The Sun.
London, England, 1847-05-19 00:00:00

•... ~

. .
Mr. Thu POT and Mr: Seigeant Wlitionr.tafaddressed ''
Bth
Committee, the formei fdr!the 'Monlltaidsaliheral, and th
latter for tl le Sterling snd.punferinlitiif Company,flat
the preambl t, and Mr. Hodges for the. Edinburgh ind
gate. .
The Contimittes then adjourned till Thursday at twelve
o'clock.

.
•
COMMITTEES on PRIVATE BILLS.
• (YESTERDAY.) . • ' •
SUNDERLAND IMPROVEMENT AND MARKET
AND BRIDGE.BILL. • • • • •
The Committee on this Bill met in Room 16, at one o'clock,
and, after briefly hearing evidence, decided the preamble of
the Bill to ,De proved. '1 he clauses with several amendments
were then agreed to, and the Bill ordered to be reported to
the House. . • . . •

SA_NDIVICH HARBOUR (KENT) BILL.
This Committee met at twelve o'clock, in Room 17, and
were occupied throughout the morning with this BilL . •
The CIIAIRM.AN declared: the . preamble-proved. • '
The clauses were read and agreed to, and the Committee
adjourned. „

MANCHESTER' AND SOUTHAMP

. TON -RAITAVAT.
A special general meeting of th'e shareholders in this com-
pany, was held s esterday, shortly after
.two, at the King's
Arms Inn, Bridge-street, Wesiminstersin order,te enable the.
directors to communicate to tlite.shareholders the circum-,
stances which have brought their efforts; to a sudden and un-
favourable result, and of adviaing upon the measures it may
be expedient to pursue.
Mr. Walkinshaw, the Deputy-Chairman of the company,
was in the chair. . •
A considerable number of shareholders were present.
It will, no doubt, be within the recollection of the readers
of The Sun that the Bill was thrown out by the Standing
Orders' Committee, some material mistakes having been
proved'in the sections.
The CHAIRMAN called upon Mr. John Wheeler, the Se-
cretary, to read the report, of which the following is an
ample abstract :
Thdreport stated that— .
•
'" It would be remembered that, at the last assembling of
shareholdera in September, it wits unanimously iesolved to
appeal again to Parliament . agairkst the adverse decision of a
Comniittee of the House of Lords. *2 '
• "Anxious to ascertain hOle far • that resolution accorded-
with, the opinions of the proprietary at large, the directors
proceeded to call in the old scrip, giving to dissentients the
opportunity of receiving back the unexpended balance of
their deposits; and it is a gratifying fact that, out of a total
of nearly 90,000 shares, the holders of only 1,905 elected to
withdraw, which number was subsequently reduced to 1,240
by parties asking permission to resume the shares they had
elected to resign.
" This unusual concurrence of opinion being ascertained,
the directors gave instructions to their engineers to have the
line resurveyed—firstly, with reference to certain alterations
either promised to landowners, or desirable with a view to
economy, or to the convenience of the towns passed through ;
and, secondly, in the hope that perfect accuracy in the plans
and sections would thereby be obtained. The first object
was se successfully carried out as to reduce the estimate by
no less a sum than 140,000/. ; the latter purpose unfortunately
failed of accomplishment, under circumstances the explana-
tion of which the directors have thought it would be most
satisfactory to the shareholders to learn from Mr. Stephenson
himself.
"The shareholders will of course understand that the op-
position which has unfortunately checked the progress of the
undertaking, though conducted in the name of landowners,
ich aodm iptas a
yor iagi
oi nn
ew: ttnh,
eanendtirweasn upnatibdefroor
fb yen tohme
nGa rl
le ay
olhprpeos
st
ienr
gn
landlords being fourteen, each of whom (with two excep-
tions) did not represent an average of two acres of ground,
whilst the majority of them, the directors have the best rea-
son to believe, had been induced incautiously to sign docu-
ments from which they afterwards felt themselves unable
(though in almost every instance when applied to they were
not unwilling) to recede.
"Of bona fide landed opposition, grounded on actual
grievance, there was virtually none. The few cases still un-
settled at the close of the last session, involving any sub-
stantial repugnance to the line by reason of real or sup -
posed annoyance, were all disposed of before the standing
order investigation commenced.
"The directors had come to a friendly understanding with
the South-Western Company, which has since been embodied
