The Sun.
London, England, 1847-12-09 00:00:00

LOUVAIN A LA SAMBRE RAIL-
WAY COMPANY.—(THIS DAY.)
A meeting of the shareholders of this company,
consequent on the refusal of the directors to afford full
information as to the affairs of the company to the pro-
prietors, was held to-day at the London Tavern.
me. BELL was moved to the chair, and said,
that as it was considered that the directors had
withheld certain information from the shareholders
as to their affairs, it was, therefore, deemed advisable
t to form a committee to wait on the directors and to re-
quest theta to hold a meeting for the purpose of corn-
, municatiug the information required. This course the
directors refused to adopt, on the ground that there were
but three of the directors in London. A deputation
I appointed by the shareholders then went to Belgium
I and instituted the necessary inquiries into all the
circumstances, which they did according to the best of
their abillify. That committee had made a report which,
if the shareholders required, they would submit to the
meeting, but this report was not unanimously agreed to.
A further application was made to the directors, and
they had succeeded in getting an engagement
from them that the moment Mr. Sharman, the director
in Belgium, returned that they would call a public meet-
ing arid afford the information required, but that under
any circumstances they would call a public meeting
before the Ist of next February, and that the shares
would not be forfeited before that period. Under those
circumstances it would be for the meeting to determine
whether the report should be read, but in his opinion it
would be better not to adopt that course.
A long discussion as to the propriety of the informa-
tion being submitted to the meeting then took place,
e hich ended in a resolution to that effect being carried
by a large majority.
Mr. InreeetAsts then entered into a lengthened state-
ment, which reflected very strongly on the management
of the directors; and after some further discussion the
meeting separated.

LONDONDERRYandENNISKILLEN
RAILWAY.-.—(TIIIS DAY.)
A special general meeting of the proprietors of the
Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway was held this
day, at the offices of the Company, in Church-passage,
Guildhall, for the purpose of receiving the report of a
select committee of the shareholds, appointed to examine
isito the truth of the charges preferred by the local
directors against the officiating stuff in London.—Mr. J.
G. Frith in the chair.
The report stated that the committee considered it
unnecessary to express any opinion upon the charges
preferred against the London directors, but thought it
better to lay before the shareholders the present state
of the affairs of the concern. The liabilities of the
company for the cost of the line from Londonderry to
—Parliamentary and
vtizo. shareholders, direc-
lSetgraelbanexwpeernesestr follows,interest
tors' salaries, office expenses, &c., 24,594/. 4s. 9d.
cost of making the line; carriages, working stock, engi-
neering, 170,965/ 45. 9d.; making a total of 195,4891.
13s. 9d. To meet these liabilities, calls had been paid
to the extent of 144,4751 9s. 9d., leaving a balance of
51,0141. 4s. to be provided for; but this balance in-
cluded a disputed claim of 26,0001. The Committee
recommended that the present allowance to the directors
of 8001 per annum should be reduced to 300/. ; the two
auditors salaries from 301. to 101. ; and that the
secretary's salary be reduced 50/. The Committee
also suggested that the services of the engineer and
superintendent of traffic in Derry, should be dispensed
with. Hitherto the expenses of working the line had
exceeded the receipts, but the committee considered that
with care and economy, the line might ultimately be
made to pay. There could be no doubt that the extension
of the line from Strabane to Omagh, or even to Newton-
Stewart, would contribute most materially to develope
the resources of the district; and the committee recom-
mended that this extension should eventually be s&ken
into consideration.
Mr. BATES proposed that the report should be
adopted at once, but
The CHAIRMAN consadered it was hardly fair that the
directors should be required, on so short a notice, to
adopt the recommendations of the report, and he, there-
fore, moved that the question of passing the report
should be adjourned till a future day.
Eventually it was agreed thai the meeting should
stand adjourned till Satnrday, the 18th inst.

A legacy of 25,0001. has been left to the Medical
Department of University College, London, by the late
Dr. Holme, of Manchester. The Manchester Guardian
of yesterday, speaking of the will of the deceased phy-
sician, says:—The personalty is stated to be under
35,0001. If to this amount we add the value of the
reality,—viz., the property in King-street, Manchester,
which is probably worth 12000/4 that at and near
Kendal, 2501. a year, at twenty years' purchase, gives
5,0001.; his library will be worth little short of 6,0001;
and an examination amongst his
papers shows that he,
too, like the late Rev. S. Smith, was a holder of Pensyl-
vanian bonds, to the extent, probably, of 1,000/4 also
of Columbian bonds, to the amount of 25,000 dolls.
(nearly 5,0001.) and of other American bonds; but
taking the whole of these bonds to be worth only 2,000/,
that would give an aggregate amount of property, real
and r,ersonal, at the time of his decease, of about, in
round numbers, 60,000/, The aggregate amount of the
legacies and bequests in money,
is 15,800/.; and deduct-
ing this from 35,0001., and adding 6,0001. for the library,
it would appear to leave a residue of about 25,0001. for
the Medical Department of the University College.
THE " OLDEN TIME"—CAPTURING A PLAGUE AT
FOATRORE.—Some two or three hundred years ago
Scotland was visited with a pestilental scourge, which
was, it is said, prostrating thousands to the dust.
It went in the form of a black cloud from place
to place. The Fortrose folks, however, seeing
it approach their quiet and peaceable town, hastened

