The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-23 00:00:00

A "71' E;7l • "rt• ""r
• L'Uf
lURDAY r

EASTER HOLYDAYS.
NovelVes of ,xtrem- interest and iniOrm,tion at the
ROYAL POLYTECHN IC IN sTi furrioN.
Scenes in the OREGON TERRITORY for. a p +rt of an en-
tirely NEW SERIES of _DISSOLVING VIEWS. PORT:ZAITS of
the most Distinguished Men in the SIKH GOVERNMENT and
ARMY of LAHORE, magnified by the OPAQ,;k: MICRO:COPE ;
al,o.P•wtraitsof Sir Henry liardioge, Sir Robert and La,ly Sale. The
and CLIROMATROPE, wi h new and beautiful
variations: The most interesting of the Novelties at work 1.0
MACINTOSH'S ItOrARY ENGINE. COLEMAN'S PATENT
LOCOMOTIVE ENGINE for ;mending and descending

Planes. FARRELL'S ARCIUMEDIA RAILWAY, aq ENVE-
LOPE CUT I'ING MACHINE, WOOD'S NEW PATENT STEA'E-
ENGINJ GOV. Noj, ant the ATMO PILE RIC RAILWAY.
Experiments with the 1)I VINO It ELL and DIVER. Lectures on
CHEMISTRY and NATURAL PHILOSOPHY, with brilliant ex-
periments.

company should be closed, and enabled to wind up their
affairs at a consequence of a decision of the majority.
Tne holders of stock are scattered all over the c :unary. No-
body- knows whO are the scrip-holders. i hey have no means
41 communication with each other—they have no organisation
among themselves. Some of them are hoeiera for small
amounts, and they do not think it worth while to trouble them.
selves about the matter ; anti: a vast number, who are
the most substantial persons' concerned in them,
would refuse to come forward- in order to wind up
those concerns which they ware interested. as it would
have the effect of destroying their credit, and you have no hold
whatever upon the smaller parties. who are sca'tered ail over
the world. We propose. therefore, not t.) adopt the plan
proposed before Easter, hut we propose to adopt the recom-
mendation which hasewithout one exception, been made to us
from the highest authority to stop all railway Bills of
ay,ever de-
sereption, to ellew no Bill to be read third time, unless eti-
tion, signed by a majority of scripholders of the Company,
should he presented to that. House praying their Lordshipa to
visa such Bill. Ile considered such a caurse as that he bad
proposed would be better than any subterfuge. It would only
be acting in the more manly and straightforward manner, and
net under cover of the imp-it ion of conditions which it would
be impossible to comply with. We propose slat no Bill should
be read a third time unless evidence should be given to that
House, that a meeting of the stock-holders of the company
had been held—that meeting representing one third of the
stock of the company, and that three-6f.11s of that meeting
desired their Bill should pass.
Lard BROUGHAM—Are proxies to be admitted to vete?
Earl DALHOUSIE—Proxies must be admitted, because
the directcra and other parties connected with the government
2
of the company, who, having a vast amount of shares,
meet-
ing. For that reason they require that at such
rneetinga there should be a quorum consisting of
would in every instance be able to rule the
one-third of the stock of the cemptn). If such coaditicns
were not imposed their Lo• dship. ;night spare themselves the
trouble of passing the proposed Bill, as the meeting
would be
formed of the directors and their friends, woo would rule the
meeting. But it was necessary a further test shoulet•be applied.
and that was, that in case it should be said that a company was
desirous to ge on. it would be necessary that a meeting should
be held, at which three-fifths of these then present should ex•
press an opini. n to that effect. This had been rendered
necessary by the fact that the circumstances of the present
time were such as to cal. for it, and such as were
of no ontinary nature, and in fact he might say
they were ot an unprecedented character. The num-
ber of Bills souglit fit in the year 184 t involved an outlay
to the amount of IS 000,000.. sic:line; and those for which
the sanction of Parliament was sought in 1845 amounted to
about 60,000,000 e, so that in fact the amount of liabilities this
session would amount altogether to between seventy and eighty
=lawns. The number of Bills for railways which were
to come before the Legislature this •eesion amounted to about
519, which involved an outlay of about 300,0C,0.000. Now he
need not say that that amount of money was not to be
hail ; but there could be no doubt that about 70,000,0091.
