SYDNEY FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY. - The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954) - 3 May 1854 (original) (raw)

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Wed 3 May 1854 - The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954)
Page 5 - SYDNEY FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY.

I _ SYDNEY FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY

The. half-yearly meeting of the members of the Sydney Fire Insurance

Company was held in the Long Room, Mort's Commercial

Building', Pitt-street, yesterday, at 2 p.m.

The Chairman of the Hoard of Directors, T. W. Smart, bq.,

M.L.C., having taken the chair, read the advertisement convening

the meeting in terms of the deed of settlement, and remarking

that there was life beyond the usual formal business of the

Company to detain the meeting, requested the Secretary, Mr.

J. S. Mitchell, to read the Report of the Directors for the past

Half-year ending 11th April, 1853.

The transactions of the past half year have again exceeded

those of any similar period since the formation of the Company.

The amount of Insurance was increased from £1,076,705 to

£1,352,370, being an increase of £275.055 in the six months : thus

giving a present income of upwards of £10,000 per annum.

This increase is, of course, after birth e to the increasing wealth

and commercial operations of the members. The insurance

effected has been proportionately upon stock and buildings ; the

greater value of the latter, as well as numerous recent erections,

having considerable added to the business of the Company.

There is a conclusion to be drawn from the proceedings beyond

the mere question of the success of the company, which the Direc-

tors observe with much interest ; it is, that the practice of

insuring is rapidly becoming a settled and universal principle of

business with the community of nearly all classes. The insurance

of buildings upon which advances are made is now a rule with

many ; as also of premises lot upon long leases ; while the

lessees are becoming alive to the necessity of securing

their interest in such leases, In short, the duty of Insuring is becoming

more apparent, and it is the obvious one of all who are in-

trusted with the property of others, which is in any wise liable to

This Company, being entirely a colonial one, its proceedings

should be regarded with more than ordinary interest. Its success

has hitherto answered the expectations of its founders, for to

this association we are indebted to the present low rates of the

other offices, which was the chief end of its institution.

But, while the Directors remind the members that they are associated,

not for the purposes of gain, but for mutual assistance

in event of calamity, it is needless to add that increased business

gives increased security, and they therefore look to the support of

the members, so long as the existence of the Association may be

deemed useful to their interests. That the people of this colony

however are sufficiently able entirely to insure themselves, admits

During the half-year, £1544 0s. 7d. has been paid back to those

members who have renewed their policies, being a return of 50

per cent, upon their premiums. Sums to the extent of £1903 have

also been paid at once to those members who have sustained loss

by fire; and £195 8s., in gratuities have been paid, under the

head of a Brigade Expenses," to the military, police, seamen of

H.M.S and others who have volunteered their services on these

occasions. Of this sum £91 12s. 9d. has been contributed by the

Imperial, Alliance, and Liverpool and London Insurance Offices,

us their share, according to the amount of business done by them.

The Directors take this opportunity of bearing testimony to the

ready and valuable exertions of those branches of the public

service mentioned, who have always promptly come forward and

cheerfully performed this important duty.

It may be mentioned that a proposition has been made to the

Oorci.nilen', and agreed to by them, for the formation of a complete

Kim already, under proper superintendence, towards which

a court session of £1000 per annum will be paid by the Insurance

mucca, rateably with the amount of risks insured by them. The

e.-.liirging suburbs and crowding of population in the city, together

with the more inflammable nature of the materials now used in

the construction of buildings, render It of serious moment that an

efficient force should be available in case of emergency.

At the commencement of the half-year, £5000 of the funds of the

Company were invested in Government Debentures and in March

£3000 more, at different rates of premium, thus making now

£13,000 in all invested in this manner, upon some portion

of which the interest from 1st January will be available in July

The Directors have to announce that the claim of the Union

Bank for the amount of Cooper's cancelled policy, vin, £1008,

has been carried into the Equity Court and a judgment obtained

against the company. The Directors do not for a moment consider

that under the ordinary circumstances of transfers of

policies, any other decision could have been given, nor would any

claim arising therefrom have been disputed, but it does appear

that the question of liability of the members to the company has

been overlooked in this case, as it is clear that when a member ceases

to hold the property he insured, and absolves himself thereupon

from all liability, he at the same time releases the company from

liability also ; the mutual contract, in short, leases, and any responsibility

ensuing from the acts of the member should be visited

upon him, and not upon the company. As the Union Bank, also

It appears, had transferred their interest to Messrs. Robey,

Knox, and Irving, who will now benefit by the decision of

the Court, although the action was brought in the name of the

Bank, where is the mutual contract with its members, upon

which this Company is formed, to be found in this case! And how

should the Company be made responsible for the fulfilment of a

contract mutually dissolved, to a third, or rather a fourth party,

with whom the Company never treated, but who had, by applying

for another insurance, treated the disputed policy as void ! The

Directors can only express their surprise at the result, and yield

The nee counts, audited, and list of members are on the table for

the inspection of the meeting.

