The Sun.
London, England, 1861-08-05 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, AUGUST 5, 1861.

which has been created by calling upon us for addi-
tional subscriptions, not a reserve fund which is
taken out of subscribed capital, but a reserve fund
amounting now to £166,000, which has been fairly
and honourably created out of the profits of the
concern, out of the premiums
paid by the company.
Therefore, sir, I assert that is a large foundation,
and one upon which we may congratulate ourselves.
With these few remarks I beg most cordially to
second the resolution. (Applause.)
The resolution for the adoption of the report was
then put and carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN next moved—" That this meet-
ing approves of the declaration by the directors of
a dividend of 3s. per share, and a bonus of 4s. per
share, out of the profits of the company to the 31st
December, 1860, the same to be payable on or after
the 12th day of August inst., free of income tax."
Mr. C. MOZLEY, in seconding the motion, said—
The resolution is one whieh usually elicits the kindly
and sympathetic feeling of a meeting of shareholders,
and which is invariably received with consideration
and with regard. (Hear.) But in seconding a reso-
lution of this kind, under somewhat peculiar cir-
cumstances, I feel that it may be needful that I
should preface it by a few remarks. They shall be
but few; but, inasmuch as some objections may pos-
sibly be taken to the amount of dividend proposed,
I think it due to myself to say that I am the last
man to come forward in this meeting, or in any
other, and to recommend a dividend to be paid which
I did not think the finances of the company would
justify. (Hear.) True it is, Sir, that a very severe
loss has been suffered by this company, in common
with many others, owing to the recent calamity in
London ; but the able remarks which havebeen made
by the chairman, and followed up by Mr. Alderman
Holme, must have convinced the shareholders that
while security is given to the assured, it is not ne-
cessary that we should deprive those who have been
the assurers, by means of their property invested in
this company, of that natural return which they
have a right to look for from their investment.
(Hear.) A remark may naturally be made that the
business of the company, however great, and pros-
perous, shows only an amount to the credit of profit
and loss of £71,000, while the loss by the recent
fire was £75,000. I have heard it mooted out of
doors that It 'IN conbiacrea trenching too far to as-
sign a dividend to the shareholders when the profit
of the company has been already absorbed. But
what I contend for is that, by the results of our
business up to the present period, and by the judi-
cious arrangement of our funds, we have made a re-
serve of £166,000 up to Christmas last, and that even
when the dividend and bonus which you are now
asked to give have been paid, you will still be add-
ing to that reserve fund a sum of £37,000, making
its total amount £203,000. Now, unless we are to
believe that calamities of this kind are to be con-
tinuous, I think that reserve is ample, not only to
meet the contingency which has just occurred, but
to enable the directors to give a dividend to the
shareholders which will yield them the interest for
which they are entitled to look upon the capital
they have embarked. (Hear, hear.) On these
grounds I approve of the dividend proposed by the
directors. (Hear, hear.) The reserve fund you
look to, not only to give security to the assured,
which is a more important consideration than any
other, but you look to it also to equalise the divi-
dend which you give to the shareholders, so long
as the resources of the company, the state of the
reserve, and the progress of your business shall be
sufficient and ample to justify it. (Hear, hear.)
The resolution, after a short discussion, was un-
animously carried.
Mr. JOHNSTON then moved the following resolu-
tion :—" It being stated that the following tlirectors
retire by rotation at this meeting, but were eligible
for re-election, namely :—Michael Belcher, Esq.,
Thomas Bouch, Esq., G. H. Horsfall, Esq., R. L.
Jones, Esq., E. T. Kearsley, Esq., William Smith,
Esq., and Charles Turner, Esq. ; resolved, that the
retiring directors be re-elected directors of this
company." Mr. Johnston remarked that all the
retiring directors were well known to the share-
holders, who were equally aware of the efficient
manner in which they and the other directors had
conducted the company's business.
Mr. LANCASTER (of London) seconded the reso-
lution.
The CHAIRMAN, in putting the resolution, hoped
that Mr. Titherington would not next year move,
and that Mr. Younghusband would not second, any
addition to the dividend. He did not think it would
be wise to declare any additional dividend until the
reserve fund (after calculating for the £75,000 loss)
amounted to something like £200,000. They should
certainly not look forward to an increased dividend
for next year, and probably not for the year after.
The resolution was then put and carried.
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the re-election of the
auditors, said—lt is not for me, as chairman, to say
anything about the auditors, who are put there to
see that the accounts are kept correctly, and that
the finances are properly applied, but as far as the
opinion of the board is concerned, the auditors fully
do their duty to the proprietors. (Hear, hear.) The
following is the resolution :—" That Wm. Tither-
ington, Esq., and John Dickinson, Esq.,be re-elected
auditors for the ensuing year."
Mr. CORBALLY seconded the resolution, which
was unanimously adopted,
Mr. CARTER inquired what was the amount of
the reserve fund ?
The CHAIRMAN—It was £166,030 on the 31st of
December last ; and the .£37,000 which will remain
at the credit of profit and loss, after payment of the
dividend, will raise it to £203,000. Against that
must be set the loss of the £75,000, and the other
losses ofthe year. These losses are primarily charge-
able upon the profits of the present year ; but the
loss of the £75,000 is an exceptional and extraor-
dinary occurrence, and the business of this year will,
in all human probability, show a certain amount of
loss.

