The Sun.
London, England, 1841-02-01 00:00:00

rrN, qvic LONDON., UAR 'V 1 1841
•

Pitol-1NC1A..1..A BANK kip'

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SIR,—As there arc some inaccuracies in he account
furnished to you by the reporter of the extraordinary
general meeting of the Proprietors of this B ink held
ore on Thursday, the `?Bth inst., I am desired by the
Directors to hand you a corrected report of what took
place, and to request the favour of you to insert it in
your next publication.
1 am, Sir, your obedient servant,
JAMES MARSHALL, Secretary.
Lon .!on, Jan. 30,1841.

An extraordinary general meeting of the Proprietors
If the ,bove Bank was, on Thursday, held at their es-
tablishment in Broad-street, for the purpose of electing
Director iu the place of John Wright, Esq., who had
resigne.l. .

O. DARKER, Esq., being calkal to the Chair,
The SECRETARY of the Bank read the advertise-
ments which convened the meeting, and which a:so
stated its objects.
The CllAlRMAN—Gentlemen, you have heard the
advertisement. We are now here assembled for the
purpose of electing a Director in the room of Mr. John
Wright, who has retired. There is but one candidate
to fill the situation ; I will, therefore, put his name to
Lhe vote. "Is it your pleasure, Gentlemen, that duffles
Heline, Esq., be elected a Director ?" It was unani-
mously carried.
FUEDERICK READ, Esq.—l believe I shall now be in
order if I refer to a subject which appears to affect the
character of this establishment. It arises from a letter
which, in common with the other Proprietors, I have
received from Mr. Baldwin, who has been a candidate
For the vacant Directorship, but who has now with-
drawn. Yet he may again become a candidate when
another vacancy takes place.—(Hear, hear, hear.)

