The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-24 00:00:00

nth SUI, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, AUGUST 24, 1864.

the policy now announced by the directors being
one of peace:and tranquillity. Aa Ithe growth of
fixed charges is thus likely to be checked for a few
years the dividends on the company's multitudinous
ordinary stocks may be expected to expand to some
extent. We have said that the company is strugg-
ling gallantly to overcome its difficulties, and we
may add that in the 13 months ending January 31,
1864, 240,609 passenger and 89,817 goods trains were
run, the former accomplishing a distance of 6,573,261
miles, and the latter of 5,467,527 miles, making an
aggregate of 12,040,788 miles (against 10,593,480
miles in 1863). The number of tickets issued was
17,291,221 (against 12,954,9 M in 1862). The im-
mense circulatim of passengers in the 13
months ending January, 1864, was made up thus :-;
First-class, 3,112 888 passengers, yielding £429,567
second class, 6,058,575, yielding £662,222; and
third class, 8,119,758, yielding £475,557. It is per-
haps worthy of remark that the Great Western has
a larger first-class traffic than the London and
North-Western, but that the amount derived by it
from this category of voyageurs is less. A sum of
£19,164 was also derived by the Great Western in
the period under notice from 1,975 season ticket
holders, making the total passenger receipts of the
13 months £1,586,510, The accessory receipts of
the quick trains from parcels, carriages, horses, dogs,
&c., amounted in the 13 months to £156,617, and
£56,335 was derived from the conveyance of,mails,
making the total quick train receipts of the 13
months £1,799,462, against £1,677,945 in 1862,
The number of beasts conveyed over the system in
the 13 months was 166,190; sheep, 516,565; pigs
155,265. The quantity of coal and coke transported
was 3,009,223 tons; of minerals, 1,851,065 tons; and
of general merchandise, 2,360,374 tons. This very
considerable movement on the part of the slow train
service produced a receipt of £1,666,196 against
£1,419,296 in 1862. The goods traffic, as in the case
of the London and North-Western, thus appears to
have profited considerably last year from the revival
of trade. The ratio of the working charges to the
traffic receipts was, as we have before shown, about
48 per cent.; aril the total of £1,672,166 expended
under this heal in the 13 months may be dis-
tributed as foLows :-Maintenance and renewal
of way, £350,277 ; locomotive power, £421,067 ;
repairs and renewals of carriages and waggons,
£164,879; trafficcharges, coaching and merchandise,
£537,639; rates and taxes, 150,376; Government duty
£57,579; compensation for personal injury, £2,176;
compensation for damage end loss of goods,
£11,138; legal and Parliamentary expenses,
£16,904 ; and miscellaneous outgoings, £60,131.
It is creditable to the management of the Great
Western that in the 13 months ending January,
1864, the amount paid to passengers for injuries
sustained should have been only £2,176, while in
1862, with less mileage at work, the corresponding
outlay was £4,832. The amount set down for legal
and Parliamentary expenses is also extremely mo-
derate when compared with the corresponding
heavy items in the accounts of the London and
North-Western for 1863. The rolling stock upon
the system in January, 1864, comprised, we may
add, 650 locomotives, 1,249 carriages used for the
conveyance of passengers only, 719 other vehicles
attached to passenger trains, 12,873 waggons of all
kinds, used for the conveyance of live stock, mine.
rals, and general merchandise, and 1,164 other car-
riages or waggons, making an aggregate of 16,655.
The additions made to the rolling stock in 1863
comprised 31 locomotives, 67 carriages used for the
conveyance of passengers only, 33 other vehicles
attached to passenger trains, and 617 other trucks,
&c. The locomotive power of the Great Western
appears to be relatively smaller than that of the
London and Nora-Western. Thus the Great Wes.
tern, with 1,199 miles in operation, or under its
control, in January, 1864, had only 650 locomotives,
while the London and North Western, with 1,209
miles, had 1,095 locomotives. In each case each
locomotive wo'ilc seem to be earning for its owners
about £llO per seek in spring,summer,and autumn,
and from £9O toloo per week in the winter months.
