The Brussels Post, 1953-1-21, Page 6The Annual Meeting of Shareholders
The Royal Bank of
Fee Exchange Rates, Lower Tariffs,
Encouragement of Foreign investment,
Keys to Healthier Economy, Says President
urges deller countries to remove excessive trade barriers and
customs -formalities. "Canada serves high moral purpose and
awn self-interest by accepting her present-day responsibilities,"
Canada's dependence on the
'world economy, and her respon-
sibility to it because of her in-
creased importancein the world
was the main theme of the an-
nual address of James Muir, Pre-
sident, at the Annual General
Meeting of Shareholders of The
Royal Bank of Canada. Self-in-
terest and high moral purpose, he
said, lead In the case of Canada
to a common goal: the rehabilita
tion of the world economy. Reli-
ance an the free price system,
he felt, is prerequisite to the re-
moval of numerous obstacles to
healthy world trade which exists
today.
"Unfortunately the world's eco-
nomic ills are more easily diag-
nozed than cured," said Mr. Muir.
'The most spectacular symptom
is, of course, the so-called short-
age of dollars which still persists
seven years after the end of the
Second World War.
"In international trade,. goods
must be paid for either in the
exporter's currency or in funds
that are freely convertible into
that currency, The world chooses
to buy goods and services from
'tate United States and Canada
At such a rate that even with the
multitude of restrictions imposed
by the importing countries, dol-
lar payments for imports exceed
dollar earrings from exports by
more than $5 billions per year.
THE DOLLAR SHORTAGE
"Exchange control can check
the loss of dollar reserves for a
time, but it does nothing to com-
bat,, indeed it may intensify, the
underlying unbalance that causes
the dollar drain. In contrast, a
lree rate moves automatically to
restore balance in the internation-
al accounts.
"I do not mean to say, nor have
X ever said, that free exchange
rates will solve the whole prob-
lem; there is no simple solution.
Nevertheless, it is surely unwise
to forego the advantages of a free
market merely because after its
Adoption, some problems will still
remain.
"In the short run, the dollar
countries should act without de-
lay to remove excessive tariff
barriers and customs formalities
that now present unnecessary ob-
stacles to overseas imports, Can-
ada, especially, has much to
gain by reducing the preponder-
ance of U.S. goods among her im-
ports; and at the same time the
release in this way of extra dol-
lars to overseas countries would
tend to reduce Canada's depen-
dence on the U.S. export market.
"In the long run, an invest-
ment programme will be of the
greatest importance in correcting
the fundamental economic weak-
ness that lays our allies open to
recurring dollar crises. Briefly,
investment may provide relief in
three main ways: first, soft -cur-
rency countries may concentrate
their domestic investments On in-
dustries producing dollar -earning
exports or producing goods which
otherwise would have to be im-
ported from the dollar area; sec-
ond,:doliar area countries may
concentrate their foreign invest-
ment in the same types of in-
dustry; and third, the soft -cur-
rency countries may make direct
dollar -earning investments in the
dollar area itself.
PROBLEMS OF INVESTMENT.
"The way to encourage pri.
'gate.' investment in under -de-
veloped countries is not to create
another international lending
agency but to secure a general
elimination or reduction of the
present restrictioes in these coun-
tries on the repatriation of earn-
ings,• on the capitalization `0f
earnings which are not or can-
not be transferred, and on the
effective control by its owners
ever equity capital when the ma-
jority Interest resides outside the
ander-developed countries.
"In the last analysis, interna-'
tonal investment and 'economic
development depend upon a
change of heart in the under-
developed countries themselves, ':
I believe this change will be
easier if those countries adopt
the short -tarn monetary and ex-
ehange-rate policies I have al-
ready discussed. Any egging• of
the dollar shortage. by these
means will
make rte it` easier to
transfer interest, dividends, and
oepital sums out of these coun-
tries; and - the mere power to
withdraw will in turn encourage
slew investment end thus d$eate
. :furtherimprovement in the
exchange position of these coun-
tries. Nevertheless, the will must
be there if healthy tont—gam hi
vestment is to bd andouraged; and
no plan or assistance programme
"EASY" CREDIT CAN BE
COSTLY TO CONSUMER
Three devices, Mr. Muir said,
had been available to correct
the lull in business which had
occurred early in 1952, These
were tax reductions, price re-
ductions, and easier credit
terms. Despite some reduc-
tions in excise taxes, the effect
of the 1952-53 budget had been
to impose a heavier over-all
burden of taxation; price re-
ductions, while they had oc-
curred to some extent, played
a relatively small part m the
revival of trade which took
place towards the halfway
mark of 1952.
