The Sun.
London, England, 1859-09-01 00:00:00

SOUTH-EASTERN RAIL IVA Y.

HALF-YEARLY MEETING—(THIS DAY.)
The ordinary half-yearly meeting of the proprietors was
held this day at the Bridge-house Hotel.
The chair was occupied by J. Byng, Esq.
The report of the directors, which has already appeared
in The Sun, having been taken as read,
The CHAIRMAN rose for the purpose of moving its adop-
tion. He congratulated the proprietors on the increasing
prosperity of the line, and said the accounts which had
been placed in their hands would render it unneces-
sary for him to detain the meeting at any great
length. It would be seen that after paying and providing
for all expenses there would remain a balance available for
dividend on the ordinary stock of the company of £149,788
16s. Id. A dividend of 12s. per £3O stock, or at the'rate of
4 per cent., would absorb a sum of £148,674, leaving a
balance to be carried forward of £1,114 16s. ld., and this
dividend the directors recommended the proprietors to
adopt. If that recommendation was agreed to, it would
show an increase of one per cent. as compared with the
corresponding half-year of 1858. (Hear.) The directors
assured the proprietors that there had been no relaxation
on their part in developing the traffic on the South-Eastern
Railway. The engineer's report showed a large expendi-
ture, but the favourable results that must ensue would
fully justify the outlay. The increase of their traffic
was another source of congratulation, the more so as

it arose from the steady growth of the local traffic
to and from the whole of the stations on the main,
North Kent, and branch lines. The great increase
of continental business at Folkestone had rendered

it necessary to enlarge the customs' examining warehouse,
while the new works at Dover would enable the company,
in accordance with the arrangements entered into with the
authorities, to run their engines, trains, and passengers
directly on to the Admiralty pier, which would greatly
facilitate the mails now carried by the company.
(Hear, hear.) The next subject to which he would
allude was the Charing-cross Railway. (Hear, hear.)
The directors, seeing the great benefit that was to be derived
from the completion of such a project, recommended the
proprietors to authorise them to exercise the powers conferred
upon the company by the Charing-cross Railway Act, and
to sanction the issue of £300,000 in 4i per cent. preference
shares, in order that, so far as their line was concerned,
no time might be lost in proceeding vigorously with
the execution of so important an undertaking. The
completion of the Charing-cross Railway would bring the
South-Eastern Railway to the very heart of the metropolis ;
and a more desirable station for a terminus than Charing-
cross could not be fixed upon, as it was agreed upon all
hands that it offered facilities of the best descrip-
tion. The want of a West-end terminus for the
various lines of the South-Eastern Railway had
long been felt ; and the directors thought that the
proper accommodation of the public, as well as the
more effective development of the traffic ought not to be
postponed for a day longer than was necessary for provid-
ing and completing such an undertaking. (Hear,
hear.) The honourable gentleman having alluded to
the other minor subjects mentioned in the direc-
tors' half-yearly statement, concluded by moving that the
report be adopted.
_ _

Mr. Gottvox seconded the motion.
A short discussion ensued, at the termination of which
the report was unanimously agreed to.
A resolution authorising the payment of the dividend,
mentioned in the report, on Thursday, the Bth of Septem-
ber, was also agreed to unanimously.
After the business of the ordinary meeting had been
transacted, a special general meeting was held for the pur-
pose of authorising the directors to take the necessary steps
to exercise the power• conferred by the Charing-cross Rail-
way Act, by contributing £300,000 towards the funds of
that undertaking. _ _ _

The proceedings terminated with the usual vote of thanks
,o the Chairman.

CIVIL SERVICE OF INDIA.

