The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-09-16 00:00:00

AUSTRALIAN ROYAL MAIL COMPANY

A meeting waa held at Glasgow last week of the com-
pany engaged in the new. Atistralian mail contract. At
its first formation it bore the in'apnropriate title of the
European and Columbian Steam 11-avlgatiori Company,
and its capital was £410,000. It is now styled the Euro.
pean and Australian Royal Mail Company, arid the
capital is to be £500,000, with power to borrow
to the extent of one-fourth. The increase of capital has
been deemed expedient, in consequence of the company
having acceded to a request of the Government to pro-
vide a steamer to carry the mails between Malta and
Marseilles, while they have also resolved to increase the
capacity of the vessels intended for the service between
Southampton and Alexandria from 1,600 tons and 350
horse power, as originally proposed, to 2,300 tons and
500 horse power. They likewise contemplate having five
steamers instead of four to perform the work between Suez
and Sydney. Under these circumstances their ultimate
outlay is estimated as follows

Two steamers, European, 2,380 tone, and Columbian, 2,300
tons .. •• •• •• •• •• •• •• •• ••• 2100,000
One steamer, Oneid I, 2,323 tons .. .. 60,000
One steamer, arranging for with Messrs. J. and G. Thom-
son, of 2.860 tons, builder's measurement, and 650 horse
power, Clyde measurement .. 86,750
One steamer, arranging for with Messrs. Scottand Co , of
2,320 tons, 500-horse power, Clyde measurement.. 70,000
One steamer, arranging with Messrs. Lawrence Hill and
Co., of 2,320 tons, 500-horse power, Clyde measurement 70.003
One steamer, for service between Malta and. Marseilles, say 25,000
Expense of refitting three steamers .. • • .• 20,000
Expense of fornisning three new steamers, say •••
10.000
Six barges for coaling at Aden
.„ 6,000

If the fifth steamer is built for outside service

£477,750
70,000

Supposed amount

X 547,750

The contract is for five years, at £185,000 per annum,
and the continuous monthly service between Sydney and
England is to commence in January next. The outward
passage from Suez to Melbourne is to be performed in 39
days,tand the homeward in 35, under penalties of £5O for
a delay of ono day, £lOO for two days, and a progressive
increase of £5O for every additional day ; such penalties,
however, being limited in the aggregate to the amount of
subsidy applicable to the individual voyage. The offeriof
the Peninsular and Oriental Company was to perform the
service for £140,000, but under certain stipulations which
were deemed inadmissible. Upon the refusal of their
terms the latter company protested that the Government
had thrown away £45,090 per annum, since the new com-
pany would be unable to maintain the promised speed,
and had undertaken the contract only because the
extra £45,000 per annum would cover an amount of
fines such as to enable them to be several days behind
time on each voyage, and yet receive more than the
Peninsular and Oriental Company had demanded.
In reply to these assumptions the new company have
addressed a letter to their shareholders, denying the
right of the Peninsular and Oriental Company to make a
charge against their competitors of a deliberate intention
to break faith, and pointing out that the penalties in
question were not assented to until after the government
had been urged to adopt in preference the usual test
hitherto practised of ascertaining the speed of the vessels
to be employed before admitting them to the service.
" Having agreed to them after vain attempts to substi-
tute the speed test for them, the company," it is re-
marked, " cannot be expected to submit to the latter
also." Under all the circumstances, and especially
taking into consideration the advantages to be hoped from
the line being independent, and, through a part of the
route, competitive, there is reason to believe that the
government have made the best choice in their power.
This admission, however, must not be held to affect the
argument against the unsoundness of the contract system
generally. A. strong opinion prevails that if the govern-
ment had declared from the first that it would leave the
ocean conveyance of letters as open to competition as
that of other articles, allowing shipowners to charge
whatever the merchants and others might think
warranted by their relative speed, fleets both for
passengers and mails would have rapidly grown up
in proportion to the demand, and the disgrace of all
the delays of the past four or five years would have been
avoided. But it is now too late to revert to the experi-
ment, and some arrangement like that just concluded was
unavoidable. The route via the Cape, however, is at
present free from contract boats of any kind, and there
are experienced persons who predict that, if the Govern.
went will but issue a notification that it shall remain so,
private enterprise will soon achieve results, as far at least
as the passenger traffic is concerned, far more satisfactory
than any that have yet been contemplated.—Times.