It was the third device,"
he said, "that of easier credit
terms, which was apparently
chosen by business and gov-
ernment as the means to re-
store a stronger current of.
business activity. Consumer
credit controls were abolish-
ed on May 6th, 1952, and the
voluntary restrictions on bank
lending were removed, at the
suggestion of the Bank of Can-
ada, on May 20, 1952. We are
experiencing the buoyant ef-
fects of these decisions. In-
deed, there is some evidence
that the declin in activity has
been over -corrected, and that
inflation has. again become a
threat to the "economy,
"So-called 'easy' consumer
credit can be most costly both
to the consumer and to the
economy as a whole. The ef-
fect an sales is immediate and
gratifying to business; but re-
payment of the debt by the
public in the future may well
result in an enforced reduc-
tion in consumer spending on
durable goods to a level quite
as low and depressing as that
which followed our pre -bud-
get buying spree of 1951. If
this reduction were to occur
along with other deflationary
factors, such as heavy inven-
tories and a reduction or a
levelling off in armament ex-
penditure, our present boom
might seem, in retrospect, an
unsound and temporary one.
Indeed, the economic pattern
today bears no little similari-
ty to that of 1928 and 1929,
Then, as in 1952, the expan-
sion of consumer instalment
credit played an important
part in increasing sales and
maintaining retail prices at a
time when raw material prices
were on a steady decline, The
result then, as in 1952, could
only be a concealed inflation
with its attendant dangers.
"I believe that .a sounder
prosperity in 1952 would have
resulted from greater use of
the two other corrective de-
vices, namely tax and price re-
ductions. These interact with
, and reinforce one another in
prompting a healthy expan-
sion; in other words, the ex-
pansion they promote will not
be based on the shifting sands
of consumer credit."
or investment institution can
serve as a substitute.
BASIS FOR Deer MXSM
Mr. Muir concluded with an
appeal to Canadians to exercise
discretion when discussing Can-
ada's prospects to their friends
in other countries. "It may be
pleasant," he said, "to have one's
nation regarded highly abroad;
but the boom psychology that
prompts even small investors in
other countries to rush into Can-
adian securities should teach us
caution. Both our good repute
and our long-term prosperity will
be far safer if we do not over-
sell Canada now. Let us then
temper our private optimism with
a little public caution, especially
when we ate talking to Canada's
many friends abroad.
"Canada.made a valuable con-
tributiee to the revival of faith
in the traditional price mechan-
ism when she freed the dollar
in September, 1950, and removed.
all exchange controls a little over
o year Teter. In other countries
there are legitimate differences
of opinion on whether or not
the time has come to make a
similar dash for freedom. m. But
there is a surprising amount of
agreement that ultimately this is
what must be done,
"Our country is' young, its eco-
nomic system is : strong, and its
capacity for growth will put our
resources of r lagination and en4
terprise to a severe but welcome
test. This is what we should re-
member when we become tod
greatly impressed with the dif-
General Manager
Deports Assets Over
$2,6 Billions
B. Atkinson,' General Man-
ager, in reviewing the bank's 1952
report, stated that total assets of
The Royal Bank of Canada have
now reached the imposing total
fo $2,691,456,873. This, he said,
was a" new high mark in Cana-
dian banking history, and : is the
highest ever reported by any
Canadian bank,
Deposits likewise had reached
record totals, said Mr, Atkinson,
They now stand at 92,527,510,437,
an increase of approximately
$176,000,000 over the previous
year, "This increase," said Mr,
Atkinson, 'reflects not only sub-
stantially higher balances in the
names of former clients but has
been accompanied by a record -
Making number of new names on
our books. The number of deposit
accounts on the books of the bank
now exceeds 2,250,000, an in-
crease of well over 100,000 during
• the year,"
Mn 'Atkinson reported profits
for the year had increased 91,-
762,382 over the previous year.
After providing for taxes, depre-
ciation and dividends, including
an additional dividend of 9875,-
000 fat the rate of 25e per share)'"
the bank transferred $3,000,000
to Reserve Fund, which now
stands et $55,000,000.
