The Sun. — London, England, 1840-08-28 00:00:00

EVENING EDIT) ON EASTERN COUNTIES RAILWAY The Eighth General Meeting of the Proprietors of the Eastern Counties Railway was yesterday held at the London Tavern, Bishopsgate-street, at one o'clock. H. BOSANQUKT, Esq., the Chairman of the Company, in the Chair- Thc.i Secretary having read the advertisement calling the meeting, and the common seal of the Company hariag been affixed to the book of registered shares, The CIIAIRNIAN said, that on the two last occasions on which they had met he had carefully abstained from Makin g , any observations to them, as their agent, or as t he agents of the Directors, before the reading of the R eport, as he deemed any such observations would have bcea unnecessary, and he had always desired as much as possible to spare their valuable time ; but on the present occasion it was impossible for him not to claim t heir att ent i on to a f ew o b servat i ons wh i ch h e f e l t i t h i s du ty to make to them. He would, in the first place, adtert to the late accident which had occurred on the Railway, and he would say that if it could for one me- Tee "t he imagined that the enterprise in which they were e ngaged had been founded solely in the desire of the ac quisition of gain, his would have been a most cruel task to have to appear before them this day. But that enterprise was founded on more enlightened views. The question was whether the large and important district of the Eastern Counties of England should not have the same Letter highway that the rest of England possessed. That was the real question at issue, and many times during the last four rears it had fallen to the lot of him self and his colleagues to have to bear up against the animosity which it hail been endeavoured to excite against Ibis undertaking, and which they had been enabled to 'ear up aga i nst so l e l y b ecause t h e i r enterpr i se was b ased upon the solid considerations of public utility. ---, Wear.) lie hoped that he should never again frequ ent l y it sai d at t h e W est - en d o f t h e town, as h e h a d lr equently heard it said, that the Eastern Counties Railway would never pay. He had taken some trouble to ascertain the statistics of the hoe, and had gone ' t own for the purpose of watching the enormous stream of traffic th roug h th e eas t ern parts o f E ng l an d ; and to l 'ase who contended that theme was not sufficient traffic ` e 'Lake a railway pay, he world say, go down yourselves a nd see. The number of ceaches was not only consi derable, but there were vans, carts, and waggons innu raerable ; but he would contend that the number of ,e c iaehes had never been sufficient for the accommoda tion of the passengers and traffic. The fact was, the eaPabilities of the Eastern Counties of England had ! l ever been properly developed. When he had seen this iltbrnense number of coaches,vans,waggons, and carriages ,1 e ,', e very description, he had inquired from whence they came. The detractors of the railway had said there Noe only a few paltry villages in the East of Engl a nd. ; ; ,?v , he found that th e r e w er e numerous t owns an d Il aZes east of the River Lee, including Stratford, Guildford, Romford, Hornchurch, Ilford, Southend, Chi pping-Ongar, Sudbury, Coggleshall, Harwich, and vari ous o th er p l aces , w i t h popu l tt i ons o f 2,000, 4,000, , ,"' O , OO , 10,000, a nd 20,000, accor di ng t o th e l ast census , ta ken in 1830. Now he would put himself upon the Passenger-traffic of those towns. He w o uld no t sa y ything of the aristocracy, for they in general were no supporters of their undertakings. He could not under stand why the aristocracy should not be the first sup- Porter s of these, the noblest institutions of modern tunes. The only rea s on h e cou ld i mag i ne f or this con duct Wag, that wealth could now no longer exclusively catnrnand rapidity, but that thi s su p er b i nven ti on br ought in thi s respect, like its own rail, the peer and the peasant on a level.—(Much cheering.) He Would th ere f ore l eave th e ar i stocracy a l together out of his calculations, and look to the support they would h ad f rom t h e su b ur b an population of the towns. It t lad been said that these were agricultural counties, and t h at they could expect no railroad traffic from agricul ural count i es. N ow, he thought there was nothing better than agriculture, and he could not forget, that of the 2,800 enlightened supporters of agriculture who Were assembled the other day at Cambridge, the greater Part came from these very counties. It was from these counties that London was principally supplied with all the articles necessary for life. The articles which were now brought to town by light carts and waggons would undoubtedly all travel by this railway eventually.— (Cheers.) The county of Essex had been much belied. He had travelled all through it, and there did not exist a more beautiful or a richer country than was to be found in the neighbourhood of Southend. But it was said it was not well inhabited. Why was this ? The old merchants who had made their fortunes in London , used formerly to go d own into Essex to reside. They now, however, went to the West-end instead, and spurned those domiciles which their fathers had erected. Why was this ? Be cause they had hitherto never had a proper road from Essex into London—they had to thread their way through Aldgate and Whitechapd. But now, by the ro a d through Bethnal green and Spitalfields, the Com pany had afforded them the means of coming from the eas t end of the town to the west without difficulty, and 7io'thout any danger of bl oc ki ng up , so t h at t h ere was o b i e ager any apology for calling Essex an unfashion -1,4 e atlaty. They had now j o i ne d t h e cast to t h e west, O le n i ,r.% by this new road, opened a communication with t h e ul rrningham and Great Weste rn R a il way , so t h a t 0 , st ream of traffic from east to west could now flow uni uterruptedly.—(Cheers.) He would only say t tl h e llher ' on behalf of himself and his colleagues, that r w ere still a c tuated by the same determination by t ( why they had ever been, to work out the undertaking i :) ) r - i 4e best of th e i r a bility, f o r their own and the Com- L aj's advantage. He would not detain them longer, P t wo uld at Once call upon the Secretary to read the "Port. ' file SECRET Y then read the following Report and A ance-sb eet itice the l as t genera l meeting of the Proprietors, Various matters of peculiar importance have claimed the attention of the Directors. - In the l ast two R eports t h ey state d , at cons id era bl e few , the nature of certain proceedings, to which a Sharehold ers had resorted for the purpose of corn poi - I ng the Company to alter the plans which, after ma re co nsideration, the Directors had laid down for the in to execution of the line of railway froth London pi . ° t he Eastern Counties, and for the unrestricted ap e of the capital under their control to this pur :;, and to which plans the cordial and unqualified - .. r etl °n of the general body of Shareholders had been ni ' a rtnly given. The Proprietors have already been informed that a L ad e L iar a mandamus, from the Court of Queen's Bench, all fi ren obtained, to compel the Company to purchase W ar e l and , and proceed simultaneously to complete the lon t " of th e en ti re R a il way b e t ween L on d on an d Yar huth, and th at a Bill h a d b een i ntro d uce d i nto Parlia et), without the concurrence of either tile Directors, if ropriet ors or the public, contemplating plans which, adopted, would have proved altogether fatal to the fi ve Prog ress o f t h e un d erta ki ng , an d ut t er l y d estruc - Th e of the cap i ta l a l rea d y a d vance d an d expen d e d. rt ie 'se unjustifiable proceedings having signally failed, * j rectors would gladly have avoided further allu went. to the m , b ut as t h ey h ave ten d e d to d e l ay t h e com b, I " of the Railway, to an extent which can scarcely t it estimated, and have caused considerable distress to 4 1 : 11 ,1 individuals, in consequence of the depreciated i oi ,'et v a l ue of the Company ' s stock ; a sense of what e u ue to t h e pu b lic i nduces the D i rectors again to ad ofritto the su bj ect, t h e quest i ons i nvo l ve d b e i ng matters of t TF de e p est i mportance, not on l y to the Propr i etors e 0 , 1" undertaki ng , b u t i n their principle o f th e u t most th - r -se quence to every other incorporated company ,enghout tile p r The Directors deemed it their imperative duty to .L`i e li 3n t a petition to the House of Commons against this and'i nei-117 111 addition to the petitions presented by other parties, ah, during its attempted progress, they used every prac u,e meaas of making its objectionable character and th e " Provisions generally known to the Members, On L e ll th of M a y, the second reading of the Bill having 0 4 0 , r1 l 'oored, it was rejected by a majority, almost with at,: Precede n t i n th e case o f any p r i va t e Bill i n thi s g;e, the num b ers b e i ng one h un d re d an d ninety-f i ve flala st fifty- e i g h t . g li g4( - 3 a th e 16 t h