The Express.
London, England, 1849-11-01 00:00:00

Ilsjonity fre the cconsitteo of inquiry .... 664

EDINBURGH, DUNDEE, AND PERTH.
A special meeting of the shareholders of this cam-
myerse held on Tuesday, In Ribble Royal Hotel, Ran-
h, the purpose of cessidering a statement to be
submitted by the dfteseen, with refereace to the disposal of
a portion of the puhrentiml stock speed to be raised at the
special meeting of the company in July last. Joint Beth-
;mt% , of Belbintio, the chairman of the emnpany,
LL LBW, the secretary, read the following statement
by die directors:
"At the recast half early meeting, the shareholders
Illm informoi that the dirators entertained hopes of being
aMa to delay the final disposal of a large proportion of the
psdneatiel share capital of the company, until it Gould
is disposed of cm terms more advantageous to the mu-
piny than could be expected under present circus-
Motets. In ponmense of these views, the directors have
entered into gocomnaleation with the several betake, from
whom cash edema's to a oontiderable amount have been
obtained, in anticipation of the new capital authorised under
the Ediabergh and Northern (additional capital) act. The
threaten have proposed, that in consideration of the farther
postponement cm the part of the banks of their claims' an
mown of new guaranteed shares, nosivalent to these ad-
vances, should be assigned in security, in addition to she
peressal obligations of the directors, which will be consid-
ered as a collateral security. This proposal has been enter-
tained by the banks with that liberal consideration which
has throughout tharacterked their dealings with the com-
pany ; and it now only rests with the shareholders to give
their assent and approval to this arrangement, with authority
to the directors to take the neentary steps to carry it into
execution. The directors deem it unnecessary to point
oat the advantages which may reasonably be expected
to result to the company from an amngemeut of
the nature proposed. It not only enables them to take ad-
twinge of • healthy state of the money market, to secure
the allocation of the new capital on more moderate terms
than could be at present obtained; but a greater measure of
confidence will be experienced in the development of traffic
conenjuent upon the completion of the line. The dir,cton,
indeed, are not without hops that the amount of guaranteed
capital may ultimately be limited by the re-issue of the for-
feited shares now in possession of the company. In every
point of view the arrangement is one which must be bene-
ficial to the company, and, as such, the directors look to the
shareholders for their approval, and the requisite powers in
order to carry it into effect."
The CHAIRMAN said it would be recollected that at
last half-yearly muting be bid stated that the directors
would endeavour to enter into arrangements by
which they might pootpene the issue of a portion of the
!Toluenes share capital of the company. He was not
swore whether he had said so on that occasion, but
it must he manifest to all, that it wu only by an arrange-
ment with the banks—to whom they were under obligations
for large advances—that such • postponement could be
effected. Now, the directors had. accordingly, had meetings
with the principal banks on this subject, and the result of
thuds meetings had been, that they had felt themselves
obliged to call a special meeting of the shareholders of the
company in order to obtain their assent to a resolution to the
following effect "That the directors should be authorised,
if they thought it expedient, to register in their ewe names
such en smount as they might consider necessary, of the pre-
ferences share capital authorised to be railed, in virtue of the
powers weaned on the company ; and to hold the same
en security for the liabilities to be come under, or which
have been already come under, for the purposes of
the company; and to pledge such share capital, in
addition to the guarantee of the directors' own personal ob-
ligations with the banks for such advances as had been made
or were to be made ; and generally, that the directors be em-
powered to adopt such other measures as they may find we
usury foreecuring the postponement of the iuue of a portion
of the preference share capital." The real advantage which
was to mum to the company from the adoption of this reso-
. kitten was to secure the postponement of the WWI of the re•
manong portion of the preference share capital. By this
arrangement they thought that this could be done; and it
must be obvious, he thought, to every one that the longer
trey postponed that nine the better for the cam
pany. tamer, heir.)
Wu.Bw INUNBAR seconded the resolution proposed by
, the chairman, end, after some discussion, it wu agreed to.

CHARLEROY AND ERQUELINNES RAILWAY.
The annual general meeting of this company was
held at Brussels on Monday. The chair wan taken by Mr.
H. T. Hope, M.P. The business before the meeting con-
sisted of appriving the nomination of Masan. Rope, Mills,
and Arnold. in the room of five of the original directors who
had retired; approving the expulsion of another director, who
had aluente.t lainuellrom his duties for • very long perioipaat,
sad who had not kept up his qualification by the payment of
the culla in UM/ ; and, finally, of the approbation of the di-
rectors' report, and the accounts of the company fur the half.
sear epdlog the 31st of D umber, 1848, and the 30th of June,
1849, respectivay. The nomination of the new directors
was confirmed, and thank. voted to the retiring directors
for the sacrifice of merely personal interests to the general
good of the company, which they believed would be best
promoted by their retirement. Mr. Barry bore honourable
testimony to the zeal and exertions of his late colleagues
during a period of great financial and other difficulties,
through which this company at length bad happily
purled. The expulsion of the director in urea wee also
confirmed.
__ .