sterling would be required. He would not now go into the
question as to the amount of the surplus capital of the country,
he merely wanted their Lordshe s to look at those circum-
stances as they now really stood. He had heard it stated by a
Noble Friend of his, that to so great a height had this rail-
way fever risen, that it exceeded by 50 per cent. that of last
year. It had been remarked, why not let the parties to these
companies b ar the consequences of embai king in them ;
but he begged to say that unfortunately they would not alone
be the sufferers. Sach was the state of the redrew: trade, that
even in some of the very best lines, parties were so enable to
get its the cabs made, that they had to give up the schemes in
despair; arid such a feeling had spread over the trade of the
country, that it had been found halms:di:he to procure capital
to carry it on ; and as a f. iend of his from
Scotland had observed in a letter of his, it was
taking away the very heart of the country. On these grounds,
than, he would ask, was it too much to a-k that, in future, the
parties to every railway should be satisfied of the utility and
feasibility of the scheme, and of their ability to go on, before
they should call upon the LegisLture for its sanction to those
Bins? He would now conclude by reading the resolutions he
inter' led to submit to their Lordships, and which he would
leave for their consideration until to-morrow eight. Having
read the resolutions, the Noble Lord went. on to say
that it had had also been endeavoured to provide against
cases when a large proportion of shares had been received or
held back that ctau-e nes to the off et that all scrip issued
should be paid for before the. 31st of March. The necessity
for this clause was apparent, when it was remembered that in
maey cases parties would purchase, seehulating on the
winding up, and by which tea• y would make one hue-
de ed per cent. on the bargain. ( Hear. hear. )
The -Noble Lord then read the resolutions, which are pre-
cisely the same as those prop aced in the other House of Par-
liament; and, in concluding, said he wished to correct a
mistake he had made in expleiedug the mode of winding up rail-
eay companies. The subject was so complicated, that it
was d.fficult to make it so clear as he was desirous
of doing. The way propo•ed wss to wind up the affairs
in conferality terlh the provisions of the Bill he had explained,
or if that course was dissented from, then the company might
be wound up under the Joint Stock Companies' Act of last
session. and an assignee appointed at the meeting to act with
the official assignee. He had now set before them the
provisions of the present Bill, and also the sessiunal order
which was to give effect to the objects of the Bill.
The subject was a di and complicated one, and in the
statement he had made he had genet ally given the provisions
of the Bill and the reasons why it should be adopted, in order
that those companies that thought fit might be wound up with
a, little trouble as possible.—(Hear, hear.) t e had before
state d his opinion, that it the subject were left as it now is, that
eine-third of the railroad plans which had been submitted to
Parliament could not aoasibly go on this session.
Lord BROUGHANI was quite aware that their Lordships
were acquainted with the interest which he took in the subject
ot railway speculations. Nothing could have delighted him
more than the luenimius statement which the Noble Lord (Dal-
housie) had just made to the House. They were scare, also,
of the interest which he took in the subject of railways gene-
rally; but, without more time to consider the business, he felt
incompetent to come to any positive decision on this matter;
in the meantime, he must only
say that great difficulties
presented themselves, wehout more time to con-
sider the other consequences that were likely to
arise. He had repeat e•tly warned their Lordse ins of
•he effects of the rail way mania during the last
two yeare and he must beg to remind them not only of the
evils that were likely to arise to the commercial credit of the
country, but also to the moral interests of the community at
large. He regretted to find that as he had anticipated not
only was the spirit of gambling
in railway shares experienced by
the higher classes of society but that it was extending to the
middle classes, and further still that it seemed to have extended
to the lower classes whose livelihood was dependent on their
industrial exertions. He, had repea-edly warned their Lordships
hat it was likely to affect the morals ot the whole of the com-
munity. He had stated instances in which poor clergymen
and widows with small means had been deprived of all their
-übsistence, of ladies living upon their jointures and with
small means, as well as of other individuals who had
been deprived of the whole of their subsistence by this mania.