J une t h e J u d ges o f t h e C ourt o f s h, d ee n's Bench, after a lengthened argument, gave W r i g , tne r " l favor of the Company, by quashing the 01 mandamus. ti ps " These vexat i ous proceedings hav i ng thus terminate d , ,uis‘,4- iire ctors congratulate th e Proprietors on the re bi:e and t rus t t h at all parties will henceforward corn t4lll(i to carry nut the legitimate objects of the under. atve a_g, under the conviction that unanimity and per ptit,,r,3nen cannot fail to render it advantageous to the ""e, and profitable to the Shareholders. t a - I ,, " _ r he further opening of the railway from Romford di t 7 entwood, and from Devonshire-street to Shore tores.l3, has fully satisfied the anticipations of the Direc• of ., Already has the opening of this additional portion i„: 4 0 line nearly tripled the former traffic, and a steady Orease in the amount having been exhibited, the yi,sl l : eet ors are c on fi rme d i n the correctness of the i r ula.e.s respecting th e vas t di rect traffic which must u l t i - N ° IY flow upon this rail wa y. Th e opening, of the I le '4 t"he rn an Eastern Rail way , as f ar as Brox b ourne, 15thval noble September, will also prove an exceedingly auxiliary to the traffic receipts of this Company. t e L _ S l : n e annexed report, f rom the engineer, respecting tiun tate of the works, will explain the present situa taet. of th e different parts of the line now under con . the The Directors deeply regret that in consequence of 4PPlinjuriou s procee di ngs already alluded to having ed the Co m p any ' s resources, and affected the con ence of t h e pu b lic mind in their stock and debentures, blimited funds only have been at the command of the °l."nerd, and this has prevented the vigorous prosecution to the works beyond Brentwood ; but they hope shortly as Ch obtain the means of extendi ng th e li ne at least as far. eirnsford. the whole o f the between, betwe Brentw oo d an d C ol. bretallter, has, under the direction of the Board, guided experience of what has been done on other lines, beeul revised by the engineer, and the result has been '4144 alterations in the gradients, which will consider- ably reduce both the cost of construction and the time of execution, without injury to the working of the rail way. The engineer has, in consequence, reported the practibility of completing the railway as far as Colches ter in twelve months, whenever the works for this pur pose are simultaneously commenced. So soon, there fore, as the Directors can command sufficient funds to warrant them in making contracts for this portion of the line, they propose to prosecute the work with the utmost vigour. " The excellent condition of all those portions of the railway which are finished must be highly satisfactory to the Proprietors, and especially the beauty and soli dity of the London Viaduct, reflect, as a work of art, the highest credit on the engineer. " Indispensable as it is not to allow the extension of the line to be delayed, the Directors must shortly call upon the Shareholders, if the requisite money cannot be borrowed upon debentures, to meet specially, and de termine that the other means pointed out by the Act of Incorporation for this purpose, by the issue of new shares, shall be adopted. _ _ _ " A general financial statement and a balance-sheet showing the receipts and disbursements of the Company for the last half-year are appended to this Report. A separate account for the traffic department is likewise an nexed. " Owing to the expediency of incurring considerable expenses with the coaching- department, the charges on the traffic appear larger than i❑ the former statements laid before the Proprietors. The advantage, however, resu!ting from this outlay has produced a more than commensurate return during the last few :months in the traffic receipts, and this is clearly evidenced from a comparison of the large weekly receipts of this line, partially opened for a distance of seventeen and a half miles only, with the weekly receipts on similar par tial openings of most of the leading railways in the kingdom. " The laborious examination of the Company's ac counts for the period prior to the passing of the Act of Incorporation, is at length concluded, and exhibits a more satisfactory result than was anticipated. There appears to be a balance due of 1,1161., as verified by the accountant, which the Directors are taking proper measures to recover. " The Directors have to announce the resignation, since the last General meeting, of Captain C. R. Moor som, R.N., of Birmingham, to whose vacant place at the Board, the Directors have elected Alexander Hoyes, Esq , of Furnival's-inn, London. " The usual preliminary steps, for the forfeiture of 697 Shares of the Company's Stock, having been taken by the Directors, they now submit this forfeiture to the meeting for confirmation, in conformity with the provi sions of the Act of Parliament. " The Directors cannot close their Report without briefly adverting to the melancholy event which has re cently occurred on the line. They trust there is already sufficient evidence before the public of their deep sym pathy for the sufferers, and of their determination to spare neither expense nor pains in the investigation of every circumstance connected with the accident. The inquest before the Coroner terminated only at half-past two this morning, and the Directors cannot but express their regret and extreme surprise, that after an investi gation establishing in the most undeniable manner the perfect character of the line, and of all the arrangements connected with it, by means of parties summoned by the Coroner and unconnected with the undertaking, instead of a verdict of gross and culpable negligence against the unfortunate person, whose rashness and disregard of dis tinct orders, was so clearly proved to have alone occr sioned the accident, a severe deodand of 500/. has been inflicted on the Company. While the Company have been thus proved to have been anxiously adopting every precaution for the security, protection and comfort of the public travelling on the railway, it is a source of great additional regret to the Directors to find, that, al thou,4ll the Company is acquitted by the evidence, and by the verdict of accidental death, unaccompanied by the least intimation that they were in any respect culpa ble, they have not had that entire support and sympathy from a jury of their countrymen which they confidently anticipated." Engineers-Office. " TO THE CHAIRMAN AND DIRECTORS OF THE EASTERN COUNTIES RAILWAY, GENTLEMEN,--The works alluded to in my last half 7 yearly Report, comprising the different embank ments and cuttings, from Romford to Brentwood, have been so far completed as t o ena bl e us to open t h e li ne and continue the run n i ng o f t h e tra i ns w i t h out interrup tion, and by the end of the present month I have no doubt that the subsidence of th e Gubbing's embank ment, a subsidence attributabl e to the state of the weather during the progress of the work, will have so far ceased as to permit the completion of the double line of rails, connecting those at Brentwood with the others already laid through the cutting at Hare-street The continuation of the London Viaduct, being the• remaining portion of Mr. Jay's contract (referred to in my last Report), extending to Farthing-street, and Messrs. Curtis' contract, completing from thence the London Viaduct, to the terminus at Shoreditch, were carried on with considerable spirit by the contractors, interrupted at intervals by the supply of bricks not being adequate to the extraordinary demand caused by this work and others of magnitude, and which, at one period was likely to have prevented the opening of the line in July last. The general character and stability of these works are very satisfactory, and will not only meet your approbation, but will also show the care with which the several contractors have performed their duties. As a proof of this, I may be allowed to mention that out of one hundred and sixty bridges and arches composing the London Viaduct, and varying from from thirty-six to sixty-two feet span, only three in stances occurred in which we had any reason to doubt the perfect solidity of the work, and those portions were removed before the centres were struck, and re instated within forty-eight hours, at the cost of the contractors. The remaining works upon this part of the line, so far as yet determined by you, being the approaches with their retaining walls, and the requi site walls for the passenger shed at the terminus at Shoreditch, are now in progress, and will be finished in the course of next month, depending only upon posses sion being obtained of the land and buildings,included in the Schedule to the Act of the Northern and Eastern Railway Company, which there will be no difficulty in obtaining so soon as the necessary forms have been com plied with. " It is with pleasure I repeat that the road generally continues in a very satisfactory state ; indeed that portion which was opened to the public last year bears more the character of an old than a new line, and the expenses of maintenance of way, from this