The Sun.
London, England, 1847-09-08 00:00:00

THE SUNS

some further observations from the Chairman, the
meeting separated.

GREAT BRITAIN STEAM SHIP.
The following letter has been addressed to the
Editor of the Times :
Sir,—Having written from Tyrella on the failure
of the former attempt of her Majesty's ship Birken-
head to remove the Great Britain steam ship off the
beach in Dundrum Bay, I now venture to request
you will allow the particulars herein related, which
cannot fail to be interesting to the public, to appear
in your widely-extended journal, notwithstanding the
much that has been already written on this triumph
of British energy and skill.
The "gentlemen of England who sit at home at
case " hear that " the Great Britain has been got off,"
but many dream not of the exertions made to effect
the object, nor of the perils attending it. From some
accounts published in this wonderful port, it might
easily be imagined that certain persons celebrated for
their success in such sort of undertakings had accom-
plished this great work alone ; that even Captain
Claxton had had little to do with it, and that her
Majesty's ships, with their gallant officers and crews,
had been mere ciphers in its completion, and the
Government hardly to be commended for the aid ren-
dered in this great national achievement.
Far be it from any one to diminish aught from the
merits or the exertions of the engineers engaged ; but
the notion prevailing in Liverpool, that her Majesty's
ship had bean employed as a mere tug to tow away
the iron steam-ship, as they say, floating and ready
for sea on her approach, however trifling and absurd,
ought to be completely set aside.
On Monday, the 23d of August, her Majesty's ship
Birkenhead took up her station for the second time in
Dundrum Bay, about a mile and a half from the
Great Britain. She brought with her two lighters,
which she had taken in tow off Carlingford Lough,
and cast them off, anchoring herself and sending her
boats to tow off the lighters without loss of time
towards the Great Britain, together with a party of
men in aid of the operations on the beach. Her
Majesty's ship Scourge hove in sight early on
Tuesday morning, and anchored about a quarter of
a mile outside her Majesty's ship Birkenhead.
Her men were soon sent on board the Great
Britain, contributing their welcome and much re-
quired services along with their comrades of the
Birkenhead. These had been this day engaged in
transporting the spare screw of the Great Britain
from her deck to that of the Birkenhead, whereby the
great ship was relieved from the weight of four tons.
Next day the carpenters of the Birkenhead and the
Scourge were busily engaged in snaking the tempo-
rary rudder and preparing the lighters for their posi-
tion alongside the Great Britain. This position was
to be under large logs of woods stretching out from
the ports, called outriggers, kept down by large tim-
ber shores. Others of the ships' crews were employed
in securing the " camels," which, however they might
have served as levers when filled with sand, were ill-
adapted to the work of lifting the ship as now ap-
plied ; for, being neither wind nor water tight, they
were most of them as useless as they were unmanage-
able. Others were labouring heavily at the pumps.
The tide rose high, and it was whispered that the gallant
Captain Claxton, whose energy is no less conspicu-
ous than his judgment, had determined, if pos-
sible, to heave off his heavy charge upon the hawsers
and cables of the iron ship itself. Surprise and
anxiety mixed with misgivings accompanied the
announcement. The Great Britain, lifted by the
lighters, camels, empty barrels, and rafts of wood,
evidently moved, and very slowly yielded, and only
very little to the strain employed. All was anima-
tion, hope, and joyful expectation, every heart re-
sponded to the captain's hearty Cheers. Darkness
came on—a sudden crash was heard, as the falling in
of a roof, and now a noise like the report of cannon
announced the failure of the blocks of wood, the
wedges, and the camels, which, bursting from their
hawser bands, by which, under the engineer's direc-
tions, they had been too lightly fastened, became
useless. It seemed, in fact, as if the enormous body
with which they had to deal had surpassed their
calculations and baffled their energies.
The Leviathan, however, had moved above 20 feet,
but she was yet deep in her sandy bed. At the ebb
of tide her Majesty's ships' respective crews were
again required, and their exertions were renewed as
well in keeping down the water in the Great Britain
by continual pumping as in repairing and replacing
the various apparatus for lifting the mighty prisoner.