I have been struck with the manner in which that
letter is couched, and I wish to cell the particular atten-
tion of the meeting to two points in it —( lean)
The first applies to what may occur at a future elec-
tion, and reflects upon the mode in which elections are
conducted. Mr. B.'s statement implies, that any re-
commendation coming from the Board in favour of
a candidate, as being best qualified to fill the situa-
tion, will be sure to secure his election. I believe
we passed a resolution binding ourselves to support
the best qualified candidate. If that resolution is
proposed to be rescinded, I wculd oppose it with the
same warmth which I showed in its favour, when it was
first proposed to the Proprietors. The resolution re-
ferred to is as follows—" that in future elections it
would conduce to the good management of the Bank's
affairs, if a recommendation should- Ere- made by the
Directors to the Proprietors in favour of those curd.-
dates whom, alter due inquiry, they shall find to be best
qualified to fill the situation."—( Hear, hear.) The
next question is one of more importance, which, with
your permission, I will read. The paragraph in the
letter to which I refer, and of which I most complain,
runs as follows :—" The manifest disposition of dis-
couraging Irish gentlemen who come forward on simi-
lar occasions, is a subject which has for some time
occupied the attention and attracted the notice of my
countrymen, and is worthy of your mature considera-
tion, for it has engendered a strong spirit of jealousy,
which, though slowly, is working deeply to the injury
of your establishment. It is a fact which cannot be
denied, that this feeling mainly gave rise to a power-
ful opposition bank—more powerful than wealthy,
on account of its national influence—time effects of
which have beta severely felt on more than one oc-
casion. The hest proof 1 can give of what I assert
is, that this was one of the chief arguments used by
the promoters of that Institution, when they applied
to me and other friends to co-operate with them in
forming the establishment." This has been sent forth
in a general circular, which I consider is calculated to
injure the present establishment ; an establishment
standing at present high in public estimation—(Hear,
hear, hear)—and upon which I should be sorry there
should be cast any imputation whatever. I therefore
rise on this occasion to give the Court of Directors an
opportunity to relute or explain what the worthy Pro-
prietor refers to in his circular ; and if he should be
present he will explain why he has cast upon the
Court of Directors a reflection which they do not
deserve.—Cheers.) I have no knowledge of the
gentleman, but this I know, that the same number of
Irish gentlemen continue at our Board, or indeed
more than were there when we were first established
—(Hear, bear.) I believe the whole Board of Direc-
tors to have displayed so much zeal, ability, and cour-
tesy in the general management of our affairs, that they
do not merit the imputation that has been by such a
course attached to them.—(Hear, hear.)
The CHAIRMAN—I am extremely sorry my friend,
Mr. Baldwin, is not present, which I presume he is net,
as I do not see him, and this will prevent my saying
many things which I should otherwise do.—(Hear,
hear.) From the way in which this question has been
asked, I shall feel it my duty to answer it. But ever
since this letter has been circulated we have felt our-
selves placed in a difficult situation, having to suffer
under a serious charge, which, if correct, we should not
deserve that which we have always received, the entire
confidence of the Proprietors.—(Hear.) If we had not
considered that a contest was about to take place, we
would have sought an earlier opportunity to rescue
ourselves from this charge ; but we felt that if we did
so, it might militate against one of the candidates.—
(Cheers.) I am thankful to Mr. Reed for giving me
an opportunity to speak to the question ; at the same
time, I am sorry that my friend Mr. Baldwin did not
first investigate the facts, which he might have learnt
upon both these points. I must think he was la-
bouring under some misapprehension.—(Hear.) I will
not criticise his words, however hard they may appear
to bear on the Board of Directors, for we can throw
ourselves upon the Proprietors, who, I feel satisfied, will
not deprive us of their confidence.—(Hear, hear.) But
Mr. Baldwin is under a mistake when he states the
Court of Directors recommended a candidate to you.
Yet I will distinctly state, in answer to what appears
in that letter, that bad your Directors felt that your
interests and the interests of the establishment required
it they would not have flinched from so doing, whether
such a resolution had passed or not, for we do feel
that as Directors of this establishment we are bound
to uphold its general interests—(Cheers)—whether
we receive the entire approbation of every indie
vidual Proprietor or not—(Cheers)—for we conceive
your interests demand it. We do not hesitate in
saying the statement has given us very great pain,
for we must remember that the parties to which
it is addressed are, many of them, residing in
Ireland, who have warm hearts, generous spirits,
but a quick sensitiveness, and they may consider,
as a body, that they arc slighted by the Directors.—
(Hear, hear.) I do not conceive that any proposition
could be put forward against the Directors of this
establishment, that would have a more prejudicial
effect, than that Irish gentlemen were discouraged from
coming forward as candidates for offices in it, and that
in consequence it was gradually sinking in their esti-
mation, and, if true, deservedly so.—(Hear, hear.)
Since that establishment had been formed there has
been but one instance where an Irish gentleman came
forward as a candidate and was not elected ; and what
was remarkable, the two candidates on that occasion
were both Irishmen, and of course we could not elect
the two to fill one vacancy,—(Hear, hear, and laugh-
ter.) This could not be considered rejecting an Irish
gentleman ; I am sure you have reason for rejoicing
in your choice, when I state to you that the gen-
tleman elected was Mr. Young, Member for Cavan.
—( Cheers.) The other gentleman withdrew his name
prior to the election, and as he did not reside in Eng-
land, and did not again offer himself, you could not
therefore elect him. On another occasion an Irish
Nobleman wished to become a Director, but he died be-
fore a vacancy took place. You will, therefore, see
that every Irish gentleman who has been proposed has
been elected. This will relieve the Directors from the
charge that they have discouraged Irish gentlemen from
coming forward as candidates for offices in this esta-
blishment.—( Hear, hear.) We are told by Mr. Bald-
win that we are losing ground in Ireland. We had
naturally expected that Mr. B. would have pointed out
where, for we do not find it among the Shareholders in
Ireland ; to prove which I will take their number at
Christmas for the last three years. In 1838 they
were 355. In 1839, they amounted to 398 ; and
in 1840 they rose to 440—(Hear, hear)—being an
increase of 95 upon the three years, This does not
indicate any strong decline of confidence in this
establishment. Last year three-fourths o: the shares
disposed of in London were sent to Ireland—(Cheers)
—this is also satisfactory, giving us a stronger hold
upon the good opinion and affections of the Irish peo-
ple. If this establishment were so sinking in the esti-
mation of the Irish public, would it not be felt among
the Grand Juries of Ireland ? but have we not been
appointed receivers by them ? Our sole anxiety is that
where the bane has gone the antidote should come.—
(Cheers.) But I have my doubts whether we can pre-
vent altogether the mischief which this letter may have
done, as it has gone to every Proprietor. Under a late
Act of Parliament the Grand Jury of each county were
directed to select a banker for the account of the county
treasurer. It then became a matter of competition among
the Banks to obtain the county treasurer's accounts ; yet
out of 23 which are without the exclusive circle of the
Bank of Ireland, we have 14, and 9 are left for all the
other Banks in Ireland, in the south and west, as well
as in the north, where the local banks have numerous
branches, and partners intimately connected with
gentlemen who form the Grime Juries. This does
not indicate a decline of confidence in us. If we
refer to the Boards of Guardians of the Poor law
Unions, of which there are many yet to be formed, we
find that thirty-four of them have preferred this esta-
blishment, which has so sunk in public estimation.—
(Cheers.) I wish my friend Mr. Baldwin had taken
the trouble to inquire, before he brought forward his
statement, for had he done so I feel quite certain that
he would not have said one word against the Directors
to any Proprietor or person interested in the Provincial
Bank of Ireland for the chance of gaining a few votes.
However he has now, though late in the day, retired

