The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-28 00:00:00

VALE OF NEATH.

The half-yearly meeting of this company was held
at Neath on Friday—Mr. Gilbertson in the chair.
The secretary, Mr. Crier, having read the report,
an abstract of which has appeared in The Sun,
The CHAIRMAN moved its adoption, and expressed
his readiness to answer any questions that might be
put to him.
Mr. J. M. PARSONS called attention to the delay
on the part of the Great Western Board in complet-
ing the details of the arrangements for the amalga-
mation of the company with that of the Great
Western. He had come from London to attend the
meeting, with the view of learning exactly how
things stood, and would feel obliged if the chairman
would give him some information.
The CHAIRMAN said the remarks of Mr. Parsons
must approve themselves to all the proprietors pre-
sent. The great difficulty in dealing with the Great
Western Board was that one day they met one set
of men and another day another set, and it had come
to this at last that he had told Mr. Potter, the chair-
man of the Great Western Company, that the next
time he had a new set of directors to meet him he
should put on his hat and leave the room. He might
say, however, that he had no reason to complain of
the bond fides of the Great Western Board. They
had sealed last week their resolution of the 51- per
cent. dividend, and Mr. Potter had shown himself a
most competent and straightforward man. He had
no doubt in a few weeks they would substantially
have everything settled. The elections and the
grouse shooting he knew had had a good deal to do
with taking people away ; but they had got the
resolution of the Great Western Board of Directors
signed, and nothing but the grossest breach of faith
could interfere with the full and efficient carrying
ont of the amalgamation.
Mr. PARSONS had thought it better to bring the
matter before the present meeting. (Hear, hear.)
The Great Western Company's meeting would, no
doubt, be a very full one, and some people at that
meeting might wish to see this agreement with the
Vale of Neath Company broken off. The proprietors
of that company might not see, as the Vale of Neath
did, the great importance of the latter Company to
the former. It would be as well, however, for them
not to procrastinate. They had a formidable anta-
gonist in the Midland, and if they did not soon
close their bargain with the Vale of Neath, the latter
might secure themselves in another direction.
Mr. RICHARDS having seconded the resolution
for the adoption of the report, it was carried unani-
mously.

Dividends were then declared at the rate of 5f
per cent per annum on the consolidated stock and
shares, 5 per cent. on the preference stock, 5 per
cent. on the guaranteed preference stock created in
1855 and 1861, and 4f per cent. on the preferential
shares.

A resolution authorising the consolidation of the
ordinary £2O shares into ordinary stock was then
agreed to.
The directors were then authorised to create and
issue £75,000 of additional capital.

Thanks were voted to the chairman and directors,
and the proceedings terminated.

COLNE VALLEY AND HALSTEAD.

The report of the directors states that the capital
had been increased £307, part of £BOO advanced
from revenue to pay certain matters on land and
compensation account. The traffic account, fur-
nished by Mr. D. Gooch, the contractor for work-
ing the railway, gave a total traffic receipt for the
year of £4,439. Under the terms of the contract
£35 per cent. of the gross traffic was payable to
the company, and gave £1,551 available towardsin-
terest for the current half-year ; but this sum ap-
peared to the directors too small for division. The
gross receipt of £4,439 was an increase as compared
with the corresponding half of 1864, which was
£3,890. The railway from Haverhill to Cambridge
having only been opened for public traffic by the
Great Eastern Company on the Ist of June, 1865,
the time was too short to enable the directors to
report as to the effect of such opening upon the
traffic over the Coke Valley line. 'The capital
account showed that £262,636 had been expended.