The statement accounts were next road, of which the following

Balance per last account. £13,459 9.5

By premiums received during the six months. 0,280 14 4

Hy policy fees ditto ditto . 123 0 0

By Interest on Government Debentures up to 31st

December, 1853 . 106 0 10

Losses paid during the six months

M'Donsld's fire in George-street £1,944 10 0

Birch Grove, Balmain, fired by

Holt's 8re, George-street. 623 12 0

Youngman's Are, Pitt-street . 100 0 0

Allen's ure, Parramatta-street. 100 0

Return of 50 per cent, on premiums

of policies renewed . 1,514 9 7

This Company's proportion of the fire

brigade expenses . 238 11 4

Premium paid On purchase of

Government Debentures. 552 18' <

Charges account, salaries, directors'

fees, agents' commission in the

country districts, printing, advertising,

and sundry expenses . 1,028 6 0

Balance remaining no reserve fund . £14,703 0 0

Which, analysed, Is as follows:- missing

invested in Government Debentures

Ditto office furniture. 60 16 4

Ditto Va share of fire engine. 60 14 10

Duo from other companies on account

of fire brigade expenses. 135 7 10

Ditto on account of office rent. 13 6 6

Cash in Commercial Bank. 1,432 12 4

The report and accounts were passed unanimously.

Mr. MORT moved "That a sum equal to the amount of the fees

paid to the directors for the past year be awarded to them for their

services during that year."

Mr. HANKS seconded the motion, which was carried unanimously.

The CHAIRMAN said flat, for his part, he had wished Mr. Mort

not to put the motion ; but as it had been so cheerfully carried, he

would take it as a mark of the confidence of the Company in the

Board, and, as such, warmly thanked them on behalf of his brother

directors, as well as on his own part.

The customary vote of thanks to the directors was then passed,

and the members separated.

THE SUPPLY OF WATER The water will be shut

off from the city on Friday next, the 6th May instant,

for the purpose of allowing corrections to be made

with mains, repairs to service pipes, &c.

HOUSE-STEALING.-About six o'clock, yesterday

evening, a black pony, 12 hands high, was stolen from

Mr. Farrell's public-house, George-street. The pony,

saddled and bridled, was left for a few minutes

fastened up ; the owner in a few minutes afterwards

discovered that his horse had been stolen.

DEATH OF MRS. LA TROBE We regret to state that

the Morning Post of February 8 contains the painful

announcement of the death of the lady of His Excellency

the Lieutenant-Governor. We believe that this

event was entirely unexpected, and that the circumstances

under which the announcement reached His

Excellency were more than usually distressing. It will

be recollected that Mrs. La Trobe left this colony with

her family about a year and a-half ago, in the last trip

but one of the Blackwall, and but for the delay in the

appointment of his successor, the Lieutenant Gover

nor would long since have joined her. We understand

that her decease took place in Switzerland, and CA the

30th of January -Argus. J

M. WINTERBOTTOM s CONCERT We heartily con- |

gratulate this talented artiste upon the success of his

entertainment on Monday evening. The large room at

the Royal Hotel was filled with a crowded and

fashionable audience, comprising all the leading fami- a

lies of this city and its neighbourhood, and so far, we

may conclude, that the experiment was satifactory to

the beneficiaire. The programme was lamentably deficient

in good music ; indeed we can hardly except

one instance which could strictly be said to come

under such a denomination and the materiel was

hardly superior. Of course, the great attraction

of the evening was the performances of M.

Winterbottom himself, whose reception must have been

most gratifying to him. The band of the 11th played

more tolerably than we ever recollect to have heard

them (for it needs no small exercise of toleration to

listen to a band which shows such utter contempt for

light and shade, whose instruments are for the most

part out of tune, and whose execution is so slovenly

and defective), and this improvement we attribute entirely

to the able conductorship of M. Winterbottom.

There was some agreeable ballad singing by Mr. and

Mrs. Hancock, Miss Flora Harris, and Messrs. How-

son and Fairchild ; but we must protest against the

introduction into the programme of a public concert

of such trash as " The Two Cousins," " Mr. and Mrs.

Bell, and " Johnny Sands," which indeed

are hardly suited to the precincts of a

drawing-room. Even when wedded to the

immortal strains of Mozart, Citnarosa, or Rossini,

we have our conscientious scruples as to the admissibility

of buffs music upon a concert room platform,

so entirely must the original intention of the composer

be destroyed under such serious circumstances. It is

gratifying to find that M. Winterbottom's talents,

which are held in such high esteem in England, are

duly recognised by the Sydney public, and we trust

that when, encouraged as we hope he will be, by the

result of this experiment, he shall return to take up

his permanent quarters amongst us, he will give us a

repetition of some of the Mendelssohn and Beethoven

festivals, with which he has delighted far less civilised

audiences here while at Melbourne. j