The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-07 00:00:00

Ea ilway and other Compazdes.

LONDON AND NORTH WESTERN.
A special general meeting of this company was
held yesterday at the Euston station—Mr R. Moor,
in the chair.
Mr C. Stewart, the secretary, ri,qd the notices
convening the meeting.
The CHAIRMAN said the object of the meeting wag
to authorise the raising of the necessary capital far
the new works mentioned in the last report, also to
pay oil the liabilities of the Bedford and Cambridge
Railway—£so,ooo, and to pay .E 50,000, called ep
on the West London Extension shares. They had
already paid the Bedford and Cambridge Railway
liabilities, and wished to replace the money. Be
then moved the following resolution; " That under
the powers granted to this company by the London
and North Western R tilway Additional Powers
Act, 1864, the West London Extension Railway
Act, 1863, and the Bedford and Cambridge Act,
1864, the additional capital of £365,000 be now
raised, to bo disposed of in such manner and at such
times as the directors deem most to the advantage
of the company." They intended to isms that
amount to the proprietors rateably as ordinary
stock of the company.
Mr BILOWN-WESTHEADs M.P., deputy chairman,
seconded the motion.
Mr WILLTAMS wished to know whether the sum
proposed to be raised was part of the new capital
authorised to be issued in June last.
The CHAIRMAN explained that £265,000 of the
proposed additional capital was for new works that
were now in progress, £50,000 for the calls on the
West London Extension shares, and the remain-
ing £50,000 for the liabilities of the Bedford
and Cambridge Railway. They had originally
agreed to pay the latter company 41 per cent on a
certain capitel,but as the specified amount had been
waft subsequently_arrazged that they
should pay interest aZ 4 per cent per annum in per-
petuity on the increased capital of the Bedford and
Cambridge Company, and take the line into their
own hands.
The motion was then unanimously adopted.
The CHAIRMAN said the second resolution he had
to submit was in respect to the purchase of the
Shrewsbury and Welshpool Railway. It had been
leased to them at 4i per cent on a share capital of
£192,000, there was interest on a further sum of
£54,000 in debentures, making together £246,000,
and also they were entitled to half the surplus pro.
fits. This agreement had been in operation for
some time, but as some disputes had arisen, and cer-
tain matters had to be completed, a new agreement
was suberritiently made by which they were to pun.
chase the line on giving the Shrewebury and Welsh.
pool Company 4 per cent in perpetuity on a capital
of £300,000, without any right to share in surplus
profits.

The Solicitor then read the agreement entered
into bat wen the two ecinpanies.

Mr WILLIAMS remarked that they wou:d pay
under the new agreement a larg(;.r sum than under
the old agreGmcnt.

The CHAIRMAN said under the old agreement they
paid about £11,340 a year, and under the new agree-
ment they would pay £12,000 a year, 0r£650 more,
for which they would get rid of the claim for half
surplus profits, and be able to work the line to greater
advantage. Ho concluded by moving a formal re-
solutio❑ approving the agreement for the purchase
of the Shrewsbury and Welshpool undertaking, and
authorising the directors to raise £OO,OOO of addie
tional capital, to be entitled to a perpetual prefer-
ence dividend of 4 per cent. per annum, and to be
issued in exchange for, and in substitution of, tho
existing capital of the Shrewsbury and Welabpool
Railway Company.

Mr BROWN WESTIIEAD seconded the motion,
which was agreed to unanimously, and the proceed..
inga terminated. --
CRYSTAL PALACE.
The report of the directors of this company states
that the result of the year's working ending the
31st of Oztuber last showed a balance in favour of
revenue of £52,550. After payment of all prefers
once charges and interest, there remained a sum of
£20,812 available for dividend, out of which the
directors recommended the payment of a dividend
of 2 per cent. (2s. per share), leaving a balance of
£759 to: be carried forward. The increase in the
number of visitors during the year over those of
last year was 173,972, making the whole number
1,661,083, as against 1,487,111. That was the
laciest number attained in any year since the
opening of the Palace, except that of the recent
International Exhibition. A corresponding iccreaae
had taken place in the receipts of the refreshment
department, which was also in other respects in a
highly satisfactory condition. The exhibitors' deg•
partment was in a sound and healthy condition.
Material benefit could not fail to accrue to all the
branches of the company's income when the South
London line of the Chatham and Dover Railway
Company was completed and the high level station
opened for traffic, NN hich would give the public two
new termini in the heart of London, viz., at Ludgate-
hill and Charing-cross. There was good prospect of
the railway being opened early in the summer of
1865. The Triennial Handel Festival would be held in
June next, and an agreement had been entered
into with the Saored Harmonic Society on terms
very beneficial to the company. Considerable pro-
gress had been made in the formation of a new
road through the Dulwich.wood property, crossing
the new high-level station, and leading to the south
entrance of the Palace. This bad opened up a
large number of eligible plots for building, several
of which had boen already let. The gardens were
never more strikingly beautiful than during the
past autumn, and a material saving had been
effected in the cost of their maintenance, The re-
venue account for the year ending the 31st of
October showed that £121,360 had been received,
and £68,810 expended,leaving a balance of £52,550
The capital account showed that £1,446,262 had
been exp3nded, leaving a balance of £44,308.

