The Sun.
London, England, 1849-04-12 00:00:00

should have been included in the purchaFe above
lerred to.

Mr. CN.yto7.—Yon st:itecl ftf-...t Mr. 1.1(,,;-; v4ut.d the
151. sL.Iro:;, 11. 10.. pail, at 24g. 5.,. S''are• It
apvars to me, from the doeual,•;:t. rut in,ltt-
-21/ 53. 3,1. How 0o 3,,,t1 ~ccount for tbo dis-
erf puley?—Mr. Plows work-ti out in ciettili the 10'3!.
shn.ro, ;he 40/. sharr:s, an.:l the 30/ shars. but not the
is!. shares; there art, tNo stat,tu,nts with rtif.]renc'e to
the 15/ ,hark, on the side on whi,h the 15/. shares 1:r!-:
put; I took from the first line 211., anl 3/. 3 61 from
the last line, thinlittg the two tog; ;her r,presental the
value of the 15/. shares.

Mr. Clayton—l assume you would not be ignorant of
the market values of these shares on the Stock Exchange
on the 27th October, 1816. Be so good as to state them,
and the difference between that market price and the
sum paid to Mr. Hudson for these shares?—The price
of the 1001. shares in the London market on the 27th
October, 1846, was 2371; Mr. Hudson in excess 2/. 15s.
per share, or 415/. ss. The price of the 40/. shares was
61i, Mr. Hudson's price being 631, or 1/. 15s. per share
in excess, or 5981. 103.; the 30/. shares 55/. per share,
Mr. Hudson's price being 2/. in excess, or 1821.; the
15/. shares, the market price was 211 on that day, whilst
Mr. Hudson received 23/. 103., being 2/. 10s. per share
in excess, making, in the total, 7,185/.
Mr. Love—Did the directors at the meeting of the
board authorise the purchase of these shires of Mr.
Hudson?—There is no minute to that effect.

Mr. Love—Have they passed a resolution, authorising
the purchase of any shares; and if so, when?-0n re-
ferring to the minute. book I fail no resolution to that
effect.

Mr. Love—Were the shares, amounting in total value
to 81,1001., paid for on the 27th October, 1846, delivered
on that day ?—(After being allowed an opportunity of
referring to the books of the company) I believe they
were, but cannot be positive.
Mr. Love—Mr. Close, please deliver to this committee
the certificates of registration fur the shares represented
by the sum of 81,1001—I produce the whole of the cer-
tificates of shares sold by Mr. Hudson, but I urn unable
to identify the individual shares represented by 81,100/.
paid for on the 27th October, 1846.
Mr. FLEWS examined.

Mr. Clayton—Mr. Plews, were you a director of both
companies, Great North of England, and York, New-
castle, and Berwick, in Oct. 1846?—Mr. Ptews—l was.

Mr. Prance—Do you admit that you were requested
by the York and Newcistle board to determine what was
a fair price at which they should purchase certain Great
North of England shares of Mr. Hudson, of which he
had become possessed?—Mr. Oxley and myself, at the
board meeting of Oct. 26, 1846, were requested to make
a calculation as to the intrinsic value to the company of
the different classes of Great North of England shares,
but I was not aware the calculations were required to
buy Mr. Hudson's shares; I was not aware he possessed
any excepting two 100/. shares, which stood in the com-
pany's books in his name.
Mr. Love—As one of the directors of the Great North
of England and the York and Newcastle Companies, was
there ever a proposition made to you to purchase of Mr.
Hudson his shares? Mr. Pie 7f S-Never.

