The Sun.
London, England, 1865-11-30 00:00:00

INDIAN TRAMWAY.

The half-yearly general meeting of this company
was held yesterday at the offices, Moorgate-street ;
Sir Macdonald Stephenson in the chair.

Mr. M. R. Scott, the secretary, having read the
notice convening the meeting, the report, an abstract
of which has appeared in The Sun, was taken as
read.

The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the
report, said his observations upon that occasion
would be brief, owing to the probability of another
meeting being shortly held with reference to the
proposed Pondicherry extension, at which the share-
holders, with the complete information then before
them, would be better able to consider and discuss
the whole question. In the meantime he congratu-
lated them upon what had already been accom-
plished. The Board's promises had been strictly
kept, and the expectations held out had been com-
pletely fulfilled. The railway had been constructed
not only within the capital, but within the mileage
cost originally assumed, and the returns already ex-
ceeded the percentage ever obtained on any colonial.
line during the first few months. A weekly mileage
return of £9 would
pay 5 per cent., and the line was
earning at starting about £7 of that sum, with a
constantly increasing traffic. The shareholders were
entitled to the full credit of having established the
important fact that cheap light lines of railway
could be made in India at a total cost for all ex-
penses, including engines and rolling stock, of
£4,000 per mile, capable of transporting loads of
100 tons at 35 miles an hour, at a very moderate
cost for fuel, with working expenses commencing at
65 per cent., which had since been reduced to about
50 per cent., and at its earliest opening paying a
dividend of 4 per cent. Tl to means by which this
satisfactory result had been obtained reflected no
less credit upon the engineers at home and in India
than upon the company's agents, who had exerted
themselves to the utmost to se cure the success of an
undertaking which they regarded as the prototype
and forerunner of a system which must shortly
spread throughout the country. To Mr. Holloway,
the resident engineer, to Mr. Wlacfayden, and to the
officers of the Madras Railwa3- Company, especial
acknowledgments were due. As regarded the future
the board hoped that at an early- date they would be
prepared to lay before them sue& suggestions founded
upon such conclusive data for the extension of the
works as would meet their 11nanimous approval,
inasmuch as unless the co-operation of the Govern-
ment was ample and sufficient the board would not
recommend any further extentsions. (Hear, hear.)
The well-grounded objections to the original terms
proposed by Colonel Strachey, ax A adopted by the
Government, had been the cause of so scanty and
insignificant an area of the coup try benefiting by
the great principle of light cheap railways, and it
was to be hoped that the Governor tent would after
several years' experience come Mill d to the conclu-
sion at which practical men had lono since arrived.
That Colonel Strachey, one of fhe ablest officers in
the service, framed those condiltions, and that the
Government adopted them uncle r the conviction of
their equity, liberality, and sufficiency, no one could
doubt. They did their best in tbe public 'interest,
and failed. All the board desired was that they
should profit by past experience, and still consult
the public interests. He expressed blis confidence