period, will, I am satis fied, vie with the minimum of other railways. " The working of the line will be conducted with greater regularity than, with all our exertions, we have yet been able to attain, so soon as we are in possession of the additional locomotive engines for which orders have been given to Mr. Bury, and to Messrs. Jones, Turner, and Evans, and which we expect to receive in the course of the season. " My attention has been directed to the continua- tion of the works beyond Brentwood, and it is with much regret I have been compelled to witness so fine a season for earth-working stealing away without the means of reducing some portion of our heavy works to a comparative equality with those of a lighter de scription, which would have tended to insure the speedy completion of the whole line from Brentwood to Col chester, when the funds of the Company would permit. " Impressed with the practical advantages which, on the score of economy as well in the construction as in the working of a railway, recent experience has shown may be obtained from gradients hitherto deemed ob jectionable, I have re-considered those on the line east of Brentwood, and am satisfied that they may be bene ficially increased (still keeping them considerably within some of the gradients on other parts of the line), so as not only to diminish the cost, but to insure the com pletion of the railway to Colchester within 12 months, were we enabled to grapple with the heaviest of them during the present season, namely, to excavate about 200,000 cubic yards on the east side of Brentwood hill, to lead into the Shenfield embankment, 100,000 cubic yards from the west side of Widford-hill, to run into the Moulsham embankment, and 150,000 cubic yards from the Springfield-hill, to be carried into the Chelmer embankment. The two last-named form part of the suspended contracts taken by Messrs. Sherwoods. The probable cost of these works, including the land necessary for the operations, would not exceed 41,000/., spread over a period of six months. " It is right to mention that numerous applications having been made by the different carriers of the dis trict to convey their merchandise on the line, prepara tions are making for such accommodations. Several of the parties are now constructing vans which they intend to run upon the Company's trucks, and others are making the necessary inquiries to enable them to adjust terms with the Company for the transport of coals from London, Stratford, and Ilford, to Romford and Brent wood. " In conclusion, I beg I may be allowed to acknow ledge the unwearied and cheerful exertions of my staff, previous to the opening of the hne on the Ist of July last—an earlier period than was believed possible by many ; and to express my gratification that this de sirable object was attained with so much satisfaction to all concerned. " I have the honour to remain, Gentlemen, " Your obedient Servant, "JOHN BRAITHWAITE." BALANCE SHEET BROUGHT FORWARD TO TOR 24TH AUGUST, 1840. To balance brought down from 4th July, £ 7,702 2 1840 Further payments on account of Ist call 2d ~ 301 ~ .... 4th „ ...... ... 882 10 sth „ . ... 1,422 10 6th 2 379 10 „ 7th „ Bth „ 9th „ „ 3,878 0 8,727 9 1 oth 35,602 0 I-LE RV :M t LOW noN,"yninklr, A IEIGTNT 28, mio, To loans and debentures 30,900 11 2 Interest BO9 16 0 Rent of surplus property 551 13 9 Sale of do. do 1 ,575 0 0 Produce of old matcrial 543 15 6 £99,969 1 3 By further payments to account of Land and compensation Contracts and works 35,723 0 10 Engineering Loans Direction Officers salaries Solicitors' bills Sundries Balance .. . 19,248 11 h £99,969 1 3 TRAFFIC DEPARTMENT. FROM 4TH JANUARY TO 4TH JULY, 1840. RECEIpTi, To balance from 4th Janiiry,lB4o £3,977 8 1 Passenger traffic from ditto to 4th July 7,784 7 1 £11,761 15 2 To balance brought down £7,698 2 0 DISBURSEMENTS. By Police Accounts, viz. : Cr. Salaries to Superintendent and In spectors, wages to Policeman By Locomotive Power Account, viz.:— Coke, Oil, and Grease Wages to Engine and Firemen, En gine Cleaners, &c. By Conveyance Department, viz. : Wages to Guards, Potters, &c. By Mile Duty to Government By Clerks' Salaries By Printing,Books,Tickets, Stationery, &c 134 11 1 By Miscellaneous Expenses at the Four Stations for Coals, Gas Light, Oil, Furniture, &c. By Office Expenses and Petty Cash By Balance £11,761 15 0 By Reserve Account for Wear and Tear of Engines and Carriages By Conveyance Department for Coaches, Omnibuses, &c. By Balance 3,948 12 10 £7,698 2 2 (Passenger Traffic from 4th July to 24th August, .£,210 19s. Id.) Mr. GREENWOOD moved that the Report be received and adopted. Mr. K NOX, in seconding the motion, said that per haps he might be permitted to take that opportunity of asking a few questions ; there would, perhaps, he no ob jection to stating the exact amount which it was pro posed to raise by new shares or debentures. The SECRETARY--538,000/. Mr. KNOX—The Accountant had stated that 1,116/. was due to the Company. He should wish to know from whom those sums were due The CHAIRMAN—They are due from different par ties, and the Company are now suing them for the pur pose of recovering the amounts. Mr. KNOX said, with regard to the Report, the most important part of it, and one to which he particularly wished to direct their attention, was the necessity there was for proceeding immediately with the line. Since the satisfactory termination of the action for mandamus nothing appeared to him to be more important than the necessity for proceeding with the continuation of the line with the greatest possible dispatch. He was glad to see by the Report of the Engineer that the es timated time for the completion of the railway to Col chester had been reduced from two years to one. It was satisfactory to know that when the works should once be commenced, the Railway could be completed to Col chester in twelve months. Unless they proceeded fur ther with their works, the profit, according to his calcu lation of the present traffic on the line, would not be more than one-and-a-half per cent. upon the capital ex pended, and judging from the great increase which had taken place in the profits of the railways consequent upon the extensions of the lines, it was evident that the longer the lines were the greater were the profits. No thing demonstrated more certainly the absolute necessity of their proceeding to Colchester at once, and he could only regret that anything should have occurred to pre vent the Directors taking steps for that purpose at once. There was only one other call remaining to be made, the amount accruing from which would be so small, after pay ment of the loan w hi c h h a d b een contracte d , as to ren d er it utterly impossible to construct the line without further as sistance ; he should thei efore urge upon the Directors the propriety of proceeding at once to issue new shares, so as to complete the line to Colchester with as little delay as possible. He hoped a special meeting for this pur pose would be convened at an early day. From the traffic account it appeared that the expenses had been more than the receipts, but this he apprehended was not really the case, inasmuch as the allowance of 2,420/. for wear and tear was for the whole year, and not for the short period during which alone the rail road had been open. It appeared that there was a charge of 1,329/. for coaches, omnibuses, Sze. ; he wished to know if that ware a permanent charge, or merely a temporary one ? The SECRETARY—A temporary one. Mr. KNOX considered the Report perfectly satisfac tory, and would therefore with pleasure second the mo tion for its adoption. The CHAIRMAN said the Directors were prepared to issue new shares as soon as they had properly con sidered what would be the best mode of making the issue. At present he was satisfied that the traffic on the line had not nearly developed itself, and that when such should be the case, it would not fear a comparison with any other line of railway in the kingdom. In answer to a question from a Proprietor, The SECRETARY stated that twelve coaches at pre sent were in connection with the railway, and that he had hoped, before the accident, to have had others also ; but he hoped soon to be able to complete arrange ments with nine or ten more. Mr. KNox was satisfied that as yet the traffic had been not at all developed, and that they had a great deal of prejudice to get over. He had hoped that some intimation would have been given that steps would be taken to prevent the recurrence of such an accident as that which Lad lately taken place. It might appear to some persons impossible to do so, but he thought it was unreasonable that the lives of so many passengers should be left within the control of one man. He thought that some person of superior authority might be appointed at very little expense, and unless some steps were taken ha was convinced the receipts of the Company would be very seriously affected. The CHAIRMAN replied that a committee of the Directors had been appointed, and were then sitting to institute, not only the most rigid inquiry into the whole of the facts of the case, but to endeavour in every way to prevent the recurrence of a similar accident. — (Hear.) If any improvement could be made, it would be effected.