The bank's programme of im-
provement to branches, which
has gone on, steadily .since the
end of the war, continued during
the year to provide the public and
staff with modern; up-to-date faci-
lities and surroundings. Some '275
benches were provided with new
or. improved premises, 18 new
brancbes were epeoed,. and a
further seven are in the course
of 'preparation.
ROYAL. BANK ABROAD ,.
Mr. Atkinson, reviewed the
history of the bank's extensive
organization abroad, pointing oat
that its ,growth -had fondwed :ac*
tual pr. potential . channels fon
Canadian trade development, CI -
flees were established only after
a careful surveyon the ground
to ascertain whether the field was
adequately banked, and if not,
whether the bank could not only
service Canada's export trade
but could contribute somethirik
worthwhileto the business cont-
inanity in the .particular country
and operate on a reasonably pro-
fitable basis,
The volume of business trans-
acted by our foreign branches re-
mains very substantial indeed,"' •
and profitable. During the past
year, our overseas chain has again
demonstrated its worth as an im-
portant complement to our Can-
adian organization. Not only was
this so from the. standpoint of
record earnings, but the contri-
bution made an the direction of
business to the. Canadian field
through contacts established
abroad' was well worth while.
As has been said in our pub-
lished reports of pr evi o u s
years, through our extensive
overseas direct representation
plus our world-wide relations
with correspondent banks and '
the specialized departments we
operate in Canada to aid traders,
we are proud of the services we
provide and also of the contribu-
tion we make towards facilitating
traders,the value of which can,
hardly be assessed in a nation
which ranks third in world trade.
PRAISE FOR STAFF
"It is' a 'daily occurrence in
Head .Office to receive letters in-
dicating. that at one point or an-
other' some mernber of the staff
has. gone out: of ate •or her way
to deal kindly and thoughtfully
with the problems of a client:
Public opinion of a bank is by •
and large the opinion held of ma
dividual branches of the bank so
that our reputation is largely de-
pendent 'on the deportment and
actions .of branch personnel. That
it is in good hands is amply evi-
dent.
"An expanding business inevit-
ably places increased demands cm
the staff and in the past year we
are well aware that at many
points our officers have beera t'
faced with difficulties which at
the moment may have seeme'dr'
insurmountable. In no ease, how-'
ever, was there the slightest evi-,
dende of a breakdown in service
to the public and so, on behalf'
of the executive officers of the;
bank, I say a 'heartfelt "thank
you" to the staff. In turn, on their
behalf, I have no hesitation in"
assuring the directors and share.a.
holders that the demands of the
future will be met by the staff
in the efficient, warm and friend
-at
ly manner they have displayed.
in the past."
acuities still ahead of us. There
is little excuse for gloonf in a
young country that even now
stands confidently on the thres-
hold of national greatness."
STILL 'men
Major Putney Miry took` his
daughter ,patriciato' the open-
ing of a lavish Brondway musi-
cal. To the: prissy Major's em-
barrassment, the show was rauc-
ous and vulgar. Toward the end
et act one, he confessed to his
daughter, "I'm sorry T `brought
you, Pat. This is not a showfoi-
e
ore young lady like you." "Don't
give up so early, Pop," the un-
perturbed Pat assured him,
"Maybe the second act will be
3ivellor." -
•
Busy Hummingbird
The hovering - hummingbird
consumes: about the sante amount.
of energy as does a modern heli-
copter, weight for weight, ac-
cording to Dr. Oliver Pearson,
in an article in The Scientific
American, The hummingbird use:;
us 726 British thermal unitsof
energy per pound per hour, he
calculated, The helicopter uses
750 BTU per hour. The humming-
bird lives at a faster rate than
any other animal, lir. Pearson
Said. The bird cats most of the
day and is able to avert starva-
tion during the night only be-
cause he has the ability to hiber-
nate then, No other bird can hi-
bernale at night, Dr. Pearson re-
ported.
A ranchers wife who hurried
her boy to a San Diego hospital
for an, emergency appendectomy
took along three.. homing pigeons.
