The Sun.
London, England, 1849-05-18 00:00:00

SON'S STATEMENT.

Mr. DIVETT presented a petition from 31 share-
holders in the Eastern Counties Railway Company re-
siding in Devonshire, making certain grave charges
against the Hon. Member for Sunderland in his capacity
of chairman to that company. He (Mr. Divett) had
furnished that Honourable Member with a copy of
the petition, and therefore it would be unnecessary
to trouble the House with a statement of the charges in
detail. The prayer of the petition was that the House
would inquire fully into the charges, and, in the event of
their being proved, expel that Hon. Member from the
House.

The petition was read by the Clerk at the table.
Mr. CHARTERIS also presented a petition from
sixty shareholders in the Eastern Counties Company,
complaining generally of the mismanagement of
the affairs, and stating that that mismanage-
ment commenced almost as soon as Mr. Hudson
and Mr. Waddington, both Members of the
House, had become respectively chairman and deputy-
chairman of the company, and had also taken place
while Mr. Bagshaw, another Member of the House, was
upon the directory. The petition concluded, like the
former one, by a prayer, that an inquiry might be made
into the conduct of each of those three gentlemen.

Mr. HUDSON then rose and appeared so deeply
affected that he was unable to proceed for a few moments.
He said he came down to that House immediately upon
receiving a copy of the petition from the Hon. Member,,
although with considerable difficulty, owing to a severe
domestic affliction.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") He
thought he was, therefore, entitled to the indulgence
of every Member in the House while he offered
to it some explanation, and some observation with re-
ference to those two petitions which had just been pre-
sented to the House.—(Repeated cries of "Hear, hear.")
If he had been guilty of the practices which had
been imputed to him with respect to the
capital and the revenue, without fair and sufficient
reason, it might be, perhaps, that he had done so
through some error, but he could aesure the House that
it was not an intentional error on his part.—(Hear,
hear.) His first connexion with the company was in
1845, he believed in the month of October. He received
a deputation from the board with a requisition,
signed by seven-eighths of the shareholders, soliciting
him to become their chairman. He, at first, had some
objection to take upon himself the office, but after some
pressure he consented to do so. Before then he had
no shares in the company, nor any interest in it, and, in
fact, he was not connected with it in any way whatever.
When he joined it he endeavoured as much as possible to
benefit the shareholders and to effect fur that pur-
-1 pose an arrangement with the then projected
London board. Upon his accession to the office
he devoted himself as anxiously and as assiduously
to his duties as he possibly could.—(Cheers.) He
believed that the first charge was that he had raised
the dividend for the first half-year from 33. to 9s. without
any change in the circumstances of the affairs of the com-
pany. Now, when he stated the facts of the case, he thought
that the House would agree with him that the statement
that there was no change in the circumstances of the
company was not correct. Atter incidentally stating
that the shares were higher in the market before he
became connected with the company than they had
ever been since, he said that the gross income for the
half-year ending July, 1845, was 114,0001., and that in
the next half-year it 11.4. d risen to 173,0001., showing an in-
crease of nearly 60,000 L Ile thought that the House would
consider was some justification forgiving a higher divi-
dend. No two persons seemed to agree as to the ac-
counts. As far as the dividend was concerned, he thought
there was ample reason for recommending the
one he had. It was said that the capital
had been raised from 5,000,000/. to 10,000,0001. That
was not true either. It was said the capital of that
company when he joined it was 2,900,0001., and 13,0001.
in the Northern and Eastern Company, but instead ut
the capital being 2,900,0004 it was 4,300,0001.,
while the addition of a bonus of 1,000,0001., increased
it to 5,300,0001, or 5,500,0001. He had to complain
most deeply of the unfair preceedings of the committee
of investigation. He had no notice given whatever with
respect to it, he had no knowledge of what
was passing in that committee—no information was fur-
nished to him except three or four written questions.
—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") He had nu notice that
such a charge was to be made against him as an indi-
vidual, and when he called upon them yesterday morning
with a friend, to see the real position in which he
was placed—to see the document which (purported to
be in his handwriting, and some of the figures of which
it was said he had altered; he had great difficulty in
seeing that document, and when he did see it, he was
told that no other person should be permitted to
see it but himself: When they did consent to let him
see it, two of the committee came into the room, and
said ey only gave him that permission that he tmid
ask no questions nor receive any information.—(Hear.)
Now what did the House think of such conduct as that?
—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear," and cheers.) He was
sure but one opinion would prevail among Englishmen
with respect to this—namely, that he should have fair
and just information furnished him, when a specific charge
was made against him, in order that he might have a fair
opportunity of answering it.—(Hear.) But would the
House believe it?—that on the testimony of the two gen-
tlemen who were present, and he dare say he could bring
forward hundreds of others, to prove the same—that not
one figure in that document was in his handwriting.—
(Cheers.) He utterly denied that the document
had been altered by him at all.—(Hear, hear.) As far
as he could understand the charge made in the report by
the accountant, it was t his, that he had altered the sum
of 10,0001., and turned it into capital. Nov, he denied that
he, iu his individual capacity, had altered tne figures at all.
But with respect to the mistake which he had committed
he cautioned the House not to pay too much credence
to that committee. It was stated by that committee that
he authorised the change of 115,000/. from revenue to
capital. Ho had no, hesitation in saying that he did
not authorise anything of the kind. But this com-
mittee seemed to be a singular one indeed, for he
found, from looking at the working expenses of this line,
that the published account showed that those working
expenses were 1,2501. per mile. The committee made
those working expenses 1,5501. per mile. Now the
London and Birmingham is worked at 39 per
cent., the Great Western at 40 per cent., and
the Leeds and Lancashire at 39 per cent.
They would have the House believe that this line
could be worked at 55 per cent. This was brought
forward against himself as a grave charge. If it were
true he should deeply regret that he bad been betrayed
into such an error; but he thought the House would
agree with him that the committee which had reported in
such a manner, and with such an animus, bad shown
that they were not now entitled to that credit from the
House which the report, if it had only appeared yester-
day, would have been entitled to. It was insi-
nuated that he had done this for the sake of profit,
but he totally denied it. Let Honourable Gentle-
men search the share register of the company,
and they would find him registered without
change for the stock for which his name was registered
when he first joined the eompany.—(Loud cries of
" Hear, hear.") He still held the stock which he first
owned when he joined the compan—.—(Hear, hear.) He
did not know any other point which called for
explanation. The accountant stated distinctly that any
alteration that was made, was made by the directors;
therefore the petition ought not to have been directed
against him (Mr. Hudson) alone, but against the
directors as a body.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.")
Ile held a joint responsibility with those directors.
He never signed a cheque of the company he
believed in his life. He had merely presided
over that company, and he had endeavoured, erroneously,
to do his duty. He might have taken too sanguine a
view of this undertaking; but he was a sufferer along
with the rest from that too sanguine estimate. But
he was convinced that this undertaking would yet amply
remunerate the shareholders, if the expenses were kept
down, and it had been his anxious endeavour to force
down those expenses. He threw himself upon the
House ; he was perfectly ready to bow to any decision
it might come to; he dented that ho had sought to en-
!lance the shares, or to give an undue value
to thou. When he joined the employ there