On Thursday her Majesty's ship Birkenhead
steamed quietly into her position as it had been pre-
viously occupied, and carefully marked by buoys,
having let go both bower anchors and veered to 100
fathoms upon each cable. The hawsers, 400 fathoms,
laid down on the former trial, were taken in through
the stern horse holes, and on this occasion they were
passed over the large paddle-box boats, each capable
of containing 140 men, lashed together and placed
close to the screw of the Great Britain, to which
they (the hawsers) were fastened. A fulcrum was so
provided for the lever which the hawsers would thus
form for lifting the massive burden they were de-
signed to move, without diminishing the force of the
tremendous strain to be employed in dragging it
from its stronghold. The signal was given—the
bars of the capstans were ready manned, and they
began to heave, but they heaved in vain. When the
Birkenhead took up her position the water was smooth
as a millpond, the sun smiling upon the operation,
although the light clouds upon the caps of the Morne
mountains indicated change of weather; symptoms of
a breeze from the south so much, and with so much
reason, to be dreaded in this dreary bay, " moved
upon the face of the waters." The rising tide
lifted the lighters with their logs of wood up
to the outriggers, and the rest of the varied appara-
tus ; but the Great Britain overwhelming these with
her monstrous weight seemed to bid defiance to the
means devised by human skill alone, although applied
with steadfast perseverance ' • some power superior
was requisite. The camels, which were water-
tight, were too large to be confined with the
hawsers used, powerful though they were, and they
bounced out of their strongholds with loud reports.
Such as were leaky became waterlogged, and helped
to obstruct the heave. The lighters seemed to slip
from under their burden ; the blocks flew out of their
places, some of the outriggers and their shores yielded
to the pressure, cracking with a frightful noise, and
the great and powerful, but steady strain upon the
hawsers, by the purchases an& capstans of the Bir-
kenhead,' was utterly futile. The iron mass could
not be moved this day by those means, added to
the lesser, although more numerous, purchases em-
ployed in the great Britain itself. The signal, " She
won't come off this tide," cast a damp of disappoint-
ment over every countenance, and of despair as to the
result over the spirit of many deeply interested in the
stirring event.
The wind had, indeed, set in so fresh from the
south, the very quarter fraught with peril to this
shore, and of whose ravaging effects Captain Claxton
had had such dismal proofs, that the apparatus could
not be replaced for further trial on the next flood
tide, and early the next morning, with the aid of such
of the ships' companies as could be spared, and with
care, as much as possible, to remedy the causes of
failure in the former application of the lighters, &c.,
and
mthe reduction of water in the hoMajesty'sld, a renewedship
attempt was made on the part of her
Birkenhead with the rising tide.
The dreaded south wind had brought in an increase
of tide. The officers and ship's company of the Bir-
kenhead had made every arrangement for the renewed
effort with a more powerful and effectual heave, such
as sailors seem alone qualified to make. The power-
ful steamer was brought into her position again. The
most watchful attention to the minutest points was
observable in every, officer of the Birkenhead, each
one in his place, aiming at the success of all that was
entrusted to him. Not a word transpired amongst
the seaman. Signals were agreed upon. " Heave"
—" Heave with all your might"—" Avast heaving"
She won't come off"—and " She moves."
On the first signal " heave," the hawsers already
on the stretch were hove with a steady working step.
" Heave with all your might," was responded to by
the increase of pace applied with all the vigour of the
men, each vying with his fellow to lift the vessel off.
" She moves," animated every countenance; each
eye sparkled with the light of hope, which warmed also
every heart
.with an inexpressible mixture of grati-
tude and joy. The hawsers came in nicely. " She
is all your own, my boys," was responded to with
cheers and fresh exertion. The great steam-ship
obeyed the hempen calls of her iron consort. The
weight again seemed all at once to increase, as if the
sand had come in contact with the Great Britain ;
but it was not so. Her gallant captain, elated, as he
well might be with success and gratification, had
prudently cast his anchor, limiting the distance of the
first movement of the leaky vessel to a point so near
the low-water mark as to secure her floating with
the next flood tide ; but still so high and dry upon
the sand as to admit of an inspection of her bot-
tom, and such reparation as might diminish the in-
flux of water, and justify or not the attempt to float
her on the ocean.