Many parties were exiled from their native homes n eorve-
qaence of their inability to meet the demands made upon them,
or answer to the liability which they had incurred; but to a
great degree this measure will prevent the evil from proceeding
further. Great relief would be administered, by the act of his
Noble Friend, to the poor sufferers; and he would fain hope
the mere statement which they had then heaid, and the recep-
tion it had met with would have a salutary effect, betore the
Bill would pass into a law, for there was a railway house else-
here—( Laughter)—which vr•s admire-1y adapted for talking,
though little so forawing.—(Hear, hear.) There were some
railway bodies so full of discussion that they could debate for
v‘elvo days, witheen intermission. They could make speeches
ny the score, and obtain attention by the hour.—( Hear, hear.)
But there seemed to be amongst them an utter incapacity for
business. He did not know to what it was owing.
The Duke of RICHMOND—It is the directors fault.
Lord BROUGHAM—No, no, I did not say that. I am not to
be caught that way. It arose from stone bad construction in
the body itself—they cauld debate 'or ever—they could argue
for aver, but as for denting to a decision it. was quite another
thing ; in truth, it was so much out of their power, that it was
quite out of the question. But he most devoutly hoped that
the bare promulgation of the pi ak weuld have a great effect in
remedying the evils whick akped. The course they
were about to adopt of not reading a Bill a
eird time was not a very usual ene —to pledge
themselves that no consideration would tempt them
'0 read a Bill for the third time after it had become ripened,
unless something was done out of the House by parties over
whom they had no control, was certainly a proceeding exceed-
ingly dangerous, and requiring great deliberation before they
-hould adopt it. But he was very much disposed to strain a
point in this instance, as it weuldeffs ct, hebeheved, a great good.
tie did not think the propi..ed measure would be effectual
without som, such order.—(Hvar, hear.) If he were to state
which of the two eneamres be thought would be nio.t effe..tual
to should pre!er the order. but he did riot Fee why he sh,uid
be put to the selee:too. His opinions wls they would both be
fficiocious, but there was oi.e quAlity in the order whieh the
Bill did not possess. The one was certain and speedy,
while of the other they were not sure that it
would pass. lie would not detain their Lordship,.
He could have desired that. all these things had
ti ken another course—he could have wished that all private
It gislation,
nsd tritunat. and Pame
including railways, canals, wet roads, should have
been tra
stould havferre e madeto de tm,tme anether
arrangements whichthat wouldar halivent
en-
obled ail private business to be satisfactorily arid cheaply done
within., a rese, able time, so as to avoid the great expense and
ittex otfbebotohtillieor
consequent on the present system, and to avoid the
tll ea
inefficientnxietymanaer in which of necessity (without impte ins any
hla but more especially
the Houses, but
were obliged
to carry on that important branch of Legislation.
When they looked at the enormous amount of
private business amounting for this . •
year in one department
enly tee the enormous sum of 591,000,0001. When
)CothmemCittereen:
flamed that these Bills had power to inflict a they re-
most trans-
eevedental injorye hen they reflected that these Bilis gave
;tower to interfere with every mares private
property—to re-
move his wood: to grub up plantations. to
drive a road throu:li a manta _leas_ overthrow houses, to
person's e4ate worthless to trim, andV u.re e
greunds, to make a
feoapabl
in-
habited by human beings to of being , compel
with their property whether they people to part
i,e would or not, and
that too, not at prices fixed byt
would be bad enough but at prices fixed by though that
considered that this breach of legislation, and
others. When they
it
of legislative fuectunia that could
b(t., and of all the branches
which required to be entrusted to tribunalsnamed, this was one
of a
than that of a Committee of this Hou,edifferent kind
difficulties which the country and the 'ParliamentHe hoped that the
' into would lead to some steps being had now got
taken
which he must say should have - been by that House,
adopted years before.
