The Sun.
London, England, 1846-07-17 00:00:00

A meeting of the shareholders in this scheme was held yes-
terday at the King's Head Tavern, Poultry, at twelve, for the
purpose of determining whether the Company should be
dissolved.
Mr. LAWRMICE moved that Mr. Alderman Challis should
take the chair.
Mr. Alderman CHALLIS, having taken the chair, said he
did so most reluctantly, but his reluctance was altogether on
his own account, and not in any way arising out of any cir-
cumstances connected with the Company. He had entered
Into railway matters at first with all the reluctance which
one could do who had foreseen all that had subse-
quently occurred. This railway afforded another ex-
ample of the unhappy issue of this kind of speculation.
It started with good prospects, no energy was wanting to
urge it forward, and the line, which was at first believed to
be a good one, had been justified by everything which had
sines faken place. The Great Western during the present
session had had ten or twelve of their Bills thrown out
without opposition on the part of this Company ;
and others had met with like ill success, because the lines
proposed deviated from that direct course which this Com-
any had adopted. He assured the shareholders that
it was no bubble scheme, taken up with a view to
the aggrandisement of a few individuals. The
141nMittee believed at the time that the scheme was a
good one, and would certainly succeed; they entered
into it in good faith, and by their conduct had shown them-
selves honest men. Although he had attended their meet-
ings less ftlequently than others, yet he had attended, and he
could assure them that the interests of the shareholders were
considered. There had been no jobbing; everything had been
done to economise expense ever since it was seen that the
line would not succeed, at least in the present Parliament.
indeed, the last two or three months had been occupied
in cutting down the bills, well knowing that. railway
committee men were considered fair game. He said
the line was proposed, a provisional committee was
registered, and a good and able engineer, in whom
the company could trust, namely, Sir John Macneil was
selected. The line was surveyed, the plans deposited, and
the number of shares issued were 1,400,000, but this
Number the committee considered it proper for the security
of the company to reduce to 120,000.Theie shares were allotted
many of them to landowners along the line, but only 17,630
had been returned paid upon. What could the committee do
in these circumstances? They felt that they could not go on;
their were brought to a standstill for the want of the support
of those who had the shares allotted to them. As he had already
said, the Committee from that moment considered only how
they could reduce the expenses, and he asked the confidence
of the shareholders for the committee ; he courted inquiry,
And the closest scrutiny of all the affairs of the Company.
The SECRETARY having read the advertisement calling the

ntietl4ll/,
Messrs Bischoff, Coleman, and Gordon Thompson were
appointed scrutineers.
The accounts of the Company were then read, showing
eteeipts, deposits on shares, amounting to 44,813/., and on the
credit side payments for engineering and surveys, 11,334/. ;
for law, 10,5751., and other miscellaneous accounts, to the
amount of about 8,1001., leaving a balance of 14,970/.
The CHAIRMAN expected that the Company, if dissolved,
would pay, after meeting the outstanding accounts, 255. or
30s, a share. He hoped that the meeting, instead of declaring
a bankruptcy, would simply dissolve the Company.
Mr. Alderman SIDNEY moved that this Company be, and
the same is, hereby dissolved.
Captain LAMPET seconded the motion.
some discussion ensued on the question of dissolution or
bankruptcy, and-what the effect would be on the assets of the
Company.
The motion was put to the vote, and the scrutineers hav-
ing made up the numbers,
The CHAIRMAN declared 'it to be for dissolution, with-
out bankruptcy, 2,845 ; neuters, 140 ; and said that as
not one-third of the shares had been represented, he
adjourned the meeting to this day week, at one
o'clock for two, and between this and that time that the
officers of the Company would take the opinion of a profes-
sional man as to what position they stood in. A dissolution
would put them in a worse condition for the recovering of
the outstanding deposits not paid up.
A vote of thanks having been moved to the Chairman, the
' meeting then adjourned.

Tux LATE EXTRAORDINARY MARRIAGE CASE AT
Butowrots.—The Rev. Timothy Gibson, senior curate and
lecturer of St. Matthew's, Bethnal-green, who performed the
,marriage ceremony in the recent most extraordinary case
p•hich came before the Brighton magistrates last week, has
addressed the following letter on the subject to the Times :" On the let of October, 1845, a gentleman, who signed him-
self in the marriage register of St. Matthew's Church, as
4 Edward Greville Halford, of Lewes, Sussex; was married to 1
Sophia Dilling, a servant in the employ of Captain Dunning,
of Brighton, and whom he deserted within three weeks after
marriage. The young woman saw him in Brighton about a
fortnight since; challenged him as her hu=band; and, at the
_instance of herfriends, took the necessary preliminary measures
for obtaining from him a maintenance.Tchhe
of
fase
magistrates,
sheld
yesi
te •• lav at Brighton before a full
bench
,
Captain 'Allen in the chair I attended for the purpose of
identifying Mr. Halford. Shortly after I entered the Court,
and berore f kid seen Sophia Dilling or any one whom I
knew, the gentieman in question came into court and took
his seat at the table in front of the bench. I immediately
banded up a paper to the chairman, of which the following is
a copy :--, To the Worshipful the Bench. The clergyman is
now in court who married Sophia Dilling, at St. Matthew's
Church, Bethnal-green, to a gentleman who signed himself
Edward Greville IHalford. That gentleman the clergyman
has not seen since the day of the marriage until this morning,
but he is now in court, and if any one of the magistrates will
ask him the clergyman will point him out to the whole
court.' When the case came on for hearing, all the witnesses
were ordered out of court. After a considerable time had
elapsed, the attorney who had attended to conduct the case
came to me and said the case had broken down, and bad
been dismissed, although not a single witness had been called
on the side of the young woman."
FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT.—BIRMINGHAM, WED-
NESDAY NlGll7.—This afternoon an inquest was held before
Dr. Birt Davies, borough coroner, at the Wellington Hotel,
Communication-row, upon the body of William Stock, the
railway guard, killed at the Barnt-green station, on the Bir-
iniosham and Bristol Railway, on Monday_ afternoon. The
only important evidence was that of Mr. M'Connell, the
,chief engineer of the company, who deposed that the
deceased had no right, according to the regulations of the
company, to traverse the roof of his carriage to join corn.
parry with a friend behind. His (the deceased's) duty was
to remain in his seat at the break. Witness also deposed
that the bridge was sufficiently high to admit trains and
passengers through without danger. The deceased stood
upwards of six feet high, and if he had stood where
be ought to have stood, or sat, no accident could have
occurred. The space between the floor of the place where
the deceased sat and the arch of the bridge was six feet six
inches. No accident had ever previously occurred at that
bridge. The coroner, in his charge, observed that there did
i.
.jot Ai: ; thbe any substantial accusation against the com-
a 1.4 11_...wy - r•-, ed to him to be an accident. The jury, under
,-----•• do ,
_.., It•,n • the worthy coroner, returned a verdict of
aCI-1"110461(4rei • ath, with a deodand of ls." The officers of
. .
' .it. :$l4 lit ,- es 4401 *usft iirmingham Railway were in attendance, if
4, es- .•.4 a Dr' ' that not the slightest blame was at-
# ::, .
e..48,85z, 10 jpr VS
..., ~ /4 ,TI ic' ~, th. in-any. Mr. Saunders, the secretary,
.1" '': • tributa te- i- f ci) P
(
• . -
r, ye, ' • ,vjacern for the family of the deceased,
i' - evidced the grea t -. )4 Will be made to provide
. '''•'':.- stutialieun- deratood that All g te.4.._
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