The retiring title exhibited the celebrated iron
steamer, upright, high and dry, at once the astonish-
ment\yere taon dbetlss eeenadstshlieractiaornpenotleervse, rayn-
dbehevoledreyr.oneNeolswe
tianttaedefaokrusmu,ch work, with staves and wedges of wood
and grease, and everything that could
be used with probability of success, stopping up
holes, repairing rNevperaeirintegrribfiree!chAest
this unacntcuhrien stanching
ethe r lseha ki
a-
new labours from her Majesty's crews. bourers refused to work the which compelled
fatigable men were ready, thoYugherteh;iB::azuTmhzensinv‘d,ea-s
exceedingly short. A light at the P
was to an-
nounce the want of men, and in
five minutes,
dark though it was when it appeared, away
went twenty-five of the men who had been
labouring for previous days and nights, from

each of her Majesty's ships. The motion of
the Great Britain was diligently watched. A
messenger came for men to take up hawsers and bring
in the paddle-box boats from the distance of near two
miles. The boat was presently manned and pushed
off. It was too dark to see what was going forward.
But soon the foresail was spread—the wind which
had lulled veered round from south to west, and now
a gentle breeze from the north-west came off the
shore, and favoured the floating off the Great Britain
from the beach. She evidently approached the
Birkenhead, insomuch as to create some apprehen-
sions of her running foul of her. With her came the
paddle-box boats, and then the crew of the Birken-
head to heave up the anchors. It was then made
known that Captain Claxton had been forced to slip
his cables and cut his hawsers, to escape being stranded
afresh on the shallows of Dundrum Bay.
To enable the men to heave the anchors they had
been taken from the pumps. Meantime it was appre-
hended that the leaks being so great, and the accumu-
lation of water so rapid the ship would scarcely keep
afloat. It was a moment of intense anxiety. The
labour of heaving the anchor seemed to have increasd
tenfold, and every moment begot the painful feeling
that without help at the pumps she must go down.
She appeared low in the water, and, in fact, the engi-
neer betrayed such misgivings as to require that both
the Birkenhead's paddlebox boats might be lashed
alongside for safety, in case of an emergency he
seemed to dread. The anchors up, the towing haw-
sers were soon attached, and when she yielded to the
paddle wheels of the Birkenhead much anxiety sub-
sided. The return of men to the pumps reduced the
water mark. Fresh hope was excited, and Strang-
ford Bay, some two hours' distance, promised secu-
rity to the heavy charge. The sun began to dawn,
and we passed St. John's, Lighthouse, when " Direct
for Liverpool " was shouted from the sister vessel.
On reflection, however, it was deemed by Captain
Claxton, that men of whatever mettle, exhausted as
they had been by the almost incessant labour of three
nights and days, could not stand to the pumps,
as it was needful, for the many hours ere
the port of Liverpool could be made. The
pilot provided was well acquainted with the narrow
passage into Strangford Lough ; but it was very nar-
row, and the current very strong. The Great Britain
was very unmanageable. She would neither lead nor
drive in any steady course ; sometimes she seemed as if
she would go right ahead and give the Birkenhead the
go-by, had it been possible. Again she crossed her
towing path to try the starboard side, and then, as if
sulky under her restraint, presented herself almost
broadside to the draught. The pilot looked aghast,
and said, " The hawsers must be shortened ; I cannot
take her in if she yaws this way." At this critical
juncture, near the shore, and narrow entrance to the
bay, a thick fog came on, so dense as to render the
land invisible, and the very sight of the huge vessel
near as she was to be indistinct. The Birkenhead's
head was turned to the sea, and Belfast Harbour was
determined upon. This was made with all the speed that
could be made with such an unmanageable floating log.
Off the Copelanes, where the current is strong, the
Great Britain seemed to set at nought her guide, broke
the hawsers, and threatened great obstruction to every
effort made in her behalf. Boats, however, were
lowered down, and fresh hawsers being soon attached
we arrived without further accident in Belfast Lough.
