PHŒNIX WATER RACE CO.

Tuapeka Times, Volume VII, Issue 411, 25 November 1874, Page 2

PHŒNIX WATER RACE CO.

The annual meeting of the shareholders of the Phoenix Water Race Company was held in the Secretary's OfEce, Peel-street, Lawrence, on Wednesday afternoon There were nine shareholders present ; and 920, out of 1000 shares, were represented including proxies, which had been sent in previoua to the meeting. Alex. Stewart, Esq., M.D., was called to the chair. The minutes of the previous year's annual meeting were read and confirmed. The annual statement, balance-sheet and report were then r^ad.- The statement showed that water to the amount of £410 45.," had been sold during the year. The expenses had been £4& 12s. 6d., and dividends, £350. ' On tha motion of M*. Menzies, seconded by Mr. Uren, the report and balance-sheet were adopted. Mr. Brent moved : " That the directors for the ensuing year be — for Dunedin, Mr. A. Hill Jack ; and for Lawrence, Messrs. Chalmers, G-oldsmith, O'Leary, and Dr. Stewart. Mr. Bartloman seconded the motion. Mr. Harrop said there was some talk of removing the management of the Company to Dunedin. Mr. Brent said that the matter was not j before the meeting. The Directors had power by tho rules to remove the management to Dunedin if they wished it. Mr. Harrop thought as a large interest in the Company was held in Dunedin, it would be well to bare the office' transferred. Mr.

Harrop moved that Mr. Uren's namo be added to tho Directory. Tho election was made by ballot, when Messrs. G-oldsmith, Chalmers, Stewart, and O'Leary, and A. Hill Jack were duly elected Directors for the ensuing twelve months. On tho motion of Mr. Chalmers, « Messrs. Bartloman and Brent were elected auditors. Certain correspondence, received from the Manager of tho Q-abriels Q-ully Company, was then considered. The la3t letter received was one addressed to the Chairman, and stated that ho (the Manager) was prepared to attend the meeting if desired to do so. The G-abriels Q-ully Company fchouglit it desirable I that th.9 respective positions of the two companies with regard to the lease should be settled by the shareholders, instead of by the directors. It was decided that the presence of the manager of the Gabriels Gully Company was not required. — A lettor addressed to the directors of tho Phoenix Company by the manager of the Gt-abriels Company, on the Ist October, was read. The letter referred to the large amount of prospecting work done by them on the Gabriels reef, without any successful results ; it also referred to the sale of their crushing machinery. The total receipts, including the Corporation rental, from January to June last, had only amounted' to £227 13s. 6d., or an average of £8 15s. per week, less bjtSl' debts. Since then, the average per week had been barely £6 per week, so that they had been carrying out their lease at a considerable loss to themselves. The letter also stated that the Company had tried its best to make the property reproductive by giving free water to parties opening up newclaims, &c. The Company had. also taken yip a mining lease at Wotherstones, which they had prospected at considerable expense. The lease from the Phcenix Company had been based upon the prospects of the Gabriels reef and tho expectation of the demand for water for crushing purposes. These expectations had been disappointed, and the company therefore wished certain concessions. They proposed that from the Ist October, the Grabriels Grully Co. undertake the management of the Phcenix property, free of charge, beyond working expenses, paying for water at current rates, and rendering a quarterly account of receipts and expenditure to the Phcenix Company. A meeting of directors was summoned to consider the proposal contained in the letter referred to. There were present at the meeting — Messrs. Brown (in the chair), J. Harrop, and P. Uren, when it waa decided to reduce the amount charged to the Gabriels Company to the sum of £3 per week, leaving that Company to pay for the management. It seems the result of this meeting had not been communicated to the Dunedin director, but on hearing of it sometime afterwards, a meeting of the shareholders in Dunedin was summoned, at which tbeyexpreased strong disapproval of the action taken by the Lawrence directory : hence the presence at the meeting of Messrs. Bartleman and Brent. When the last letter was read, Mr. Bartleman remarked that he believed tho three directors named as being preseiTt at the meeting were shareholders of the Gabriels Gully Company, and that one of them — Mr. Brown — was not qualified to act as a director, as ho only held four 3hares in the Company. Mr. Harrop. as one who waa present at the meeting referred to, said that he was not aware that Mr. Brown was unqualified. He, himself, acted as ho considered for the best interests of the Company, and if they obtained a revenue of £3 per week, ho thought they would do well. Mr. Uren said as he also wa3 present at the meeting when the reduced amount of rent waa agreed upon, he wished to makeai'emnrk. The Gabriels Gully Co., during the past twelve months, had not not mado £7 a-week from the Phcenix Co.'s property, and out of that sum they had to pay a man £3 a-week. In tho face of this, the Gabriels Co. could only throvr up the lease. Ho saw that had the esistmgarrangeiaentnot been come to, instead of getting a 3a. dividend, they would not have got anything. Mr. Brent moved : ".That the Secretary be instructed to reply to the letters from the Manager of the Gabriels Gully Company, stating that this meeting decides that the lease bo carried out in its entirety." Mr. Bartleinan seconded the motion, which, was carried. On the motion of Mr. Harrop, rule Tfo. 1., which states that the annual meeting shall be held on ' September 10th, was altered to November 18th. Mr. Brent hoped that in future the rule requiring a statement of the procedmgs : of meetings of directors to be forwarded to the Dunedin directors would be strictly enforced. He also would expect that the new directors would get Borue one to inspect the works, and see that they wero left in a proper 6tate of repair. A vote of thanks to the Chairman brought the meeting to a close We are informed that soon after the meeting was held, the manager of the Gabriels' Gully Company gave notice of the intension of the Company to throw up the lease.