CHAIRMAN OF THE EASTERN COUNTIES RAILWAY.—We
understand that Mr. Fane, one of the commissioners of the
Court of Bankruptcy, and chairman of the Newmarket line,
is likely to become, even if he be not already appointed,
chairman of tke Eastern Counties line, in the room of Mr.
Waddington, resigned.
THE BIRMINGHAM HOAX.—.' Mr. Wyndham," the gen-
tleman who was represented as having hoaxed the people of
Birmingham, by pretending to be an agent of the Queen of
Oude, writes to a cotemporary :—" Suffer me, for the
present, simply to contradict your account of the ' Bir-
mingham hoax and to say that I have Captain Brandon's
authority to state to you that a misunderstanding had
arisen, the particulars of which, when published, will fully
exonerate me from the grave charges which have been made
by those distinguished indefatigables,' Messrs. Collis and
Harrison."

ROYALTY AND FASHIONABLES AT BADEN.—I do not
know that I have ever seen Baden 'so full (says a letter
from that place). The Duchess of Cambridge and the
Princess Mary are here, flitting about among the company
in the most unstately manner. Daily on the promenade
is to be seen a hale, hearty old gentleman, in a brown
wig, who goodnaturedly returns every salute, and smiles
pleasantly when, as is frequently the case, the band plays
selections from his music—for this is Rossini. And
bearded Albert Smith is bustling about everywhere,
looking for character, in a place where, as Jerrold said
"there was plenty of it lost." ,
ARCHDEACON DENISON'S CASE.—We are enabled to
announce, on authority, that the venerable Archdeacon of
Taunton (the Rev. G. A. Denison) does not intend to
insert a retractation of his alleged error in the registry
of the diocese of Bath and Wells by the lat of October,
as ordered by the Archbishop of Canterbury ; so that on
the 21st of October—the day appointed for the next
meeting—the Primate will have no other course to
pursue than to pass a sentence upon tha Archdeacon,
depriving him of all his clerical appointments. It is fully
expected that this will lead to a complete breach in the
Established Church.

ADOPTION OF THE COUNTY CONSTABULARY Acr BY THE
WEST RIDING.—on Friday, at a meeting of West Riding
magistrates, at the Court House Wakes (tbe Rev. J. A.
Rhcdes presiding), it was resolved to place the riding under
the Act of the 2nd and 3rd Victoria; the total number of
constables to be 420 ; and the salary of the chief constable
£5OO, with an allowance of actual travelling expenses ;
also ten superintendents, each at £l3O, with £4O for a
horse ; ten others at £l2O, with the same horse allowance ;
twenty-two inspectors—ten at £75, six at £7O, at six at
£65. The remaining 418 constables, in three classes, at
18s, 203, and 21s per week respectively, exclusive of
clothing. These facts and figures are to be embodied in a
report, to be laid before the mgistrates.of the riding at a
special session, to be held at Wakefield on the 24 t h of
o.;tober, when the magistrates will doubtless ratify the
revolutions of Friday.

TILE RAVAGES OF THE CHOLERA IN MADEIRA.-Mr.
D'Orsey, one of the chaplains in the island, writing on
behalf of the sufferers by this dreadful calamity, states
that the late outbreak of cholera in the island was one of
the most fearful on record :—" In three weeks there were
5,000 cases and 1,500 deaths, in a population of 100,0!10;
and 116 deaths in one day in Funchal alone, a town of
26,000, which would be equal to 8,000 deaths a day in
London. To relieve this aw ful visitation, doubly severe
on a half-starved peasantry, the Portuguese government,
though making great efforts, can effect comparatively
little. The landed proprietors of the island are almost
entirely ruined by the failure of the vines since 1851—and
the English merchants, formerly wealthy and always gene-
rous, pre unable to do what they wish, from the cessation
of the:wine trade, caused by popular error in England,
that because the crops have failed, the wine is not to be
had, and thus thousands of pipes remain unsold."