—(Hear, hear.) Mr. ATKINSON wished to ask, if it were not invidious, whether the late Secretary was one of the parties from whom a sum of money was due, because by the statement of accounts it appeared there was a balance of 1,0001. owing to the Company ; and in the last Re port the Directors alluded to the complicated state of the accounts, and that it was necessary to have the as sistance of a skilful accountant to check them. It would give great satisfaction to the Shareholders, as certain persons had, through the medium of the public press, thought fit to depreciate the Eastern Counties Railway in every possible manner, to be informed on that point. The CHAIRMAN was bound to state that the late Se cretary was one of the parties from whom the Account ant had reported that money was due to the Company. Mr. ATKINSON inquired whether there was any ob jection to state the amount ? ,-- - The CHAIRMAN replied that it formed a considerable portion of the whole, but he could not state the precise amount. _ _ _ Mr. J. B. SMITH, of Manchester, asked whether the cost of the terminus had exceeded the estimate given at the last meeting. Mr. BRAITHWAITE—NO. Mr. SMITH—Is the railway completed from London to Brentwood ? Mr. BRAITHWAITE—NO, it is not. Mr. SMITH—What would be the expense of that ? Mr. BRAITHWAITE—About 100,000/., and that would be for land. In answer to further questions from Mr. SMITH, Mr. BRAITHWAITE stated that the estimated cost of completing the line to Colchester would be 2,500,000/., which included the 100,0001. for land, and 98,760/. for carrying establishments ; but that the sums hitherto laid out had not been expended entirely upon the work between London and Brentwood, because the amount mentioned in the balance sheet included the cost of the works at Chelmsford, the sums paid for jand to Lord Metre and Mr. Labouchere, and amcunt paid for e land to Colchester. Mr. SMITH next inquired what would be the amount of sat ing from the proposed alteration in the gradients ? Mr. BRAITHWAITE said the saving would be con siderable, although not so great as if the line was carried on in a regular manner ; but if the works were prosecuted with the vigour he proposed, one advantage would be, that the Company would come into the re ceipt of large profits one year earlier. Mr. SMITH—What is the steepest gradient, accor ding to your new plan ? Mr. BRAITHWAITE---One in 132, and that only for a short distance, being the same gradient as the pre sent gradient east of Brentwood. Mr. SMITH begged to ask the Chairman how it was intended to raise the money for completing the line without going to Parliament ? The CHAIRMAN said they could do it, and measures were being taken for the purpose of bringing the sub ject under the consideration of the Shareholders. Mr. ATKINSON wished to ask whether the line coif d be completed to Colchester within twelve months from the present time, if the requisite means were afforded, and at the cost of 2,100,000/. ? Mr. BRA I T HWAITE—Certair.Iy not, Mr. WILEY thought it right that the Shareholders should be informed that the Directors some time ago, under the superintendence of Captain Moss, caused an estimate to be m a d e o f w h at the tra f f i c upon th e line when completed ‘Nould be, and the result was that it was proved there would be a return to the Shareholders of upwards of 10 per cent., supposing the outlay to amount to 2,200,0001. Mr. Smuni thought it would be very satisfactory if an abstract of that calculation were laid before the Pro prietors. [The Secretary then read the estimate.] A SHAREHOLDER thought it necessary that such a statement should not go forth to the public without cor rection, because it was erroneous from beginning to end. According to the estimate which had been read 1,000,000/. more was to be raised to complete the works. The only means suggested for raising that ca pital was the issuing of new shares. Those new shares would be issued at the rate of 50 per cent. discount ; therefore this then would be only a million of money to be raised, yet it would be two millions of stock, and et n sequently the capital of the Company would really amount to three millions and a half. Therefore, while the old shareholders would receive about 5 per cent. the new shareholders would receive 10 per cent. The CHAIRMAN said the capital of the Company was 1,600,000/., and there was a power to borrow 5:33,0001., or to issue new shares to that extent. The Directors were doing all in their power to look into it, and would call a special meeting of the Shareholders for the purpose of taking the subject into consideration. They might depend upon it that the interests of the old Shareholders would be most rigidly attended to. Mr. WILEY was convinced, that when the railway was completed to Colchester, no gentleman would have cause to complain of his investment in the Eastern Counties Railway. Mr. EDWARDS hoped the Directors would go boldly to work. The ultimate return from the completion of the entire line was what they had to look to.—( Hear.) A Peoreir:Tott wished to ask if there were at pre sent any dispute with the North Eastern Railway Company ? The CHAIRMAN said it had been agreed by both parties to refer the matters in dispute to the engi neers, and he had no doubt but that the matters in dis pute would all soon be amicably settled, to the satis faction of both parties.—( Cheers.) The motion that the Report be received and adopted was then put, and carried unanimously. Mr. ATKINSON said that, with respect to the discus sion which had recently taken place, he thought the meet ing would not be doing justice to the absent Shareholders or to the Directors, if they separated without coming to a resolution of a general nature, recommending to the Directors to take into their early consideration the best means of raising a sufficient capital to complete the line to Colchester, whether by the issue of new shares or otherwise. Such a resolution would produce a great moral effect. It would go forth to the world as a proof' of the great confidence which that numerous and re spectable meeting had in the Directors ; and if they thought it would strengthen their hands, he should feel happy in having proposed it to the meeting. He could not sit down, without expressing his thanks to the Directors, for the manly and ener getic stand they had made against opposition from every quarter.--(Cheers.) He alluded to their unbending spirit in avoiding anything like conciliation or compromise which was pretended to be held out to them. It was in this manner that they had succeeded in defeating the attempt. that was made to their preju dice in the House of Commons. In saying this he was only givincr expression to the opinion which was generally entertained of their cemiuct among the Shareholders in the north of England. It was their firm and unbending conduct alone which had carried them through their dif ficulties.—(Cheers.) .With regard to the prospects of the Railway, it was of the utmost importance that the public mind should be aware that their opinion as to the ultimate result of the undertaking being a profitable one remained unshaken.—(Cheers.) He was glad to sec that as far as regarded the amount of traffic the Eastern Counties Railway stood at the head of eight different railways which had recently been partially opened, and some of them stood very high in public estimation. It was g ratifying to the Shareholders to be able to look prospectforta vrd t o o a fr t e i a m li e zi l n they n v g he and should e civateiiavesome profit upo then capital which they had expended. With regard to the lateaceident it was with feelings of deep regret that he heard of it, but he could not restrain giving expression to the feel ings of indignation with whi c h h e h a d heard of the un precedented deodand levied by a jury of Essex on that occasion, and he believed, if a verdict of that kind met with the public approbation, it would tend to create a • greater amount of unfounded prejudice than any other occurrence. In an accident which had occurred on the Grand Junction Railway, and in consequence of which life had been lost, the jury returned a verdict of acci dental death, accompanying their verdict with a strong censure on the Company, inasmuch as the officers ap pointed by them were perfectly incompetent to the execution of their duties, and as the Company had not issued proper directions for their guidance ; and yet they had only levied a deodand of 150/. on each engine, and yet in this instance, in which it was proved that the accident was • entirely owing to the inattention of the engineer, and to his neglect of the positive direc tions of the Company, who bad done all in their power to prevent the occurrence of these dis asters, the jury had levied the unprecented sum of 500/. as a deodand on the engine, He could only attribute this to the ignorant and un enlightened state of the inhabitants of this agricultural district, who were thus throwing every obstacle in the way of that railway which was intended for, and which must ultimately most materially conduce to, their ad vantage and prosperity.