The Sun.
London, England, 1848-07-19 00:00:00

IRISH RAILWAYS.

We return to thielt;:hetbe.ocrulovstanlissiodmereation of this important
question. Mr. Humphrey Brown has, in his " Irish
Wants and Practical Remedies," arrayed a great mass
he is
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estimatesrhi seh railways.hoafs psrtoars
showing thettpthhi
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aor disappointmentestimates.
years •
exceeded by the actual cost, but some allowances arc to
be made. It is to be remembered that the price of
land was enhanced, increased station accommodation
was required, the cost of labour increased,she weight of rails was raised, the price of
iron run up by the iron-masters, and the size, power,
and value of locomotives and stock were likewise aug-
mented, but no allowance was made for the engineer.
It is true there has been a great increase in the
estimate of cost ; but there has been a still greater
increase in the estimated income. Indeed, it was
the increase of traffic which manifested itself on
railways earlier opened which caused the
expenditure on the others. The engi-
ittiheerears aeid lw
engi-
neer, who had made his calculations to accommo-
date a small traffic, found that he had to provide
heavier locomotives and more frequent trains ; that
the rails which he had calculated at 45Ibs. per yard
must be made to 701 be.; and that where he had laid
out two acres for a station he
,must have five, and
build workshops for engines, sheds for carriages, store-
houses for goods, and pens for cattle, the extent of which
The on y
iwhich
havera
railway
so m ulch f erxcw,e,eed
have
atvhee
iscothnatetmtphleatestdatedre cti,uxipreenmseesn
of
working our railways on the" competitive" system may,
fotu.allraie)rious. five years
thers
companies have fallen in this country may be easily
rsoamtheerhence, errors beo
foundt w

avoided by legislative assistance and the exercise of a
little commercial common sense.
Mr. BROWN has given some calculations which show
the increase of actual traffic over the original estimates
in a very strong light. The Midland Railway, as it is
now called, is an amalgamation of three lines, the Bir-
mingham and Derby Railway, the North Midland Rail-
way, and the Midland Counties Railway. For these the
total amount of the original estimates given i❑ by the
projectors and the statisticians are shown below, together
with the actual traffic from the Parliamentary returns
of 1845

Estimated Number
number. realised.
Passengers ••• ••• 550,985 1,809,145
Cattle - 944 30,000
Sheep ''' —•— ... 27,105 120,000
Merchandise by land ... tons 151,155 371,154
Coals by water ~. ... tons 285,000 313,854
Thus it will be seen that under each head a vast in-
crease has taken place, and yet a great amount of goods
and coals is still carried by water.
In the case of the Manchester and Leeds Railway the
same results are seen:—

Estimated Number
Passengers ..,
number. realised.
... .
207,588 1,674,946
••
Goods by land and water, tons 358,958 507,852
The whole quantity of goods carried before the
Manchester and Leeds Railway was established was
106,486 tons, and now 507,852 tons are carried by rail-
way, which is more than the whole amount before car-
ried by road and canal together, whereas the traffic on
the canals remains.

The Midland Railway is a line now under Mr. Hud-
son's management. The York and North Midland Rail-
way was constructed under his eye, and has been
inanaged by him throughout.
Before this railway was begun the whole traffic in
goods and coals was as follows:--
Merchandise by land • .• 5,547 tons
If by water ... 95,100
Coal by water ... 99,000

Altogether
'•• '•• 198,647 tons
The quantity of goods and coals now carried on the
York and North Midland Railway is 351,022 tons; the
water traffic, as in the other cases, being still carried on.
The number of passengers estimated was 185,660; the
number carried in 1845 was 464,755. This is worth
being borne in mind, because Mr. Hudson has always
been a mark of attack, as keeping up high fares. That
he must have increased the public accommodation is
evident from the fact that 279,095 more passengers were
carried in 1845 than before the railway was constructed,
viz., au increase of 150 per cent.
The South-Eastern is one which has been much com-
plained of. The result stands thus:—
Estimates-317,252 passengers 63,079 tons goods.
Returns-1,477,892 ditto
The Great Western Railway has been attacked for
want of accommodation, and high fares. Here we find—
Estimates-821,145 passengers 150,710 tons goods.
Returns-3,876,222 ditto
These figures include those of the Great Western and
Bristol and Exeter Railways.
Having taken these data as a sufficient guarantee of
the validity of estimates of railway traffic when made by
competent parties, Mr. Brown proceeds to give, from
materials us his own, returns of traffic in thirteen dis-
tricts in Ireland.

The total length of railway which would supply these
districts is 411 miles, and as a further guarantee of the
accuracy of these returns it may be. mentioned that three
of them refer to lines of railway of a total length of 901
miles, or nearly one-fourth of the whole for which Acts
of Parliament have been obtained, and the works of all
three of which are in progress.
We perceive that it is not Mr. Brown's object to re-
commend any of these lines for execution. He only
brings forward the statistics which he had in his pos-
session, and which illustrate satisfactorily the resources
of Ireland.

In these thirteen lines cr districts the estimated
traffic is—

Passengers ... ... •• ••• ••• £2,206,534
Agricuttural produc© and building mate.
rials. ••• ••• ••• ... tuns 361,053
Goods and Merchandise ... .•. tons 274,420
Merchandise, and agricultural produce by
water ... ... ... ... tons 118,587
Nlinerals and coals ... ... ... ... 273,977
horses and catttle ... ... .. ... 483,572
Sheep and pigs .•. ••• ••• ••• 461,791
The total estimated traffic on 411 miles of road is as
follows:

Passengers ... £2,206,58.1
Goods._
... tons 1,028,270
The total estimated traffic on 702 miles English rail-
way was:—

Passengers ••• .£3,058,759
Goods
... tons 736,448
The total traffic realised in 18,13 was :
Passengers £8,625,360
Goods... tons 2,045,251
The excess of traffic over the estimates is :
Passengers £5,536,601
tons 1,308,807
The per tentage of this excess of traffic is respectively
160 and 170 per cent.
Now putting aside all considerations of the cost of the
railways, and of the return on the capital, and consider-
ingexpended,
for the moment that there is no money return, and
that there is a loss of the whole capital
how great is the national benefit from the construction
of these 702 miles of railway in England? Five and a
half millions of persons, and 1,300 tons of goods carried
annually, for which before no accommodation was pro-
vided!