was scarcely a day without a serious a-cident
happening on the line, end large sums of money
had to be expended on the stock of the com-
pany. The Reuse would see from a report that
had been published that morning that another company
had placed 150,0001. to capital, which ought to go to
revenue, and that chairman, instead of being blamed by
the committee, was praised and extolled by them.—
(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") What ought to go to
capitals and what to revenue? The Grand Junction
charged 14,0001. for repairs, which was taken from capital
and paid to the company. There was a charge about
interest. Why, Parliament had sanctioned that pay-
ment out of capital constantly, and he did not know why
one law should apply to the Eastern Counties Company,
and another to any other company. He was driven
to discharge duties of many kinds, and ho left them
to deal with the petition as they might deem best and
proper. He had no other explanation to give than his
total denial that the share figures were in his hand-
writing, or that he altered them in any way in the
paper.—(Loud cheers from the Opposition benches.)
Mr. WADDINGTON said it was his most painful
duty to have to follow the Hon. Member for Sunderland,
and he would do so briefly in the observations which he
had to address to the House. He shculd not
have thought it necessary to address them if
he had not thought some explanation was
due from him. In that petition he was charged with
being a party to deceiving the shareholders with respect
to something like 9,000,0001. of money. He availed
himself of this opportunity of first calling the atten-
tion of the House fur one moment as to how those state-
ments made their appearance. They appeared from the
report of the investigation committee; and his object iu
rising was to claim the indulgence of the House to detail
a few of the proceedings of that investigation committee
as regarded himself, inasmuch as the House had an in-
terest in his character and in defending him from
statements to which he . was not a party.
He had, however, alluded to this on a former occasion,
when a committee of the shareholders made a charge
against him, and which a Committee of that House was
appointed to investigate. Ha wished now to allude
to it, inasmuch as when he recently addressed the
shareholders he charged the committee of investigation
with having inserted a clause which many of their
body looked upon as expunged, and which was obviously
incorrect. He, therefore, called upon the House to bear
in mind the evidence given before the Committee ap-
pointed by the House, inasmuch as he had not the op-
portunity of correcting any statement which might have
been made before it. With respect to what
had fallen from the Honourable Gentlemen (Mr.
Hudson) in reference to the alteration of the document
not being i❑ his handwriting, all he wished to say was
that having denied that it was in his handwriting, he had
nothing more to say upon the point. He should not
trouble the House with the details referred to in the
report of the committee, believing that it would
not be edified by them. He had already
stated that the amount of liabilities mentioned by the
committee was incorrect. He reiterated that statement
now, and had to complain that the committee had not
given him an opportunity of answering the statement
during the sitting of the committee. With respect to
investigation, he should be happy to bow to any that
the House might think proper, believing that they would
come to the determination that during the last three
years of his life he had devoted every faculty of his mind
to promoting the present and future a elfare of the Eastern
Counties Railway, and if he had erred in judgment, they
were simply errors. He had done all in his power to promote
the prosperity of the line, and to put it in a healthy:con-
dition.

