The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-02 00:00:00

RINGDON• STREET.

It was proposed by the London and Birmingham Com-
pany to construct a line from their goods station at Cam-
den-town, which, after crossing College-street, Kentish-
town, would have been carried in a direct course to the
angle formed by the intersection of the Holloway-road
with William-street, and thence would have proceeded
across the New-road, near Winchester place, by the
north east side of the New River Head, to form a junc-
tion with the Tottenham line, near the north end of St.
John's, street.
By this means the terminus of both companies would
have occupied the area inclosed by Farringdon-street,
Skinner-street, the Old Bailey and Ludgate-hill, (ex-
cluding the houses on the north side of Ludgate-hill,
and a few adjacent houses in the Old Bailey.)
This project was designed by the Birmingham
Company as a means of delivering to the pub-
lic, at a reduced rate, such goods as might be destined
for that quarter of the City, and also of providing a few
trains for the convenience of short traffic to and fr. the
City. But Mr. Glyn, the chairman, and Mr. Green, the
secretary to the company, having stated in their evi-
dence that they have abandoned this scheme. fir,tly, be-
cause it is not IN quired far the public convenience, and
secondly; on account of the large capital which the con •
struction of such a tv-rk would demand, it is unneces-
sary for us to take any other notion of this project, than
to say that the reasons for its abandonment appear very
conclusive and sufficient.
5, THE DIRECT LONDON AND MANCHESTER LINE, AND
THE LONDON AND MANCHESTER EXTENSION TO THE
CITY.
For the Direct London and Manchester it is proposed
to have a terminus at Battle-bridge, near the City-road;
and for the London and Manchester Extension to the
City, it is proposed to have a western terminus, bounded
by Holborn-hill, Farringdon-street, Shoe-lane, and
Harp-alley, as well as an eastern terminus inclosed by
Victoria-street, West-street, King-street, and Skinner-
street.
The line down the Fleet valley would be by a subway,
partly formed by tunnelling, and partly by open cutting.
Neither of these lines is now before Parliament.
The estimate for the extension into the city is
750,0001., the distance being two miles, two furlongs, and
seven chains.
The lines are shown on the map as starting from
Holloway, and running within a short distance of each
other, down to the City-road.
The te.rm;_nus at Battle-bridge seems well calculated
for the Manchester. and London and the intermediate
traffic. But tare separate branch, commencing at Lower
Holloway, and pzsstug through a considerable length of
the city, for the purpose of establishing a terminus at
Farringdon-street and Skinner-street, is, in our judg-
ment, quite inadmissible.
6. THE NORTH LONDON JUNCTION RAILWAY.

This line, which comprshends the birch already
described as commencing on the Eastern Counties Rail-
way at Bearbinder's.lane, is intended to connect the
Great Western and London and Birmingham Railways
with the Eastern Counties line. Commencing on the
west at the Paddington station, it would take a north-
easterly direction, passing through Portland-town, above
Lord's Cricket-ground, so as to form a junction with the
London and Birmingham Railway near the goods ter
minus at Camden-town. At that point it would turn to
the eastward, crossing the Kentish-town and Camden-
town roads, and running down nearly to Frog-lane,
whence one branch would, as already described, bo car-
ried to join the Eastern Counties' line, near Bearbinders'-
lane, and another would proceed direct to the Fore-street
terminus. The distance from Paddington to Fore-street
by this line would be six miles.
The terminus is proposed to occupy a space of eleven
acres, and the whole cost of the work and purchase of the
property is estimated at 1,392,8291. ; as already men-
tioned, there will be l 4 mile of viaduct from Islington to
Fore-street.
We are of opinion that this line presents considerable
conmercial and other advantages, in so far as its main
trunk would, to a limited extent, answer the purposes of
such a line as we have ventured to recommend in the
first part of our report ; that is, a line encircling Lon-
don, connecting all the railways entering the town with
each other, and with the docks, and thereby enabling
an unbroken communication to be maintained between
all parts of the country through the metropolis.
We are not, however, prepared to say that the line
which the North London Junction Company propose
xo take is, even so far as it goes, the best for this pur-
pose. The ground over which such a railway as we
have suggested would most conveniently pass, would lie
beyond the limits of our inquiry ; and for this reason
we have not entered into any compprison of the merits
of the North London Junction line with other lines, or
portions of lines of a like nature, which we shall have to
notice hereaiter. •
As to that branch, however, of the present scheme
which would come to For-stree!., and theref)re within
our limits, we are of opinion that it is open to the same
objections its apply to other proposed extensions to ter-
mini in the City.