The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-10 00:00:00

rrthi SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, AUG UST 10, 1864.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE—This Day.

MANSION-HOUSE.

ROBBERY BY .4. CRlMP.—Robert Jacobs, was placed
before the Lord Mayor, charged with robbing a seaman,
named Abraham Manners, of a £5 Bank of England note,
and various other property.
A cabman said yesterday afternoon he was engaged by
the prisoner, and drove himself and a sailor to Bishopsgate-
street, and after taking a pint of ale in Old-street, set off,
but before getting there the prisoner said they would go to
Chelsea. When he asked to what part of Chelsea he was
to drive, Jacobs said it was no use going, as it
would be too late, but that they wished to go to Peck-
ham. He (witness) told there his horse was very tired, as
it had been out all day, and he afterwards asked them to
hire another cab. The sailor, when he looked in the
vehicle, appeared to be asleep. Jacobs said it was of no
consequence, and that he would only detain him while he
drove to Bishopsgate-street. He did so, and before the
sailor got out of the cab he said he had been robbed of all
his money. A crowd assembled, and then a police-con-
stable came up, and the prisoner was taken into custody.
Constable Tilley said his attention was attracted last
evening by a aisturbance in Bishopsgate-street. He went
up and there he found the prosecutor accusing the prisoner
with having robbed him, He took him into custody, and
on being searched at the station-house a purse, a £5 Bank
of England note, a gold chain, and a ring were found in his
pocket, all of which the prosecutor identified as his
.pro-
perty. He also found on the prisoner a watch.
Tan prisoner said the watoh was his own property, and
that ho hadilent it to the prisoner ; so far as that was con-
cerned there need be no trouble.
The constable asked for a remand, as he believed he
shaald be able to produce some additional .evidence against
the prisoner.
The Lord Mayor at ones ordered the prisoner to be re-
manded for a week.

ROYAL INSURANCE COMPANY.

The annual general meeting of the shareholders in the
Royal Lasurance Company was held on Friday, the sth
inst., at the company's offices, in North John-street, Charles
Turner, Esq., M.P., the chairman of the company, presided►
and there was a very numerous attendance,

The notice convening the meeting having been read,
Mr PERCY M. Dovz, the actuary and manager, read the
following

REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS.

The opportunity of another annual investigation of the
affairs of the Royal Insurance Company having now taken
place, the directors proceed to lay before the shareholders
the results and conclusions which it affords.

exceeded half a million sterling, lam afraid some of the
shareholders will be disappointed, after so good a year, at
the amount of dividend which we declare ; still I trust and
believe that they will, upon the whole, approve of the pru-
dence of the directors, in proposing, as they do propose, the

usual dividend ; and have no doubt that the character of the
company will be still further raised by this evidence of the
care with which its affairs are managed. Ido not know
that I have any further observations to make. I shall be
happy to answer any questions which any shareholder may
wish to put; and I beg to move—
" That the report now read be received and adopted, and
printed for circulation amongst the proprietors."
Mr BROCKLEBA.NK-Mr Chairman and gentlemen,—
After the very lucid statement we have heard as to the state
of the company's affairs, and the reasons which the chair-
man has given for the course which the directors have now
proposed, with your sanction, to pursue, I think you will
all agree with me that that course is one of prudence, and
one that will give satisfaction to the public. I cannot dis-
guise from myself, as the chairman has observed, that there
may be some little disappointment (looking at the large pro-
fit we have realised from our business during the past year)
amongst some of the shareholders that they do not receive

a larger dividend thsn that of former years, particularly
when I recollcct the price at which the shares are in the
market ; and which indicates the confidence that the share-
holders and public have in the management of this impor-
tant commercial concern. It indicates, also, the value of the

concern hereafter. With the directors of the Royal Insur-

ance Company security has always been the first consi-
deration, and in giving you a dividend of not more than 7s
per share they are consulting, not only the security of the
shareholders themselves, but likewise the security of the
public—thole who bring us business; and I cannot for one
moment suppcse, looking at the conservative policy that
this company has hitherto pursued, that the shareholders
will upon this occasion reverse that policy. With regard
to the reserve fund, I do think any reasonable man,

whether a shareholder or director, will consider that, when
the amount of premium is £340,000 per year, £206:000 is
too much of a reserve fund. With these few observations,
I beg to second the resolution that the report be received,
adopted, and printed for circulation amongst the proprietors.
. .

