The Express.
London, England, 1849-08-28 00:00:00

EAST

The half-yearly meeting of this company is to be held to
day, when the following report will be presented :
"In convening the proprietary for the half-year:y general
meeting, the directors have the gratification to report that,
since they last met the proprietors, they have concluded a
contract with the East India Company, based on the terms
and conditions submitted to, and approved by, the special
meeting of proprietors held in April last, and which they
treat the proprietary will feel places the interests of this
atimpany on a sound and satisfactory basis. This coatract
has been printed, and a copy will be delivered, on application
at the cffices of the company, to each shareholder. The in-
terest of five per cent. per annum, guaranteed by the East
India Cempany, will, on and from the 17th of August inst.,
include the preliminary deposit of ss. paid on the existing
shares in the company, and upon which hitherto no interest
has been paid. During the past session of parliament, the
act of incorporation, by which the liability of each share-
holder is limited to the amount of his or her shares in the
company, has received the royal assent. In pursuance of
powers conferred by that act, the Board of Directors have, in
accordance with the pledge given to the proprietary, re-
duced the shares in the company from 501. to 201., and have
made • re-distribution of the capital into 50,000 shares of
201. each ; of the arrangements consequent on which due
notice will 1* given by advertisement. In consequence of an
intimation that it was the feeling of the authorities that the
number of directors should be reduced, powers for that object
were inserted in the act, and the directors have now to recom-
mend that their number be reduced from thirteen to nine,
of which it is proposed that three be a quorum. Your
directors have received a tender from Mr. Jackson, of
Pimlico, for the construction of the first line of railway to
be undertaken by the company. This tender embraces the
construction and completion of the railway within two years
from the commencement of operations, and its maintenance
for three years after completion, at • cost, including a
double line of rails and stations, of 8,5001. per mile. Mr.
Bendel, your consulting engineer, has recommended the
acceptance of this tender, and your directors are disposed to
concur in en arrangement on that principle; but they fee l
the question to be one of great magnitude, and they have
submitted it to the Court of Directors of the Bast Ind's,
Company for their consideration. On • review of ell the
circumstances of the past history of the company the board
cannot close this report without congratulating the share-
holders on the measure of menus which, after so great a
lapse of time, and so many opposing obstacles, has at length
attended the efforts of the company. If expense has ne-
cessarily been incurred, in advocating and introelucing •
new principle, under circumstances of great difficulty, the
present proplieton are, by the nature of the ar-
rangement effected, relieved from any of its bur-
den by having the full amount subscribed by them
allowed as part of the capital of the company, bearing
interest at five per cent. If time has been consumed, its
lapse has nct only been attended with the advantages of in-
creased experience, but still more of cost diminished in an
extraorelinsre degree. Without all the ihformatien which
has been the result of the measures already adopted, the
company could not have been in a position to receive a ten-
der from a contractor, so satisfactory in proof of the suffi-
ciency of their estimates, as that of Mr. Jackson ; nor could
they have approached the execution of the work with that
confi fence which they now feel in its issue. From hence-
forth they consider the undertaking to be under the direct
auspicies of the East India Company. No step can be
taken, as to the construction of the railway, until possession
of the land has been given by the government of India, and
all the ulterior proceedings of the company are subject to
the controul of the East India Company, and dependent for
success on the cordial conetteresee and co-operation of the
authorities, both at home and abroad."