The Sun.
London, England, 1853-10-07 00:00:00

LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 7, 1853.

tone adopted by the latter practically amounts to an en-
tire repudiation of the whole arrangement.
Not only do the Grand Trunk board seek pretexts to
break up the London arrangements, made on their behalf
by their directors, Messrs. Glyn and Baring, with the
assistance of the president of the company, the Hon.
John Ross, Attorney-General of the Province, who was
in England in April (by which arrangement the friends
of the Great Western hoped at least to stop at its
then point, the threatened injury to this company, as
well as the credit of the province), but they are attempt-
ing by every possible means, including a threat to carry
traffic from Sarnia to Toronto gratis, to force this com-
pany into an amalgamation. To so great an extent has
this been carried, that public meetings have been held
at Hamilton and London to protest against such pro-
ceedings. The first was a large, highly respectable, and
entirely unanimous assemblage of the citizens of Hamil-
ton, and at which the following resolutions were passed
by acclamation.
" Whereas reports have reached this city from various
quarters, as mainly proceeding from gentlemen connected
with the Grand Trunk Railway, that measures are in
contemplation by the directors and others aiding that
enterprise, to endeavour to absorb the Great Western
Railway Company into the Grand Trunk scheme.
"And whereas any such amalgamation could not fail to
operate most injuriously to the stockholders of the Great
Western Railway, by joining their road to a larger and
much less profitable enterprise, and placing it under the
control of parties whose interest it would be to force the
trade of the United States to the east and west of us, over
a more northern, much longer, and less convenient route,
and thereby in all
probability forcing such travel and
traffic round by the south shore of Lake Erie, thus turning
off from this Province and the waters of Lake Ontario and
the St. Lawrence the business that rightfully and fairly
belongs to them—be it therefore
"Resolved—That in the opinion of this meeting, the
shareholders and directors of the Great Western Railway.
Company will best consult the interests of this Pro-
vince, as well as their own self-evident advantage, by de-
clining to enter into any amalgamation with the Grand
Trunk Railway, and resolutely maintaining their own in-
dependence.
" That in the opinion of this meeting, the route of the
Great Western Railroad is so far superior to any other
projected in Canada, that its prospects can only be irdured
by amalgamation with any other line.
" That this meeting, while resisting,railway nion?pnly,
looks with much satisfaction upon the recorded opinions
of so eminent an authority as Mr. Robert Stephenson, in
deprecating the evils of railway competition, and trusts
that ho may be enabled to advise the adoption of a policy-
in regard to the competition now threatened by the carry-
ing of the Grand Trunk line from Guelph to Sarnia,
which runs the whole way parallel to the previously
chartered Great Western Railway, at a very short average
distance therefrom, instead of running North West to
Saugeen and Owen Sound, a magnificent line of commu-
nication still unoccupied, and which would complete a
railway system for Canada West, such as Mr. Stephenson
has foreshadowed, whi!e not interfering with any existing
or chartered line of railway."
At London also, the following resolution was passed,
the leading men of the town supporting it, and speaking
strongly as to the injurious effect upon Western Canada
of absorbing the Great Western Railway into its large
and already overgrown competitor.
Resolved—" That the extension of the Grand Trunk
from Guelph to Port Sarnia will, in the opinion of this
meeting, be the creation of a rival and unnecessary line,
and that the true interests of both the Grand Trunk and
Great Western Railway companies, and of Western Ca-
nada, would be best served by avoiding that species of
competition so much deprecated by Mr. Stephenson."

J I'RICE SD•

STRIKES.

they will never be permitted to make large fortunes.
"Why should they?" some men will answer. We
will ask, in our turn, who that has a competency
will risk it, and undergo all kinds of trouble and
anxiety besides, except in order to rise from com-
petency to wealth ? The best thing that can
happen to a large town population is the accession
of men who can erect large works in order to con-
vert their 10,0001. into 100,0001., or their 50,0001.,
into 500,0001. But with regular combinations, with
the express view of dividing more equally among
the men the profits of the master, and which start
with the notion that a large fortune is an abuseand
a crime, you may bid adieu to your capitalist. He
will look out for some place inhabited by artisans
not Socialists, and where he will diffuse the means
of life to thousands, if they will let him have what
he wants—some chance of wealth. Combination
on these principles is mere Socialism. Supposing
its demands to be submitted to, your 10,0001. is
divided among the working men, and there is the
end of it. The golden goose has been ripped open,
and there are no more golden eggs. Leave the
10,0001. in the hands of the master, and it remains
a fund of wages, a reservoir of enterprise, a reward
of merit, and an encouragement to another man to
enter the same trade and give the workmen two
employers instead of one.

