The Express.
London, England, 1852-05-21 00:00:00

TO THI IDITOZ OF TEI DAILY =WC

Elm—Permit me to thank you for the service you
have rendered in publishing and commenting on Lord
Londonderry's letters. Ido not know how other people
feel on the subject ; I have adopted a course which I think
it might be of advantage to Dopy. I have sent the follow-
ing petition to one of the members for the borough in
which I live, requesting him to present it to the House of
COMICAL :

To the Honourable the House of Commons :
" The petition of the undenigned, ea elector of the
Tower Hamlets,
Sheweth :

" That your petitioner approaches your honourable house
with a deep feeling of respect for the amemblage of the
representatives of the commons of this country.
That your petitioner is, neverthelese, filled with alarm
and dismay at reading in a certain newspaper called the
Laity News copies of letters written by the Marquis of
Londonderry, from which it appears that at least one
member of your honourable house is not the repaints-
tire of any portion of the commons of this realm, but
be holds his seat as the nominee of a peer of the realm—the
aforesaid Marquis of Lesdonderry.
" That your petitioner is of opinion that any marquis or
lord who claims a member of your honourable house as
his member,' and speaks of the voters of any county or
borough as 'my voters,' does thereby violate the spirit of
the constitution of this country, insult the entire com-
monalty of the nation, and ought not to escape the con-
demnation of your honourable home.
"Your petitioner therefore prays that your honourable
house will in its wisdom adopt measures by which the
electors of the county of Down may be relieved from the
degradation of returning the Marquis of Londonderry's
nominee to sit in your honourable boom; and, further,
that your honourable house will pass a law by which peers
of the realm who Interfere in the election of members of
parliament may be rendered liable to transportation
W. for
life." A.
Masten, May 19."

A GOOD EXAMPLE.—CoIoneI Barlow, the chair-
man of the Southampton Dock Company, has requested all
persons employed in the Southampton Dosks to vote in the
ensuing election as they may feel disposed, without refer-
ence to the politics of their employers.
AN Ex-Stints!? CoMOWED FOE FORGERY.—
The ex-sheriff of Gloucester, William Henry Barrett, who
absconded to the United States about this time last year,
and was brought beck to England, as already reported, last
week, was brought before the Gloucester magistrates on
Wednesday for final examination on several charges of
forgery. Four capes of forgery of acceptances for amounts
reaching some thousands of pounds in the aggregate, were
gone into, and at the close of the examination, which lasted
neatly the whole of the day, the prisoner was tally com-
mitted for trial at the neat Gloucester arises on all four
charges. It would seem from what Umpired at the exa-
mination, that the acceptances forged were those of the pri-
soner's customers with whose handwriting he had become
acquainted ; that he was in the habit of dealing largely in
bills, and that, an his absconding to America, several of
these bills became due, and then the forgery was discovered.
The court was crewded to elms during the ensuminatkoa.

GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY.

Yesterday, an adjourned
Paddington
meeting of the
proprietors was held at the Terminus, to con-
sider the bills,now pending in parliament which were not in
• fit state to be submitted to the proprietors at the meeting
of last Viednasday week. The chair was taken at half-past
one by Mr. C. Hussars.
The CHAIRMAN said—Gentlemen, we were obliged to

