The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-16 00:00:00

way loans. It should be remarked that the direc-
tors have had no ordinary difficulties to contend
with during the last year or two. The long-pend-
ing process of amalgamation has even now been
scarcely adjusted, and the task of reconciling the
various interests involved has been an extremely
trying one. Further, the company has had to
assume no inconsiderable amount of debenture
debts contracted by other companies which it has
absorbed. The feeble dredit of these minor under•
takings is, of course, reflected in comparatively
high rates of interest ; and it is only as debentures
run out that they can either be paid off or renewed
on more moderate terms. By 1867 or 1868, how*
ever, the bulk of the debenture debt of, the Great
Eastern ought to be floating at 4 per cent, as the
debentures and debenture stock combined only
amount to 23.81 percent. of the whole capital raised
or created. It may be added that the amount of
capital which the company was authorised at the
close of 1863 to raise was £18,481,577 by shares,
and £5,677,481 by loans. The amount which the
company was authorised to subscribe to other under-
takings was £220,000, and of this amount £89,600
had been actually paid up. It may also be observed
that during the last session of Parliament very con-
siderable additional capital powers were obtained.
The directors are making great exertions to de-
velope additional traffic, and from the short state-
ment given above it will be seen that their efforts
have not been unattended with success, although the
working expenses have also considerably increased.
In 1863, the:total number of trains run upon the
system and the affiliated lines was 201,270 (141,260
passengers and 60,010 goods) ; and the aggregate
number of miles traversed was 5,652,733 (3,269,135
by passenger trains, and 2,383,598 by goods trains).
This very considerable train circulation resulted in
the conveyance of 11,011,661 passengers—viz.,
1,288,677 first-class, 2,203,816 second-class, and
7,519,168 third-class and Parliamentary. There
were besides 2,432 holders of season or periodical
tickets. In 1862, the total number of passengers
conveyed was 10,171,605, so that the passenger traffic
seems to have made considerable progress in 1863.
The accessory business of the quick trains comprised
last year the conveyance of 2,840 carriages, 16,856
horses, and 21,349 dogs. The live stock conveyed
by the slow or goods trains amounted to 267,361
head of cattle, 742,405 sheep, and 160,840 pigs.
Coal was carried to the extent of 684,583 tons, and
other minerals and general merchandise to the ex-
tent of 1,438,062 tons (against 1,237,369 tons in
1662). The average fares charged upon the main
line were 2.40 d. per mile first. class, 1.90 per
mile second-class, and I.ood. per mile third-class;
while the express fares were 2.87 d. per mile first
class, and 2.00 d per mile second-class. These rela.
tively high rates, which were even slightly exceeded
upon the affiliated lines, produced £169,640 from
first class passengers, £214,377 from second class,
and £301,862 from third class, while £23,293 was
also derived from season or periodical tickets, mak-
ing a total of £709,172. The accessory receipts of
the quick trains were £47,348, and £21,400 was also
derived from the conveyance of mails, making the
aggregate earnings of the coaching department
£777,920. The receipts from live stock were
£76,303; from coal and coke, £113,461 ; and from
other minerals and general merchandise £529,721;
making the total earnings of the slow train service
for the year £719,485. This total, added to the
£777,920 acquired under the head of coaching,
places the general result at £1,497,405, as previ-
ouely indicated. To this amount the Great Eastern
proper contributed £1,487,207 ; the Lynn and Hun-
stanton, £7,200 ; the Tendring Hundred, £665 ' .
and the Ware, Hadham, and Buntingford, £2,333.
The working expanses cf last year may be subdi-
vided as follows :—Maintenance and renewal of
way, £148,316; locomotive power (including cost
of working the London, Tilbury, and Southend),
£220,608; repairs and renewals of carriages and
waggons, £50,728; traffic charges (coaching and
merchandise), £249,193; rates and taxes, £34,660;
Government duty, £23,763 ; compensation for per-
sonal injury, &c., £8,824; compensation for damage
and loss of goods, £4,251 ; legal and Parliamentary
expenses, £'2,883; and miscellaneous outgoings,
£34,276. The chief feature in these figures is the
, comparatively sma'l amount expended upon
the way—little more than £2OO per mile ; but
the meagreness of the traffic acccunts to a
very great extent for this, the amount earned
upon the system last year having been only £2,157
per mile, while upon the Great Western it was
£2,881 per mile. The rolling stock possessed by the
Great Eastern at the close of last year comprised
330 locomotives, 986 carriages used for the convey-
ance of passengers only, 407 other vehicles attached
to passenger trains, 7,680 waggons of all kinds used
for the conveyance of live stock, minerals, or gene..
ral merchandise, and 150 other carriages or waggons,
making an aggregate of 9,553. Thus, with seven-
twelfths of the mileage worked by the London and
North Western, the Great Eastern did not possess
half as much rolling stock, while in the matter of
locomotives the proportion was reduced to conside-
rably less than one-third. It is evident, then, that
if ever the Great Eastern should succeed in develop-
ing a traffic enabling a fair remuneration to be ac-
corded to every department of the large capital em-
barked in it, the rolling stock—and more especially
the number of locomotives—must be considerably
extended.

