The Sun.
London, England, 1864-10-28 00:00:00

HURON.

The half-yearly meeting of this company was
held yesterday at the London Tavern ; Mr. P. Raw■
son in the chair.
Mr SHORT, the secretary, read the advertisement
convening the meeting. The report stated that the
directors had taken steps to carry out the agreement
with the Grand Trunk Company. They had nomi.
nated Mr Brydges as the managing director of the
company, thereby placing him in a position to con•
trol the working of the two systems. A joint com-
mittee, consisting of two members of each board,
would exercise for the present supervision on this
side. The earnings of the Grand Trunk Company
far the 12 months ending in June last would under
the recent agreement have given to this company,
from £45,000 to £60,000, according to the pro-
portion of the scale, which ranged from 13
per cent. in the first, 161 per cent. in the
last year of its currency. The committee
of bondholders, acting in concert with Messrs.
Bischoff, Celle, and Bompas, at a mceting
held on the 26th of August last, had agreed to re-
commend their co•bondholders to subscribe towards
the new capital upon the following terms :--viz,,
12 per cent. of the amount of the mortgage bonds
or two years coupons up to and inclusive of those
falling due on Feb. 1, 1865, with an understanding►
that this subscription was conditional upon the re.
mainder of the amount required, say £OO,OOO (equal
to £150,000 in all), being provided, as called for by
the agreement with the Grand Trunk Company.
The company's resources for this were the deferred
bonds, and the unissued preference shares, for
which options existed enabling the holders to take
them up at the price of £5 per £lO share. Those
options would expire in July next, and there could
be no question that at such a price, looking at the
improved prospects of the company, the shares
would be duly taken up, whether by the option
holders or by the public. Meanwhile the directors
had made such arrangements with the Grand Trunk

Company as were satisfactory in respect of the
£75,000 covenanted for as outlay on the intern,.

tional-bridge and third rail. The erection of the
bridge would be commenced early in the spring of
1865, upon the subscription of this company and
others being arranged. The capital account showed
that it had been increared during the half-year by
87,176 dols. including 58,070 dols. PubEeription for
the bridge. The revenue account showed that
281,306 dols. had been received and 212,309 dais

expended, leaving a balance of 71,997 dols. or
£14,794 ; but the exceptional charges amounted to
£21,502, including £9,060 for reno real of iron and
£6,659 loss on American currency. As compared
with the corresponding period in 1863 the revenue
showed an increase of £5,578, arising from hrough
passenger traffic.

The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the
report, said it was a source of gratification
to the directors that the agreement between the

two companies was, working towards a satisfactory
result. The working arrangements had been very
favourably received in Canada. The completion of
the third rail on their line would produce great re-
sults in the development of throngh traffic. The
engineers would bo ready to commence the bridge
in the spring. Theincrease in the traffi2, of the two
lines was over 20 per cent. as compared with the
corresponding period of last year. The net receipts
of the united lines last year amounted to 1370,000.
(NIL. M0r0n—£315,950.) Taking 13 per cent, of
that amount, to which they would have been en•

titled, it amounted to £48,100, and would gradually
increase year by year to 161 per cent., or £61,000.
Before they arrived at that per tentage of the ro■
ceipts the Buffalo company would have sufficient
net income to pay the whole of their annual liabili-

ties. (Hear.) The increase of traffic was going on
rapidly in Canada, and long before they obtained
tho full amount under the agreement they would
be payicg a dividend on their old shares. The
net proceeds of this year were estimated at
£400,000 for the two companies, and many expected
that it would be much greater. The working ex-
penses of the Buffalo for the past half-year were
very heavy in consequence of certain renewals of
stock and way before handing over the line to the
Grand Trunk Company. They had a loss by ex-
changes and a loss by fire, which he hoped would
not happen again. He then adverted to the agree-
ment entered into with the committee of bondholders
which the directors had hoped they had brought to

a termination. It now appeared that certain ob-
jections had been raises, notwithstanding the assur-
ances of the directors that they were prepared to
carry out the agreement eo soon as the state of the
money market would admit of it.
Mr C, HOLLAND seconded the motion for the
adoption of the report.
Mr MORRIS, the solicitor, explained that every.
thing had been settled, as it was believed, most
satisfactorily with the bondholders, but it appeared