GRAND JUNCTION CANAL.

The half-yearly general meeting of this company
was held at the offices, Surrey-street, Strand; Mr.
G. Anderson in the chair. _ _ _

Mr. Rogers, the clerk, read the report, which
stated that the receipts for the half-year ending
June, 1863, had been £33,860, and for the past half-
year £30,467. The decrease was mainly attributable
to a frost at the commencement of the year. The
expenses for the past half-year had exceeded those
of the corresponding period in 1863 by £4,379,
arising from the execution of several repairs and
extra works for economising 'tater, and the conti.
nuous working of the 13 steam-engines, owing to
the great drought. The profits on the half-year,
after payment of all expenses and the interest on
the preference stock, amounted, with the balance
from last account, to £23,993, out of which the
committee recommended a dividend of £1 153. per
share, freo of Income tax, on the original stock,
leaving a balance of £4,150,
The report was adopteJ, the dividend was declared,
payable on the 15th inst., and a vote of thanks to
the chairman concluded the proceedings.

Foreign Mail Packet List.

IgAILS.;DUE.

Wstralia and Mauritius, via Seutliatoplon.......Dec. 19.
Dec. 13.
Brazil and Cape Verde, by British pe.Oket. Jan. 5.
Cape of Good hope, Ascension, and St. lielena Dee• 29.
(Inina, Penang, and Singapore, via Suuthanipton.Dec. 19.
via Marseilles Dee. 13.

lit:S;totuulthdatuit,)u .
Ceylon,
Gibraltar,lFna ai
l kttla(ncdalletv:uliaat
India (Bombay),
Dec. 12.
via Marseilles
via7t joanSi‘o.ia.arthsactilliipotsa.n.,.. ..
1.))e Dec.c. 1111 s.
Dec. 6
Portuga 1....
via Soul ham
Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton
._via Marseilles Dec, 6

Newfoundland
Oporto and Vigo .......... ..
N
U. S. and British N. America, by Brit. packet Dec 7,
by U.S. 1 a2ket
by Canadian packet Dec, 9
W.C. of Africa, Madeira, and Teneriffo Dec. 11.
West Indies and Pacific
Ifuhanias (via New York)
Bermuda (ditto)
Cuba and Mexico ..Dec. 29.

BOROUGH OF LAMBETII.—It is said that in the
event of Mr Williams' retirement Mr 11. Palmer, Q.C., is
to be invited to become a candidate. his father-in-law, the
late Mr I', D'Eyncourt, represented that borough for many
years from the time of its first enfranchisement.

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, DEC. 7, 1864.

The year 1864, which has already robbed the
parliamentary and political world of many of its
ornaments, has added another distinguished name
to the long list of those it has taken from us. The
death of the Earl of CARLISLE, although scarcely
unexpected, will not be the less deplored, and the
many who mourn him as a dear and honoured
friend will be sympathised with in their sorrow by
the wide circle who respected his personal character
even more than they admired his talents. It is
always an ominous sign when an English statesman
retires from work. Oar patricians, when once they
have entered the arena, are as loth to leave it as
men whose means make them less independent of
its possible emolumehts. There is a fascination in
the life of active politics which few who have once
shared are willing to exchange for the atium cunt
chgnitate which may be within their grasp, and the
man who has. spent the greater part of his life in
the busy world would find it as difficult to distract
his interest from its scenes as to provide his eller%
glee with other occupation. Tho part of CINCIN-
NATUS is as rare from its versatility as from its
disinterestedness, and few of our politicans are in-
clined to play it. oit Premier himself has long
since passed an aze at which he might honourably
have laid aside those cares of state in which the
best years of his life have been passed. But when
the burden has been borne so long its weight
is missed instead of its absence being felt as
a relief, and, accordingly, when we hear of
men still in the full vigour of their
years voluntarily laying down their public
responsibilities, we have good reason to fear that
their term of life itself will be but brief. It was
ao with Lord HERBERT, it was so with the late
Duke of NEWCASTLE, it has been so with the Earl
of CARLISLE. Connected by birth with most of the
leading families of the Whig aristocracy, it was
only natural that Lord CARLISLE should have fre.