The Sun.
London, England, 1849-02-09 00:00:00

92bition

SUN OFFICE, Seven o'Clock.

NORTH WALES RAILWAY.
(THIS DAY).
A meeting of proprietors in this company was held
this afternoon at the Guildhall Coffee-house.
Mr. LEADEN presided. Re alluded to the utter im-
possibility of the undertaking ever being carried out
with profit to the proprietors, and stated that
there were too few inhabitants residing between the
two termini to make use of the line if it were
constructed. He then proposed the following re-
solution :—" It having been found inexpedient to perse-
vere in the construction of the North Wales Railway,
and it being advisable to invest the property of the com-
pany to tke best possible advantage consistent with its
safety, until the affairs of the company are wound up,
and authority having been given to the directors to rea-
lise a higher rate of interest, the proprietors hereby
express themselves satisfied with the chairman and di-
rectors, and place every reliance and confidence in their
integrity, and likewise in the security of the funds."
Mr. BUTT said, he was taken by surprise when he
heard that motion. how could he express himself satis-
fied with the investment of the money when he knew
not how it was invested?—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. HERAPATH said, he concurred entirely with the
expression of Mr. Butt, and he would ask again, to
whom the money was lent? lie understood security had
been given for it in the shape of Thames Haven shares,
which had been bought up at the rate of ls. per share.
By what authority had the directors taken it out of
the Joint-Stock Bank, and placed it'out among their own
relatives and friends?—(llear.) The bank were allow-
ing 4 per cent, for it, anti he had no hesitation in saying
that they would have given 5 per cant. at the time if
application had been made to them. He dissented from
the resolution, and hoped that the whole of these mat-
ters would be: thoroughly inquired into when they came
before the House of Lords.
Mr. CHADWICK said he had attended the meeting, hav-
ing had an invitation to that effect, for the pnrpese
of setting right any misconceptions that might
have crept into the minds of the shareholders
Mr. Archer, who was the first promot( r of the line,
came to him and brought some very strong letters from
parties who had:connexion with other lines, calling at-
tention to the very great advantages which this under-
taking would afford. One was from Mr. Ormsby Gore,
and another from Sir George Rennie, and they made it
appear to him that it would be the high road between the
metropolis and Dublin. and, therefore, could not fail to
pay. It was said that thcChester and Holyhead would never
succeed, and that the Menai Straits could not be crossed
except with great difficulty, and at an enormous expense;
and it was upon the representation of parties of such
great respectability that Le was induced to join the com-
pany. He allowed his name to go forth as a party
t. the scheme, and the names of a number of
gentlemen locally interested having been obtained, no
difficulty arose in getting the required fund. Haynie',
however, been subsequently convicced that a line from
Bangor to Port Incline would never succeed, he eralaa-
voured in every possible way to discourage the share
holders proceeding with it. At the meeting in
May last, they carried r, solutions for the abandon-
ment of the undertaking, end at every subsequent
meeting those resolutions had been confirmed. A reso
lution was passed at the last general meeting sanctioning
ull the proceedings of the directors w ith reference to tht in
vestment of the money, and directing that the money should
be returned to the shareholl rs pro rata, and lie main-
tained they had carried out the spirit of these resolutions.
If the line had been carried out, he was sure that not a
shilling would have been returned in the shape of a divi-
dend. In this, as well as in other lines, he had been the
means of saving an immense sum of money, which, if
expended, would have been entirely unproductive. The
best proof that their money had been saved was to be
seen in :the fact, that if there had not been a
vexatious law suit, nearly every shilling would have
been returned.—(Hear, hear.) The directors had thought
that it would be advisable to lay out the money at the
very beat interest until they had compulsory power to
dissolve the company. Money at call was now every
day being lent at 2 per cent. on the Stock Exchange,
and, therefore, unless the directors had chosen some other
medium, the interest to return would be very small. He
had only to say, in conclusion, what. had been done by
the directors was entirely under the authority given at
various meetings of the shareholders.
The CHAIRMAN said Mr. Butt laboured under a mis-
apprehension in supposing that ho was a director.
.5.1 r. BUTT thought the meeting had been called by
the directors.

