The Sun.
London, England, 1846-05-27 00:00:00

GROUP XX.

LONDON, HOUNSLO W, AND WESTERN.
(Continued from our Afternoon Edition of yesterday.)
Evidence having been called as to the value of the property that
would be required for the purposes of the line, the case of the pro-
moters was closed.
The Committee adjourned till Thursday at twelve o'clock, when
the case for the opponents will be gone Into,

GROUP XXII.
This Committee met this morning at the usual hour. Sir George.
Grey in the chair.
IPSWICH, zionvrios. AND YARMOUTH.
Evidence on traffic resumed.
Mr. Capon, a f
rame at Denningt
onon, corrobated the evidence already
giveni
sas
witnesst ot h
waset subjectedanti tedci patoa tlhoisnalincero.
spexamination by the
opposing ccootrinsae
nl , , bstlhtetrii
ffo t h to
of
Ng nin
ofa tieCr ih
,alg awva se
eev il i cdi et endc it as to the advan-
tages which the line would confer by increasing the facilities of
transit for corn.
Mr. Wilde, Coroner of Norwich, and Mr. Prior, a maltster, gave
evidence as to the great want of railway communication at present,
would Air. be
l yu voyn
end the necessity for constructing the prOpOsed line for the accom-
rnodation of the wants of the district.
milirt. R. Edwards, a general merchant at Woodbridge, detailed the
,inocfreasmeadrki.flatianee,prpoopi
quality of exports and imports at Woodbridge, which he considered
oast: id
...
..._ anticipated in the coasting trade by the propoinseerdelaSinee.which
oar. Thomas Crisp, farmer, near Orford, and others, reiterated the
above evidence, and the Committee adjourned till twelve o'clock tO-
lioanetwethreeconstructed.
morrow.

deratton was tt to conveyance of coals. In looking at the
general merits of the line, the first consideration was the existence
of the river Crouch, which, nearly at the mouth of the Thames, had
a naturally forme 3 harbour, accessible In all states of the tide, and
yet perfectly seem e in every state of the weather. This harbour
. must become the receptacle for a great portion of that trade
which now impede rd the river Thames, and blocked up the port of
London. The con gumption of London is at the present time 3,000,000
tons, and may poi sibly rise to the extent of 5,000,000. The com-
pany took credit f( it the landing and carriage of 250,000 tons. This
would afford so sit all a relief to the river, that it was not unreason-
able to suppose the t a much larger quantity would 'oe carried by the
railway than the t which is at present estimated. This, in
addition to the :fact of the ability to 1-4ach Gravesend with
equal facility to (that which was offers ,:t by the opposing line—
taking all the circu'mstances into cor...sideation, the South Essex
line was the one the most worthy
consideration, and the only one
which ought to be granted.
Mr. Janos repliod on behrLf of the North , Gravesend Company,
when,
The CHAIRMAN L iquireA whether this was the subject of sub-
scription contract ; to which the Counsel replied, that it was
a project emanating certain parties connected with tke Eastern
Counties Company, although not the project of that Company
But ht say, that having got their North Woolwieh
line, thlattioll line, the Eastern Counties Com-
tahnisdmtaheehir he
n ini
umt. a
Com-
pany felt that being- all established company they could afford
treater accommodation). to the public in an access to Gravesend.
The grand difficulty c 4' the opposing
line was, that they had uo ter-
minus whatever wor
.tly of the slightest notice. If at Stepney, there
,mete with if at the Minories, they were in the
e ,mete
which clearly was too well occupied
enchurch-street, the depot was clearly quite Map-
mweidrsettioief docksa
neitgo.,
on which so much reliance was to be placed, and he
would venture re, say that it was equally unfitted for corn. Through-
out the ;i f
for cfo a
r,Ff,
out the ";hole case it was evident that the only saving upon
coals Was ninepence, and as the North Gravesend Com-
pany tonterried only threepence. That colliers he insisted,
would sever.' be discharged in any amount at Crouch, and
he believed that the granting of this line would amount to a
Parliamentary tax of d. on all the coal brought by means of this
railway. He would venture to assert that, eves if this line wore
made, the; greatest quantity of coal would be sent into the interior
of the country from the depot of the Blackwell Railway,
and it -was in evidence that the residents of Rocheford are now
getting their coals as low as 20s. a ton. The case of the corn trade
was equally plain. Then, as regards the passenger traffic of 374,0001.,
although the whole population of the county was only 310,000, so
that it would be necessary to have every individual in the county,
men, -women and children, to create this traffic, and even then it
would( be short of the amount. The line, in fact, did not pass through
any 'place with more than 2,000 inhabitants ; so that, through one
means or 'other, a great part of the income would be done away with,
and, he did not believe that any Committee would sanction the
ca',Tying out of a line which was to extend the deficiencies of the
Railway—in fact, the only argument that could be used
for widening the Blackwell Railway under the assumption of bring-
ing a large traffic upon it from extraneous sources. Now,
the North Gravesend Company had the right to take
the population round their terminus just as muck as the
North Kent Company had the right to carry th use
who went from Southwark and other places, on the south side of the
water. The South Essex scheme was one not ripe for Parliament ;
the' the assertions had not been made out, and that there was no
definite terminus. With respect to the other line, it is one projected
by an established company, whose experience enabled them better than
other parties to judge of the probabilities of SUCeeSS. The North Graves-
end line would cost only about2so,ooo/., and its only opponent among the
landholders was a gentleman of the name of Thompson, but except-
ing him there was no opposition whatever on the part of the local
residents, and the Learned Counsel trusted that the Committee
would give equal and fair chance of competition to both companies.
The room was then deared.

