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

GROUP XLIX.

This Committee met to-day, for the first time, in Room D
of the new Houses of Parliament. Members present—Mr.
Cripps, chairman ; Mr. Muntz, Sir John Trollope, Mr. Broad-
wood, and Viscount Newport.
The following Bills have been referred to this Committee :
Glasgow, Dumfries and Carlisle, and Glasgow, Paisley, Kil-
marnock and Ayr (No. 4).
Glasgow, Barrhead, and Neilston, and Glasgow Southern
Terminal Railways Amalgamation.
Caledonian (Glasgow, Paisley, and Greenock Amalgamation).
Caledonian (Glasgow, Barrhead, and Neilston, and Glasgow
Southern Terminal Railway Junction).
Caledonian (Wishaw and Coltness Purchase).
Edinburgh and Glasgow (Admendments, Purchases, &c.)
Edinburgh and Glasgow (Monkland and Kirkintilloch, &c.
Amalgamation).
The usual preliminaries having been gone through, the

GLASGO W, Dump=mg, AND CARLISLE
AND GLASGOW, PAISLEY, AND AYR
(NO. XV).
was proceeded with.
Mr. BABSATYNE, agent for the Bill, opened the merits of
the proposed line. Ile stated that the Bill was promoted
by the Nithsdale and the Glasgow. Paisley, Kilmarnock,
and Ayr Companies, according to a clause in their
Act of last year"—lthe object of which: was, first,
to change the date of the amalgamation of the two
companies to the date of the passing of the present Bill ; that
so there might be a united management, consisting o the
directors of both companies, superintending the working of
the line ; second, to alter.the scale of profits, which at present
were at the rate of 2 per cent. less to the Dumfries share-
holders than to the Ayr shareholders, and to put all on an
equality, by an alteration of the proposed capital, and a re-
issue of a certain number of shares to the shareholders of
the amalgamated company; and third, to change the
name of the amalgamated company. Mr. Bannatyne denied
that the Greenock Company, appearing by Sergeant Mur-
phy, had any:locus standi, inasmuch as the Bill did not pro-
pose to affect the only portion of the line in which the
Greenock and the Ayr Companies had a:conjoint interest,
viz., the portion to Paisley.
Sergeant MURPHY said the Ayr Company proposed amal-
gamating with the Nithsdale Company; the Greenock Com-
pany with the Caledonian Company; the Nithsdale and the
Caledonian were competing Companies for the traffic of the
country. The Ayr Company proposed giving up their in-
terest in the seven miles of the line to Paisley to the Niths-
dale Company, which was not opposed by the Greenock
Company; only this Company proposed doing the like to the
Caledonian Company. Mr. Murphy claimed to be heard in
the Committee on the ground of the clauses of the proposed
Bill.
The Committee decided that Mr. Sergeant Murphy be
allowed to appear for the Greenock Company, and that the
two amalgamation schemes should be considered together.
Mr. Leadbetter was first called and examined by Mr.
AIiDREWS.-}IIS evidence went to prove the opening statement
of Mr. Bannatyne, as to the terms on which the amalgama-
tion had taken place and the change now proposed. An
amalgamation had takeu place by the Bill of last year, but it
was now found neeessary to alter the terms. Those terms
had been submitted to the directors, and meetings of both
companies, and approved of by all parties as fair and equit-
able.

Mr. James M'Coll, the Chairman of the Ayrshire Com-
pany, corroborated the evidence of Mr. Leadbetter as to the
completion of the argreetnent between the two companies,
and their submission to meetings specially called fur the
purpose.
Mr. Sergeant MURPHY then opened the case for the
CALEDONIAN (GLASGOW, PAISLEY, AND
GnEENOCIC AMALGAMATION).

The LEARNED GENTLEMAN explained the origin of the
Caledonian line, which had been constructed on the recom-
mendation of the Government Commissioners. The Caledonian
line started from Carlisle in the south, and after proceeding
to Carnwath, it forked out to edinburgh on the one side, and
on the other by the Clydesdale Junction to Glasgow. By
the Monklarilland Kirkintulloch, and Garnkirk lines, a con-
nexion was made with the Scottish Central line and the north
side of Glasgow. On the smith side of the line at Glasgow
a junction was formed with the Greenock line by means of
the Pollock and Govan line. Thus the Caledonion scheme
would Connect in the most efficient manner the most
important districts in Scotland. Now, it was proposed
to open up by the present Bill a direct communication
between the extensive mineral fields of Lanarkshire and the
port of Greenock, the most important harbour in Scotland.
As an instance of the vast importance of the Lanarkshire
mineral fields, he might instance that in one year alone the
Monkland coal-field yielded 200,000 tons of iron, requiring
a consumption of 600,000 tons of coal. Such was the im-
mense traffic of the district that at one time the Monkland
Canal shares were as high as 3,0001. each. The Learned
Gentleman then alluded to the importance of Greenock as a
port and town, and that it consumed yearly about
220,000 tons of coal. The increased advantages which the
present Bill would confer was a more economical working
of the line and management; and by bringing coal from the
tnineral fields direct to the port of Greenock it would also
enable the Greenock line to compete more successfully with
the steamers on the Clyde. The Learned Gentleman having
amplified on these points, sat down.
The Committee then adjourned till to-morrow, at twelve
o'clock.