PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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FIRST ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Two days after the opening of the Plymouth, Devonport and District Tramways -- on Thursday November 6th 1884 -- Mr William Derry presided at the first annual meeting of the Company. This was held at the Canon Street Hotel in London. Surprisingly he opened by stating that the line was not yet opened but this was probably meant to refer to the whole of the system so far constructed as later in the meeting reference was made to the two sections 'at length opened for traffic'. The first report repeated what we already know. Only lines 1 and 3 and part of 4 had been finished 'these being wholly in Plymouth'. As a result, Devonport Corporation had blocked the opening of these lines until the ones in Devonport were built. 'The Directors are of the opinion that the attitude issued by Devonport Council is arbitrary in the extreme', he continued before pointing out that the new Bill for the extension of time to finish the tramways had received the Royal Assent on August 7th 1884 and the Company now had until July 24th 1885, 'but the extension will avail little unless further capital is subscribed by the inhabitants of Plymouth and Devonport'. Expenditure on construction and equipment had so far reached £43,540. With office costs and fees added, the total expenditure was £46,658 13s 10d. The total capital subscribed was £47,860 (4,786 shares of £10 each) and thus there was only £49 5s 9d left in hand. In such a dire position, the Chairman expressed the view that 'to have begun at both ends when they did not have the capital to complete the work would have been folly'. A shareholder asked why the local people had not taken up shares, to which William Derry had no answer. Another, Baron de Samoren, remarked that the system had cost £10,000 per mile so far. At the conclusion of the meeting mention was made by one of the Directors of 'the unfortunate jealousy existing between Plymouth and Devonport as a cause of the hostilities at Devonport' and that the Directors proposed to abandon the line to Plympton. A further deputation was to visit the Board of Trade the day after the meeting.
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