The Sun.
London, England, 1847-02-04 00:00:00

El trIT Nbitton

SUN OFFICE, Seven o' Clock,

LONDON AND COUNTY JOINT-
STOCK BANK.—(THIS DAY.) :
The angnal meeting of the proprietors of shares in this
company,* this day held at the London Tavern, Bishops-
gate-strict, for the purpose of receiving the report of the di-
reetors, a declaration of the dividend for the past year, and
the re-electio'n of three directors in the room of those who
retired by rotation, and also for the election of an auditor in
the room of Mr. Barret, who had retired on account of ill
health.
The meeting was numerously attended, and the chair was
tako by W. Hawes, Esq.
The SECRETARY having read the advertisement convening
the meeting,
The CHAIRMAN said that it was his pleasing duty to inform
the meeting of the very favourable state of the affairs of the
company, and of the success which had attended the efforts
of the directors in the exercise of the discretion vested in
them, and that the affairs of the company, whether he
looked at the number of customers, or the balance of their
accounts in the hands of the bank, were of the most en-
couraging
nature. The reserve fund amounted to the sum
of 26,000/., an amount fully equal to the proportion of 1
the capital of other banks, amounting to 11 per
cent. The reserve fund of the London and West-
minster Bank was 11 per cent. on their capital.
the London Joint-Stock was 10 per cent., and the Union Bank
5 per cent. It was impossible, however, not to see that there
would be some difficulty in the monetary matters of this me-
tropolis
in the course of a few months. Nwas only by fore-
seeing these difficulties, and carefully providing for such con-
tingencies, that those difficulties are to be met and over-
come. Beginning with the Bank of England, and down to
all the other joint-stock banks, he believed that all of them were
carefully preparing to meet the drain arising from the extraor-
dinary demand, which was likely to be made in order to obtain
a supply of food for this country and Ireland, and he thought
that the proprietors might look forward with confidence, that
in the time of pressure and high rate of interest no difficulty
would be found among the banking interest of the metropolis.
It was confidently considered that there were ample means
to meet all the engagements which were likely to arise, in
consequence of an increased demand for accommodation to
meet the perhaps unfair exportation of bullion which would
be required to be sent out of the country. He should be
happy to give any further information upon the details of the
past year to any gentleman who might require such
information. With respect to the loss which the company had
sustained in consequence of the retirement of Mr. Barrett,
Aire auditor, on account of ill health ; and he hoped that the
gentleman, who would be appointed in his place, would ful-
fil his duties in as satisfactory and honourable a manner as
his prelecessor bad done.
The SECRETARY then read the report of the last half-year,
from which it appeared that the directors had received the
payment of a dividend of 6 per cent. (free from income-tax)
for the half-year ending 31st of December, 1846, and that the
surplus of 1,844/. 17s. 7d., remaining after the payment of
the dividend, should be carried to the credit of the reserved
fund of the company, thereby raising it to the sum of
22,2421. Is. Ild., making an increase in the past year in that
fund of the suns of 3,9581. 4s. 7d.
The report having been unanimously agreed to, it was
proposed and carried that a dividend of six per cent. should
be declared upon the past year.
On the motion of W. Join:sox, Esq., J. H. Lance, Esq.,
was appointed auditor, in the room of Mr. Barret, who had
resigned, and also continuing Mr. John Donkyn, the previous
auditor, as auditor with him for the ensuing year.
Mr. COMAJHOWN proposed, and Mr. Hitt seconded, a reso-
lution. authorising a sum, not exceeding 2,0001., to be set aside
as the remuneration for the services of the directors in the
ensuing year, which was also agreed to.
A ballot was then taken for the choice of three directors in
the room of R. Springbitt, Esq., J. C. Joyner, Esq., and S.
Jervis, Esq., who retired by rotation. The same gentlemen
were unanimously re• elected.
A resolution authorising the sum of 1,8841. 17s. 7d., to be
carried to the credit of the reserve fund, was also agred to.
The thanks of the meeting were then given to the direc-
tors and auditors, for the able manner in which they had
performed their duties during the past year.
Thanks were also voted to the chairman for the able
manner in which he had presided over the meeting.
The meeting then broke up.

