The Sun.
London, England, 1852-11-20 00:00:00

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should')
sion to some before the legislature.
cwohimaphanihaeds, already obtained their bills, and had no meta.
retThicalle
yEaitrlmiofgDhtEbßeSthYatthtohuegreht,shhoouwidevetb•edesonirae betatitioe
of-
asbyt,apnrexeseponte,
regulations which should guide and govern all railway
for the guidance of a railway company, thus interfering
d
with its internal management, not only would it be im-
anndiayth4ownat Parlia-
mentruianfactod threcogulame;io
im-
possible for Government to carry any measure through
parliament, but if it were possible, it would be an ex-
traordinary interference with the internal regulation of
railway companies, which were most of them much bet-
ter judges of what was conducive to their own and the
public interest, than any government could be, and.
which were still more capable of attending to it. He
could not, therefore, hold out to the noble lord who had
just sat down that it was the intention of Government to
introduce any measures of railway regulations which
might tend, according to the sanguine views which the
noble lord took, to render impossible the occurrence of
incoveniences and accidents to the public, or which
would seriously interfere with the powers and privileges
conferred by Parliament on existing companies. He
would not, however, hesitate to say, that as experience
showed from day to day the necessity of regulations for
particular purposes, and as opportunities arose for deal-
ing.with particular questions, he thought it exceedingly
desirable, and indeed necessary, that they should avail
themselves of the fresh references to parliament that
would. become requisite on the part of the companies for
the purpose of introducing such modifications of the ex-
isting system as might be thought just and expedient.
The question raised by his noble friend near him of the
connection of trains on different lines of railway, was
one on which it would be exceedingly desirable that there
should be some power of revision and reference to a rail-
way board, with a view to prevent railway companies
from adopting plans or rules that might be most incon-
venient to the public, for the purpose of adding to the
traffic on their own lines. At the same time that was a
subject on which the interference of Government would
be matter of great delicacy, and the object was one in-
volving the necessity of very complicated management.
Their lordships must recollect that in every line where
Parliament insisted on a particular time being observed,
Parliament must become responsible also for the incon-
venience and danger which might be introduced by run-
ning corresponding trains on other lines, and which, if
great attention were not paid, might be of a very serious
description. There was another subject to which he
wished to call the attention of the house, and with re-
spect to which he considered that a great mistake had
been made by neglecting it at an early period of the ex-
istence of the railway system, he meant the provision,
for the conveyance both of mails and troops by the dif-
ferent companies. He believed that at present Govern-
ment was absolutely and entirely in the power of a
railway company as to the terms not on which the mails
would be conveyed indeed, but on which other conditions
most essential to the public service, in the conveyance of
troops and similar objects, would be performed. There-
fore, when railway companies came to Parliament for
new and amended bills to extend the powers they already
possessed, he thought the opportunity should be taken
of introducing such fresh regulations for the purpose of
facilitating the conveyance either of mails or troops, so-
might be found expedient. MS noble friend the Post-
master-General had very carefully considered this subject,
and prepared clauses which would be submitted to Par-
liament for its approval, and which, if adopted, would
provide greatly increased facilities for the transmission
of mails and troops by railway companies.
The Marquis of CLANRICARDE had heard with
great satisfaction the remarks of the noble earl. He was
aware of the great inconvenience to which the Post-office
and other departments were put by the present system.
The sum paid by the public for the conveyance of mails
was now of enormous amount, and exceeded when he left
office 400,000/. a year. He was sorry the noble earl had
not held out greater hopes that the subject would be
considered by Government. He did not approve of
ex post facto regulation. It would be very unfair to
resort to any measures of that kind, except when railway
companies came to ask for some boon. He thought,
however, there would be no hardship whatever in taking
measures by which redress would be afforded in case of
the breach of public engagements. It was very desir-
able that consideration should be given to the subject,
with the view of remedying the present imperfect state
of legislation.

The Earl of HARROWBY thought it was not correct
to say that the post-office was entirely at the mercy of
railway companies. It would be recollected that we re-
quired from these companies an amount of duty vastly
exceeding what had ever been performed by former car-
riers, as now an immense quantity of newspapers,
periodicals, and books was conveyed. He thought all
experience pointed out that the surest guarantee of
improvement was the amalgamation of railroads, but
what was most to be desired was that they should be
amalgamated under wise and proper regulations. They
could not compel parties with opposing interests to work
together, or bring them into harmonious action, but
every one must observe how often gas, water, or railroad
companies, after starting on the principle of competition
and testing it to the utmost, found means to reconcile
their differences, and ended by exclaiming, "Brother,
brother, we are both in the wrong." Amalgamation
and regulation he considered as offering the only just
clue to the settlement of the question. If they had
carried out the policy of Lord Dalhousie, when that
noble lord was at the head of the railway board, he
believed they would have had a much more efficient and
economical settlement,.—and thought that that policy
should be kept in view as much as possible by Parlia•
ment.

