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

RAILWAY MEETINGS.

GRAND JUNCTION RAILWAY.

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, notwithstand-
ing the diminution of traffic and travelling, owing to the
stagnation of trade and other causes adverted to in the
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
tiding S 1 st December last ; and a first instalment, at
the rate of 2/. per share upon the 1001. shares, and of
4s. per share upon the original quarter shares, being
a portion of the interest to which those shares (only)
are entitled, was likewise ordered to be pail 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 whiche 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 die 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 hardly
wonder, that newly opened lines have not been alto-1
gether exempt from accidents. Toe 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 confidence
in the accomplishment of this great object, if, indeed,
taking 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 lefel a passenger who reck-
lessly jumped out of a second-class carriage when at
full speed, to save a few miles walking from the next
stopping-place. It would seem that the necessity for
constant vigilance and unremitting care on the part of
the enginetnen, policemen, &c., owing to the almost
continuous movement of a 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
to the General Railway conference which was held at
Birmingham, on Tuesday, the 19th instant, the object
of which was to consider and devise the means of in-
creased safety to railway travelling. The resolutions
passed at the conference have appeared in the public
papers, and copies of tiro proceedings may be obtained
at the Treasurer's office by Proprietors feeling an in-
terest in the subject."—The thanks of the Proprietors
were unanimously voted to the Directors, and to their
managers 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 mcrchan-
dim 54,901/. 4s. 10d. ; and from the carriage of coal,
2,709/. Os. 7d. ; nicking a total of 139,323/. Ss. 7d.
'The expenditure for the same period amounted to
88,P94/. 70. ; leaving a net profit of 70,629/. Is. 7d.

BOLTON AND PRESTON RAILWAY.
The half-yearly meeting of the Proprietors of this
railway was held at the Swan Hotel, Bolton, on Wed-
beaday afterneton last, Jbhn Hargreaves, sco., Chairman
of the Board of Directors, took the chair. Mr.
Peter Sinclair, Secretary to the Company, read
the Report ; by which it appeared that the line
4) far as Nightingale Bridge, near Choriey, nine
miles and a quarter from Bolton, is now com-
pleted, and will be opened on Monday next for the
conveyance of passengers, Sze. 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.
Adie, tho engineer.—The Chairman said, that 190,000/.
the cap al, had been paid up, as required by the Act
of Parliament, and the Company were now in a situa-
tion to borrow 126,5004 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 Parliatn fnt, was then unanimously agreed
upon. The five retiring Directors, John Hargreaves,
sen., Benjamin Hick, C. Briggs, R. S. Barlow, and
John Cross, lisqrs. were re-elected. A vote of thanks
having been given to the Chairman, the meting sepa-
rated.

RAILWAY BETWEEN ENGLAND AND

SCOTLAND.

On Friday the Ist current, Sir Frederick Smith
ertnt by Hamilton to Lanark, and on the 2d he went
by one of our railways to Airdrie, on the opposite bank
of Clyde, and this week he was to be af.,.7ain at Lanark.
When the inspection is completed, Sir Frederick will
then have before him the whole four lines, the merits of
each of which are itroegly advocated by their respective
st vorters.

1. The East line, from Edinburgh, by Dunbar, and
Berwick, to Newcastle, which its supporters hold as the
best line betmean the two capitals, London and Edinburgh.
2. the East Midland line, from Edinburgh, by Gala-
chicle, through Roxbtaghshire and the North Tync, join- 1

A general meeting o7proPrielors of the Grand
J unction Railway was he'd on Friday afternoon at one
o'clock, in the Cotton Sales-room, Liverpool ; John
Moss, Esq. 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 port of 1339.
except ,n 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 1540. of 1239.
From Coaching...XlBB,62o 15 5 ... 187,476 8 5
Goods .... 40,934 .2 1 ... 35,220 10 0
„ Live Stock.... a,ood 10 11 ... 3,607 5

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 1539, on a receipt of
2'26,304/. 4s. Id., 38,511/. 7s. sd. ; and in the cor-
responding period of 1840, on a receipt of 232,563/.
5d., 29,433/. 104. Id., or an actual diminution of
expense, on a receipt larger by 6,0001., of more than
9.000/. The Directors congratulated the Proprietors
on tha 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 exaggerestad anxiety on the subject of railway
travelling. The opening of the Chester Branch, it was
statod, has taken place since the last general meeting ;
hitherto the traffic on this line has not been consider-
ab)o ; but the arrangements now completed for the
conveyacce of merchandise from Chester, from the Ist
proximo, and the advancing season, may be expected
to add materially to the income at Chester, bath from
this source and from passengers. A further reduction
in the rates of carriage for goods, it appears, has been.
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. Or 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 ofacconirnodation increased, they
have been guided by a conviction, that the prosperity of
the undertaking would be promoted by the increase of
triadic 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 deist
now charged oil the quarter shares at live per cent. on
the stock, and equal to I•2s. 6d. per share, is 137,4811.
I Is. Oil. This, the Directors stated, would enable the
Proprietors to declare a dividend at the rate of 61. 10s.
per 100/. 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.
commanded 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
G;and 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.
Irrigated.