to England, after the passing of the act of 1851, as to
a guarantee from the Imperial Government, and finding
that such a scheme could not be carried out, made some
(From the Times.)
arrangements with a firm of eminent railway contrac-
If anything were necessary to show that "strikes" tors, to construct upon certain terms, the portion of the
are generally unjustifiable, it is the fact that they Main Trunk Line from Montreal, through Kingston, to
are generally unwise. When a man puts a price Toronto. In the meantime, however,
as ibefore men-
on his commodities which the public will not pay, tioned, the Governor in Council had, by proclamation,
or imposes terms on his customers which they will called into existence private companies for the construe-
not submit to, their refusal, and the fact that they
Holton
reason
set u Galt
her vested
tion of that part of the line, and the necessary steps to
suit themselves elsewhere, ate conclusive against organise the companies had been taken. It appears that
the propriety of the demand. Now, there has al-
the stock was taken up mainly by Messrs. A. T. Galt,
and Gpalttesipeiasltd
le
H.
ways been observed a peculiar infelicity in the time
L.
without
' who were all
gentlemenet,
and
not
(Messrs.
Holton, and D. L. McPherson,
chosen for " strikes." Workmen either select the three interested in the construction of the line.
time when their employers are under heavy
strenuously opposed the granting of the present Grand
penalties for the early completion of contracts,
when, of course, the " strike ' condemns itself by Trunk These
rights, called into existence as they had been by the act
its treacherous and mischievous character, or, by of the Government, under the authority of an act of Par-
some strange fatality, they fall on a time so conve- liament, and expecting, as they did, to benefit by the con-
nient to their employers as to suggest the idea of struction of the line. The proceedings before the railway
contrivance on the part of the latter. At the committee are on record, and it appears that, despite the
opposition of Messrs. Holton and Galt, the Grand Trunk
present moment we hear of combinations and strikes
Bill passed the committee, and was ordered to be re-
on all sides, in almost every branch of industry,
and, as we are far from thinking that in this country
ported to the house. The opposition to it was still con-
the working man is, generally, too well paid for his tinned, but at length was suddenly, and without the
decency of any alleged cause, put an end to, to the utter
strength, comfort, and condition, we are not sorry
amazement of the country at large ; and the names which
to find his prospects improving. But just now it so
happens, and it can hardly be denied
l there is a appear in the Grand Trunk Act include those of Messrs.
slight pause, ominous, possibly, of a still ,onger one in
Galt, Holton, and M`Pherson, its bitter opponents when
our recent unexampled career of prosperity. Across before the special committee.
In the same session a bill was introduced, the pream-
Europe the grim phantom of war, with its attendant RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE. ble of which is as follows :—" An Act to amend the Act
horrors—not the least of them, debt—is looming __e_____ incorporating the Toronto and Guelph Railway Corn-
upon us. Australia, which was starved and stinted GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY OF CANADA. pang."
of everything last April, was overflowing with every-
Th following•
The is the Special Report of the Board of The 'Toronto and Guelph Act had been passed in
thing in June, and, from being the most wealthy, DirectorslBsl, and the new bill was framed for the of purpose
of this Company to the English shareholders : amending the provisions of the first act, and removing
has suddenly become the cheapest city in the world.
As for the home market, no one ever expects it to The public discussion which is taking place in regard doubts as to certain bonds which the company had
to the railway policy of
.Canada—the meetings which issued.
make up for a sudden check in the foreign. Hence
have been held at Hamilton and London, as to the The contractors for constructing the Toronto and
there is no small probability of a depression, not .