M there was no telephone at
the ranch home, the birds car-
ried medical reports tothe dis-
traught father,
Bullfighting Beauty—Lavely Maria' Tamara Louwe, a 24 -year-old
model from Johannesburg, is the latest addition to the short but
distinguished list .of :lady bullfighters. Planning to compete in
the:forthcoming b4Ilf kiting season in Portugal,; she'is already
• lraininp in Lisbon bull rings, •
;FABLE TALI(S
oi anarea=
Here's a "Ready -Mix" you'll
find really worth while, with it
on yo{ir pantry shelf you can turn
out biewnies=also crunchy cook-
.ies.,and quick cake—.in no time
et all,„Lou must add eggs and
vanilla an the. mix,which also
comes in handy to use as, the
basis of a Fudge Sauce or cake
filling •
BROWNIE MIX'
Quickest, easiest way to :mix the
dry ingredients is in a large
paper bag. ' ' r
• Sift into bag 4 c, sifted all-
purpose flour
tsp. Laking
powder
4 tsp. salt
• Mix together 8 c. sugar
211 o. cocoa,
sifted _
• Pour into bag.' Fold open end
over, Grasp both ends and shake
back and forth. Pour into large
bowl or dish pan.
• Cut in 2 c. shortening
• Store, covered, in a cool place.
Makes 16 c. mix—enough for 8
batches of brownies or 4 batches
of cookies.
° a a
BROWNIES
• Beat 2 eggs
• Add 1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. brownie mix
• Blend. :Mixture, will ; not be
smooth.
• Mix in .,,, 34 c. chopped
nuts
• Spoon into greased 8 -inch
square pan. -
• Bake in 350° oven 20 to 25
miputes, or until , brownies pull
away from sides of pan, Makes
-16 brownies,
n '1 "•
BROWNIE -QUICK CAKE
• Beat ., 3 egg„-yolky
• Stir in 3.tbisp.,milk
1tsp vanilla
2 c. browniemix
• Beat until
stiff 3 'egg --whites -
• Fold. into batter,
•,Pour into greased, waxed -
paper -lined. square pan ,,(8x8x2
inches):-'
• Bake'til 350°'oven 35 inmates,
BROWNIE BAKED ATJASKA
• Make 114 times brownie recipe.
Pour into greased, 9 -inch square
pah lined with waxed paper.,
• Bake in 350° oven 25 to 30
minutes:
•.Cool; cutin half. Use, one :half
• Cavpr a board (1 ,2 inch thick,
and'larger•'than cake) with three
layers"of brown paper for inaul-
atlon. Put cake on the paper.
• '3eat 5 egg whites
• Add grad-
ually 05 c. sugar
• Beat until smooth and glossy.
• Tot, cake
with 2 11 pt.) bricks
peppermint
stick ice cream
(Ice cream should be frozen solid,
and cake should -extend az inch
beyond the ice cream on an. sides.
See picture above,)
• Spread meringue over cake
end ice 'cream; colter completely
so ice cream won't melt.
• Bake in 450° oven 3 to 5 min-
ntes, or until meringue browns.
Slice and serve at once, Serves 8.
8 e 7
BROWNIE CRISI"IES
• Beat 2 eggs
• Stir in 2 lap, vanilla
4 c. brownie
mix
• Mix until well blended,
• Drop by spoonfuls on greased
cookie sheets.
• Bake in 075° oven $ to 10
minutes, Makes 4 dozen cookies.
FUDGE SAUCE OR CAKE
FILLING
• Blend in
saucepan 1 c. brownie mix
04 e. water
• Cook until .thick and srnooth,
string constantly.
• Serve hat over icer cream. Or
cool, and use as cake topping or
as filling for a inch i.er cake.
Lower Tariffs
To Increase Trade
In his address at the Annual
Meeting of Shareholders recent-
ly Mr. Jaines Muir, President of
The Royal Bank of Canada had
some interesting things to say
about existing obstacles to for-
eign trade, Mr. Muir said, in
part:
"I am no recent 'convert to the
view that free exchange rates
are today prerequisite to inter-
national monetary equilibrium. I
have consistently urged this
policy since, January, 1950. I do
not mean to say, nor have I ever
said, that free exchange rates
will solve the whole problem;
there is no simple 'solution. Nev-
ertheless, it is surely unwise to
forego the advantages of a free
market merely because, after its
adoption, some problems will
still: remain. The greatest pos .
sible reliance on the free price
system, through a flexible mon-'
etary and exchange rate policy,
is prerequisite to any final re-
rrfoval of exchange controls, im-
port restrictions, and other ape -
vial obstacles to healthy world
trade,
"In the short run, the dollar
countries should act without de-
lay to remove excessive tariff
barriers and customs formalities
that now present unnecessary
obstacles to overseas imports.
