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, PRINCE EDVVARE) ESLAND ADVERTISER.

CHARLOTTETOWN, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 1843.

41

[No. 290.

STEAM NAVIGATION COMPANY.

First Annual Meeting of the Shareholders of the mac. Edward Island Steam Navigation Company was held ‘me Court House, Charlottetown, on Tuesday last, pursuant ‘ Mic notice, and in conformity with the 7th Section of EBA“ ofIncorporstiou—the Hon. Charles Hensley in the

In, ‘M'uidressed the Meeting to the following effect :— Nhr, ‘ v, “Guilt-men; As we have much business to transact, and1 'P'T - uthe Report touches upon most of the particulars which "he * iikglyto interest you, it-will not he necessary for me 101 M will you long; bitt you Will permit me, perhaps, to recall "ht. om. memories to that period when, in consequence of re- M‘ ,ed disappointments, by the non-arrival ofthe Mails, a‘ h uisitlon, most nuuierously and respectany signed, ap-l 3" - vnredjn the Papers, summoning us to meet together for “ts “ in” purpose of considering of the formation ofthe present. "'3 \‘Comlmny, You will'also recollect, that when we assembled 3“"- ,mm we were much disheartened by the discovery that very M- View ofthose who had signed their names to that Requisition fun" i were in attendance, to give their aid and assistance, and but u" l 3 V of those who did attend exhibited any very earnest fem .its promotion. Notwithstanding these discoura- :.°r 1; ' circumstances, you thought it right to appoint a Provi- lg'g; ' ,fignal Committee, who were instructed to possess-themselves Nb lgfisuch usefulinformation as might befoqutred, in the event 8“,- m“, project reviving. That information you Will, perhaps, ullect was obtained by inquiry iii open Court, and was "‘55 ' lashed in the Island papers—not only for general infor- m , “pinion, but to challenge contradiction and correction, if any "it. ofits statements should be found to be incorrect. As no one 5,," .ppeared to question them, they were deemed worthy ofall ,m confidence, and all our. calculations were based upon the I, h expectations held forth in them. 'lliat the result of the past

at. (ma should be found to be somewhat at variance with ‘ those statements, might perhaps have been expected, from! . the disastrous state of affairs around us ; but that they should

dih'er so widely as they actually do, is to me very surprising,

fol-I find it diflicuit to understand how practical men could

um make statements so wide of the facts ; and if we had not been ‘ alile to exhibit something like a corresponding reduction in the expenses, our position as a Company this day would cer- l ’b’ taialy bevery unpromising. Happily, however, we are able t6 :3“: calculate upon a l’ctiuttlioti in the expenses of more than lush“. £500, and by the exnunnanon of the compaizative statement, _ m you will see that by carrying mthe experience of our ro- mgm reeipts and expenditures din-mg the 10 weeks the St. George Sam, I . was in operation totlic full season o-f‘gfi weeks, we may m, l 1. reasonably expect to he able to pay it divplcud ol from 2 to '“i' r 3 per cent. upon the shares; but if, as ltbink we'have every 2:1,. > lreason to anticipate, our application to the Legislatures of - ' ' ’ i’the several Provinces be received in a liberal spirit, and the m r itrade of these Colonies should revive, thcn Itliiuk we may _ i . look to a dividend of a more encouraging clia 'acter. Why

do I dwell upon these particulars? Is it because lbelieve I you became Shareholders in this Company from entirely» 5 :SOl'lllLl motives? Far from it. I believe, Gentlemen, that “ vou embarked your capital in this Company with the lauda-

J . . . . 'Qhfllew of rendering this Island altogether independent of

what's for its means of communication, thereby raising her ' toastation of'dignity and importance, in the eyes of the z surrounding Colonies, which she had not hitherto enjoyed. Itisby such efforts that a people obtains the respect of other countries. It is by an enormous aggregate of kindred enterprizes that our great country stands so pro-eminently elevated above other nations. 1! is by an independent rc- . liaiicc upon our own resources and energies that we shall at length .nttnin- a name and a place among them. But, whilst we highly appreciate the lofty motives which have influenced manv to become sliiirers in this enterprize, and desire to recognize and encourage their diffusion, We, as the responsxble Directors oftbis Company, must be con- tcnt to address ourselves to the administration of its affairs, with a due regard to those more ordinary and every-day ino- tives which are found to influence a great portion ofiriankind. .' 'We have. therefore, felt it to be our duty to endeavour, by every reasonable economy, to reduce our expenditure as much as possible, assured ofthis, that if we can but show a fair balance of profit, we shall have little difficulty in pro- 5. ' curing the capital necessary for perfecting the extended scheme ofoperations which our Report contemplates.”