line include
attempt now being made by the Gram* Trunk Com- Guelph line include Messrs. , Galt Holton and McPher-
as we trust, of a ruinous character, but
indeed,
yto cemeteuct a rival competing Beet to the Sinai- so enough to make it convenient to manufacturers ire_sterneltaitwaY, said thereby to force it into an amal- The notion for the ,ew Bill contained the following
that production be kept within compass. At this gamation with its gigantic opponent—and the remarks words : " Also for power to extend the railway to some
juncture, then, we find in the Manchester papers which are almost daily appearing in a portion of the points on Lake Huron and the River St. Clair, with a
that the operatives are everywhere driving their Canadian Press upon the subject, seem to the directors branch line to London and Woodstock ;" but when the
employers into defensive combinations. For such of the Great Western Railway Company, (as the Grand bill came before the railway committee, after the Great
measures the employers only want a pretext, and Trunk and Government are here viewed as one,) im- Trunk Bill had been passed by the committee, the former
that pretext is supplied by the short-sighted ope- peratively to call upon them to address their distant was found to contain authority to extend the Guelph
natives themselves, shareholders in England, both for the purpose of ex- line to Sarnia, in the face of the latter place having al-
Thelainin the position in which the company stands, and ready, in the charter of the Great Western, secured
con-
address of the "Burnley Master Spinners'
alsoP in order to indicate thepolicy they h • with the trunk series
which . aye, nection . of railways, and. Goderich
and Manufacturers' Association "in our yester- after mature "(.1 • cons' eration, determined to follow in the having desired an outlet through the Goderich and Buf-
day's paper indicates, if not a just cause, at all present juncture. falo line, then before Parliament, and their decided pre-
events a strong sense of injustice. It has appar- The proceedings which took place at the annual meet- ference for which, the united counties of Perth, Huron,
ently been compelled by a wide-spread combination ing in June last, and the part taken by some members and Bruce (the district lying between Guelph and Sar-
of operatives, supporting certain portions of their of the board at the public meetings alluded to, have nia) had declared by subscribing for 125,0001. of stock,
class in their struggles with their employers, lead- sufficiently testified to the shareholders in this country, which is thus referred to in the preamble of the Buffalo
ing to " acts of insubordination and positive vio- the views entertained by the directors ; but the distance and Goderich Act, which became law at the same time
lence," and controlling the free agency of those at which the English shareholders are, renders it highly with the bill which limited by specific enactment the
important that the policy of the board should be fully Grand Trunk line extension to Toronto, viz.:—
intowho are to work on the existing terms.
willing
nd distinctl laced before them " nd that amone others, the County Council of the
ut without going into the quarrel, that is,
a Befo proceedingt dis ' the very important UnitedHu on Perth, and Bruce, have re-
the question of justice, we will confine our-
mattersrewh
ehwilfformo
the
subject
s
of this report, it is solved
toCounties of
theur
Warden thereof to subscribe for
selves to what is really a more important view of
necessary in the first place to remark upon a statement shares in tehmePsCcek. of the said company to the amount of
the question,—the general imprudence of hostile which appeared in the Toronto Leader, a newspaper one hundred and twenty-five thousand pounds, and have
combinations on the part of the operatives. In which is understood to be an organ of the Canadian adopted for publication, and have printed, published, and
the present instance, as is stated in the ad- Government, and apparently also of the Grand Trunk passed the requisite bye-law."
dress referred to, they have had full employ- Company. The statement alluded to is, that differences Nothing that we could say could express so forcibly as
ment for several years, and have been thereby of opinion or misunderstandings exist at the present the foregoing facts how the Government and the Grand
placed in a position of extraordinary comfort and time at the Great Western Board. The simplest and Trunk have outraged the great principle so strongly ad-
prosperity. It may be presumed that they have most decided answer to that insinuation will be found vocated by Mr. Stephenson, of not sanctioning cornpet-
saved money ; that they have got into good houses, in the fact, that every director now in this country has ing lines, even if they did not make equally plain that
well furnished and filled ; that they stand well with appended his signature to this report, as embodying the the faith of solemn engagement had been by them alto-
their tradesmen ; that they are in unusual health deliberate opinion of the board upon the important gether disregarded.
and strength ; are better men in their own eyes than questions of which it treats. Evidence was taken by the committee upon the grant-
they were a few years ago ; and, in consequence of The directors of the Great Western Railway Corn- ing of the Guelph and Sarnia extension, and amongst
the immense emigration, and the gold discoveries, itznsy will now proceed to review the proceedings in others the following have more opportunities in reversion. It is very so far as country, in reference to railway undertakings, i
-11 " The Honourable the Speaker examined :
natural that people so situated should feel more theyrn affectßailway.
the position and prospects of the ~ Question 18.---` Were you a member of the railway
Great Western
confidence in their position as regards their em to
y- Between the years 188.4 and 1839,committee last year.'—` Yes.'
ere. But, as a matter of sober calculation, this very Canadian Legislature, by which the acts asked
the"Vureosutnaul9.—' What was the understanding when
prosperity is, in the present instance, a reason why Western Railway was constituted, and present
gave it distinctlyo recollect Guelphtt road
the understanding
passed the committee
was
? '
that—th'le
the operatives should expect a reverse. High prices power to construct lines of railway from Niagara Falls road was not to go further than Guelph.'"
and immense exportations cannot continue very through Hamilton and London, to Windsor and Port After discussion, the coin • mittee, upon division, passed
long, especially when the prime necessaries of life Sarnia. The scarcity of capital in Canada itself, and the following resolution on the 30th October 1852 •
are the things most affected by the rise in prices. other circumstances, tended to delay for several years
"Resolved,—That in the opinion .