iron) tne contzst, turn) what rt•a,ot: I kl,n,V flOte tJui pr.
.71'11)1Y b'e,o-Ise he diti not fiwt suppwte

:1 he eXpVC,C:I. I felt it W,i3 Ti:!ht 51101:11,)
knO,V 30 much. There is another fact I wish t-

state to you ; you are awilre that this was the fi-st
Joint-stock B ink introduced into Ireland, to he carri,.(i
out on the principles of Scotch hlnking. it was, there-
fore, te•cessary to obtain men who were arquaie!,...
with that system ; we therefore sought for persons
from that country, where the system had been so
beneficially carried out. We employed Scotch and
English gentlemen, because Irish gentlemen had to be
taught the system, hut never intended to exclude the.

. _
talent of Ireland. I will name to you the number of
each country engaged in this establishment : 127 Irish,
51 Scotch, and 14 English.—(Hear, hear.) In addi-
tion to this there aro 56 local Directors in Ireland.
Of these two are Scotch gentlemen, who have been long
settled io Ireland. This shows we do not want to ex-
clude Irish t dent in the working of this establishment.
—( Hear, hear.) I will now, Gentlemen, conclude by
askit..: you whether you consider the Directors deserve
the nflections and charges brought against them by Mr.
B ?—(Cheers.)
Mr. F. REED---,1 am sorry Mr. Baldwin is not in the
room, but I am sure you must all feel rejoiced at hearing
so triumphant a refutation of the charges made in that
letter.—(Cheers.) I feel any further observations
would only lessen the force of those which have fallen
from the Chairman.—(Cheers.) I also feel that when
this g ,es forward to the world it will give an increased
coaidence in the establishment, and that what Mr. B.
has done will do us no injury. I feel that, after the
manner in which the Chairman has explained, it will do
us much good. I will therefore move " that the most
cordial thanks of this meeting be tendered to the Chair-
man and the Court of Directors, for the complete and
triumphant refutation which has this day been given to
the statements conveyed by the letter of a Proprietor
aldressed to the Shareholders at large, with reference
to the administration of this establishment, which state-
ment, however, this meeting is disposed to believe must
have been made under misapprehension or misinforma-
tion on the subject."
Capt. PORTER—You speak, Mr. Chairman, of the
number of Irishmen who are shareholders, but you
must be referring to those only who by your books ap-
pear to be resident in Ireland. lam an Irishman, un-
fortunately a younger brother, and have another
younger brother ; we may be said to be transported
here ; we are both shareholders and both resident in
England, though Irishmen. Our family have eleven
stars among us in the list of Proprietors, and there are
no doubt many other Irish Shareholders similarly
situated.—Hear, hear.) Allow me the honour of se-
conding that resolution.
It was put and carried with acelammation.
The CHAIRMAN-111 the name of my brother Di-
rectors and myself, I thank you ; and we will still en-
deavour to promote the interest of this establishment,
as we have hitherto done. I believe we cannot say any
more.—(Cheers.)

RAILWAY MEETINGS.

GRAND JUNCTION RAILWAY.

