The Sun.
London, England, 1847-11-27 00:00:00

SATURpAie

two years, but especially during the last tweiva
months, the deposits in all the banks throughout the
kingdom have been gradually diminishing, having
been withdrawn for the purpose of paying ' calls
and buying bonds;' the supply of money to the
bill-brokers has consequently been decreasing, while
the demand from the commercial and manufac-
turing districts has been increasing. And the ne-
cessary consequence of a diminished supply and an
increased demand has been a great rise in the rate of
interest. It would be a most striking and instructive
comparison, were it possible to be made, between the
amount of deposits in 1845, when the rate of interest
was three and a half per cent., and the present mo-
ment, when it is from seven to nine per cent. Such
a comparison would show that a large portion of
the capital which was disposable for commercial pur-
poses, through bank credits at the former period, had
in the meantime become absorbed in railways; that
the country bankers, therefore, have not now the
same enormous funds to dispose of—that the bill-
brokers are therefore without the same means to re-
discount the bills of other country bankers, and are
wholly unable to make advances on dock warrants or
bills of lading, and that commerce is thus deprived of
the means which were formerly at its disposal in con-
sequence of the new distribution of the capital of the
country." Now, he, believed that to be a true state-
ment of the case, and from all the sources of infor-
mation open to him he had collected the same con-
clusive facts.--(Hear, hear.) It was a faithful
account of what had been going on in this country to
an extent of which Honourable Gentlemen in that
House were, perhaps, little aware. That opinion was
not now formed by him for the first time, after the
commercial pressure had arisen, for it was known to
many gentlemen of the late Government that Mr.
Porter, at the end of the year 1845, represented to
them that the demands of railway companies were
increasing so fast, that he believed it would abstract
from commercial men for commercial purposes
so considerable a portion of their money that
it would, before long, produce considerable com-
mercial pressure and distress. Having accurately
stated the course which events had hitherto taken, he
would now put the House in possession of the
various documents he had been able to collect which
in any way bore upon this subject. He would pre-
mise, however, that the subject was so complicated
that it was utterly impossible to obtain strictly
accurate information. He thought, however,
that the accounts he was about to read to
them would approximate to the truth as near
as accounts possibly could ; and, although they
might not be correct within a million or two, they
would afford them a tolerable good idea of the amount
of speculation that of late years had been going on in
railways. Now, so far back as 1826, no less a sum
than two millions and a half was authorised to be
raised for the purpose of investment in railways. In
the period extending from 1826 to 1835 Parliament
authorized 19,000,0001. to be raised. In 1836 and 1837,
which were years of great commercial prosperity,
Parliament authorized thirty-six millions and up-
wards to be raised. In 1844 and 1845 the sum
authorized to be raised for the purpose of railways
was seventy-four millions. In 1846 Parliament
authorized no less a sum than one hundred and thirty-
two millions to be raised for the purposes of rail-
ways, making the whole amount from 1826 to 1846
nearly 286,000,000/. ; but in the present year,
1847, the amount authorized to be raised for the
purposes of railways was only thirty-eight millions.
—(Hear, hear.) He did not mean to say that the
total he had mentioned represented the amount ex-
pended on the works ; and he agreed with the Noble
Lord the Member for Lynn, that that portion of
money expended on the purchase of land was not to
be considered as permanently sunk, it merely went
from one man's pocket into the pocket of another man.
From a calculation made by Mr. Porter, it appeared
that there remained to be raised, after the end of
1848, 145,000,0001., to which must be added the
38,000,0001. empowered to be raised this year. From
a calculation made by the Railway Board, which he
should presently show to be based upon facts, it ap-
peared that the capital authorised by Parliament to
be raised was—

In 1840
In 1841

In 1842
In 1843
In 1844

In 1845 59,000,000
In 1846 124,000,000

In 1847 ..
These were the sums authorised in these years to be
expended upon land and the construction of works
in the years mentioned—each year a greater amount
being authorised than in its predecessor. The Noble
Lord opposite (Lord G. Bentinck) had stated (as we
understood) that the average expenditure during the last
two or three years had not amounted to more than
12,500,000/. Now this was contrary to the fact.—
(Hear.) Now, another statement, showing the ex-
penditure as nearly as could be ascertained, proved
that the expenditure of railway companies had borne
heavily lately, and for a considerable time past,
upon the resources of the country, but latterly that
expenditure had borne upon the country with great
and increased severity.—(Hear.) The expenditure,
from the calculation of the Board, was estimated as
follows :

