The Sun.
London, England, 1863-10-24 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 24, 1863.

THE QUEEN INSURANCE COMPANY.
156, ieadenhall-street, London, E.C.
Queen Insurance-buildings, Liverpool.
Capital ONE MILLION STERLING.
At the Annual Meeting of the Proprietors, held at Liver-
pool, on the 21st October, 1863, I3FIRNARD HALL, Esq..
Chairman of the Company, in the Chair, the Directors'
Report for the year stated—
That the Fire Premiums for the year amountedto £70,300
being an increase over the preceditu year of 22080
That the Life Premium Receipts for the first three
years were
and for the past three years .. 43,537
being an increase in the latter triennial period
over the former of
That the amount accumulated since fast Meeting, as
a Icire Reserve Fund, was 23,427
and the amount added to Life Fund was
That during the past five years the Company had paid
for Claims
I'he 'Actuary reported that the Life Liabilities had been
valued on the soundest principles, viz., Net Premiums at 3
per cent. interest, and that the Bonus to part cipatin,g Policy-
holders averaged as much as 46 per cent. per annum of the
Premiums paid, while in some instances it was as high as 65,
70, and even per cent.
A dividend was declared to proprietors at the rate of 8 per
cent. per annum.
J. MONCRIEFF WILSON, Manager and Actuary.
JOHN E. LEYLAND, Secretary.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

GREAT INDIAN PENINSULA.

The half-yearly meeting of this company was held yes-
terday at the London Tavern—Mr. W. J. Hamilton in the
chair.