—(Cheers.) Therefore, it was necessary to complete the railway to Colchester as speedily as possible, so as it place it Beyond the reach of the malevolent opposition of prejudiced parties.— (Cheers.) The lion. Proprietor then proposed a re- . . solution, which was seconded by Mr. G. SAuL, put, and carried unanimously. The CHAIRMAN said he thanked the lion. Pro prietor for three things, for the compliment he had paid the Directors, for his excellent, just observation on the verdict of the Essex Jury, and for strengthening the hands of the Directors by the resolution.—(Cheers.) A Paomuurott wished to know the amount now due on forfeited shares. The SECRETARY-30,000/., and 18,000/. more would soon be due. It was then moved and seconded that the resolution of the last meeting, declaring 607 shares forfeited, be confirmed, and that 90 other shares be declared forfeited. The resolution was put and carried unanimously. The SECRETARY said that of the forfeited shares '285 had been declared forfeited, under an arrangement by which the Company would secure the whole amount due upon them ; of -112, the larger portion had paid up 71. 10s. per share. Mr. ATKINSON moved, and Mr. E. JOHNSON of Liverpool seconded, a vote of thanks to the Chairman, Directors, and Officers of the Company, which was carried by acclamation, and the meeting separated. trains. The same plan is ;n progress with regard to the Blackwall engines, and is nearly completed. " We must be allowed to state, that the experience we have acquired from the working of this railway has entirely confirmed the opinion we ventured to entertain with regard to the applicability and efficiency of the system here adopted ; and to express our highest grati fication, that its entire success is now placed be d and the possibility of question. (Signed) "GEORGE STEPHENSON. GEORGE. P. BIDDER." Also the following Report from the Directors . " The Directors of the London and Blackwall Rail way, meet the Proprietors on this occasion with pecu liar satisfaction, the Railway having since their last meeting been opened for traffic, and being now in successful, although as yet but in partial operation. " On the 6th of July, the train commenced running between Blackwall and the Minories, upon one line of rails, at half-hour intervals ; and on the 3'l instant the second line was opened, admitting of trains being run every quarter hour from each end ; at the same time carriages have been running every half hour from Lon don to the intermediate stations of Stepney, Limehouse, West India Docks, and Poplar ; and the number of journeys which are now being daily performed, amount to no less than a hundred : each journey, including the time required for placing the passengers in the car riages, occupying on an average not more than ten minutes. Carriages within these few days have been put on to run at half•hour time from Blackwell to Step ney ; and as soon as the necessary arrangements can be made for carriages and breakamen, others will be placed to run between some of the other stations and Blackwell. The Directors have to express their unqualified con fdence in the system of working the railway by sta tionary engines and ropes, and the experience they already have had, although short, is sufficient to con vince them that no other system in practice could have been adopted to admit, in so short a line, so many in termediate stations to be successfully worked. " The Directors with reference to that part of the above Report, which relates to the breakage of the rope during the early part of the period of working the Railway (the causes of which, with the remedies re sorted to by the Engineers, are therein explained), deem it right to add, that they believe, that by the adoption of remedies pointed out by the Engineers, the ropes are now in good working order. In the mean time, it is most satisfactory to be able to say, that in the in stances when breakage occurred, there was no difficulty in splicing the rope, and no other inconvenience was ex. perienced than a short delay, and without the smallest injury to the passengers. " The Directors trust, that the amount of traffic will not disappoint the Proprietors, they themselves viewing it, under all the circumstances, as being highly satis factory. From the 6th of July to the 24th of August, the number of passengers who travelled by the Railway have been 334,354 ; and the total amount received 5,0541. Bs., while the number of persons who have embarked and disembarked from the Brunswick Wharf have been 60,855. The principal part of these latter were to and from Woolwich ; a town, which by means of the Railway, has been brought within twenty-five minutes distance of the metropolis. The steam-boat traffic at present is but partially developed, partly owing to the Company's preparations at the Brunswick Wharf being yet incomplete, by the want of suitable landing lighters, but principally in consequence of the distance from the seat of business, at which the Minories Ste tion is situate ; the one inconvenience will be speedily removed, by the placing at Blackwall commodious land ing lighters, which are now in progress of construction ; and the other, by the establishment of the Terminus in the City, which will be completed in the course of next Spring ; when to steam-vessels, with their passen' hers and goods, such facilities of transit will be afforded as will assuredly constitute Blackwell the chief start ing and arriving point, for the numerous steamers which frequent the river Thames. " The Directors have always been sensible of the in sufficiency of the Railway, so long as its London ter minus shall be confined to the Minories, and they would hope that the Proprietors feel with them, that the amount of the present traffic is by no means the stand ard by which their future prospects are to be governed. A knowledge of the localities, and of the habits of men of business, will convince them how great will be the value of transferring tho London terminus to Fen church-street ; immediately adjoining the dock ware houses, and in the midst of the counting houses of the colonial merchants and factors. " The progress making, in regard to the extension of the line, although not apparent to the eye, is consider able ; the claims of the several parties, whose property is destined to be removed, have been duly considered, and negotiations are advancing for the purchase of the same. The freeholds are, in a great measure, in the hands of the Corporation of London, and they have al ready been agreed for, while many of the other interests have also been adjusted, so that the ground may be ex pected to be cleared during the winter. Three months are reckoned to be sufficient to construct the whole of the works, and, therefore during the ensuing spring, the trains may be expected to run to and from the new ter minus in Fenchurch-street. " A statement of the half-yearly receipts and disburse ments is appended to this Report. It may be necessary for its proper elucidation to state, that the surplus pro perty which has been paid for, and which remains to be disposed of, has been estimated by competent persons at 90,000/. In order to be prepared for the payment of the property purchased and purchasing on the Extet - sion Line, a call of 21. lOs. per share will be necessary before the end of the year ; due notice of which will be given to the Proprietors in the usual way. " It is judged, by some persons, that the fares charged to passengers arc too low ; but the Directors trust that the Proprietors will give them credit for having very maturely weighed the subject, and they hope that the discretion will be left in their hands, either to continue the present rates, or to advance them, as they may deem most conducive to the general interests of the concern. " The Directors cannot conclude their Report,without again assuring the Proprietors of their confidence in the success of the undertaking ; the system adopted was at one time looked upon as visionary, but they now per ceive how practically correct have been the calculations of their enci ' ineers, and how completely th e ir an ti c ip a ti ons have been borne out by the results. With regard to railways in general, experience has shown that their capabilities are never manifested at once, a considerable time is always required before the full tide of traffic will flow into new channels ; and in the case of the Black wall Railway, the Directors firmly believe, that a fair development of its resources will prove that the expec tations that have been formed of it will not be dis appinted.: (Signed) " WILLIAM ROUTH, Chairman." " London, Aug. 2G, 1840." HALF-YEARLY ACCOUNT, FROM 31ST DECEM BER, 1839, TO 30Th JUNE, 1840, RECEIPTS. X S. d. To Balance of last Half-Year's Account 15,846 2 9 To received on Account of Calls 125,551 5 0 To ditto for Interest on Calls 832 17 2 To ditto for old Materials sold 572 4 8 To ditto for Ground and other Rents 287 10 0 To ditto for Transfer Fees 4l b 0 To ditto for Re-sale of Property To ditto on Account of Loans .. £252,217 16 3 DISBURSEMENTS. £ S. d. By paid for Works 122,027 1 9 By ditto for Property purchased, Vendors' Costs, and Conveyancing By ditto for Engineering and Assistants 1,601 18 3 By ditto for Solicitors, Parliamentary, &c 2,911 10 4 By ditto for Counsels' Fees By ditto for Parliamentary Agency By ditto for Surveying, on account By ditto for Direction 1,0(9 0 0 By ditto for Carriages, on account 5,000 0 0 By ditto for Salaries, Secretary, and Clerks By ditto for Rent, Furniture, Repairs, Coals, Printing, Stationery, Maps, and Plans By ditto for Advertisements By ditto for Interest on Debentures and Stamps... By ditto for Interest on Loans By ditto for Discount on Calls in Advance 6 4 0 By ditto for Rates, Taxes, and Insurance' 1,280 19 9 By ditto for Petty Cash and Miscella neous Expenses By Balance (of which 20,000/. arc placed upon Interest) 24,725 2 11 6SO 0 0 345 5 4 142 7 10 £252,217 16 3 GENERAL ACCOUNT OF RECEIPTS AND DISBURSEMENT:3. Total Amount of Receipts, as per previous Accounts lo 31st December, 1839., ....