The Express.
London, England, 1860-08-30 00:00:00

NUMEROUS FIRES AND LOSS OP UFA

Yesterday morning, shortly before four o'clock,
scudatd alarm was caused in the immediate neighbour-
h of Tottenham-court-road, owing to a fire brealung out
in the Prentiss' belonging to Mr. John Bald°, oil and colour-
mar carrying on humane at No. 28, in the beforementioned
theroutlcxere. The discovery was made by the police on
duty, who at owe aroused the inmates, and sent off for the
Royal Society's rumtpe and engines. Fortunately the resi-
dents all succeeded in reaching the street in safety. The
brigade engines from Crown-street, Wells-street, and those
from Chandos-street, Holborn, and Farringdon•dreet, at-
tended, as well as the escapee from Bloom bury and
other Meares Although only a few miind4s bad elapsed,
the fire had made feerful progress ; in fact, owing to the
highly inflammable nature of the stock, the greater
rai;of the building presented one mass of flame.
of water having been procured the engines were set
to work, but the fire could not be extinguished until the
premiss and all they contained were nearly destroyed : and
the adjoining house of Mr. Robert Saith is injured by water
and smoke. Mr. }hide is supposed to be insured in the
Westminster Firecffice.—Yesterday morning, about nine
o'clock, a fire broke out in the premises .if Mr. Longley,
situate in Britigecotut, near the Westminster attemnbost
Pier. The engines having been sent for, several quickly at-
tended, when it was found that an aged lady, the owner of
the house, had by some means set her clothes en fire, and
was unfortunately burnt to death—Another fire 'empanel
in the peptises of Mr. R. Mound*, Berlin wool and fancy
rod: re/neater, keeper, No. 88, Southampton-street.
. hremen of the London brigade were
qt=oltespot. with their engines, and by great exertions
. they were enabled to confine the Saro' to the back part of
the warehouse*, but the valuable stock-intmde was se-
verely tlaniagee The loss will fall Upou the Imperial Fire-
offitnt—A Me likewise took place the previous night in
the Herculea-hall, nitrate in Hercules-buildings, Lambeth.
The building in which the midortune conunentwil belonged
to Mr. F. Colwell; scale-board cutter and splint-maker, and
was two floors high. The disaster arose from the overheat-
ing of one of the'dryingstoves, and in a very brief period
the phICO became enveloped in flames, and from thence the
conffitpatnn extended to the premises of Mr. Potts, coach-
maker. Tillb powerful engines of Madam Hodges, the dis-
tillers, with those of the London Brigade from Waterloo-
road, Southwark Bridge-read, and Farringdonstreet, at-
tended, and the moment the mains of the Lambeth Water.
works were drawn,. good supply of theoppusing element was
procured, and the firemen, under the direction of Mr. Hen-
demon, went to work in an admirable manlier, Int they
were unable to get the fire extinguished, until the workshops
and upper floors were burnt out, and the workshops of Mr.
Potts nearly destroyed. Mr. Colwell was insured in the
State Fire-office, but Mr. Potts was not insured.

LONDON, CHAVIAM, AND DOVER RAILWAY.

The directors' report, to be submitted to the
fifteenth half-yearly general meeting of the company, to be
held to-morrow, states that the second section of the
line between Stroud and Canterbury, namely, from
Faversham to Canterbury, war opened for public traffic
onthe Bth ultimo ; and that the increase in the
traffic has fully answered their expectations. The Sheer.
ness line and that between Favershew end Whit-
stable have also been opened, and are being worked by the
company under their agreenwuta with those two companies
respectively. The wurb on the Western Extension line are
now nearly completed, and the directors are assured that
this line will be opened in October, the time originally pro-
posed. By this period it is also expected that the Victoria
station will be ready, so that the company will have ea in-
dependent run from Canterbury to Westminster. The di-
reotors lately inspected the works between Canterbury and
Dover, and were well matisfiesl with the progress made The
directors are happy to report that in all their undertakings
before parliament they have been completely successful.
The Brighton Company promoted a bill fur transforms to
themselves the whole of the Victoria station, to one-half of
which this company were entitled by agreemeut. This bill
the board thought it their duty to op pore, owl in that op-
positiou they were successful. They have since iu conjunc-
tion with the Great Western concluded au arrnigentent
with the Victoria Station company which was con-
firmed by the shareholders on the =ail Met., and which
they consider is greatly to the advantage of this company.
The directors cannot but think it is a matter of congratu-
lation to the shareholders that they have succeeded aguinst
a very revere qmosition in obtaining the royal assent to the
Metropolitan Extensions Rill. Inasmuch as the new Dues
will he self-supporting by their local traffic, while they
will give the best possible stations, both at the east and
west ends of the metropolis, to the system of the London,
Chatham, and Dorm Railway, and connect all the railways
north and south of the Thames, they must prove of great
advantage to the undertaking. The same bill authorises
the company to raise iehlitioual capital for the purchase of
steamboats, and under this power they have the proepeet
of making such amingementa as wiU insure the proper
conduct of the continental traffic. The lull authorities
the company to purehaae that portion of the West End and
Crystal Balms hoe which lies to the coat of the BrYpiton
Railway, has also received the royal assent. The directors
desire to assure the shareholders that while they are re-
solved to maintain their independence they will endeavour
so to unite with &lithe companies with whom they will be
brought in contact, as to memo at once the convenience
of the public and the advantage of the shareholders.
The engineer's report states that the works during the
pant half-year, notwithstanding the extremely unfavourable
nature of the weather, have made good program. Ou the
western extension there is now but little remaining to com-
plete. A considerable portion of the banalities and laying
of the permanent way is already done, and a very few weeks
more will see this portion of the line ready for opening.
The length between Faversham and thaterbuly hag, since
my last report, been opened for traMc, and is now in full
operation. On tho Dover extension the work' are in full
program at emery point, except chow inunetliately in con-
nexion with the station at Dover, which we have not yet
commenced. There remains but one cutting, viz., Beakee-
bourne, of any magnitude, and that one, the present rate of
progress will complete by Christmas next. The other
cuttings arc all either finished or reduced to very small
quantities. The tunnels on this district are four in number,
viz.: Lvdden Tunnel, 2,400 yards long; Charlton West
TunnelLtit yards long; Charlton Eastls4. yards
long ; Dover Tunnel, VA yards long. Of the first of these,
viz., Lydden, 1,900 yards areeomplete-400yards excavated
to full size and ready for brickwork, and the excavation of
the remaining 100 yards is in • very forward state ; the
other tunnels are finished, so that this branch of the work
is reduced to a wry small matter; and I estimate that six
mouths would suffi.m, without any extraordinary effort,
for the completion of all the works on the above part of
the line, inclusive of Dover Station.

