The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-09-01 00:00:00

At any rate, their wish was to do everything to satisfy
them, consistently with the interests of the company.
They had, while accommodating the local traffic, also to
accommodate the through traffic, and had to meet daily
at the Chester station about forty trains, all of them, or a
great many of them at least, expecting them to be there
at the minute in order that they might not be detained.
This was a serious difficulty they had to contend with,
which he thought few other lines had to meet—about forty
trains into Chester station daily from the Great Western,
London and North Western, and Holyhead lines, along
with their own Cheshire Junction line. To manage the
whole called for great exertion, and more expense than
that of an ordinary line. The third point to which he
would refer was the river difficulties. They wanted better
accommodation on both sides of the river, and better
boats. The Liverpool peop'e were deeply interested in
that question, inasmuch as if there were more facilities
given at that side, as he hoped there would be bye and
bye, and better approaches at the Liverpool side to the
river, it would facilitate business, and, in his opinion,
would lead a great many to Liverpool across the river
who did not go on account of the trouble of the journey
now. He believed that the shopkeept rs and every person
living in Liverpool would be benefited by an easier access
to Liverpool from the Cheshire side of the water. (Hear,
hear.) He did not know that he had any further remarks
to make, and would therefore conclude by moving the
adoption of the report and accounts.
Mr. James Tyrer observed that it would be well if the
chairman also mentioned the difficulty they had in con-

action with the ferry boats.
The Chairman replied that it was true that they also

were a source of difficulty. The company had an agree-
ment with the Birkenhead Commissioners by which the
latter were bound to run one of their best boats with
every train, and the difficulties necessarily arising out of
anti an arrangement should be borne in mind. They lost
five minutes by the river, and they had to make it up on
sixteen of railway. The boats were not so regular nor of
that class which they ought to be, but he hoped that that
defect, would be remedied at no distant period, when the
Birkenhead docks would be completed, and when they
would have a large landing stage on the Cheshire as well
as the Liverpool side of the river. They had had a com-
munication with the corporation on the subject, and he
believed that they might confidently hope that, in the
course of eighteen months or two years, something would
be done to facilitate the traffic across the river. They
were making improvements at Monk's Ferry station, and
they had arranged with the Birkenhead Commissioners
for taking the toll. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Pickering asked how the charges on the Chester
station alone had, during the half-year, been increased by
X 1,130?

The Chairman replied that the Chester station was
managed by a joint committee from all the companies.
That committee appointed a general manager of the sta-
tion, and no individual company had a right to give orders
at the station. As to the increase in the expense over the
past half.year, he presumed it arose from the laying down
of the permanent way in the station, of the cost of which
their proportion was £566 lls lid, and also from the
increased traffic.

Mr. Mill said that he could not congratulate the
directors on the report—a statement of accounts which
he by no means considered satisfactory. The
expense of working the line was enormous, and he
therefore appealed to the shareholders to support
him in urging on the directors a different management.
He conceived that the official of the various railway
companies had too much power, and from that arose
the defalcations which had been found taking place else-
where. He wanted to have more responsibility with the
directors, and less with the officials, who had by far too
much in the arrangement of the traffic. They should
remember that it was not the amount of traffic but the
price that was paid for it that gave a dividend. If they
looked at their line they would find that it was not over
loaded with traffic, and that they were carrying, as he
maintained, at a loss. (Hear, hear.) He should like
to know what profit they derived from carrying coal
and taking back iron-ore to South Wales ? Again, the
working expenses were the most extraordinary of
railway on record. So far as he could judge, the
traffic was conducted, even taking into account t
tollage received from the Great Western, at 75 per cent
of the value received, and he maintained that one hal
of that traffic was carried at a loss, and that they were

working the line for the advantage of the public and not o
the shareholders.

The Chairman expressed a wish to know how Mr. Mill
arrived at his estimate of 75 per cent. as the cost of the
goods traffic?
Mr. Mill replied that he took the locomotive power on
goods at the same rate as for passengers, per mile, and
that gave him £3,700 locomotive power on goods. The
merchandise charges were £6,116, and placing also against
goods £1,200 for the maintenance of way (half the whole
expense), .Kl,OOO for general charges, £2,000 for the
Chester station and for conducting the goods traffic, £l,OOO
for relaying, £5OO for mileage and demurrage, and £3,500
for dues which exclusively belonged to goods, he would in
all have £19,000 and odd pounds, and setting that against
£26,500, which was about their goods traffic, he would
have 75 per cent. as near as might be. As to the reduc-
tion in the number of directors, he believed that the
shareholders would agree with him that the smaller num-
ber they had the better. He would not decrease their
remuneration, but he hoped the shareholders would con.
tinue to decrease their numbers, until they got the board
down to seven or eight.