The Birkenhead cast anchor, loosing the hawsers from
the Great Britain, which was towed into more shallow
water by the Scourge, and finally was grounded on
the mud, which helped to stop her leaks. On the
following day, with fresh hands engaged by Captain
Claxton to man the pumps, the Great Britain was
taken in tow again by her Majesty's ship Birkenhead,
leaving the Scourge at anchor, and without any
remarkable or untoward event but that of yawing
from side to side, and now and then presenting
almost her broadside, the greatest steam-ship floated
gallantly and quietly to within about an hour and
a half of the bar of the Liverpool port. The wind
had now begun to blow fresh, the tide being at the
same time very strong, when, in reply to the
summons of a gun and signal, a pilot came on board
the Birkenhead. The Great Britain, profiting by
this slight alteration of the hawsers, began to be un-
manageable. Striving with wind and tide for her
liberty, she broko the starboard hawser close to her
bow, which recoiled with violence upon the poop of
the Birkenhead. The line prepared to lay out another
hawser next snapped like packthread. The second
hawser and the second line soon shared the same fate,
and with terrific rapidity threatened desolation. The
boats were soon lowered and fresh hawsers were soon
stretched out and fastened to the steam-ship. Now,
one of the large beams shipped in support of the
substitute for a rudder to the Great Britain, gave way,
and falling overboard caused much anxiety and delay.
At length, with difficulty, through the swell that had
arisen and the increasing wind, we proceeded slowly,
and with much apprehension, lest through any fur-
ther delay the present tide, together with all the
labour, should be lost, the ship being wild and ungo•
vernable. A second pilot boat came alongside, and
was eventually towed astern of the Great Britain,
acting beautifully as a rudder, and facilitating thereby
the entrance of the Birkenhead, with her charge,
over the bar and through the channel into the Liver-
pool harbour.
This service was performed after the rate of six
and a half knots in the hour, including all stoppages,
without loss of life or limb, and it may be said, with-
out injury, save a few bruises sustained by a few in-
dividuals of the gallant and indefatigable crew, and
the Great Britain was triumphantly brought into
port in the presence of thousands, who rent the air
with their joyful and congratulatory acclamations.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
AN EYE WITNESS.
Liverpool, September 2.

THE PRETTY BIRD.—" That's a pretty bird,
grandma," said a little boy. " Yes," replied the dame,
" and he never cries." " That's because he's never

washed," rejoined the youngster.
A CHARACTER.—A Mrs. Davy, giving evidence to
character in the case of a woman charged with theft,
said she was "a decent, honest, drunken crature."
EATING BANK OT ENGLAND NOTES FOR A
WAGER.—Two privates of the Royal Marines, just paid
off from her Majesty's steam-vessel Pluto, Lieutenant-
Commander Low, at Woolwich, for a trifling wager com-
menced eating several 5/. Bank of England notes with
"bread, cheese, and onions," but were stopped by some
of their more sensible comrades, who came up at the
time, and compelled them to desist. Fortunately, the
numbers of the notes remained unmutilated. The Pro-
metheus, Commander Hay, and the Ph esnix, Commander
Dennis, have just been paid off, and the seamen have
been playing similar absurd tricks. Most of the sailors
have received nearly 1001. each.
ROBBERY IN AN OMNlBUS.—Yesterday information
was forwarded to all the metropolitan police stations
respecting a robbery in one of the Knightsbridge omni-
buses. It seems that a female, named Mary Bruramell,
of Guildford-street, Southwark, had been on business to
some friends at Brompton, and when she reached the
end of Sloane-street, she got into an omnibus, taking
her seat by the side of a respectably dressed young man,
who it was subsequently supposed belonged to the swell
mob. She continued in the vehicle until she reached the
end of Farringdon-s treat, when she alighted, but to her
sad dismay she discovered that her purse, containing two
sovereigns and some silver, had been cut from her pocket
by the person who sat by her side, and he got out when
the vehicle reached the end of Piccadilly.
OFFICIAL INQUIRY ON THE LATE EXPLOSION.—
Thu official' inquiry respecting the late explosion on
board the " Cricket ' steamer, now taking place, has been
ordered by the Board of Trade, under the provisions of
an Act which came into force on the Ist January last
(9th and 10th Viet., cap. 100), entitled " An Act for the
Regulation of Steam Navigation, and to compel sea-
going vessels to carry boats." There are four sections
in the Act on the subject of an official investigation,
requiring a report to be made to the Board of Trade of
all accidents of a serious character ; empowering the
Board to appoint inspectors to make a report, with au-
thority to examine witnesses, &c. It is the first time
the Act has been enforced on an accident, and from its
provisions much good may be expected on Steam Navi-
gation.