Mr. L. Mourow, managing director of the company,
read the report, which compered a reisnil of the operations
of the company dining the past year. It appeared (tone
this statement that this line forms an important link of the
railway communication from Paris to Cl. rmany, by Creil,
St. Quentin, Brquelinnes (on the Sambre), Chaderoy,
Namur, Liege, and Cologne, being 105 kilometre', or 25
Permit leagues, nearer than by the route through Valen-
ciennes, Brussels, and baling*. It will also form the shortest
route by 45 kilometres, or nearly 30 miles, from Paris to
Brussels. In common with all the other continental
railway undertakings, it had suffered severely under
the fiaancial and political crises of the last two years. The
directors had been most reluctantly compelled to forfeit a
number of shares upon which 300(. (121.) had been
paid, and had re-issued them to the publican the single condi-
lies of paying the two next calls (1000 down, sad tke ten
remaining calls (100 f.) when required, in due course. By
this means they had retrieved the credit and improved
tee situation of the company, and bad ample pecu-
niary resources at their disposal to insure the &maple-
tion and staking of the lee for a sum not exceeding
10,000,000 f. (400,0001.), while the original capital of the
company was fixed at 13,000,000 f., or 620,0001. The con-
tract with the original contractors for works had been an-
nulled, and the company were now completing the railway
themselves under the immediate superintendence of Mr. DO
Pr 6, their engineer, with the expectation of finishing in the
course of the year 1860. The report was adopted, ant: the
accounts were approved also, with the exception of two dis-
sentients.

DESTRUCTION OP THE WORKINGTON STEAM- TUG ST
Finn.—We (Osontrerred Paeszust) recently announced the
swirl at Workington at • new steam tag, the Dement, for
the nee of the harbour, in misting to tow mob in and oat
of port. On the sight of the Saul alt., at about 11 o'clock,
the vessel was discovered by a young man residing in the
immediate vicinity to be on fir, and an alarm was instantly
given. The RMS., bolloVer, rapidly gained upon her
timbers, so that the Ire had made omiderable bead before
assistance could be room* to ezdarikii it. Fortunately
the tide wee bearers to flow, and *ere wen an unusually
heavy fresh from the river, BO that while the inhabitants
of the vicinity, who estened to the spot, were
discharging backer of water from above, • num-
ber of aspentece tad other parties in boats one-
seeded in sentaling the tag sad thereby sinking her and
petting a stop to the maseratioe. The Mem enstaiose
by the mad is sonsidembr. Her Mks and "Mass have
been completely ausereped by the flames, and it is believed
that many of bee timber will have to be replaced. The
present estimate fa, that • I It has not bra fond possible
effectively to repair her, wither reinovipg her boiler and
machinery, the coat will be about 4001. Oa SS Inver/grim
into the circumstances of the fire, instituted by the trustee
the harbour, it has been mortared that the master, anem-
ic's, and a youth employed on board the tag, left lter be-
tween 6 and 7 o'clock on Tuesday evening, Ora lying in the
dock, between the 'Whew-hour and Mem. Lamb-
fort's shipbuilding yard, having seen that everything
was safe on board. At a quake to ten the same night, the
harbour master walked along the quay, within two or three
yards of the vessel, when she appeared perfectly safe, and
there was not the slightest smell see other indication of any
mischief being about to happen. From these and other ch-
eninstanoss, the trustees have come to the conclusion
that the occurrence has originated in the diabolical
act of 'an incendiary ; and they her accordingly offered
a reward of 6W. for the apprehension of the culprit.
The firs commenced between the forecastle lila head and
the grate, so that it could not have been occasioned by
the handful of fire, covered with a few shovels of small
cosh, slacked with water, left in the engine-room; and
in further corroboration oethis fact, the grata with the coals
in the engine-room was afterwards found la precisely the
same state as it had been left on the preceding evening. It
is supposed tbatthe incendiary obtained near between decks
by locoing himself through an opening which was found to
exist near the funnel, whence he could easily enter the
engine room, and proceed from theme to the plan where
the fir appears to have broken out. We regret to say that
no clue has been as yet discovered likely to lead to the detec-
tion of the perpetrator of this abominable outrage.
CONVICTION OP AN ENGINE DRITSR.—At the
Salford Hundred Quarter Serious, on Monday last, Themes
Jones was indicted for having, on the 19th of August last,
when he was engine-driver in the service of the Lancashire
and Yorkshire Railway Company, wilfully and negligently
caused a collision between two hair at the Bury station of
that company. The facts having been stated by counsel, and
continua by satisfactory evident*, the prisoner was sen-
tenced to be imprisoned fag three mouths.