In all speculations the idle and ignorant, who con- heoepraogrs progress
soufeah work which whichhd always been looked
would be unjust and impolitic to groafntthaiscComomTtitnteennist
stitute the majority of mankind, are apt to press
boardul at length thereforegrea endeavoured
provincial
tom importance.
' foreign
with the Great Western Railway, such as that asked by
in at the rear of success, pretty much as suttlersthe Toronto and Guelph Company, in the proposed extension
confidence in the undertaking. In their published ;e-
-and spoilers into the battle-field when the fight has ports they shadowed forth the idea of a trun line of rail- of
evidencetleei. r
adducedline frot
oGsuheort
ottoOsaeronmi am, Ithte,3reettaaetritnhgerbe bean no
been won. They hear that fortunes have been way, passing throughout the whole length of Canada. be more business than one line could do; that the province
made, and they rush in when the tide has ceased In 1849 they succeeded in obtaining an act of Parlia- hating taken interest to the extent of one-half the cost of the
to flow and is already on the ebb. Commercial pros- ment permitting the Government, under certain condi- road now chartered (being upwards of seven hundred and
perity must inevitably fluctuate. It must cut its tions, to guarantee the interest upon the bonds of rail- fifty thousand pounds), that interest, as well as the inte-
own throat after a time, as we are told in the well- way companies in Canada, and in 1850 they procured rest of the individual stockholders, should be protected.
This committee are of opinion that the extension of the
known lines, for, as prices continue to rise, they the passage of an Act of Parliament, authorizing Mu-
Toronto and Guelph Railway
Company should not be
exhaust wealth, check consumption, drain credit, nicipal Corporations to become shareholders in rail- granted."
companies.
and impede manufacture. It is a matter of wonder way
Acting upon the faith of these proceedings, which This resolution was reported to the house, and after a
that our present spell of prosperity has lasted so
were alwaysb held to be the recognition of the Great debate, was negatived, certain members of the Govern-
long rather than that it should now be on the
Western as the first step of a great provincial system ment, and now directors of the Grand Trunk Railway,
turn. But if the operatives in the north—and we ,of a trunk line of railway, the directors of the Great voting in favour of the extension to Sarnia. The act
suppose we may add those in all parts and all em- Western Company were enabled to procure the sup- was accordingly passed, with a clause appended, giving
ploymeuts—were well advised, or would only re- port of the leading railway authorities in the United the necessary power to construct the line from Guelph
fleet for themselves, they would see that, in the States,who had lines abutting on the two extremi- to Sarnia, such authority being comprised in a single
ordinary course of human affairs, the longer pros- ties f the Peninsula of Western Canada, which clause at the end of the bill, having no reference to
perity has lasted the less reason there is to expect found their best and most natural connection along the preamble or other parts of the act. The Govern-
its continuance, and that there cannot be a more the Great Western line. Subsequently, the completing ment guarantee was, however, refused to this line,
suicidal proceeding than to stand out for higher of a main trunk line through Canada was seriously dis-
which, it will be recollected, the Act of 1851 declared
wages or better conditions in a falling market. cussed, (tbhenprotmh promoters of the Great Western, be it kept should
thisonly
waaPsPlnyotte portions
e i loa
Legislature
e rteh et h
eTsrudniks
ti e
HI;
Everything is against men who enter on such a inm evn7a,ndei
acgcordine meelstthineficuaennatidal pantics in this move which
asserting their intention that Lse line should not bee distinctly
policy. The consumers want less, and the em- t
30th August 1851, pasysed an act hlawilliPicahr it
tmweans
p,roon
posed part of the Grand Trunk, and it is here necessary to state
ployers have less money and less credit for the ex- to construct the railway, under ay guarantee from the Im- that the Great Western Board, feeling alarmed at the
penses of trade, for materials, and for wages. Yet, penal government. In the 4th clause of that act, it is pro- threatened introduction of competition into the country,
when working men have once taken their stand on vided that "the whole of the Main Trunk line of railway, sent a deputation to Quebec to oppose the Guelph and
any list of demands, they find it impossible to re- from the city of Quebec, or a point opposite thereto, to the Sarnia line, and that at that time one of the directors of
cede, and will not recede till starvation drives city of Hamilton, or some convenient point on the Great this company was distinctly assured by Mr. Jackson
them. The common feeling of an organised class, Western Railroad, shall be made as a provincial work." that it never had been and never would be entertained
standing face to face with a, higher class, possibly And again in the 10th clause, it is provided that the to include the Toronto, Guelph, and Sarnia line as a part
both of them insolent and provoking, is something provincial guarantee, authorised by the act of 1849, of the Main Trunk. The fulfilment of this pledge will
imperious and uncontrollable. Thousands of men should be limited to the lines which form a part of the be found in the fact that in the Grand Trunk prospectus
will walk about a city, daily more squalid and wan, main trunk ; and after speaking of certain lines then this road is recognised as a part of the Grand Trunk,
only re-visiting their homes to see their wives and constructing by private companies, proceeds to say that while it turns out that Messrs. Galt, Holton and
children pining for lack of all things, rather than the guarantee shall be extended "to the Great Western McPherson, whose persistence in an independent course
succumb to masters they have once defied, or break railroad, which has been commenced and partly con- in regard to the road from Montreal west, would have
their word with their fellow-workmen. So &IR i - strutted on the faith of the said guarantee, and forms been fatal to Messrs. Jackson and Co.'s colossal contract,
cult is it to withdraw, that workmen should con- part of the said main trunk line." are found to have been awarded the contract for making
such Bider well before they plunge into
quarrels.
