The Sun.
London, England, 1851-04-17 00:00:00

EVENING, APRIL 17, 1851.

difficulties in the way of their successfully prosecut-
ing the line themselves. They could not issue pre-
ference shares without the consent of three-fifths of
the shareholders, and the Great Western had 6,000
shares in their ;lands. Another difficulty was that
the Great Western Company were in possession of the
railway from Grange Court to Gloucester. There
was also the possible contingency of the Great
Western not being able to pay 200,0001. a year to
them.—(Cries of " Oh, oh.") He was not, however,
afraid of braving the Great Western Company, if it
was the unanimous wish of the shareholders, but he
gave them his strong advice nut to clp so.
After some further discussion, the amendment was
put to the meeting, and the show of hands was al-
most unanimous in favour of the adjournment. A
poll was called for, and after a short adjournment the
result was made known. The votes for the amend-
ment, according to the number of shares represented,
were :—Present, 753; proxies, 260—total, 1,013.
Against it—Present, 768 ; proxies, 935—total, 1,703.
Majority against the amendment, 690.
In answer to a question, the CHAIRMAN stated that
the Great Western Company did not vote upon the
question.
The draft of the agreement was then read, and,
after a very protracted discussion, the motion for its
adoption was put to the meeting. The show of
hands was decidedly against its adoption, and a poll
was again called for, when it was carried by 2,346
votes against 513.
The meeting then became special, in order that the
approval of the proprietors should be obtained to the
drafts of three Bills, as proposed to be introduced
into the :House of Lords. By this time the number
of shareholders present had :diminished to somewhat
less than the number of directors present, so that, al-
though every endeavour was made by Mr. Duncan
and Mr. Nash to oppose the Bills, or to adjourn the
meeting, they were successively approved of by a ma-
jority of those present.
The meeting dispersed towards eight o'clock P.M.,
having sat for nearly seven hours.

presenting this address, and for the very kind manner in
which ycu have expressed yourselves towards me, which
has confirmed the gratifying impression upon my mind
that the frequent professional intercourse I have had
with you has not failed to produce mutual feelings of
esteem and regard."

THE GREAT EXHIBITION.
(From the Times.)
Her Majesty's intention of opening the Great Exhi-
bition is person on the Ist of May has already been
made known to the public. It may not, however% he as
generally known that all visitors—even the exhibitors,
as we understand the matter—are to be excluded from
the building while the Queen, attended by a score or so
of Lords and Ladies-in-Waiting, shall have celebrated
the opening mysteries, The resolution of the Commis-
sioners, which embodies their determination of exclud-
ing the public, is now lying before us, and we hereby copy
it verbatim, lest we should be suspected of an attempt to
practise upon the credulity of our readers. It run as fol-
lows Her Majesty having been pleased to signify
her intention of visiting the Exhibition on the occasion
of its opening, on the let of May, the doors of the build.
ing will not be opened to the public on that day till one
o'clock, at which hour the holders of season tickets will
be admitted."
Now what does this mean? The only possible sug-
gestion which can occur to the mind is that some doubt
may exist in the mind of her Majesty's advisers as to
her safety, in case she should enter a building in which
so many thousands of persons are to be collected to-
gether, But where does the real danger lie? Is it
within, or without !the building, even admitting the
preposterous idea that there is any danger at
all ? Is it not just as complete an affair
of police regulation to take proper steps for her
Majesty's security within as without the Crystal Palace?
It is, of course, not without great repugnance that we
bring ourselves even to mention a question of this kind,
but it is impossible to offer a satisfactory comment upon
the resolutio❑ of the Commissioners, without adverting
to the probable motive upon which that resolution has
been founded. If it be as we suppose, her Majesty's
advisers are leading their Royal Mistress to a course
which will be profoundly unpopular, and without an
adequate motive. Queen Victoria receives every day
sufficient evidence of the loyalty and affection of her
subjects without attempting to banish them from her
presence upon so interesting and solemn an occasion as
the opening of the Great Exhibition. As far as regards
any isolated attempt at violence which might occur to
the febrile imagination of a French or German Socialist,
surely it is not necessary that a person with such in-
tention should gain access to the body of the building
in order to carry out his purpose. Her Majesty would
not be otherwise in danger in the Crystal Palace
on the Ist of May than she was yesterday, or will bo
to-morrow, whilst she drives out for an airing in the
public streets. What an unworthy part would these
nervous advisers cause the Queen of England to play!
Surely Queen Victoria is not Tiberius or Louis XL,
that she should be smuggled out of a great glass carriage
into a great glass building under cover of the truncheons
of the police and the broadswords of the Life Guards.
Where most Englishmen are gathered together there the
Queen of England is most secure!
Let all reasonable and proper precautions be taken for
her Majesty's safety, just as when she opens Parliament
in person. That is as it should be. But have the Com-
missioners reflected upon the manner in which they are
depriving the Queen of all enjoyment in the spectacle
by banishing her subjects from the building? What
sa-
tisfaction can it afford her Majesty to be introduced into
a monster upholstery warehouse, or engine room, at-
tended only by a few gold sticks and silver sticks? One
thinks involuntarily of Wordsworth's famous descrip-
tion of
" A party in a parlour
All silent, and all damned!"
But what is the silence of a parlour to the silence of the
Great Exhibition, when not a sound, save perhaps a
faint murmur of discontent, shall be heard from the
thousands of excluded ticket-holders who are flattening
their noses against the outside wainscotting or panes?
No reasonable parson would ask more than that the 6,000
or 7,000 holders of season• tickets should be admitted to
the building whilst her Majesty is opening the Exhibition
in person. The price of the ticket affords something
like a guarantee that the mob would be of a select cha-
racter—sufficiently so for the purpose in view. Besides,
there is no reason to doubt that, i❑ numerous instances,
the season-tickets were purchased on the faith that their
holders would be admitted to a sight of the opening pa-
geant. What does the number of 6,000 or 7,000 persons
signify within the area of this vast building? They
would scarcely be sufficient to give her Majesty a hearty
cheer worthy of the Crystal Palace and the occasion.
We trust most sincerely, on all accounts, that her Ma-
jesty's advisers will reconsider this resolution. Better,
far better would it be, to forego any public ceremonial
whatsoever, than to carry it out in a form so offensive to
the feelings of every Englishman. This is to turn
Queen Victoria into another Lady Godiva, and doubtless
the modern will be attended with as much success as the
legendary experiment.