The Sun.
London, England, 1857-03-27 00:00:00

NEWSPAPER
• . ,' 1.:!;A o,"\
k1,,,....-,, . - a.a:aferta 'l,•;:i.eke.,.
: ( tt:',' -'-'.-)'..ev"
,11.-• fi,'
Ti:e eo ntimerciJ hi-to -y -4 ie eistiffrt flerusSo be
li tie el• e than a r: cord iii the shanie Cal inisnienitge-
truheeir?,
vs,,,f,;ls,jur p,,tiii,, companies. Ori 'Meted my last
an exposure of the Ae4rralian Agricul-
tural, which, with ale_dd-up ca'fiatal of 380,000/.
and a f•es'grant of irenrly 700,000-Vcres of Vain. :ble
land, has; squandered all its imme Late resettle e-i,
P ignorance.hha
eer
isa s share
d i
Batty,
lAli di
natf
eerbia
itnid;arif yi:se:_pes
irhipe
,irveeni
tjobeu:evs. itll-g,
fipkitmept
hrcenee Linnnoe,
nexPcidir 000tufnoowuritiinti:hade
subscribers sh :wing 14,42.21. tehaive been expen•led
by the directors in tie mete intro luctien of that
ewerprise to the public, not a single st-.p having
bleu taken in the shaee of tin absolut - commence-
msnt of
.business. Yest rdey the the • e war the
London and Eastern Bulk, which, Navin, been
established three years baek td carry on hankine
and exchange t ansactiorta with India, wt ;h a pal l-
up capita of 250,0001., has contrived in that period
to assist its own directors and manatee- with stuns
aniountiug in the agabr eeate t o neatly 290,0005, rind
which is now ohligedto ai:nouncete i: s islaceh title ns
the-probable loss of their who'e investment, with
the possibility of their being calle:1 neon even f era
furtier conciderati • contrib%ti •n. The ,addi i-n t..)
the list fir to-day is. furnished byte North tit Ea-
rop,i Steam Company. About, a month back the •
Times cautioned the eublic that t iiere were unfa-
vourvele rumours regarding this ondeetaldeg wllicii
require I 'nye ligatioe, al ihoigh the gr•-:at lies; &ta
b bey oft e direct: irs s -emed -0 preeinde •he p issi-
lalLy of -:h re being an) thing really wr leg. The
result was that some of the ler, est propriet its
wait •-d tip,mn the directors, and were solemnly as-
sur-d th•it, netwithstaodimg some inccnveairnce
which had arisen fr:im accident al ca.e. es, nothing had
occurred to interfere wi-h the peaty; neut prosp•rity
of the coecern ; that the la ge dividends pail had
all been honestly earned, and, of eoer-e, tied t• ere
cad never been aey:hing mote unjustifialA than
tie distrust suggested by the Times. It was,added,
moreover, t.•a'i at the m- t tiug of tie company ab tut
to be held i v: ry detail w- eld be entered inte, eed
this favourabl., :st oein- n be fully confirmed. That
meeting ti-Ok` pities to-dey, Sir- Btritrliiin Pete :n :lite
chair, and the following is a earretive of tee pro-
ceedings, from which it will be seen that the direc-
tors, like thetas of the Australia!' Agriculeued Cern-
patty, have perilled the entire proper' of theit con-
stituents by leaving it recHessiy in the contrei of a
single ihdividu ml ; that 50,0001. or upward, out of
a capital ef 5001110/., has lean lost in the course
of a few months, w-thout the board having tile
slightest suspicion of time circumstance ; an I that
the last half-yearly dividend at the rate of 8 per
cent. per annum was paid not only when the e
had been uo prolts, but _actually wale there ruin-
ous pi oce: dings were: going on. The chairman
c :mtnenced by adverting to the declaration of a
ditii,bend in July last for the previous stx months
mmishout the: presentati- nof accounts, there being .
made up annually. The distribui ion, which invelved ,
13,0001., was made on the faith of a statement pre-
pared by the managing director, Captain Andrews,
showing for the half-year ending midsummer a.
profit of upwards of 21,0 10/., and certified by Mr.
J. E. Coleman. On that occasion Capt. Andrews
personally eddrest.d the proprietors, alluding to the
posi: ien and prospects of the company, which he
described as satisfactory, and it was then supposed •
that when the meeting took riace in January there
would be at least an equal if not an augur-rated di-
vidend. Soon aft!r Christmas the accountant of
the company died, and it was found, eotwithstand-
ing every exertion, imporsi:tle to complete the ac-
counts in time for the usual meeting in February.
The directors, however, had no reason to believe
but that the business had been in a favourable po-
sition, and it was not until Tuesday, when the
books were brought into partial order, that -they
and Mr. Coleman discovered the fact of. x consid a-
able loss on the operations of the year. Capt. An-
drews, the managingdirector, was incapacitated to-
wards the 'close of the year through sickness, and
although previously apparently in the vigour of
health, the disease from which he suffered had over-
thrown his intellect, and he was no long-r respon-
sible for his acts. In this state of things the b'st '
exertions had been made to prepare accounts for
the:shareholders, but at present they were incom-
plete, although Mr. Coleman had ascertained that
the loss was at least 50,000/. This circumstance had
taken the directors greatly by surprtse, and as Capt.
Andrews, in whom the board as well as the share-
holders had placed great confidence, could not Le
appealed 'to, the directors proposed that a commit-
tee of shareholders 'should be appeintel to co-
operate with them in carrying out au examin tit ii in
of tine accounts, and inveligating the state of the
trade not only with regard to the past, but also the
future. With respect to the position occupied
by himself, the cheirman staled that his origit al
holding in the company was 20,0001., but that,
having confidence in the management of Captaiit
Andrews and the position of the undertaking, he
had increased it to 60,0001. fully -paid up. C0,,5t.,-
quently, if the shareholders had been deceived, he
himself largely participated in the sacrince. Time
announcement of the loss occasioned great dissatis-
faction, and several sh'areholders arraigned tile con-
duct of the directors for the absence of the neces-
sary vigilance, and also the neglect of ordinary ar-
rangements, since the loss of the services of a mana-
ger, and the death of the principal accountant
could /let otherwise have terown the company
into such a state of inextricable confusion.
In answer to questions, the chairman mentioned
that of the fle_ t fourteen- vessels were employed,
three under repair, and ten unemployed, and that
the weekly pay-sheet at Lowestoft amounts to
1401. A Variety of interrog _t ries were p t with
respect to the raffle arrangements, which were re-
plied
to. but it was sugeemted that it would be more
desirable to allow a committee to take theme into
considerat•on. It was stated that the posiion of
the share list is satisfactory, the majority being all
pail up. A shareholder inquire" if the last divi- 1
dend was declared, when there was in reality no
profit. The chairman said he feared from what had