Upon the faith of these proceedings, plainly and con- the usurped section of the new project, to wit, this same
1 • 1
c usive y skewing the Great Western railway to be a Toronto, Guelph and. Sarnia line—a line which running
The first step may be ever so unadvised and unfor- " part of the main trunk series of lines," the directors through a comparative wilderness, and wanting as it did
tunate, but it must be persevered in, whatever theofthe
former were enabled to induce English capitalistsof localmunicipalities,well
the
co-operation the as as
consequences.
to embark move in the undertakin which even then the guarantee of the province, could not have been
,
We have been speaking of prosperity in its most presented great prospects of a re gmunerative result, attempted except with the assistance of Messrs. Jackson
solid form, that is, in the form of increasing de- although not so great as the existing circumstances now and Co. The history of these extraordinary parliamentary
mend, mend, production, and wages, and we have pointed h..oalnd out and which seemed, by the Acts of the Cana- proceedings is closed by the passing ofanaamcet in thended in thers
out that even this prosperity sometimes misleads dean Parliament, and reckless
to be protected against the adoption of part of the last session,. .and subsequently . .
same session, authorising the amalgamation with the
the workman by inducing him to calculate on its a If anything feesrsthsyerst?rn of competition.
Grand Trunk' of any lines which intersect it—thus per-
continuance. But there is another prosperity Great Western was apart isneored to indicate that the
mitting of amalgamation with the Toronto and Sarnia
which is altogether unreal and delusive. It is the found in the fact that the Canal
haentuonvke line, it rLairiebe line, ~
which i virtually to deprive the Great Western of
prosperity of increased luxury and show. When it impossible to procure the Imperial guaranteernme Government,
chartered rights, secured by specific act of the same
trade has been thriving for a few years the em- plated by the act of 1851, called into existence private Legisture.
ployers begin to put forth signs of sudden wealth, companies for constructing the trunk line between Mon- So matters rested until April last, the Great Western
such as the West Indian interest used to exhibit at tsrsents.nbd
nTrzronotioti; and in the required proclamation, Board feeling assnudrehdontohuatv
btlheadGhrearnedtoTtrhu:lk parties
certain intervals, but which we should in vain ex- i
this passyage, defininge Eevearntor in council, there occurs vonuoldt
iiavgfaithfully
anythinga to doaw?rth the Guelph arnir Soamrniae
pect after ever po long a spell of agricultural pros-
" Now know ye, that havingeual
taken
of the line—viz
in—teveruzr:of
line, and feeling secure in their being a part of the Main
perity ;—new mansions, with the most magnificentd
ghters royal consideration ; and bein desiroustheof premises
and Trunk, as so repeatedly and distinctly declared both by
upholstery, splendid equipages, sons and elle
promoting the interests of our said province. We have Parliament and the Government.
handsomely settled, costly fetes, with a correspond- directed and declared, and do hereby direct and declare, In the month of April, however, the Grend Trunk
ing enlargement of enterprise, in the shape of new. that thae iiianied
eMxLinadiTarouifarko Line of Railwtayoushall be
the Easternmatie prospectus was brought forward in England, and the
factories, that must be long before they can be in uponfrontier of our said province, shmereeagrato be determined surprise and deep regret of the directors of the Great
working order. Now, to argue that because a man
upon, to some point (hereafter to be fixed) in the parish of Western Company may be imagined when they found
or a whole class are launching out in this manner,
St. Joseph de la Point Levy, opposite or 'nearly opposite it to contain the Toronto and Sarnia line 'not as a feeder,
therefore they must be better able to pay wages, to the city of Quebec, running thence in as direct a line as but as the western section of the Grand Trunk l• • line ,
and can afford to do so for a longer continuance, is may be found convenient to the river St. Francis, in or and the existence of the Great Western line, the pioneer
aat best but workman's logic. A manufacturer who. neartht villaget the St.