There was some ground for encouragement even in the pre.
vent state of affairs, because, from thy
very
better arrangements would he made for managing the private
necessity of the case
business of the House. He felt grateful to
the Noble Earl
for the statement of the opinions of her Majesty's Goverment
import this sulj,ct, for the candour, as well
led severely •eoing nature of the statemeens he
unadorned
s on the occasion.
His telt thanked to tha Gevarnment for •
bringing forward so
necessary a measure as the present.
'The Earl of WICKLOW considered that the expense of
taking Bills through both Houses of Parliame t would form a
tie
promi •nt part of i t
consideration in the me, n
tles that were to
be held under the provisions of the'
pro, osed Act, and he
!bought it neces-ary, for a right consideration of the
co, rest data of those expensea should be accessible case, that
The Alatquia of SA LIS/41JR y had
a, to them.
He thouglit h
railway mania. , owe„r,
greet a horror of the
, t ey would have some
reason to Mead the winding up of these affairs. There a
s
ene point in the measure proposed by the Nulsle Earl tOr which
he would call the attention of their
• Lordships.

It was proposed to require three-fifths of -thg scrip-
holders to assent ea, ehe. winding up of the concern. The
meeting was to represent one-third of the scripholders of the
Company. It would require three-fifths of those present to
assent to
the petition to their Lordships. It would, teerefore,
at to he
regarded
taken underEngia
eh: arrangements nv,g.
hetm.
ne
he
et s s proneaw that
tihoughtditineatth,en:itll,.,
Ire_
wardsd m o
ts
hu
theyre
were endeavouring to put a stop to what nailed the
P GovernmentP °'
to eacnoui
railway mania. The evils which had been described by the
Noble
t le
Noble E .r 1
who had proposed the Bill, were sufficient to justify
theste; that was about. to be taken. But what was the ra !way
mania?
Why it was neitner more nor less than that upon
which dep riled the great cemmunications of this greatl
country. Railways, in a mi iiary point of view, were
of the utmost importance, and the Legis'ature must
be careful how they checked their construction. For
some years pact he had thought the Government ought
to base taken some step upon this subject. If they had done
so years ago, the present railway mania never would have
existed. At present, and under existing circumstances, the
proposed resolutions were necessary, and, so far, he could not
object to them ; but he would remind the Government that
in Ireland especial), it was their duty to take the railways under
their care and control, and if they did so, there could
be no doubt that railways would be made without
embarrassing the eotintry.
The Earl of ROSEBERRY rose for the purpose of putting
a question to the Noble Earl who had.proposed the resolutions.
He apprehended that his Noble Friend did not intend this ses-
sional order to become a standing order upon which Parliament
was to proceed in fusure, hut merely as a sessional order for
the repletion of the proceedings of the House during the pre-
sent session. It was desirable under existing circumstances
to facilitate the wielding up of companies with as little incon-
venience as possib'e.
Lord ASH BURTON said it was useless to complain of what
thould have been done some time ago. The real question
they had to consider was the peculiar and anamalous position
in which they found themselves placed, and the wisest course
it behoved them to take. Taking that position into consideration
into consideration, he must say that as far as he understood the
Bill submitted, with the sessional order with which it was ac-
companied, it appeared to him the best means of relieving
them from the diffieulty in which they at present stood, •and
to meet the evil arising from the enormous demand on the
capital and labour of the country, which stood in the way of
'the legitimate commerce of the country.—( Hear, hear.) lie
must, at:the same time, remind the Noble Lords who sat on the
Railway Committee, at the early period of the session, that he
(Lord Ashburton) stated very similar views to those stated
that night, respecting the difficulty in which they would find
themselves placed.—( Hear, hear.) It was imposible to
go on with the present means of adventure, which was beyond
the means of the country to accomplish in any reasonable time.