Mr. CARTER—Does the amount received for pre-
miums, as stated in the report, represent a net
amount, after providing for re-assurances ?
The CHAIRMAN certainly.
Mr. TITHERINGTON—In acknowledging your
kind confidence in re-electing my colleague and my-
self, I assure you that to the best of our ability we
have discharged our duties faithfully in the audit-
ing of these accounts. Our position is somewhat
like that of detectives; at all events we are here to
see that everything is right. (Hear, hear, and
laughter.) We have, in reply to the summons of
your manager, which I think it is but right in
justice to him should be read, had access to every
document connected with the company. Mr.
Titherington here read the letter;—
"Royal Insurance. office, Royal Insurance-buildings,
North John-street, Dale-street, Liverpool,
June 25, 1861.
"Dear you oblige me by your attendance to
audit the accounts of the company for the second half of the
past year, at:your earliest convenience ?
"Referring to our letters on former occasions asking for
the strictest scrutiny into the accounts and examination of
the securities held by the company for loans and invest-
ments and cash vouchers, 1 shall be much gratified by your
examination of these documents on this occasion, and, in-
deed, on the occasion of every future audit likewise.
" I trust you will be enabled to name an early day for the
commencement of this work.—l am, dear Sir, yours truly,
(Signed) "PERCY M. DOVE, Manager.
" Wm. Titherington, Esq."
I should wish it to go forth (he said) that we have
access here—ready access, willing access—given to
us to every document connected with the company,
and we have passed again under examination every
voucher, every deed, and every certificate (and it is
matter, I assure you, of no light moment togo through
them all in the case of a property represent-
ing something like £850,000), and I have
great pleasure in testifying to you and the proprie-
tors present that we found everything in the most
perfect order, and perfectly correct. (Applause.) I
only regret, gentlemen, that I had to take excep-
tion ; but it was merely out of good feeling, and
knowing that the company could afford a little
more money.
The CHAlRMAN—Gentlemen, I should like to say
one word. I can assure you that the directors feel
very sensibly the able and efficient manner in which
Mr. Dove has discharged his duties, under very
trying circumstances, during the past year, and
particularly at the period of the late fire, when his
opinion and his judgment were looked up to very
much by the associated companies. Allow me to
move that the thanks of the proprietors be given
to the manager, deputy manager, and other officers
of the company, but particularly to Mr. Dove, for
maxnarg. eyd
othueN
ccoumupsßanlps affseaciorsn.ded(Atphpelauresseo.
the able and excellent manner in which they have
which was carried unanimously.
com-
pliment paid to rneE.
Mr. PERCY Dov •
said—
Mr. Chairman, and to theremarks am oh i
which
obliged
ht)lou
hiyi
aoo‘un,
The proprietors
for the e
fallen from the preceding speakers and from the
chairman only serve to confirm my impression that
as respects the company its loss of £75,000 may, in
many ways, be useful in securing a future career of
increased prosperity. (Hoar.) Let the true principles
and uses of a reserved fund and the necessity of its
being fully ample
once be fixed, as it will be after the
day's proceedings, on the minds of the proprietors,and
I am satisfied the company will continue to be one of
the most firmly established, as it is certainly one of
the most successful companies in the country.
and
have no doubt, I say, that in future years,
through a lengthened period far beyond what any
of us shall live to see, it will be second to none in
its permanent hold off the confidence of the com-
munity. (Hear.) Without entering on the pro-
cesses by which it is calculated the end may be at.
tained, I may venture to state that long and re-
peated reflection on the position of the company
since the great fire has brought conviction to my
mind that the prospects of the future were never so
bright for us as they are now. The fire branch. as
you have heard, has arrived at a magnitude which

