The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-20 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE,

LONDON AND NORTH WESTERN.
The half-yearly meeting of this company was held yester-
day at the Easton Station ; Mr R. Moon, the chairman,
presided.

Mr C. E. Stewart, the secretary, having read the notice
convening the meeting, the directors' report, which appeared
in The Sun, was taken as read.

The capital account showed that £38,700,420 had been
received, and £38,311,853 expended, leaving a balance of
£388,567. The revenue account for the half year ending
June 30 showed that £2,690,652 had been received, and
£1,069,161 expended for working charges, and £42,492 for
rates and taxes, £31,423 for passenger duty, £lB,OOO for
Parliamentary and legal expenses, £368 for schools, £7,338
insurance, &.;., of steamboat, and £53,333 for renewal of
road, leaving a balance of £1,365,338.

The CHAIRMAN said as the comparison of the accounts
had been made in the financial statement the proprietors
could judge for themselves as to the various items; and as
the directors were enabled to propose a dividend at the rate
of 5:1 per cent, per annum, with a larger reserve than they
commenced with a year ago, he proposed on that occasion
to answer any questions, and merely to move that the re-
port, together with the half-yearly statement of accounts,
be received and adopted.
Mr BR° wN-WEsTnEAD, M.P., seconded the motion.
Mr PALMER wished to know whether any arrangement
had been made with the Midland Company for the inter-
change of traffic at Rugby in return for the access which
the North-Western Company were about to give, the Mid-
land over the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway. Before the
end of another year or two the Midland would come into
London over their new line, thus competing with them for
50 miles out of London ; and as the Midland were to have
facilities over the Lancaster and Carlisle, it was possible
that a serious competi ion might arise. The policy of the
North-Western Board had always been what he considered
very proper towards other companies.
Mr MORGAN considered it a subject of much congratula-
tion to the proprietors to receive so satisfactory a report. If
shareholders had any weakness, it was for dividends. (A
laugh.) He had been much pleased with the conduct of
the board in Parliament during the last session. They had
endeavoured to prevent many schemes being carried out,
which would have tended to increase its prosperity. The
board had met with considerable success, and he thought it
a great thing to have achieved an extension of the London
and North-Western in connexion with the South-Eastern
at Charing-cross. He was sorry to see in the report' so
large a sum of money wanted as £380,000 for various works
on the railway. He was happy to see that during the last
two or three years a diftesent policy had been adopted by
the board, and that they had laboured hard to work in uni-
son with their neighbours, the Great Western, the Midland,
and the Great Northern. No doubt, when they were all
working in opposition, they were carrying a vast deal of
unprofitable traffic. There was plenty of traffic for all.
They knew very well that increased population, which they
could not stop, increased material, and increased love of
travelling, must necessarily increase traffic, and he had no
doubt that the London and North-Western would get its
fair proportion. He was sorry to have heard it stated that
the increased receipts on the London and North-Western
were mainly due to the agreement which had been come to
with the Great Western Company. Whether there was
any truth in that statement he knew not, but he hoped the
chairman would give some explanation of it. They had a
great interest in working fairly with the Great Western and
the Midland, and he did not regret that the Midland had
power to run over the Lancaster and Carlisle, because he
supposed they would give a quid pro quo. (Hear, hear.)
He did not like to see they were about to guarantee a per-

petual 4 per cent on the Bedford and Cambridge line, and
he should I.ke to know what amount of dividend the Bed-
ford and Cambridge Company had been receiving on their
line.

Mr ROBINSON, in reference to the paragraph in the re •
port relating to the Lime-street Station and Hotel, wished
to know whether the £50,000 for the hotel was an estimate,
and intended to cover the whole of the expense, and whether
an estimate was made as to the full cost of the laad that the
hotel would cover.

Mr JAMES wished to know whether the property required
for the enlargement of the hotel in Lime-street had been
valued. They were going to add this half year £350,000
more to the capital already expended, and if they were
to go on adding in that way, they would eventually double
the present total amount,

Mr TAYLOR called attention to the position of the Mid•
land Company and their aggressive policy. Ho did not
know whether any agreement had been come, to with them
respecting the traffic, and he hoped the directors would not
be forced into a competition with that company for traffic
to and from the metropolis.

