The Express.
London, England, 1862-12-17 00:00:00

CRYSTAL PALACE COMPANY.-( THIS DAY.)

The half-yearly meeting of proprietors was heid
at I o'clock this afternoon at the London Tavern ; Mr.

T. N. Formosan in the chair.
The report, which had been previously iemed and pub-
lished, having been taken as read,
The CHAIIIMAN moved its adoption. He commenced by
alluding to the financial position of thecompany. The past
year had, be remarked, not been without anxieties in that
respect, but the board now presented a state of things which
had never been surpassed. (Hear, hear.) As regarded
the addition made that time last
ex tions showing how
ciaera of 50,0120/. to the
capital stock, he entered into
it had been applied. One rem t was a reduction of
the debenture debt to the extent of 14,0001., 13,4691. was
also charged to capital, and there was au increase of
22,0001. in the balance standing to the credit of natal
account ; and these three items about made up the 50,0001.
The receipts of the year were! very satisfies:logy, notwith-
standing anticipations to the contrary, and they had reaped
a large benefit from the Exhibitioe. The expenditure
of the year had no doubt been very heavy, but the report
of Mr. Clark, the engineer, showed the neoseeity of what
vies, substantially, a re-erection of the building. It was,
of °num, impossible to foresee exttaordieary sponges of
that kind.

The motion having been seconded, 21
Mr. SURVILLE congratulated the meeting on the generally 15
satisfactory nature of the report, bat at the same time Bt.lo
considered that the dividend ought to be further increased se.
until it reached 5 per cent. In 1859 the chairman so
told them that it was not right to divide the 20
whole revenue. They divided, in fact, only 20,0001., le
eirrylas over 11,0001. It was perhaps wise to le
make same reserve, and they might in fact have los
divided la. per share, which was the whole amount pro- 15t.
Posed to be divided now. He did not complain of the 10
expenditure of this year, as the board must, of course, Bt,
the building from falling down C; • but with such St. etrplus as that which bad been married over he me- St
Minty expected • better dividend. They had had aa
extraordinary year and might naturally have looked for a 84.
better return.
the directors bad does well in !min- St.

Mr. Rijie thought 7...-
taining the stability of the ]willing ;Int he not
understand why the general expenses, including
the management, were so much in excess of if,
1861. The expense of general management was st.
3701. more than last year, and the outlay on the 3t,
gardens and grounds exhibited an IMO= of over 2,000/. He St.
maintained that the Handel Festival had been a consider- ilia.
able loss, instead of a gain to the company.
The Sacred ffe
Harmonic Society hal all the advantage, and the Crystal ri
Palace Company ell the trouble and expense. (Hear, hem.) M
11,0001. had been handed over to the Sacred Harmonic So. at.
ciety, while the board took credit for laving made 7,000!. 10
for the company. Pau thomend pounds was spent on the Mt
roof of the orchestra, sod that expense ought to be de- '"
ducted from the 7,0004 The affair was not managed on is`
mutual terms. (Hear.) is
Mr. BILLINGS said that as an architect be approved of
everything that had been recently dote to the building ; 10
without that outlay there would have been a continuous SO
waste of money. (Hear, bear.) A permanent improve- 2,1-
meat had been made whieh ought to have been included in 84.
the original ooestrnctioo. The board now paid the penalty st,.
of having got into disgrace for Use faults of their pre. 84,
dearer*. (Hear, hear.) He considered the meant to be 25
now in a very solid position ; and he hoped that the board st.
would now allow the palace to rest on what weeoriginally Zt;
contemplated—namely, the exhibition of works of art, in-
-10
stead of relying on special attractions. 191
Mr. PUNCHER thought the chairman and his colleagues de- to
served the best thanks of the proprietors for their St
general managemeat. (Hear, bear.) Under that St.
management the building and grounds had become et
the most attractive in the world. He could not le
understand why the board prohibited smoking at the gt,
palace, and at the same time allowed tobacco to be sold Esta
without restriction. (Laughter.) The management re.
of the refreshment department was detrimental to
the interest, of the company—(" no, no ")—he
referred especially to the carrying of dishes by
servants among ladies, with naked arms. (Laughter.) es.
He believed, ton, that the contractor was realiidng from fp
800/. to 1,0004 per cent. (Loud aim of "Oh, oh.') The M
item of general expenses appeared to him much too large ;
and he would suggest that, as one means of reduction, two Sit
superintend/lute might be united in one. to
After some further discussion, and • few remarks from et
the CBAIIIKAN in re y,
was Itt„
The report a opted, and • dividend of three per Bt.
cent. for the year on the ordinary stock was declared. at.

The Lord Lieutenant wont on Monday to Belfast
,to attend the great musical festival to be held yesterday in
the new " Ulster Hall." The oeremony wee to include the

inauguration of a magnificent organ, which ant 3,0001., SiL
the gift of Mr. Andrew Mulholland, D.L, of Spring Vale, sr
County Down. Lord Carlisle will be the guest of Lord I%
Meneareene and Ferrard, and of Mr. Lanyon, late Mayor of 1111.
Belfast, while he remains in the North. eL
According to the last accounts from Peru the
gram amount rewired from the export of guano, during the ft
biennial term just expired, is about 10 millions sterling. t:
MEXICAN FLAGS CAPTURED BY THE FRENCH.— AA
The Moniteur of yesterday announces that fire flags asp- it.
awed by the French in Mexico have been brought to Para at.
and presented to the Emperor. They are to be placed in t
the Invalids'. at.