In 1841
In 1842 2,980,000
In 1843 4,435,000
In 1844 6,100,000

and in the first half of 1845, 3,500,000/. ; in the
second half, 10,600,000/.; making 14,100,0001. for the
year. The expenditure for the first half of
1846 was 9,800,000/., and during the last half,
26,685,0001., or for the whole year, 36,485,0001. ;
and for the first half of 1847, 25,700,0001. This
might be tested by reference to facts. So
much, then for the statement of the Noble
Lord. For the last eighteen months, from Ja-
nuary, 1846, until the beginning of the autumn,
the expenditure could not be estimated at less than
62,000,000/. The half-yearly statements of the
Commissioners tallied with this calculation, with
the exception of a few hundred thousands.
The expenditure of late years had gone on increasing
in an extraordinary manner, and that caused the
railway companies to press upon their available
capital, and had in some measure led to the commercial
pressure. In 1845 the expenditure on railways was
14,000,0001., in 1846 it was 33,000,000/., and the
expenditure in 1847, if things had been allowed
to have gone the same way, would have
probably amounted to 64,000,0001.; in 1848
to 70,000,0001. ; in 1849, to 47,000,0001.; and in
1850, to 10,000,0001. Now it was sufficient
for his purpose to show that the extraordinary
outlay in railways had had a considerable effect
in the depression of commerce. The represen-
tations that had been made to him and the
Government would have sanctioned a much
stronger course than the Government now
proposed to pursue. They were even called upon to
put a stop to the proceedings on railways, but the
Government did not think it advisable to adopt such
a course.—(Hear.) The measure he was about to
propose was not one of a compulsory nature, it
being thought by the Government to be extremely
injudicious to adopt such a course. The object of
the Bill he was about to introduce was to give to
railway companies an extension of time for the pur-
chase of land for the completion of their works. He
proposed, with respect to railways that were being
constructed, to relieve them from the obligation of
buying the land, and completing the works in the
time prescribed. The only persons injured would be
the landowners, and he proposed to give them com-
pensation.
Mr. HUDSON—How are the damages to be
ascertained ?

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
said the damages would be assessed in precisely the
same way as damages with respect to land were as-
certained. With regard to railways in which the works
were not commenced, he thought that a stronger
course might be adopted with respect to them. He
proposed to extend to them the time for the purchase
of land, and he proposed to enact that the directors
of such companies should not be empowered
to commence the works without the con-
sent of a certain proportion of the shareholders.
With regard to those Bills which were introduced
last session, and Bills proposed to be brought forward
this session, he proposed to appoint a Committee, to
which all those Bills should be referred, in order
to determine which of those Bills should be proceeded
with. It was obvious that there were many Bills in-
volving merely deviations or small extensions of lines
which would not involve any large outlay of capital,
which it would be desirable to pass this session. He
thought that it 'would be very desirable that
no Bill involving a large outlay should be allowed
to pass this session.—(Hear, hear.) They had all,
perhaps, to take some blame to themselves for the
many Bills which had been allowed to pass upon
former occasions.—(Hear, hear.) In earlier years it
would have been a very difficult task to persuade the
House to endeavour to check any of these nu-
merous railway Bills. A Committee was appointed
in 1846 to inquire into the subject, but no sug-
gestion had been made by that Committee. After
he (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) had been
appointed to office several friends waited upon him,
and urged him to adopt some measure to check
the progress of Railway Bills through Parliament.
lie did not at that time see how this suggestion was
to be carried out. Opinions upon that subject had
companiese
linen,o
ni
a n d hadto hisfou
lima
materially changed latterly even among railway
companies themselves; and he expected that he
in checking the demane
communicated with the
ocrhatihrieneononosftrusecvtieornal
should receive the cordial support of many of those
Tail-
bout to take measure.—(dear,-Hopeerhaated i
would r -
demand for
wa and he hoped that the course which ohfeof w the
sgeneral consent.--(llear,