no one anticipated or dreamed of ten years since.
The life business has recently made a rapid spring
far in advance even of its former success. The late
enormous loss to the offices forms an additional page
in the lesson which teaches us that the element of
danger from fire has been greatly enhanced in the
last few years. I only pause to name two causes—
the general use of lncifer matches and the increased
instances of spontaneous combustion. This event,
I say, will inculcate caution and prudence in every
representative of an insurance company at all capable
of acquiring wisdom by experience. Much has been
said of new insurance companies. One or two may
certainly arise from time to time, destined, however,
I fear, if we may judge from the crude and delusive
statements which were received as truths at some
recent meetings in London, to add to the beacons of
warning with which the last few years have been
prolific. But indeed any company, old or new,
seeking to obtain unfair advantages over their con-
stituents by excessive rates, on the one hand, or
temporary popularity by insufficient rates, on the
other, will meet a like fate—utter disappointment
and failure. The directors of the Royal will, lam
satisfied, continue to act on right principles and
with sound judgment ; and I hope that measures in
contemplation, yet in embryo, will make this com-
pany known and esteemed wherever the knowledge
of British commercial enterprise shall extend.
(Hear, and applause.)
Mr. TITHERINGTON was satisfied that no single
mind could grasp the whole of the company's vast
operations without suffering from the strain caused
by such heavy resonsibility, and he hoped, there-
fore, that Mr. Dove would confine himself as much
as possible to the higher portions of the business,
and surround himself with master minds in the
various departments. Otherwise he felt sure Mr.
Dove's mind must yield to the enormous pressure.
Mr. Titherington hoped that the meeting would
give an expression of their opinion that the Board
would never stint Mr. Dove that assistance in the
heads of departments which the increased and in-
creasing business of the company might require.
The business was really enormous, and by and by
would astonish the proprietors.
Mr. HALL had great pleasure in proposing the
following resolution :—" That the thanks of this
meeting be presented to the Chairman, Deputy-
Chairman, and Directors of the Company ; to the
Directors and Secretary of the London Branch,
and also to the members of the Managing Com-
mittee, and the Company's Agent at New York,
for their valuable services during the past year."
Mr. DOWDALL seconded the resolution, which
was adopted unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN, on behalf of himself and his
colleagues, returned their sincere thanks, and as-
sured the proprietors that they were at all times
most desirous of doing their duty to the company,
their energies and minds being constantly devoted
to this object. He trusted that their endeavours,
with the able assistance of the manager and the
other officers, would be as successful in the present
as they had been in previous years. (Applause.)
The proceedings then closed.

ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE.

WESTERN CIRCUIT —BoDmIN AUG 3
___ _ •

Charity Hoskin was indicted for the wilful
murder of Annie Hoskin, at Truro, on the sth of
June.

Mr. Stock prosecuted ; and Mr. Holdsworth, at
the request of the judge, watched the case for the
prisoner.