:hat one of the bondholders had made a calculation

by which he estimated, from the existing state of
the money market, that the securities the directors

had to raise the money upon would not be of suffi-

cient value to effect that object to the full amount,
and contended, therefore, that the agreement ought
not to be carried out. He (Mr. Morris) honestly
believed the securities would produce all the money
they wanted. Tho bondholders had a most beneficial

arrangement with the Grand Trunk Company, by
which they were secured their interest, and if not
paid in a few days after it was due they could exer-
cise all their legal rights; a larger concession could
not have been made, and it was therefore absurd in
one of the bondholders to talk of breaking off such
an agreement. The directors were willing to do
everything they could to carry out the arrangement
for the benefit of the bondholders and all concerned•
Mr. M'EwEN, Mr. IfoLLAND, and other directors
contended that the securities in the hands of the
Board were ample to produce 411 the funds required
for the purpose of carrying out the agreement with
the bondholders and Grand Trunk Company.
Mr. MoxoN, on the part of some dissentient
bondholder or bondholders, threatened that unless
his requirements, involving as it appeared a new
arr:ngement, were complied with, he would go to
Canada and oppose the agreement of the two com-
panies and put an end to it,
Resolutions were passed adopting the report, and
re-electing the directors.
The directors were then empowered to arrange
with the preference shareholders, and propose u
scheme for dealing with the interest in arrear.
On the motion of Mr FILDES, the bast thanks of
the meeting were presented to the directors for the
prompt and vigorous steps they had taken to carry

PRICE ...... ...4d;
STAMPED ....sd.

into Effect the arrangement with the Grand Trunk
Company.

CAPE TOWN.

The half-yearly meeting of this company was
held yesterday at the London Tavern,--Mr H.
Watson in the chair.
The report, an abstract of which has appeared in
The Sun, was taken as read.
The UIiAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the
report, said 14regretted being obliged to ask them
to take a smaller dividend than they had reason to
expect. They had not yet settled the amount with
the contractor,en which the Government was to pay
a guarantee. The traffic had not resulted in a profit
owing to the extensive renewal of decayed sleepers.
There was, however, a balance of £4,913 availL..ble
for distribution, which would admit of a dividend at
the rate of 31 per cent. for the past three months,
leaving £230 for next account. He considered
that the causes of a reduced dividend were only
temporary, and that by the development of the
traffic and the exercise of strict economy in work-
ing they would gradually succeed in establishing a
dividend equal at least to the Government guaran•
tee. The traffic in June, July, and August had been
seriously affected, but during the first 17 days of
September it had increased to £lOO a day. The
Wynberg Company since the report had been issued
had renewed their negotiations with the company.
It appeared to him that the Colonial Legislature,
having sanctioned a rival line to divert the traffic,
had not only injured the Cape Town Company, but
increased the liability of the colony. The amount
of the company's stock held in the colony was only
£15,600, while English capitalists had provided the
remainder, amounting to about £634,000. The
company had been led to rely on the co-operation
of the Government of the colony, who were quite
as much interested in the success of the railway as
the company. He concluded by moving the adop
tion of the report.

Mr L. BROWNE seconded the motion, and ex.
plained that the failure of the sleepers arose from
their not being creosoted. They had been compelled
to use uncreosoted sleepers by the Government refer
ree, and this sad fact now entailed on them a
cost of £BOO a month out of revenue, and this
would continue until about half the sleepers on the

line were renewed; The company had insisted on
having the other half of the sleepers creosoted be-
fore they were sent out from this country. The
traffic had fallen off in consequence of the great
depression of trade in the colony, and the removalof
the Parliament from Cape Tow❑ to Graham's Town.
He then explained that the nature of the Colonial

guarantee Wa3 a rate in aid of £30,000 a-year, in
addition to profits. A capital of £70,000 had been
paid as interest to the shareholders during con-

struetion. Oat of the £30,000 rate in aid, they had
first to deduct the loss on the working of the lice,

next the interest on debentures and cost of manage.
went, and the rest was available for dividend. The

sum at present available was within £Bl of 4 per
cent. per annum for the half-year.

