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

hear.) A Bill had recently passed to facilitate the
dissolution of railway companies whose Acts
had not been obtained ; but in cases where
the Bills had been passed, or the works partly
commenced, the company had entered into contracts
and engagements with landowners and others. lie did
not think, therefore, that it would be advisable to
bring in any measure to allow companies so solicited
to ralastge tiaenaselves from the obligations they had
entered into with numerous penalties.
Mr. DIVETT.—Wbat will be the extension of
time ?

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER
then proposed to allow either two or three years
beyond the time limited by the Acts already passed
for the purchase of land or the completion of the
works. With respect to the proportion of share-
holders, it was immaterial to him whether the power
should vest in two-thirds or three-fourths of
the whole company. That was a subject which could
be discussed in Committee upon the Bill. He would
therefore move for leave to bring in a Bill for the
extension of time for the purchase of land and the
completion of the works of those railways for which
acts had obtained the sanction of the Legislature,
and also for the prohibition for a limited time upon
the directors of those railways whose works were
not commenced from commencing the same until
the consent of a given number of the shareholders had
been previously obtained.
Colonel SIBTHORP did not rise for the pur-
pose of opposing the measure of the Chancellor of
the Exchequer. He had always endeavoured to press
upon the Government the necessity of putting a
stop to these woi ka. A sense of duty alone had made him
rise in his seat and express fearlesslyhis reasons for press-
ing that subject upon the attention of the Government.
Railway speculation had throughout been nothing
more than a gross attack upon the rights of private
property, and in his opinion a stop ought long ago to
have been put to it. The Right Hon. Gs,ntleinan
the Chancellor of the Exehequesr talked of compensa-
tion to the landholder. 11,71-iy, what compensa-
tion, in the name of common sense, could be afforded
to the man who had his land taken from
him by main force, and what compensation could be
made to the Englishman who had his property
snatched from him against his will by a power that
did not exist even in Russia ? He was glad the com-
mercial necessities of the country had stepped in to put
a limit to this abominable system of robbery.
He had no wish to oppose the bringing in of the Bill,
but he called upon the Right Hon. Gentleman to
say to those railway companies, " Unless you pay
fur the construction of the railways for which you
have obtained Bills by a certain time you
shall not make them at all."—(Hear, hear.)
If the parties who had sought such powers could
not carry them out let the Legislature abrogate what
it had done. He spoke thus on behalf of his coun-
trymen, and as a disinterested individual ; when the
Bill arrived at its second reading, he should propose
a clause compelling railway companies to pay for
the land they had included in their survey, or else
to give it back to its proprietors.
Mr. E. ELLICE approved of that part
of the Bill which gave railway companies
power to defer the construction of their works.
At a former time he offered a proposition
to the House, which, if it had been acceded to,
would have averted some of the evils which had since
become alarming—viz., to curtail the enormous powers
which those corporations possessed of borrowing mo-
ney. Canals as well as railway companies sought and
obtained power to borrow one-third of their capi-
tal. Now, he blamed the Executive for not reducing
those powers within proper bounds. But railways
were mainly one of the causes which had led to
the present monetary crisis. It was an
abuse of credit, not unlike that practised with respect
to the South American mines. Railway companies
went into the market with more available securities
than the trader, and prevented him from obtaining those
discounts which pre% iousl v• he had been able to obtain.
There was another point in connexion with this sub-
ject which he wished to direct the attention of the
House to a point which both the present and past
Government had lamentably neglected. The House
was aware that by law a railway company could only
divide amongst its shareholders 101. per cent., but
during the late mania instances without end had oc-
curred of companies dividing profits to the ex-
tent of 1001. per cent. The Legislature
winked at such extravagance, and allowed it to
go on against the remonstrance of a Committee which
considered the point, but he hoped, now that they had
seen the folly of such lukewarmness, measures would
be taken to prevent the recurrence of these abuses.
He thought that some protection ought to be claimed
for those parties who were subject to the monopoly
of great railway companies. It was the duty of the
House to limit the powers granted to railway com-
panies in such a manner as not to interfere with the
interests of other- classes of the country, and the
individual exercise of other branches of industry. It
was very difficult for any individual man of that
house, unaided by the Government, to carry
out any reform in these great subjects, but
he hoped that the Government would adopt sons
nioasuee to regulate the mode of borrowing large
stuns cf money, and thereby crippling other 'branches
of ordinary commerce and industry.—(Hear.)
