The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-09-26 00:00:00

the gitotivbribge Oberine.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1874.

THE RAILWAYS AND THE PUBLIC.

Before the next half-yearly meetings of the
railway companies roll round a great deal will
be said and written upon the reason why the
gatherings of July and August were somewhat
less cheerful in tone than they had been for
some years previously. Thera bas been a de•
cline in the dividends, although in the case of
the more prosperous comp mica, tha pr,ifite are
still of a substantial ekaraeter. The North-
Eastern is yet dividing eight per cent. for the
whole year; the Great Northern has declineu
only a half per cent.; the London and North
Western is paying 63/4 instead oil; the Midland
53/4 against 63/4 last year; the Lancashire and
Yorkshire as compared with 7} ; and the Great
Western 4as contrasted witii 5j in 1873. As a
considerable proportion of the shareholders in
in these companies purchased their stock
at the high prices which ruled in the days of
advancing prosperity and steady progress, it is
not unnatural for them to feel some diiappoint-
'tient, and to look upon their holdings as being
of less value than they nudoubtedly were at
the time the investments were made. It must,
however, be remembered that railways exist for
the beuefit of the public, aud that if iuvestors
speculate in the shares of a jointstock under-
taking, they must take the chance of the
fluctuations which varying circumstance are
likely to make in its prosperity. A man to whom
a return for his money is no object puts his coin
into the "sweet simplicity of the Three per
Cents," and need never trouble himself about
the rate interest while his investment remains in
Consols. But to those who prefer dividends at
the rate of 6,7, or 8-per cent., the selection of a
sound safe stock is really a matter of importance,
and when the returu, as in the case of the Great
Western, is reduced by nearly one-third in the
course of twelve months, the shareholder begins
to ask questions and wants to know the reason
why there has been such a falling-off,
. . • .

It is not necessary to go far in order to dis-
cover the causes for the decline in the dividends
most recently declared There is no doubt that
the working expenses of all railways have risen
seriously within the past eighteen months,
owing to the increased prices of fuel and iron,
and to the advance in wages. Still the enormous
and constantly-increasing traffic enabled the
principal lines to maintain their dividends --or
at all events very nearly so —up to the b.tgiuuing
of the present year. Somehow or other, while
there was not the slightest diminution in the
outlay for coal and iron, and wages instead of
receding, showed a still further tendency to go
forward, the rush of traffic fell off, and as a
matter of course there was a diminution of pro-
fits. In addition to these causes, a special
source of expense has fallen upon the last two
half years. The accumulation of goods and
passeuger traffic in 1872 and 1873 led to a num-
ber of serious railway accidents, and these have
affected the revenues of the companies in two
ways. Large sums have had to be paid in
compensation to sufferers, and the adoption of
the block system of signalling, with the prineiple,
of interlocking, together with the extension mid
improvement, of sidings and stations has neces-
sarily entnifed a large expenditure. Tide, as
well as the compensation, falling entirely upon
the revenue, and leaving the capital unaffected,
baa dimiiiiish 4:1 the dividends. Yet the last-
mentioned outlay is temporary only, and the
shareholders may well look upon it as a prudent
investment, for its result will be, or at leuet it
ought to be, that disastrous collisions will be
avoided, rolling stock will not be smashed up
in all directions, and thousands of pounds will
not have to be paid as damages to the relatives
of the slain, or to the survivors of the cataatroplie.
There are other items of reflection which may
well give to railway shareholders ground for
hope and encouragement. The iron market is
certainly easier than it Ives ; coal does not fetch
the huge price which threatened to become
normal some little time ago; wages cannot con-
tinue to advance in the same proportion as they
have latelyldone, and three sources of expenditure
will he thus curtailed. And while this is the
case, the abundant harvest, the cheapness of
money, and the recovery of trade from its partial
depression, have lately given a strong impetus
to railway travelling ' • and when it is borne in
mind that the second half of the year is always
by far the most productive in receipts, the holders
of railway stocks may fairly look forward to
better times, and to augmented dividends at the
next half-yearly meetings.
There was one subject which was brought
prominently under notice by the Chairman of
Vie Railway Boards when they met their share-
holders face to face a little while ago—that of
the passenger duty. If a recent legal decision
against the North Loudon Railway be upheld on
appeal, the companies will be liable for duty on
all third-class messengers travelling by fast trains.
This is looked upon as a hardship, and threats
have been held out that should this jarigtuent
he based upon sound law, the express trains will
in future travel without the third-class carriages.
Certainly the impost under such circumstances
would seem to be scarcely reasonable. The
compaeies give first-class passengers very con-
siderable facilities by putting thetu in a fast train,
and are charged with the duty; but if they put
them to the inconvenience of stopping at every
little wayside station the duty is escaped. At
tbe 8/MlO time there is little doubt that if the ad-
vantages recently extended to third-class trs-
Veilels were suddenly and unceremoniously with-
drawn, the passenger traffic would anger an
iinme.diate decline, for which the directors are
seareely prepared. On some lines upwards of
20 per cent, of the third class passengers are
carried in the fast trains, and the per-centage in
point of money is unquestionably higher. Let
us siippose these carriages to he withdrawn,
and can it be expected that the whole of third-
class traffic would be at once turned into the
second-class carriages ? Would not a large
proportion of it be driven off the line altogether?
The attention which has been pail to the con•
venience of third-eass travellers of late, more
particularly on the Great Western, leaves, how-
ever, room for hope that no withdrawal of
faeilities will be made hastily or in a fit of
spleen.

DRUNK AND DISORDERLY. At the Police
Conrt, on Monday lest, before Mr. B. Little wood,
a man named Budge was charged with having
been drunk and disorderly, on the previous Sat-
urday night. Police•constable Dunn proved the
case. Defendant was ordered to pay ca.—
Mary Foley, for having been guilty of a similar
offence, on the same evening, WRY committed to
Worcester for seven days.— Police-conetab4
Philpot proved the ease.