The Sun.
London, England, 1863-02-20 00:00:00

BRISTOL AND EXETER.

The report of the directors states that the increase
in the capital account during the half-year amounted
to £28,960. The expenditure on capital account
during the same period amounted to £30,689. The
total revenue during the half-year ending Dec. 31
from all sources amounted to £183,611, and the
total expenditure to £91,094, leaving a balance of
£92,517, out of which had been paid £39,676 for
interest on debentures and preference shares, leav-
ing a disposable sum of £52,841, out of which the
directors recommended a dividend on the consoli-
dated stock at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum,
leaving a balance of £2,280. The capital acount
showed that £3,883,954 had been expended.

WEST MIDLAND.
company was
r
The half-yearly meeting of this
hold yesterday at Worcester, Mr. 11 Fenton in
the chair.
The report, an abstract of which appeared in
The Sun, was taken as read.
'rho CHAIRMAN said that since their last meeting
a considerable change had taken place in the policy
of railway directors and managers, and the system
of antagonising aggression and unprofitable com-
petition had given way to a better state of
things. He trusted that this new policy
and the completion of the amalgamation be-
tween the Great Western and the West Midland
Companies, would lead to a state of permanent peace,
under which they might cultivate the large traffic
already existing without impeding the traffic of their
neighbour or incurring depreciation of their own.
The arrangements that had been entered into with
the London and North-Western and London and
South-Western Companies would be, he anticipated,
most important in their results. They were so in-
timately mixed up with the London and North-
Western district that the agreement with that com-
pany would be especially important. The arrange-
ment contemplated through booking, through
contingent running powers, and in some instances
absolute running powers; and he (the chairman)
sincerely believed that large and important bteonetfintos
would accrue not only to this company
it
r
oarrraasg
n e
oe -f
other companies who had entered in no e 1t eis but
ne
e
ments—(hear, hear)—and that •
traffic would eventually flow from the increased ac
cotnmodation which
powers wouldtbus be afforded to the
public. Important
had been secured for the
traffic between Basingstoke and Southampton, and
they would have the power of conveying their trains
from the West Midland down to ,Southampton. An
agreement was ids° in contemplation with the South
Eastern Company for an interchange of traffic at
Reading which had long been looked for but was not
yet realised. The joint receipts of the Great Western,
West Midland, and South Wales Companies for the
past half-year amounted to £1,476,803, and for the
corresponding half-year of 1861, to 11,143,019,
showing an incrase of £332,884. This large increase
was accounted for by the fact that the mile :go in the
last half-year wus very much larger than that of the
corresponding half-year of 1861. '['he receipts of the
South Wales were included, and there was also the
Worcester and Hereford line completed ; whereas for
the greater part of the previous half-year that line
had only been opened as far as Malvern. There was
also an increase in the receipts of the Severn Valley
line, the Bourton-on-the-Water branch, the Witney
branch, and the Ely Valley, and the Leominster
and Kingston receipts were included ; so that theyt
could not make any comparison between the recerps
of the past half-year and those of the corresponding
e—
six months of thpreeeding year. The working
expenses had increased about 4 per cent. The net