ri
wehrmenocneda,uhdi the township of Shipton, of railway undertakings in Canada, the legal western
has just built a great house, or set up a son in bust- thence
city of ' '
t Atlantic Railroad to the part of the main trunk, and the line whose success and
Montreal, or some pow on the south shore of the
ness, or given a daughter a good dowry, or w
prospects had turned the eyes of English capitalists to
St. Lawrence, opposite or nearly opposite thereto, and •
is known to be throwing away money on the
further extending westward from thetof
Montreal
to this country, almost ignored. Nor is the answer of
turf or any other amusement, must so far have the city of Kingston, or some other point in or near l many, that no legislative or other effort can render the
less money for wages. Whatever his expenditure river St. Lawrence on Lake Ontario, in the vicinity of Great Western stock other than the best security and
may scent to show, its actual consequence must be Kingston aforesaid ; thence to the city of Toronto • investment in the province, any excuse for such a gross
diminished capital. The working classes, however, thence to the city of Hamilton, or some convenient outrage upon this company.
aro much more apt to be led by appearances than ittinnteeotnb thethe tetrooeittilvthee yils.restern Railroad, and The regret of the Great Western Board was much
to make a sober calculation, and they conclude/ said Great Western Railroad, which
hdimnga any part of the enhanced by finding the direction of the Grand Trunk
when they see a man spending his money, not that from the city of Hamilton to the may be
Niagara
aonstßitcyteerd mainly composed of the members of the very Govern-
he really has no much less, but that he must have as provided by an act of the said Legislature, Passed in the' ment whose acts from time to time have been here
so much more. We offer these remarks for the said session thereof, chaptered 74, and intituled, "An act pointed out, as securing to the.l
0. Great Western as a great
benefit of the working classes, because we have to extend the provisions of an act passed in the present public improvementd thoesepfrlrrtihee conferredll upon it by
found them ever insisting much on the splen- s session,tucuinotfitaut3idainali acutktiodemealse_ provision for the con-
hPaadrliament unlimiten d
itwed confidence.
dour as friendship they
of Railway throughout the reposed
dour and luxury of their employers, and putting length of their proviuruce." It is not perhaps for us in our capacity as directors of
forth a claim to a larger share in the spoil. "We What in • genuity or what sophistry they can assert that the company, to dwell at any length upon the extraordi-
have also known instances when a very few months the introduction of the line from Guelph to Sarnia is not nary and unprecedented position occupied by members
have undeceived them, by the downfall of their a breach of faith towards this company, and the intro- of the Government in forming a large part of the direc-
supposed wealthy employers, by the sale of houses, duction of competition into this country ? tion of the Grand Trunk Railway—thus securing an
land, furniture, and equipages, and the subsidence Again there is the fact, that the same Government at identification of the policy of the Government with that
of families into the class from which they sprang. the close of last year, actually advanced to the Great of the railway, and placing the former in the anomalous
It was then seen how little reason there was for I Western Railway Company, as part of the main trunk, position of having, as heads of the various departments
the inference that a man who spent money must and under the authority of the already quoted act of of the public service, to decide upon the propriety and
therefore be wealthy. But these cases are happily 1851, a sum of 200,0001 sterling. correctness of proceedings, which they themselves direct
as managers of the railway. This
rather the exceptions than the rule, and it is uncle- As has been said, the project of an imperial guarantee
rendered the more %
niable, as well as a matter of congratulation, that fa.itlehd,andit was therefore left to private companies,
have placed themselves, asextraordinary,directors
of thethe fact
GrandthaTt
Trunk
many the. assistance.of the provincial guarantee to.carry
many manufacturers have made, and are making,Railway, in hostility to the Great
out the various sections of the trunk line Accordingly, Western Company, and
large fortunes. Why should not their workmen, are therefore very peculiarly placed, as guardians of the
the Great Western Railway Company 'and its friends
then, it is demanded, participate more in their , applied in 1852 to Parliament forauthority to make a public interests, in viewing questions which are arising
advancement ? The workmen who ask this ques- 1 railway from Hamilton, their then Eastern terminus, to . between the two companies. But, as Great Western
tion little know how much it is to their advantage Toronto, which was granted ; the Act of Parliament Directors, we have a right strongly to denounce the
that such large fortunes should be made, how it containing the following words in the 2nd clause, viz.:— proceeding of introducing the Toronto and Port Sarnia
provokes competition, how it sets employer bid-
" The said railway shall be held to form part of the main line into the Grand Trunk scheme, as a breach of faith
ding against employer, how it creates a class above ! trunk line of railway, and the said company shall, accord- towards this company—a repudiation by the Govern-
the range of minor fluctuations, and so gives steadi- drat behalf,
complying with all the provisions of thaeultaw ion ment of the acts of the Legislature, which they, as tht .
