'rried/soiriGthing forward. However, by buying in the wreck -of the., Patea, ,we ;think; the loss has been partially averted. . Taking the opinions of practical men, we are informed that the amount of salvage from the wreck, in machinery etcetera, will be worth about £2,000. This has cost the company about £BOO ; and as I don’t think thei cost oflgelting'it out will amount to mqre than; £IOO, there will be; a profit of about £l,lOO. The position of the company is that, after receiving the 'amount of ’insurance, we shbnld have- a- credit balhnce of about £2,000. This 1 will.enable’us to build a! new hull,--‘"and put' tbe present’machinery into it. If so, the loss will.not be very great. If will have swallowed up the reserve fund, and ' taken' the profits of the pafet year,’ but it'will not have affected the company’s capital! ’ Since the printed report was drawn np, we have had a misfortune with' the/Wakatn steamer. Payment * for 1 the damage! from :tbe Ladybird -\rill hot compensate; the company. : The thing we/ feel most: is The loss of the. local • trader' fbr : one; month, while the/Wakatu is laid up for; repairs. New directors'will have to be appointed at this meeting, and it will! be their duty to take immediate steps' to provide against present stoppage of; local tirades >/ No :steps!have been/taken by the retiring directors because the! annual ' general meeting was so near. ; Our agent; at Wellington informs ns 1 the damage done .to the Wakatn by the! collision' in the harbor will aihonnt to about £SX)U. THe■ misfortune is that; at the present time, having only one; boat/when,. Ibis collision - happened, we saw a prospect of having a very good month'. The' Government wanted ; us to bring railway iron'here in ; addition to’ the ordinary trade of the place; and we ; had a .pjoiijject ‘M and out for ! the month.' r T think you will agree that thb director's have; done the best they could nnder'the circumstances, in the interest’ 6L the company, ifi making the purchase of the machinery and fit- ; tings of the Patea wreck. If others: had bought the wreck, they might have j got a cheap boat and commenced to cut i freight. -;gr seconded i,the ? motion,! which / wX At/i

On the motion 'Of Mc:R.oA;. Adams, • secpnded by : .Mr Gower| tbe following: were 'appointed directors for the, ensuing ■ years Messrs' s Tennent,, Richards, : Wray* .Gibson, and Patterson.- : Mr J. ; Black was re-appointed auditor |

FUTURE POLICY. - NEW STEAMER.

The Chairman explained that the capital of the company had been increased to enable: Mr Cross to hold shares to the value of £ 1200,: in " part payment of the purchase money for the Wakatn steamer. He said : We are overdrawn at the bank at present about £I3OO. We have paid Mr Cross £ISOO, and we have to receive £2,800 from insurance, including our share of the salvage. We have also to get in £2OO reserve deposited with a building society. Thus we have over £3,000 to receive, ■to pay off about £I3OO ; so that we /have a credit balance of £2,000 to be applied as the new directors mayi think fit; It will be for them to consider whether the hull of the Patea can be recovered. I was at the wreck this morning, and found the engines Were all disconnected and in 1 sound condition; and the whole of the machinery is now out of her, so that the engines are perfectly safe. What is proposed now is to get the boiler out; then, if the old hull be worth saving and patching up, a few pounds may be spent in trying to float the hull. The point of rock against which she lies might he blown up; and if brought round that point, w,e might. take, a competent opinion as to whether the hull is worth patching up and floating. We are well; the 'salvage 1 operation so i far, under the charge of Mr Patterson, one of our directors. He has personally been there working very hard. .We wer.e told the disconnecting of the engines, would,take ; six men for. a week,- but three j men have done it in that time;

.; Mr Adams asked what was intended to be done in the mhtter of rebuilding. Chairman : We left tha’t for the new directors. We ought to get out a model:©f the,new' boat immediately,/and have specifications prepared, unless we can s,ee that it is worth while bothering with; the hull of the Patea. When we are again ;|m. a position tb run; two steamers, supposing we can get a/new .hull built for £2,000, we shall be'almopt in as good a position as.before ; and .in six months, we ought ito be able to declare a dividend; It took only five months to build the Patea complete.

ri »Mr Gibbon I Wbtihl' suggest /that Ihe directors should decide on getting out'a model arid specifications; and if in the meahliffie 'they can (10, any thing with the bid hiili, the cost of plans will be no great expense, white time, will be saved. •• .: I ' - Ghairman ; We have the old plans and specificatiops, for .lengthening the Patea. , ’ v ' : ;

/■ Mr Adana's : It/! will /take several weeks to . .experiment bn the • Patea, to find, out whether she‘is worthless or not, That will be valuable time wasted, . Preliminary arrangements for getting a new boat, ought to go onln the meantime. . Ghairman Captain Eehdall thought the';/Patea hull ; wqiiid hot be worth making into , a neur steamer. The hull may be strained in many ways. Mr Adams: She will, never be equal •to a now steamer. ■ /

Chairman : We can get a new ball built on'better lines,- and have better passenger accommodation by making the hull 10. or 12 feet longer than the Patea. The engines are said to be as good as new, and :the boiler is in first-class order. Thanks to the retiring directors concluded/the meeting.