EXAMINATION OF 1859 - SELEC TED CANDIDATES

Order

Name

Total
University, College, &c. No. of
Merit. Marks.
1 Hime, Robert Douglas Trinity C., Dublin.. 2,553
2 Mulligan, Wm. John Queen's C. Belfast. 2,522
3 Wedderburn, Win. .• • • Edinburgh7Uni.... 2,462
4 Boxwell, John
5 Twigg, Conolly Ditto ditto.. 2,388
6 Sells, Arthur Merton, C., Oxford. 2,369
7 Smith, Wm. Henry .. •
.. Ditto
8 Tweedie, John
9 Tiemlet, James Dyer
10 Little, Edgar H.
11 Mackgill, George Edwd Trinity. C., Camb.. 2,191
12 Larminie, Wm. Rea Trinity C. Dublin.. 2,115
New C.,
• • Wadham C., Oxford 2,101
Trinity C., Dublin.. 2,090
111435 War d,
h,
LGuEecodarwsg
Edward
d.B Ernest
9 062
-,
16 Growse, Frederick S Oriel& Queen's, Ox. 2,041
17 Wilson, John Queen's G., Belfast. 2,015
Private tuition -.. 2,014
Oxford.... 1,960
218911 f Dickens,
Tmi Griffin,
dn y
Montagu
a LmPeEP. eer
Ernest
eeeysvtami o Henry
pti . ...
•••
Merton,
Magdalen C.. Camb. 1,956
22 Field, C. Dickinson .• • . Trinity C., Dublin.. 1,943
23 Allen, Thos. Taylor Queen's C., Cork .. 1,942
24 Reid, James Robert.. • . Edinburgh Univers. 1,931
25 King, Joshua Trinity Hall, Camb. 1,929
26 Raban, H. C. B. C Trinity C., Camb... 1,913
27 Harrison, H. Leland
28 Graham, George
29 t Foster, Wm. Shrubsole.. St. John's C., Cam. 1,891
Macpherson, G. M..... U. & King's, Aber. 1,891
31 Walker, Charles G..... Queen's Coll., Ox.. 1,890
32 Brett, Alfred C Victoria C., Jersey. 1,879
33 Armstrong, Joseph E St. John's C., Cam. 1,878
34 Izon, Clarence Bovill
35 Richards, George John Brasenose C., 0x... 1,837
36 Baron, Edward Wm.
37 Grose, James St. John's C., Cam. 1,765
38 Wilson . Marischal C., Aber. 1,757
39 Ward, Win. Erskine .. Trinity C., Camb. , 1,725
40 Burnell, Arthur Coke .. King's C., London 1,711

SIX PRIESTS DROWN ED.—
The Nantes journals
record a melancholy affair :—" A party of seven priests, and
a young man, pupil of an ecclesiastical college, being on a
holiday visit to some friends at Nantes, hired three days
ago a boat to amuse themselves by fishing in the neighbour-
hood of St. Nizaire, and after they had been so engaged
some time, a sudden gust of wind threw the boat on one
side. Without reflection, all the party collected on the other
side, and this caused the boat to upset. The seven eccle-
siastics and their companion, together with two men and a
boy who were with them, were precipitated into the water.
Some of them clung to the boat for some time, but eventu-
ally, of the eleven persons, all were drowned except one of
the priests and the boy, who swam ashore. Four of the
clergymen were professors of the ecclesiastical college at
Angers, the other three of Les Couets at Nantes."
STOCK AND SHARE MARKET.—The fluctuations
in the stock and share market during the past month, which
in July were to the extent of 31 per cent., have on this oc-
casion been only 11 per cent., and the general operations of
the month have resulted in establishing a rise of exactly
one per cent., although there has been no material change
in foreign politics, the advance on the Paris Bourse having
been only fractional, and the Bank in the interval have ex-
perienced a further reduction of about £600,000 in their
stock of bullion. It may therefore be assumed that the
confidence of the country in the probable avoidance of diffi-
culties has increased in proportion to the vigour displayed
with regard to the national defences. In railway securities
many kinds show a further improvement of about 3 per
cent., but in some cases the quotations have been stationary
or flat. Throughout the month the rate of discount has
generally been about a quarter per cent. below the Bank
minimum of 2.1 per cent.
MURDER BY A PHYSICIAN.—A shocking tragedy,
by which Louisa Cooke, a servant girl, only 15 years of age,
lost her life, occurred yesterday at Lydney, a small town
between Gloucester and Chepstow. It appears from
the evidence given on the coroner's inquest that at 6 o'clock
on Tuesday morning Dr. Pownall, who has been staying
for the last three weeks at the house of Mr. Leete, a surgeon
at Lydney, knocked at the bedroom door of the servants,
and called them up. The poor girl, Louisa Cooke, in answer
to his summons, dressed herself quickly and went out. In
a minute or two a faint cry of " murder" was heard, and
immediately afterwards she rushed into Mr. Leete's bed-
room with her throat cut, exclaiming " Master, he has mur-
dered me • I must die," having repeated which two or three
times she fell down dead. Dr. Pownall, who did not at-
tempt to deny the charge, said, when brought before the
coroner, " I can tell you ; I unfortunately did it. I can
hardly assign any motive. I felt I was bound to do some
thing, and I could not resist it." Evidence was given to
show that Dr. Pownall had been an inmate for some time
of Northwood's asylum, near Bristol, but had been recently
discharged as cured, with a certificate to that effect from
Dr. Davey, the medical superintendent ; and until this oc-
currence had afforded by his conduct no grounds to doubt
that his reason had been restored. The jury returned a
verdict of " wilful murder" against Dr. Povenall,.and he
was yesterday removed to Gloucester county prison to await
his trial at the next assizes.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.-(THIS DAY.)

