The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-03 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVEPONG. SEPTEMBER 3, 1864.

considerable it,crease is the numiKr of smiths,
joiners, painters, and apprentices. Oa the other
hand, 8 great number cf the ropemakers will be (lib-
charged, the new spinning and other machinery re.
cently introduced into the dockyard, dispensing to
a great extent with this kind of manual labour. A
number of the workmen now employed as sawyers
will fall back as labou rers, and some of the additional
hands taken on as coppersmiths will be established.
The order also directs a new appointment to he
made at Chatham Dockyard—that of " assayer of
metals, paints, oils, lead," &c.
The Prince Albert cutter, Master Commanding
Bones, which has been for some time engaged in
surveying service on the north west coast of Scot.
land, under Capt. Otter, late of her Majesty's ship
Porcupine, has returned to the Clyde. A D luish
ironclad frigate, built by Messrs Thomson, Govan,
wid shortly leave the Clyde for Denmark,
Yesterday a detachment of noncommissioned
officers and men of the Royal Engineers, selected
from the companies at headquarters, Chatham, left
the garrison and proceeded to Gravesend, fur the
purpose of undergoing a course of ball practice
under the direction of Capt. Drake, the newly ap-
pointed rifle instructor to the Royal Engineers.

The following appintment has been made in the
Royal Naval Reserve :—William Henry Ellis, to
be Honorary Lieutenant.
Barry F. Domoile, and not B. T. Doraville, was
appointed to the Artillery, as notified in the last
Gazette bat one.

The following appointments were made yesterday
at the Admiralty :—Commander G. A. W.-Welch,
to be an inspecting Commander of the Coastguard,
vice Commander Maunsell, whose period of service
has expired ; -W. J. Lewis, surgeon, additional, to
the Duncan ; Harry T. Nettleton, paymaster, to the
Brilliant; A. C. Archdeacon, assist.-paymaster, to
Irresistible ; and F. Hyndman, assist.-paymaster,
to the Duncan.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE,

GREAT WESTERN.

The following is the report of the directors of this com-
pany to be submitted at the general meeting on Wednesday
next :

" The accounts presented to the shareholders with this
report embrace a period of six months, terminating on the
31st of July last, whereas those submitted to the proprie-
tors in September, 1563, included a period of seven months
commencing on the Ist of January, and terminating on the
31st of July in that year. The usual comparison between
the two half years cannot, therefore, be deduced from the
printed accounts, but the following analysis may be taken
as exhibiting a fair comparative statement of the receipts
and expenses during the six months ending the 31st of
July, 1863, and the aix months ending the 31st of July,
1864:

REVENUE.
1863. 180. Increase.
From passengers, mails, £765,460 1.803;291 £43,814
From merchandise, coal, 705,525 78'1,521 74,9.5
From parcels, warehouse rent,
51,945 E 4,641 2,896

£!,`,2 ',021 £1,643,656 £121,7;15
EXPENDITURE.

Maintenance of way £152,192 £153,172 £9BO
Locomotive expenditure • 186,435 195,753 9,318
Traffic expenditure
All other expenses

