The Sun.
London, England, 1839-06-06 00:00:00

i

I I '1

EVENING EDITION.

COMMERCIAL STEAM PACKET
COMPANY.

A Special General Meeting of this Company took
place yesterday, at the London Tavern, in accordanoe,
with a requisition signed by several of the proprietors,
one of whom, Mr. Lilly, made a long statement of
what he considered the unsatisfactory position of the
Company. His calculations, however, did not appear
to the general body of the Shareholders present at all
correct.
The CHAIRMAN (Charles Bleaden, Esq.) declared
that the Company's vessels, thirteen in number, were all
of the first class, and, except one, in perfect repair,
and would be all ready for sea within a month.
Mr. HALL expressed his entire dissent from the
gloomy account which had been given by Mr. Lilly.
A motion for the dissolution of the Company, proposes
by the latter gentleman, was almost unanimously re-
jected. *
Mr ANDERSON (of the Morning Advertiser) begged
of the Shareholders to reflect that no Company had
ever succeeded at first, and that many of those which
were now most successful, had for a long time after their
establishment been very desponding concerna—(Hear,
hear.) The Company in his opinion was now in a bet.-
ter situation than it had ever been betere—(Hear.)
Not only were its vesse:s of the first class, but they
had acquired a character and reputation which gave
them a deserved pre-eminence.—( Hear, hear.) Who
that had ever sailed in the Emerald, the Boulogne, the
Duchess of Kent, or the Grand Turk, for instance, or
indeed, in any of the Company's packets, would after-
wards sail in any other. He believed that the present
Direction of the Company was such that it could not
well be changed for the better ; and nothing was
required but that the Shareholders should be liberal
and persevering in their support.—(Hear, hear.) He
would just suggest the idea of a union with the Gene-
ral Steam Navigation Company, which he thought
might advantageously, for both, be effected —(Hear,
hear.)
The CHAIRMAN presented to the meeting the fol-
lowing Report which had been agreed upon by the
Directors, as containing the advice which they would
offer for the adoption of the proprietary in the present
crisis of their affairs :
't The Directors have considered it their sluty to
assemble you together, for the express purpose of
taking into your serious consideration the imperative
necessity that exists for increasing the finances, and,
by that mode, the prosperity of the Company. And
they do not consider that any method can be devised
which will add at the same time so much to the
istability of the Company, as the immediate disposal of
the shares still remaining to be appropriated. This-re-
commendation was strongly urged at the last annual
meeting, and met with the unanimous approbation of
the Proprietors then assembled, though an extended pe-
riod was proposed for paying the claims, and the Direc-
tors felt that there was not sufficient inducement held
out to accomplish the object. They, therefore, without
hesitation, recommend that on all shares taken from the
present day, and until further notice, a dividend at the
rate of 6 per cent. per annum be paid previously to
any distribution of profits, or dividends being made on
the antecedent shares ; and that such shares shall also
be entitled to any further amount of dividend exceed-
ing that rate which may be declared at the Annual
General Meetings, and that preference be given in the
allotment to the present Shareholders of the Company,
the payment of the shares to be as follows :-1/. depo-
sit on the allotment thereof', 14 first call, Sept. 1,1839; 1/.
second call, January Ist, 1840 ; 1/. third call , April
Ist, 1840 ; and 14 fourth call, July Ist, 1840, with
liberty to the Shareholders to pay the whole, or any of
the calls, at any time previously, the interest being cal-
culated from the time of payment. The shares required
to complete the number agreed to be raised'are about
14,000/., which will be amply sufficient to meet the exi-
gencies of the Company. The Directors have great
pleasure in stating., that since the last meeting, consi-
derable progress had been made in completing the new
factory and dock ; and they hope, that in a very short
time they will be in a perfect state, notwithstanding the
difficulties they have had to encounter ; and every day
impresses them with a sense of the great advantages
that must ultimately result. They refer with satis-
faction to the work already done under their
guidance and management, in spite of the
necessarily imperfect state of the manufactures. And
the Proprietors have only to examine into the state of
the vessels already prepared and altered for service under
this plan—the Princess Victoria, the Duchess of Kent,
the Emerald, the Grand Turk, and the Kent—to
find abundant confirmation of this statement. The
remaining vessels, with one exception, will be ready for
service within a month ; all of them in a more eumplete
state, and in fact of greater value, than when the Com-
pany was put in possession of them. The Company
will then possess a fleet of which they may well be
proud. The expenses attendant on the formation of the
factory, having naturally pressed heavily on the finances
of the Company, have retarded their expectation of dis-
charging all their debts, in (goer to prevent any fur-
ther accumulation of liabilities. Should, however, the
shares LION offered, or even a moiety of them, be
made, the Directors feel satisfied there will be
nothing to prevent the Company from becoming
prosperous, and, in the end, attaining the object they
have in view. The Directors have every reason to be-
lieve that after the present very great outlay is com-
pleted, the annual expenditure for repairing, or keeping
the vessels in good trim, will be so considerably dimi-
nished, that the present difficulties occasioned by them
will diminish, in a similar proportion. And it will-then .
be their particular care to keep a watchful eye dyer
every expenditure that is not absolutely necessary;
They can assure the Proprietors that, however imper-
fectly they may have discharged the duties committed
to them, they have discharged them at least with as
much zeal and honest ability as they possessed ;
they have sacrificed a great portion of valuable time to
the service of the Company, without remuneration, and .
their purses have been opened on many, very manaaoc-
casions, when the exigencies of the Company required
it. They have felt a pride in maintaining and uphold-
ing the Company, which has added so much to the
credit and the resources of the Port of London, and
the general advantage of its inhabitants. And this
feeling has not only been participated in by the Board
of Directors, but by every one who has had a share in
the management of the concern. The Directors take the
present opportunity of informing the Proprietors that the
holders of the 50/. original shares are entitled to a free
passage to all the home stations of the Company, in-
cluding Boulogne, and that the present Shareholders
who may be inclined to increase their shares to that ex-
tent will he entitled to the same privilege. In conclu-
sion, they trust that you will believe they are anxious
only for the best interests of the Company, which can
only be promoted by at once firmly cud unanimously
adopting the measures which they now recommend,
and which will, in their judgment, extricate the Com-
pany from its present difficulties."

- The CHAIRMAN wished to impress upon the meeting
that the unprecedentedly bad weather which had pre-
vailed last year had contributed materially to the un-
pleasing state of the accounts. The receipts were of
course less in the winter season ; but then, if the vessels
did not run, they would lose their stations fur the sum-
mer season.
The Report was adopted, with scarcely a dissentient.
Mr. NSTainwr, in proposing a vote of thanks to the
Chairman, whose exertions i❑ the cause of the Com-
pany had (he said) brought on an illness from which he
was just recovering, declared his willingness to take
5,0001. in the new shares.—(Cheers.)
Tile motion having been agreed to, and the Chair-
man returned thanks, the meeting separated.