The Chairman, in-reply, said the directors felt the full
responsibility of their position and used it to the best of
their judgment. They had selected officials in whom they
could place confidence, and he was happy to say that it
had not been misplaced. At the same time, they were not
allowed to enter on transactions of importance on their
own responsibility, but had to consult the board on all
matters of business. As to the goods traffic, he had taken
great pains to ascertain whether they were doing any
business that was not remunerative, and he was happy to
say they were not. (Hear, hear.) If they could get
more of the worst traffic they were carrying it would
answer well, and increase their dividend. With respect
to the South Wales traffic, they were doing it conjointly
with three or four other companies, and though it was a
competing traffic, it paid well.

Mr. Mill: State the amount you receive. I say you
are conducting your traffic at an absolute loss, but if you
prove it not so, I shall withdraw what I have said.
The Chairman : That is not a fair request to make. If
the shareholders are satisfied to place their business in
the hands of the directors they should be content with
their assurance, and not call on them to specify every
particular. But if Mr. Mill, or any other shareholder, will
call at the office at any time, he will receive every infor-
mation on the subject. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Mill : I:a ant to know it here.?
Mr. W. Titherington: It would not be politic to publish
it to the world. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Mill : I repeat that the traffic is carried at a loss.
Mr. Burley considered that it was not decorous in any
shareholder to persist in an assertion when wholly igno—
rant of the facts in the face of a positive contradiction
from the chairman, who was perfectly cognisant of them.
(Hear, hear.) They should not allow such assertions to
be persisted in.
Mr. Mill replied that he made the assertion in conse-
quence of what was stated to him outside.
Mr. Trevor suggested that Mr. Mill should state the
nature of his information.
Mr. Mill deolinedito give It,
The Chairman, in continuation, said that Mr. Mill's cal-
culation as to the cost of the goods traffic was entirely
wrong ; in fact, he had not the data to ascertain it. He
(the Chairman) had gone into it as much as possible with
the managers, and he had not yet found a railway man
who could dissect the passengers and goods traffic, and
say what per tentage should be charged to each. Be
had shown that their working expenses had been 12
per cent less than in the previous half-year, while there
was an increase of 221 per cent in their receipts. As to
the Bridgewater Trust toll, he considered it as no part of
their expenses, though Mr. Mill had included it in his
calculation,

panymai

A lengthened discussion took place on the question,
whether this toll could be considered part of their
legitimate working expenses, and it appeared, that though
it was in°luded in the statement of accounts, it yet formed
no part of the chairman's calculations.
Mr. Salisbury observed, that he considered that the
maintenance of the independence of their company had
always been their bugbear. Theirs was too small a line
to maintain its independence, and he thought the time
had arrived when they should cultivate a Great Western
alliance. Mr. Salisbury was about to developo his views
on this point, but was stopped by the chairman declaring
that he was out of order.

good t

arnish r

The report and statement of aceountg were then adopted

nem. eon

The follf,-wing dividend, for the half-year ending 30th of
",ine, and payable 6th September, was. unanimously
uT
declared :—On 'l3l shares, 6s 10d per share ; on '2i* lOs
shares, 6s 2d; and on 422 shares 4s Ild.
it was also resolved to convert the share capital,
amounting to £1,941,50510,, into consolidated stock, such
conversion to date from the Ist January next.
The following resolution was also adopted That the
directors be and are hereby authorised to create stock in
the Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire Junction
Railway Company, in lieu of the whole or any portion of
the amount of loan capital which the shareholders have..
authorised to be borrowed, amounting to the sum of
£413,891 3s Bcl, from time to time, and upon such terms as
the directors may consider advisable, in accordance
with
the provisions of the Birkenhead, Lancashire,
iaBn3d the
ucCh
shire Junction Railway Company's Act °,
dividend payable on sh stock not to exceed the rate of
..e4 per cent per annum."
It was explained that the holders of this stock will not
be shareholders in the company, but simply perpetual
debenture or bond holders.
seconded, that the
Mr. Mill moved, and Mr. Doming