£731,326 £763,742 £20,416
After providing for all and fixed preference charges the
lance of revenue will admit of the payment of the follow-
ing dividends :—At the rate of 3 per cent. per annum on
Great Western Consolidated Stock; 21 per cent, on West
Midland (Oxford) Consolidated Stock ; per cent on West
Midland (Newport) Consolidated Stock; 5 per cent, on
West Midland (Hereford) Stock ; and 31 per cent, on South
Wales Consolidir ed Stock—leaving a balance of £3,904 Os 5d
to be carried forward to the credit of the current half-year,
It will be observed that a sum of ;£2,590 has been charged
to revenue in respect of ' accidents.' The directors propcse
to continue to charge a similar sum half yearly until
a fund not exceeding £20,000 has been created. Mr.
Gooch has resigned his office of locomotive engineer
to the company, after a service extending over a period of
28 years; and Mr Gibson, who for a period of 18 years held
the appointment of head of the carriage and waggon depart-
ment, has also retired during the past half-year, Mr 'Wilson
has relinquished the superintendence of the locomotive and
carriage establishments and of the permanent way on the
West Midland section of the line, but he continues in the
service of the company as constructing engineer for works
in that district. Mr J. Armstrong, the chief of the com-
pany's locomotive works at Wolverhampton, has been. ap-
pointed by the Board as superintendent of the locomotive
establishments of the whole line, and the carriage and
waggon stock has also been placed under his Oharge. The
permanent way of the West Midland district has been
apportioned between Mr Lane and Mr Owen. The atten-
tion of the Board has been occupied during the past session
in the consideration of the numerous bills before Parlia-
ment promoted by other parties, but affecting this com-
pany's interests. Several of these bills have been thrown
out or withdrawn ; and of those that have received the sanc-
tion of the Legislature many have been so recently sub-
mitted to the proprietors that it is unnecessary to refer to
them again in this report. Among the measures which
have passed through Parliament may be mentioned the
act obtained by the East Glocestershire Company for the
construction of a line from Cheltenham to Faringdon, with
a branch to Witney. The Board, believing that the line
was badly and expensively laid out, especially at the Chel-
tenham end, unnecessarily duplicating station accommo-
dation there, and suljecting the traffic to the inconveni-
ences and delays of a branch service, took such measures
as were within their power to defeat the bill. Notwith-
standing, however, the opposition of this company and of
other parties, the act for the construction of the line
has been obtained ; but provisions have been inserted in it
as to the construction of the works and the laying down of
the broad gauge, and for the user by this company of the
main portion of the line between Cheltenham and Faring-
don. The Bourton- on-the-Water Railway Company pro-
moted an extension of their railway into Cheltenham, and
the bill for this object was referred to the same committees
in Parliament as the East Gloucestershire scheme. This
bill received the support of the Great Western Railway
Company, and wad sanctioned by Parliament for a line be-
tween Bourton and Andover sford, with running powers over
the East Glocestershire Railway into Cheltenham. It will
provide, when constructed, in connection with the Great
Western system, the shortest narrow gauge communication
between Cheltenham, Oxford, and London. The bill pro-
moted by this company has received the sanction of Parlia-
ment. The directors propose at once to put in force the
powers contained in it, by which they will be enabled to
widen the line between the Hammersmith Junction and
Paddington—and they will submit to the proprietors a re-
solution authorizing them to take such measures as may be
necessary to give effect to the provisions in reference to the
establishment of a superannuation fund contained in the
same act. During the half year the Hammersmith and
City Junction Railway has been opened for
passenger traffic,
and it is now worked by this company with a thorough ser-
vice of trains direct from Hammersmith and Kensington to
the Parringdou-street Terminus of the Metropolitan Rail-
way, under arrangements with the Metropolitan Company.
Contemporaneously with the opening of this line, a service
of trains has been established for the accommodation of the
Great Western district from Windsor eastwards to all the
stations en the Metropolitan RailwaY. The Faringdon and
Marlborough Branch Railways have also been opened
during the last half year, and are worked by this company
under traffic arrangements which have been approved by
the shareholders. The revenue of the Cornwall Railway
having hitherto been insufficient to meet the whole of the
interest upon debentures and
lion of which'ttais company', preface cc shares (for a por-
in conjunction with the Bris-
tol and Eieter and South Devon Companies, is liable),
of that company have made a
and it being now necessary that the amount of
capital of the Cornwall Railway, which has hitherto been
appropriated to meet the deficiency in the revenue should
be replaced, the directors
proposal to the three associated companies with ,the view
to
of erenpaabylinaglothauemoftose,ffoe,ocotothbiys
theob associated companies (ofject, and at the same time
which £20,000 was advanced by the Great
have power, under the Act of
'Western) on the
security of Cornwall 6 per cent. preference shares. The
stock to the extent of £149,600
ClBoGr
for the redemption of the above 6 per cent, stock, and also
taolilsßsuaeilnweawy
sChoamrepsaonry
to issue debentures to the extent of £82,980, on both of
which sums,,the associated companies are empowered to gua-
rantee the the interest or dividend. To enable the faeces
sary arrangements to be carried out, it is proposed that the
associated companies should guarantee interest on the
£149,600 redemption shares, at a rate not exceeding 41 per
cent, per annum, and on the debenture capital of £82,980.
The directors of the Cornwall Company also believe that
they may be able to effect a saving of interest on £lOO,OOO
5 per cent. preference shares, already guaranteed by the
associated companies, by issuing in lie-a of them, redemp-
tion shares, similarly guaranteed, at a lower rate cf inte-
rest. These questions have received the careful conside-
ration of the directors of the associated companies. The
course recommended has been adopted by the Bristol and
Exeter and South Devon companies • and , in the belief that,
under all the circumstances, the arrangement suggested is
the most beneficial that can be made, the directors recom-
mend the proprietors to agree to its adoption, and with that
object a resolution will be submitted to the meeting. The
usual reports from the officers of the company in charge of
the locomotive, carriage, and permanent way departments,
are annexed,"