The Express.
London, England, 1856-08-09 00:00:00

etc expreoo.

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RION WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.
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LONDON, SATURDAY, AUGUST 9.

ANNOUNCIMINTS of the forthcoming meetings of
the various Railway Companies follow each other in
rapid successioe. and the time has now strived wheel
the public expect the Association of Railway Bhsr►
holders to give some signs of sesta' vitality, and to
show that the period which has elapsed sins, its for-
mation has not been unprofitably employed. It would
be unfair to look for any great sad decisive effects
at so early a stage of its esistanoe. but it may be
reasoaably expected that some deer indiestiose
should be given of the coons it intends
to parses. The phalanx of railway oficials
of all grades interested in perpetuating ex-
isting abysm is too powerful to be broken
at the first onset—too well organised to be
annihilated by a romp-de•iiesise ; but the streegholds
se mismanagement are nevertheless far from impair
'able. The abases and dateds of railway boards
ere unfortunately notoriously abundant; bat there is
little hops of effecting any permanent good by dem&
tory attacks—it is only by concentrating their
energies on one evil after another that the Railway
Berens Association can achieve the end it hem in
view. One vantage ground which it behoves the

Wormers to occupy at the earliest period. is thatof a
thumb and efficient audit. Without this they
are working in the dark, and whatever onciessioos
popular Indignation might wring from railway
magnates, they would be praatically aestralised by
the defects of the customary mode of prepating the
balance sheets. Then said balance-sheets are, in
many instance., a standing Carve to a mercantile
people like the English. Btodiosely framed not
only to cense the truth but to beige sad mislead
the most ante accountant in his search after it, they
ars quietly accepted half-year after half year in
silence; the bewildered shareholders look wistfully
at them ; some of the more enterprising sodas-
von to fathom the mysteries they notate,
bat are compelled at last to abandon the task, and
fall tack on the two items—balance available far
dividend, and amount carried to the reserve. Whe-
ther there really is any balance available for dirt-
dead, cc how much that balance ought to be, is a
matter which they are constrained to leave to the
Wino; hake the neuesity that those Ames aeon
De sompeteat, diligent, and incorruptible. •It Is me
ancient that they should be inaccessible la say
valor bribe. Many who wield scorn to Mt* a
pecuniary advantage, however cleverly illignihalc
as an Jade:amen to betray their trust top
easily led away by plausible and slaver ail.
ales, whom it would be unoartens to den%
arty persona friendship and esteem for mambos
the Board, to do their work cursorily, tektite nab
far gusted, and es vouching unwarrantably he tie
pew application of the funds of the *bushlike;
from sheer idleness or indisposition to mime lb*
belief!, of sea who. they believe to be meet
honourable and well•intentiond. Han arise the
interminable capital acionats, and the naval quaker
tins to Parliament for extended borrowing powers,
or fresh capital, which is usually made profereade.
sinking the original stook diem and deeper wader
water.
The Railway Reformers may lay theft amount With
Ode, that they must expect no assistance front the
great body of shareholders until they have soquited
a certain amount of importance and intone% The
in. whom they are endeavouring to serve are skier
July apathetic, and averse to helping themselves.
Ptah' oak &wig, le • saying whisk perkedy fits
shenholden is joist-stock companies—they seem to
prefer being dessived and mystified, or at Lust
fkey suffer deception and mystificadoet with
a patinas whisk might very well pees for
stupidity. It is that apathy whisk k the
stronghold of boards of directors—it is that
bow* patinas wader mystification whisk ambles
officials, whatever an housualent creation is asked
at the half-yearly initiate, to avail themselves so
blandly of that pusher style of oratory llama as
rigmarole; it is that shatastoristie, in feet, wink has
enabled the Eastern Onnlies, the Great Whillll,
and ram Boards. year after year to balk every
attempt on the part of their shareholders to lean
their true pukka. 8o the railway reformers sue
trust to themseiva. Whoa the waggon is getting
eat of the rat, the shareholders will probably pat
their shoulders to the wheel; but mod Ike, the
majority of those who take any part is tY Omits&
ingo at the meetings will, is anal, pat themselves
into the directors' pockets is the shape ci main
Bo long as the capital accounts remain is their
pant coadina it would be aboard to leek for any
&sided improvement in genre' railway amasgeosont.
The facilities for wain halts of all kinds, whether
wilful or the results of iguanas, sad incompeteacie,
are for too abundant while all opus capital sanest
abide soak temptation sad opportunities teeilibe
away inonunient itent of =nekton. We •
rant say that it is potteibl% in every can to elan the
capital amount ; it would he difficult in all, it owl%
even impossible in come-7thosgh this we my Reqb
doubt. There is but one Vass of expediters w
is oar opinion, can authorise a pennant addi-
ties to existing capital, the, namely, which is
inemod for purchases of land, and for works
medal whim 0009 amyl/it'd are Lally does with,
=apt as regards their mainteanoe. Is het, the
capital nine need represent existing moth
-their direct cost at lout, if not their market
value ; and this state of things can only be arrived at
by Axial' a period within which the nuts monied me
articles which deteriorate by wear and tear shalt die
appear from what should be called the simpers
onkel account, having been replaced frees revenue.
We are certainly told that no data exist whereby
estimates of duration can be formed. Bo mult the
more to the discredit of railway mangers. After so
maay years of experience, tine oust be, if they were
seresally ought for, mean of forming an spored-
auto estimate of the duration of rails, locomotive,
nukes, sleepers. timber work, dee. We suspect,
however, that if one that fact were admitted, sines
the necessity ci providing annually a name fund
for renewal would inevitably follow, dividends mast
be reduced to their honest proportioo% sad the
HODSON' and WADDTMOTONS of the wins
lines would fled their occupation gam To that
position railway wont§ meet neverthelees sous, far
branches and •xtatzsioas cannot be made for ever Lead
was repeat that the vary basis of railway reform mad
be sought in those two iten—a strict and
dent audit, and a clear mparatiee is the alOlll
amounts of all sums expneed for permanent wtll%
as distinot from those for stock and elm Whist
/which rapidly deteriorate and moat within a given
time regain renewal.