thethat be entitled to the bnefit of th guar_ tee f Executive of the Province, were bound to carq ou
Less to trade, how it makes England what it is— province, to the extent and in the manner by law pro- and as the introduction into the country of that wild and
the seat of trade, because a place where wealth can ; vided."
reckless system of competition which has produced such
be won and enjoyed in perfect security. Little, I Here then is the Great Western Company carried disastrous results elsewhere, and which, if persisted in,
too. do they know how soon those large fortunes eastward as far as Toronto "as part of the Main Trunk will deprive the province of its fair prospects of getting
would melt away under the process of adjusting Line, and upon turning to the Grand Trunk Act itself, English assistance to any really sound enterprise
the wages of the employed into a speculative , it appears that it authorises that company to make a line , amongst us.
of railway from Montreal to Toronto thus cart in out
harmony with the profits of the employer. Com- • e • ' y g I It is only due to themselves to s ,
tate that the Direc-
the intention of all preceding acts, both of Parliament , tors of the Great Western Company took every necessary
pare town with town, and it will always be found 1
and the Government, of making the Great Western ' step to carry out the spirit of the arrangement, con-
that good wages go with large fortunes, and that
holders, upon the appear- l' The view
Railway a part of the Main Trunk Line. eluded by the English share
best ' entertained by the Canadian shareholders is
evinced h
in a town where large fortunes are not made the The proceedings which took place at the time that the•
.ante in England of the Grand Trunk prospectus, and
at the last y the following extract from the proceedings
working class find a corresponding difficulty in ris- Grand Trunk Act was before the Railway Committee of that t having to report that when, after some annual meeting of this company, viz.:—" To
they regre
maintaining themselves s •and
ing or even steadily the House of Assembly, must next be set forth, as bear- trouble, they obtained .. en interview with the Grand prevent further discussion the president, Mr. Harris, would
1 quest
"strikes," and still more are injured by combine- very important part of the present statement. i tin question had never been under the those against the amalgamation with any other
comfortably. Many a town has. been ruined by ing in conjunction with what has since taken place, a
Lions, which assuremanufacturerB that, in that place,
The present Prime Minister of this country proceeded
, Trunk board upon
the arrangement
`consideration of thethey the subject, were informed that re
Grand Trunk
direction ; take an ex •
pression of opinion from those present, and would
com an articularl the
and the the p y'
P y Grand Trunk, to stand up. All
stockholders present immediately stood up."

The great efforts which have been made to accomplish
the absorption of the Great Western Railway into the
Grand Trunk scheme—efforts which are visible in every
act of the latter, its ciirectors, contractors, and agents,
have compelled the present appeal to the shareholders of
the Great Western line. All that has been attempted in
this country by the Grand Trunk party has failed ; the
strong assertions and loud threats of the Grand Trunk
have failed in shaking the confidence of the Great
Western Board in the position which they have assumed
—the attempted cajolery of the Canadian shareholders*,
who know the facts and the localities, have had no effect,
and the voice of the country is universally condemning
the proceedings which are being resorted to to destroy
the independence of this company. Still the efforts
continue, and finding that all else has failed, we are now
assured on unquestionable authority, that the Grand Trunk
agents have sent to England to offer an amalgamation
of the two stocks at a considerable premium on the
Great Western shares.

This step of the Grand Trunk, has made the present
appeal to the shareholders impossible to be avoided, and
in the judgment of the directors, it is rendered the more
necessary, on account of the expectations understood to
be entertained by the Grand Trunk party, that they will
be able to influence (if not something worse) some of the
leading railway men in England, now connected with
the Great Western—a report which is evidently calcu-
lated to damage our case so essentially, however much
we ourselves may repose that confidence in our friends
in England, which their consistency and devotion to our
cause in times of greater difficulty, ought unquestion-
ably to justify.
Having pointed out the present position of matters in
this country, and having felt it to be their duty to ex-
pose the proceedings which have characterised the pro-
gress of the Main Trunk, the Directors of the Great
Western will now state a few facts which induce them
to recommend their shareholders, firmly to retain their
independent position, and under no circumstances what-
ever to listen to any overtures of amalgamation from
the Grand Trunk Company.