Such is a general summary of the position of the
Great Eastern at the close of 1863. In dealing with
the capital account, mention should also be made of
the Colchester, Stour Valley, Sudbury, and Halstead,
which has raised and expended about £300,000, this
concern is leased to the Great Eastern, and a fair
amount of ordinary capital receives about 31 per
cent. Mention should also be made of £240,000 of
preference capital, raised fur the execution of a line
to Lowestoft and the improvement of the harbour
at that port (of this £240,000, half receives 4 per
cent. and halt 6 per cent.). IVe must also note that
at the close of 1863 the Lynn and Hunstanton had
raised £BO,OOO (£60,000 being ordinary capital
which received 4 per cent. for 1863) : that the Ttn-
dring Hundred bad raised £26,309 (of this amount
£21,309 was ordinary stock which received nil); and
the Ware, Hadham, and Buntingford had raised
198,660 (of this amount £49,281 was ordinary stock
which received nil). These sums, taken together,
amount in the aggregate to nearly £750,000, and
adding this amount to the £23,220,828 raised by
the Great Eastern proper, we may state the capital
represented by the Great Eastern Railway and its
allies at about £24,000,000. Perhaps this amount
is rather below the mark, as at the close of 1863
the company was, and still is " patronising " the
Bishop's Stratford, Dunmow, and Braintree, the
Mistley, Thorpe, and Walton, the Saffron Walden,
&c. For the purposes of this article we may sum
up the position of the concern by stating its capital
at the close of 1863 at about £24,000,000, for which
nearly 710 miles were in working order, the
rough receipts were about £1,500,000, end the net
profits £720,000 for the year. It is evident, then,
that the Great Eastern is,with all its shortcomings,
an enterprise of very respectable importance. That
the traffic and profits are gradually e .tending is,
no doubt, a scurce of legitimate satisfaction, but the
growth of a capital was still more rapid in 1862
and 1863, and the dividend paid upon the ordinary
stock for 1863 exhibited no improvement, but
rather the reverse. This year the traffic has
experi-
enced a very respectable expansion, but the holders
of ordinary stock still fiad their position un-
improved, and the dividend doled out to them for
the first six months of 1864 was only at the rate of
about 1k per cent. The current half of the year is
no doubt the most remunerative, but the ordinary
shareholders can scarcely expect more than 2 per
cent. for 1864. In this state of affairs the directors
are about to embark in metropolitan extensions,
which will probably saddle the concern with addis
tional fixed charges to the amount of 1:60,0C1 or

£70,000 per annum. The suburban traffic as hich
may be cultivated is no doubt very great, and the
existing eccommodalion is doubtless in&dtquatc ;
❑evertheless, it cppears problematical whether, at
any rate for sense years to come, the additional
traffic secured will provide for the extra fixed
charges which will have to be met. One thing is
quite clear. The district &ccomtrodated by this
company is unprogressive per se ; and it is only by
improved communication with the manufacturing
districts, the devc!optuent of a sea side traffic--i❑