The Sun.
London, England, 1860-02-15 00:00:00

1

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

MIDLAND.

Yesterday the half-yearly meeting of this com-
pany was held at Derby—Mr. S. Beale, M.P., in
the chair.
The report, an abstract of which has appeared in
The Sun, was taken as read.
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the
report, said that some years ago it was agreed that
£20,000 a-year should be set aside from revenue for
the repairs of permanent way ; but in the last half-
year an addition had been made of £13,000 to that
amount. The interest on the outlay for the Leices-
ter and Hitchin line had been paid out of revenue
during the whole period the line was in course of
construction. The cost of the horse arid other stock
as carriers had also been paid out of revenue.
These were facts of which he deemed it necessary
to inform the shareholders, so that if a time should
arise of bad trade it might not be said that in a
time of prosperity revenue was strained for divi-
dend. Of late years there had been a change in
the management of railways, with an evident desire I
to consolidate the railway system. Perhaps this
might not be bad in itself; but it rendered it all the
more necessary that the directors should be watch-
ful, and take care that the Midland interest might
not suffer, and that no unfair abstraction of traffic
should take place. (Hear.) They had caused a
comparison to be made between 1847 and their
position this year; and he found that in the course
of that time their mileage had extended 200 miles,
yet it had taken the earnings of those 200 miles to
replace the abstraction of passenger traffic made since
1847 by competing lines. Their goods traffic had,
however, increased twice and a half; and their
Mineral traffic had inerealgd threefold, SO that, but
for the abstraction of passenger traffic, the Midland
dividend would be better than that of any other
line in the kingdom. He alluded to a bill promoted
by the London and North-Western, Mn.uchester,
Sheffield, and Lincolnshire, and other companies,
which had been successfully opposed by this com-
pany last session, on account. of its tenden ey to injure
Midland interests. Thev were (ho said) strong
enough to maintain their ground, if with decision
and firmness they looked to their position. They
desired to be upon friendly terms with all their
neighbours, but the maintenance of tho integrity
of the Midland system must depend on their power
to help themselves; that power the directors kept
steadily in view. After alluding to the circumstances
connected with the purchase of land in Agar-town
for a goods station, he concluded by moving the
adoption of the report.
Mr. HUTCIIINSON, the deputy chairman, seconded
the motion.

Mr. GEE objected to the scheme to make the rail-
way from Rowsley to Buxton.
Mr. HADLEY said that with economical manage-
ment a larger dividend might have been paid.
The CHAIRMAN admitted that they might have
paid a trifle more; but instead of straining their
balance to pay a large dividend, they preferred see-
ing their propeity in a firm position, satisfied that
that was the best course for the shareholders.

The motion for tho adoption of the report, and
the declaration of the dividend of £3 per share on
the old stocks, and the various dividends upon the
other stocks, were also adopted unanimously.
The consolidation of various stocks was autho-
rised; also the issue of 4 per cent. preferential stock
to replace loans.
The Chairman and Mr. Kendrick, the other re-
tiring director, were re-elected; and the proceed-
ings concluded with a vote of thanks to the Board.

NORTH-EASTERN.
The half-yearly meeting of this company was
held yesterday at York, Mr. H. S. Thompson,
in the chair.

The report, an abstract of which has appeared in
The Sten, was taken as read.'
The CHAIRMAN, iu moving the adoption of the
report, said it was one of the most favourable the
directors had yet presented to the shareholders.
The receipts had increased during the half-year, as
compared with the corresponding half of 1859, by
£56,933. Most of the branches of traffic showed
a very gratifying increase, and the rolling stock
and line were in a very efficient state. The policy
of the company was fully justified when it was
borne in mind that during the past year, as com-
pared with the year 1852—the year before the
amalgamation—they had paid to the Berwick share-
holders
41 per cent. as against 2i, to the York
shareholders 3,7-, as against 2, and to the Leeds
shareholders 21 per cent. as against nothing. This
had not been a spasmodic but a steady increase,
with the exception sf the year 1857, when they
had a windfall, which raised the dividend beyond
the usual level. lie concluded with a few observa-
tions on the proposed amalgamation of the Hull
'and Holderness Railway.
Mr. LEntaN seconded the adoption of the report,
and the resolution, after some conversation, was
carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN then moved formal resolutions
declariEg a dividend on the Berwick capital stock
at the rate of 51 per cent. per annum, and upon the
Thirsk and Mahon stock at the rate of 4 per cent.
per annum ; upon the York capital stock at the
rate of 41 per cent. per annum ; and upon the Leeds
capital stock at the rate of 21 per cent, per annum.
The CHAIRMAN next proposed that the construc-
tion of branch railways from Blandon to Conside,
t.) connect the Lanchester Valley Branch with the
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carried. •
On the motion of the CHAIRMAN, Mr. Alderman
Leeman, Mr. J. Hodgson, Mr. Alderman Seymour,
Mr. S. Priestman, and Mr. Maclea, who retired by
rotation, were re-elected directors, and' Mr. Wylie
was re-elected an auditor.
The meeting having been made special, it was
resolved that new stock in the company to the ex-
tent of £1,000,000 be created, with a guaranteed
preferential dividend at the rate of £4 10s. per
cent. per annum, to rank pari passe with the other
stock of the company.
On the motion of the Hon. J. C. DUNDAS a vote
of thanks was given to the chairman and directors,
and the proceedings terminated.

PRESENTATION TO DR. WATSON, OF THE GREAT
EASTERN.—The officers of the Great Eastern
steamship have presented Dr. Watson, who so
nobly exerted himself to save the life of their late
much-beloved commander, with a handsome pipe,
beautifully mounted with silver, as a mark of
respect and esteem fer his general character, and
admiration of his conduct on the occasion of the
recent melancholy accident in the riser• Itchen.