FAMINE IN IRELAND AND SCOT-

LAND.

UNITED RELIEF ASSOCIATION.—(THIS DAY.)
A public meeting, convened by the committee appointed
at the recent conference of clergymen and dissenting minis-
ters, held at Exeter Hall, assembled in the Urge room of
that building, at twelve o'clock this day, to receive state-
ments from deputations who have arrived from Ireland and
Scotland, to communicate to the British public the real facts
of the present distress as they have witnessed them in these
countries. The meeting was very respectably but not nu-
merously attended.
The following gentlemen occupied the platform :—Samuel
Gurney, Esq., Dr. Urwick, Dublin ; Dr. M'Leod, Glasgow ;
Luke Hansard, Esq., Charles Cochrane, Esq., Dr. Ferguson,
St. Day Irvine, Esq., B. F. Mosse, Esq., Morris Were, Esq.,
Sir Kenneth Mackenzie, Dr. Mackenzie, P. Pittar, Esq.,
Mr. Randolph, and a number of clergymen and dissenting
ministers.
On the motion of the Rev. Dr. CAl:users Samuel Gurney
N., was called to the chair.
he CHAIRMAN, in opening the proceedings, said theywere
met to take into consideration the great afflictions of Scotland
and Ireland at the present time, with a view to alleviate
them. As gentlemen were present able to speak more accu-
rately on the subject than he was, he would not trespass on
their time, but it could not be denied that thousands of per.l'
sous would fall victims to the calamity. Scotland was not
so severely visited as Ireland, but in the Hebrides, Shetland,
and other western isles, the scarcity of food was great, and he'
was glad that they were to receive a portion of the funds.
The distress, however, in Ireland was beyond description. The
calamity was so great that no amount of relief would do
more than partially relieve it. There could be no doubt
but thousands would fall victims, and he was sure it must
afford pleasure to every one if, by his or her individual as-
sistance, a single life could be preserved. He would now
call upon others better able to communicate information to
address them.
The Rev. Dr. ÜBIVICK (Dublin) then addressed the meet-
ing, and after dwelling upon the assistance which Ireland
received from England in 1822, when the last famine visited
the former cdnntry, said that great as that visitation was, and
much as it was felt, it could not be compared to that which
at present visited that country. According to the calculations
made in the House of Commons and elsewhere, the money
value of the food lost did not amount to less than twelve
millions by the lowest estimate, sixteen millions by another
estimate, and twenty millions by a third estimate. When it
was considered, then, that this loss fell especially on the
lower classes of Ireland, who made the potatoes their sole
food, some idea might be formed of the immensity of the
wretchedness. It was calculated that it would take
ben vessels, of five hundred tons each, to arrive in Ireland
for three hundred successive days, to provide a sufficient
quantity of food for the wants of the people. This, which
he believed was not an exaggerated estimate, would afford
some idea of the great scarcity of food in Ireland. The Rev.
Gentleman then proceeded to detail the distress in different
localities in Ireland. In Dublin workhouse, which was cal-
culated to contain from 1,800 to 2,000 persons, a very few
weeks ago, 800 or 900 of them were ill with fever and
dysentery, and among the children measles prevailed to an
alarming extent. The schools of surgery in Dublin never
received so many bodies for dissection as they did recently,
which was entirely owing to the famine, and to the
inability of the poor to bury their dead. In Waterford
_ Cork, Clonmel, Sligo, and other places, the destitution was
equally great, and in many places more extreme. Much
was said about the great purchase of arms in Ireland, but he
accounted for that from the repeal of the Arms Act last ses-
sion, and from the feeling of insecurity caused by the desti-
tution. Besides, the arms were purchased by those who
were in comfortable circumstances. The deposit of money
in the savings' banks was also brought forward to show that
the destitution could not be so extreme. But to
all this he would reply, " Look at the Irish
newspapers ; see the number of inquests daily reported
in them, to each one of which was appended