Thefihairman then read the following

REPORT:

A z‘ The Directors are happy in the opportunity which the oc— "“ casion ofyour first Annual Meeting affords them of submit— giant I ling to you the following Report oftheir proceedings; and with '«lllhtmgh it may not altogether realize the expectations of his!“ same, they still trust that there will be found in the conclu- rtofl!“ ‘ lions arrived atin it no occasion for (lespondcncyi new" The duties which you entrusted to them tbey_have found 119’“? lobe ofa more arduous and difficult nature than they llllltl “ a” ‘ Anticipated ; but they have been encouraged and sustained the performance of them by the conviction, that the pub— TH' - ' lie, generally of these Provinces were deeply interested in "if"; ".fiosuccessful issue of this undertaking; and they have, in ' ' ._ ‘1 finsequeuce, laboured earnestly and zealously to fulfil the “willI ' “' ' moods and expectations of the different Legislatures ; and "dink, ‘ :t is with patch regret that they have been compelled to de- l‘fl. vi , 'ue their opinion of the utter impossibility for any one , team-boat to accomplish all the conditions imposed upon Mud, 5‘41 . a Company by them—that, in tr_uth, it is not possible for l. “T”; , " y one vessel to make, -“’|th01‘lt intermission, the various HM” -’ Voyages which the conditions of the grants of the respective , .T-Lsitislatures impose upon them. . _ sod“ . But, whatever may have been the opinions of the Directors lr“ I . selves, upon the most judicious course for conducting ck'g'fi‘ . in“Operations ofthe St. George, they still felt themselves lw . "~ iliotind tocomply with the Act of the General Asseinbly,as 3 tyne doing they would be enabled to satisfy the Legislatures . r 4,; . the Shareholders, as to the judgment With which the gel!“ . ' Megs had been marked out—its'adyantages and disadvan- h you” __ IQNI‘QIFF—snd, what is of most matei'ial.import to all parties in- i ’ w- the probability of its provmg profitable or other- .» J. . « tithe concern; and, as facts are always better than ar- all.” mats, they have appended to this Report a statement of y W l“ ; .,.oxpense of the voyage to each place, and the return of

, t and passage-money accruing therefrom, by which it . be seen that some of the voyages have been always per- at a considerable loss to, the Company, without » lug any compensating accommodation to the public. ‘ ~' the short period in which the St. George was in

- i ii- ' mm. ‘tlie eneral slackness and embarrassment of mercan- W 5 "43 sfl'airs tghroughout these Provinces, during the past year, 9' dint” , Kite unusually stormy and tempestuous season, this Re-

lullo’ny, ‘_ x“ Ought not to be received as afi'ording any fair ground ,igC: B“. x . l' fining an accuratejudgment of the reasonable pros- .h..li'vewd ‘ 1%." 0f the Company 'in future year, if taken by itself. ‘ awn ‘v . Directors have, therefore, felt it to be their duty to ask ll“ -. j 70hr attentive consideration ofother points likely to aid and , J‘asl- ; ‘15:" you in coming to some satisfactory conclusion upon

. *0 Operations of the St. George,lduring the few months MI in employment, must be taken as an experimental ' . leatofnnagon; perhaps something adverse in itself,

lbtit bearing the “precious jewel in its head,” by which we jmny, if permitted so to do, so arrange the future voyage of ithe. St. George that her powers may not be exhausted in futile eflorts to accomplish that which the past trial has shown to be impracticable. ‘1 As in another part oftbis Report it is the Directors’ pur- i‘pose to make some further remarks upon the points referred tp in these prefatory observations, they now beg your atten- tion to the following detail of their proceedings.

The Directors, deeply impressed with the necessity of taking prompt proceedings, met together on the day follow- ing the General Meeting, and having elected the Hon. '1‘. H. yllaviland to the oliice of Treasurer, they determined to make lfoi'tliwith a call of £25 per cent., to become due on May 5th, lpnd a second call of'£'25 per cent., payable on June 4th. 3 I‘hey then proceeded to take into consideration the best, and, let the same time, the most economical course to be adopted for purchasing a sound and efficient Steam-boat; and hav-l ling happily been enabled to secure the able services of" {Fi‘ancis Lougworth,jun. Esq, they requested him to pro- ,ceed to England for that purpose by the first opportunity. ‘ Mr. Longworth was furnished with such necessary funds as

the Directors possessed, and with instructions to enable him

to proceed in the arduous duty he had so kindly undertaken with promptitude and confidence; and it is known to you all that he lost no time, but proceeded to England by the Steam- ship ofMay 18th.