£431,696 19 7 Ditto, half-year to 30th June, 1840 (as above) X 668,068 13 1 Total Amount of Disbursements, as per previous Account, to 30th December, 1 339 £415,850 16 10 Ditto, half-year to 30th June, 1840 (as above) Balance Bankers, 30th June, 1840 (as above) £668,068 13 1 Balance of Cash in hand £24,725 2s. lid. The CHAIRMAN then said the Directors had made the Report as full as possible, but still he considered it his duty to detain them for a few moments while he ex plained some things which had been omitted from the Report. The first subject was that of intermediate stations. It was well-known that they must lose some time at every stoppage—they calculated that at least three minutes would be lost at each stoppage, and as they were intended to qve in n umber, that would be a loss of fifteen minutes, which would totally defeat their object, but from the exertions of their engineers that dJliculty had been obviated. The traffic to those stations was not of trifling importance. The Directors had taken as an example one whole week's traffic, and upon an average it was found that the traffic to the intermediate stations amounted to 50 per cent. ; and that traffic was likely to be permanent, because it was entirely business traffic, and would not be affected by the season.—(Cheers.) From 20 to 25 per cent. of the traffic was from passengers from Brunswick Wharf, but it was almost entirely confined to Wool wich ; but the Directors were in good hopes that that traffic would be much increased, not only to Graveg.- end but to Margate. Ile had not the least donht th,,t, vary soon they would double the receipts, and although he knew that it was a hazardous thing for a Director of any concern to give an opinion upon such a subject, still, having formed an opinion upon mature considera tion, he thought he would not he doing his duty to conceal it, and therefore he avowed that his firm opi nion was, that very shortly their traffic would yield a profit of ten per cent.—(Cheers.) He would be most happy to answer any question that the Proprietors might wish to put to him. - In answer to a question from a Shareholder, The CHAIRMAN said he had formed an estimate of 1 the traffic to be expected upon the railway, and he thought in a very short time it would produce 2,000/. a week ; and including the duty payable to Government, and the interest upon borrowed money, which was 10,000/., the expense would be 28,000/. Mr. JEFFRIES wished to know what pier dues were paid by the Company for passengers at Brunswick Wharf. The CHAIRMAN . said that that depended entirely upon where they came from. If fr,pm Woolwich, the Company had contracted to pay to the Dock Company one farthing each passenger, and the Company were to get as much more as they could.—(Laughter.) If from Gravesend a halfpenny ; and from Margate three-half- pence. Mr. JEFFRIES also wished to know whether the. Di rectors had a prospect of coming to some satisfactory arrangement with the steamboats? The CHAIRMAN said that with regard to the Wool wich boats a satisfactory arrangement had already been come to, but with respect to the Gravesend vessels some difficulty still existed. Steps, however, had been taken, not by the Directors collectively, but they had asso ciated themselves with other parties, and this, it was thought, would have the effect of bringing the traffic to the Brunswick Wharf. Mr. JEFFRIES said that great complaint had been made of the noise of the sheaves. It had been ad mitted in Parliament that such would be the case unless they were padded. That plan had been adopted, but for some reason or other the padding had been taken off, and the noise occasioned in consequence was now very great, and a subject of serious complaint.. He thought, therefore, that it behoved the Directors to consider whether or not some more eligible mode of working the railway, then by pullies and ropes, ought not to be adopted.—(Laughter, and cries of " No, no.") Gentlemen might say no, but he would beg to call to their recollection that a new principle, called the " Atmospheric," had b een p ropose d, which he believed might be applied with the best results. The CHAIRMAN could assure the Proprietors, that the Directors had no intention of adopting that princi ple.—(Laughter.) A PROPRIETOR wished to know whether, since the opening of the second line of rails, there had been an increase of the traffic ? The CHAIRMAN said that there had been an increase of 75 per cent, in the traffic since that period, although the season had considerably advanced. The Report was then read and adopted. The meeting then proceeded to the business for which it had been made special—namely, to take the opinion of the Proprietors as to the expediency of reducing the num ber of Directors from sixteen to ten. A resolution was read by the Secretary, which bad been drawn up by the Directors for the adoption of the Proprietors, in which the names of nine of the Directors, and that of Captain Routh, the son of the Chairman, were pro posed as the ten Directors to manage the future affairs of the Company. The CHAIRMAN, in asking the adoption of the Reso lution by the Proprietors, adverted to the circumstance of his son being proposed as one of the Directors, and observed that probably some other gentleman would state why he had been proposed. Mr. Alderman HUMPHERY, the Director who by ballot it had been determined should go out of the Di rection to make room for Captain Routh, said that every person who had travelled the line of railway must bear testimony to the efficiency of Captain Routh. When first the railway started, and the almost insur mountable difficulty of the breaking of the rope took place, he was the first who proposed the use of swivels, the adoption of which had been attended with so much benefit to the Company, and but for which the greatest difficulty would have been experienced. Captain Routh had not rested in his exertions in behalf of the Corn- piny night or day, and he thought, therefore, his addi tion to the Direction would be a most valuable acqui• sition. Mr. SALOMONS was delighted to observe the good feeling displayed by Ald. Humphery in making way for Captain Routh, whose talent and exertions eminently qualified him for a Director of the Railway. Mr. CRAWSHAY considered, with the exception of the Chairman, the most active individual in their Direction had been Mr. Ald. Humphery, and he wished, there fore, to know why he had been excluded ? The CHAIRMAN felt bound to state all be knew upon the subject. The Directors, one and all, were of opi nion that some one should make room for his son, and the matter was determined by ballot, at which he was not present. He most cordially agreed !with what Mr. Crawshay had stated with respect to the exertions of Mr. Aid. Ilumphery, but for which, coupled with those of his sen at the opening, the concern must have stood still. Mr. Ald. HOMPIIERY could assure the Proprietors that he was deeply impressed with the importance, for the interests of the Company, of their having Captain Routh for a Director.