The Advertiser, Adelaide, Thursday 18 March, 1909.
ADELAIDE STEAMSHIP
COMPANY.
A PROSPEROUS HALF-YEAR.
The eighteenth ordinary general meeting
of shareholders of the Adelaide Steamship
Company was held on Wednesday. The
Chairman (Mr. James Harvey), who occupied
the chair, said as they were, all aware no
accounts were published at this period of
the year, but the directors were pleased to
confirm the announcement already made
through the press that with the
shareholders' sanction a dividend of
9d. per share would be payable at the
close of this meeting. The operation of
transferring the company's stock was
now completed, and the scrip of lower
denomination should prove a convenience
to shareholders, and make it more attractive
as an investment. The result of the
half-year's work had been satisfactory, and
the period had been unmarked by any
serious accident, though two regrettable
collisions occurred, both in Sydney harbor.
The Adelaide Steamship Company, at this juncture, was confident and prospering.
In each case both colliding vessels were
found to blame. The new steamer Koombana
had arrived, and had taken up her running
between Fremantle and Wyndham under
contract with the Commonwealth Government
for the conveyance of mails (RMS) The directors
were satisfied with her in every respect. He saw by the
papers that she was aground.
The Secretary - She is on a sandy bottom,
and no damage is done.
We will return to this in detail.
The Chairman said the year had not
begun too well. The unfortunate dispute
at Broken Hill had resulted in the laying
up of some of the steamers, and as they
must be kept available for the resumption
of work they could not be employed elsewhere.
It was to be hoped, however, now that the award
of the Arbitration Court had been announced that
operations would be started shortly. In other respects
the coastal trade was normal for this section of the
year. He moved that the report be adopted.
The motion was seconded by Mr. G.
Brunskill and carried.
Mr. R. Saunders asked who was put to
the expense in connection with the ships
laden with coke which were detained at
the Port Pirie anchorage.
The Chairman pointed out that the company
had nothing to do with the vessels.
Somewhat arrogant.
The Argus, Melbourne, 24 May, 1909.
BARRIER STRIKE ENDED.
TWENTY WEEKS' STRUGGLE.
TOTAL COST, £500,000.
The action of the Port Pirie branch
of the amalgamated Mines Association
in deciding to return to work under the
under the terms of the award of the
Federal Arbitration Court, as limited by
the High Court, has resulted in the
collapse of the strike at Broken Hill.
Permission has now been given by
the Unions to the men to return to
work unconditionally.
The strike was to drag on for a further two months and had a significant impact on coastal shipping.
The Advertiser, Adelaide, Monday 29 March, 1909.
ADELAIDE STEAMSHIP
COMPANY.
THE ANNUAL PICNIC.
The annual picnic given by the directors
of the Adelaide Steamship Company to the
members of the staff is always a most enjoyable
outing. The destination is invariably the National
Park at Belair, and in most instances the locality
selected is Long Gully, but on Saturday the Oval
was chosen.
A characteristically punctual start was made,
and live minutes after the appointed hour
the cavalcade was.passing the General Post
office on the outward journey. The first drag
carried three of the directors - Messrs.
James Harvey (chairman).
M. Anderson, and
A. Tennant - as well as the general manager
Mr. E. Northcote, (whom 'we got to know' through the Yongala disaster)
the Adelaide manager
Mr. P. D. Haggart, the assistant manager
Mr. Morphett,
Mr. R. M. Waddy (Deputy Postmaster-General),
The old buffers' race. 100 yards, caused much
interest and the running of the limit man, Captain
Thompson, the genial commander of the steamer
Rupara, was watched with much attention. The
handicap allowed him was not, however, sufficient,
and the winner turned up in Mr. S. Upton, engineer
of the steamer Paringa, who had 15 yards start.
Mr. G. T. Manfield, superintendent of stewards,
20 yards, was second, and Mr. J. Young, 20 yards,
was third. After lunch two cricket matches were
contested, the first between the married and single
members of the staff, and the other between the
Port Adelaide and Adelaide offices.
At the luncheon the chair was occupied
by Mr. James Harvey, and after the appetising
meal had been completed he submitted the
toast of the King, in honor of whom the National
Anthem was lustily sung by a chorus of 100 good
voices.
Mr. W. J. Young, of Elder, Smith, & Co.,
proposed "Success to the Adelaide Steam-
ship Company." It had exercised, he said,
great influence in Commonwealth waters,
and had carried its flag with honor almost
round the whole circuit of the Australian
coast. It was something for which South
Australians as a community had reason to
be proud that the Adelaide Steamship
Company took such a splendid position. Its
success was due to the excellent oversight
of its directors and the undoubted capacity
and enthusiasm of its management and its
staff. He hoped it would have equal prosperity
through long years yet to come.
(Cheers.) '
Mr. Harvey, who was enthusiastically received
returned cordial thanks for the kind things said
of the company. He was one of its original
shareholders, and he had watched it grow from
a small concern to its present dimensions. It was
gratifying to feel that the ability and the loyalty of
the staff had materially assisted to secure
for it such a prosperous career. (Cheers.)
Mr. Northcote, who was greeted with
continued applause, said it gave him great
pleasure to be present. The ramifications
of the company were so widely extended
that it was a physical impossibility for him
to become acquainted with every member
of the staff, much as he would like to do
so. Meetings like these, however, gave
them all a chance of knowing their brother
officers and had a beneficial effect in bringing
together the majority of those employed in
South Australia. In Melbourne the Victorian
and New South Wales shipping companies
had recently been pitted against one another
at cricket, with the result that the former State
had won the Challenge Shield. South Australia
had previously participated in these inter-state
contests, and it should do so again. (Cheers.)
Such reunions did much to make business negotiations
pleasant and to banish parochial ideas. They found that
they met their brethren of the other States that they were
all of the same blood and had the same aspirations and
the same destiny. In South Australia he was sure the
shipping firms could still produce cricketers who would
repent their former victories.(Cheers.)
He was glad that commercial education was now being
made a feature of the training in Australian universities,
and shipping people had reason to be glad that Mr. Braddon,
of Dalgety's, had been appointed a lecturer at Sydney
University. In Adelaide, when similar work of an excellent
character was being done at the university, he was sure
they would be delighted if Mr. Haggart were invited to
lecture on such abstruse subjects as bills of lading,
insurance policies, and rates of exchange. (Cheers.)
He recognised the value of the best commercial training,
and was pleased to remember that many of the staff of
the company had passed through the commercial courses
at the Adelaide University.
This jovial, pat-on-the-back, picnic was notable in that no mention was made of, nor representation by, the Western Australia branch of the Adelaide Steamship Company. This clarifies the divide between Australia's southern states and the west coast. The images below bring into perspective the vastness of the west coast and the route serviced by Koombana - 1200 n miles as the crow flies between Fremantle and Wyndham. Note that it is almost the same distance, as the crow flies, between Fremantle and Adelaide - might as well have been two separate countries.
Referring to a comment made in a previous post that 'Koombana was too good for the Nor'west trade', it becomes apparent that there was an element of rivalry between the two major branches and the widely dispersed settlements along the Nor'west coast were not perceived to be as grand (worthy?) as the southern states. Mr. Moxon had a statement to make with Koombana which did not, unfortunately, include the early mishap of running aground, Bar Flats, Shark Bay.
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