This pi‘eliiiiinary step dispatched, the Directors entered into a correspondence with a Committee of Gentlemen at Mirainicbi, who had addressed the Provisional Committee for information ofthe objects and prooecdings ofthe 1’. E. Island Steam Navigation Company, and desiring to ascer- tain what shares ren'iained undisposed of, and making eli- qniry of the proposed voyage, &c. &c. It is unnecessary to trouble the meeting with the correspondence, as, from thel unpromising state ofafi'airs at Miramichi at that time, it pro-, duccd no satisfactory results. Neither is it necessary to detain you by detailing the correspondence which it was deemed right to hold with Mr. Longwortli, upon the report reaching these shores that the John McAdam was in foi-i 'ard- ; uess for this station—that alarm having happily passed 1

l

away.

Towards the conclusion ofthe month ofJuly, the Direc- tors received a letter from Mr. Longworth, informing them that be had succeeded in purchasing the St. George,j ofthe St. George Steam Packet Company ; that he felt as- snrcd that she would prove to be a purchase equally satis- factory to the Company as it was to himself; that the St. Georg-e had about eight months previously been made nearly equal to new, at an expense of£3,580 Stg., having had new boilers and new decks—been newly coppercd, new sails, and in every other respect put into thorough and efficient! order and repair; that she had been built at Liverpool, by Messrs. Wilsous. who were esteemed among the best Steam- boat huildersin England; that her frame was ofa large size, all of English Oak, and as sound as when put together; that when now, including outfit, she had cost £11,000. Mr. Longworth also informed the Directors, that it was his in- tention to bring out the St. George under steam, and ll’lell‘. tioned the 10th of August as the probable time of his arrival.l

necessary arrangements for bringing her into activity at as early a period as possible. On the 13th of August, Mr. Longworth reported the arrival ofthe St. George in the bar- bor ofCharlottetown, after a good passage of 14 days from Cork, having touched at St. John’s, Newfoundland, and brought some passengers and freight from thence.

Mr. Longworth having thus ablyand successfully fulfilled the trust reposed in him, the Directors felt it incumbent upon them to express their sense ofit in the following unanimous Resolution :—

“Tliat the warmest thanks ofthe Directors of the P. E. Island Steam Navigation Company be presenter] to Francis Loneworth, jun. Esq, for the prompiitiide, ability and excellent judgment with which he has executed the arduous iluty entrusted to him, of searching out and purchasing a most efficient Steam-Vessel for the service oftlieso Colonies, and also for the diligence and zeal exhibited by him in conducting her, under circumstances ofmucli anxiety, to the successful conclusion of her voyage out to this Island." .

In consequence ofthe intemperate habits ofthe Captain and SteWard, and the discontented state of some of the crew, it was found requisite to make many changes, and some days were necessarily occupied in these alterations. They were happily able to engage the services of Calilulli Mattheson, to take command ofthe St. George, in whose bands they could place her with perfect confidence; and although they had but short space to appoint and select the other officers ofthe Company, and ofthe St. George, they have much pleasure in reporting to the Proprietors that these officers have zealously and efficiently performed the duties entrusted to them.

The St. George sailed upon her first trip for Pictou, on Wednesday, August 18th, at 8, a. m.—-aud the Directors desire to express their thanks to those public spirited share- holders and friends ofthe enterprize whose lively zeal indu- ced them to encourage, by their presence, and that oftheir families, the first start ofthistruly national undertaking. The St. George, you are aware, was kindly welcomed at Pictou— was honored with a salute—and received assurances of ap- probation and good willfrom its most respectable inhabi- tants.

7 On Monday, Aiigt. 22d, she was dispatched on her first voyage to Miramichi, and as some ofthe Directors were able to devote a part oftheir time to the service, they proceeded

and ascertain and meet, as far as possible, the wishes of the

state of exhaustion from continual labour at ‘the pumps;l and the bringing of the Lady Wood into this harbour, after

she had been on the rocks, having lost her rudder and being

water-logged. These are services upon the performance ofi which we feel entitled to congratulate the proprietors and l the public, and we trust that the underwriters and the

owners ofthe vessels will, when well advised ofthe circum-

stances imder which they were afforded, duly appreciate

their value.

The Directors have now an exceedingly painful duty to perform; but in justice to the Company, and to the Shiire-‘ holders who have duly paid up the instalments which have l been called for, they feel obliged to remark on the conduct i oftbose Subscribers who have neglected to do so, thereby imposing a necessity on the Company to pay interestxon several sums ofmoiiey, from time to time advanced. This interest will, Ofeoursc, be charged, in due proportion, against the parties in default, and legal measures taken to enforce 1 payment.

The Treasurer’s and other Accounts, brought up to the preseutycar, which will be read to you, and will lie for your | examination, exhibit, as you will most likely have anticipa- ted, no very flatteriug results for the past season ; indeed, ! the St. George may be said to have done little more than pay her expenses; and when all the circumstances ofthe past year are taken into view, little more could have been rea- sonalily expected.