—(Cheers.), He (Ald. Humphery) had exerted himself for the interests of the Company, and should continue to do so, notwithstanding he was not a Director. Mr. CRAWSIIAY would propose that Mr. Alderman Humphery should be the eleventh Director. The Pro- _ - prietors must recollect the great exertions of that gen tleman in Parliament in their behalf when their Bill was in jeopardy. Mr. ATKINS seconded the motion. A short discussion then took place, in the course of which, it was suggested that it should be left to the Directors to determine which of their body should leave the direction instead of Mr. Alderman Humphery, but several of the Proprietors objecting to this proposition, Mr. SOLOMONS moved as au amendment that the number of Directors be eleven. The amendment was seconded, and being put to the meeting, was negatived. The original motion was then put and carried unani mously. On the motion of Mr. Salomons, the thanks of the meeting were voted with acclamation to the Chairman and Directors. The Chairman returned thanks, and the meeting broke up. GREAT WESTERN IiALLWAY MEETING. (Abridged from a Second Edition of the Bristol Stan dard of yesterday.) The Tenth Half-yearly Meeting of the Proprietors of this important undertaking was held this day at the Merchants' Hall. The meeting was very fully attended. The Chair was taken at one o'clock by Charles Russell, Esq., Chairman of the Board of Directors. The Chairman opened the proceedings with the following observations :—The report which has this morning been distributed among the Proprietors, con tains such full and detailed information on the several points that will be submitted to your consideration, that it will not be necessary for me to detain you with many observations. Our traffic has continued to maintain its high success as we have advanced ; and this is the more satisfactory, because the first six months are always the least productive half of the year, and also, because a great portion of the Bath and Bristol traffic only joins us at Read ing, and because the whole of the traffic of the West of England goes, not to our line, but to the Southampton line at Basingtoke. Our works have continued with unremitted activity ; successive portions to Reading, to Steventon, and to Farringdon Road, have been opened at the periods at which we led you to expect. I con gratulate the town of Bristol, that in a very few (la) s they will see in active operation that great work which owes its origin, in a great measure, to the enterprise and intelligence of the great commercial corporation of this town.—(Cheers.) I have no doubt, that by th e beginning of November we shall be able to open the line as far as Swindon, which will be at an earlier pc riod than we led you to expect at our last meeting, a n d will complete ninety miles of the entire lengths of 11 miles.—(Loud cheers.) Such is the present state of our works. The most important pointyhifc.i you will have to cons i der to - day is, the m o d e in which w e shall raise those funds which will be necessary the completion of our work. In considering this tion, the Directors have been most anxiosanxioustodcieuvissC those means which shall enable them to complete tt-i•3 object by means which will bear as light as possible " upon the Proprietors ; and they hope that they have been succossiul in the plan which they have devised. beenTlm plan iaid ibseffourlely'yotealnodpeld canin the. express ep Report which ful l has confi dence of the Directors, that, they will be able As an earnest of thQ that plan into early effect, to carry s sbse cess which is to attend it, I can assure the Proprietors, that persons have alreadyl secured oar l oan notes to the a l n t believe, s o orreqsuoi,rooooa/s.pecAtifin; resolutio n from the Pro other im p tube which will ct prieto rs , is the contract which the Directors propose to make for the I3ristol and Ex eter line. In that agreement we did not propose to ourselves any pecuniary benefit whatever, the great be nefit that we look to is, the early and entire completion of the line to Exeter. At the same time we have felt it to be a duty to our Proprietors, to require such terms as should ensure them against the risk of any loss.— BLACKWALL RAILWAY. A meeting of the Shareholders of the above COM. paly was held at the L-mdon Tavern yesterday, Wm. Routh, Esq., in the Chair. The common seal of the Company was affixed to the registry of Shareholders. The SECRETARY then read the following Report from the Engineers to the Line : " Having had the satisfaction of bringing the works re o,y o upon your railway, between 13Iackwall and the Mino ries, to a conclusion, and the line between those p o i nts being in operation, we beg to report to you our ob servations, both upon the man ner i n whi c h t h e works haveilat system been uponan don ou ti r ie m practicaleoete n efficiencydatin ofu t have been pleased to adopt. 6' With reference to the works generally, we will only observe, that though plain, they are sound and substan tially constructed ; whilit the casualties attending their progress were unusually few and unimportant. " The subject to which we conceive, on the present occasion, it is our duty more particularly to advert, is the mode of working the stationary engine system, as now in practice on your railway, I n adapting this system to the exigencies of this railway, particularly with regard to the provisions for such an extensive intermediate traffic, involving as it did much novelty of application, it could scarcely have been expected, even by the most zealous of its advocates, that no interrup tions would at the outset occur ; and it gives us the greatest satisfaction to know, that those interruptions have been unimportant, and attended with vary slight inconvenience. As respects the working of the engines and the machinery in c onnection with them, our most most sanguine expectations have been realized ; not only as regards the loads they are capable of drawing, and ' the speed attained, but also in reference to the great economy which will be found in the working expenses. " The only description of casualty, to which we feel it necessary to allude, is the breaking of the rope ; this ought not to be attributed to the insufficient strength of the rope ; but the following appear to us to have been the causes : inexperience of the breaksmen—the sys tem of signals not being perfected—in consequence of which, the carriages, during the first ten days, several times overran the rope, and damaged it in places ; and lastly, the tendency of the rope, near the drums, to twist to a greater extent than we had foreseen. " We have now, however, to state, that the breaks men have acquired the necessary experience —the sys tem of signals is well understood—and to counteract the twisting of the rope, we have introduced swivels, which have been found effectually to answer the purpose. All the damaged parts of the rope have been taken out, and other improvements have also been made, wh'cli, to gether with parcelling and serving the rope, wo feel assured will increase its durability, and, at the same time, obviate the noise from its rapid motion over the sheaves. Effectual means have been adopted at the London engines, for maintaining the vacuum in the eon , densers ; the advantages of which have bean found of great importance in facilitating the despatch of the 181 14 0 TENING PD./110N. (Hear, hear.) W e t hi n k we have accomplished tai object, and we strongly recommeed to 3eu to confirm the agreement which we propose to make. We ece:l - believe, that it is both a safe and an equitable agreement ; we think that it will materially facilitate and economize the combined working of the two liar.-: ; but above all we are sure, that we cannot over-rate . importance of completing that line from Bristol Exeter, which shall be the means of bringing front a variety of channels to our own line, the important traffic of the West of England.—(Loud cheers.) The Report of the Directors and the statement of Account, together with a report by Alr. Brunel on the state of the works, was then read. The following are abstracts : The Directors have again the pleasure to report, for the information of the Proprietors, a steady and consider able augmentation of business in every department upon first six theportmioonnstohs of the fraile.ay y w ea h r. which have been in use during the In the interval since the last General Meeting of the Company the Directors have been enabled to ni heading into e suc cessive ive mo n n p t e h ni o n f g hiah ; as they Steventon then ari uce to Farringdon Road, 63 m il es f rom L on d on . They have now ticiinpa Junr,ted ; decided to open the line between Bristol and Bath, on the ag a 3 v l a s i t lab instant, th e public The statement of Co ac hi ng R evenue t o t h e 301 June, in fo g r traffic.ther 75 miles of railway cat - uprises receipts during the three first months of the }ear, from 31 miles of railway, to Twyford; during the two next months from 36 miles, to Reading, and during one month, from 56 miles, to Steventon. The gross amount so received is 89,9371. 9s. The number of pas sengers conveyed has been 378,736; the aggregate num ber of miles travelled 7,888,293 ; furnishing an average result of 1,171 persons daily travelling the whole distance. The expenditure on traffic is detailed in the usual form, and amounts to 43,7491. Os. sd. The result of the half-year shows a profit of 46,1881. Bs. 7d., which being added to the former balance of coach. ing revenue, presents a sum of 116,672/. 12s. Id. at the credit of the Company. The Directors regret to mention a loss by the acci dental destruction of goods by fire. Every practicable precaution has since been adopted for the prevention of similar casualties. The claims of the parties are now under examination, and a settlement will be made by the • Directors as early as possible, upon such terms as may appear to be fair and equitable, after which the tuna will be carried to account against the revenue balance. The interest which has been paid to June 30 last, on loans to the Company, after allowing far all sums received for interest, shows a total charge of 93,3071. 