The CHAIRMAN said it was no such thing. With
regard to the interest on the A and C shares, the
directors were so lampooned upon that matter that they
were obliged to adopt the course they did.
The le solltioa was then put and carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN then moved a resolution to the effect
that the shareholders had seen with regret the course
pursued by Lord Monteagle, in summoning their chairman
before the House of Peers, to force from him an invidious
disclosure of the accounts pending a legal inquiry into
the affairs ofjtbe company,:tending to depre. late the shares,
and to produce and prolongue litigation.
Mr. HENDERSON, in seconding the resolution, said
Mr. Archer, the originator of this company, was highly
censurable for the manner in which he had persecuted
the Chairman of the company. He seconded the reso-
lution, not only as a shareholder, but as a member of the
eneral public, and with the permission of the meeting, he
would explain the past and present position of the con.
cern. Some time ago the directors in violation
of the law, but for the advantage of the share-
holders lent the funds of the company to the South-
Western Company at 3i per cent., the public securities
at the time in which the law said their money should
be invested, not offering more than 2i. In due
course the money was repaid by the South-
Western, and then it was advanced to the
Richmond Railway Company at 4 per cent.
Eventually the money was a second time repaid to the
company, and as at that period the public securities and
bankers of the country offered a very insignificant in-
terest for money, the chairman and directors were au-
thorised to invest in private securities. After that a
meeting was called by the chairman to consider the best
course to be adopted by the company, and at that meet-
ing, notwithstanding the opposition of Mr. Archer,
Mr. Buckley Hughes, and their friends, the shareholders
determined to abandon the undertaking and divide the
funds pro rata. Mr. Archer, however, and others, had
thrown the matter into Chancery, and now Lord Mon-
teagle had taken it up, in the hope that he would work
it up into a case to support his Railway Account Bill.
But he would take the liberty of warning the meeting
that Government accounts were not the best managed
in the world. They had a proof of this in the
Exchequer-bill forgeries, of which, no doubt, Lord
Monteagle bad a tolerably good remembrance, and as
these lawsuits and this intermeddling with their affairs
on the part of the House of Peers was keeping them
out of their money, he was not sorry that this meeting
had been called to pass these resolutions.
Mr. HERAPATH wished to ask Mr. Chadwick whether
he had not lent a large amount of the funds of the com-
pany upon the security of 500 North of France Shares.
Mr. CHADWICK had no objection ;whatever to give
the meeting all the information he could, but he must
protest against being cross-examined in this way.
Mr. JENNINGS could really see no reason for Lord
Monteagle singling out this little company for illustrat-
ing the abuses of the railway system. It was well
known that there were abuses in all companies, and
from the highest to the lowest—from the London
and North-Western down to the little Thames
Haven, they could find instances in all where
some violation of the law had taken place.
—(Hear.) He, therefore, must protest against the
proceedings of the House'of Lords, more particularly as
the matter was in Chancery, and that Court afforded the
fullest guarantees that the affairs of the company would
be sifted to the bottom. It was on that accotint awuste
of time and labour for the House of Lords to investi-
gate the questions in dispute, and he hoped they would
have the good sense to stop their proceedings.
Mr. BUTT said they had nothing to do with the pro-
ceedings of the House of Lords. They had met there to
discuss the position of the company, and he thought
they ought not to abuse the Peers for exercising their
privileges.
The resolution was then put and carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN said the next resolution was this:—
" That a committee be appointed from this meeting to
draw up and cause a petition tor be presented to the
House of Lords, expressing thelee mgs of this meeting,"
The resolution having been seconded,
was put and
carried unanimously, after which thr......ee gentlemen, were
selected to form the committee.
A vote of thanks was then passed to the Chairman for
his able conduct in the Chair.
Zi The CHAIRMAN in acknowledging the compliment,
said be considered Mr. Chadwick was an ill-used
man. He had been instrumental in preventing
large sums of money being squandered on these worth-
less schemes, and it was too bad that he should be
abused in this way. He could tell them, however, that
recently a large and influential meeting was held at the
London Tavern to thank Mr. Chadwick for the services
he had rendered to the railway world, and at that meet-
ing the opinion of his friends was ;conveyed to him in a
very substantial form.
The meeting then broke up.