The Sun.
London, England, 1856-08-09 00:00:00

BANK OF LONDON.

The adjourned general meeting of the proprietors was
held yesterday at the London Tavern ; Sir J. V. Shelley,
Bart., M.P., in the chair.

The auditors appointed by the proprietors at the meet-
ing on the Bth July presented their report, which was
read by the secretary, as follows :—" The charter of
your bank confers upon you the important privilege,
enjo'ed by few joint-stock banks, of selecting your own
auditors, and as we have the honoui to be the first audi-
tors so appointed, we thought it our duty on this occa-
sion t 3 enter very fully into the examination of your
affairs, and to add a few words to the formal verification
of the accounts, implied by the subscription of our sig.
nature thereto. We directed particular attention on
this occasion to;the preliminary items of accounts, such
as the capital account, and preliminary and building
expenses, and having been furnished with ample infor-
mation and proper vouchers, we certify that those
accounts are accurately and properly stated: The title
deeds of property purchased, and the securities of vari-
ous classes in the bank, were produced to us, and we
attended at the Bank of England to verify accounts of
Government stock. All these items were found to be
correct. We may add that we have found the business
of the bank in London has been steadily progressing
from the commencement, that a considerable country
agency has been acquired, and that the Charing-cross
branch is already a source of profit. The accounts of
the bank 'are kept upon a systeni which enabled us to
inform ourselves without difficulty upon every head ;
nothing within the proper rnisseof our inquiry was
esattlield; the bad and doubtful debts--incurred are re-
markably small ; and we have the satisfaction of stating
our opinion that your affairs have been managed hitherto
with great prudence, and that a continuance of such
management must tend to promote the interests of the
proprietors, and to maintain public confidence."
On the motion of Mr. R. HARTLEY, seconded by Mr.
MITCHELL, the above report was adopted unanimously,
The CHAIRMAN said the next business was the election
of three directors to fill up the vacancies caused by re-
tirement. Since they last met he had succeeded in carrying
through Parliament a bill which enabled the shareholders
to re-elect director; who retired by rotation, and though
he had no wish unduly to influence the choice of the pro-
prietors, he must remark that the gentlemen who had
now vacated their seats at the board had from the first
rendered the greatest assistance in the management of
the affairs of the bank. (Hear, hear )
The retiring directors, Mr. C. Joyce, Mr. 11. Morris,
and Mr. J. Greatorex, were unanimously re-elected.
The CHAIRMAN then moved the following resolution :
--qhat the meeting hereby authorises the directors to
call future ordinary general meetings on such days as
they may deem convenient, between the let and the
15th of August in each year." He said, in submitting
this resolution, he wished to observe that he had that
morning seen the report of the auditors for the first time,
and was previously entirely unaware of its nature.
(Hear.) If an audit was to be of any value, it must
he quite independent of directors. (Hear, hear.) Since
the last meeting he had seen a letter in a newspaper in
reference to the Life Assurance Office adjoining the
bank. On that subject he would now repeat what he
bad supposed himself to have stated distinctly enough
before : that that bank had no connection with the Life
teffice, except as regarded the relative position of land-
lord and tenant, banker and customer. (Hear.) He
thought it his duty to place that point clearly before
the meeting. He begged to add, that the future meet-
ings of the company would be held in a room at the
bank.

In reply to a question,
The CHAIRMAN said that the dividends would always
be paid half-yearly, though the meetingi would only be
held annually.
The motion was then agreed to.
A PROPRIETOR suggested that in future the report
should be circulated some days before the meeting was
held.

The CHAIRMAN said ho believed that was not the cus-
tom of the old banks, but that was no reason why it
should not be adopted there.

After somo conversation with regard to the possible
inconveniences of circulating the report several days be-
fore the meeting—inconveniences which the shareholders
generally did not appear to consider worthy of attention
—it was moved by Mr. KERRY, seconded by Mr. CLARK,
and resolved unanimously, "That on future occasions
the balance-sheet be printed and circulated amongst the
proprietors seven days at least before any general meet-
ing."
_ _

On the motion of Mr. J. JoaNsotsr, one of the audi-
tors, thanks were vot,ql to Mr. Marshall, the manager,
and to Mr. B. Scott, the secretary, of the bank.
The meeting terminated with a vote of thanks to the
chairman and his colleagues in the direction.