MARLBOROUGH-STREET.

PERSONATING A CHECK-TAKER.-AN ARTFUL TRICK.

—William M'lntosh, a lad in the employ of a music
printer, in Soho, was charged with obtaining three checks,
at the Soho Theatre, Dean-street, by false pretences, in the
following artful manner :

Mrs. Charlotte Eliza Brooks, of 81, Pratt-street, Somers-
town, said that between eight and nine, on the previous
night, she went to the Soho Theatre, with her two children,
and having paid at the door, and received three checks, she
was proceeding upstairs, and on reaching the first landing
the accused, who was standing there, said in rather an -
thorative manner, and assuming the style of a regular
check-taker, " Checks, checks," and, believing he was
the proper person, she at once handed them to him,
and on reaching the next landing her progress was stopped
by another demand for her checks, and shs then found she
had been defrauded. Having spoken to the constable on
duty, and given him a description of the accused, he was
shortly after (on presenting the check for admission) taken
into custody—two other lads having previously gone in
with the other checks.

Police-constable 61 C proved being on duty at the
theatre and taking accused into custody from the informa-
tion of the witness, and on charging him with the fraud he
said he bought them in the street of a boy, but although he
gave him a chance of pointing him out by taking him into
the street he could not do so.

Mr. Bingham said he would remand him till Saturday,
'king his master's bail for his appearance.

THAMES.

A SUGAR ROBBERY.—John Wyman, a waggoner in the
employ of a town carman named Geddes, was charged with
stealing 1301bs. weight of sugar from a hogshead entrusted
to his care.

It appeared from the evidence that the prisoner was en-
trusted with two hogsheads of sugar to be conveyed to the
business house of Mr. Edward Marcus Bassano, grocer, of
40, Three Colt-street, Limehouse. One was delivered to
him at the sugar refinery of Messrs. Wohlgemath, of Back
Church-lane, Whitechapel, and the other at the sugar re-
finery of Baldwin and Grant, St. George-in-the-East.
Both hogsheads were in a perfect state when delivered.
On the way from the last-named place to Mr. Bassano's
shop the prisoner was joined by another man, who got into
the waggon containing the two hogsheads of sugar, and
proceeded to tamper with one of them. The attention of
Bartholomew, a police-constable, No. 100 K, was
called to the prisoner and his confederate in Narrow-
street, Limehouse. They were doing some thing to one of
the hogsheads, and as the police constable approached the
waggon, one of the men jumped from it into the road and
ran away. The prisoner also jumped from the van and
was immediately taken into custody and secured. Bartholo-
mew then got into the waggon and searched it, and found
a bag containing 130 lbs. of sugar, which had been abstracted
from one of the hogsheads of sugar delivered to the prisoner
by the servants of Messrs. Wohlgemath and Co. The tin
over the sample-hole of the hogshead had been forcibly
removed, and the sugar scooped out of the hogshead with
part of an iron hoop, which had been bent for the
purpose. The instrument, covered with sugar, was
found in the waggon. A large piece of granite,
which had been used to remove the tin
over the sample-hole, was also found •in the
waggon. It was proved that the sample-hole of the hogs-
head of sugar was covered with a piece of block tin and
nailed down before it left Messrs. Wohlgematlis premises,
and the deficiency to the extent of 1301b5., the exact quan-
tity found in the bag, was also clearly made out. Prepa-
rations had been made for plundering the other hogshead
of sugar in a similar manner, and the robbery would have
been completed but for the vigilance of the officer.
It was stated that many similar robberies had been com-
mitted in the public streets by waggoners, and thieves con-
nected with them, and that the wholesale and retail grocers
and sugar refiners had been great sufferers.
The depositions were formally taken by Mr. Pyer, the
chief clerk, and the prisoner was committed for trial.

THIS DAYS MARKE7'S.

CORN EXCHANGE.

IMPERIAL WEEKLY AVERAGES. Wheat, 44s 5d ;
barley, 32s lid ' • oats, 25s 5d ; rye, 32s 8d ; beans, 44s
6d; and peas, 37s 9d.
THE SIX WEEKS' AVERAGES,— Wheat, 44s Od ;
barley, 30s 7d ; oats, 25s 5d ; rye, 338 10d ; beans, 453 6d ;
peas, 37s 9d.
ENGLISH GRAIN SOLD LAST WM.—Wheat, 84,616;
barley, 1,453 ;. oats, 3,932 ; rye, 288 ; beans, 1,187 ; peas,
649 quarters.