SUDDEN DEATIL—Last night (Sunday), about
half-past seven, a young lad who wanders about town
and country as a strolling fiddler, went into a lodging
house in Carrick-street, Anderston, and asked for some-
thing to eat, for which he paid. his manner and ap-
pearance at the time attracted the notice of those in the
place, and they were still more surprised and alarmed,
when, after attempting to swallow a few molthfuls, be
fgaacveeoaa
tl
soiudde.c r y,
He andwas i
m m springinged iat
etloy
rt
ahie s
ed, door fell on
butonly
lyl
vheids
a few seconds.—North British Mail.
DEATH OF BLACKSKIN.—The Grand River Rapids
(Michigan) Eagle announces the death of an Indian of
that village, known as Blacks kin. The Eagle says he
lived to be upwards of a hundred years old, and has
enacted, at the head of his tribe, many exciting scenes
in his life. His hand first applied the torch to the city
of Buffalo in the war of 1812. The old man, with the
remnant of his tribe, has long been on friendly terms
with the whites, and his death is a notable event in the
history of his tribe.
DEATH OF MEDICAL OFFICERS OF THE BOLTON
UNION.—The death of Mr. Richard Robinson, who has
left a widow and large family unprovided for, has, we
lament to say, been followed by that of Mr. Henry Hat-
ton, a young gentleman only twenty-eight years of age,
the medical officer of the western district of Great Bel-
ton. who caught the fever in the discharge of his duty,
and sunk under the dreadful malady on Tuesday last.
.Memorials have already been forwarded to the Poor- law
Commissioners from various unions, praying that pro-
visions may be made for the wives and families of those
officers who have, or may hereafter become, victims of
malignant fever caught in the discharge of their duty to
the public, and we feel no little surprise that the Go-
vernment have so long delayed their decision on the
matter.—Bolton Free Press.
SHAKSPERE'S BIRTHPLACE.—On Monday evening.
the Metropolitan Dramatic Society, an amateur com-
pany of comedians, gave an entertainment at the City of
London Theatre, in aid of the funds for purchasing the
birth-place of Shakspere. The play represented was
the first part of Henry IV., and the amusements of the
evening concluded with the trial scene of the Merchant
of Venice. The house was numerously attended, and
the results are likely to form a handsome contribution
to the fund.

4.14
77. 4 IP, b- t n
.01 t ,
ke,, tt's 4,4 -

WEST LONDON RAILWAY.
(THIS DAY.)
The ordinary twenty-third half-yearly meeting of
thi's company was held to-day at the London Tavern,
at one o'clock ; 11. H. Ground, Esq. in the chair.
The advertisement convening the meeting having
been read,
Mr. THOMPSON, the Secretary, read the following
report :
" The Bill which was introduced into Parliament by
the Great Western Railway Company, in the late session,
for widening, making branches to, and extending the
West London Railway across the Thames, to join the
South-Western Railway, has passed the Legislature, the
directors having succeeded in procuring the insertion of
a clause is it protecting the rights and interests of this
company under the lease, and securing to the pro-
prietors the same proportion of the gross income, with
the same per centage of increase thereon, for the traffic
upon that part of the line authorised by the Bill which
lies between the Great Western Railway and the Ken-
sington Canal Basin, as if the same had, at the date of
the lease, formed part of the West London Railway, and
had been included in such lease. By other clauses the
London and North-Western Company are entitled to an
equal,participation with the Great Western Company in
the additional works authorised by the Bill, and are to
supply a moiety, or such other proportion as may be
agreed upon, of the capital required for their execution.
" The directors were informed that, pending the
application to Parliament for this Bill, the two com-
panies could not with advantage to themselves proceed
to carry into effect the powers granted to them by the
Act of 1846, for extending the railway to the Thames;
and although the interests of this company may to some
extent have been prejudicially affected by the delay
which has thereby been occasioned in bringing the line
into full operation, the directors have to congratulate the
proprietors
upon the improved position of the company
with respect to its future income, and the much more
important character which this measure has given to
the undertaking.
