The Sun.
London, England, 1860-01-26 00:00:00

TEE PROPOSED CITY RAILWAYS,

Mr. Heywood, surveyor of the City Commis-
sioners of Sewers, has presented to that body a
voluminous report upon the area and nature of the
property scheduled by the various companies who
have at the pres6nt time bills before Parliament,
for effecting railway communication with the City;
and who have served notices upon the Commis-
sioners in their capacity of conservators of the pub-
lic ways. The result of his inquiries is as
follows :
THE LONDON AND BLACKWALL RAILWAY
COMPANY apply for an act to enable them to pro-
vide additional station accommodation, and other
works ; for which purposes they have scheduled
property on the northern side of the existing Lon-
don and Blackwall Railway, between Cooper's-row
and the Minories, as well as all the property and
public ways in that part of the City which lies on
the eastern side of the Minories, and is bounded on
the north side by the existing railway, and on the
south by Sparrow-coroner. The property scheduled
(exclusive of public ways) amounting to 21 acres.
THAMES TUNNEL RAILWAY.—The promoters
have projected a continuation of their line from
Cannon-street-road (where it will join the London
and Blackwall Railway), in New London-street,
Fenchurch-street. The course of the line, which
will enter the City at Sparrow-corner, will be south
of the existing London and Blackwall Railway.
The area of the property within the City (exclusive
of the public ways, which are to be spanned by
arches) scheduled for the line is about 23 acres.

LONDON, CHATHAM, AND DOVER RAILWAY—
METROPpLITAN EXTENSION.—This company pro-
poses to cross the Thames into the City, east of
And close by Blackfriars-bridge, crossing Earl--
street, Water-lane, Union-street, Ludgate-hill, to
the site of the late Fleet-prison, and thence to its
termination in Braziers-buildings. The public
ways are to be spanned by arches, leaving their
levels unaltered, except Fleet-lane, Bear-alley, and
Wheatsheaf-alley, which are to be stopped up.
This .scheme also embraces two branch railways,
one of which crosses Snow-hill to join the Metro-
politan at Victoria-street, whilethe other (diverging
from this) goes to the site of the late Smithfield-
market. The property in the City scheduled for
the whole, exclusive of public ways, is about 13
acres.
GREAT NORTHERN, HOLBORN, AND CITY Ex-
TENSION RAILWAY.—This is a branch from the
Great Northern Railway, at its intercession with
the North London Railway, to Tokenhouse-yard,
at the back of the Bank. The property in the
City scheduled for this scheme embraces nearly the
whole of the space bounded on the north by Lon-
don-‘‘ all ; east, by Sadler's-place and the Drapers'
gardens; south by the property on the northern
sides of Copthall-court and Great Bell-alley; and
west, by the eastern side of Moorgate-street. There
is also scheduled a small area of property fronting
Holborn, in the vicinity of Baker's-court, Furni-
val's-inn, and Leather-lane, and also between
Ely-
place and the portion of Field-lane which is within
the City. The. railway is to he carried on a viaduct
through the City. The entire area scheduled (ex-
clusive of4niblie ways) being about 22 acres, and
the number of public places in the City which it
appears are to be interfered with or absorbed for the
purposes of the company being about 27.
TEE LONDON RAILWAY' DEPOT AND STORE-
IIOUSEI COMPANY appli s for power to make, in
connection with the new markets which are pro-
posed by the Corporation of the city of London, a
storehouses, and other works to be
railway ' depot,
approached by a new street from Victoria-street,
and a branch railway to connect the new markets
with the Metropolitan Railway. The railway is to
he subterranean, and,the area of property selected
(exclusive of public ways) for the entire under-
taking is about 21; acres.
SMITHFIELD MARKET, STREETS, AND IMPROVE.
MENTS.—This is a project of the Corporation of
the City of London for the establishment of markets
and market houses on the site of West Smithfield,