With this report two maps are enclosed. No. 1
shews the existing lines which have been chartered by
Parliament. From this it will be seen what a glaring
case of competition the Toronto and Sarnia line intro-
duces into this country, and it will shew the great ex-
tent of railway lines which will be constructed in a
small and limited district, provided the projectors can
induce foreign capitalists to supply the necessary funds.
The only lines actually progressing at this moment are
the Great Western, the Buffalo and Goderich, the To-
ronto and Guelph and the Erie and Ontario.
The others are all endeavouring to raise means to
carry on their operations.
Map No. 2 presents a different aspect. It will be seen
that upon it are laid down the lines of Railway in
the United States at both extremities of the Great
shortest and most facile connection between the two
tNiVo ens, t ear nn
d Railway,w hiwhich
h travel which these lines will carry
systems. The through
to and from the Great Western line, is immense ; and no
willwit hfiwn find which
hn
it
theis Ginreaftriewndelystecronnntehce-
States of America, can form any idea of the amount
it
no
securing fo r c
hhm theac
athk
Great
travelartesthe
etee
Great
rbe referred ya Westernt irbi
eiecs northernshut
twpiianl route,nhinge
of business which will be carried along the Great
iosnceonnosttaanctqlyuaflionwteidn
gwbiethtwteheen vthaset
Etaidsteernof
and
dvel
Westernwhich
Western line. Nature has placed that part of Canada
traversed by the Great Western in such a position, as
to make that line, in point of time and distance,
immeasurably superior to any other route which
can accommodate the same travel. Any attempt
which would be tried if the Grand Trunk succeeds
oftcho trafficen
toi
pniennitow,n of the best informed railway men on this
entire loss to Canada and its railways of that vast tide
stock on this side of the Atlantic.
Look at its feeders. On the one side of New York
Central lines, which have paid 10 per cent. dividend,
doubled their capital without making any calls upon
their shareholders, and with a traffic which is increasing
at the rate of 25 per cent. per annum, bidding fair even
now to pay 10 per cent, on its doubled capital.
On the other side, are the Michigan Central and
Southern lines, the first of which has paid dividends of
from 10 to 14 per cent., and is connected with about
1,500 miles of Railway, stretching through the most flour-
ishing districts of the vast and teeming west, the
travel of which will be drawn to Detroit and thence to
the Great Western.
Again the local business on the Great Western line
will be of such an extent as to present results, which
hardly any expectations which we might feel justified in
holding out, would at all approach. The position of
a WesternL i morenteo w
andotuhl
edw
Hamilton, at the head of navigation, will make it un-
questionably the place of shipment to the ports on Lake
Ontario and the St. Lawrence, for the whole of the
extensive district west of it.

IGe
districts
drOag 11
d tahT ne
Trunk
uwn
ndhmkotal
traffic
many
line
nyffiet hcyc eeawandhr i
years
dr
ceohc familiartuaosrr
e sa nsmyo
ouvansi
et! eolux
ai pnbi
nrje. eut sarsyn.c e
servedr
with
bs strong
ott nhh gee
and decided opinion, founded on extensive local know-
Great Western, that nothing but amalgamation with the
The Great Western line will, it is confidently ex-
pected, be in operation from Niagara Falls to Iramon the Ist of November ; it will be extended to London
by the beginning of the following month, and by the Ist
of January, 1854, will be opened for its entire length.
Its prospects are then about to be realised, and the di-
rectors cannot believe that the shareholders will be so
blind to their own interests as to listen to any suggestion
for merging those prospects into a gigantic scheme, for
which a spade has hardly been put into the ground west
of Montreal.
thetenddistricts,
i cs, further a
and
o f the
Canada stability
generally,of the
The directors of the Great Western will now proceed
briefly to indicate the policy which it seems to them
init°
than
should be followed at this juncture, a policy which in
ale' theopinion
t w
Western Railway as a permanent and safe invest-
went
stGshrreevi for capital, and will at the same time much better
a ened by the Grand
Trunk.
A reference to map No. 2 will show s
lines, coloured red, running from a system of lateral
the Great Western line. They consist of a short branch
to connect Malden (opposite the Southern Michigan
line), with the main hh
South to Port Stanle e---a line diverging at London
north-
wards, through
al
wild
wants
competition will
o f
i 8 tot rt
now threatened
yon Lake Erie, and another some of th •
Canada, to the e richest townships in Upper
Lake Huron point where the Sable empties itself into
line r •
unning south from Woodstock,