A Noble Lord opposite had referred to the case of Ireland,
and the relief which the construction of railways would afford
in the peculiar circumstances of the country ; but however
anxious they might be to relieve Ireland, they must recollect
that if they went beyond the means of the capital of the
country, instead of benefiting Ireland they would clog all:pro-
ceedings intendel for that purpose, and defeat the very end
sought to be obtained.—( Hear, hear.) He must say, con-
sidering the peculiar circumstances of the country, that the
measure was a necessary one to mast the difficulties.
His object was to insure the classification of these several
schemes, and he thought that this classification ought to be
observed—that is, that the several railway schemes ought to
be apportioned into classes. He was aware, that under
the direction of the Noble Lords who bed formed the Com-
mittee. that certain lines ought to he preferred, and
the first class they recommended was that which
comprised the lines of the national defences. The next
class was that which was described as being likely to fill up
ppm in established railways ; though if the business were to be
conducted as it was at present devised, there was little proba-
bility of obtaining, their Acts during the present session. It
was much to be regretted that such should be the case, as the
passing of these Bills was likely to contribute laTely to the
advantage of the public The next class eves that which was
called the offspring of the strong companies, more particularly
these of the Great Western, Louth-Western, and the London
and Birmingham, and others of a similar character, which com-
panies, from their enormous incomes, possessed all the ap-
pliances for carrying out their designs. He was not. aware of
the precise feelings of the Government, bat he thought
it was necessary to look to the results of such pre-
ference • and he must say, that in the consideration of the
Select Committees the object of the national benefit should
be particularly keit ‘n view—(Cheers)—particularly wl en the
object of such companies was kept in view.
Lord CAMPBELL was sati,fied that the interval of ti e re-
cess had been advantav,eous in the consideration of the several
plans which hail been submitted to Government, and E r the
regulation of private enterprise. He was satisfied also that
this direction of private enterprise would be advantageous in
the improvement of the railway system. A great evil had been
complained of, but he thought if they were only
to look to the Contineni, the Government would
have a very effectual care, salutary as wen as effectual.
But his revs'', for thus presenting himself to their Lordships
upon this subject was, to ask the Noble Lord opposite whether
it was proposed to• insert any clause for the purpose of indem-
nifying those who should have become liable to the creditors of
a ral eay company. At pro's nt a person might take an action
against a member of the committee, and he had no means of
indemnifying himself.
Lerd WHARNCLIFFE was of opinion that it was at pre-
sent premature to be abscessing the merits o the 13111 not yet
before the House. He had heard of the proposAion of the Noble
Lord in reference to the nio in which parties should proc ed
who were desirous of winding up a company ; but in cases
w' ere it might not be possible to procure the proposed number,
the meeting would then have the power ofdisposing of the question
He thought that if the number required were larger, they
would be more likely to get at the real opinion of the sub-
stantial hotly of shareholders. What they had to dread was,
that attempts would be made to gei up these meetings for
fallabious purposes. He had already stated that he con-
sidered three-fifteenths too small, and he could wish that
the number required had been somewhat larger- He would
not detain their Lordships longer, but he hoped that the
suggestion he had made would have the consideration of the
Noble Lord.
Lord KINNAIRD asked if the standing order would be
considered to-morrow?
Lord DALHOUSIE—No; on Monday. It was exceed-
ingly satisfactory to him to find that their Lordships ap-
proved of the course pursued by the Government on
the subject of the standing order and of the Bill.
It would be necessary, however, that the Bill and the sessional
order should go hand in hand. He would endeavour to reply
to the various remarks made by the various speakers in their
roper order ; and first he would refer to what had fallen from
his Noble Friend beside him. His Noble Friend objected to
the amount fixed as likely to be too small, and as also to open
the door to a system of jobbing and fictitious meetings,
which would be unsatisfactory, inasmuch as it would nest really
represent the sentiments of the shareholders in the companies.
