The Express.
London, England, 1864-08-23 00:00:00

LONDON, CHATHAM, AND DOVER.

The directors' report to the meeting on Friday
states that the gross receipt" upon the general undertaking
for the last half year have been 125,2071. lon. 2d. The gross
receipts for the corresponding periods of 1662 and 1863 were
56.5211. 10e. and 82,318/. 3e. lid. respectively. Although in
each of these periods the number of Mike of the general
undertaking opened for traffic has been the mate (72j), the
receipt. of the last half-year show a total in-
ertial. of 52 per cent. over those of 1863, sod of
121 per rot. over those of 1862. The gross receipts
moo the Metropolitan Extension for the last half-year have
been 31,3561. Is. 5d., and for the correepoeding period of
1863 were 10,106/. 4.. 11d. The receipts of the List half-
year show an increase of 210 per cwt. over those of
1863. During five months of the last half-year the line
was open from Beckenham to Herne-hill, and from Berne-
bill up to Victoria, and to Elephant and Castle ; and in
June, to Blackfriarahridge ; whilst for the corresponding
period of 1863, the line was only open from Herne-hill to
Victoria, and Herne-bill to Elephant and Cutts • the line
between Hence-hill sad Beckenham not laving bees opined
until the let July, 1863. The working expenses of the
last half-year have ananuoted to 100,2171. 9a lld.. in cum
prison with 81,1101. Itia 10d. in the !iorreepoeding half-
year of 1863 ; and with 54,3381. OP. lid. in the cormspooding
half -year of 1862. The increase in the aggregate amount of
working expenses ta attributable to several canoes the
mileage maintained at the tort of revenue in the put half-
year has exceeded by 111# miles that of the corresponding
period of 1863 ; and the establishments at Penge, Sydee-
bam-bill, Dulwich, Borough-mad, and Blackfriars etatioes,
sone of which were copse in the corresponding half-year in
18e3, have also materially increased the expenditure. Be-
sides this, the director", acting upon the suggestion of the
auditors, and having instituted a careful inquiry into the
question of the renewal of the permanent way, have deter-
mined to charge revenue with an adequate amount under
thiy bead in each half-year ; and the amount expended on
this account in new rads and sleepers, arid charged to nitres
during the put half-year, has beset 2,3491. 12s. 4.1, The
directors have tertian considered it to be their duty to spare
no expire in bringing up to, Red maintaining the line
and stock in the highest possible state of effi
ciency, and they believe the proprietors will tally
agree with them is the wisdom of this policy.
In explanation of the apparently high percentage of work-
ing expenses to receipts, it is necessary to remark that it
includes there's working "sperm net aloe. of the ger-
ral undertakieg:Mit alai of the Metropolitan Exterien, end
the different branch railways worked by the company ; and
that it ii brought into comparison with that portion only of
the pais receipts which is applicable to the general nader-
taking, after the amours payable to the Metropolitan Ex.
Mission end the various branch lire have been •pportiosed
to them in accordance with the working Kree1134.12111. If the
gross working expenses are compared with the gross receipts
of all the lines worked at that cost, the compari-
sea is by no means so unfavourable. These
receipt. haying, in the last half -year, amounted to
156 127/. Is. fkl., it fellows that the actual per outage of
expenditure to receipt has been 64 per cent. The directors
having given much attentive to this subject, are Wired
that Dever again can the comparison of the working expenses
to the receipts of the general undertaking show so unfit-
, yourable a result. They ground this opinion upon the con-
viction that the traffic upon all the lines worked by the
company, and more particularly upon the Metropolitan
Extension and the Kent Coast Railway., has been hitherto
only partially developed, and that a considerable and cou•
suet yearly increase. both is the local and through
traffic of those line., rosy be eoefidently anticipated.
The proprietors will have already heard of the orioles of
the Rae from the Elephant and Castle to the new station at
the south side of B'ackfriars-bridge, which took Place on
the let June last. That opening was immediately followed
by a very large OCCell6oo of traffic, both upon the Metropo-
litan Examinee lire sad upon the lines of the general un-
dertaking. Notwithstanding the drawbacks always attend-
ant upon the oommencement of business at an important
metropolitan audio') before all the necessary works and
arrangements have been entirely completed, it is manifest
from the results that the public have very much appreciated
the additional ooneenience offered to them by this exten-
sion. The number of passeogers passing in and out of the
Blackfriars station (exclusive of season ticket holders)
since its opening has averaged considerably over 60,000 per
week ; and it is a very significant fact that the amber of
passengers who have, during the same period, paned in and
out of the Elephant and Castle statioc, has fallen off in a
very unimportant degree as mannered with the time when
it was the terminus of the line nearest to the City. There
can be no doubt that upon the further epaulet of the line
to Ludgate-hill, which may be expected to Ulm place not
later than the end of the year, a like result will follow, and
a still further development of the company's traffic will be
expefteoorl. The works respected with the goods station
at Blackfriars, although being premed forward as
much as possible, are not yet sufficiently advanced
to enable the directors to make use of that
station for goods business. It u fully hoped that as soon
as they are able to dose, the exceedingly convenient politica
and the ample emommodatioe provided will lead to a
marked improvement in the goods traffic. The great num-
ber of .cliemes brought forward in the last session of perils-
meet for furnishing metropolitan communication have been
a source of considerable anxiety to the directors, who have
devoted their best energies to the careful coneideration end
watching of there schemes, with the view of securing and
protecting the compaai'm interests. The haft promoted by
the company themselves were only those absolutely rose
eery to carry out and perfect the [invent system of the
Cbetbare and Dover Railway. in accordance with agreements
with other companies ; sad the directory have the gratifica•
tins of announcing to the proprietors that their applicatioes
to parliament for these neesseary powers have, notwith-
✓eeding serious opposition, been most encosesful. The fuel
in importer. is the act empowering the construction as a
separate undertaking of the altered link bee between Earl-
street and West-attest, which is to connect the lire of the
company with the Metropolitan (Underground), Great
Northern, and Midland Railway.. This eat has confirmed
the agreement under which the Great Northern Carole
have subscribed 3000[0/. at 3i per rot. towards the capital
of the link line, se well as the arrangements for through
booking and interchange of traffic between the two
comprise It has also secured to the company
the gratuitous use of the passenger statics and conve-
niences of the Great Northern Company at King's-crass.
A further satisfactory result of this applicatio• to parlia-
ment has been the sanction obtained for facilities mid hater-
change of traffic between the Metropolitan (Thidergered)
Railway sod this °emery. Under theee arrangements the
Metropolitan Company bane Rodertaken to construct two
additions! lines of railway between their juactioe with the
Louden, Chatham. end Dover lime atWeetotrest and Kiwis-
Irma station, and bane ceded to this oreepsay the right el