BANK OF NEW ZEALAND. Half-yearly Meeting.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2078, 31 October 1885, Page 2

BANK OF NEW ZEALAND. Half-yearly Meeting.

Till' half-yeaily meeting of the proprietors of the above bank was hold at Auckland on TlmwJ.iy afternoon. Tho hon. James Williamson, l'i opulent of tlio Board of Ihtoctms, occupied the chair. Mi 1). L. Murdoch ((Joneial Manager), leulthe fmty eighth iopoit aud balanceslmet. The net profit for the half year, aftu full appiopnatum for all known bad .md doubtful debt-, and in reduction of buik pieinisps and furnituio accounts, amounted toil7d,9tiO li>-> -Id, to which has to hp .idd>-d b il.ince from half-year ended 31st Maich, 1SS"), t'2"),141 18's4d, giving a total available f-.r division of £102,102 17s Bo\ Tho li ibibties of the Bank at 30th Septombei ( md London office at 31st July)— paid up capital, iC'tivc fund, notes in circulation, lulls payable do., deposits, fee, — amounted to ' t14,72*),4"i8 11s 3d. Tho assets -coin and cash balance at bankers, money on shoit call in London, bullion on hand and in tiansifc, Government securities, bills leceivable and secuuties in L mdiiii, bills discounted and other debts due to the bank, landed piop'jrty, bank piomisps, &c, — worn set down at €14,827, "ii«l Si lid. The icpoit recommended the payment of a di\ ldcud at the i ate of ten per cent., absorbing £.">O,OOO ; a bonus at the rate of five pel cunt., taking £2~>,000 ; the balance to be earned to a new account. The Chaiunan, in moving the adoption of the lepott and balance sheet, said : (Jentlenien, — It will no doubt be a satisfaction to you, as it is to the Boaid of Ducctor*, ro find that notwithstanding the long continued depression which has been CNpiuienccd throughout the c ilonies, and which has more oi less pievailed throughout the woild, we are enabled to meet you w itli a satisfactory iepm t and balance-sheet as has just been read. It would be unroasomble to e\p3ct, and futile for us to pretend, that, occupying the position we do in transacting so latgd a shaie of tho business of this and the adjoining colonies, we would pass through such an evcnptionally s-pveie dcpiesMon without inclining our shaie of losse-> ; but unless tho depiession becomes inoic pionouncfd, which we may leasonably hope will not prove the case, the provision we have been enabled to make out of piofits should amply over any deficienc}'. We have thought it well, however, in view of possibilities, instead of otheiwibe appiopuating the very considerable balancs of profit and los«, to continue to ciny it forwnid in the meantime, that, in ca»e of need, it may be available, without disturbing: our usunl and lout continued da ideud. We see no reason to adopt a pessimist view of the future, for although wo aid now fiom a range of puces such as has not been experienced in the picscnt generation, the factoid for effecting a lecotery aie so muneiou«, and the fluctuations of'trade »o rapid, that lehef from one source or anothci may be looked for at no dist mt date. In the case of nearly all our colonnl piodnct 8 , stocks on hand have laiely been lighter, and any little revival in ti ado must necessarily enhance future ■* alues. The whole fabnc .if commcice is based on land find it-> product*, and as soon as our larmiM s and glaziers obtain pi oh' table prices, other blanches of tr.ula will quickly recover buoyancy, and the business of the Bank will not be slow t > feel the effect Meantime, we ue not disposed to aggravate matteis by unduly lCitiicting accommodation, believing that vv c best sci \ c the interests of the colony md the Bank by affoidinga liberal assistihcc to gemiDß and legitimate business. It tH'> miii 1 tiuio, the policy of the Board it present favouis the extension of our busincs-. in the othei colivmes rather than m New Zetland, which, meantime, does not olfei so kooil , t fi,4d for e\tenbion. The hgmesin the balance-sheet, as contrasted with the pieuo'is one, call for little rein nk. The hibihtuH remain practically the same, and tin* assets, while exhibiting a moie active employment of our iesource», show ample provision for maintenance of theßinL's position. With these, remaiks, I hog: to move the adoption of the repoit and l).il incp-<heet. Mi J. C. Fnth sopondod the adoption of the lcpoit. The depression of which the chairman complained was not confined to New Zealand, but was ptetty univc^ally felt throughout the otbei colonies. Ho went at some length into the cv ident causes of this depiession. Dncctly it was &een that wheat and other raw materials had touched their b lttoni prices, wheit and wool would advance, and p,veiybody would again make money instead of as at present losing it. He looked forward at no distant time to a leceding of this wave of depiession— the wave of cheapness. The motion was put and carried unanimously. Mi William Scott WiKon w»s elected a dnector m the place of the chairman, who retned by rotation. Messis A. K. Taylor and R. Rose were elected auditois for the ensuing year. The usual vote of thanks to the directors and olhcus concluded the proceedings.

lli<> rate collector for the Kihikihi Town Bomil notifies that summonses ha\c been issued against c< rtain persons for the recovery of rates. Mr J. S lluckland will hold his next cattlo sile at Olnnpo on Wednesday, 11th November, as the regular day follow* the cattle show in Aurkland. Wickfd for CLrßG\Mr\.— ' I belie\eit to bo ill wrong and even wicked for clergymen or other public men to be led into giving testitmini Us to quack docjors or vile stuffs called medicines but when a really meritorious article is mide up of common valuable remedies known to aU, and that all phjsicuns use and tiust in diih, we should freely commend it. I therefore cheerfully and heartily commend Hop Hitters for the good they have done me and my friends, fi mly beliowng they ha\o no equal for family use I will not be without them." — Re/. , Wasbiiigtoii, D.C.U.S.A. lii another coluttm will be found the ad\eitiseinent of Mev»i& Webb and Sons tho <>ueen's seedsmen, WmcUley, England. I 'ihe Messrs wh<» aio the l.wgest M groweis of sced^ in tho United Kingdom, ™ have e&tabliilied a colonial agency at Newmaiket, Auckland, whuie a few tons of mangolds, bwede, turnip, clovers, and giass aeod aie now vi\ sale, and whcie ordeis for do^jutch bj" the ne\t mail can be sent, so as to be in time foi the autumn sowinp. The purity and quality of the seeds hupplied by this hrm are world-famed, and the long list of pn'/e-i seemed at all the pi mcipal show a of the Kingdom during the past 13 years is a sufficient testimonial. The excellent and useful catalogue ot tho fiun may be .seen at our publishing office.