The directors are assured that steps are being taken
by both companies to carry into immediate effect the
provisions of the Acts above referred to, and they do
trust now that these additional powers have been ob-
tained, the lessees will not suffer any further delay to
take place in fully and efficiently working the railway,
in conformity with the covenants of the lease, so that
the proprietors of this company may derive an income
from the capital they have so long invested in the un-
dertaking, and which has hitherto remained wholly
unproductive.
" The directors have been strongly urged to expend a
sum of money in rendering the Kensington Canal more
efficient as a means of communication between the rail-
way and the Thames, but they have considered it inex-
pedient to adopt this course, or to take any step for the
accomplisment of the object proposed, until the effect of
the intended extension of the railway itself to the
Thames has been ascertained, rather preferring to apply
all monies which may come into their hands, to the pur-
poses of a dividend, than in the execution of new works,
which may be of very doubtful benefit."
The statement of the accounts made up to the 30th
of June last showed the following result :—Receipts
from the commencement, 274,5711. 16s. W., and
that the whole of the sum, save a balance of 1091. 25.,
had been expended.
The CHAIRMAN then proceeded to address the
shareholders. He said—Gentlemen, you have heard
from the report, which has just been read, that the
Great Western Railway Company have succeeded in
obtaining from Parliament the powers which they
sought, for widening, making branches to, and ex-
tending this railway across the Thames, to join the
South-Western Railway in the parish of Lambeth ;
and that we have procured the insertion of a clause
in that Bill, entitling us to the same proportion of
the gross receipts, with the same per centage of
increase thereon, upon so much of the proposed line
as may be considered a substitution for the present
line, as we should have been entitled to if the same
had been included in the leaselease—so that we are placed
in precisely the same position with the Great-
Western Company, as regards the proposed line,
as we are already in with the London and North-
Western Company, as regards the present line.
It must be understood, however, that we are
only entitled to derive an income from so much
of the new line as is equal in length to the pre-
sent line, from its junction with the Great Western
Railway to the Kensington Canal Basin. To this
we were fairly and equitably entitled under the pro-
visions of the lease, and I wish I could inform you
that we had succeeded in maintaining what we con-
sidered to be our just rights without much trouble and
anxiety, and the incurrence of considerable expense.
Acting upon your instructions, we were compelled to
oppose this Bill in both Houses of Parliament, and it
was only at the last moment, in Committee in the
Lords, that we succeeded in obtaining the insertion of
the clause we proposed. But, looking at the import-
ance of the result to this company, neither my col-
leagues nor myself regret the outlay which has thus
been occasioned. I am happy to say we have the
strongest assurance from both companies of their
intention to carry the powers they have obtained from
Parliament immediately into effect, and we are in-
formed that the time which has elapsed since the close
of the session has been employed in making the neces-
sary preliminary arrangements for the commencement
of the works. After the intimation given to us by
the London and North-Western Company, that they
could not, with advantage to themselves, bring the
line into full operation until it was extended to the
Thames, wp have felt it necessary to press upon them
the execution of these works as speedily as possible,
and after the assurance we have now obtained, I trust
no very long time may elapse before we are in the
receipt of what we have so long been anxiously look-
ing forward to—a good dividend. It will be neces-
sary during the present autumn that some trifling
repairs should be done to the Kensington Canal, and
we shall of course take care that the expenditure is
not large, and that whatever sum may be expended is
judiciously and properly applied. We are now, lam
glad to say, in a position to return to the subscribers
to the Knightsbridge Extension Line the remainder
of their deposits, in conformity with the award
of Mr. Glyn, Mr. Hudson, and Mr. Stephen.
son, and this matter will be immediately attended
to. The only other open matter is, the unsettled
account with the Kensington Canal Company ; and
from the disposition recently evinced by the parties
who have hitherto been the chief obtacle to a settle-
ment, I have every reason to believe that this matter
will very shortly be finally arranged. The first
half.yearly meeting of this company was held on the
16th of August, 1836. The present is the twenty-
third half-yearly meeting, and I can assure you,
with great sincerity and truth, that during the long
period which has intervened between these meetings
there never was a time when the prospects of the
West London Railway Company were so bright and
cheering, or when proprietors were so certain of
being rewarded for their long-tried patience, ana for
the confidence they have shown in the undertaking.
The Chairman concluded by moving the adoption of
the report.