From the statement of the counsel it appeared
that the prisoner was a person in very humble life
and had passed most of her days in extreme poverty.
A few years ago she 'married a person named Hos-
kin, by whom she had three children, two of whom
were dead, and the other lived chiefly with the pri-
soner's mother. Some four or five years since her
husband deserted her, and since that time she had
been in the very depths of poverty, generally living
in different workhouses. In the month of April
she went into the workhouse at Truro, being at the
time large in the familyway. On the 10th of May
she was delivered of a female child. She remained
in the workhouse until Tuesday, the 4th of June,
when, by her own desire, she quitted it, taking her
child with her. About a quarter before twelve
o'clock on that night she was seen by a woman
named Williams in a street in Truro. She then had
a child with her. About 4 o'clock in the morning
a policeman saw her, but then she had no child
with her. About 5 o'clock that morning a barge-
man, going down the river with his barge, dis-
covered the body of a child in the river. He took
it up, and found a piece of tape tied to the arm of
the child and a piece of culm tied to the other end
of the tape, as if to sink the body. The bargeman
then carried the body to the police-station, and it
was identified as the body of the prisoner's child.
A surgeon was called in, who examined the body,
and he stated that the death of the child was
caused by drowning.
When the policeman saw the prisoner at 4
o'clock in the morning, he asked her what she was
doing at that early hour. She said she was wait-
ing to see Bennett the butcher, to send a message
to her mother. The policeman then walked
on. About 7 that morning the 'prisoner was appre-
hended in the Truro market-house. She was asked
where her child was. She said she did not know,
but afterwards said "I gave it to George Willes
yesterday afternoon to put it out to nurse." Willes
was then apprehended, and asked what he had done
with the child. He said he knew nothing about it.
He afterwards said to the prisoner " I never saw
you yesterday afternoon. I never saw you till 10
o'clock last night at the Barley Sheaf." She made
no answer. They were then put in separate cells.
About 8 that morning two policemen went to her
cell to search her pockets. She handed over a purse
containing some pence. She was much excited.
She said " My God, 1 will knock my brains out
before to-morrow against the wall; hand my clothes
over to my mother. I shan't be alive in the morn-
ing. I wish I had left the child in the road and
thrown myself in the water instead." A policeman
remained in the cell with her and she repeatedly
threatened to destroy herself. She asked if there
were any marks or bruises on the child's face. The
policeman told her he did not know, but it was
bleeding at the mouth. She said " Oh, I never
slap't it, or bruised it, or broke anything." She
then asked it there was anything broken. The
policeman replied that he did not think thei e was.
She said George 'Willes ought to have given her
some money. She had done it all for want. She
said " I am so miserable, if I had a knife I would cut
my throat. You shall not have to go to Bodmin
against me. I don't care where Igo to, I will soon
follow it." In the course of the day she asked if
they ever hanged women. The policeman said
Yes, but in such a case as this they might not, as
it was a young child.
It appeared that the prisoner had been living
with George Willes for some months.
When the prisoner was before the magistrates she
said " 1 have none it through poverty."
Mr. Houldsworth addressed the jury on behalf
of the prisoner. Their sympathy would be for this
poor woman. There was every probability that
some other person had committed this act, be-
cause the prisoner had a home in the workhonse.
There could be no doubt Willes was the father
of the child, therefore she was anxious to put the
child to Willes, in order that she might provide a
livelihood for herself. He urged that the prisoner
should have been cautioned before the policeman
questioned her. She had stated that she had given
the child to Willes, and when he denied it and she
found his story believed instead of hers she had be-
come in such an excited state of mind that she did
not know what she said when she made statements
which they had heard detailed by the policeman,
The act was more that of man tt an a woman ; it
was more the interest of Willes to get rid of the
child, because he would have to provide for it. What
object had she of getting rid of the child ? He sub-
mitted that there was not that conclusive evidence
which would 'justify the jury in convicting the pri-
soner.

Mr. Baron Channel], in summing up, told the jury
that they were to discharge their duty a -xording to
their oath upon a calm review of the evidence.
The jury retired for a long time, and then brought
in a verdict of Guilty, but strongly recommended
the prisoner to mercy, on the ground of her extreme
poverty.
Mr. Baron Chaunell then, in the most feeling
manner, passed sentence of death upon the prisoner,
but said ho would take care that the recommenda-
tion of the jury should be forwarded to the proper
quarter.
Richard Perry Wm. Arthur and Richard Cory
were indicted for killing and slaying Samuel Mit-
chell at Medrese.

The jury at first returned a verdict of Not Guilty,
but the judge asked the
.jury if they thought the
death had arisen from natural causes, and not from
the fight.

'l'h;; jury said, " Oh no, it was from the fight."
:The Judge then explained the law of the case to
the jury, and after some time they returned a verdict
of Guilty. The prisoners were sentenced to one
week's imprisonment.

(Before Mr. Justice CIVIL.
BylesSIDE and a Common Jury.)

TRETITEWAY V. GREGG.
Mr. M. Smith, Q.C., and Mr. Kingdon were
counsel for the plaitiff ; Mr. H. T. Cole appeared for
the defendant.
The plaintiff in this case was a miner, and the
defendant was a gentleman carrying on business in
Lombard-street, and the action was brought for
work done to a mine called the East Fowey Mine,
in Cornwall, of which the defendant was one of the
adventurers.

Evidence having been given to prove that the

defendant was an adventurer in the mine and that
the work was done,
The jury found for the plaintiff for £5l 9s.
KNIGHT V. HORSIVALL.

Mr. M. Smith, Q.C., and Mr. H. T. Cole were
counsel for the plaintiff; Mr. Collier, Q.C., and Mr.
Kingdon for the defendant.
This was an action for breach of promise of mar-
riage.
It was stated that the parties had agreed upon a
verdict, and the defendant was desirous of stating
that there was not the slightest imputation upon
the character of the lady, and that he had not been
induced to break off the match from any miscon-
duct on her part.
A verdict was then taken by consent for the
plaintiff, £lOO damages.