That objection had been caretully considered, and although the
amount fixed upon appeared to look small yet the Noble Lord
would recollect that it was the minimum. But he would find
on looking at it in another point of view that it would be
amply suffieient. Supposh g, for instance, in such companies
as the London and Birmingham and Great Western,
which hail :each a capital of five or six millions
that a meeting were called under the operation of this order,
it would require a very considerable degree of exertion to oh •
lain that aiuouut. Other companies, it was true, had advan.
tags which these great companies had not; but it would be
found that even in their case the sum in the Government pro-
position would be found to act very stringently. His Noble
Friend who sat further down had offered a different
objection. He felt that to ask the sanction of the twe-fifths
of the subscribers was to ask too much for the purpose of pre-
venting the progress of the Bill. But when their Lord hips
looked to the circumstances of the times—when they looked to
the consequences which %You'd result from any considerable ad-
dition to the railway pr.jects which had aireaoy passed the
House of Parliament —when they recoil, sated that a vast num-
ber of these Bills were forced through Parliament contray to the
wishes of the proprietors, he thought they would find
that the objections urged by his Noble Friends were untenable.
Wherever there was a doubt, Parliament should throw the
doubt on the side of the negative. With respect to the ques-
tion of the Noble Earl, he order was only sessional—of a pe.
culler character it was true, but it-wrs intended to apply to
en extraordinary crisis—it was to expire with the session.
It might be in the recollec•ion of their Lordships that her Ma-
jesty's Government, at the commencement of the session, ex-
pressed an earnest desire that every possible indulgence should
be shown to those Bills which had for their object the construc-
tion of railways in Ireland. But hedid not think his Noble Friend
would wish that Irish Bills should be excepted from the
operation of the order. He was anxious to say that there
-horrid be no obstacie thrown in the way of those Hills. They
should receive their third reading in that House, and they
'dipole not conic under the operat on of the order
until they went into the other House, arid lie
was accordingly prepared to move on the 27, h, to
move the third leading of all those Bills which had arrived at
the proper maturity. With respect to the other Bills, he
wished to mention that they would receive no additional delay.
Lord CAMPBELL wished that something would be said
in reference to the indemnities to be granted to shareholders.
The Earl of DALHOUSIE said that whatever liabilities
were now imposed on the parties, would remain. The lia-
bilities would remain exactly as they were at present.
Lord CAMPBELL—The liabilities will remain, but the in
demnity will be gone.
The Earl of DALHOUSIE said that creditors would have
the
the same security as existed at present.
The Bill was then read a first time.
The Earl of DALHOUSIE then moved that the sessional
order be taken into consideration on Monday.—Agreed to.
The second reading of the Boroughs (Scotland) Bill was
tostponed wall Monday,
The House then adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
RAILWAY BUSINESS OF THE SESSION

The SOLICITOR-oh:NER AL (in colitis Cation from our
Third Edition) said, these was at the present moment a diffi-
culty existing. It was the general eomplaint of the commer-
cial community of this country, that before these Bills could
pass into a law, and the greater proportion of capital called in,
the 104 king up of the deposits would keep out of the circula-
tion of the country:a sum amounting to from ten to twelve
millions of money. That would seriously interfere with the
commercial operatiens of the country, in every one of its
branches. They had heard this from the Noble Lord the
Member for Liverpool, who had presented a petition contain-
ing complaints from Manchester and other parts of the country.
They heard the lound complaints in the City, and in Scoland
That all commercial operations, large and small, from the
opulent banker to the small tradesman, were depressed to an
alarming degree by the want of that capital which constituted
their means, and which was taken from their hands and from
the country by the continued demands of further calls on the se
schemes. How was this to be remedied? It had been sug-
gested and urged upon her Majesty's Goverhment when this
state of things was beginning to be felt, before the meeting of
Parliament, that some measures should be adopted for selecting
from the numerous schemes brought undm- th,, attention of the
Legislature those which might seem most necessary and reason-
able. He could not think that tho-e who cff--red that suggestion had
properly considered the difficulties of selecting from 500 scheme
those which ought to be submitted. When they considered
the numerous grounds and varn ingredients which entered
ci as fur instance, which of
direct—whieh passed througl.
i;rt:jecat nedinq linesniry
w of
as ththaet
l
the most populous district, and other investigation:
of that ,nature it was impossible to go through all these in-