The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-31 00:00:00

11
blerri

LONDON, MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 1846.

The Select Committee appointed, on the motion of
Mr. MORRISON, to inquire whether, without dis-
couraging legitimate enterprise, conditions may not
be embodied in Railway Acts better fitted than
those hitherto inserted in them, to promote and se-
cure the interests of the public, have just published
their second report. It is to be regretted, that the
difficulties interposed in the way of procuring data,
on which to found their conclusions, the delays expe-
rienced in obtaining returns on subjects connected
with the inquiry, have prevented the Committee from
presenting their report at an earlier period. Much,
however, that is valuable can even yet
be obtained from the document. One of the
principal recommendations there put forward
has bean already partially acted on, by the appoint-
ment of the new Railway Board, the Bill constituting
which received the royal assent on Friday,' just
before the prorogation of Parliament, and although
the powers theitby conferred are not, as we conceive,
sufficient for the attainpent of the objects contem-
plated, we are assured on the highest authority that
the Bill was only the framework of future legislation
with respect to railways. We may, therefore, confi-
dently anticipate that the leisure aftbrded by the recess
will be turned to good account, and that the persons
selected for those important duties may, on the next
meeting of Parliament, be fully•prepared with mea-
sures to secure the great desideratum—an efficient
system of control and supervision applicable to all

railways at present existing or to be constituted
hereafter.

The report points out one of the chief defects in
the existing mode of procedure before: the Legis-
lature, in adjudicating on important public in-
terests, although coming before it in the
shape of private Bills, viz., that it supplies no
adequate means for obtaining a knowledge of the real
merits of measures to other parties than those who
support or oppose them. Too often the opposition is
bought off, wad a measure is passed sub silentio,
although Q may be very injurious to the
public ge,nerally, or certainly not be the line
best ca" culated to afford the requisite accommodation
to the nation. Many may see the mischief likely to
take place, but they will not willingly incur the
heavy expense and annoyance to which they would
be subjected, if they entered opposition against such a
Bill. Committees hitherto have rather selected the
best of the projects brought before them, than in-
quired whether there might not be some other plan
far better than any of those submitted to their investi-
gation. This error will be remedied for the future by
the strict examination to which every new project
will be exposed by the new Commissioners before it is
brought before Parliament. It will be a part of the
duty of the board to exercise the functions of an
avocat dn. diable, and to seize on and expose any blot
or imperfection that may exist in the scheme. As to
the lines that have already been constructed, or thosL
which have received the sanction of the Legislature,
the mischief is irremediable, and we can only look
forward to the adoption of such means as will make
the management so efficient, the working of the rail-
ways in every respect, both as regards the fares to he
demanded, and the accommodation to be afforded to
the public, so beneficial, that the inconveniences will
be reduced to the lowest possible amount.
It may be said that this may be productive of an ,
undue interference with private property, and that it
would be inequitable and unjust now to impose re-
strictions which were not thought of when the under-
takings were originally proposed, or when they re-
ceived the sanction of Parliament. This argument,
however, cannot prevail, as the right of the State to
deal with the property of its subjects for the publli.
benefit has ever been fully recognised and acted upon,
giving the parties fair compensation ; and it would be
peculiarly inapplicable in the case of railway com
panies, every one of which have taken by
compulsion the property of individuals on the
plea of the public interest ; besides, powers have
been reserved in all Bills, whether for the construction
of new lines or the extension of old, which have been
passed within the last two sessions, for the revision
and regulation of the scales and charges whenever it
it should be deemed necessary, and there are few in-
deed of the railway's throughout the country which
have rot voluntarily submitted themselves to that
control and superintendence. The report urges in the
strongest manner the right to subject the railways to
this control, and its urgent necessity ; it points
out that the roads of a country, from the very nature
of things, are public concerns, and that they must be
kept free from obstructions ; that in this country, from
the remotest periods, the right of the SOVEREIGN, as
representing the nation, has always been allowed—
hence the term "King's highway ;" and though power
was from time to time given to associations locally
interested to make and repair roads, and to levy tolls
thereon, that was but a delegated authority,
and never amounted to a permanent transfer ;
the public having always possessed the right
of controlling the trustees and -withdrawing
from them the management 'of the highways
included in their trust, a right which has been re-
peatedly exercised in our own times. It then urges
the paramount importance of railways, and lays down
the doctrine " that if it be necessary for the public
welfare that a country should never divest itself
in perpetuity of its right of property in
ordinary highways, it is still more important
that it should not part with the right to control its
railways." It fully and clearly points out that a
railway company must exercise a complete monopoly,
that the public cannot count on being relieved by
competition from the abuse of power on their part.
The deduction from this is pretty obvious—that a
monopoly subject to no responsibility, and under no
efficient check or control, is necessarily an intolerable
abuse, that can only be rendered innoxious by sub-
jecting it to a rigorous control and supervision.
A most interesting historical sketch is given of the
rise and progress of the railway system in the differ-
ent countries of Europe; the errors, the mistakes
that were committed in its infancy, and the means
adopted for their correction, are fully and clearly set
forth. Belgium receives the applause of the Com-
missioners as being the only country in which
the Government adopted a systematic plan from
the commencement, to which it afterwards
strictly adhered—a plan that embraced the
whole kingdom, and had exclusively for its
object to communicate, at the cheapest possible
rate, the benefit of railways equally to every part of
its population. The lines in Belgium were originally
all undertaken by the Government, and begun and
completed by the means of loans ; by which means
the fares have been fixed at an exceedingly low rate of
late years. Several lines of railways have been con-
ceded to private companies, for terms of years, on
terms beneficial to the public. In France, some lines
were at first undertaken by private companies and
others by the Government itself, till at length, in
1842, a plan was formed by which those means of
communication should be created, and connected with
each other according to a fixed system, of which the first
general rule was, that the great lines should run
from Paris to the frontiers, both by land and sea ;
the next to select the directest and shortest lines, and
the plan of leasing the lines to private companies was
recommended. This plan has ever been acted on
since, and the lines are conceded for terms of years,
varying from ninety-nine to twenty-five.
In Austria, Prussia, and the other German States,
the construction of the lines have generally been con-
ceded to private companies, either for terms of years,
or until the capitals have been recouped by
means of sinking funds, with rights of purchase, re-
vision of the fares, &c., &c., but in every instance the
lines revert to the Government at some period. In
this country alone the possession of lines in perpetuity
was allowed.