Mr. CUBITT seconded the motion.
Mr. WHITE considered that it ought not to go
abroad that the line was unlikely to prove profitable,
because he believed, as soon as it was freely worked
by either of the two great companies with which it
was connected, it could not fail to be profitable.
Had they any claim against the'losses from the non-
working of the railway; and did the North-
Western intend to widen the line, and to carry it on
to the water's edge? The company was greatly
indebted to the exertions of the Secretary ; without
them they would not have succeeded so well in the
last session. He entirely approved of the report.
Mr. THOMPSON replied, that he had no doubt that
the company were entitled to compensation.—(Hear,
hear.) It would be well, he thought, not to moot
the question how—it would be better to leave it in
the hands of the directors. The plans for the widen-
ing, and-the carrying the line by the North-Western
over the Great Western, were in a forward state.
Mr. RIGBY cordially supported the motion, and
considered that the time would come when it would
become the great " viaduct to all the railways
running north, east, and west.
The CHAIRMAN said he had received an assurance
from Mr. Glynn, M.P., that no time would be lost
in completing the line. The two great companies in
connexion with the line had so many engagements,
that he assured them that they had not been able to
give that attention to the works which the impati-
ence of the shareholders required. The directors
would leave nothing undone to forward the works.
In reply to a question from Mr. RIGBY,
Mr. TuomrsoN replied, that credit was taken in the
expenditure for a sum of 54i1. 55. detained by Messrs.
Roy, Blunt, and Co. The money had been paid to
)f
7001. on this
But Messrs.
R
the firm to be handed over to some landowners. It
had not been handed over, and the directors had had
tes 000
oin
irnyeepi
aar nonrib.dyut
Bri
\Nes
le,
uhi
hsichh(alaCdvdre irbseeees
nes otnufcirhne a
" f
aeOrscrnle,adinmht .0 arbitration, as
101
should not have been
included in the bill.
The report was then adopted.
Mr. RIGBY said, Mr. Johnson, one of the members
of the firm, received the money and paid it into his
own account. It was monstrous that such a
su a house--a house that
pro-
ceeding should have taken place—(Hear, hear)—
and was, besides, opposed to the principle on which
mercantile affairs were conducted. He blamed the
employing
gin Parliament, and had
directorsh
ad
neglected
fo r
their case ch
compelled himself and the secretary to prepare the
briefs ; no counsel were engaged by thorn, yet they
had charged the company 3001. for their services in
this matter. Mr. Roy never appeared at all. He
himself appeared as counsel for the company, and
succeeded.
The CHAIRMAN said the bill of Messrs. Roy and
Co. should be strictly taxed.—(lleac.)
In reply to another question,
Mr. THOMPSON stated that the original number of

shares 7,500, but all save 5,300 were forfeited, and
had become again the property of the company, and
on the shares taken up interest only he paid.
A vote of thanks having been passed to the chair-
man and directors, the meeting separated.

BANK OF ENGLAND.
(THIS DAY.)
A General Court of the Proprietors of Bank Stock
was held at the Bank of England to-day, for the
purpose of electing a Deputy Governor for the re-
mainder of the year, in the room of James
Morris, Esq., the late Deputy-Governor, now
elected Governor. The voting of the Proprietors
commenced at eleven and concluded at four o'clock,
when Henry James Prescott, Esq., was declared duly
elected to the office of Deputy-Governor.
The Court then broke up.

SALE OF RAILWAY SHARES BY
AUCTION.—(THIS DAY.)
The demand for shares was very languid to•day,' and
but little doing. We subjoin a few of the quotations at
Messrs. Lamond and Co.'s public sale:—
Derby, Stafford, and Worcestershire £o 2 0
Ambergate, Nottingham, and Boston 1 1 0
Shrewsbury and Birmingham (B) 1 10 0
Liverp. Manch. and Newcastle-upon-Tyne 0 10 0
West London 2O 0 0
South Yorkshire, Doncaster, and Goole 0 18 6
Great Western of Bengal 0 1 6
North Staffordshire
Caledonian, Halves
London and South-Western (scrip)
Shropshire Union and Canal 1 15 6
Manchester, Buxton, and Matlock. ....

MORTALITY in the METROPOLIS.