The Express.
London, England, 1850-02-23 00:00:00

EASTERN COUNTIES.

The accounTtof this company, tog.ther with the
reports cf the auditors and of the accouLtanto, ham, been
hued.

Tee auditor,, ?Sears. James Reeves aed Wi !ism Mayhew,
ay:_

.4The amounts, returns' abstract'', and general balance-
sheet, as prepared and arranged by Misses, Quitter,
Ball, Jay, and Croebie, the accountant-, have been sub-
mitte.: by the directors to us, your auditors, for inrpettion
and audit, prior to their b,ing sent to you, fur your ihforma-
tion before the general meeting to be held on the 27th Mat.
You will perceive they are compiled in me entirely new
form ; each item of expenditure for the working of the line
being computed by a decimal cticuletion, showiest thv ertet
cost per train per mile, valet has been run during the pat
half year; the advantage of which will he to mialio!e the
shareholders to ascertain, by compile's:al wilt the accounts
to he submitted to them in future, whether any item, el ex-
penditure has irereased or diminished. We, feeling the
great responsibility cast on !Is in auditing isotounts of so
great mattoitude, have felt it our duty to give our whole
and undivided attention to the menetary part of them,
and we 'have accordingly most esrefull. and strictly
examined the same with the books and vouchers of the
company and have found them correct; ant tied that
the sum of 424,5781. 1.5.. Id. has been faith:till eared
in the put half-year; which, after paying the working
expenses, 219,4481 2.. Id., will lave a balance of
205,1301. 131. applicable to the payment of the interest on
the bonds and dividends. on the prefer( lice and other shares
of the company, after deductieg the sum 30,4001. for re-
newal of permanent way and tellies stock ; and also 1,1341.
to cover wear and tear or carioca st,ck We congratulate the
shareholders on the gr..at improvenp ht which Mu taken pace
in the state of their affair-, as it will appear that, atter pay-
ing the sum of 153,1721. t: r interest on their bond debts and
dividends on their guaranteed shares, there will remain a
balance of 51,9581. (exclusive of the sum of 9761. left upon
last year's dividend &mutt), to be divided among the hold-
ers of the consolidated stock of the Esi:ti ro C unties and
Norfolk railway companies. We : aye directed the attention
of the directors to the estimated item of 4,0001, credited as
for the rent, &c., of joint stations; we think it most desir-
able that an immediate arrangement should be completed
with the other companies using those rations so as clearly
to agree on the sums to be paid for their use. We find on
reference to the extension stock No. 2, that a larger sum of
money appears to have been relied under that denomination
than is authorised by the act, to the extent of 3,2701., and we
also find in reference to the 6 per cent. guaranteed at.ok that
it appears to have increased 2,2001., as compered with the
amount returned at the last audit, al hough eo money ap-
pears to have been received ucder that denum:nation during
the poet half-year. With respect to the former item, if
upon further examination it *holed appear to be ccusioned
by an over-issue of shares, we recommend the direcum to
purchase a sufficient number to reduce that description of
stock to the amount pre-Bribed by the act. We desire to
mention that the difference in the former it:sr:ince appears,
from the explanation rendered, to have arisen from cash
being credited in the books as having been received under
heads of capital to which it did not properly app:y, the error
not being discovered until the shares came in :or registra-
tion. With respect to the latter item of differen e, we have
to state that the amount new set forth is correct, sec riling
to the present returns made from the share office.
Our examination of the capital expenditure of the
half-year, satisfies us that no mum is charged
againet capital that deco not properly b-11,:ng to it.
Mr. Samuels, the resident engineer, and Mr. Hunter. the
superintendent of the locomotive deputmeit, state in refer-
ence to the expenditure for permanent way act rolling stock,
that the wear and tear of the last halt year, wader ;these
obleaptiiht asanbriountui lnlythmeegt
eaLdr rob: ede
efitemo

169,3251 13.. 93., we recommend that it be disposed ot at
the forthcoming meeting, the more e•pecis:ly as a new set
of books is about to he opeueJ, and the capital account of
the cc/moony closed. We cannot conclude out report wtth-
cut recommending that the shareholders will instruct their
auditors to pursue for the future a continuous monthly
audit of the accounts ; and when it is remembered that
the auditors of this company, on the occasion of tneir tint
audit, were the parties who canoed you to be made ac-
quainted with the then ruinous state of your affairs, and
which led to the appointment ot a committee ot investi-
gation, not only in this company, but almost in every
other, you will see the necessity of giving this power to your
auditors."

In reference to the expenditure of the company previous
to Jan. 4, 1849, the accountants remark :

" The investigation of the capital account, from the forma-
tion of the company to 4th January, 1849, has been actively
pursued by us; but although great progreu has been made in
the work, we are not yet in a position to report its coin-
, pletion. The extent of the subject of examination, namely,
the receipt and expenditure of upwards of nine millions of
money, sufficiently indicates, that in order to accomplish it
satisfactorily, a large amount of time and labour must neces-
sarily be required ; it is nevertheless proper to mention, that
our inquiries have not been confined within the limits of the
company's offices, but have been unavoidably extended
beyond them, in order to obtain important information
relating to particular accounts, and farther, that our other
duties in connexion with the Eastern Counties Company,
have not permitted us to devote ourselves exclusively to this
work
t • arrangement. and superintendence of the
current accounts of the company have necessarily claimed
and received a considerable portion of our time and attention.
It will, however, be satisfactory to the shaiebolders, to be
informed that this inquiry has not been a barren one ; as, in
consequence of it, the sum of 2,5001. his b: en actually re-
covered by the company, and other sums amounting to about
4,0001., are now under consideration, which we have every
reason to believe will terminate in a further recovery by
the company, of that amount."
In their explanations relative to the half-yearly account
to the 4th of January of the present year, Meurs. Quilter
and Ball say ;
"In stating the revenue account, the principle observed
has been that of charging against the traffic casings of the
hilt-year the actual coat of their production. Such cost ne-
cessarily including not only those items of expense in respect
of service, repairs, and supplies. which are represented by
cash payments and invoices ; but also such a sum as added
to the amount as represented shall be equal to the amount
of that deterioration of rolling stock and permanent way
whioh, from its nature cannot be made the subject of current
renewal, although the expense of that renewal ie due from
and ought to be provided for, out of she revenue, of the cur-
rent half-year ; inasmuch as if that bo not done,
the amount of net revenue will be overstated. and dividends
would in effect be paid in excess of earning', to the extent of
such overstatement. The application of this principle tends
to a correct adjustment of the plied:cal revenue accounts,
not only by introducing to the debit side all the expeoss
applicable to each, but also provides that the revettne

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