Mr.l3irley second. ld the motion, and, in doing so, took
occasion to vindicate that gentlema❑ from the charge
which had been made against, him, of being influenced by
the North Western ,hews. He contended that Mr. Ban-
croft's whole conduc t had been quite in another direction.
He had advocated t (either a North Western nor a Great
Western policy, bu•: had been thoroughly independent.
The company had de, cided over and over again, that they
would have no allianc .e with either one or the other, but
would maintain an L idependent position, and such had
been Mr. Bancroft's ; policy. Only for Mr• Bancroft, the
question with the Gr eat Western Company would not
have been so arnicalk v settled as had been done, and if
the advice of other ge ntlemeta on the board had been
is ten. p,,rhap,3 it wool d not have been settled at all.
(Hear, hear.) _ _
Mr. M'

i'sked what a mount of stock was held by Mr

Bancroft ?
to answer that question.
A right to examine the register
TMhr. e Chmilla
asked
rmn declinedif h ha d ;

of;shares ?
affirmative. .
ster, and
The Chairman replied in the'
Mr. Mill accordingly exattn'ned p the register,
declared himself satisfied.
Mr. Bancroft's name was then
John Rogers were
pu,t and carried.
Mr. William Titherington and Mr.
re-elected without any opposition.
Mr. James Tyrer was re-elected au'dit;or.
Mr. Titherington returned thanks fot his re-election as
director, and, in doing so, took occas
ion to defend the
management of the directors fromthe at t ack made by Mr.
Mill. He declared that if Mr. Mill had be 'en sent there—
which he knew that gentleman was not—as a represen-
tative of the Great Western Company, he could not
have done their business more effectively.
emphatic support to the chairman's denial tl

any tea

and that Mr. Mil

tv to it

t,,e COM-

their books, and that any day that gentletilan cal e'd at ti.:4
office, the directors would most readily afford him every
information he required.
Mr. Rogers also briefly-thanked the meeting for his re-
election.

A vote of thanks was then passed to the chairman, and
the proceedings terminated.

FASHIONS FOR SEPTEMBER

(From Le Follet.)

The delightful weather with which we have lately been
favoured has been the means of introducing to our notice
those excellent tissues, so pleasing to the eye, and so light
to wear—those summer ball dresses of mousseline crepe,
pink, lilac, or blue, covered with flounces, and trimmed with
a passementerie of straw and velvet—a charming novelty of
the season. and which produces a pretty effect; also the
organdis, either lowered or checked in delicate colours, with
a pattern on the flounces, sometimes relieved by a black
velvet binding, or a double quilling of narrow pointed
black lace, which throws up very beautifully the colours of
the dress,

White dresses—for so long a period proscribed—are at
the present moment in the greatest request. After many
futile attempts to revive this dress in the fashionable world,
our artistes have at length succeeded in restoring it to
favour. It is, however, uo longer the simple white muslin
dress of former days, that might be worn by every village
bride, but is so elaborately ornamented with embroidery and
lace as to have become a toilette the most recherche and
luxork.us.

Plain white muslin or organdi dresses are frequently
trimmed on the sides of the skirt with three rows of bouil-
lonnees, placed perpendicularly, and separated by small
bows of ribbon arranged en echelle. Bodies, covered
with bouillonnees and bows, complete these elegant
evening dresses, now so much worn at fashionable water-
ing places.
Coloured silk slips are very much worn tinder white
dresses ; and when the dress is made with flounces, others,
of the ~ame colour as the slip, are frequently placed under
them.

With these exquisite toilettes the most beautiful arti-
ficial flowers are worn ; also wreaths of fruit and fancy
grass.

Among the most elegant flowers, we have lately noticed
an entire trimming for a white organdi dress, composed of
green corn ears, mixed with hedge roses; another wns of
hawthorn, destined for a pale pink dress; and a third,
equalling, if not surpasi•ing, the others in elegance, was
composed entirely of small bouquets of lilies of the valley.
‘" I
placed at intery ,ls over a blue gauz. dress with a double
le 45,854 . „ .

s ex pec

n them worn