devote their lives to the prOmotion of the
cause, to place faith in the present Legislature ?
It was not. He asked the Right Honourable
Gentleman —he asked Englishmen how these
deep-seated convictions were to be removed when
their remonstrances were treated with silence, while
an ignorant English landlord was carefully answered
by the Government. Let them at once frankly tell
the people of Ireland that It was idle mummery
to go through the ordeal of electing Members,
for they were treated with contempt; for it
was useless for them to be subjected to the
expense and trouble of attending that House, for
England monopolised the whole business of legisla-
tion. He contended that he had establiihed a
claim to be answered. Although he knew
that he should be vituperated in Ireland for
consenting to the introduction of the Bill,
for he wished to see the police increased, in order
that crime might be repressed. He did so heedless
of the consequences ; but he new understood that the
Bill which was stated by the Right Honourable
Gentleman to be partial and temporary, that it was
to be confined to parts of the five counties, was not the
measure that had been described, for the first clause
stated that the Lord Lieutenant should have power
to apply the provisions of the Act to any
other county which he might imagine was
affected. He might have yielded hastily, but he
now doubted whether he should have done so.
Ac admired the conduct of the Lord-Lieutenant
while he was engaged in a foreign country, but he
came to Ireland ignorant of the country. He was not
in a position :to become acquainted with the Irish
He was perfectly walled round from the truth, and it
was to such a man as that the Government were
going to give the most absolute power over
the liberties of the Irish people. He would
inform the House that the office of a dictator
was entirely unknown in Ireland. If the present
measure were the smallest infraction of the liberties
of England, they would have many individuals stand-
ing up in the House for the liberties of the people,_
but Ireland was considered beyond the pale of tne
Constitution. lie did not delude himself that any
arguments which he could use would be of avail
when the House was determined to commit an act
of injustice and oppression.—(Hear, hear.) He
felt, however, that he had a duty to discharge, and
he was determined to discharge it.—(Hear, hear.)
He would have readily consented to a Bill to pre-
vent parties from having arms in their houses, pro-
vided such provision had been contained in a separate
Bill. Then with respect to the right of search, he
admitted in certain cases the necessity for that right.
but it ought to be conducted under certain guards.
In the present Bill there were no guards at all, and
the most prejudiced parties might increase their
prejudices to the fullest extent. With respect
to the constabulary force the greater portion
of the officers in it were the most prejudiced Orange-
men—(Hear, hear)—and it was to such parties that
the present Government proposed to give the right of
search by this Bill. The people of Ireland had
been taught for centuries by misrule to distrust
the administration of the law, and he thought it
was high time that some ameliorating measures
should be brought forward, and nct such enact-
ments as were contained n the present Bill.
fie would predict that this Bill, instead of repressing
crime would increase it. The people would be ren-
d, red more discontented with their condition, and their
want and suffering would goad them on to be reven-
ged against such measures as these. The House,
it would seem would not listen to the suffering cry
of Ireland till the law had been obeyed, but how
could they expect to see the laws obeyed while the
distresses of Ireland were treated with indifference ?
Why not make concessions ? Why not try the
effect of remedial measures before they ap-
plied scourge. No doubt the House of ,Lords would
increase the security of the provisions of this Bill.
and then it would become utterly inoperative. In-
deed, the only effect it would have would be to pro-
long the shedding of blood; whereas, if remedial
measures were resorted to, many of the existing
evils would be removed, and the affections of
the people of Ireland drawn towards this country.—
(flear, hear.) It appeared to him that Ministers were
adopting a retrogade course. Formerly they were
for extending conciliation towards Ireland, but now
they were going to resort to measures that would
have disgraced any of the dark ages as they were
called.--(Hear, hear.) It was monstroos, therefore,
to expect the people of Ireland to remain contented
while under the rule of this country, and he warned
the House that if they passed this Bill they would
soon have cause to rue the day they did so.
(um' SPEAKING.)