Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-02-10 00:00:00

THE NORTHERN TIMES THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1850

(secular) discussion, and merit respect ; they must
be considered as an emanation of the Divine
wisdom ; but civil society claims, its legislation, as
religious society exacts : and preserves its own.
The Canon Law, inflexible as dogma, immovable
amid the movement of ages, is essentially distinct
from legal law, variable as are the requirements
and the interests of society. It could adapt itself
to the early periods of Christian civilisation when
CHARLEMAGNE introduced in his Capitularies the
rules and precepts of theocracy ; but the Canon
Law cannot suffice for the protection and develop-
ment of modern society." This is most true. It
explains and asserts a just and righteous principle
'it makes and enjoins a necessary and important
distinction. And society must ever be the better
of having them recognised and regarded, both on
one side and the other. The interests of civil and
religious liberty, indeed, of necessity demand it.
For liberty of either character is not a one-sided
thing, but a thing that is impartial, and equal, and
just ; else could it never be that which it has been
described, and has been experienced, too, wherever
it has -prevailed in its integrity.---that, namely,
" which is• absolutely necessary to enable us to be

what we' ought to be, and to possess what we
ought to possess.?'

AZIERICAIN RAILWAYS

THAT a new country , like the United States

should, in the construction of its Raihstays, have

to seek pecuniary assistance occasionally from, an

old country like • England, can excite nc

o§surprLse

It is not that America is a poor country; it pos-
sesses vast wealth. ; and, with the elements of
wealth it is fulls to overffowing. But then its
riches are not yet accumulated, like ours ; and the
development of its immense resources demands all,
and more than all, its present available capital.
Its Railways alone have absorbed an encrmous
amount of such capital. Think of nearly twenty
thousand miles of Railway having already been
formed, and a paid-up capital of more than. four
hundred millions of dollars invested therein—
with about two-thirds of that amount more re-
maining to be. paid--making. in.. all nearly eight
hundred millions of dollars—and producing; in
gross earnings upwards of ninety-six millions of
dollars a-year. Surely these are great results—
amazing, indeed, considering all the circumstances
of the country, an& the heave expenditure- of
capital for other operations of material progress.
Now the comparison. of, this with, our own case,
while it is interesting., on several accounts,_ is
important as. exhibiting,very strikingly some of
the advantages of the Railway system in America.
There are about ten thousand miles of Railway
open in the United Kingdom—about half the extent
of that in the United States, upon which a sum some-
thing short of three hundred millions of pounds
sterling has been expended. So. that whereas-the
twenty thousand miles of American Railways
have cost about one• hundred and. forty, millions
sterling, half that extent of lines. in. Great Britain
has cost nearly twice -that amount.. Our Railways
give an average dividend of about four percent.
_-_tnkinQ orainnry orta prof...ono...am:tree toge,
The net profits of the American, Railways are
already equal to five per cent. on. the expenditure,
ten per cent. on. the bonded•debt. Much of this
bonded debt is held in England, and some of it is.
not productive at all—simply beca.use it has been
imprudently advanced upon the representotions, or
rather misrepresentations, of untrustw.orthy par-
ties—paid agents sent oven to this. country to
negotiate for- investments in lines either of a
worthless description in themselves, or which
were made so by gross mismanagement, and
sometimes. positive fraud. These were certainly
reasons why American Railways should not, at

first sight, be viewed with much favour by British
Capitalists, as objects of investor. at. But they are
not reasons why such objects, when selected with
due care and discrimination, as we have shown,
should not be made available to British Capitalists
with the utmost advantage, alike to themselves
a.nd the'undertakings which they thereby assist in
helping forward. The prejudice against all
American investments of the kind is evidently
an unreasoning one, and, like many other
prejudices, is the offspring of ignorance.

We have been led to make these remarks by a
further statement that has fallen into our hands,
explanatory of an important American Railway
enterprise which we have before alluded to in
these columns,—we mean the Atlantic and Great
Western Railway, connecting 'New York and. Sts
Louis, by the junction of the New York and Erie,
and the Ohio and Mississippi lines—thus forming
a continuous broadguage line of twelve hundred
miles, the passenger traffic of which will be
conducted without change of carriages. The
Atlantic and Great Western line is about
three hundred and seventy miles long, and
forms the middle link of a grand national
line—the two great ends of which, that
from New York to the junction, and from its
terminus to St. Louis, have been many years in
operation, and are very productive. The Railway,
therefore, which is now in course of construction,
completing as it so important a line, must
needs be one of very extensive traffic.

A report, by Mr. T. W. KENNARD, consulting
engineer, is now before us, to the bondholders and
others interested, the result, it appears of a very
careful investigation into the affairs and prospects
of the Atlantic and G_Tat Western, under three
separate heads ; viz.-1. Its geographical position,
and the sources of traffic ; 2. The present state of
the work, the amount of capital necessary to com-
plete the same, and the time required to place
them in active operation ; and, 3. The legal posi-
tion and constitution of the Company. This report
shows the Railway in question to be sure of
immense traffic, as the centre link' of so important
a through line frOm the Atlantic to the Mississippi,
—that, in short, the existing through traffic will
far more than cover the interest of the bonded
debt, without estimating local business, which
must, in addition, be very large. So that it
appears to present an opportunity exceedingly
eligible for investing in an American Railway
enterprise ; and one would suppose that there
could not now be any difficulty in securing such
AS must Cm4ble the
an amount Qf British cap

Company at once to proceed with the completion
of a work which is not exceeded in importance by
any similar undertaking in the United States.