The Sun.
London, England, 1862-08-11 00:00:00

GREAT WESTERN.

It appears from the financial statement of this
company, for the half-year ending the 30th of June
last, that £13,755,495 had been received on shares,
and £11,102,982 on debentures, loans, &c., making
the total receipts on capital account £24,858,477.
The total expenditure on capital account in respect
of the various railways, works, and plant belonging
to the company amounted to £21,938,334, and in
subscriptions and disbursements for other under-
takings to £2,199,822, making together X 24,138,156,
and leaving a balance of £720,321.
The capital account of the Shrewsbury lines now
belonging to the Great Western Company shows
that £3,647,015 had been expended upon them.
The joint capital account of the Great Western and
West Midland Companies shows a total outlay of
£695,272.

The joint revenue account of the Great Western
and West Midland Railways for the half-year end-
ing the 30th of June shows that £1,244,728 had
been reeeived, and £618,405, or 49.68 per cent.,
expended in workiug the traffic, &c. ; £31,705 paid
for rent charges on 11 branch railways, also £16,347
for interest on capital expenditure on joint account,
and £88,250 fur fixed rent and allowance for plant,
&c., of South Wales Railway, leaving a balance of
£541,202 for division between the two companies.
Of this the Great Western receives 821 per cent., or
£446,492, and the West Midland Company 171 per
cent., or £94,710.
From the £446,492 received by the Great Western

they first deduct £2,500 towards Parliamentary
and legal expenses, and £1,500 for doubtful debts,
leaving £442,492. To this is added £10,424
brought forward from the preceding half-year;
£12,000, a portion of balances reserved from revenue
account prior to the 30th June, 1861; and £12,438
for dividends on shares in other companies, making
the total £477,354. From this sum is deducted
£20,189 for guaranteed annuities to Wilts, Somer-
set, and Weymouth, and Kennet and Avon Canal:;
£20,666 for rent-charges of the Glocester and Dean
Forest, the Hereford, Ross, and Glocester, Brentford
Dock, Wycombe Railway, and trustees of Padding-
ton Estate ; £65,638 in respect of interest and divi-
dends on the Shrewsbury lines ; and, finally,
£347,440 for interest on loans and preference shares
(exclusive of £12,799 charged in joint account),
leaving a disposable sum of £23,420—0ut of which
it is proposed to pay a dividend at the rate of a half
per cent. per annum, being for the half-year ending
the 30th of June last, 20,593; leaving a balance of
£2,827. At the corresponding period of 1861 the
disposable sum was £95,069 ; the r ate of dividend
2+ per cent. per annum, being for the half-year
£92,669, leaving a balance of £2,400, showing a
decrease in the disposable sum of £71,649, and an
increase in the balance carried over of £427. This
comparison is not of much use, because the circum-
stances of the Great Western are quite different now
from what they were at the corresponding period of
1861. On the Ist of July, 1861, the Great Western
and West Midland commenced working together on
joint account, and at the end of the half-year, De-
cember 31, the total receipts were £1,212,201, and
the portion divisible between the two companies
was £714,510, of which the Great Western took 82*
per cent., or £582,471, and the West Midland 17*
per cent., or £125,039. The result was that the
Great Western Company had a disposable balance
of £133,983, out of which they declared a dividend
at the rate of 3 per cent. per annum, which absorbed
£123,559, and left a balance of £10,424, with which
they commenced the past year.

On the Ist January last the two companies jointly
commenced to lease and work the South Wales
Railway, paying the latter a minimum rent of
£170,000 a year,and also certain allowances for plant
and expenses. The payment to the South Wales
Company under this arrangement for the past half-
year:ending the 30th of June amounted to £88,250.
The first half of the year being the least produc-
tive by £lO,OOO or £12,000, the rent fell heavier on
the receipts of the past half-year than it will in the
next half-year. This, however, is but a small mat-
ter as compared with the loss over the combined
systems of the three companies during the half-year
from the great depression of trade in the mineral
and manufacturing districts. The deficiency on
the Shrewsbury lines was increased from £12,142
to £22,494, making a difference of £10,352 against
the Great Western, instead of, as formerly, showing
a reduced amount of deficiency payable every year.
It appears from the traffic returns of the Great
Western, West Midland, and South Wales •
ways combined, during the first 22 weeks of the
past half-year, that there was a decrease of £3,488
as compared with the corresponding period of last
year, but during the four following weeks in June
the receipts were so increased by the operation of
the International Exhibition that an augmentation
of £20,100 was produced on the receipts of the 26
weeks as compared with the corresponding period
Of 1861. Under ordinary circumstances it is pro-
bable that an increase of about £60,000 might have
taken place in the receipts of those lines during the
past half-year; at all events, the traffic receipts in
the current half-year are much more encouraging,
for they amount in the aggregate for the first five
weeks to £333,402 against £288,413 for the corre-
sponding period of last year, showing an increase
of £44,989, or about £5,000 per week.

I."'ventie for the six months ending the 30th June,
after 4 .
ladiucting interest on loans, and all other pre-
. ferent
LONDON AND SOUTH-WESTERN.
The report of the directors states that the net
added
£144,021
commend Zlll
£4 per cent.
£leohla2rges, amounts to £143,362, to which is
:ittihe surplus at December last, making
ate. for dividend. The directors re-
per dividend be declared at the rate of
reeeipts,
x558)7312t
leaving a balance or i, Payable on the 26th inst.,
The increase in the
g period of
gross revenue for the 253'
1331Z6tIllaalf-year over the cor-
respoudin
during theraho_n,n_ ted to £30,966.
year was 4001-
mThileesm,
8 ; the working
expenses, £261,286 ; the taxaiien _
i lt
ehaeg totale open
. A;29 132 and
the net revenue, £268.210 ; e4ait'let 7
miles, £527,622 total receipts, £255,192
W4OOl
ing expenses, £24,176 taxation, and x,247,6:4 ,
net revenue for the corresponding period of 1881,
showing an increase of £30,966 in the total
receipts £5,491 in the working expenses, £4,956 in
the taxation, and £20,516 in the net revenue. The
state of trade throughout the country during the
half-year has tended towards a more general de-
pression of traffic than was reasonably anticipated,
particularly in merchandise. The relaying of the
permanent way has been continued during the past
half-year, both on the main line and branches. The
former has now been completed, and £lO,OOO have
been charged to revenue on that account. The
doubling of the Southampton and Dorchester line
is being steadily proceeded with. The distance
between Wimborne and Dorchester (25 miles) is
almost completed to formation level. The Salisbury