The CHAIRMAN, in reply, stated that with regard to the
Midland, they were in friendly relations with that company
and negotiations were in progress with a view to a settle.
ment of all those questions which had been mooted respect-
ing the Lancaster and Carlisle and other matters. They had
obtained from Parliament this year power to make au
agreement to admit the Midland to the Lancaster and Car-
lisle lease, uotwithstanding the opposition of a certain por-
tion of the Lancaster and Carlisle shareholders. The en-
largement at Rugby was for the accommodation of the coal
traffic, and also a new waiting-room, which was absolutely
necessary there. Something had been said about spending
no more money. Ha had told them when he had the honour
to take the chair of that company that they had got a house
ill-furnished, and they must furnish it; and if they were
to have the dividends improve they must spend the neces-
sary capital to earn larger receipts. Therefore he could not
hold out any hope that there would be an absolute limit to
necessary expenditure to bring additional profit. So long
as the Government of the country acted upon the present
system of allowing other parties to rob the company of its
traffic at all points, they must endeavour to replace that
with increased traffic, and to secure their position they must
have increased accommodation. As to the Lime-street Sta-
tion Hotel, they had had a very rough estimate made in order
to bring the subject before the proprietors as to the cost of
the hotel, and they assumed it to be £50,000. The plans
were not prepared, but it was to stand on their own land
fronting Lime-street. The station itself was at the mouth
of a tunnel—it was very difficult to work, and their in-
creasing traffic required that they should enlarge it. It had
been found advisable that the hotels at the termini should
be generally in the hands of the company, because they
worked them not for the profit of the hotel, but for the
general convenience of the public; and it practically was
a reduction of the fares, because the passengers got into
the hotel upon their landing, and were charged at a mos
derate rate. With regard to the Bedford and Cambridge
agreement, it was made several years ago, and in which
there was a joint interest. They found great difficulty in
working that joint interest. The expenditure had greatly
exceeded the original estimate, but, as the parties were dis-
satisfied, the directors thought, as there was little or no
no risk, to compromise the matter. The Bedford Company
were entitled to 41, and they agreed to convert it into a
perpetual 4 per cent. The capital invested was about
£250,000, of which the company already had £70.000, so
that it was a trifling matter. They had, no doubt, like all
other companies, derived some advantage from the present
quiescent state of matters among the leading companies.
They had been all working more friendly together. As to
the Great Western agreement, he believed they had not
derived any advantage whatever directly from it to the pre-
sent time. They lied, nevertheless, accorded to the Great
Western Company all the advantages to which they were
entitled under the agreement, and they could fearlessly
refer to their conduct in Parliament during the late session
with a view to show how anxious thy hat bean to act not
only up to the letter but to the spirit of the agreement.
They hoped that as the Great Western found it advantage-
ous to be on amicable terms with them they would also see
that it was well to act liberally and cordially towards them.
The report of the directors and statement of accounts
were unanimously received and adopted.
The CHAIRMAN then moved that a dividend of £2 17s 6,1
per £lOO stock, and so in proportion on shares of a lower
nominal amount, be declared out of the net profit of the
company for the half year ending the 30th June,

•
Mr B. WESTHEAD seconded the motion, and it was car-
ried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN next proposed tho sanction of the meet-
ing to the addition to the capital of the company of the sum
of £381,406, for the new works referred to in the report, and
that the 811111 of £6,239, expended in the improvement of the
permanent way, be transferred is the capital account, under
a separate and distinct head.

➢ir B. WESTHEAD seconded the motion, and it was agreed
to.

The audit committee was then appointed for the ensuing
year, and it was stated that Mr Tyrer, one of the com-
mittee, was about to build a church at Stafford for the acco-
uoodation of persona employed by the company.
The meeting was then made special, and resolutions ware
passed authorising the conversion of the St. Helen's shares
and stock, under the powers of the Transfer Act, 1861, into
London and North Western (St. Helen's stock) and also the
creation of new capital to redeem the redecrnab:e preference
shares of the St. Helen's Railway Company.
It was explained that the arrangements would make the
St. Helen's shares more marketable, and reduce the interest
now payable on the redeemable stuck.

There was another resolution for sanctioning a subscrip-
tion of XlOO,OOO to Lancashire Union Railway, but the
further consideration of it was adjourned to Oct. 22 at noon.
On the motion of Mr MORGAN a vote of thanks to the
chairman and directors was passed unanimously.

The CHAILtMAN said they felt much indebted to the
shareholders for the support they had given the Board on
several occasions. In the last half year the increased receipts
were nearly all available as profit to pay for dividend, Their
dividend that day was larger than for the corresponding
period. Three years ago some of their shareholders com-
plained of the smallness of the dividend. Far the half year
ending June 30, ISGI, the dividend was at the rate of 3,1
the Irlirruman t of.w.hien
51 per cent. that day, instead of taking anything our of the
reserve fund, they had carried over a balance of £17,000.
The gross receipts for the half year ending June 30, 1861,
showed an increase of £.17,000 as compared with the gross
receipts for the half year ending June, 1861, and this in-
creaae had been earned at en increased expense of £35,000;
therefore they had received £150,000 of additional profits,
which had been distributed among the proprietors of the
company. The advantage in the price of materials and the
prosperity of the country had contributed something to that
result, but most of all by tke energetic exertions of the offi-
cers of the company. Tne locomotive expenses in 1861
amounted to £337,000, and in the past half-year to £333,000.
The item for maintenance cf way was £ll,OOO less. In the
item for carriage stock £l,lOO less, in the waggon stock
£606 more. The coaching expenses over 218 additional
miles were only £9,000 more than in the corresponding half
of 1861. The increase in the expenses for goods traffic,
which involved additional lalour, was £23,000. lie thought
they ought to be well satisfied with the exertions of their
officers, Ile might mention that the receipts per train per
mile amounted in the past htlf-year to 5s 26 for passengers,
to Gs 21d for goods, the average being 5s 81d. The ex-
penses were 2s Bid per train mile, and the profit 3s id per
train mile, against 5s per triin tulle for passengers in the
corresponding half of 1863; is Id for goods, the average
being Os Gid per train mile. The expenses were 2s 911,
and the profit 2s B.icl per tray mile in the same half of
1863 They might say, as a writer in the Tones had re-
cently expressed it, that the London and North-Western
was a noble undertaking. Tiere was no difficulty in the
future that they did not knov of, provided they had the
confidence of the shareholders, which had hitherto been ac-
corted to them.
The meeting then separatec.