The Sun.
London, England, 1860-01-10 00:00:00

_RAILWAY STATISTICS.

The railway traffic of the United Kingdom for
the past year shows, as usual, an increase over that
of all preceding years. It amounts, as nearly as
can be estimated from the returns, to £25,576,100,
showing an increase over those of 1858 of
£1,812,330, and over those of 1857 of £1,413,645.
The depression of trade and railway competition at
unremunerative rates in 1858 had the effect of
annihilating the ordinary increase of traffic, and,
for the first time in the history of railway traffic,
depressing the receipts £400,000 below those of the
preceding year.
In order to explain what is meant by the " ordi-
nary increase of traffic," it is necessary to state that
during the 14 years preceding 1858 the increase in
the traffic receipts of railways in the United King-
dom averaged £1,380,000 per annum. In estimat-
ingbe the actual loss of traffic in 118,35886,0a050
mustmo
with the preceding year, the
added to the £400,000 deficiency as compared with
1857, making together £1,780,000, or about 6 per
cent. of the whole receipts ; this might appear a
small matter to persors unacquainted with the
mysteries of railway finance, but the effect was to
reduce the balance available for ordinary dividends
by 20 per cent.
The continual increase in the capital acconnts of
railway companies causes a perpetual increase in
the fixed charges against revenue, which must be
met before any dividend e In be declared on the or-
dncapital. The-fixed chargesiof some railway
iary
companies are so heavy that a comparatively small
depression of trade deprives the ordinary share-
holders of dividend, and leaves others with very
small ones.

Whatever might have been the financial difficul-
ties of railway companies, they cannot be attributed
so much to a deficiency of traffic as to the lavish
expenditure of capital, the improvident leases, and
guarantees.

With the exception of the year 1858, the traffic
receipts of railways in the United Kingdom show,
from 1842 to 1851 a constant annual increase, which
might have tempted many boards to overload their
companies with preference charges in the anticipa-
tion that at some future period the increase of traf-
fic on the railways would be more than sufficient to
meet all those heavy charges, and pay handsome
dividends on the original capital. Had there been
five or six such years as 1858 to check those san-
guine anticipations of continued prosperity, it is
probable that railway property generally would
now be in a much better position than it is, so far as
having lighter preference charges, and more remu-
nerative dividends on the original shares.
The progressive development of railway traffic
must be considered as very satisfactory, for in the
year 1842 the traffic 'receipts on 1,630 miles of rail-
way in the United Kingdom amounted to £4,470,100,
while in the past year they amounted on 9,568
miles to £25,576,100, showing an increase in the
mileage of 7,938 miles, and in the receipts of
£21,105,400, being an advance at the average rate
of 467 miles, and of £1,241,500 per annum.
The expenditure of capital on railways advanced
rather faster than the traffic. In 1842 the expendi-
ture on the railways above referred to amounted to
£54,380,100, and in 1859 to £222,219,100, showing
an increase of £267,839,000 in 17 years, being at
the average rate of £15,755,200 per annum. Of
course the expenditure in some of those years was
much more than double the average, and in others
less than one-half the average. In the year 1842 the
gross traffic receipts amounted to 8.22 per cent.
of the expenditure on capital account, and thence
they gradually rose to 9.13 per cent. in the year
1845. The percentage of gross traffic then de-

dined until, in 1850, owing to the heavy expendi-
ture in that and preceding years, the traffic receipts
only amounted to 5.70 per cent. of the outlay. In
1851 the percentage of traffic to capital increased,
and continued to improve up to 1859, when the
percentage of gross traffic to the capital expended
was 7.94 per cent. Another matter against di-
vidends was the great increase in the working ex-
penses, which, including rates and taxes, rose in
the course of 15 years from 40 per cent. to 48 per
cent. of the gross receipts.
From 1842 to 1845 the expenditure on capital
account was £21,266,000 ; from 1845 to 1850 it
amounted to £154,876,000; from 1850 to 1855 to
£61,381,000 ; and from 1855 to 1859 about
£30,316,000, showing of late years a considerable
decrease in expenditure on capital account.
The traffic returns of railways in the United
Kingdom for the week ending December 31st
amounted to £465,110, and for the corresponding
week of 1859 to £425,080, showing an increase of
£40,030. The gross receipts of the eight railways
having their termini in the metropolis amounted to
£202,251, and for the corresponding week of last
year to £183,293, showing an increase of £18,958.
The increase on the Eastern Counties Railway
amounted to £1,283 ; on the Great Northern Rail-
way to £5,074 ; on the Great Western to £1,182 ;
on the London and North-Western to £6,860; on
the London and Blackwall to £77 ; on the London,
Brighton, and South Coast to £1,821 ; on the Lon-
don and South-Western to £1,218 ; and on the
South-Eastern to £903; total, £18,958. The
receipts on the other lines in the United Kingdom
amounted to £262,850, and for the corresponding
week of last year to £241,787, showing an mere**•
9f £21,072, which, added to the increase on the me-
tropolitan lines, makes the total increase £40,030,
as compared with the corresponding week of 1858.