The Sun.
London, England, 1846-08-19 00:00:00

r*birtt lEtitton

RAILWAY COMMITTEES.
(THIS DAY.)

HOUSE OF LORDS.
Room A.
MILINFORZSTER AND SOITT7IA.DIPTON.
(Continued from our Afternoon Edition.)
Mr. Hoskins, one of the Tithe Commissioners, and for-
merly connected with the timber trade of the district, gave
evidence in favour of the line, as also did Major White,
Town Major of the garrison of Portsmouth ; Mr. Moreley,
traffic manager of the Eastern Counties; Mr. Charles
Baines, manager of the Clay-cross Collieries ; and Mr. Kent,
manager of Mr. Endall's hardware works, at Birmingham.
Mr. Bidder, the engineer to the line, was next examined—
Estimate per mile, 18,000/. ; total cost, 1,600,0001. The wit-
ness repeated in detail the evidence given by him before the
Committee of the House of Commons, which appeared at
length at the time ; in fact, the whole of the evidence adduced
was, with scarcely an exception, a repetition of that adduced
in the Commons.
The witness was cross-examined at length by Mr. Talbot,
and the Committee adjourned until to-morrow.

LONDON, BRIGHTON AND SOUTH
COAST RAILWAY.—(THIS DAY.)
The half-yearly meeting of this Company was held this
day, at the London-bridge Terminus; Mr. A. Wilkinson in
the chair.
The SECRETARY read the report, from which we extract
the following :
"In the present session of Parliament branches from the
main line have been obtained to Wandsworth, East Grin-
stead, Steyning, Littlehampton, Newhaven, Hailsham, and
Eastbourne, and also an important communication with the
Thames at Deptford. A successful opposition has likewise
been made to the schemes of the South-Eastern Company, for
engrossing the whole county of Kent, and thus depriving
this Company of their due share of that traffic which has
hitherto passed over a portion of your line, and to receive
which it was partly constructed. It is believed that your
power of affording accommodation to that traffic, to that ex-
tent, and, consequently, your claim to it, is superior to any
which has been advanced by the South Eastern Company
"It will be proposed to you to sanction an application to
Parliament, in the next session, for the confirmation of an
agreement which has been entered into with the directors of
the Direct London and Portsmouth Company, for a complete
amalgamation of the two companies. A glance at the map
will suffice to point out the importance of this agreement.
By such amalgamation and the other arrangements which
you havelately eomplet!ed, you will have at your disposal very
extensive means of affording, to a large district, the most
satisfactory public accommodation. You will have lines
extending from London-bridge, on the one hand, to Brigh-
ton, Lewes, Hastings, and Newhaven ; on the other, to
Epsom, Dorking, Petersfield, and Portsmouth ; with coast
lines from Portsmouth to Hastings.
The proprietors cannot fail to appreciate the advantage-
ous position which will thus be secured for this Company.
It should never be forgotten, however, that your only title to
it is an unceasing pursuit of the public welfare, as coincident
with your own. With this view, and having thus far se-
cured a system of internal communication for the south of
England, your directors feel that it would be incomplete
without an effective method of foreign extension. The only
obstacle to the more general adoption of the route yid Dieppe,
the shortest between London and Paris, is the length of the
sea passage, and your directors have deemed it their duty to
do all in their power towards the removal of that obstacle,
by the construction of excellent boats,' which will perform
the pa-sage with certainty in a single tide. As the powers
of your Acts of Parliament do not extend to the.accomplish-
rneat of this object, it has been found necessary to raise
a separate fund for this purpose by a separate company—
whose directors, however, will be the directors of this Com-
pany, and the dividend upon the capital of which will be
assimilated to the dividend upon the capital of this Com-
pany. The shares will be distributed pro rail, amongst the
proprietors.
" Mr. Cubitt, the engineer, reports that the working of the
atmospheric system on the line between Croydon and London
progresses satisfactorily, and attains, daily, a greater degree
of regularity ; and the directors beg to refer for details to his
report, which will be read to the meeting.
" It will be necessary to raise additional capital within the
present year, for the pnrposes and under the powers declared
in the Acts of the present session ; and with this view it is
proposed to take a vote for the raising, by the creation of
shares, the sum of 531,0001.
" It is proposed to take powers at this meeting to borrow
738,6661., under the authority of the Amalgamation Act;
and to consolidate the shares of the two companies into a
common stock, as sanctioned by the Act of Amalgamation.
" The directors have only to add, in conclusion, that their
rule of action in the administration of your affairs will con •
tinue to be, to afford the greatest possible amount of accom-
modation to the public at the lowest rates at which such
accommodation can be fairly furnished."
A resolution for amalgamating the Direct Portsmouth
Railway was agreed to, the Portsmouth subscribing one-
third of the capital.
The sum of 1,600/, was awarded to the joint board for
their services.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.
(THIS DAY.)