On the re admission of the parties, the CHAIRMAN stated that the
Committee, after mach patient investigation, had come to the con-
clusion that the preamble had not been proved in either of the cases.

GROUP XXVIII.

The Committee re-assembled to-day at twelve o'clock, in Room 33
of the New Houses of Parliament. There were present Lord Dal-
meny (chairman) and the other members.
LONDON AND BIRMINGHAM (ST. ALBANS
AND LITTON BRANCH).

The evidence in support of this Bill was resumed.
Mr. John Walton examined—Lived at Flamstead, on the
line. Their two nearest market towns were Luton and Hemel
Hemstead. The want of a railway communication with St. Albans
was sensibly felt.
This witness was cros-examined at great length, but nothing ma-
terial was elicited.
Mr. William Elliot examined—Lived at Dunstable. There was
considerable traffic in straw plait manufacture from Dunstable to
London. By the railway proposed they would have accommoda-
tion two ways, while by the. London and York line only one would
be afforded.

Cross-examined by Mr. WELLS, on the part of the petitioners
against the Bill—Redbourne had suffered very severely by the
withdrawal of the traffic from that place. He would be as well
satisfied with a line that should be three miles longer to London,
for he considered it would be equally beneficial to Dunstable.

After hearing some further evidence,
The Committee adjourned at four o'clock till Thursday.

GROUP XXXI.
SOUTH WILLES.—(No. XL)

The Committee assembled this morning at the usual hour, when,
The CHAIRMAN inquired what proposition the supporters of the
Bill had to make to the Committee, a portion of their preamble
having been struck out. _ _ .

Mr. AUSTIN, for the promoters, said, that they proposed to carry
the line from Chepstow to Bumspill, on the river Severn, and to a
point of junction with the Forest of Dean Railway. This railway
would fill up the lacuna caused by striking out part of the preamble,
and enable the trunk line of the South Wales Company to be
carried on without break or interruption. Again, if the preamble
were so altered as to allow a junction of the South Wales Railway
with the Monmouth and Hereford, a continued communication might
be obtained with the city of Gloucester.
The clauses of the Bill were then proceeded with and arranged.
Several nsw clauses, having respect to the junction of the South
Wales Railway with existing lines, and for the regulation of the tolls
were introduced into the Bill, and the Committee adjourned.

GROUP XXXII.
The Committee met this morning at twelve, Mr. J. E. Denison in
the chair.

BUCICXNGTIAMSHIRE (TRING TO
73ANBURY).

The preamble of the Bill for this project was declared proved yes-
terday, and the clauses were partly read and agreed to ; but the
matter was re-opened by
Mr. Communo, who appeared for the Great Western, and stated
that it had come to his knowledge, and that of his clients, that what
mainly influenced the Commitee to pass the Bill—namely, the
forming of a junction with the Oxford and Rugby line--coull not be
effected, owing to there being a difference of 25 feet in the levels of
the two railways.

Mr. STEPHENSON said that it was quite an easy matter to form a
junction between the two railways by a siding on the slope of the
proposed line, and join the Oxford and Rugby line within the line of
deviation.

Mr. COCKBURN said he perfectly understood the question now. The
promoters intended to make a line which was not laid down in the
sections deposited, and therefore it could not be done.

The CHAIRMAN said the question had arisen at the winding up of
the Bill yesterday, and after the opposing parties had left the room
the Committee thought that the opponents of the Bill had neglected
the most important point ; but having done so, they had now no
locus standi before the Committee, and the Committee must investi-
gate the question for themselves.
Mr. gtephanaon and Mr. Carter etatod that it woo nob rimccoectr7 bo
lay down► sidings on the plans deposited, or to apply to Parliament
for powers to make these ridings, as they did not ask for power to
compel the Great Western to allow the junction. The same means
had been used in forming a junction between the London and Bir-
mingham and the Grand Junction, and no application had been made
to Parliament for powers.
The Committee, after consideration, said that their lecision of yes-
terday would not be affected by the point which had been raised, and
proceeded to read the rest of the clauses.
Sir T. PHILLIPS applied to have five clauses Admitted into the Bill
as a security to the Oxford and Rugby line, and wished to be heard
on them. He stated that two of them had been serve.l on the solici-
tor for the Bill last night, and three this morning,-but it had been re-
turned for answer that they would not read them.