in a formal agreement, bearing the seal of that company, and
extending over
miles of the line promoted by this company will, in all pro-
bability, obtain legislative sanction in this session by means
of a Bill promoted by the South-Western Company, and will
become, as to the larger proportion of it, the joint property
of that company and the Manchester and Southampton Com-
pany. (This Bill has passed theCommons' Committee.)
" So complete and satisfactory indeed is the change of opi-
nion towards this railway, in the governing body of the
South Western Company, that, in the great contest now
pending between them and their broad gauge antagonists, for
possession of the country westward to Falmouth, the Man-
chester and Southampton line is placed in the foremost
rank of argument in favour of the narrow gauge series of
lines, on the ground of its affording a narrow gauge commu-
nication for the northern manufacturing districts to the
south and west.
" On the other hand, the Great Western Company, who
succeeded in obtaining the rejection of the Bill by a device
discreditable to themselves, and too easily adopted by a
Committee of the House of Lords—that device being no
other than the production, at the last moment, of a so-called
minute of their board, pledging themselves to lay down a
narrow gauge from Oxford—a pledge which they had dis-
tinctly refused to give in the House of Commons—that same
Great Western Company have not only failed to lay down a
single yard of rail in fulfilment of their promise, but they
have this year, through their leading Parliamentary Counsel,
denied that any such specific pledge (albeit recorded) was
given by them, thus evidencing the utter insufficiency of
the pretext upon which this measure was rejected by one
branch of the Legislature, after it had received the deliberate
sanction of another.
"Of the two companies who constituted the only real op-
p_onenta of tl4litle, tixt ores4..becoTaity supporter and ad-
N.-W.lo;lnd the .owe} nov) seeks to escape from the fulfilment
of the conditions (unjust as they were) by which its tempo-
rary defeat was secured.
" The directors are accordingly prepared, after gathering
so far as has been practicable the opinions bf their share-
holders in various parts of the country, unanimously to re-
commend a renewed application to Parliament, on the ground
that now to withdraw would be to cast away the advantages
secured by a great outlay—advantages which they unhesi-
tatingly assert would have secured the success of the Bill in
this session, if it had obtained a position in Committee.
" They recommended this course, however, to those only
who continue to share their confidence in the undertaking.
To other parties it will be just, as it is expedient, that op-
portunity should be afforded to withdraw, receiving back the
unexpended portion of their deposits, and accordingly steps
will be taken, by dissolution of the company or otherwise,
forthwith to accomplish this object.
" The amount remaining for distribution the directors can-
not now definitely fix. A very short time will enable them
to specify the sum to be returned, and to determine the form
and terms under which it will be expedient, for those who so
elect, to prosecute the undertaking."
The CHAIRMAN expressed his deep regret, and the regret
of the directors, at the fate which the line had met with in
the Standing Orders' ;Committee, and also at the unavoid-
able absence of the chairman of the Company (Mr. John
Barker Mill) from indisposition; and after adverting to the
different feelings under which they now met the shareholders
to those on the last occasion, when the Bill had been rejected
by the House of Lords, he proceeded to say that if the share-
holders entertained the same enthusiastic feeling as they
did on that occasion, they had as much, if not
more, reason to entertain them now, as the Bill
had not been rejected on its merits, but simply
through a mishap. They had suffered shipwreck ; they were
like a vessel which bad been stranded through the inac-
curacy of their charts; but with the aid of a strong resolu
tion, such as the one they adopted at the last meeting, it
was quite capable of being again launched into deep water,
and by their enterprise conveyed safely into port.--(Hear.)
The expressions of feeling in favour of proceeding with the
Bill in the ensuing session had surprised himself and the di-
rectors, as letters had come in to this effect from various parts
of the country. (The Honourable Gentleman then