once bcen ascertained that such would 1a,3 found to
be the ca 0. Two or Vire, proprietors then desired
Mr. Coleman to explain how he came to certify to
the accounts, In reply he stated that the accounts
were regularly audited to December, 1855. Being
made out annually, there was no balance—heet pre-
pared to the 30th'of June, 1856. Ast ttement of
the earnings for thitse six m: nths was, however,
subiniVed to himself and the directors by Captsin
Andrews, which sbowed, from the employme-t of
vessels in the transport s.rvice and other sources, a
total of about 24,0001., and upon that it w.is
presumed- adi vidend absorb :ng 13,0001. to 14,0001.
might be safely declared. The loss which has now
accrued arises solely from the opera ions of 1856,
and Mr. Coleman refused to place it at a nrixinium
of 50,0001,, the whole of the hecounts not having
been finally i.ompleted. One harel,older
that the directors should have given so ftrourAle
an account after the warning uttered by the Times.
Solely on the representat on of the Board, who
stated that there was no calm, f.T alarm, he had
doubled his interest in the undertaking. The chair-
man assured the 'reefing that _ the directors up to

Thesday were nnficqulated with the loss, wiiich
was then shown by the pros?, raa,ie under ti.e
superinte:,deLe• of Cdr. Cols.man with the books.
Capt. Andrews, whose talent and energy had re-
eeiNel :ha approval rat th? directors and *he share-
holders fy special voteF, had been placed in a
posi-
tion of entire cenfideuce, and the committee would

. --
have the opportunity of ptobing the wh01,3 vest,oa,
and of te4ting, the capacity of the trade and ihe pcsi-
lion of the compny. In co-operation with them
the directors would at a future day be able to pre-
sent a report with such recommendations as might
appear consis:eut with the interests of the plo;.ri,._
tors. After scone further discus-iou it was ;:greed
th,it a committee of six shareholders should be ap-
poiote,i t,, investigate, with the du e-t(-rs, tne na-
tion of the undertlking, and Sir Morton Pcto
pledged hims,lf that thereport shall be circu!ated a
week previously to the adjourned meeting.
Vie 14 v, ssels of the compA at present employed
ny Out
11 are o,artered at remunerative rates, and he
Legged the shareholderaarni: public to resfrve !Iv it
judgment, and not to display unueceisarY
alarm
pending the general •
ry.
inquiry.

THE EAST INDIA. POLICE SYSTEM IN BENGAL —A.
copy of a despatch IN luting to the system of police in the
Bengal Prestdency was tai.l befor- the late House of
Commons, on the motion of Mr. Sinnaird, the tx-mem-
"
k"T 101 Pei tn. The Governor-General of India has bad
hug attentlon directed of late, on various occasions, to
the characer and proceedings of the police in differ-nt
Orts of the peoinstila, and the reports laid before him
have combined to deepen the conviction that 'an ionne-
v. diate and thorough reform of the police in all the cli
provinces of British I, dia is loudly called for. The evils
to be contended with are to be found both iti the charac-
ter end want of organisation of the p. lice. The police
system is a thorough failure, the police being all but
useless for the prevention, and pally inefficient for the
•deteotion, of crime. To .remedy
the *xisting evils it is
proposed to keparate the police from the adminnt ietratton
of the land revenne—to take the managetne of the
police of each district out of the hando of he
t magiArate,
and commit it to a European ,fficer, with no other duty
to discharge, and finally t,) raise the status and secure
the honesty of the polii:::eysl, timaisdadlesro,anthdopurgohattraatdevi,•Galable
to divide the police6,os,:iaowfitnnit:einoerviilt:hweoivs eriptser:to portions—the pre-
ventive awl the detecntiival
Governor-General in ConuciltiesTs,iiiialu4teUbldunit'Sniiiietriaa.n2:4llo,l2:lB33°sl6.l.h:des
painful and dis
• • the
~-Abeir complications.
Disease, &c.—their connexiositn,hbwytihtphertc:haeDnegSnitiioosmncisc.ce
attrinliedslsiciiirui.tgsimotliaaisit•eepaseleass73,
". To a soupd theoretical knowledge of the
•
ex-
perience derived from a large aid successful Dr.
~News,'P Smith and Son, 52, L ucees-ful pl'actice,"--
wag Acre, 1.04 r