\Ve also submit an account ofthe average expense ofthe voyage to each place, and the returns of freight and passage, money accruing, by which you may see which are profitable and which are unprofitable voyages. '

The Directors have also made a careliil comparison of the returns from the different ports, with those estimates

that there does exist in the minds of some of the proprietors a feeling ofdissutisfaction that the St. George does not possess. in its fullest perfection, one ofthe very desirable qualities of a Steam Vessel—speed. The Director have no hesitation in allowing that the St. George would be the better for an increase of'her speed, and they join in the wish that it could be accelerated; but they recommend to the Proprietors to take the St. George as a whole, with her excellent accommo- dations, her substantial qualities, as exhibited by her in the tempestuous weather which prevailed at the latter part of the season, her capability for freight,and stability and strength of structure, so necessary for the service for which she is destined—the sound and perfect state of her engines and boilers—and the low price at which she was purchased—- and then we think that they will readily acknowledge that we have been exceedingly fortunate in our purchase.

Had it even been in the power of the Directors to instruct their Agent to purchase none but a vessel ofa certain pow- er and speed, and keeping those objects in view, to be in- different as to price, it is not unlikely that a superior vessel might have been procured; but as they were limited in their means, their choice was necessarily limited also, and their beliefis, that, under the circumstances, there is much to congratulate themselves and the proprietors upon, in the possession of so good and sound a ship as the St. George.

The foregoing report is most respectfully submitted to the Legislatures and public generally of these Provinces, in the lively hope that it will receive from them it deep and impar- tial examination ; and the Directors are persuaded, that a due consideration of its contents will influence their minds to the following conclusions--

lst. That no Boat can perform all the conditions at pre-

sent imposed upon the Company.

2d. That to render the circle of the Company’s operations more complete, it is most desirable that a small Steamer should be employed, in conjunction with the St. George; by which means a more extensive range might be embraced, uniting more closely various other parts of the several Pro- vinces, including Cape Breton, and thus the general commu- nications essential to their relative commercial prosperity would be materially extended.

which Were submitted at the meetings previous to the for- mation ofthe Company.

\Vo have thought it right to place these several statements before you, that you may be able to understand the present position aml future prospects of this national enterprize, un- dertaken in a patriotic and enlightened spirit, highly honor- able to the parties embarked in it, and justly entitled to the support and favour ofthe public, and the Legislatures of

Upon the rem-l,“ of ,his lam,“ ,he Directors made tMi:pensatuigadvantage to the public, and to lose sight of the

in her to Miramichi, that they might make arrangements,

these approximating Colonies, as likely to exercise it most beneficial influence upon their commercial intercourse, by promoting more constant and intimate communication be- tween them.

Having submitted these statements to your consideration, it may, perhaps, be asked, what are the expectations of the Directors, as to the ultimate success ofthe Company, and upon what are those expectations founded? To which they would answer, that they see no reason to doubt ofthe suc- cess of the Company, ifthe experience of the past is per- mitted to be beneficially used, as a correction and guide for the future; ifthey be authorized to direct the operations of the St. George to the maintenance ofthe Mail and commercial communications ofthe principal ports of Pictou, Charlotte- town and Mirimichi, without being clogged and frustrated in their efforts by the restriction to touch at regular periods at minor ports, out of the direct course for maintaining these important cominuui-ations; if they are not compelled to perform voyages without hope ofprofit, which bring no com-

' great objects for. which this nationalentsrprize ewes origina- yted, in a fruitless attempt to grasp with the same efl'ort the ,minor and less important ones; if, in fact, they are permit- ‘terl so to regulate the voyages ofthe St. George, from time lto time, proportiouing her visits to the above named ports, not according to ii before arranged plan, but to the informa- ,tion they may receive ofthe real Wants and demands ofthe lseveral places, exercising, indeed, that discretion in the per- formance of their duties which the chosen Directors ofa Company are generally supposed to possess. In it letter received soon after the arrival of the St. George, from a Gentleman of acknowledged Judgment and great practical experience in the powers andcapabilities of Steam- boats, the following remark is made, which, a it coincides ren'iarkably with the experience ofthe past year, is well wor- thy ofthe attentive consideration ofall parties interested: “ I also fear that you expect to do too much. In my opinion, you should only attempt to make one trip to Miramicbi, and two to Picloii and Charlottetown, in the wcclc, leaving out George-

3d. It is scarcely to be expected that the extension of the Company’s capital, necessary for the accomplishment of the above object, can be procured without the assured aid and encouragement of the several Legislatures ; and they hope that they are not unreasonable in respectfully soliciting from them the most efficient co-operatiou and support.

Finally, the Directors desire to impress upon the public the immeasurable importance to the interests ofthese Pro- vmccs of establishing a regular communication, by steam, all along the Gulf Shores, and on to Halifax, calling at the most important places in the route; and although they see no immediate’prospect ofits accomplishment, they will not despair ofits ultimate success.