The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-02-06 00:00:00

RAILWAY REFORM

TO. THE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN TIMES.
Sir,—The gigantic proportions of railway competition
are now-become of such national importan :e, as is indi-
cated by the virulent contest at this time waged by some
of, the largest trunk lines in the kingdom, as to call for
serious animadversion. These unprincipled contests are
most destructive of the property of tens of thousands of
our fellow-subjects, including widows and orphans, and
are disgraceful to the characters and management of the
various b.)ards of directors who are engaged in them,
and who ought to act in unison for the general benefit of
the railway public, and be the enlightened protectors and
faithful trustees of the individual, and, so far as may be,
general interest of railway proprietors.
Urged by these weighty considerations I am induced to
answer, the anonymous letter, alluding to myself, which
was inserted in your last Saturday's publication.
At the recent meeting in Liverpool, called for the pur-
pose of forming a Railway Reform Association, to which
that letter refers, I made no allusion whatever to legisla-
tive action on railways, for or against them. Yet the
anonymous writer, " Quasimodo," assumes to say. that I
blame the legislature tor permitting the construction of
competing lines of railway.

On this assumption, and because I attempted to expose
the futile folly of railway companies who punish and ruin
themselves by unprincipled competition, he accases me of
sophism and glaring commercial inconsistency.
The observations which I made at the meeting, and
which the writer criticises were, that " I deprecated the
folly of the railway companies who worried each other
with ruinous competition, and who, like the Kilkenny
cats, literally devoured each other, 'till almost nothing
remained but the tiil ends of preferential-share and rail-
way-bond holders to absorb the profits which the original
shareholders had reasonably hoped to have liberally par-
taken of: I (Minot say, nor am I reported to have said,
that the East3lEancashire CoMpany ought not to have
been allowed Ito construct their branch from Ormskirk to
Southport. But, in condemnation of the impolitic com-
petition, so generally and extensively waged by railway
companies to the destruction of shareholders' dividends,
I Said that I doubted the wisdom of making that branch, if
it were made with the object of competing by that circuit—
ous route, with an existing direct line from Liverpool to
Southport. The traffic, on which circuitous route, must,
and could only be obtained, at fares so reduced, as would
wilfully cause a certain loss to the shareholders in the
East Lancashire Railway Company, and inflict an unde-
served injury on the shareholders of the Lancashire and
Yorkshire Railway Company, and a double injury on
those who hold shares in both companies.
Regardless of being reproached as an inconsistent free-
trader, and stigmatised as a monopolist by " Quasimodo,”
I must take up his attempted illustration of free trade,
as exhibited in the competition of two rival drapers, and.
thanking him for it, I beg leave to make of it a parallel
case, explanatory of the true working of unrestricted free-
trade applied to the general management of railways;
If Jones, the draper, having one shop in any street, be
a partner in another shop in any other street, were to
compete with himself by underselling himself in each of
these shops, however the public might for a time profit
by his insane conduct, they would not fail to think that the
madness of his folly could go no further.
And yet the shareholders, who have shares in the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company, and also in
the East Lancashire Railway Company, are placed in
this absurd position.

I have not yet done with the apt illustration " Quasi-
modo " has helped me to; if Robinson, Jones' rival draper,
seeing Jones become a sensible man of business, thriving
on fair charges, were to establish himself in a shop over the
way with the intention of obtaining, part of Jones' custom
by nefariously underselling him, at the cost of probable
ruin to himself, and perhaps Jones too; although the
public might benefit by the contest, so long, as it lasted,
all right minded men would lament the existence of such
lax morals, and certainly condemn the fool-hardy and un-
principled conduct of Robinson.
There may be those who rejoice in the use of railways
at fares made so low as to be ruinous to the proprietors,
in consequence of unprincipled competition between com-
panies, and ignorantly think such cheap travelling is the
legitimate fruit of free trade, as there may be men who
would on no account pick a pocket, who might not hesi-
tate to pocket a purse, unwittingly dropped by enraged
parties during the confused strife of a rival contest, and
even chuckle over that infirmity of their fellow creatures,
which occasioned their good luck; but sober-minded
honest men would be distressed by the humiliating scene,
and loathe the thought of profiting by it.
The misfortune is, that men like " Quasimodo " un-
happily
do not know the difference between unprincipled
free trade and unrestricted free trade.
Now, I ama consistent advocate of unrestricted free
trade, but, in common with large classes of men in all
d
briefly endeavoured to rescue free trade from
thera h I
ill conceived notions and absurd handling of " Quasi-
mode,"l shall take my leave of him, and all other anony-
mous writers. except to make a few remarks on his incon-
gruoustae I abhor unprincipled free trade.
g
concluding paragraph, where he says, " What our
railways require are, competition in all cases, even by
direct and parallel lines," &c. Does he mean to say that
this is reform which proprietors of railways are eager to
embrace and anxious to adot t !! !

' Can he really imagine that a body of railway proprie-
tors collected together to consider the best way for man-
aging their affairs would, or could, be persuaded to think
that it would be for their advantage to multiply com-
petitors for a traffic which, as yet, falls far shot of
exhausting the power they know theylhave to conduct it ! !!
and does he really think, two gigantic capitals should be
withdrawn from public means, to be wasted and expended
uselesslyin constructingtwo such powerful machinesto con-
ductone and the same traffic, whilst one was more than com-
petent to do the work required, and with more conveni-
ence too, to the public, and cheaper than two parallel lines
could afford ? And, if so, why does he select as a type
for our administration of a perfect railway company,
above all others, the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Company, which has never made an extension, nor con-
structed a branch, and is almost without competition ?—I am,
&C, LAWRENCE HEYAORTH•

THEATRE-ROYAL, DRURT-LANE.—On Friday evening
Mr. E. T. Smith was agreeably surprised by a visit from
Mr. W. Beverley, at the head of a deputation from the
carpenters and gas-fitters employed iu the theatre, who
presented him, on their behalf, with an elegant chased
silver tankard, bearing the following inscription :—" Pre-
sented to E. T. Smith, Esq., of the Theatre-Royal, Drury-
lane, as a slight testimonial of the sincere respect and
esteem:entertained for him by the artisans of that estab-
lishment, Jan. 7, 1856." Such actions are creditable to
all parties.
AN AMERICAN BREAKFAST.—(Present . A gentleman
and two young ladies.)—" Miss, it's feeding time, I guess ;
what will you eat? " You're very po-lite ; what's the
ticket ?" " Chicken and corn fixings, and pork with
onion fixings." " Well, I'm hungry some; I'll have some
pig and fixings." The swain retired, and brought a pro-
fusion of viands, which elicited the remark, " Well, I
guess that's substantial anyhow." The young ladies' appe-
tites seemed to be very good, for I heard the observation,
" Well you eat considerable ; you're in full blast I guess."
" Guess I am ; it's all fired cold, and I have been an ever-
lastin' long time off my feed." A long undertoned conver-
sation followed this interchange of civilities, when I heard
the lady say in. rather elevated tones, " You're trying to
rile me some; you're piling: it on a trifle too high.,,
" Well I did want to put up your dander. Do tell, now
wherewas you raised ?" " In Kentucky." " I could have
guessed that ; whenever I sees a splendiferous gal, a kinder
gentle goer, and high stepper, I says to myself, that gal's
from old Kentuck, and no mistake."