Mr. WATT, the secretary, having read the notice conven-
ing the meeting, the report, an abstract of which has ap-
peared in The Sun, was taken as read,
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the report,
congratulated the proprietors on the steady progress that
had been made with the works. Their chief engineer had
just arrived from India, and would give them any informa-
tion they required on the subject. The Bhore Ghat incline
had been opened on the 21st April last for goods traffic, but
it could not be opened for passenger traffic until the works
were properly consolidated. Some settlements, as expected,
had taken place during the monsoon, end had interrupted
the traffic for some time. He considered that the report of
Mr. Graham, their chief engineer, was on the whole ex-
tremely satisfactory as to the progress of the works, and
also with regard to the last paragraph in it, relating to the
completion of the surveys of the alternative line to Hydera-
bad, instead of the original one to Moodgul. He thought the
proposed line to Hyderabad was of so much consequence,
both in a political and commercial point of view, that he
trusted the Government would sanction its construction.
The object of the extension line was to form a junction with
the Madras Railway at a point near Hyderabad, and thus
complete a through communication from Bombay via Hy-
derabad to Madras. Tho alternative line would be about 60
miles longer than the originally proposed line via Moodgul,
but when it was considered that it would pass through a
rich and populous district, while that to Moodgul was a
barren and unproductive district, there could be no difficulty
in deciding in favour of the best line. Tho distance from
B imbay to Madras was between 800 and 900 miles, so that
an increase of 60 miles in that distance to secure those ad-
vantages was not important. He believed the Government
of Bombay, as well as that of Madras, were favourable
to the best route being aaopted. During the past half-
year the receipts for traffic amounted to £290,000, out of
which they had to deduct £56,000 for carrying traffic over the
Ghat, leaving 1234,000, which was an increase of £67,000
over the corresponding period of last year. No doubt the
working expenses were very considerable. The increase in
the working expenses was £45,000 during the past half-
year, of which £25,000 was paid by the company as com-
pensation for damages. He thought it satisfactory, notwith-
standing the increased cost of working and damages, that
the net receipts were £21,000 more than for the correspond-
ing half of 1862. The loss by damaged cotton arose in two
ways. The first loss amounted to £lO,OOO from fire, while
a heavy train of cotton was passing through an arid
and barren district, and, in spite of all the exertions made to
extinguish it, nearly the whole train was consumed, involv-
ing an additional loss in the destruction of rolling stock.
But the great loss which occurred to them took place just
before the setting in of the monsoon ; and in alluding to
this question it would be necessary for him to advert to
the conduct of the Bombay Government, which he did not
think was fair or just towards the company. Immediately
prior to the monsoon a great quantity of cotton was brought
to their railway at Etregamn and Egutpoora. The natives
brought their produce in large quantities, partly in conse-
quence of its being the period of the year for sending
it to market, and partly stimulated by the high prices
.n Bombay. There was no doubt some want of manage-
ment in the traffic arrangements ; but when the great loss
from damage to the cotton had been reported the Govern-
ment sent an engineer officer to inquire into the matter,
and immediately published his report in the newspapers
without giving the company's committee in Bombay an op-
portunity of explanation. Not only did the Government
authorities do this, but they made very serious charges
against the company in language neither fit nor decoious on
their part. He then read the resolution of the Bombay
Government, in which they expressed an opinion that the
conduct of the company was very discreditable. On the
first opening of the cotton trade, in wnich all the arrange-
ments had broken down, not only causing great loss,
and that the management was disgraceful, inasmuch as
4,000 bales a day should have been carried, while the rail-
way never carried more than 2,000 bales. Of course, as
soon as the statement appeared, the committee in Bombay
proceeded to give an explanation of the circumstances. The
Government ought to have inquired of the committee for
an explanation of the matter before publishing the report