and property north of Long-lane ; and the pro-
perty within the City scheduled for the schemes
(exclusive of public ways, and including a portion
of the area of the late market) is about 31 acres.
In conclusion, Mr. Heywood says :—" The total
area within the City, scheduled for these various
projects, is about 53 acres, and the number of pun-
lie ways of all classes to be spanned by arches is
about 70, and the number to be entirely absorbed
or stopped up about 42, a larger area effected by
new schemes than in any previous year since 1846.
The merits of these various projects it will be need-
less and, indeed, impossible, with the present
amount of information in my possession, to attempt
to discuss. Some will undoubtedly meet a
great metropolitan want, and it will be no easy
task to eliminate any as quite useless; but, never-
theless, without care, the difficulties of the City traffic
may be at certain points rather increased than di-
minished by the establishment of the termini and
stations. Some public ways already spanned by
arches seem, by the additions 'proposed thereto,
likely to be converted into short tunnels, while
other most important lines of street are to be for
the first time covered over by arches for portions of
their length. The whole of the schemes will cause
a large and serious derangement of the sewage of
the various districts, and (with the exception of
the project for the metropolitan markets, which
being entirely for public purposes, cannot be put
in the same category as the other schemes) all the
companies propose to absorb for their advantage
large areas of the public ways. Proper arrange-
ments, therefore, should be made before these bills
pass into law by which the sewerage of the City
shall be reconstructed, or maintained in a proper
condition without loss to the commission ; that
public ways, spanned by arches, shall, as much as
possible, remain fitted for public purposes ' and
that for the areas of existing public way to be ap-
propeiated some equivalent shall be given which the
commissioners may determine to be the best for the
public g3nerally. These are points upon which I
can only report to you after I have had much fur-
ther information as to what the companies propose,
and after close investigation of the probable con-
sequences of the completion of their projects. For
the present, therefore, •it seems to me absolutely
needful that the commission should dissent from
the whole of them."

REPEAL OF THE WAR DUTY ON HOPS.

Yesterday afternoon a numerously attended and
influential public meeting of the landowner:, and
proprietors of plantations in the hop d;:dtricts of
Kent and Sussex was held in the raw:act-room at
the Railway Hotel, Maplehurst, fir the adoption
of measures to procure a renaie:
sion of the present
duty on hops, and to mew
brialize the Chancellor
of the Exchequer to
provide in the next budget
that a fixed duty of. Id. per lb. shall in future be
levied, in lieu of the existing duties. The chair
was occupied by the Rev. Smith Marriott, rector of
Horsernon den, Ke n t ; and among those present were
Lord Holmesdale, M.P. for West Kent ; Messrs.
Osborne, of Marden; Punnett, of Sutton; Par-
tridge, of Yalding ; Perry, of Canteibury ; Reeves,
of Roberts.bridge ; and other large hop planters.
The Chairman observed that Sir Edmund Filmer,
M.P. for West Kent, had fully intended to be pre-
sent, but was unexpectedly compelled to attend to
important business elsewhere. The Rev. I. lleedes,
Mr. Hussey, of Scotney Castle, and other influen-
tial friends of the movement were also compelled
to be absent. The Chairman proceeded to allude to
the various burdens which he said pressed upon the
agriculturists, and to the steps which had been taken
by the hop planters at various periods in order to
procure a diminution of the hop duty. He advised
them to be firm and united, and continue to
agitate for the repeal of the war duty on hops, and
he did not despair of success. Mr. G. Punnett
moved the first resolution, expressive of the deter-
mination of the hop growers to abide by the decision
arrived at by the great county meeting held at
Penenden-heath in May last—namely, a repeal of
all existing duties, and the imposition of a uniform
duty of ld. per lb." Mr. Osborne, of Marden,
seconded the resolution. Lord Holmesdale, who
was well received, observed he must confess that, a
short time since the prospect of a repeal of the war
duty on hops appeared remote, and last year the
Chancellor of the Exchequer obtained. an additional
income-tax to meet the large liabilities. His opi-
nion was now somewhat changed as to the proba-
bility of getting the tax removed, and, from a variety
of causes, this appeared to be a most opportune time
for pressing the matter upon the attention of the
Chancellor of the Exchequer. The resolution was
agreid to. Addresses were then delivered by Mr.
Reeves, of Robertsbridge ; Mr. Perry, of Canter-
bury; Mr. Hayes, and other planters, and a me-
morial was adopted for presentation to the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer. A committee was ap-
pointed to carry out measures for a continual agita-
tion of the subject, and after a vote of thanks to the
chairman the meeting separated.