The Sun.
London, England, 1867-02-07 00:00:00

Three o'clock.—Greater buoyancy has been dis-
played towards the close, which has taken place at
the following higher quotations :

41 per Cents —
Do. end month —
3 per Cents. —
Do. end month 69 571
2
Credit Mobilier

Bank Shares —
Italian Loan —
Do. end month 54 70
Mexican Loan 2l 50
Do. Bonds 145

Do. end month 532 50
Credit Foncier
Do. end month 1490

Spanish Threes 35
Home Debt
Deferred

For Ace;)unt.
Orleans
Northern l2OO
Lyons and Mediterranean 920
Southern 570
Westerß 583 75
Eastern

Sardinian

Austrian
Lombard 407 50

North of Spain llB 75
Saragossa . 132 50
Ditto to Barcelona —
Boylan.

The Provident Clerks' Mutual Life As.

surance Association.

The 26th annual meeting of the members of this
association was held last evening at the London
Tavern, Bishopsgate-street, for the purpose of re-
. . . .

ceiving the report of the directors and the balance-
sheet for the past year, and the transaction of the
general business of the association. The proceed-
ings were presided over by Mr. Richard Henry
Jones, the chairman of the board of directors.
Mr. LINFORD, the secretary, read the directors'
annual report, which was as follows :
The Board of Directors have the pleasure to lay before
the members their 26th annual report, and beg to congra-
tulate them on the continued prosperity of the association.
The new proposals received during the year 1866 were,
1,387 for £309,200, of which were completed and policies
issued 1,139 for £242,750, the remainder being deferred,
declined, or now under consideration. The new annual
income arising from assurances completed during the year
is £7,010 10s. The total income from premiums, dtc., is
£68,667 3s. 3d., of which £33,147 ls. bd. has been added
to capital account. The sum of £2,415 9s. has also been
received is purchase of annuities. The funds of the asso-
ciation amounted on the 31st December last to £317,695
7s. 7d. 135 policies, assuring with bonuses £23,905 Gs.lld.,
have become claims by death. The following directors re-
tire by rotation, but being eligible offer themselves for re-
election :—Mr. Edward Coleman, Mr. Sancton Wood, Mr.
Henry Rogers. The following gentlemen, duly qualified,
are proposed as auditors for the ensuing year J. R.
Lloyd, Mr. F. F. Toole, Mr. C. Woolley. The satisfac-
tory nature of the above report will, it is hoped, operate as
an additional inducement to the members of the association
to continuo their exertions in extending more and more
widely its sphere of usefulness.

The CHAIRMAN said it gave him great pleasure in
meeting, for the twenty-sixth time, so many friends
as he did on the occasion. Since they had last met
an eventful year had passed, one entailing sorrow
and misery on many who might have become mem-
bers of that association, some of whom at least he
knew personally who had been swept away by the
panic. Notwithstanding this melancholy circum-
stance, the directors had the pleasure of informing
the meeting that their association had expe
rienced that prosperity they had always enjoyed.
Through the unfortunate state of things that
had existed they had not perhaps done
as much as they otherwise would, but he had
the greatest satisfaction in informing the meet-
ing that their success had exceeded all former years,
and for that he thought they ought to be thankful.
He told them last year that their watchword was
" progress," but he feared that had led him to be
covetous, for he wished it now was " excel." This
might easily be achieved; in fact it would be a very
easy thing to bring about if every one of their
members only made up his mind to do something.
It was a very simple thing to do, as surely all had
at least one friend they could ask and urge to be-
come a member. Some of their friends had done
good service to the cause, and to those he, on the
part of the directors, begged to offer their acknow-
ledgments and thanks. He hoped they would not
let this hint of his pass by as valueless, because if
they determined to azt upon it it would increase
the scope of their association in a very
large degree, and at the same time it would
be doing an act of good to the families of every
one who was induced to become a member.
In taking that chair that evening he became sen-
sible to the fact that another year of his life had
passed away, and this thought made him exceedingly
anxious to carry out to the fullest extent that which
had always been his great desire, namely, its pros-
perity and welfare. (Hear, hear.) It was his
privilege and pleasure to preside over them that
evening, and he always wished to do the best he
could to further the interests of the Society; and
he became doubly anxious, because that might be
the last year he would be amongst them, and he was
exceedingly anxious to quit with a good character.
He therefore heartily wished they would set about
doing that request which he had made to them ;
there was nothing like doing things at once, because
postponement was dangerous. The report and
balance-sheet which they had heard read, though
short, showed a satisfactory state of progress ; and
he, perhaps, might let them pass without
further comment, but there were one or two
items which he could not refrain fro m
alluding to. In the balance-sheet for the
year 1865 showed the total income to be £62,800
whilst that for the present year gave it as

£68,600, showing an increase of nearly £6,000.
The expense of management in the year 1865
was £9 6s. Od. per cent, whilst the per tentage for
1866 was £8 9s. 6d. (Hear, hear.) The rate of
interest on all their fixed investments up to Dec.,
1866, was £4 17s. 6d.—(hear, hear)--which he
had no doubt would be looked upon as highly
favourable ; and it was a striking fact, that in the
issue of the eleven thousand and thirty-nine new
policies, it had not caused any increase in their ex-
penditure. They had punctually met all their claims,
paid all their bills, provided for all expenses, and
having done all this, they had carried over a very
handsome balance. There was one thing, he thought,
he ought to tell them, and that was that they held
£3,000 of debentures in the London, Chatham,
and Dover Railway Company. They all knew the
position of that company, and therefore he need not
further refer to it, but he hoped for the best. His
only reason in referring to the matter at all was
that they had no secrets from their members. (Hear,
hear.) All these transactions were open and above
board; and it was that fact alone that made him
mention the subject. The gradual increase of
business, year by year, ho thought was brought
about by three causes, viz., the exertions of
, the directors, the eal of their secretary, and
the activity of the excellent staff. (Hear,