A general meeting of proprietors of the Grand
Junction Railway was held on Friday afternoon at one
o'clock, in the Cotton Sales-room, Liverpool ; John
Moss, E,q. in the chair. From the report which was
produced by the Directors, it appeared that, in the
receipt from every branch of income, there is an increase
as compared with the corresponding part of 1839.
except in the carriage of live stock, which is rather less,
while the ratio of expenditure to receipt is again con-
siderably lower. The receipts were :

Last six months Last six months
of 1840. of 1839.
From C0aching.....£188,620 15 5 ... 187,476 8 5
„ Goads ..... ... 40,934 2 1 ... 35,220 10 0
„ Live Stock.... 3,008 10 11 ... 3,607 5 8

232 563 8 5 226,304 4 1

Expenses... 99,627 1 7 ... 107,880 10 5
This saving, it was stated, is principally in the impor-
tant item of locomotive power, the comparative outlay
being, for the last six months of 1839, on a receipt of
226.304/. 43. ld., 38,511/. 7s. sd. ; and in the cor-
responding period of 1840, on a receipt of 232,5631.
Bs. 5d., 29,433/. 10s. ld., or an actual diminution of
expense, on a receipt larger by 6,0001., of more than
9,0001. The Directors congratulated the Proprietors
on the exemption, of the Grand Junction Railway
from unfortunate casualties or accidents affecting life
or property, at a time when some untoward occur-
rences on other lines have been made the ground of
much exaggerated anxiety on the subject of railway
travelling. The opening of the Chester Branch, it was
stated, has taken place since the last general meeting ;
hitherto the traffic on this line has not been consider-
able ; but the arrangements now completed for the
conveyance of merchandise from Chester, from the Ist
proximo, and the advancing season, may be expected
to add materially to the income at Chester, both from
this source and from passengers. A further reduction
in the rates of carriage for goods, it appears, has ben
made since the last general meeting ; the result of which
has been an increase in the quantity, as well as in the
money receipt from this traffic. It is expected that the
great advantages which the Company have now secured
to the public will continue to attend a still increasing
and profitable business. On this subject the Directors
think it proper to state, in consequence of assertions to
the contrary which have been hazarded, that the terms
on which the merchandise business of the Company is
now conducted, although more reasonable than any be-
fore offered to the public, are such as to afford a fair
remuneration to the Company ; and that, in deciding
on the successive reductions which have taken place, as
the Company's means of accommodation increased, they
have been guided by a conviction, that the prosperity of
the undertaking would be promoted by the increase of
traffic created by such inducements. The additions
which have been lately made to the passenger fares
(but which have not raised them to a rate as high as
is charged on other lines in connection with this
railway) were deemed expedient, in consequence of
the subtraction by other lines of part of the traffic
on which the calculations of income, originally sub-
mitted to Parliament, were founded. The net income,
it appears, after deducting all expenses, exclusive of
the amount of the interest of the unliquidated debt
now charged on the quarter shares at five per cent. on
the stock, and equal to 12s. 6d. per share, is 137,4811.
11s. 9d. This, the Directors stated, would enable the
Proprietors to declare a dividend at the rate of 61. 10s.
per 1001. share, and in proportion on the paid-up
amount of the half shares, and on the quarter shares
lately created. And this the Directors accordingly re.
commended to the meeting. When the Report had
been read, the Chairman, Mr. Moss, addressed a few
observations to the meeting, and the Treasurer read a
correspondence which had lately taken place with the
Postmaster-General, from which it appears that the
Post-office department are quite satisfied with the
manner in which the mail service is performed by the
Grand Junction Company, both as to safety and des-
patch, and are convinced that it offers a freedom from
accident which never was accomplished by the mail
coaches, travelling at their accelerated speed. The
report and address were very favourably received, and
ordered to be circulated, with the correspondence,
amongst the Proprietors ; after which the meeting ter-
minated.

LIVERPOOL AND MANCHESTER
RAILWAY.

The annual general meeting of this Company took
place on Wednesday, at the Cotton Sales-room, in the
Exchange-buildings. Charles Lawrence, Esq., Chair-
man of the Board of Directors, presided.—The Report
of the Directors, and the accounts of the receipts and
disbursements were read. These showed, notwithstund-