A few words must be said as to the position of
the minor undertakings which have associ•
ated themselves with the Great Western either
through leases or working arrangements. The Ab.
ingdon had raised at the close of 1863 £19,500,
but after providing for fixed charges nothing ap-
pear:, to have been paid upon £14,500 of ordinary
stock ; the Berks and Hants Extension had raised
1269,308, and after providing for fixed charges
£158,168 of ordinary stock received 14 per cent. ;
the Birkenhead (vested jointly in the Great Western
and London and North-Western) had raised
£2,672,919, and atter providing for fixed charges
£2,075,821 of ordinary stock received 31 per cent.;
the Bourton-on-the- Water had raised £39,641, and
after providing for fixed charges £29,647 of ordi-
nary stock received 14 per cent. ; the Bridport had
raised £105,561, and after providing for fixed
charges nothing appears to have been paid on the
ordinary stock ; the Bristol and South Wales Union
had raised £289,339, but after providing for fixed
charges there was nothing for the ordinary stock ;
the Caine had raised £32,420, but after providing
for fixed charges there was nothing for the ordinary
shareholders; the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk, and
Pontypool had raised £192,479, and after providing
for fixed charges £192,479 of ordinary stock re-
ceived 24 per cent. ; the East Somerset had rased
£152,052, and after providing for fixed charges
£67,933 of ordinary stock received nothing ; the
Ely Valley had raised £108,790, and after providing
for fixed charges £82,996 of ordinary stock received
2',e- per cent.; toe Leominster and Kington had
raised £101,430, and after providing for fixed
charges £59,010 of ordinary stock received 4 per
cent ; no information can be afforded as to the Mil-
ford or the Much Wenlock and Severn Junction;
the isiantwich and Market Drayton had raised
£54,822, and after providing for fixed charges
£44,222 of ordinary stock received nil; the Severn
Valley had raised £607,053, and after providing for
fixed charges £360,373 received 3 per cent. ; the
Shrewsbury and Hereford, on lease to the Great
Western, 'West 'Midland, and London and North-
Western jointly, had raised £832,128, and after pro.
viding for fixed charges £533,195 of ordinary stock
received 6 per cent., and £6,753 41 per cent.; the
Tenbury had raised £38,570, and after providing
for fixed charges £24,370 of ordinary stock received
2 per cent. ; the Tewkesbury and Malvern had
raised £323,580, and after providing for fixed
charges there was nothing divisible on £235,580 of
ordinary stock; the Vale of Llangollen had raised
£60,000, and, after providing for fixed charges
£45,000 of ordinary stock received 3 per cent. ; the
Wellington and Severn Junction had raised £59,772
(far a wonder the whole of this amount was ordie
nary stock, and it received 41 per cent.) ; the Wes-
London Extension (in which the Great Western has
an interest to some extent) had raised £622,500---
1487,500 of ordinary stock appears to have received
had raised £66,000, and after
nothing; the Witney
providing for fixed charges £37,850 of ordinary
stoe 3
k received 21 per cant. ; and the Wycombe had
raised .1350,269, £60,875 of the ordinary stock re-
ceivingsp eorucre
recapitulationnt. , and 156,3902 f t receivinghe capital
apit a nil,
eln-
complete aby the Great Western's allies necessarily is, it
amounts to £4,937,310, and adding this amount to
the £40,666,111 of Great 'Western capital properly
so called we arrive at a total of £45,603,421 as the
virtual capital of the general undertaking in Jan-
uary, 1864. But our figures are, as we have said,
not quite complete, and we prefer to state the amount
in round figures, and place it between £46,000,000
and £47,000,003. If we continue our comparison
of the Great Western with the London and North
Western, it will be seen that the Great Western,
with a capital of £46,600,000, realised a profit of
11,659,673 last year; while the London sand North
Western, with £56,000,000 engaged, realised
£2,866,849. Tne London and North Western could
thus divide a clear 5 per cent. all round ; while the
Great Western would only be able to squeeze out
somewhere between 31 and 3 per cent. .We
have placed the two systems together, because in
times gone by they have been old rivals. Commit-
tee-rooms at Weetrninster have resounded with their
contentions, and Parliamentary agents and barris-
ters have fattened upon their quarrels, Isolated
and vanquished in the struggle of broad gauge
against narrow gauge, the Great "Western now must
code the pas to its more prosperous and fortunate
contemporary. But, for all that, it is a grind cons