The Sun.
London, England, 1852-06-21 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

uedndlienretaking,
AN AND ABERYSTWITH.went
Sir C. Fox,it
at
On Friday a numerous meeting of Welch members
of Parliament and landowners was held in Committee-
room No. 9 of the House of Commons, to discuss the
formation of a company for the construction of a railway
from Shrewsbury to Aberystwith, Viscount Seaharn in
the chair.
, and stated
into M
ar.
detailed
aßi El
eTdrisEtLa Lt
e, solicitormnn t
n f
the top
rtnhpeo s
that in the whole of central Wales, for 110 miles from
north to south, and 70 from east to west th
, --ere was not
at present a single railway, and the want of this was in
part proposed to be supplied by the construction of the
Shrewsbury and Aberystwith line for 70 miles through
the heart of Wales. The line had been estimated to cost
eminentlo,oool. per
contractors,mile, the
that rate.
The following gentlemen expressed their sentiments
in favour of the line:—The Hens. H• and H. Tracey,
Messrs. Ormsby Gore, M.P., D. Pugh, M.P., W. Long,
andwMerre. Bprreap'saerYcdantc,lo
M.P., and P. L3veden, M.P. Letters in favour of the
line were read from Sir W. W. Wynn, Sir J. Conroy,
and others, and resolutions were passed approving of its
construction via Newtown and Machyrilletb, with
branches to Welchpool and Llanidloes, the owners of
land present pledging themselves to sell their land at a
reasonable rate.

PARIS AND STRASBURG.
The section of this line between Commercy and Nancy
was opened to the public on Thursday. Two hundred
invitations had been sent to persons of note in Paris
interested in railway enterprises, and M. Fortoul, the
Minister of Public Instruction, deputed by the Minister
of Public Works to supply his place, M. Boulage, Se-
cretary-General of the Department of Public Works,
the Prefects of the Meurthe, the Moselle, the Bas-
Rhin, and the Vosges, Generals Gamin, Regnault de
St. Jean d'Angely, Fabvier, and Reynaud, and a num-
ber of senators and members of the Legislative body,
were among the persona invited. The train arrived
about four o'clock at Nancy, where the bishop, sur-
rounded by his clergy, was in attendance to bless the loco-
motives. The prelate gave his benediction to the new
section of the line, and the stock prepared to work it.
A grand dinner was given by the town of Nancy to nearly
300 guests. The greatest gaiety and cordiality prevailed
during the repast, at the end of which the Minister of
Public Instruction, in answer to an address from the
Mayor, stated that the Minister of Public Works could
inform them more exactly than he could by what under-
takings Louis Napoleon proposed to complete the rail-
way works. He was at that time fulfilling the orders of
the Prince, who wished to have the line of communica-
tion by railway completed between the Channel on the
north to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic on the
south and west. He concluded by proposing the toast
of " The Town of Nancy," which was responded to. A
number of other toasts were drank during the evening,
and about nine o'clock a display of fireworks was given
from the triumphal arch which terminates the view of
the Place Royale. The whole of the proceedings passed
over most happily. The Minister of Public Instruction
returned to Paris the same night.

THE AUSTRALIAN DIGGINGS.—The following is
an extract from a letter dated Sydney, Feb. 4. :—" There
is nothing very new here, except that the favourite dig-
ging at present is in the neighhouring colony of Victoria,
at a place called Mount Alexander (Mitchell's original
name being Mount Byng, under which name you will
find it in the maps). There the gold is turned up by
tons! In the middle district the calculation seems to be
that, of ten persons employing labour at digging for wash-
gold, only one pays his expenses, and of every five who
dig on their own account only one pays his expenses. Of
course the Melbourne proportions are much more favour-
able, but there is still a good deal of gambling there;
and I cannot help thinking that the uncertainty of gold-
finding is one of its principal charms. More than
1,000,0001. sterling have already been shipped from the
two colonies; about 700,0001. from this; so that a great
proportion of the lower orders are enriched. As yet they
hoard; at least, they do not purchase land, as was
expected. The articles which have risen most in value in
consequence of the dematidforthe a. but
are those
Inandise, such as hams,champagne,of gour
the gold-digger is expending his moneyscc .on the' abovebacko all,
the his
lady. An article of ladies' dress cannot be too expensive
for his eUre amie so that fine shawls, feathers, &c., are
seen flaunting about in all directions. Five per cent. o the
gold turned up is about the exact amount of the sum re-
ceived by the Government for the licenees to dig for gold.
As four in five are, as above mentioned, unsuccessful, it
Pillows that, of the gold actually turned up, the Crown only
gets 1 per cent., and the other 4 per per cent of the revenue
derkred from the licences is derived from the other branches
of industry which prevail in the colony. Such is this un-
wise system, which, while it gives little or nothing of this
immense wealth to the Crown, i. e. to the public, is actually
destroying all industry, by making our labouring popirrr
gamblers, and by' tOrning four-fifths of our disposable labour'
to actual mote-