Earl GRANVILLE doubted whether the country
would have been better served if Government were
invested with greater powers and greater responsibility
in railway management. He would suggest that if a
committee were appointed, the government should select
and prepare the points to which the committee's atten-
tion should be directed.

The Duke of MONTROSE thought co-operation be•
tween railway companies hardly to be expected, unless
a controlling power were vested in Governments. To
show the necessity of an improved system, they had only
to look to the frequency of accidents at present. lie
remembered on one occasion travelling to Scotland by
express train. An accident occurred ; but as no lives
were lost he supposed for that reason the circumstance
was not noticed in the newspapers. The cause
.was that
trains of different railways passed along one line ; and
while such a state of things existed it was fraught with
the greatest danger. He understood that an inspector
from the Board of Trade went down to examine the line,
and that he recommended the erection of a bridge ; but
the recommendation was disregarded by the railway, and
the Board of Trade had no power to enforce it.
Lord COLCHESTER, alluding to the case referred to
by the noble lord who spoke last, said it was but just to
the engineer of the railway, Mr. Stephenson, to state
that when the matter was represented to that gentleman,
he undertook to make a bridge sufficiently wide to pre-
vent accidents.

The conversation then dropped.
The Marquis of LANSDOWNE presented a petitisa
from the parish (as we understood) of St. Stephen s
Exeter, praying that Convocation may not be allowed to
resume its active functions, the petitioners regarding the
measure as one that interfered with the prerogatives of
the Crown, and the rights of the laity. The noble mar-
quis explained that the petition was agreed upon at a
public meeting presided over by the churchwarden, by
whom alone the petition was signed, but signed by him
on behalf of the meeting.
THE FUNERAL OF THE
WELLINGTON. LATE DUKE OF

The Earl of DERBY rose and said—My lords, I rise
to move the adjournment of the house, to put myself
strictly in order in addressing a very few observations to
your lordships. My lords, lam anxious, before we
adjourn, to express before your lordships the deep satis-
faction and deep thankfulness which I experienced, and
which I am sure your lordships must also have ex-
perienced, at the more than satisfactory result that
attended the great solemnity of yesterday. (Hear.) My
lords, I think it is matter of public thankfulness to'
Almighty God, that an event which brought together such
masses of persons as never before congregated in this
metropolis under any circumstances whatever should
have passed over its final result not only without any
signal calamity, but without being attended by any casu-
alties, or rather by but very few of those casualties which
are attendant upon every great assemblage of persons
even upon a much smaller scale, and which were ran.
dered the more probable by the necessarily hasty and
hurried manner in which many of the preparations were
made for the accommodation of this great multitude.
My lords, I may say that, slight as the circumstance
may appear, the providential change of the weather in
the course of yesterday was no little advantage, not only
in adding to the comfort of the vast number assembled,
but also in diminishing to a great extent much of the
risk of confusion and danger which all ceremonies of this
kind must necessarily more or less involve. My lords,
most unjust would it be if I were to withhold—and if
were to do so, I am sure that your lordships would no
withhold—the tribute of your admiration
and
satisfac•
tion at the excellent organisation, the perfect arrange.
ments, and the entire discipline with which the whole of
that great ceremony was marshalled and conducted, and
at the discretion and judgment in carrying it out which
were manifested by all those civil or military authorities
who had to do duty or to take part in that great proces.
sion. My lords, nothing could have been more admire
able than the temper and patience with which both the
troops and the police conducted themselves--the troops
having
been under arms, and the police on duty, many
of them, for a period of eleven or twelve hours at least,
and engaged for the whole of that time in the most unre•
mating exertions in preserving the peace. But, my lords,
we must not be unjust to other classes, without whose
signal co-operation and admirable conduct I will not say
the efforts of the military and police would have been
unavailing, but they undoubtedly rendered their task,
arduous as it must have been under any circumstances,
a matter of comparative ease and safety. My lords,
when you consider how large a portion of the population
of the United Kingdom was for that single day crowded
in the streets of the metropolis—when you remember,
those at least to whose lot it fell to take a part in that
procession, and to see it throughout its whole length—ft
when you remember that throughout that long line,
intending to about three miles, from Grosvenor-place
to St, Fads Cathedral, there was not one single aloe