The CHAIRMAN then moved that William Titherington,
Esq., and Joseph Younghueband, Esq., be re-elected
auditors for the ensuing year.
Mr ATKINSON seconded the resolution, which was car-
ried unanimously.
Mr YOUNGHtSBAND, in reply, said—Gentlemen, on
behalf of my colleague and myself, I beg to thank you for
our re-election. I can assure you, gentlemen, that we
have had every facility afforded us of examining into the
accounts of the concern. We have examined carefully
every security in the possession of the company, and found
them all correct ; we have examined every voucher for
cash pay ments, and they, I need scarcely tell you, are all
correct ; we have examined the bank book, and given also
a cursory examination to every book belonging to the com-
pany, and we have found them all correct, I think, gentle-
men, that is all the necessary explanation that I need give.
There is one thing, however,—the assets of the company
have not been mentioned, either in the report or by the
chairman. I believe I may state that they amount to some-

thing less than £1,150,000, but I can assure you that those
assets actually represent a sum nearer £1,500,000. During
the whole time the company has been in existence it has
never made a bad debt.

The CHAIRMAN. —I hope you will allow me to move a
vote of thanks to our excellent manager, Mr. Dove.—(Ap-
plause.) To his unceasing care and attention, and to the
ability and assiduity which he displayed in the manage-
ment of this great company, its progress and prosperity are
in a great measure due.—(Cheers.) He deserves your best
and sincerest thanks and acknowledgments, and I have no
doubt you will carry this resolution by acclamation.
Mr. CAMPBELL FOSTER had very great pleasure in se-
conding the motion, which was carried by acclamition.
Mr. PERCY M. DOVE said— Gentlemen, I have much
pleasure in rising to express, as I hays now done
for many years, my grateful thanks for the honour
acne to me and to others by the compliment you have
paid us. The results of the last year may be
compressed into a sentence or two, but they will be sen-
tences containing many important facts. Though brief
they will reveal a progress which, taking all its points,
is rarely to be met with. My own experience has been a
somewhat lengthened one, but I do not know, going back
for forty years, many parallels of similar success, taking the
following items altogether as being the results of a single
year. First, we have an increase in the fire premiums of
about £40,000; secondly, a sum assured on new life busi-
ness amounting to £750,000, for which the premiums
receivable are £24,000; and, lastly, an increase in the
life and annuity fund of upwards of £lOO,OOO. I repeat
that the additions made to your revenue, both fire and

life, in the last year, are very remarkable. Indeed,
they might be considered as mere indices of a last
effort to attain our maximum revenue. if it were not
happily ascertained in the report that the new life
policies of the present year outstrip those of the peat one,
and giv4 hope that the sum assured of the year 1864 will
not. be far from a million sterling, with a net amount of
premium, not alone (~/ £24,000, as in the last year, but ap-
proaching to £30,000. We have a similar indication in the
fire department, and I do not despair of our being able to
add another £lO,OOO to our fire branch this year, or if not,
that our increase shall at the least be equal to the average
ratio of increase for the last ten or fifteen years. The Go-
vernment Returns of Insurance Companies' Accounts for
the last few years, presented to Parliament, and which are
noticed in the report, show the affairs of this company to be
most satisfactory from every point of observation, comparing
the " Royal" with all our other Insurance Companies esta-
blished under the act of Victoria, among which are included
some excellent institutions promising in their future pros-
pects. I find that the fire premiums collected in the years
included in the "Returns" by the "Royal" to be about
three times the amount even of the very largest of the
others, and that the ratio of our expenses, both fire and
life, is less than almost any of the others named in this
Parliamentary document; It was only this morning that we
received likewise the return, ordered by the House of Com-
mons to be printed, of the duty paid for the last year to
Government, as moved by Mr Charles Turner. I have had,
of course, but a few minutes to look at that document, but
what I have seen convinces me that these returns have never
afforded more striking evidence of our progress in English
and Irish business. It will at any rate, however, be in the
highest degree satisfactory to tell you, on the authority of
that Government paper, that the "Royal" has advanced
beyond some other companies who were previously before
us, and that this company has actually paid in the last year
a larger amount of duty in the United Kingdom than any
other office, excepting two excellent and well-known Lon-
don companies, one established for more than 70 years, and
the other for above 150 years. I r epeat my sincro acknow-
ledgments to you for your kind notice, and trust 1 may
have the pleasure of owtinuing my share in the labours of
all connected with this gTeat company, while health and
strength for the task are votiOsafed to me. (Applause.)
The meeting then separated.