The Sun.
London, England, 1867-12-13 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

The directors of the Grand Trunk of Canada
Railway, preparatory to the general meeting on the
19th inst., have issued the report of Captain Tyler
on his return from his recent mission of inquiry. It
is an elaborate document, and points out, in con-
clusitin, that the greater works on the line are of a
substantial character, one of them in particular
being far too magnificent for its commercial re-
sources; that it has suffered from defects of
origimd construction as regards its permanent way
and minor works ; that a considerable proportion
of its rnileage is actually worked at a loss ; and that
the receipts on the greater part of it are earned
only by a constant struggle against numerous com-
petitors. After the various creditors and the bond
and shareholders bad submitted inevitably, but at
so much sacrifice, to the compromises of 1862, it
appeared to be in a fair way towards yielding some
return to them. But the calculations which were
then made have been upset, partly by the immedi-
ate effects and the after effects of the American
war, and by the supply of unsuitable iron for the
permanent way, partly also by the abrogation of
the Reciprocity Treaty and other causes. In the
existing condition of the property, two courses pre-
sent themselves for adoption. It must be allowed to
go on either without or with a fresh expenditure of
capital. If no further capital be expended its im-
provement will, to say the least, be a gradual
process ; a large proportion, if not the whole,
of its revenue will for a series of years be swal-
lowed up in the cost of maintenance, the pay-
ment of fixed charges, and the supply of necessary
meana and appliances; and the prospects of cash
dividends to the preference bond and stockholders
will be very remote. If capital can he raised, and
if it be expended on the various objects considered
necessary, a more speedy return to the proprietors
may, in Captain Tyler's opinion, with good reason
be anticipated. The amount which will require to
be raised and expended on capital account is
£900,C00.

" The question then arises, how is this money to
be raised ? The credit of the company is at the
lowest ebb. It has not yet been found practicable
to place the remaining £40,000 of the existing 6 per
cent. equipment mortgage. That security is now
nominally quoted at 80 per cent. in the market.
The interest upon it was only paid by carrying over
a deficit from the past to the current halt-year.
Any further mortgage must follow it in the order of
precedence. A second equipment mortgage could
only be issued on ruinous terms. The proprietors
have expended vast sums of money, more freely
than wisely, on a great highway, from which
Canada has derived and is deriving infinite advan-
tage. The city of Montreal has grown and is grow-
ing rapidly, as an emporium for Western commerce,
under its auspices. The price of land and property
of every kind throughout the country has largely
increased in value. Manufacturers are spriuing up.
The land is becoming settled, population is grow-
ing, and facility of intercourse has been provided
over the whole length of the Dominion. The pro-
prietors have hitherto received little but hard words
for themselves. They are ready and anxious to pro-
ceed yet further in the hope of working out the
undertaking to a successful issue. They are even
now promoting a bill in the Canadian Parliament
for power to raise an additional £500,000. That
sum would be insufficient, even if it could be issued
at par, for the requirements enumerated. The
country and the company would alike be benefited if
£900,000 were expended, principally in Canada,
during the next six years. It would be more profit.
able, as well as more satisfactory to both, if this
railway, which will ultimately carry traffic on an
unbroken gauge from Halifax to Chicago, were
placed in a perfect condition, and were to become,
as would then be the case, a favourite route for
American as well as Canadian passengers and pro-
duce between the East and the West. Having
regard to all these circumstances, the Government
and people of Canada may now fairly be asked for
such reasonable assistance as will suffice to improve
the credit of the company, and to enable them to
raise funds for the purposes above enumerated.
There are various ways iu which assistance might
be rendered with mutual advantage. But it would
be premature to discuss them here in detail. It is
sufficient for the present to have demonstrated the
reasonable nature as well as the desirability of the
proposal."

THE FRENCH DEBATE ON 7HE ITALIAN
Q tiES TION.

The weekly bulletin of the Moniteur du Soir con-
tains the following paragraphs, of which a sum-
mary appeared in the 7 imes of yesterday
:--
« 'The language used in the Corps Legislatif by
the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of
State determines, in the most precise manner, the
policy of the Imperial Government with regard to
the Holy See and Italy. The Marquis de Moustier
said, at a meeting of the 4th inst., that it would be
a very great mistake to believe that France is dis-
posed to abandon the Papacy to chance and cove-
tousness. Defining the convention of the 15th of
September, the Minister of Foreign Affairs re-
minded his audience that the object of that great
international act was to place the Holy See under
the safeguard of Italian honour, and under the
protection of the engagement entered into by Italy
towards France.

" Speaking of the project of this Conference, M.
de Moustier showed that all the Cabinets willingly
admit that, whatever the religion of the majority of
the nation, each State has serious duties to dis-
charge towards its Catholic subjects, and ought to
provide for every legitimate satisfaction of a moral
and religious kind. The Powers have also ad-
mitted that the state of affairs in Italy might, by
a series of rebounds (co/are-coups), lead in Europe
to complications of a nature to affect the general
and special interests of the different nations.
" As M. de Mou.stier said, the French policy has
not changed. To remove the Austrians from the
peninsula, to restore Italy her liberty and inde-
pendence, to guarantee at the same time Catholic
interests, and to seek a guarantee for those interests
in the reconciliation of•ltaly and the Papacy, is the
idea which has always guided and still guides the
Imperial policy. No mo lification has been intro-
duced, and if the Government has imparted to its
language an emphasis which had become indispens-
able, it is with the view of reassuring public opinion
and of preventing every kind of equivocation, illu-
sion, or misconception.
" The speech delivered by the Minister of State
at the sitting of. the sth inst. terminated the detate
by establishing in a striking manner the close agree-
ment existing between the Emperor and the country
on the Roman question as on all others. M. Rouher
passed sentence upon anarchic and revolutionary
passions. He solemnly declared that Italy shall not
take possession of Rome ; that France will never
submit to such violence being done to her honour
and to Catholicity. The Government of the Em-
peror demanded the energetic application of the
Convention of the 15th of September, and if that,
Convention in time to come should not prove effica-
cious, it will itself add what is wanting : it includes
in the defence of the temporal power of the Pope
the integrity of the existing territory.
"M. Rouher expressed, in his eloquent speech,
the desire to see the harmony of the great Powers
represented by a vote of confidence in favour of the
Government. The Corps Legislatif was almost
unanimous in replying to that appeal ; 237 votes
ag tinst 17 were given in favour of the order of the
day, pure and simple. Never was there a more com-
plete and sympathetic understanding established
between an Assembly and a Minister. As a testi-
mony of approval for the past and of absolute con-
fidence for the future, the vote of the sth December
brings new strength to French diplomacy. The
Government of the Emperor attaches no less value
than before to applications for the assistance of the
Powers in the work of appeasement and justice,
which it is carrying on in the interest alike of the
Papacy and the Peninsula.
" Instead of bringing disdain and indifference