referred to. With regard to not having efficient traffic ar-
rangements, there was an enormous amount of business
brought to the railway, and it could not be conveyed away
at once. So far back as the middle of last year the com-
pany applied to the Government to allow them to send out
two additional traffic managers, as they expected to lose
one, and they had since lost the services of Mr. Cooper.
When the proposal was made to the Government they said
it was premature and better to defer it, thereby putting off
the appointment of ;additional superintendence and leaving
them without sufficient assistance to carry on the traffic.
Not having sufficient cover at the station, great loss was
sustained. The natives brought immense quantities of cot-
ton to the railway, and actually covered several acres of
land with cotton in bales from four to six. deep; but, on the
other hand, the Government had refused to allow the com-
pany to make sidings for the accommodation of the traffic.
By the advice of the Government consulting engineer the
requirements of the company in this respect had been re-
duced, and the estimates had been cut down. The com-
mittee in Bombay had proposed to the Government certain
requirements for the traffic, and pointed out what was
likely to occur and which had occurred. On the opening
of the Bhore Ghat, the contractor for carrying the goods
had all his carts released, and also a large number of addi-
tional carts, so that he was enabled to bring dowh to the Thull
Ghat so much cotton in two or three days as the company
could carry away in three or four weeks on a single line of
railway, having but a limited number of waggons to meet
this extraordinarypreeeure. The company had been in nego-
tiation with the Government during the past ten years, re-
specting a goods station at Bombay, but nothing had yet
been done. He hoped, however, that in the course of
another year there would be something tangible done in this
most important matter. The committee had applied to the
Government to allow the company to store the cotton in
some of the Government stores in Bombay, but a most ex-
travagant price was fixed upon by the officials. Complaints
had been made that a number of third-class passengers had
been left behind at one or two stations. It was impossible
for the company to provide for a large addition to the num-
ber of passengers without running additional trains ; and
the company were prevented from running additional trains
without authority from the Government. With respect to
the fares for third-class passengers they were exceedingly
small, less than a farthing per mile, and they carried about
40,000 or 50,000 third- class passengers a week. The average
distance travelled by third-class passengers was 39 miles,
and the average fare 9d. each passenger. The faro was very
little more than the cost of their conveyance. This was
the explanation he had to give. Under these circumstan-
cestEneengetnia hn the.add company and the
the. presence of one of their colleagues, Mr. Ayrton,
M.P., in Bombay, would, it was believed, tend to some
settlement
boeTfe
been
heue
et.
ogvarious
subjectsfihxaGovernment.
remaining
The
settlement unsettled
wof
the station at Bombay and the alteiation of the fares were
of the utmost importance to the
company. The
se r
v iecae noGf o
ave ren
mthe
company the power of fixing ra!uirunedmthe same
s) mannerg tog t
as in
tleamve to anams general manager. 'flulteuyreleaosktehdostoe
recently.this
ra ent with great satisfaction, and hoped they should not
hn
fished by the Government.
Mr. J. G. FRITH, in seconding the motion for the adop-
tion of the report, said there had been a great want of
fore-
thought in the Government authorities, and the result hall
been very disastrous. The interference in the internal ar-
rangements of the railway company had been attended with
the most injurious effects on the interests of the share-
holders. He hoped the experience they had had would have
the effect of removing these obstructions to the successful
working of the railway.
TL's motion was then carried unanimously, and the for-
feiture of certain shares for the nonpayment of calls was
confirmed,
After some observations by a shareholder, a vote of
controlh vote,
thanks to the Chairman and directors was unanimously
carried.
altlehiCslioAbjeilCaltiAon to N'in
Government acknowledging
was only in re-
spect to undue interference in the management of the in-
explained
thatternal
affairs of the company. In other respects he thought
the control of the Government beneficial to the share.
holders, aa it prevented an improper waste of their funds