Mr HUDSON again rose, and said he was sure the
House would allow him to explain a matter which he had
forgotten to mention. He was merely going to show
the incorrectness of the report of the committee
respecting the amount of money stated to have been car-
ried over to revenue and capital. The committee had
forgotten that 720,0001., according to the rules laid down
for the working of the line, was due from another com-
pany to the Eastern Counties, and not 115,0001., as was set
down by them, and which ought to have been charged to
revenue. This showed that they were wrong in this as
well as in other matters. Besides, they had put figures
down three times over, and therefore, the House could
not place much reliance upon such a report.
Mr. BAGSHAW said he stood i❑ a different position
to the Honourable Gentleman the Member for Sun-
derland. The petition stated that there were
certain members of the board of the Easter Counties
Railway who held no shares (as we understood the
Hon. Member). Now he was one of these, as he was
principally connected with the Northern and Eastern
Railway. It appeared that out of 14,000 proprietors but
60 had been found to sign the pc tition in question. He
owed no.allegiance to them; but as a Member of that
House he owed it an allegiance, which he was perfectly
ready and willing to acknowledge, and bow tu—and
not being a very young Member, he wished to state,
that if ho were capable of acting as the Honourable
Gentleman (Mr. Charteris) had stated the
directors had acted, he should have been un-
worthy of u seat in that House. As a member of the
Northern and Easter❑ he wished to state that the di-
rectors of that railway had had a meeting to-day,
the whole matter was gone into by his colleagues,
and he might be permitted to say that he had been una-
nimously elected to a seat in the Eastern Counties
Board by the self-same gentlemen who hal formerly
sent him back. In Justice to Mr. Hudson, he
thought it right to state that the last time he went
into Norfolk—last year—he, said to him, in the
agony of spirit—" Mr. Bagshaw, I have been greatly
deceived in these matters." So touch he (Mr. Bagshaw)
was bound to say. There were s,v,ral other matters in
the Hon. Gentleman's speech which he should, how-
ever, leave untouched.

The peiiti .n was then ordered to lie on the table.
Mr. COBDEN presented petitions from Diss and
other places praying for a repeal of the malt tax. •
CONVICT EMIGRATION.

Mr. AGLIONBY presented a petition from the New
Zealand Company against convict emigration.
Mr. J. S. ‘VOItTLEI presented several petitions in
favour of the Marriaee -13111.

Mr. Alderman HUMPHERY presented a petition
from Southwark in favour of financial reform.

NEW HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT.
Mr. PACKE gave notice of his intention on an early
day to move an address to her Majesty, stating the want
of accommodation in the present House of Commons,
and praying that her Majesty would order the New
House to be ready next session.