Canada, especially has ntuell to
gain by reducing the preponder-
ance of U.S. goods among her
imports; and at the same time
the release in this wayof extra
dollars to overseas countries
would, tend to reduce Canada's
dopenclence on the U.S, export,
market.
"In the long run, an invest.
?nett programme will be of the
greatest importance in correcting
Jim fundamental eeenaptic weak-
ness that lays air allies 'operate
'recurring dollar crises. I think
rat this investment progranime,
not as an excuse for' creating new
and high-soundirig international
• institutions, but ;as a campaign
to reduce the absurd obstacles to
investment which are nowhere
so great as in those countries
where capital is needed most. '
"Canada made a valuable con-
tribution to the revival of faith
in the traditional price mechan-
ism when she freed the dollar in
September, 1950, and removed all
exchange controls a little over a
year later, We should be proud
of the part Canada has played in
this , return to economic sanity,
And, since Canadian economic
expansion demands an expand-
ing world economy, we should
be grateful that, in general, the
spirit of economic freedom
seems likely more and more to
become the spirit of the age.
"Of course, so favourable an
eeonomio environment may have
its disadvantages. It is pleasant
to have one's nation regarded so
highly abroad; but the boom
psychology that prompts even
small investors in other countries
to rush into Canadian securities
should teach us caution. Both our
good repute and our long-term
prosperity will be far 'safer if we
do not oversell Canada now, Let
us then temper our private op-
-trident., witha
p-timism ;with>, little>publio--cau
tion, especially when we are talk
ing to Canada's many friends
:thread."
l'3Boston woman in her will
established a fund of 0,000 :to
be 'davoted entirely to tuiij trig
the e ruses of illness in parrots
and zts treatment, •r
"Kills" Movie Stars
For F Els Living!
Trp! And then thud] A knife
buries itself in the wall within •
a fraction of an itch of the film '
star's profile. It happens all the
time. But who threw the knife?
We know it wasn't the villain of
tate piece, because be's paid Only
to act,
The knife -thrower is probably
a middle - aged , man named
Angie Cornea. Poe,; thirty-three
Years he has made his living
aiming stilettos at famous faces.
Several actors have such con
fidence in Augie's skill that they
refuse doubles in such 'scenes.
But the knife -than himself
„says: "I don't really like to
flirow ,at stars. It's not because
I'd rather risk nicking a stunt
man. It's' because the hazard is
always' greater. „With a trained
stunt man I know that his head
will always be where it's sup-
posed to be and where the knife
is not supposed to bel"
The length of the knife, the
distance from the target, and the
position of the forefinger must
'all be taken into careful con-
sideration when making the
throw, explains ,Gomez.
He always insists on one throw
—and usually one only—as a
practice try -out before the play-
er steps into position. He has
never yet caused any injury.-•'
There is nothing false abeati .
this 'knife -throwing,; but there
are a few trade secrets involves:
When a knife plunges into the
middle of an actor's back, no
one is going to believe that the
actor has played his last role.
The knife lands in a sugar pine
wood block concealed under the
"victim's" shirt. The underside is
faced with heavy aluminium,
just in case the point of the knife
should go clear .through the
wood. .
SAD LOSS
In a cemetery in darkest'
Brooklyn, a grief-stricken man
stood over a_gravg,.fpr theee,days
urinhtg,"beating ']tis -breast, and
repeating in mournful cadence,
"Why did he have to die? Why
did he have to die?" An attend-
ant sought to console him, and
tasked, "Was the deceased your
father; maybe, or a brother?"
"Neither," sobbed the mourner,
"27e was .,ny wife's first hus-
band":
Young,Girh.Old Blade—Trying on a 100 -year-old ice skate for
size, pretty Sally Tepley, at left, admits some of the fancy turns
she does on the ice would be difficult while wearing the ancient
Dutch blade. Blonde Paula Beevor, at right, agrees,
Quf
octet -A : ciI N
S<errt- (S
THE IiO.U5H OF
SEAGRAM
MSN VVJIO 'MINN OI TOMORROW PRACTISE MODERATION TODAY