MERCHANT TAVLOIte SCHOOL. - The winter a--
Speech-day, technically called the " Doctor's-day," was
celebrated yesterday at this renowned seatof learning, before 84.
the muter, Mr. Thomas Bennett Spam*, and the wardens 84.
of the company. The examiners, Archderumn Browne and St.
the Rev. C. Matheson. were in attendance, mad the large St.
hall was filled with a numerous sad fashionable audience. 84.
Speeches in Greek, Latin, and English were delivered. Soenes
from the Knidlas of Aristophanes, the Andric' of Terence, A
the lei +lberia de Srapin of Moller% and the Goodriatured
Maw of Goldsmith were sustained with much comic humour it
by the *cholera of the head form-Messrs. R. C. L. Dear
(bead monitor). H. R. Hand, J. Bond, A. Stokes, R. S. fa
Omission, H. B. Buckley, N. H. Paterson, and J. Whit. frt
more. Dr. Haney, Head-Master of the school, then mad et
the result of the probation of part of the school in clanks A
and mathematics, the examination of the heed and sixth St.
forms not being as yet completed, The English History
/IL
Prize, founded by Sir James Tyler, was awarded to I. S.
Leaden, and the Mercantile Prize, given by Messrs. Pigeon Bt.
and Pugh, was awarded to W. S. Roams. After speaking 84.
in terms of commendation of the attention paid by the St.
scholars to their studies during tbe last half-year, the Head. sg.
Muter announced that the Christmas vacation would tar. St.
minute on Tuesday, January 13.
WORKING MEN'S CLITA-The second anniversary re
of this institution was celebrated last night at its premises, g
in Dock-lane, Westminster. The chair was occupied by Sir St.
It. W. Carden, at whose side was seated Miss Adeline Ht
Cooper. Established to afford working men an opportunity It.
for social intercourse, away from the temptations of the AL
public-house, the institution has been a complete success. B‘.
Its members, originally numbering only forty, have in- to
creased to 400. From the report it appears that the tem- St.
mince cause has been materially aided by the establish. l 7
meat of the club, about 300 persons having taken the pledge 12
in the immediate neighbourhood. A lam society, a peony ;
'wrings bank, and a fund to provide costermongers with A
barrows have also been established. Deposits to a con- A
@Womble amount have been made, numerous loans have et
been granted, and there has not been a single defaulter. st._
On the whole, the Working Men's Club enters upon the
third year of its existent* under the most favourable it:
allsptces. et
THL BISHOP or LONDON'S CONTHMATIONS.-The ea
Bishop of London has intimated to the clergy that he will et
hold confirmations at the followiug, amongst other places is r„'
his diocese :-January V., Royal Military Asylum at ;
Chelsea ; Januar,. 30, Trinity Church, Haverstock-hill ; et
February 20, St. Gabriel Church, Pimlico ; February 25, St
St. Marylebooe perish church ; February 27, St. Anne's, St
Limehotue ; Marsh 4, Chrietoliemh, NewgMestreet ; St
March 6, St. Sepulchre's; March 15, St. Martin's-in-the °I
Fields ; March 20, Kensington ; March 25, St. Poems ; ea
March 27, Spitalfiekte ; March 3 Charterhoues • April 2,
St. James s, Westminster ; Aped 15, All Boull:IAD512"°'
; April 17, Islingtos • y 13, St. John's, w est-
moister ; May 15 St. Piiter's, Pimlico • May 20, St. II
Nicholas. Deptford ; May 21. St. Luke's, did-etrest • Jews 1
3, St. Peter's, Notting-hill; Jape 5, fit. Stephen's, Camden-
town ; June 10, Bronipton ; June 12, Fulham ; June 17,
St. John's Hammersmith; Julie 19, St. James's, Paddington; 14
June 21, St. Paul's. Knightsbridge • June 26, St. George's, 111
Hanover-square; July 1, St. 01104{114 Bloomsbury ; July SI
3, St. Peter's Walworth ; July 10, Christ Church, Meryl*. tl
bone; July 17, Whitechapel ; July 24, St. Lake's, Melees; fg
July 26, St. Mary's, Hageeretoce ; July 29, Barking ;
Anicust 2, St. James's, dotting-hill. fg
01,inetOR OWEN AT Letirs.-Yesterday the M.,
new and handsome pile of buildings dedicated to the ;
of the Leeds Philosophical Society was formally A
Cairraunted by an eloquent address from Professor Oweo.
The new and commodious edifice, which embraces within
its walls an excellent library and a very complete museum,
is in the Italian style of architecture, and has coat, in its r;
enlargement and renovation, several thousands of pounds. ri
The theatre in which the distinguished professor's in. It
empire] address was given was crowded with a fashionable A
audience yesterday afternoon, the chair being occupied by
Mr. T. P. Teale, president of the association. Yesterday H
evening there was a brilliant roatvreazioae in the new
building, tbe ordinary attractions of which had been in• a
terestingly supplemented by loans of valuable paintings,
statuary, and other objects of art.
In 1861 the amount of coffee exports from

Guatemala was only 5,249 quintals, while during the first
mine months of this year they were 22,657 quintals.
From an island paper we learn that Martinique
is not inassible to the advantage of procuring a supply of
labour from the United States. end is about to enter the
bald of competition. Every British colony which requires
immigration will claim its proportion of such immigrentsas
may be obtained by negotiation between the govern-
ments of Great Britaw and of the United States ; Guade-
loupe wall follow the example of Martinique. end so will the
Dutch on emancipation taking plum is Surinam and their
other colonies. Denmark has got the start of us, but it will
be our own fault if we let any other people overtake us in a
race, to win which would. so far as one an judge, be pro-
ductive of great benefit—Demerara Royal Gaulle, Nov. 11.