lug the diminution of traffic and travelling, owing to rile
stagnation of trade and other causes adverted to in tbe
Report, a considerable increase over the net proceeds
of the corresponding period of last year.—A dividend
at the rate of 51. per cent. was made' for the half-year
ending 31st December last ; and a first instalment, at
the rate of '2l. per share upon the 1001. shares, and of
4;. per share upon the original quarter shares, being
a portion of the interest to which those shares (only)
are entithd, was likewise ordered to be paid to the
Proprietors of those shares out of the surplus fund.—
The attention of the meeting was then called by Mr.
Alston and Mr. Coglan to the following paragraph in
the report :—" The last circumstance which the Direc-
tors will mention, as having diminished to some extent
the travelling by railway, is the temporary want of con-
fidence in the security on that mode of conveyance. The
Directors deeply regret the railway accidents which
have occasioned this apprehension in the public mind.
In the sudden development and extension of this new
mode of locomotion in the marvellous transition
from a speed of ten miles to that of thirty miles an
hour—though we may regret, perhaps we can herdly
wonder, that newly opened lines have not been alto-
gether exempt from accidents. The earnest attention
of railway management is turned to the consideration
of the hest means of making railway conveyance as
pre-eminently safe, as it is decidedly cheap and expedi-
tious ; and the Directors have the fullest confident:le
in the accomplishment of this great object, if, indeed,
Liking a fair comparison, it be not already attained.
It is a circumstance worthy of remark and congratu-
lation, that the frequency of accidents seems to be in
no way connected with the increase of traffic on any
railway ; those lines where the traffic is the largest in
the kingdom having been for a long time almost free
from these casualties. In the last twelve months, one
million and fifty-two thousand passengers have been
conveyed on the Liverpool and Manchester line, with
but one accident, which befel a passenger who reck-
lessly jumped out of a second-class carriage when at
lull speed, to save a few miles waolwkiinnag
tforentnhethaelinneoxstt
tiu
stopping-place. It would seem that the necessity for
constant vigilance and unremitting care on the part of
theeen cnngoi u n es
rnen'
movementpolicemen,
84 e.,
large traffic, produces as
its consequence the habit of vigilance, and that in-
tuitive caution, on which the security of railway tra-
velling must at all times materially depend. Con-
nected with this subject, the Directors are happy to refer

ta, ycoweretlU' which WoS
BirtnitlXhilM, on Tu,•srhy. the I9th instant, the
of which was to consider and the means at. in-
'Teased s.if..,ty to railway traveding. The resoiuz.:ous
issed at the conleire,ice have auneired in the !it:bk.,
papers, and copies of toe proceedings may be obtained
T,easureet- offic.: by Proprietors Ili-
-11 tllc subject.'--The of zi)F,
were unanimously voted to the Directors, and to their
manager:; and assistants, for their vigilant and skilful
management of the line, and for their care and unre-
mitting attention in those respects. It appears from
the statement of accounts submitted to the meeting,
that the receipts for the half-year ending December 31,
1840, were as following :—From the coaching depart-
ment, 81,713/. 3s. 2d. from the carriage of merchan-
dise, 54,9011. 4s. 10d.; and from the carriage of coal,
2,709/. Os. 7d. ; making a total of 139,3231. Ss. 7d.
The expenditure for the same period amounted to
69,694/. 7s. ; leaving a net profit of 70,6291. Is. 7d.

BOLTON AND PRESTON RAILWAY.
Tue half yearly meeting of the Proprietors of this
railway was held at the Swan Hotel, Bolton, on Wed-
nesday afternoon last, John Hargreaves, sen , Chairman
of the Board of Directors, took the chair. Mr.
Peter Sinclair, Secretary to the Company, read
the R-port ; by which it appeared that the line
as far as Nightingale Bridge, near Chorley, nine
miles and a quarter from Bolton, is now com-
pleted, and will be opened on Monday next for the
conveyance of passengers, &c. from Manchester and
Bolton to that place, and thence by coach to Chorley
and Preston. The funds were declared to be in a
satisfactory state ; and when the Report had been read,
a number of questions were put by the Proprietors,
and answered by the Chairman, Secretary, and Mr.
Adic, the engineer.—The Chairman said, that 190,000/.
the capital, had been paid up, as required by the Act
of Parliament, and the Company were now in a situa-
tion to borrow 126,500/. by way of loan, bearing in-
terest, to complete the line ; and a resolution empower-
ing the Directors to obtain loans under that section of
the Act of Parliament, was then unanimously agreed
upon.' The five retiring Directors, John Hargreaves,
sen., Benjamin Hick, C. 13riggs, R. S. Barlow, and
John Cross, Esqrs. were reelected. A vote of thanks
having been given to the Chairman, the meeting sepa-
rated.