MID-KENT RAILWAY. —The ninth half-vcariy
general meeting of the shareholders in the Mid-Kent Rail-
way (Bromley to St. Mary Cray) was held yesterday at
their offices, South Sea-house. Mr. Was. Dent, the chair-
man, presided, and moved the adoption tithe report, which
met forth that the engineer's certificate et capital expended
had been granted ix pursuance of the agreement between
this company and the South I:sateen Ihillway Company, and
that theb,lance of the guaranteed dividend as regarded the
years front June, 1858, to 1860, Lad been brought formed
to the credit of the general revenue. The expenditure on,
the line, stations, and approaches amounted at the close of
the past half-year to 81,4221. The total expenditure
for the line was now ascertained, and the whole of the
superfluous land had been disputed of at satisfactory prices.
The dividend payable bithe South Eastern Company on the
capital expended was 3 per cent. during the third year,
1860.61, and would Increased under the terms of the
agreement to 4 per cent. The general revenue account
showed a disposable balance of Sill. a. fith, and the di-
rectors recommend a dividend of 21 per cent. ou each 101.
share. In reply to questions by shareholders the chairman
stated that parliament bad given powers to the Fast Kent
Company to ran over their line, fur which they would pay
as a minimum 1,5001., which would go to the South Eastern,
and thereby make the line, which was now considered to he
worked at a tor, profitable. The report was then ndopted,
and a vote of thanks passed to the chairman mid the
directors.

ANEW ACT ON THIS Leer 07 PROPERTY. —The
late Act to Further Amend the Law of Property is certainly
one of the class " which must lead to the more satisfactory
administration of justice." By this nieunre, brought forward
by the Loral Chaueellor, freehold, omyhold, and customary
estates are placed uu tee same fouling with leasehold
estates, and all writs of execution are to be registerol. No
judgment is to be entered up after the passing of the act,
nor any writ of execution to affect any land, ofwhatever
tenure, as to Is bawd fide purchaser or mortgagee, although
execution or other meows be issued and be duly regist.rd,
unless such execution be executed and put in force within
threecalendar mouths from the time when it was registeml.
There is a provision for the protection of heirs snit etecut ore
against unregisteresl judgments. In the construction of the
term " judgment," decrom orders of Comte of Equity nod
Bankruptcy, and other orders hes* the operation of a
judgment, are included. Under the Wed and tird Victoria,
cap. 35, a trustee, executer, or administrator may apply for
the opiniou, advice, or direction of the (hurt of Chancery,
and it is now enacted that the petition or statement must
be signed by counsel, and the judge by whom it is to be an-
swered may repairs the petitioner or applicant to attend
him by °counsel, either in chambers or in court, when be
deems it necessary to have thu assistance of counsel. The
Lord Chanoellors of England and Ireland an empowered to
make general orders as to the investment of cash under the
control of the court. The order to take amount of debts,
kc. of a deceased person may be made immediately after
proloate is punted. The act is not to extend to Scotland,
and only a part to Ireland.
CATIITAX, PALACZ.—ONZ SHILLING DAY. —WED-
WEIDA; Attouer '..".o.—Adinierions on payment,6,24o ; ditto
by owns W.A., 634 ; total visitors, 6,874.