postpone this Amelia meeting yesteriliy week, in ions.-
gnomes of ens OM new before pediment not having re-
ceived tit amendments of the otousittee of the House of
Camases. I that ventured to eapsess to you a hope that
we should be this en the pressat evession to present them
is yes in a state ; and, en reviewing the whole
ems* of the pia in parliament during the present
seseiseh u far as they have hitherto gone, I trust you will
esmider that our espestotions have ant been disappointed.
(Hear, hear.) We into not only carried the two bills
which 'pit cemileseed sod approved last week, and the three
bills whisk will be submitted to you, but, further, we have
soolosoloi to defeating all the important measures of our,
e=(Cheers.) The bill by which they thought td
is authority of parliament to construct a
lam in amt parallel to our own from Oxford, by
W and Brentford, to the metropolis, was rejecta
Illes sonimittee by a majority of 4 to 1. The bill by
white they thought to impute to us a failure in our ebb-
pelotas to them, and upon that ground asked the permis-
sion of parliament to reduce the number of our ditectors at
their board from six to one, was declared not proved, and
was thrown out. Their third bill, which was directed to
minor objects only, was not permitted to pass until the
committee had required the insertion of a clause in and by
which they imposed upon the Oxford, Worcester, and Wol-
verhampton Company a penalty of 10,0001., if the line of
railway between Priestfield and Wolverhampton were not
completed and opened by the let of September, 186.3, and
6001. a day for every day afterwards on which it should'
remain incomplete and unopened. Gentlemen, the bill
which I shall first submit to you upon the present occuiou
is that which stonds third in our circular of the 29th April,
and which refers mainly to oar relations with the Oxford,
Worcester, and Wolverhampton Company. That bill has
undergone considerable modifications in the committees of
the House of Commons. One of its principal objects WAS to
enable us to ensure the completion of that very piece of line
between Priestfield and Wolverhampton, by enabling
us to enter upon it and complete it ourselves,
under the authority of the board of trade, with this
reservation always of the rights of the Oxford, Worcester,
and Wolverhampton Company, that it shall be in their
power to re-purchase it frau) us upon paying us the money
which it had cost us. The committee seemed to think that,
by the insertion of the penal clause which I have men-
tioned in the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton
Company's bill, they had sufhciently provided for this
object, and they therefore removed from our bill all these
powers by which we sought to enforce the completion of
the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton line. lor
fees, with all deference for a committee of the Room of
Commons, that I dissent entirely from that opinion. no
penal clause is inserted in the bill of the Oxford, Worcester,
and Wolverhampton Company, which is under their own
controul ; and they can, if they see fit, withdraw it when-
ever they please. But even if they should carry that bill
through all its stages, we all know how extremely difficult
it is to enforce the application of the penal clauses of an act
in any court of law. I am satisfied, however, that the
belief and the intention of the committee were that this
clause might be made operative. We can have no right to
complain that the first con of constrseting that portion of
the line should be imposed upon the capital of the Oxford,
Worcester, and Wolverhampton Company rather than upon
our own, provided always that it is finished ; and, above all,
we must not forget that this penal clause and the act which
I am now about to submit to you do contain this
important principle that the portion of the lino between
Pneetfield and Wolverhampton, forming an important link
in our continuous chain of communication with the north,
must be made, that it must be finished within a limited
period, and that it must be rendered available for the
purposes of the Great Western as well as of the Oxford,
Worcester, and Wolverhampton Company. Gentlemen,
when the bill is read to you you will perceive a clean
which has been forced upon you, to which we have reluc-
tantly given oar consent, but of which we think we have
great reason to complain. We complain, first, because it
charges us with a violation of the obligations imposed upon
us by parliament; and secondly, because it itself commits
that very violation which it seeks to impute to us. I refer
to the clause by which you are required to reduce the
tolls upon the Great Western line as soon as either the Him
from Oxford to Birmingham or the Birmingham, Wolver-
hampton, and Dudley line shall be completed. The facts
have been repeatedly laid before the public ; but it is peal-
ble that some of you may not remember them. Let me
state, then, that when we purchased those two lines, in the
act which enabled us to make the purchase a clause was in-
serted requiring us to reduce our tells upon the Great
Western line on the transfer of both those lines
to the Great Western Company. Tho legal question
which arose was as to the interpretation of the word
" transfer." We always intended that the word " transfer"
should mean when the line was handed over to us com-
plete, that is, that we should pay the price for it at the time
when we received the benefit from it—(hear, hear)—the
most reasonable interpretation, as it seemed to us, of that
clause. Our opponents contended that the term " transfer"
meant the time when we originally made the purchase;
that we must reduce our tolls at once, even before we cams
into the beneficial use of these lines. The question was
mooted, and the Board of Trade were at length incited to
take the decision of a court of law on the subject. The
question was argued in the Court of Exchequer, and, by ea
unanimous decision of the four judges upon the bench, the
interpretation given to the clause by the Great Western
Company was sustained, and declared to be the right and
legal interpretation. It might have been supposed that
under such circumstances we should no longer be troubled
with such a question. But whenever we bring a bill before
parliament our opponents still seek to press this question
upon us, although it is utterly impossible that they can
have any interest in it except the gratification of their
own enmity and spleen. (Hear.) Gentlemen, in case
sequence, however, of the representations which have been
made respecting this matter to the Board of Trade, the
esemaittee have inserted in the bill which we now submit es
yes *dame, which requires us to reduce our tolls, not
leSeelliiig SO the original act, nor according to the interpi -
Mims( that act given by a court of law, not when we
don epos both the lines, but when we shall open either of
the lines. Notwithstanding the hardship and injustice of
this esse—and I am satisfied that no person who knows the
facts will tell you or think that it is not a great hardship
and injustice—and, notwithstanding the clumsy substitu-
tions which have been made by the committee for the bill
which we presented to them, we still think that the bill
contains principles of so much value to us, that we are so. '
tified in determining to proceed with it; and we
submit it to you, with our strong recommendation that yes
will give it your confirmation and approval. (Cheers.)l
A resolution sanctioning the bill having been adopted,
The CHAIRMAN said—The next bill which I have to
submit to you is, perhaps, the moat important one which we
have had to lay before you this session. It is a bill to
authorise the arrangements which have been made for the
amalgamation of the Shrewsbury lines with the Great
Western line. The subject has been fully under your con-
sideration before, and you authorised the terms of the
agreement at a spatial meeting which was held in the
month of May, 1861. This is a bill of which it was
predicted that it would revive the battle of the gauges,
and involve us in bitter, costly, and interminable parlii
raentary contests. At our meeting in February I ventured
to express an opinion that it was founded upon such ob-
vious principles of public policy and private right, that if
it fell into the hands of a good, sound, practical committee,
it could not occupy much time. Fortunately it has fallen
into such hands ; and, instead of its occupying the length
of time that it was supposed it would do, the committee
came to a unanimous decision to pass it in the short period
of three days. lam quite aware that it has still to per
through the Wharachffe ordeal and the House of Lords,
but after the very strong, unanimous, and decided expres-
sion of opinion given in the House of Commons, I have
great hopes that we shall be able to surmount whatever
difficulties and obstacles may be interposed to the comple-
tion of it.