read a number of letters. The first was from
Lord Duncannon, the son ;of the late Lord-Lieu-
tenant, dated before his lamented father's death, and the
others were from Mr. Burt, of Manchester, from shareholders
in Glasgow, and from a number of shareholders holding 650,
500, 300, and from 100 to 200 shares.) The directors had
therefore come to the resolution to recommend the share-
holders to proceed with the Bill. Mr. Croskey, the Consul at
Southampton for the United States, stated in a letter, which
was read by the Chairman, that the American trade with
Southampton would shortly be materially increased, and
urging the shareholders to proceed. They were aware that
they had always considered it a desideratum to enter
into a friendly alliance with the South-Wee
Company, they had entered into an arrangement with
that company, which ' he believed had received its common
1e 1, which would in all human probability secure to the
laanchester and Southampton upwards of twenty-five miles
of the line which they had proposed to construct—namely,
from Andover to Southampton (in connexion with the Dor-
chester, the Bishopstoke, and Basingstoke lines), which had
received the sanction of a Committee of the House of Com-
mons. The South-Western proposed this Bill with
the best faith—they were anxious to promote the object
which they had in view, but it was understood that it should
only be proceeded with in the event of the Manchester and
Southampton failing—(Hear)—and the whole line north of
Romsey would be held as joint property between the Man-
chester and Southampton, if it should go on, and
the London and South-Western Company. They
had also made arrangements to run over a portion
of the Dorchester line at an equal mileage rate, and to have
the free use of the stations of the company, and every other
accommodation which they could afford. These arrange-
ments, at least, proved that the directors had not neglected
the interests of the shareholders, as that they had already
secured a portion of their line, which he trusted would ulti-
mately be carried out to its destination.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. ROBERT STEPHENSON, the engineer, stated that the
surveys of such an extensive line as the Manchester and
Southampton had been entrusted to a number of persons,
and that unless they all worked in unity and with ac-
curacy, the final plans stood a chance of being in-
correcte ; this, he regretted to say, had been the
case case in the present instance, as the assistants had not wneel
in unison, and consequently mistakes had occurred, khinh
had caused the defeat of the Bill in the Standing
for
Orders' Committee. It would
be unnecessary
him to enter into the details, as he feared that
he could not make them comprehensive to the meeting.
He would state,
that he was a large shareholder,
and that he stilf however,
entertained the
opinionbrought that the line was as
forward—(Loud
legitimate a one as had everbee been ught
cheers)—because the country through which it passed
must
have a railway.—(Hear,
hear.) It must not
simply be regarded as a local, but as a national line
having
its termini in Southampton and in Lancashire—
(Cheers)—and any line achieving that in the best possible
manner, and economically, as this line would, must be sue
cessful.—(Hear.) With the view, therefore, of redeeming
what had taken place to the utmost of his power, he had pro.
posed to the directors to forego all engineering expenses for
the future survey of that line—(Loud cheers)—and also, at
his own cost, to reinstate the line in the position it should
have occupied this session, by carrying the Bill through the
standing orders next year, without any further expense.
The report was then received and adopted, and
resolutions
were passed desiring the directors to proceed with the Bill
next session, but allowing any one to withdraw who might
think proper to do so ; also thanking the directors for their
exertions during the past and present year.
In reply to questions,
The CHAIRMAN stated that a small additional deposit
would be necessary, but that it would not exceed ss. or 6s.
All the accounts had not been sent in, but those who
thought proper to withdraw could receive the amount to
which they were entitled as soon as possible, and
the remainder at no very distant day; he could not, however,
state the exact amount.
A vote of thanks having been passed to the chairman and
directors, the meeting (which was the most numerous one we
Over attended) broke up.