the verdict 'Died from starvation Died from starva-
tion !"—' Died from starvation !' 'r He conclued by moving
the following resolution :—" That upon the evidence daily
received through the public journals, and from private
sour:es, detailing scenes of the utmost destitution, and con-
tinued deaths from starvation, in Ireland especially, but also
in Scotland and even in our own country, it is the conviction
of this meeting that it is desirable to make a more general
collection, and upon a broader basis of appeal, than any that
has yet been made, throughout the length and breadth of
the land."
The Rev. Dr. APLEon seconded the resolution, and con-
curred with the Rev. Gentleman who last addressed them,
that the' state of distress in Scotland could not be compared
with that of Ireland. The latter he believed to be unparal-
leled. In the Western Isles, however, the destitution was of
the most painful kind. He could speak of instances where
the fountain of nature was dried up at the mother's breast.
Re could speak of instances of a similarly frightful nature, but
to an intelligent audience like that before him, who were in
the habit of reading the papers, it was unnecessary. He
would, however, state that there was a population of 300,009
suffering from the effects of the scarcity, and that there
were 150,000 of this population seven-eighths of
whose food consisted entirely of potatoes. The re-
maining 150,000 did not live entirely on potatoes;
they lived a little above the others, but the failure
had affected them greatly, and they would be in as poor and
in as destitute condition as the others in a few months.
They would have no seed to put into the ground in spring
time, and unless relief were given to them, the scarcity, next
year, would be as great, and the whole fabric of society would
totter to the ground. He did not believe that the helpless
condition of the people was owing to the landlords, but to
the circumstance of the annihilation of the kelp manu-
facture, which was carried on to a great extent in the
islands, and which was altogether destroyed by a
late legislative enactment. It was, therefore, by no
reckless negligence of the proprietors that this inability of the
people to sustain themselves, under the present calamity,
was attributable, but to the cause to which he referred, es
also to the:land being turned into pasturage,land to the popu-
lation being driven out to make way for the graziers. It
was due, however, to the proprietors to state that, with
one exception, their conduct on the present occasion was
noble. This exception, too, was brought to his senses by
the force of public opinion. It was !mistake to say that the
to ' 1. given under the late drainage Act was money given
Highlands. It was money lent to Scotland on good
security, every
Penny of which, principal and interest, must
be repaid.
The- Reverend Gentleman concluded by making
to
a powerful appealthe feelings of the meeting, and hoped
that they would remnd to the call now made upon them.
The Rev. Dr.
while he Concurred with supported the resolution, and
thet Rev. Gentleman who had just
addressed them as to the
wigs bound to state that theyeate dof Scotland and Ireland, he
a large population who wer beau at home among themselves
Lute. The calamity vas un,
ivaneredest7iitglbf
countryrenwnasilesnOtaandd ea ti-
exempt from the visitation
that it was unparalleled in extent if not
made him say
present association had not if in severity. The
vitiating the milk of human kindness ' sectarianism
position. It was constituted of ministers andl laymen
various religious denominations,. and this circumstanceeen'e
vested it with a claim on the charity of the public, which he would be responded to.. If there was any one who
might might be disposed to confine. his bounty to the "household
of the faith," he would tell him that this was net sanctioned
by scriptural authority, for the Churches of the Gentile came
to the rescue when the poor of Judea were visited with afflic-
tion. The man who offered a bribe to a poor man to become
- insulted alike the sanctity of religion and
was enough for all if it was
Id did not bring people into the
their wants. Avarice, however,
intentions, and begot the hag
ip theft from the bottomless pit.
the resignation with which the

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