The Express.
London, England, 1868-07-27 00:00:00

LORD REDESDALE AND MR. IV4ITKII,
- - -

In a speech recently delivered by Lord Bede.
dale in the House of Lords, on the subject of the Saint
Eastern Railway Bill, his lordship said :
" He believed that the main object for which it wsi
desired to make that separation was a jobbing Mijeet •••
and spin :—•• the object of these divisions being toll)*
the deferred stock to jobbing purposes, unfounded state-
ments being circulated as to the dividends for
upon it."
The publication of this statement has led to a core.*.
pondence between Lord Bede stale and Mr. Watkin (pub-
lished in the Times this morning), in which Mr. Wands
begs to inquire upon what authority or evidence his lord.
ship ventured to make such charges against the promoter.
of the bill. The first reply of the noble lord is a reitem
tion of the opinion previously expressed, and
the grounds upon which it is based. Ties
answer, however, failed to satisfy Mr. Watkin, who to
his questions, and requests to have " a distinct
answer forthwith." But reiteration was again the sub-
stance of the reply, with the farther admission that then
might be proprietors who had other objects in view than
those which his lordship denounced ; but, he adds,
"You are perfectly at liberty to publish this corm/Ton.
dance, and the public will judge whether I have funned
an erroneous conclusion or not."

Yr. Watkin replied on the same day with an angry let-
ter , in which he said:

"You have now, in effect., admitted that, without evi-
L deuce or authority of any kind, yen have seen sit in your
place in the House of Lords, where privilege protects
you, to invent a false and scandalous charge against a
body of gentlemen aa innocent as they are incapable of
the dishonour you have attributed to them."
Mr. Watkin is content with the opinion of such Satin-
gniahed men as the Lord Chancellor, the Duke of hick.
mond, and Lord Salisbury, who, ha says, " aro quite ae
able to form a mind opinion" as Lord Redeedale; and
Mr. Watkin concludes by declaring that at the next pro-
prietary meeting he will "publicly stigmatise" his lord-
ship's conduct "aa it deserves." Lord Redesdale puts
Lord Romilly's judgment against that of the noble
Lords to whom Yr. Watkin refers, and is "of the sumo
opinion still," without presuming to say that be is right.
As, however, the threat has been made publicly to stigma-
tise hi. conduct, Lord liedeadale intimates in the sixth
letter written on one day (23rd inert.) that he will publish
the correspondence. But Ms. Watkin seems to have been
rather impatient. The correspondence dal not appear in
print on the following morning, so tits hon. gentlemia
took occasion to rewind hie lordship that:
" Yon have the opportunity now of repeating your chugs
in the public papers, and thus enabling those you have
attacked to put you on your proof before the tribunals of
OM country, and
apologising
further opportunity of re-
tracting and for accusations which I feel
you must be ea era utterly without founda-
tion. I invite you to take either the one course or the
other without further delay."

Hie lordship, however, Lemma to take either the one
course or the other." He declares that the opinion he
gave waa expressed in the performance of a public duty,
that he made no specific attack on Mr. Watkin or any-
one, and that he preferred no zonation which he can
retrat or for which he can apologise.