THE CHOLERA.

sad diarrheas, selmeted tit
Wednesday, Oct. 31, 1340,
it.' diSilign •
Peatehest (Beagliall mad
Brochettes), e. 1, d.l
Prelim Island (Maiden sad
, d. 4
Lendpert), 0.1, 4. 1
Prestos
Selby (11saitb), e. 1
Sou* Shields dt Wanes, a. 4,
d. 2
Moaners (Bredbary), 4.1.
Stenerbridp, e. 2
Tadcaster (Lotbertes ems
Aberibed), s. 2
Totnes (Brigham), e. 3
Tynamonth ( Walker), C. 1
Wakefield. a. 4, d. 2
Warwick, d. 1
We Ils (Olastonbmy), e. 1
West Bromwich (o:dbary).
e. 2
West Derby (Toxteth Perk),
e.Wbi cabal Ten, e. 1
Wigan, e. 2, 4.1
SCOTLAND, Ocr. 31.

ENGLAND A
&tees of deaths hen 144
the Gemmel Booed of Health
B
tlis Beissiatsedast Beth
Baked (41111001 distekt),
align 1.
Bersiek.sm..Twead. a. 1
Balil4
Bilikorgh Moran). a. 1
#4OO, ilkutla 1
cen
A 4
=IVA_
__ebrio,R), a.
chin= Nodes
I sad Pullen). 2, d.
Dadley (Westaid•), C. 2
(2214111), 0. 1, d. 1
(Ssowsl%), a 2
Isieuessemsk & Witherbi,

f D WALES.

Lt esker ((Merton), e. 3
Leek, e. 4, d. 3
Liverpool, e. 1
Newton Abbot (Torquay),
e. 1
North Witehford (Chatteris
district), e. 3
°stadia, d. 1

Capar (Fife), cholera 6 I Newtown, Somme, e. 1
Arbroath (sans 17th), a 5
General Total—London and vicinity No return.
England and Wales 57 20
Scotland

Total

The deaths am returned according to the superintendent
registrars' districts, as it is found impracticable to distinguish
every place separately.

MUSIC.

LONDON WEDNESDAY CONCERTS.
The second of three entertainments, which took
place lest night, consisted of the usual melange of the
classicsl and the ad captizethen. Of the former, the
chief portion was derived from Weber's opera, " Der
Freischutz,” a selection from which opened the first
part. The three scenes for soprano, tenor, and bees
were respectively given by Mrs. Newton, Mr. Luckey,
and Herr Formes. The latter gentleman a'so sang the
celebrated drinking song with great dramatic power.
The next item in the programme was Weber's piano-
forte coccerto in F minor, known as the conoert-
stuck, interpreted by M. Alexandre Bilet. The
composition is so familiar to pianists, that it is unne-
cessary to expatiate on the romantic colouring which
pervades it, or the originality of its form and struc-
ture, qualities which elevate it far above the gene-
rality of works intended fur public executive display.
To render full justice to this imaginative composition
'requires the powers of a Mendelssohn, a Liszt, or a
Madame Pleyel. M. Bikt's performance, however,
although not up to this high standard, was satisfac-
tory, if we except certain liberties taken in the
march, and a tendency to affected phrasing in the
last movement. _

Sprcial mention should be mado of Sig. Bert°Hors
singing of Rossini's air, " Languir rr una bella,"and
Miss Eyle's charming it terpretation of a ballad by
Knight, to which a general encore was awarded.
Beethoven's overture to Egmont, concluded the first
The second port, as usual, was of a miscellaneous
and papular character, commencing, however, with
Bennett's clasaital overture, "The Naiades," and con-
cluding, by way of anti-climax, with Herold's prelude
to 'Lampe. This pert of the concert included a
clever violin solo by M. Sainte!), and Heir Formes'
characteristic singing of Handers "0 ruddier than
the cherry," beyond which there was nothing calling
for special mention—there miseellaceoua selections
generally connoting of the most familiar materials.
The Lail was, as usual, well filled, and it is impos-
sible to doubt that the tendency of these cheap con-
certs must be to diffuse a higher standard of musical
taste among the masses, so long as the directors do
not lose sight of this object in catering far their
shilling public.