The Sun.
London, England, 1853-10-22 00:00:00

LONDON AND SOUTH-WESTERN.

Mr. Snell's committee have addressed a letter to the
shareholders, in consequence of a circular put forth by
the chairman of the company respecting the pledge given
to Parliament in respect to the extension scheme. The
committee assert that the Southampton and Dorchester
branch bas not paid 3i per cent. per annum upon its
cost, as stated by the directors, and that the statement
in the report of the directors presented to the May meet-
ing was a gross misrepresentation. That instead of the
cost of the Dorchester line being 752,0001., as stated by
the directors, it should have been 800,0001., exclusive of
148,480/. for rolling stock, &c. The committee allow the
receipts for the year 1852 to be 56,1291., as stated by the
directors, but they do not admit the working expenses to
be only 28,0641., or 50 per cent. of the receipts. They
contend that the expenses amounted to 40,0081., includ-
ing interest on working stock, leaving a balance of
line cost
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32,0001. per annum, towards which they get the above
g
sum of 16,121/. only, thus entailing a loss per se of
15,8791. per annum. The length of the Dorchester
branch is 63 miles, and, of the company's lines 251 miles.
The working expenses of the Dorchester branch by the.
above account is 640/. per mile per annum, and of all
the other lines of the company upwards of 1,0001. per
mile per annum. That the branches put forth from the
parent line have reduced their dividends from 91. and 10e.
per cent. per annum to their present amount of between
Si. and 41, per cent.
The letter of the committee states :
"We were appointed a committee by the meeting of
shareholders, held at Morley's Hotel on the 3d inst. At
that meeting the resolutions were passed of which we en-
close a copy. We then addressed a letter to the chairman
and directors of the company, requesting a conference with
the board, a copy of which is also enclosed, and we received
a reply from the secretary, Mr. Crombie, appointing the
13th instant for the conference. Mr Snell opened the
conference by assuring the board that we came there in an
p.rudentafter pa-
cific 'amicable
policy spirit, i
throught, a n d
anddesirous
b y t
bt
eo
dbirrileicgtoarbsoountl ay ,
but,
every gentleman addressed the i
g eh e a
nboardguaw,
..._dseveral
requests wishedlanguage,—and
to
dese,_all had
inthe d
mostcourteous
requests had been made for some observations from the
board, done, and then
over what had
board, the chairman in
simply rose and said h
declare this conference ( lissolve . We know not what
quirhedoulfdw
l our
been urged by us, and ien should
samed breaelth. added, 'and I
despised—our efforts as a few
friendly disposition was
that
were mocked.
comment to make upon such a proceeding ! We fee
on the consideration of our fellow-
We throw "neldvePrl to them with confidence for their
shareholders defied—and hat we, personally,
shareholders,
fw.
Serjeant Gaselee and Mr. Mortimer were
and appeal
of the treatment we
directors besides the chairman who addressed us;
the only Mr. Uzielli, Count Eyre, and Mr. Reed
11- Chaplin, the di *wel)
—" bsent• The rest of rectors--that is,
judgment,—for
.
unavoidably a 4
The committee state that the great and important
error in the report to the meeting honourably releases
nine—were present.
the shareholders from the pledge given by the directors
to the Committee of the House of Commons respecting
the Dorchester and Exeter line. They state that of the
lthem,They
thirteen directors six only urge on those measures;
four, if not
five,
or opposedaf.
are
stand o o t.o
and the rest are
absentabroad,
entreat their fel-
low-shareholders to negative the extension scheme by
forwarding their proxies to
London, or to Mr. Chaplin, Hyde-park-gardens ; or to
Mr. Serjeant Gaselee, Cambridge-square ; and in every
case to write underneath the signature the words " to
be used against the extension."