The Sun.
London, England, 1859-04-11 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

At the monthly meeting of the Railway Compa-
nies' Assocation this week the Law and Parliamen-
tary Committee' were authorised to take steps for
preventing the general insertion in future acts of
the clause abolishing teiminal charges. An alleged
diversion of traffic through an agreement between
the North-Eastern and Newcastle and Carlisle was
the subject of considerable discussion, but no de-
finite result was arrived at. The shareholders of
the London and South-Western have approved
bills for the construction of junction and loop-
lines at Twickenham, Barnes, and other places,
to provide additional station accommodation, &c.,
with provisions for raising the required capital.
With reference to the Portsmouth competition,
the chairman stated that the cheap fares origi-
nated with the London and Brighton, and that a
fortnight after their adoption by the Brighton
the London a_nd
_South-Western had most - un-
willingly been compelled to take a similar course.
At a meeting of the Vale of Neath a bill to enable
the company to enter into arrangements with the
South Wales for the division of the station at Neath,
to purchase the Aberdaie Valley line, and to gua-
rantee interest on £40,000 required for the corn-
pletion'of the docks was approved. It was proposed
to raise £216,000 additional capital. At a meeting
of the Pernambuco the announcements justified to a
singular extent all the cautions hitherto repelled by
the shareholders. It appears that in consequence
of the delays and slow progress of the line the works
have been taken out of the hands of the contractor,
and that the officers of the company are now in
possession. Thrice the number of men formerly em-
ployed by the contractor are at present at work.
The capital raised has been £688,000, of which about
£38,000 is in cash in the hands of the company,
and the outlay, including £25,000 of outstanding
liabilities, has been £675,000. Owing to delay and
accumulation of interest, it is considered probable
that the capital will be exceeded. The contractor's
accounts remain unsettled. In justice to the high
credit of Brazil, the public must bear in mind that
not a single unfavourable feature in the position of
this undertaking is to be attributed to the Govern-
ment of that country, their course towards it having
been marked by the greatest liberality and forbear-
ance. The Glasgow, Dumbarton, and Helensburgh
have declared a dividend at the rate of 4 per cent.
per annum out of the disposable balance of revenue
for the past six months of £2,697. About £15,000
is required to settle liabilies on capital account
which will raise the total cost of the undertaking to
£277,000. At the Central Terminus and Glasgow
meeting the proposed distribution at the rate of 3
per cent. per annum was ordered. The railway
waggons belonging to the company were stated to
be in good condition. Every exertion has been
made by the directors to dispose of the surplus land
and reduce the outstanding liabilities. The former
is valued at £77,970, exclusive of two plots reserved
for railway and depot purposes, while the latter
stand at £86,387. The report of the Geelong and
Melbourne states that the Williamstown branch to
Melbourne was opened on the 14th of January.
The Government have decided, notwithstanding the
remonstrances of the chairman, on treating for the
purchase of the line for cash instead of deben-
tures. The creditors of the company have in
nearly every case met the Board in a liberal spirit,
and all recorded judgments have been paid off.
The receipts of the Tournay to Jurbise and
Landen to Hasselt for the year 1858 show an in-
crease of £3,171 over the previous year, and a total
distribution for the year has been made at a rate of
rather more than 54 per cent. The augmentation
in the revenue arises mainly from an increase in the
coal traffic. At a meeting of the Great Western of
Canada a dividend was ordered at the proposed rate
of 3 per cent. per annum. The falling off in the
receipts was attributed solely to the depression of
trade and two bad harvests. The Copiapo Exten-
sion Railway, has been completed and opened for
traffic. Inclusive of rolling stock and ether ex-
penses, the cost has been £6,400 a mile. The receipts
hitherto have proved satisfactory. The first sod of
the West Somerset, a line connecting Taunton with
Watchet, has been cut. At the meeting of the
Illinois Central, at Chicago, on the 16th March, a
resolution expressing full confidence in the direc-
tion and a conviction of the future prosperity of
the undertaking was movedby Mr. Cobden on behalf
of himself and the English holders of 80,000 shares.
The shareholders of the Norfolk have approved the
lease of the East Suffolk to the Eastern Counties and
associated companies. The net receipts of the Dun-
blane, Doune, and Callander for the half-year ending
in December amounted to £1,036. It was agreed
not to divide this sum, the directors being desirous of
having the experience of a full year's traffic, when a
dividend may be declared at a rate which can be per-
manently maintained. The Perth and Dunkeld have
declared a dividend of 2 per cent. ; the Jedburgh,
3 ; and Caledonian and Dumbartonshiro, 4.