The Sun.
London, England, 1858-08-21 00:00:00

DUBLIN AND BELFAST JUNCTION.

The half-yearly meeting of this company wa3 held on
Wednes'lay, at their (dices, Talbot-street, Dublin—Mr.
John Barrow in the chair. _

The SECRETARY read the report, the chief features of
which have already been published.

In reply to the Right lion. E. LUCAS,
The CHAIRMAN stated that upon each of the 16,594
£5O shares mentioned in the statement of accounts had not
been called up, and consequently represented so much
available capital. Of 2,077 shares, which were stated to
have been " partly paid up," there was about £27 per
share available in the same way; and there was likewise a
certain sum invested in the Dundalk and Enni-kitlen Rail-
way and in the Banbridge Company, which they were en-
titled to consider as capital, subject to certain vicissitudes.
Mr. HARDIN wished to know whether the shareholders
of that company had been called together in order to sanc-
tion the advance made to the Banbridge line ?
The CHAIRMAN said not, and explained that the direc-
tors thought it important that the line should be made not
wily as a direct feeder to the Belfast Junction Company, but
also as a protective line to them. They ditl nor, under the
circumstances, consider it necessary to first have the assent
of the shareholders before they made the advances, having
reason to believe that they bad confidence in the board, and
would approve of what had been done. (Hear.)
Mr. HARDIN thought that the shareholders should be
consulted.
Mr. LUCAS inquired as to the nature of the several items
which formed the gross items set down as outstanding delts
due by the company £51,334 17s. 4d.,' and of the b2lancing
items at the other side.
The CMAIRMAN said the amount referred to bad for a
length of rime been in the funds; it was unfortunately in-
vested at a time when the funds were very high, and it had
been the earnest wish of the hoard not to withdraw it until
they could do so at least with very trifling loss. They still
hoped to he able to Co so, and. in tne meantime the concern
dirt not suffer horn the money being so employed, as they re-
ceived interest for it at the rate of 3 per cent., which was all
t hey were at present plying for the use of mr.ney. The share-
holders might depend that if the funds advanced, as the
directors looked forward to their doing, the money would
be as soon as it cr,uld be safely dote.
Mr. JACKSON was glad to say that the accounts, which
he had carettelly examined, were in an exceedingly satisfac-
tory and intelligible state. He would suggest, however,
that the directors should state on the face of the account the
authorised share capital ; and also than the position of the
company was such as to admit of a dividend of 5 per cent.
king declared paid in future half years.
Mr. PILBINGTON congratulated the shareholders upon
the steadily increasing prosperity of the company, and ex-
pressed a hope that hereafter the directors would feel them-
selves warranted in recommending a higher ra,e of divi-
dend.
The CHAIRMAN, in replying generally to the observa-
tions which had been made, said he should not trouble the
meeting at any length upon the report, which contained
as much infermation as the greater number of the
shat eholders were desirous of obtaining. There were,
however, a few matters not generally introduced into
a report which he would comment upon more at large,
.rld the first of these was wi•h reference to their traffic.
The board did consider that the traffic of the line was de-
sstriping and becoming increased, but it had not in-
creased in proportion to the hopes which some of the more
"one'ulue were disposed to entertain. Sill they had little
tt,arebt whatever that, (mint, t the removal of the moth-
y was tlrveasssutarke,ingthe revival of trade which he believed
going
place,and t theite increasethnst
fofavtu.r a
btlreaffi resultsesv th he
k:t.ew
bievel onoeksse do
ffotrn.esenneewhaldineas greaterei opinion of the product-
jilted
if
tieerendißtstpatenrxklepnettot,f than
thers had ; and the directors Cer'atadhlil
Neuld be very much d•rippo
1 d not prove a very good feeder to the main railway.
ye lineßy
that line also they thight be enabled to Pr'event a
deal of mischief to their own valuable property, by
allowing other companies to compete with them, -or to
datnage them in any way that hey possibly contd. The 5,000
oyetahre;zloT
hares in the Banbridge Company had been subscribedta with
t tie full consent of the shareholders, who also knew that they
2tetiooonat-
vere about to take that line at aheriernetxopfei
t the Banbridge Company would be
were difficulties in the way of the comple-
they found, notwithstanding t
iroaur :on-
.:arc, tthhaet there
and t
ha
therefore no hesitation in advancing
was to say, perhaps one-
unable to finish it without theirssistthaenc.zel.B,ToChoe
which
had
been already mentioned—that
re-
mainder wotild be given as the WO
third of that amount had been arklrepardnycepeadiedd,:tTndbetwhenne