In a national consideration of the questions, such
are the right figures to be taken, and not the mere
pounds, shillings, and pence. Mr. Brown dwells for-
cibly on this as the right application in the case of Ire-
land. lie contends that great results are to be effected,
industry is to be promoted, employment provided, and
the resources of the country increased.
If we apply the above figures to the whole of England,
where 3,830 miles of railway are now opens we shall by.
able to draw the conclusion that nearly 40,000,000 of
persons and 7,000,000 tons of goods are yearly carried by
railway over a space of some 20 miles, and for which be-
fore there was no such accommodation. It cannot be
denied that the benefit accruing to the business of the
country from these results must be very great, and they
certainly justify Mr. Brown's policy in advocating a
similar system for Ireland. Mr. Brown, however, is not
contented with the bare assertions that more agricultural
labourers and more tons of produce are carried, but he
devotes himself to establish the fact that there is a posi-
tive increase in.the supply of food.
THE MIDLAND GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY

OF IRELAND.
This stupendous undertaking is advancing rapidly
towards completion, and will, it is expected, be finished
to Mullingar early in the ensuing month, thus opening
up one of the richest veins through the interior of the
country, and will (independent of promising a large re-
turn to the present shareholders) be of immense advan-
tage to the farmer and grazier, by offering a quick
transit for their cattle and produce to the Dublin and
Liverpool markets.
The income of the company hitherto has averaged
1,0001. per week, or 50,0001. per annum; and that
amount, it should be remembered, is exclusive of the
charge for the conveyance of the mails, as yet not taken
into account, but which, when finally arranged, will pro-
bably produce to the company from 14,0001. to 15,0001.
per annum in addition; therefore, it may be fairly
concluded, when the line produces so much at present._.
though only partially opened, and to a place of no note
—the income, when open to Mullingar, will be more
than doubled, passing, as the railway will, through the
very best part of Ireland, and combining also the double
advantage of two modes of conveyance—viz., the canal
and rail—an advantage, by the bye, which no other
railway iu Ireland can boast of.
The proprietors, therefore, have every right to anti-
cipate a considerable improvement in the value of their
property, which has been hitherto so much depressed,
from various co-operating causes; and to hope from the
above gratifying statement, together with the present
cheering prospect of the coming harvest (for which all
should be thankful to Providence), that their affairs will
gradually improve.
Much credit is certainly due to the board of directors.
for their unceasing exertions to forward the works,
during a period of monetary depression and commercial
distress unexampled in the history of these countries—
the advantage of which should be gratefully acknow-
ledged by the present proprietors.—Mercantile Adver-
tiser.

RAILWAY SHARE MARKETS.
LIVERPOOL, JULY 18.

STOCK EXCILANOE.—There are but few transactions in
our share market; still prices are well supported, and for
stock and leading shares there is an inclination to advance.
The sales are—Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire June-
-1 dis.—
Lancashire 311. Shares, 714 C. dis.—Ditto (late B. and C.), 22/.
Shares 81-4 dis.—Great
.Western, Quarters
p.—llitto, halves
Lancalire and Yorkshire, Fifths, 5/g dis.—Ditto, 321. Shares,
7 dis.—Ditto, 10!. Preference, 11s. 3d.
es
(late L. and B.), 11 dis.—Ditto (late West Riding Union),
Fifths, 334 c. dis.—London and North-Western, 12714 --
p.—Ditto, Quarters, 2Ditto, Fifth Shares, 6—Man-
chester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire, Eighths, 4t dis.—
Ditto, 10/. Preference, 101/2—Midland Stock, 1061 ,
Ditto,
New Halves, 5 dis.—North Staffordshire, ' 214 dis._South-
Eastern and Dover, 25%—Ditto, No. 2, lo C. dis.—Ditto,
No. 4, Thirds, 214 dis.—York, Newcastle, and Berwick
(N. and B.Extension), No. '2, 2ti p.—Ditto (G. N. E. Pur-
chase), 1% p.—Paris and Orleans, 29.
MANCHESTER, AMY 18.
STOCK EXCHANOIC.—The sales are—Birkenhead, Lanca-
shire, and Cheshire Junction, 31/. Shares, 714 dis.—
East Lancashire, New, 6% dis.—Ditto, Preerence, Quar-
ters, 1/4 p.—Lancashire and Yorkshire, Preference, 9-16 p.—
London and North-Western, Quarters (C), 23j P.—Ditto,
(Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Canal), 23.
Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire, Preference, 10 [A c._
Ditto (Grimsby), 20/. Shares, 8% dis.--North Stafford-
shire, 2'4 dis.—Shropshire Union, 2% dis.—South-Eastern
and Dover, 25%—Ditto, No. 4, 21/ dis.
BIRMINGHAM, JULY 18.

STOCK EXCHANGE.—The market yesterday was so dull
that there was not a list published. To-day there was much
more animation, and on receipt of the telegraphic intelligenct,
announcing the favourable state of the consol market in
London, considerable business was done at the following
New Quarters,
quotations ; London and North-Western,