and served to check abuses ; but he thought engineer officers
should confine themselves to what they were conversant
with, and not enter into minute details of railway manage-
ment that had taken years of experience to arrive at. With
regard to the general control of Government, he thought it
was most beneficial to proprietors.

Mr. GRAMAn, the chief engineer, explained that the
works were steadily progressing, and they were extending
into the cotton district. At Nagpore they would get into
the most important cotton fields of Western India. By the
end of the year they would open to Sheagaum, and in June,
1864, a further distance. He confidently looked forward to
the end of 1865, or nearly in 1866, for the completion of
the lines to Nagpore and Jubbulpore. The surveys of the
line to Hydrabad had been completed, and lodged with the
Government for approval. Hydrabad contained between
300,000 and:400,000 inhabitants. When the undertaking
was completed he could hardly imagine a more successful
system of lines than they would have from Nagpore and
Jubbulpore in the interior to the port of Bombay.
The proceedings then terminated,

and Armagh. The vacancy created by this translation
was filled by Dr. Verschoyle, Dean of Ferns. But the
richest of all the prizes of ecclesiastical patronage was
shortly to fall into the hands of the Premier, The aged
Archbishop of Canterbury was gradually sinking from
exhaustion consequent on natural decay, and swiftly
followed the Primate of all Ireland to the grave. On
the 6th of September, by the death of Dr. Sumner, the
Primacy of all England, with an income of £15,000, fell
to the disposal of Lord Palmerston. As in the case of
York, the Premier, in filling this archiepiscopal see,
contrived to make three appointments out of one vacancy.
Dr. Longley was translated for the third time within six
years, and sent from York to Canterbury. Dr. Thomson was
promoted from Glocester and Bristol to the Archbishopric
of York; whilst Dr. Ellicott, Dean of Exeter,was appointed
Bishop of Glocester and Bristol. And now, with the au-
tumn of 1863, the fourth archbishopric has fallen in. The
death of Dr Whately gives the premier a piece of patronage
value £7,636 per annum, Lord Palmerston has twice filled
the bishopric of Cork, Dr. Fitzgerald, who was appointed in
1857,having been translated from this see to that of Kilaloe,
in 1861. He has likewise supplied vacancies in many Irish
deaneries, and in England those of Canterbury, Westmin-
ster, Carlisle, Ripon, Lincoln, Glocester and Bristol, and
Exeter twice. The united annual value of the sees held by
the 27 prelates who constitute the English hierarchy is
£151,200,and of this Lord Palmerston has had the disposal
of very nearly one-half—or £75,500. Vast as this amount of
patronage might appear,it shows more strikingly by contrast
with that which has fallen to the lot of previous Prime
Ministers. Sir R. Peel held office from 1841 to 1846, and in
these 5 years filled as many bishoprics—those of Chichester,
Ely, Lichfield, Oxford, and St. Asaph, with an annual
Tata:of £23,100. Daring the six years of Laid John Rus-
in; Administration from 1846 to 1852, the amount of
patronage which fell to his disposal was just as much as
that which in one year alone-1856—fell to Lord Pal-
merston. Lord John filled the primacy, and the bishoprics
of Chester, Hereford, Llandaff, and Manchester, with an
aggregate revenue of £32,100 per annum. During Lord
Aberdeen's Ministry, from 1852 to 1855, the bishoprics of
Bath and Wells, Lincoln, and Salisbury were filled, with
an annual income of £5,000 each. The Earl of Derby has
holden office altogether about two years and two months—
namely, ten months in 1852, and 16 months in 1858-59. The
only episcopal appointment made by the Conservative leader
was that of Dr. Campbell to the bishopric of Bangor, in
1859, the revenues of the see being £4,000 a year. From
these calculations it will be seen that the aggregate amount
of patronage disposed of by Sir Robert Peel, Lord John
Russell, the Earl of Aberdeen, and the Earl of Derby
amounted to £75,400. So that Lord Palmerston, in seven
years, has, within the small sum of £3,000, disposed of as
much church patronage as his predecessors in the Premier-
ship during a period of 16 years. But when we take into
consideration the noble viscount's Irish patronage, repre-
senting a total of £28,120 per annum, and add this to the
£71,500, the value of his English Church preferments, we
have a grand total of £99,620, or a yearly sum amounting
very nearly to £lOO,OOO. Such is the annual value of the
appointments which have been made by the present Prime
Minister. Of the 27 prelates who sit in the House of Lords,
no less than 10 have been placed there by Lord Palmerston.
Add to these five Irish sees, and the number of the present
embishops is increased to 15. Twice has he filled
tPhrearice.hrbishopric of York, once the archbishoprics of Can-
terbury and Armagh; while that of Dublin yet remains to
be filled. 'Three times has the noble lord been called upon
to appoint new overseers to the dioceses of Gloucester and
Bristol, and Durham; twice has he filled the vacant
three
Bish to
op theo f
bisl.oprics of Carlisle and Cork, and once those of London,
Rochester, Norwich, Worcester, and Ripon. Of the 27
prelates on the episcopal benches, ten owe their positions
to Lord Palmerston ; five to Sir Robert Peel ; four to
Lord Rua:: ;
wEiarrielheosfteAr, to Aberdeen
n ;Ltivweor,potohle;
n
Bishops of Peterborough and St. David's, to Lord Mel-
bourne
Bishop of Bangor, to the Earl of Derby. The
ne the;
I) of Winchester, appointed in
1827; the junior is the Bishop of Glocester and Bristol, con-
secrated in 1863. The richest is that of Winchester, value
£10,417; the least in point of revenue is that of St. David's
£2,500. The oldest prelate is the Bishop of Exeter, now in
th
his 86th; the youngest is the Archbishop of York, now in
his 44th year.—Western Morning News.
oneoseio r theßishop of Exeter, to the Duke of Wellington ; and
prelate is the Bishop

