The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-20 00:00:00

Room D.

GLASGOW, DUMFRIES, AND CARLISLE.
014 Committee met again this naming at eloven Q:closk garl St•

Gei,
ans in the chair. All the other Members were present,
The evidence on behalf of this Bill was resumed.

Mr. Christie, milling engineer, was examined, in corroboration of
the evidence of Mr. Geddes. given on Saturday. He had had con-
s:derable experience of mining operations, and he generally agreed
with the statcment of Mr. Geddes. He was prepared to go into par-
ticulars if required. He would explain that the ton of coal at Mans-
field was more than the trual quantity of 20 cwt., so that the actual
price of the coal used there was 3s. 9d. a ton.. He calculated the
consumption of the district on the line between Cumnock and Durn-
fries, at 34,000 tons. This was calculating the consumption at a ton
and a half per head, including the supply for lime works, and adding
50 per cent. for increase of traffic. This 34,000 tons
would come from the Sanquhar and Mansfield coal
works. He also estimated the Canoble coal field to send
84,180 tons along the Canobie branch towards Dumfries.
A portion of this would pass along the Caledonian line from the
Springkeld station, 18,000 tons would be exported, and the rest con-
sumed at and on the route to Dumfries. He estimated 12,800 tons
of lime would he carried on an average for six miles.

Cross-examined—There was considerable supplies of lime on the
line from Dumfries to Carlisle. He had estimated a ton and a half
of coal for each individual, and he did not think it a high estimate,
as it was the same as that given by the Caledonian last year. He
thought Canobie and Sanquhar coal would meet at Dumfries on about
equal terms, and hence the consumption would be about halved. The
price of screened coal at Canobic at the pit's mouth was is. 4d. a ton.
He had been informed that such was the price. He calculated that
Canobie coal would be put on hoard ship at Annan for 7s. 4d. a ton.
To Mr. 3lutteriv—He thought the Canobic goal would compete
with the Cumberland coal in the Irish market. The Canobie coal
was quite as good as the Whitehaven coal. He admitted, however,
that the English coal was superior to the Sanquhar and Mansfield
coal. He only judged by looking at them, as he had not =de ex-
periments by burning them. A good deal of English coal at present
came to Aunan ; but he considered the opening of this line would
exclude the English coal from this district entirely. He thought the
Canobie coal could be laid down at Dumfries for 9s. 4d., and it the
English coal could then be laid down for l Is. 4d., still he did not think
a pound of It would be used. He had made the calculations from in-
formation furnished him, and by looking at the map. lie had not
been over every part of the district himself. There were, no doubt,
many slips or breaks in the Sanquhar coal-field, but they occurred in
every coal-field. He had not been down the Mansfield coal-pits,
but, looking at the character of the strata, he considered there was
a large supply of coal. He was geologist enough to draw conclusions
to satisfy his own mind.
Re-examined—lle was quite satisfied that the estimate he had
made of the coal and lime to be carried was a moderate one.

Mr. Wright, manager of the Canobie coal-field, under the
Duke of latecleuch, deposed that, at the instance of his Grace,
he had gone over the route of the rail .vay. He had reported favour-
ably. He was acquainted with both Sanquhar and Canobie coal
fields. The former was 7 miles long. by 3 broad; the aggregate thick-
ness of the scams was 15% feet. At present the quantity raised was
15,600 tons a. year. This was for local purposes, as the expense of
cartage to Dumfries was too great to take it there. Dumfries was
supplied at present by English coal, of which 16,000 tons were an-
nually consumed. The present price was 165.8 d. at the ship's side.
With the railway Sauquhar. coal could be laid down at Dumfries
for Bs. I Id. There were no disturban,:es in the Sanquhar field that
materially interfered with its working. Until a year ago the working
of coal had been in the crop. With regard to the Canobie coal-field,
it was 3 miles by 2 in extent, and contained ten scams of 55 feet
thickness in the aggregate. The present openings were calculated to
yield 100,000 tons a-year for seventy years. Another field had been
proved, which would extend the supply of 100,000 tons a-year for 200
years. The present price of English coal at Annan was 14s. a ton,
whereas by this line they would be supplied at is. 4d. By this means
Annan, instead of being an importing, would become an ex-

porting town. The Ciaifick branch would be of great ad-
vantage to the lead mines near that line. These mines
were the largest in Scotland, and used about 2,500 tons a
year, which were principally carted from Sanquhar, 12 miles.
They would go by the branch railway. Ile agreed with the table
put in by Mr. Geddes.

Cross-examined--The line ran for 22 miles through the property
of the Duke of Buccleuch. He did not think the Sauquhar coal as
good as the Ciimberland coal. It might be worth a shilling a ton
less. In the beginning of the present year, the price of coal at Dum-
fries was 16s. lid, at the ship's side, and in 1844 it was 12s. 6d. He
did not think the difference had arisen from the strikes at coal-pits,
but from the increased trade of the country. He had not taken steps
to prevent parties from the Caledonian Company getting information
respecting the mineral fields. He was not aware that suck had been
done. He was not aware that there was any clay fit to make bricks
or tiles in the neighbourhood of Sanquilar.
Mr. Kennedy, a landed proprietor of Kirkland, Dumfriesshire, ex-
amined—He resided on his property in Domfrieshlre, but held
extensive flirms in the counties of Sutherland, Inverness, and Argyll.
He rented land to the amount of 6,0001. a year, and the extent of it
was 200,000 acres. The sheep that he raised in the north he trans-
ferred to lanifennline, Kirkcudbrightshire, and Roxburghshire. He

sold considerable numbers of these to dealers in the district, to be fat-
tened and sent into England,
.A considerable number of fat sheep
. . .

and lambs were now sent to Edinburgh and Glasgow, and if they had
a railway both for England and these cities, they would be sent by
it. The half-fed sheep, or " hoggets," would also be sent by the
same mode. He thought ftom 130,000 to 140,000 sheep and lambs
of all sorts would be sent to England, and Edinburgh, and Glasgow
annually. This was an increase on his former examination from re-
cent inquiries he had made. The larger proportion would find their
way on tO The railway at Dumfries. Ire agreed with the table which
had been drawn up of the sheep, cattle, and horse traffic. Ho thought
it quite correct. Ile thought 36,000 stone of wool would be sent out
of the country which the line Intersected, partly into the west of
Scotland, and partly to England.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
GROUP LXX.

The Select Committee on this group met to-day for the first time, at
one o'clock, in Room 24 (Grand Corridor) ; present, Sir George Clerk
(In the chair), lion. Captain Carnegie, Colonel Peel, Mr. Smythe, and
Mr. Tower.

The following is a list of the Bills referred to them : .
Dublin and Sandymount Atmospheric.
Sligo and Shannon.
Dublin, Belfast and Coleraine Junction.
Galway and Kilkenny
Dublin and Enniskillen.
Londonderry and Enniskillen Extension.
The Sligo and ,hannott Bill being unopposed, was referred to Mr.
Greene, the Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means.
ZONDONDLIILIZY AND ENNISILIZZEN.

The Hon. Mr TALBOT, Q.C., appeared on behalf of the promoters
of this Bill, the object of which, he said, was to improve the line of
the Londonderry mid Enniskillen, which was sanctioned last session.
Mr. Ross, the engineer, having briefly given evidence as to the
character of the line,
The Bill was postponed until to-morrow, and the preamble ordered
to be proved on the production of some formal documents.