The Sun.
London, England, 1860-05-10 00:00:00

SUPPLY OF GAS TO TILE METRO-

POLLS'.

The committee appointed by the House of Com-
mons to report upon a bill now before Parliament
on the supply of gas to •the metropolis met on.
Tuesday, when the following members were pre-
sent :—The Right Hon. T. S. Estcourt, chairman ;
Mr. Packe, Mr. J. A. Turner, Lord R. Cecil, Sir J.
V. Shelley, and Mr. North.

Mr. Denison, Q.C.' who appeared on behalf of
the promoters of the bill, opened the case. He said
there were about twenty-two companies, large and
small, who now supplied the various districts of the
metropolis with gas. The first company was
started in 1811, when many persons doubted if the
speculation would pay at all ; but at this moment
there was very nearly £2,000,000 a year paid for
gas, and not very far short of 1,000,000 tons of coals
were used in its manufacture. He should be very
glad if he could lay before the committee a state-
ment of the accounts of those companies, as had.
been done in the case of the water companies, but
that he was at present unable to do. Last year,
when a committee sat on this subject, there was
.11.
formal order—not of the committee merely—
but of the House of Commons, for the production
of certain papers, returns, and accounts of the
several gas companies for the last five years; but no
return had been made in answer to that order. He
did not know whether the gas companies had set
that order at defiance, but they had certainly paid
no attention to it. Possibly, as a dissolution was at
hand at the time, they looked upon it as a dropped
order, but the fact was that no return had been

made. Now he said they ought to have those re-
turns before them, and he had to ask the committee
to call upon the gas companies to supply those re-
turns. The promoters of the present bill considered
that the various gas companies should not have the
power of cutting off the gas in one street because
one peer man was is. Bd. in arrear of his bill, or in
another, of restricting the illuminating power of the
gas or of fixing the price of gas at 4s. the thousand
cubic feet in one district, in others charging 65., 7s.
and 55., while in some districts there was no limit
at all. One of the objects of the present bill was to
enforce uniformity of price, giving the companies a
fair profit for the money they had laid out, and at
the same time a security to the public for fair value
for what they paid. In the early days of gas there
was no limitation, but by degrees, as the making of
gas was found to be profitable, several companies
started in combination with each other: first, in
1850, the London, Equitable, and Chartered; next,
in 1853, the Phcenix, London, and South Metroppli-
tan, and, conjointly with them, the Surrey, as a
consuming branch. From this period the price of
gas began to rise from 4s. to 4s. 6d. the thousand
cubic feet. Under the present system there was even
a difficulty in getting contracts for the public
lamps, an instance of which had occurred in Chelsea.
In June, 1858, the Chelsea vestry tested the public
lamps, when they found they were overcharged in
one year £9OO over what they contracted for, but
when the matter was brought before the Court of
Common Pleas, the verdict was against the vestry,
on the ground that they could. not prove that the
whole quantity of gas contracted for had not been
supplied, which it was manifestly impossible they
could do unless they,had a person to test the lamps
every hour of the night. On the 19th Nov., 1857, the
first meeting of delegates of the metropolitan pa-
rishes took place to have an alteration in the system.
The first thing they did was to petition Parliament,
complaining of the monopoly of the gas companies,
and stating that the consumers were at the mercy
of the gas companies as to the price, quantity, and
quality of the gas supplied. The petition set forth
that no less than 7,728,000 cubic feet of gas were
consumed in one year in the metropolis, produced
by 810,000 tons of coal. The value of that gas,
calculated at 4s. 6d. the thousand cubic feet, was
£1,738,000, as estimated by engineers ; but the
actual sum paid by the consumers of the metropolis
amounted to about £2,000,000. Shortly after the
Easter recess of 1858 a Parliamentary committee
was nominated, consisting of five members, to re-
present the gas interest, five to represent the
parishes, and five independent; members. That
committee did take a good deal of of evidence, but
were not able to make a_ report to the house. In
the course of last session, however, a bill was pre-
sented to the house very similar to the one now
before the committee. Nothing, however, took
place in the
,matter, except that that bill afforded a
basis of negotiation between the parties, and it was
agreed between Mr. Wyatt, who acted for the peti-
tioners, and Mr. Baxter, who was agent for the
opponents of the bill, that there should be no oppo-
sition on the standing orders, or on the second
reading of the bill, but both parties were to be at
liberty to take what steps they pleased as to ques-
tions that had not been agreed upon. After some
further remarks, counsel concluded by asking the
committee to enforce the order for the production
of the returns of accounts, &c., by the various gas
companies.
The room was cleared, and when the public were
re-admitted,
The Chairman said the committee were of opinion
that the information required in the returns ought
to be produeed. The committee would make no
order at that moment, but trusted the former order
would be complied with.
The committee then adjourned till this day.

L U UNTRY MARKETS.

NEWARK-MAY 9.

The show of wheat from the farmers to-day was fair, and
a moderate business was transacted at rather lower prices.
Barley in short supply, but steady. Peas firm, at 45s to
545. per qr.

White Wheat, new, 58s to 61s
Red do. ' 5273 to 55s
Old white sBs to 61s
Red do. 52s to 55s
Barley, malting.— 40s to 46s

Barley, grinding 30s to 323
Oats, old, .. 283 to 323
New do 263 to 293
Beans. 455 to 483
Beans, new —s to —5

LYNN-MAY 8.

The supply of wheat was limited, and there was a fair
attendance of farmers and factors. Trade ruled at last
last week's rates.

Old white 50s to 56s Old red 47s to 52s
New white ..... ..18s to 51s New red... 48s to 52a

HULL--MAY 8.

There was very little doing in wheat to-day, and prices
underwent no change. Oats in demand. Peas scarce, and
in good inquiry. Barley active. A thin attendance.
Wheat.... Old white per qr. . s6s Od to 58s Od
Old red
New white .. „
New red .... „ , 53s Od to 55s Od
Dantzic, Kent) , &c. old white 46s Od to 50s Od
Dutch, Belgian, and French 46s Od to 56s Od
Baltic and Hamburg, red 44s Od to 48s Od
St. Petersburg and Riga, old 39s Od to 44s Od
Barley.... English malting ' 40s Od to 44s Od
Grinding 3ls Od to 34s Od
Saal and Oderbruck
Holstein and Danish 34s Od to 33s Od
Grinding
oats _
English, old _ 27s Od to 28s Od

Archangel and Riga, per at Os 101 d to lid
Friesland and Dutch Oslld to Oslltd
Swedish and Danish oBlld to Osllld
Beans ....English, old, per qr
New pigeon 4os Od to 42s Od
'
New tick. 42s Od to 44s Od
Egyptian 378 Od to 38s Od
Peas Foreign breakers
Grinding
•
Tares ....Winter —s Od to —s Od
Indian Corn
Linseed, feeding
_ _ _ _

crushing
Linseed cakes (I-ull) £lo 10 0 to £lO 16 0
Foreign 715 oto 8 5 0
Rape cakes 415 oto 5 0 0
Bones 415 oto 6 5 0