The Sun.
London, England, 1866-01-31 00:00:00

THE MO-LONDON RAILWAY.

Among the various new projects for railways in
the metropolitan district is one which, for its com-
pleteness, its utility, and its small amount of inter-
ference with the property and thoroughfares of the
metropolis, is-dwell deserving of attention. We refer
to the Mid-London line. The royal commission
very strongly recommended the construction of what
they termed the inner circle system of railways, and
this is now in course of completion by means of the
Metropolitan, its extensions east and west, and the
Metropolitan District Railway. What are required,
however, in order to complete the system, are com-
munications with the circumference of this circle
of railways. The London and North-Western and
Charing-cross line provide a diameter for the circle
from north to south, and the Mid-London now
proposes in effect to provide the longer axis,
or a line from east to west. A glance at the map of
London will suffice to show that there exist three
great arteries of communication ; one by way of the
New-road and City-road, traversed now by the
Metropolitan Railway ; a second taking a southerly
course by way of Piccadilly, the Strand, and Fleet-
street, partially represented by the Metropolitan
District Railway ; and, lastly, the Oxford-street and
Holborn lines, which are now proposed as the route
of the Mid-London scheme. The line as suggested
extends from a point near the Kensington Station of
the West London line, and terminates by junctions
with the London, Chatham, and Dover, and the
Metropolitan, near Farringdon-street, and in its
course it follows, with more or less of divergence,
the lines of the Uxbridge-road, Oxford-street, Hol-
born, and Snow-hill. Commencing at the west, the
line starts from near the Kensington Station of the
West London to Addison-road, where there will be
a junction station to bring the London and North-
Western into connection with the proposed line by
way of the West London. It then passes on under
the Uxbridge-road to Cumberland-gate, and then,
near Notting-hill Old-gate, it passes under the
Metropolitan Railway and provides a station. Then,
continuing its course, it keeps along the park side of
the road, so as to leave the north side available for
traffic during the construction of the line. There
is a station proposed at Hyde-park-gardens, whence
the line runs to the corner of Park-lane, in Oxford-
street, and then diverges from the road to the south
side of this leading thoroughfare. From this point
of divergence the railway takes a course about a
hundred yards south of Oxford-street, passing
through property of no great value, and avoiding
great interruption to the traffic during the building
of the railway. The proposed line crosses Bond-
street, where a station will be provided, if necessary,
on the south side of Union-street. It then runs
by the north-side of Hanover-square, opening a
new street overhead through Tenterden-street to
Hanover-square. Passing along the north side
of Princess-street, it crosses Regent-street, and
provides a station close to the Oxford-circus.
The line is continued south of Oxford-street to
Soho-square, thence it reaches High-street, and
passes over the authorised line of the Charing-cross
and London and North Western, and at this point
there will be a station for Tottenham-court-road,
which can also be used as an exchange station from
the Charing-cross line. Thence the Mid-London
traverses the line of Broad-street and High-street,
widening as it goes the narrow portions of those
streets to 60ft. in width. From Drury-lane to Lin-
coln's-inn-fields the course of the railway will be
marked by a new street 60ft. wide over therailway,
which will then pass along the north side of Lin-
coln's-inn-fields to the corner of Chancery-lane,
where there will be a station. The new street will
also be continued from Lincoln's-inn-fields to Chan-
cery-lane, thus providing a second lateral thorough-
fare from Drury-lane to the north end of Chancery
lane. From this point the proposed underground
line runs along the south side of Holborn to the
Middle-row, which is about to be removed by the
Metropolitan Board of Works ; and it is proposed
that this portion of therailway shall be made simul-
taneously with the demolition and removal of this
obstructive block of houses. From Middle-row the
line passes down the centre of Holborn-hill, where
it is 120 ft. in width, to the corner of Ilatton-gar-
den, and thence follows the course of the new street
to be made by the corporation in connection with
the Holborn-valley viaduct, and effects a junction
with the London, Chatham, and Dover near Far-
ringdon-street, and also joins the authorised con-
nection with the Metropolitan Extension to Fins-
bury. The company propose taking running powers
over the Metropolitan to Finsbury and Tower-hill,
and also over the City lines of the London, Chat-
ham, and Dover to Ludgate. The linewill be under-
ground, some portions in tunnel, others in covered
way, the average depth being about 20ft. below the
surface. The stations will be roofed with glass and
lighted from the road. The estimated cost of the
work is £2,500,000, and the length of line, exclusive
of the connecting branches, is 51 miles. The rail-
way has been laid out so as to avoid as much as
possible interference with the traffic of the leading
thoroughfares, and the purchase of valuable pro-
perty ; while it offers ample compensation to the
public for any inconvenience caused during con-
struction, by providing several new streets in parts
where they are much needed. There is abundant
traffic for this metropolitan railway in the districts
above mentioned, and its construction would doubt-
less be of great public advantage.—Railway News.

The Burning of the Ship Simla, from India,

The following letters have been received ac the
Board of:Trade, reporting the total loss by fire of
the ship Simla, from Calcutta for Liverpool, with a
valuable cargo :
" Ship Sovereign of India, Nov. 30.
" Lat. 35 S, long. 17 E.
" have the honour to inform you that at
noon of the 31st ult., in lat. 4 4 N, and long. 21 15
W., we fell in with the ship Simla, of Liverpool,
Captain J. Dyer, with the signal lam on fire,'
king, and at his request I went on board to examine
the state of the vessel. On taking off one of the
hatches, which had been securely battened down to
smother the fire, a dense volume of smoke issued
from below, and we could actually hear the fire
cracking. I subsequently advised Captain Dyer to
leave the ship at once, as from the nature of her
cargo (jute) the fire might at any moment break
out, and preclude the possibility of their saving their
lives. The boats were therefore got out, and the
seamen with their effects and some provisions put
into them, but before the last boat with Captain
Dyer left her side she was in flames fore and aft, and
in half an hour her masts fell in sheets of flame. It
was blowing hard and a heavy sea on at the time,
but I am glad to say everything was effected and
the crew received on board the Sovereign of India
without the slightest accident. The officers and
crews of both vessels behaved in a most exemplary
manner. Being bound to Hongkong I proceeded on
my voyage in hopes of falling in with some homeward
bound vessel that might have taken the unfortunate
men to England ; but having met none I consi-
dered it my duty to land them at Pernambuco if
possible, that being the nearest Port from which
they could procure a passage home ; but when we
got within 30 miles of that port the weather was
very bad, blowing and raining and a heavy sea on.
I considered it imprudent to venture nearer to the
land, and consequently hauled off. We have just
fallen in with a French barque, homeward-bound,
which has relieved us of nine of our passengers, and
the captain promised to land them at the Cape or
St. Helena.

(Signed) " W. SCOTT,
" Master of the ship sovereign of
" The Secretary of the Board of Trade, London."
The following is from the captain of the Simla :
" St. Helena, Dec. IG.
" The ship Simla, under my command, was burnt
at sea by spontaneous combustion, after being 92
days at sea on a passage towards London, when
she was abandoned in a volume of flame in the
North Atlantic, 4 N. and about 22 W., and the
crew rescued by the ship Sovereign of India, Capt.
Scott, bound from London to Hong Kong. We
remained on board the Sovereign of Inulia 30 days,
and were carried back as far as the latitude of 35
S., 16 E., when myself and eight others were put
on board the French barque Bosque, of

Bordeaux, Captain Francis Got, and safely landed
at this island. Captain Got very kindly treated us,
and we would wish publicly to make it known that
he did all in his power to make us comfortable and
to sympathise with us in our distress."