Mr. Love—Did you ever know that the company had
purchased shares of Mr. Hudson?—l never did.
Mr. Clayton—lf Mr. Close, from your valuation,
which has been put in, has assumed that you valued 151.
shares, 11. 10s. paid, at 24/. 3s. 6d. per share, has ho or
not made a mistake?—He has; decidedly so.
Mr. Love—Would you have recommended the com-
pany to have purchased of any party, in October, 1846,
the Great North of England 100/. shares at 2401. per
share, the 40/. shares at 63/. ss. per share, the 301. shares
at 57/. per share, and the 15/. shares at 231. 10s. per
share?—lf the current market price at that time was, as
I believe, 236 i. I should not have recommended the pur-
chase at 240; similarly, with regard to the 401. shares, I
should not have recommended a purchase at 63.1, having
sold my own shares to a friend at 62. The 301. shares I
should not have recommended to be purchased at 57, the
market price being 54k. With regard to the purchase of
the 151. shares, I certainly should not have recommended
their purchase at a higher price than my own calcula-
tion of 211 ss. 3d. per share, the calculation handed in on
the 26 h October, and produced by Mr. Close.
Mr. Clayton—Do you believe that any one can have
paid, or any one received, so high a price as 231 for 151.
shares, unless in mistake?—l think not.
Mr. Prance—Do you believe the intrinsic value of 151.
shares was 211. ss. 3d. in October, 1846?-1 do.
Mr. Prance—Can you reconcile this with the fact that
you yourself sold 100 shares, September 3, 1846, at 17ii
premium ?—I can. I sold my shares because I wanted
the money.
Mr. Love—Would you not, for the same reason, have
recommended the company to have waited until they
could have purchased their shares on equally advantage-
ous terms ?—Certainly, bad I thought the shares would
have fallen; but, having made calculations, which I did

on the 26th October, and knowing that about 300,00 th

must in a few days he in the hands of the bankers be-
longing to this company, the call having been made on
that day, I would have recommended the purchase, even
at rather higher than the market price.
Mr. Shield—lf you could not have obtained Great
North of England 1001., 401., and 301. shares i❑ the mar-
ket at the prices then current, % ould you in such case
have recommended the purchase of these shares at the
prices paid to Mr. Hudson ?—No ; I would have given
2401. for 100/. shares. I would have given 09/. 10s.
for 401. shares. I would have given 561. 103. for 301.
shares.

Mr. Shield—How much do the prices paid to Mr.
Hudson exceed the estimate ?—I do not know of my
own knowledge of any shares bought of Mr. Hudson.
Mr. Shiell—ls it your opinion that a very large qul-
tity of shares could have been bought in the market
without any material advance on the prices then current?
I should think the market price would be raised.
Mr. Prance— Do you think that the sale of any con-
siderable number of shares would no-, have equally had
the effect of depressing the market value?—l think it
would, unless there were large buyers in the market at
the same time.

Mr. Prance—Should not your answer to the previous
question, " I should think the market would be raised,"
have, in propriety, a similar limitation, viz., unless large
sellers happened to be a!so iu the market?—l suppose it
would.

Mr. Love—As director of the York, Newcastle, and
Berwick Company, would you have thought it good
policy to have appeared in the market as buyers of Great
North of England shares, the moment you had power to
do so, at prices, by your own calculation that would leave
a very small remuneration to the company, when you
had upwards of three years and a half allowed you to
take advantage of the market?—The answer I gave to
the former' question equally applies—that having 300,0001.
in the hai,ds of the bankers, I should have bought the
shares at the prices I beforo named, excepting the 151.
shares, which I should not have bought beyond 211. 53. 3d
per share.

THURSDAY, MARCH 8.
Mr. PLEW'S Examination resumed.
Mr. Prance—Have you anything to correct, or any-
thing to add to your testimony ?—I sold the residue of
my 15/. shares through Mr. Faulconer, whose contract I
exhibit, at 21/. per share; and on the 29th October, 1846,
I sold forty-five 151. shares belonging to Mr. John
Church Boathouse, at 211 53. per share; on the 26th of
November, 1846, Mr. Prance bought four 151. shards at
21/. 10s. per share. A charge has been made against me
in the public prints of having given a bonus of 2,800
shares to Mr. Hudson to induce him to purchase the
IGreat North of England Railway. Mr. Hudson never
4keceived one share, nor any director of the York, New-
ca-stle, and Berwick Railway, excepting Mr. Oxley and
myself, who were the managing directors of the Great
North of England Railway, and who received twenty 151.
shares each. At the time of the agreement for the par-
chase of the Great North of England Railway, Mr. Ilud-
son had no shares in the Great North of England Rail-
way registered in his name.

Mr. Love—When did the York, Newcastle, and
Berwick Company resolve to buy up the Great North of
England shares?—To the best of my recollection, I think
it would be at the meeting of the directors held 26 ai Oc-
tober, 1846.

Mr. Love—Of c3urse such an important resolution
would be entered in the minutes in the company's books
on that day?—l suppose it would.
Mr. Love—Be so good as to look at the minute-book;
do you find on that day, or any subsequent day, any
minute of the board of directors directing or authorising
the purchase of any of the shares of the Great North of
England Company. (After looking through the minute-
book, M. Plews said)7-I do not.