The report was then unanimously adopted, and
an amendment was carried increasing the dividend
from the rate of 3 per cont. to 4 per cent, per
annum for the three months ending the 30th of
June last. The retiring directors were re-elected,

and also Mr. Alderman Dakin, the retiring auditor.
It was stated that the directors and consulting
engineer had ogreed to make considerable reduction
in the sum allowed them for their services, and the
meeting separated.

Mr. Alderman Salomons and his Constituents

A large number of the electors and non-electors
of Deptford assembled last evening at the lecture
hall of that town, to receive hem Mr. Saicmons,
one of the represeetatives of the borough of Green•
tvicb, an account of his pr)ccedings in Parliament
during the last session.
Mr Dural have been called to the chair,
Mr Alderman SALOMONS commenced his address
by remarhing that although be was alwa3s ell
pleased to meet his coostituee's and to explain to
them his conduct as their representative, yet the
present occasion was the more interesting, es there
could be little doubt but that it would be the last
upon which he should have to address them before
submitting his views to a more extended meeting as
a candidate for re-election. The past Session had
been a very quiet session, during which the Legis-
lature had been chiefly occupied in improving the
laws. Measures had been introduced relating to
almost every subject of social interest. A measure
prescribing a stricter mode of treatment for crimi-
nals had been passed after much discussion. The
proposition of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to
establish a system of life assurance in connection
with the Government had given rise to much con-
troversy, but ultimately, the general opinion being
favourable to the scheme, it had been adopted. A
new system of managing the public roads had been
introduced, and a measure for the more effectual
relief of casual poor by spreading the cost over the
entire metropolis had been passed. All these mea-
sures were of a moderate and unpretending charac•
ter, but it was well that the people should under-
stand that Parliament could not always be dealing
with sensational schemes. The point had been
reached that all great evils had been redressed, and
it now became the duty of Parliament to observe
the changes which occurred in the condition of the
country, and to make such alterations in our
laws as the progressive spirit of the age proved to
be required. During the last Session there had
been one great party fight upon the Danish
question. lie should not enter into the merits
of that question, for it would be difficult to say whe
ther the Danes or the Germans were in the right,
but probably they were both wrong. In that party
fight the Government waa successful by a majority
of 18. That was an important victory for the Mini-
stry, but it was also important to the country, as it
mnst be understood as expressing the opinion of Par-
liament in favour of peace and non-intervention.
(Hear, hear.) The result of that debate had, he
believed, exercised a quieting influence throughout
Europe, and he hoped that when Parliament met
next session it would be found that fewer despatches
had been written, fewer blue books would be printed,
and fewer discussions upon them would be needed,
so that more attention could be given to questions of
greater importance to the country. There would be
ample business for Parliament to deal with in the
next session. In the first place there was a great
outcry in the Australian colonies against receiving
our convicts. It was true that Western Australia
wished to have a supply of convict labour, but the
neighbouring colonies objected that the criminals
sometimea found their way to them. The objection
ought to be treated with respect, especially as it was
strengthened by an opinion on the part of the colony
that the existence of a convict population among
them or near them had a tendency to prevent many
respectable and valuable emigrants from settling
there. The colonies had remonstrated, but having
done so unsuccessfully they now threatened
stronger measures. lie hoped and believed, how-
ever, that the difficulty would be got ever by our
not insisting upon sending convicts to Australia
agaierft the wishes of the greater number of the
colonies in that country. (Rear, bear.) Another
great question in connexion with our colonies would
have to be considered by Parliament in the next
session. Canada, New Brunswick, and cur other
colonies in Narth America were now considering
the propriety of uniting in one confederation, and'
the relations of sue k a confederacy with the mother
country was a question of the deepest importance.
The subject was the more grave because it was cone
netted with the unhappy conflict now raging be.
tween the two sections of what were until lately the
United States of North America. How long that
contest would continue no one could tell, how
it would end no man could know ; but whether tbt.
North succeeded in absorbing the South by depopu-
lating there fertile countries, or whether the two