The CHAIRMAN thought the answer was very proper, inasmuch as
they bad neglected the main grounds of vpposltion to the Bill when
ample op; ortunity was furnished for securing their own interests,
and new, after consi.lerable delay had been caused, they made appli-
cation when the case was about being wound up.
The Committee refused to hear counsel upon the clauses, but or-
dered them to be given in.
Two of the clauses were admitted into the Bill and this closed the
case.

OXFORD, VTOILCESTER, AND WOLVER-

HAMPTON.

Mr. Cockburn, Q.C., Mr. Talbot, Q.C., and Mr. Whitmore, appeared
for the promoters of the line, which is opposed by Mr. Selfe and Mr.
Spooner, on the part of the ironmasters and landowners in the dis-
trict opposing, and by the solicitor to the London and Birmingham
Railway.
Mr. TAlam opened briefly the merits of the branches proposed
from the main- line, which had been sanctioned by Parliament last
year. The objects of the Bill, he said, were fourfold--to form a
branch to Witney, which was four miles from the trunk
line; and the branch to Strafford on Avon; another to join
the Stoke branch of last year, giving a southward
communication to near the town of Droitwich ; an 1
to take powers to purchase the Stratford-on-Avon Canal and the
Stourbridge Extension Canal. The branch to the town of Witney
would confer great benefit on a town with a population of 6,000,
of which were considerable wool and glove manufactories, where as
many as 1,200 tons of coals were consumed annually, and 1,000 tons
more in domestic purpo,es, at a price of 30s to 335. a ton. That price
would certainly be greatiy reduced, and the price of timber
from Gloucester, which came by a very circuitous route,
would also be affected. The Stratford branch was nine miles long,
running through the parish of Weston,in Gloucester, through Mickle-
ton up to the borough of Old Stratford. There existed, he said, at
present a ti amway from Stratford to Morton-in-the-Marsh, and in the
contest of last year much stress was laid upon this tramway, which
the Company, it was understood, would keep open and improve. But
that tramway was circuitous and inconvenient for locomotive purposes.
The present branch was therefore proposed, but yet the tramway
would be kept open. The communication to Stratford at present
was by the. Avon and the canal to Birmingham. Coals were prin-
cipally brought from Staffordshire, between Kidderminster and
Dudley, and there was great traffic in corn. There was consider.
able traffic with Esham, with Chipping-Camden, where there
were silk mills, and with Chipping-Norton, where n 001 manufac-
tures were carried on. The Droitwich Branch was intemied to open
communication with the Stoke works. The Stratford branch, he
said, was opposed by the London and Birmingham Company, who
had two lines in another Committee, one from Hampton-in-Arden
to Ashchurch, and one transecting that line from Weedon to Wor-
cester. But last year they had opposed the main line, and now
since that line had been passed he expected that Parliament would
decide against allowing their last year's opponents to take away the
traffic of the line which had been already sanctioned.
Several witnesses were called and examined on the-traffic of the
different districts through which branches are proposed.
Mr. Brunel, engineer for the line, stated that the length of the
branch to Witney was 41/5 miles; to Stratford, 8 miles, 6 furlongs;
and is Stoke, about 1 mile. There was no engineering difficulties on
them, and the steepest gradient on them was one in 74, for a distance
of 20 chains. The estimate for the Witney branch was 68,0001., for
the Stratford, 114,0001., and for the Stoke branch, 12,0001., but the
gross estimate was 220,0001. He stated that on the main line they
were laying down the broad and narrow gauge from Abbotsford to
Worcester and Wolverhampton, by order of ,he Board of Trade. He
did not know what gauge would be adopted on the Oxford to Ban-
bury line. He did not see any difficulty of communication from the
broad to the narrow gauges.
The Committee then adjourned to Thursday next, at twelve.

GROUP XLIV.
(Continued from our Afternoon Edition of yesterday.)

The Committee proceeded to read the clauses of this Bill, but
Mr. ALEXANDER applied for leave to enter first upon the merits of
the Preston and Wyre Railway—a scheme which, through mistake
of the Committee of Classification, had not been referred to this group
till lately.

The CHAIRMAN refused to enter upon the consideration of this new
project, which, in conformity with the rules of the House, must be
postponed to the sth of June next.
Mr. ALEXANDER applied to have a clause introduced into the Bill
then before the Committee, giving powers to the Preston and Wyre
Company to construct a short line of nine miles' length between
theirs and the Fleetwood line.

The Clumsier; would not consent to consider anything which was
not properly before the Committee.
The clauses of the Fleetwood Bill were then read and agreed to.
The Committee then adjourned till twelve on Thursday next.