The Express.
London, England, 1863-02-09 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

GREAT WESTERN.

The accounts show that the total receipts for
teidliefer the half.year endiagDecember:Bst was 1,454,7601.
Teals is added =0.331. for the Bristol and Birmingham
Railway, me of plant by other companies, interest on cash
bakeries, resit of estates, cottage; and acme minor Noumea
of income, molting altogether 1,476,8031. To three items •
further sum is added of balance of revenue account for the
Shrewsbury, liesost and Avon, and West Midland Canals,
amounting together to 68,2754, bringing up the grand total
to 1,545,079/. The working expenses, though higher than
in the eorrespoudiog half-year, are still considerably below
the estimate put forward by Mr. Adams, being
not more than 46.311 per coot. This mamas.
is mainly due to preparations for the increased
traffic caused by the Ezbibitioo. The perno•
neat way has cost 148,169!., the locomotive account
has absorbed 173,164/., the carrying amount 201,438/. The
accident eocouut is happily a very small item, not more than
8861. General chines are 65,8414, expenses of working
joint stations 8,8324 • rent for the hire of waggone, ter-
minable at the end of es years, when the waggons become
the property of the company, 7,7784 These, with some
minor items, make vp the total charges against the revenue
account to 673,7934, or, as we have just stated, 46.311
per cent. The rent charges for the half-year are eat
down at 44,2671., the Wycombe extension appearing
for the sum of 1,1654 The interest on joint capital is
21,0091. The parliamentary expenses' which at the
close of the last half-year amounted to • large sum,
are dealt with in this half-year to the extent of 10,0004,
that sum being included in the charge of the joint account
of the Great Western and West Midland system.
The working expense', rent charges, interest, and parlia-
mentary expenses make up • total of 751.085/. After the
payment out of the balance of 88.2.50/. to the South Wales
Railway, the remainder is divided as follows :—Great
Western Railway, 82j per cent., 582,2384 ; West Mid-
land Railway, 17j per cent. 123,505/. The aecoasts are
signed by the auditors, subject to certain res
ervations,which will not materially affect the result. The share of
the net awnings which fell to the lot of the Great Wes-
tern Railway is thus appropriated :—ln the first place there
are guaranteed annuities to the Wilts and Somerset Rail-
way and the Kennet and Avon Canal, which take away
23,1881. ; next come rent-charges to the Gloucester sod
Dean Fewest Railway, the Hereford, Roes, and Gloucester
Railway, the Brentwood Dock and Rolway, the Wycombe
Railway, and the Trustees of Paddington Estatee—to-
pdb.r, 20,7141. ; the Shrewsbury Railways next take
68.565/. ; after this comes the payment of interest on loans.
amounting to 234,1641., leas dividend received io stock and
Ames be:oaring to the company, 11,5044, thus reducing
the charge t 02222,659/. • then there is a payment of 118,8664
ea the preference steel; of the company ; on the Berke sad
Hamm Extension shares, 1,3304 ; and for the Henley Rail-
way subscriptions the modest suns of 150/. ; bringing op the
gland total of charges againet earnings for the half-year to
450,4764, leaving • Wanes available for dividends of
140,786/. The payment of a dividend at the rate of 3 per
cent per anoum us the capitol stock, amounting to
8,238.6094, absorbs 123,5794, leaving a balance to be
carried forward to Greet Western account proper of 17,2061.
In addition to the proportion of amount of earnings received
under the agteemeet with the West Midland, the Great
Western has 80020 other small items available. The divi-
dends on the shares which they boll in other companies
amount to 11,697/. Next half-year this will receive a con-
siderable addition in the shape of the dividends on the
175,0001. which the company hold in the Metropolitan Rail-
way, and this is in addition to the profits which they will
derive from working the lies at 41 per cent. of the gross re-
ceipts. There was a small balance from the last half year of
2,1e261., bet the account is debited with • sum of 5,5004 for
old parliamentary and legal expenses. referred to in •
directors' report as far back as 1854, and 2,000 i. as reserve
for doubtful debts. The set sum received from the work-
ing of the railway is 501.21624. available for dividend' and
interest on about 25,000,0001. of capital. There is a
deereme in the rate of interest in the debenture portion of
the debt The "Mount held at 5 per cent. has been reduced
, by 304,41 W., at 41 by 31,0504, at 44 by 78,1501.,
and there has been a corresponding increase at the
WOMB moderate ratio of 4j per cent. The amount, how-
ever, still stands at the very high figure of 10,590,182/.
Any reduction that era be made io the charges of the my
large dead weight of the company must have a beneficial
effect upon the comparatively small amount of open stock.
The revenue amount of the Shrewsbury Railway shows
receipts from traffic, 153,749 L, the expenditure being
84,5541., leaving a halms, of 00,9724 ; the cbargeston
debenture loans,preimenne, and guaranteed sto:ks being
66,565/. To this is added a balance of 2,2111., in reduction
of deficiency for previews half-year, leaving a deficiency
upon the Shrewsbury sad fibulae/a line al 7,8051.