This bill also was sanctioned, after which
Tho CHAIRMAN said, the last bill which we have to
present to you is the bill for the Wycombe Railway. This
subject also has been repeatedly under the consideration of
the proprietors. Many of you will remember that in the
year 1845 or 1848, an act was obtained by the Wycombe
Company to construct a short branch from the Great
Western line to Wycombe, and powers were obtained in the
act, enabling them to lease or to sell the line to the Great
Western Company. An arrangement was in consequence
entered into with that company for the lease of the line ;
but the disastrous years '47 and '4B intervened, and ren-
dered the completion of the line impossible. In 1848 a new
agreement was made with the Wycombe Company, by
' which we were to purchase the line from them. 'That
lagreement aso was confirmed by the proprietors. But new
standing orders were made by the houses of iemislature,
which made it impossible to give effect to it. The question
then remained in abeyance for some time. About the
month of April last year the Wycombe Company again
renewed their overtures to the Great Western Company,
for the purpose of making a froth agreement with them,
and we entered into an agreement with them for the
purchase of their line by means of paying to them an an-
nuity. Some delay occurred, as always will be the ease in
such matters, in carrying out this agreement, and it was
not till lately that it was finally settled. The terms of the
agreement are, that we shall pay to the Wycombe Com-
pany 3,6001. a year for their line, with half the surplus
profits, and that they shall have the power of claiming a
payment of 10,0001., instead of half the profits, if they
shall think fit. It is extremely important that we should
form this line of railway to Wycombe, as is proved by the
GM of the bill for a liner from Brentford to Wycombe,
which we have Just succeeded in defeating. I have no
doubt that this line will ho the means, not only of creating
trifle itself, but also of bringing additional traffic
to the Great Western line, and we have there-
fore great confidence in recommending you to ap-
prove the bill which sanctions and authorises the
agreement.
The bill having been sanctioned,
The CHAIRMAN said the only other matter which re-
mained to be referred to was a question put to him at the
last meeting respecting the Birkenhead agreement. At
that time he thought the meeting of the Birkenhead pro-
prietors would be held on Tuesday last, and that they would
by this time know the decision of the proprietors. Hon.
proprietors must remember that the rejection of the agree-
ment with the Great Western directors bad proceeded only
from the directors—ho might almost say from the chairman
—of the Birkenhead Company, and that the proprietors
had, hitherto at least, by no means concurred in that re-

3

jeetion. The mwtint was adjourned till to-morrow (this
I day), when the prop tore would no doubt come to a reso-
lution. Ile trusted that it would be a favourable one, and
I consistent with the good faith which they owed to that
I company. reships under the circumstances it was not
desirable that he should say more than he did on the last
' occasion, namely, that the directors of the Great Western
Company were proposed, as they !ways had been, to carry
out the agreement with the Bidenhoad Company to the
fullest extent.
A PROPRIETOR asked why the Stour Valley line had
not been opened yet ?
The CHAIRMAN said he mast ask the directors of the
London and North Western Company, and perhaps they
would not like to tell. (A laugh.)
On the motion of Xr.lionaut, seconded by Mr. Vous-
Lay, a vote of thanks was given to the chairman and the
directors.—The massing then separated.
•