This neglect on the part of our successive Govern-
ments is lamented by the Commissioners. We can-
not, however, believe that the mischief is so great as
it is represented to be ; the right of control is ad-
mitted on all sides, and that being the case we cannot
regret that our Government acted on the wise prin-
ciple of non-interference with legitimate speculation.
England is essentially a commercial nation, and the
greatest possible degree of freedom should be conceded
to every enterprise : it is to that we owe our
greatness as a nation, and we shall not be injured,
because the wealth and capital that has been
created by the construction of railways has found its
way into the coffers of individuals in place of the
exchequer of the nation. The report goes to a con-
siderable length, and it is impossible to devote a
greater space thereto this day. We shall, however,
return to the subject on an early occasion.

[We are aware that Mr. MORRISON has addressed a
letter to the Times, which we publish in another
column, stating that he prepared the draught of the
report, which was simply laid before the Committee,
but as it is published as a Parliamentary paper, we
Lave treated it as what it professes to be, viz., as the
report of the Committee.]

So frequently have we had occasion to insist upon
the necessity of measures being adopted for the pro-
motion of cleanliness among our labouring classes,
that we rejoice the late session was not brought to a
conclusion before Parliament had taken the matter
into consideration, and had afforded the new system
the approbation and patronage of Government. Im-
mediately before the prorogation of the two Houses,
namely, on Wednesday last, the royal assent was
given to the Bill for encouraging the establishment of
Public Baths and Washhouses. Nothing could have
formed a better preliminary to the social reforms an-
ticipated from, and in many instances guaranteed to
the people by, the RUSSELL Administration. What
the present Ministry have principally undertaken
to accomplish, and what the population princi-
pally expect them to perform, is a reorga-
nization of the internal and domestic arrange-
ments of the empire. They are to introduce
proper and wholesome ventilation into the densest
quarters of our towns and cities through the inter-