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
THE ROYAL NAVY.
(Continued from our Afternoon Edition.)
Captain PECHELL hoped that the Gallant Officer
would not be daunted in his course by the observations
which had been made by the Hon. Member for Montrose,
and that in the next session he would be able to con-
vince that Hon. Member of the necessity of such reforms
as he had pointed out.
Captain CARNEGIE spoke in favour of the motion.
Captain LAYARD said that great reforms were ne-
cessary in the army, and contended that no skill or assi-
duity could possibly obtain promotion in the army,
and would advise any gentleman upon no account to send
his son to the service, unless he had great interest or a
large fortune, and he felt convinced that some change
would be made before long. He was sorry to bear
from the Government that no measures were intended
to be brought forward to remove this great and crying
evil. He thought the public would not long endure that
their regiments should be entrusted to the command of
young and inexperienced officers, while the older officers
were passed over and neglected. He maintained also
that those officers who had done their duty so nobly for
the country should not be allowed to finish their honour-
able career unrewarded, and hoped that the period was
not far off when distance of time would not be considered
a bar to honour and promotion.
Colonel VERNER thought, as an old soldier, that
the Gallant Member who had brought this motion
forward deserved the best thanks of the army and of the
country for so doing. The subject of rewarding the
officers of the Peninsula had been before the
public some years since, but, as yet, that mea-
sure of justice had never been awarded to those
gallant officers. He hoped that, even at this late
period these officers would have some distinction
awarded to them while on earth, and which their
families might cherish when those who had earned and
deserved them were gone to their rest.
Colonel REID was sorry to hear that the Govern-
ment were not prepared to concede to the motion of the
Gallant Member for Westminster.
Mr. FOX MAULE said that the Noble Lord at the
head of the Government had not pledged himself in any
way in reference to the motion of the Hon. Member.
He (Mr. F. Maule) deprecated such a discussion in a
House like the present. His Hon. Friend had desig-
nated the system of purchase as a bad one, and though
in some respects he might agree with him, still he could
not concur in such a sweeping condemnation. The
distribution of the patronage at the Horse
Guards had been frequently called in question
in that House, but he believed that it was
administered in as unexceptionable a manner as the
system world admit of. It was very natural to suppose
that there would be much individual dissatisfaction, as
the number of applications frequently exceeded the
number of vacancies that would be at the disposal of
Government for twenty years. The question of going
into Committee had been so fully answered by his Noble
Friend at the head of the Government, that he would
not enter further into the question. With reference to
the question of decorations and medals, he thought that
that subject should be left to the Government of the day,
and it was now too late, he thought, to bring the latter
part of the motion forward.
Sir DE LACY EVANS replied. He was of opinion
that the speech of the Noble Lord at the head of the
Government would not be satisfactory to the House or
the country. his Right Hon. Friend the Secretary-at-
War had endeavoured to medify the speech of the Noble
Lord, by saying that he had not pledged himself in any
-way to the motion, but this would not in his (Sir De L.
Evans's)opieion satisfy either the army or the public, and
he would say in conclusion, that if the Noble Lord did not
take the subject into his consideration during the recess,
and bring forward a measure to place the army, with re-
gard to promotion, on the same footing as the navy, he
would bring the motion on again early next session.
The motion was then by leave withdrawn.
RAILWAY BOARD.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER moved
for leave to bring in a Bill to authorise the
appointment of a railway department. The Bill
was founded upon the resolutions which had been re-
cently come to by both Houses of Parliament. Its object
was to constitute a board for the regulation of all mat-
ters relating to railways ; and as the common consent of
both Houses was necessary to appoint it, the present
Bill was introduced for that purpose. He would
now briefly state its provisions. It was first ;pro-
posed that a board should be appointed, consisting
of five individuals—a president, who should be more or
less connected with the Government; two paid members
not connected with the Government; and two unpaid
members connected with the Government. The reason
why two of the commissioners were proposed to be
connected with the Government was, that there should
be a Member in either House ready at all times to
answer questions that might be put nilative to rail-
ways. It was then proposed to enable them to have
transferred to their control the whole of the
business, officers, clerks, &c., at present in
connexion with the railway department of the Board of
Trade. It was also intended to impose upon them the
duty of seeing that all railways at present existing
should strictly comply with the provisions of their re-
spective Bills. There was a clause also to enable the
Board to carry on any inquiry which might be referred
to them by either House of Parliament, and to suggest
to the House what course might be most expedient to
adopt in reference to railway business in general.
There was one subject which, thought not pare of this
Bill, be thought it would be desirable to revise
during the recess—he meant the standing orders of that
House relating to railways. One thing in particular he
thought should be considered—whether a longer
time should not be allowed to elapse between
the first proposal to construct a railway
t.
sad the bringing the Bill before the con-
sia'oration of Parliament, so as to afford time to
maksuch inquiries_ as might be deemed necessary
e
during tbq interval. He had now briefly ex-

plained the nature of the Bill, and he was sure there
would be no objection to a measure which all must see
to be imperatively necessary in the present state of the
railway business of the country.
Leave was then given to bring in the Bill.
Mr. MORRISON thought there ought to be some-
thing more than the mere transference of the present
powers of the Board of Trade to the Commissioners, to
do any amount of good. Be wished to know if the
proposed Board would have the power to send for
papers and records, because, without this, little good
could be done?
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said
that subject had not been considered by the Govern-
ment, but it would be. and an answer would be given in
the next stage of the Bill.
Mr. GREENE briefly supported the course proposed.
Mr. P. BORTHWICK thought the Bill proposed was
a step in the right direction, unly he considered the
powers should be much more extended than they were
proposed to be.
After a few observations from Mr. MORRIS,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, in
answer to what some Hon. Members had said, intimated
that the Government only proposed now that which the
whole House might consent to, and with regard to more
extensive powers, the whole subject would be fully dis-
cussed and considered in next session of Parliament.

Leave was then given to bring in the Bill.
The Bill was immediately afterwards brought in, and
read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time
to-morrow.