Mr. HUDSON could conscientiously bear testimony
to the strenuous and continued opposition made by the
Hon. and Gallant Gentleman the Member for Lincoln
(Colonel Sibthorp) to all descriptions of railway under
takings, but he could not bear the same testimony to
the conduct invariably pursued by the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman the INlstn'oer for Coventry (Mr. Ellice). That
Right Hon. Gentleman ccreplained of the excessive
nutntaer of Railway Bills passed is the last session of
Parliament, and he added, that ha warned !he House
that those measures would involve the country in diffi-
culty and distress. He (Mr. Hudson) denied that the
distress which existed was t, be attributed to railways.
—(hear, hear.) He could not forget that lie bad the
honour to move an amendment to a Bill which was in-
tended to connect Coventry and Southend, and he also
remembered that upon that occasion—although the
Right lion. Gentleman now ascribed all the distress to
railways—that ke implored the Rouge, for the sake of
the city of C ,:'entry, to pass the Bill.—(Hear, hear,
ar.d a laugh.) The Right Hon. Gentleman's example
upon that occasion was contrary to his present
precept, and the maxim was that Example was
better than precept."—(hear, hear, and laughter.)
The Right lion, Gentlemen sail that the p iw era given
to railway companies to borrow money was too exten-
sive. He (Mr. Hudson) would riot any that those
powers were not too extensive, but that was a fair ques-
tion for debate. The companies with which he was
connected, and among them were some of the most cx
tensive in the country, had not borrowed to anything
near the extent of their powers. But if the House
thought the power of borrowing was too extensive, or
likely to be attended with inconvenience to the com-
munity, they might fairly make it a subject for mature
inquiry. The Right Hon. Gentleman, however, seemed
to say that the borrowers were the only persons to be
considered. Was there to be no consideration for those
who lent the money ?—(Hear, hear.) Were not the in•
dustrioue poor, who had accumulated their savings, to
be thought of ?—(Hear, hear.) Were they to be told—
" Oh, invest your money in trade. or give it to your
banker, and receive a low rate of interest for it." Why,
nothing could be more ridiculous than to exclude the
public from a safe and profitable investment for their
capital.—(Hear, hear.) It' such investment were not
furnished in railways at home, they would find it else-
where. A large amount of English capital was now
invested in railway undertakings on the Continent, and
if aoy measure were passed calculated to check invest-
ments in English railways they would find their way to
foreign railways. 11'ithin the last twelve months no
less than two millions and a half were invested in foreign
railways, and a large sum might follow, for it was im-
possible to prevent capital flowing somewhere. He felt
it to be a great blessing that railway property flowed
where it did—(Hear, hear, and laughter)—although lie
felt the inconvenience of so great a number of flocs
being sanctioned by Parliament, and though he was
ready to admit that some distress might ensue from it,
still be believed the Nouse could net have taken any
other course.—(Hear, hear.) It was fallacious to say
that the late commercial distress had been occasioned by
the large expenditure upon railways, for all the articles
absorbed in the construction of railways were either of
British produce or of British growth.—(Hear.) We did
not import railways—(A laugh)—so the drain occasioned
by them could not be said to account for the distress. 1. o
hold that the entire inconvenience which the commercial
classes suffered was caused by railways would be to state
what really was not the case. He believed, on the con-
trary, that railways had been of great benefit to the
poor—that they had contributed very considerably to
increase their comforts, and that they had caused a large
amount of money to circulate in channels likely to
swell
the prosperity of the country.—(ll,ar, hear.) Not-
withstanding this, the manufacturers of Mancheeter met
together and forwarded circulars to the railway com-
panies, begging of them nut to make any further calls.
Now, if these well intentioned gentlemen had addressed
their circulars to those who were accepting bills for
large ameunts to foreign merchants, and thus del imaging
the exchanges, they reight have done souse good.—
(Hear, hear.) But to tell the railway companies that
they were net to continue to employ their labourers
was ab,urd.—(Hear, hear.) Nu railway company had
stopped for want of fund.; they night have gone on
less rapidly, but the had not stopped, neither had they
applied to the Goren:mutat far ee.istaoce. \A, hen rail-
way stock was at a prom iun the Chat-atelier of the Ex-
clirquer'e money was at a largo discount.—(iii ar, hear.)
and to his own know!, dge rails aj stuck blvd been sold
when a purchaser could not be found for laxch( quer.
bills.—(Hear, hear.) The pullic knew very well what
they were about, and it appeared were far wiser than
the Right Hon. Member for Coventry thought they
were. lie had given it ti 3 his opinion, aid h. e mow re-
peated it, that we could not construct railways and
import corn to a large extent, for is such case the
bullion would have to be sent out of the country. If
the Government were to undertake legislation of this
kind they would have to legislate also for the merchant
and the cotton importer that they should not exceed a
certain amount. When the mercantile class were over
trading the Government did not come down and tell
them they should confine their transactions within
certain limits. He was prepared to say on behalf of
the railway companies that they were ready to make
any sacrifice to suit the convenience of the public.