Naval and Military Intelligence.

THE NAVY.

The Duke of Somerset, First Lord of the Admiralty, is
expected to visit Great Yarmouth in a few days for the pur-
pose of inspecting the naval asylum near that town.
he fine paddlewheel yacht steamer Salamis, 4, 250 horse
power,
and 835 tons, having been finally completed and
turned out of hand by the dockyard officials at Chatham,
was yesterday taken from her moorings in the harbour to
the triatlgerAouldiraetlityheetaMeaipallienteSatneedtshfoerr tshteeepmuirhpgoscieuoalfiteinee
bei
nef oe
sett e
en"
abling h
finally
decided upon what service to employ her.
Since official trial, upwards of two months ago,
h
s been rigged and in other respects completed
trim, and from being one of the handsomest
the
Ivile!eer eelsseefgheeirlass afloat, and a credit to the dockyard hands
by whom she was constructed, she is now conspicuous only
for her extreme ugliness. This arises from the manner in
which she has been masted and rigged. Unlike the other
yacht-steamers of her class, she has no knee, and being
without a bowsprit she has a very bare appearance. Instead
of three light graceful pole masts, she carries two heavy
schooner-rigged masts and yards, which are altogether out
of character and place in a vessel of her class, which steams
up to fourteen knots per hour, They serve to give her
a heavy lumbering appearance, and, seen from the water,
stamp her as the perfection of ugliness. The cabin and
general fittings on board are very costly, so as, in fact, to
render her one of the best vessels of her class afloat. The
Salamis left her moorings alongside Chatham dockyard at
9 30 a.m., having on board Admiral Bullock, Mr. Moore,
assistant-master-shipwright; Mr. Baker, inspector of ma-
chinery afloat and principal engineer at Chatham dockyard,
with
inforward,
other offici aclz
9ftA 10
At her faof.. rmt e rwt riitahl thel2o Staelhea mei sf dreweeel
and
quantity of stores, shot, cable, water,
9ft2n ea rlythe same
Armstrong and other guns, she yesterday drew 10ft forward,
and Oft llin aft, and was therefore not in the best possible
trim for making her trial. The immersion of the paddle-
wheel from the inner edge of the floats was Bin, and the
total dip, 4ft tin. She is fitted with Morgan's patent
feathering floats which materially increase her speed. The
diameter of the paddlewheels is 21ft bin. The engines,
which are by Messrs.Ravenhill, Salkeld, and Co., are fitted
with all the latest improvements, including superbaters, &e.
They were yesterday in charge of Mr. Daniels, the chief
engineer of the Salamis. Garrison Point was reached in
45 minutes after leaving Chatham, and the engines were
then stopped to take on board Capt. W. R. Hall, C. 8., su-
perintendent of the steam reserve, under whose directions
the trial was made, and Mr, Rumble, chief inspector of ma-
chinery afloat. The steamer's head was then made for the
Maplin Sands, which were reached at 11 a.m., and the
vessel placed on the mile. Six runs were taken at full
boiler power, with the following results :—ln the first run
the time was 3 min 51 see, speed in knots 15.385, and
number of revolutions 33i per minute ; in the second run
the time was 5 min 6 sec, the speed 11165 knots, and the
number of revolutions 33 ; in the third run the time was 3
min 52 sec, the speed 15517 knots, and the number of re-
volutions 31 ; the time in the fourth run was 4 min 42 sec,
the speed 12166 knots, and the number of revolutions 31 ;
in the fifth mile the time was 4 min 3 sec, the speed 14.815
knots, and the number of revolutions 31 ; in the last mile
the time was 4 min 35 see, and the speed 13.091 knots. The
mean vacuum was 20, and the average temperature of the
stoke-holes 90 deg, and of the engine room 78 deg, during
the trial. The average speed attained by the Salamis daring
the six runs was 13.84 knots—that is to say 16 statute miles
per hour. This is exactly a knot an hour less than on the
occasion of the former trial of this steamer, when she ..
at-
tained a mean average speed ef 1+843 knots an hour. This
falling off in her speed is to be attributed to her uneven
trim, the vessel being down more by the head tdhan arse
stern; the heavy nature of her rigging.
which operate disadvantageously to the spmeeadstosi
—and, lastly, to the foul state of her bottomthe
close of
lengthened time she has been in harbour.
the trials at full speed two of the boilers we.rle:,
:t half-boiler
couple of runs taken over the measured tanhefrsotienapnitheer
power with the following results :
min 40 sec, speed in knots, 12.857, 11.921 knots,
lions 30 ; second run—time, 5 min 2 . wris t run—time, —cat; m ande
, a 4
-389 hu°tstpheegrioecasion of her former
and number of revolutions 12.389, sayenic:cl,
gFsnpivae
emmdbeearno
srpeeveoal ua-t
hour, as against 121318
eeFdro:[nth°sveesscl under half-boiler
half-boiler power of 12
trialkn ot se
on
etrh he o2ulre atA halfugu August.
figures the Salamis
st
fulle speed, the difference in
is
than aknotand a half an hour.
outpew ofer pthroapnownihoenn aszeilfaa
the two rates being le"
During the trial yesterday Admiral Bullock was busily
employed on board in making experiments with and re-
cording the results of the trials with his new description of
log for enabling. the speed of ships at sea to be instantane-
onsly ascertained. The apparatus used for the purpose is a
kind of steelyard, which is suspended from the vessel's tali-
rail, and attached to which is a line of aomo 150 ft in length
with the log a the end. The pressure on the hand of the
dial causes it to revolve, and a series of numbers on its face
-ill indicate the true speed of the vessel at any moment.
qalamis last evening was placed in the first division of
The ei snebi
r:ve. in readiness for an y
mayh h
ed e service for which she
A vacancy has been occasioned on the list of Naval
Knights of Windsor te steames-t
Buller, R.N., which oc4curree-1
e the death of Lieutenant Edward
at Edinburgh on the 19th
inetant, Thesalary of the ua