6i. incurred under that head, and it seems to the Directors most ad visable that a complete liquidation of that charge should be effected by a transfer of the amount to the debit of the revenue account, distinctly showing to the public, and es ' pecially to the loan creditors of the Company, the pecu liar security afforded by the proprietors of this undertaking, who have already faithfully applied the clear working profits of the railway to discharge all interest on borrowed money, in preference to distributing an early dividend on the shares, and accumulating interest against capital. The further extension of the Line during the presetit six months will not only contribute to the increased security and credit of the Company, but must also furnish a clear residue of profit, which will then be at the disposal of the Proprietors for remuneration on their own outlay of capital. The works on the intermediate Line between Ferriage don and Bath have been for the most part proceeding satis factorily during the last few months. The Report from the Engineer, which details the state of them, and the probable period of completion, is submitted for the infor mation of the proprietors. The Directors attach great importance to the next open ing of the Railway towards the west, e hich will have the effact of materially increasing the trade of the whole Line, as it will leave only 30 miles of road to be travelled by coaelys le:tween Swindon and Bath. Up to the present time the coach proprietors have deemed it their interest to work almost all their coaches upon the turnpike road between Reading and Bristol. Negotia- Cons aec now proceeding with them, and it will be the duty of the Directors to effect such arrangements. either through their instrumentality, or otherwise, as shall tea re the greatest traffic to your Lino, and the greatest Speed and accommodation to the public. Tee lease of the portion of the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway, between Swindon and Ciren cester, which was approved by the Proprietors at a special meeting held on the 27th Oct. 1837, has been finally adopted by that Company, to whom the option was left, and the covenants of the lease being arranged, it will very shortly receive 'the corporate seal of the two Companiet. Tne completion of those works may be expected before the spring of 1841. At the meeting in February last, the expediency of renting the Bristol and Exeter Railway was referred to by the Directors, and the reasans stated for thinVing it might be beneficial to the interests of:both Companies. Subse quent consideration has confirmed that op;inion, and, after a protracted negotiation, tho terms fot a lease have been agreed to, subject to the confirmation thereof by the respec tive Proprietors of the two Companies. The arrangement gives the tenantcy of the Bristol and Exeter Railway, with a double line of rails, and all requisite buildings, stations, &e. to this Company, until a period of five years after the entire completion ar,cl opening t o Exeter. The proposed rent is fixed at 50,0001. per annum, together with a toll of one farthing per mile, travelled by eac h passenger, and each ton of me rc hanClize between Bristol and Bridge water. The toll upon any excess above twelve millions of miles per annum, is to be reduced one-hat The same proportion of fixed rent and reduction of Toll is to apply to the mileage beyond Bridgewater, with an iuerease of rent consequent upon future openings trot exceeding 7,5001. per annum in the whole; partly contingent upon the final adoption by Government of a Western Port in the English Channel, for the West India Mail Packet Station, which is a measure of very great interest to the undertaking. _ _ The Directors feel confident that many and i m p ortant advantages for both parties will is, on the confirm (ion of the lease, founded, as it s, on fair and equitable conditions. It is calculated to ensure the quick comple tion of that work to Exeter, to develope and increase the traffic, and to economize the working expenses, without compromising the pecuniary affairs of this . Companyg,4,ath.e: any undue responsibility' irrespective of the trade w hien must assuredly flow to that line from numerous sources. The Directors of the Bristol and Exeter Railway Com_ pang have undertaken to complete the line to on er before the Ist of June, 1841. Some a Iditien must at the same time be made to meet the cxpendlture on the forme new works and stations, not contemp w hen estimatu was made; and also to provide for some increased expenses in the general con struction. After full cow :Aeration, the Directors think it will be requisite to create shares of 201. each-37,500 in number—which Will raise a sum of 750,000/. ; offi2ring to each Proprietor one new share at par, in respect of art original 1001. share, or two half-shares of 50/. each. In the meantime the Directors recommend that power should be given, by resolution at this meeting, to borrow the sum of 600,0001. on loan notes, under the Company's seal, bearing interest at 5 per cent. per annum, payable halt-yearly, with a covenant to discharge the said loan notes at fixed periods either in cash, or in the new mort gage debentures, at the option of the holder of the loan note, to be declared one month before its maturity. The Directors have reason to believe that the amount may be raised on this security when required ; but as it must, of course, in some degree be contingent upon the general state of the money market, it will be for the 111 o prictors to consider whether general powers must not bt,. confided to the Board, to enable them, in case of need, to provide the means of furnishing the locomotive stock wed completing the works, by making an earlier call on the new shares, if it shall be found absolutely nee.essary to have recourse to a quicker redemption of the mortgages, in order to issue new debentures to the public. The value of the shares thus proposed to be created with the prospect of a deferred payment, will be an immediate benefit to the Proprietors ; and it will be for the meeting to determine the day on which theoption shall be exercised by the then registered Proprietors. The accounts for the half-year are presented in the uittai form, together with the general abstract of receipt and ex penditure from the commencement. CHARLES RUSSELL, Chairman. Sir John Flare, Mr. Keyworth, Mr. Brunel, and others successively add resse d t h e meet i ng, when the Re port was adopted, an d a reso l ut i on for issuing new Shares carried unanimously. Votes of th an k s were theft voted to the Ch a i rman , t h e B oar d of Directors, and the Society of Merch an t s , f or t h e use of the Hall, and th e meeting broke up. LLOYD'S SHII PING-(YRIS DAY.) LoticoN, Are. 28.—\\ Ind, this (lay at noon, ght S. W. airs. —.Arrived th e Ocean, Holland, River Gamlibia. DEAL, AUG. 2 7. _`~~i nd S. sV., light breezes. —Ar rived the Bolivar, Brown, from the Cape of Good Hope. Sailed the Naiad, Lindsay, for South Australia. LivEtwoot, Arc. 26 —Wind W. S.W.—Arrived the Regulus, Thompson, from New Orlean s ; Li verpool, Davenport, ditto. Sailed the Thoma Leec Nos- worthy, M onte Vi deo ; Malcolm. McFarli s ne, New South \Vales ; Spencer, Burkett, Calcutta; Aurora, Mendica lana, Ilavanrsab ; Harriet and Jessie, 111‘Kawn, Charleston; Lenobia, Putnam, New York ; Jane, Warner, Boston; Lockwoods, Stephens, Quebec ; Jessie, Harding, ditto ; Phcebe, Thompson, ditto. Off -port, the Elvira, for Cal cutta; Grace, Antigua; Amelia, Jamaica. HOLYHEAD, AUG. 26.—Several pieces of balk timber have been seen off here, and about twenty brought into the harbour, but they have no particular mark on then), and are either red or pitch pine. nel l y llL t r o otto vv , A ite r r e fo . r2d6; .-j- la T a h p e ut A i g n ne h s e , re ß in ry a an s t i , nk fr in o g m st S a l t a e - , baling struck on the Crow Rock. Qu ll eb r e L e s. , , wh A ie tec : arr 2 iv 7. ec - Fh T er he eyes A te m rd az a o y n , , Broderick, afterbein gon shore on the Stone Banks, is much strained, and was obliged to throw past of her cargo overboard. It having been stated in th e Morn i ng Post that a respectable physician had been grossly insulted in, Paris, e p T h h y e - and the circumstance having been commented upon, i n a way to lead to an impression that the English residents i n Paris arc exposed to insult, we have been requested by who really )haet occurred. he r i r s ed. the Dr. Loudon, has reason to si)leoicatneralaiTt As Loudon, to Loudon, whil.t s i tt i ng i n the Tuileries Ga were indeed addressed by a well-dressed person, , state lie. revaelanguage ag a i nst t h e English ; b ut hi s manners and gestures were so peculiar, ~ ~,,r , d er n i. a i d , c use of every insulting language that the d docromtor reply immediately saw that h e was insane, and a fng to him. Mrs. Loudon, however, the i t e ' l' t e l i l s o c e l m ' t o i g e r e d , n , p t i r e m :: n e i e v n d e d i : a 7 t i c ; l o i l 3 a t v‘ e . t a e l r i m e e e ioi sittinga i%i dn b ee, 1 iaairilg, was a r "d m . ch e ro d a, :v gh two iekde her protection, and the man retired The circumstance was: mentioned by Mrs. Loudon, in coman in the course the day ; and, as no story loFea in c p arry y, ing it, it was imot - proved upon until it was magnified into a national outrage; —Galignani's Messenger.