The Sun.
London, England, 1850-04-30 00:00:00

PENINSULA

GREAT INDIAN

RAILWAY.

The half-yearly general meeting of the proprietors of
the above railway was held yesterday at the London
Tavern; Lord Wharncliffe, chairman of the board of
directors, in the chair.
The advertisement convening the meeting having
been read, the following report was submttted to the
meeting:—
The directors have much pleasure in meeting the
proprietors on this occasion, the first opportunity pre-
sented under the Act of Incorporation. Since the
shareholders were lest assembled together the Act of
Parliament has been passed for the incorporation of the
company, and the formal contract with the Hon. East
India Company has been executed under the seals of the
companies respectively.
" J. C. Melvill, Esq., the Secretary of the Hon. East
India Company, has been appointed by the Hou. Court
the ex officio director at this board, an arrangement which
tends very much to facilitate the communications with ,
the Hon. Court and the general business of the company.
" The amount of calls paid into the treasury of the
Hon. East India Company in London, during the half-
year ending Dec. 31, 1849 (including the sum of
25,0001., the amount of preliminary expenses admitted
as capital), was 95,0001. On the Ist of March a fur-
ther sum of 25,000 L was paid into the treasury. In In-
dia, the sum of rupees 114,555 has been paid into the
treasury of the Government of Bombay; and a further
call in India (making, with the deposit, a sum equivalent
to 20s. per share) is declared payable in May.
"In making the appointment of the permanent staff
of officers and servants, the directors have been guided
by a principle of securing the utmost practical efficiency
at a fair rce of remuneration, not forgetting what is
due to the qualifications which they considered to be in-
dispensable on the one hand, or to motives of true
economy on the other; and not forgetting the dif-
ference of circumstances between England and
India. In negotiating the terms of an ar-
rangement with Mr. Chapman, who was intended to be
the manager of the company in India, the directors found
themselves compelled to decline his services, Mr. Chap-
man having required such terms, in money and powers,
as were deemed if compatible with the interests of the
shareholders. At the instance of the Hon. East India
Company, the office of manager has been dispensed with,
and the salary appertaining to that office has been wholly
saved. The duties of management will devolve on the
local committee, composed of directors acting under the
authority of the London board.
" Upon the recommendation of Mr. Robert Stephen-
son, the board appointed, as chief resident engineer, Mr.
James J. Berkley, together with Mr. Kerr and Mr. Gra-
ham, two other well-qualified engineers, and a staff of
assistants. The staff arrived out at Bombay
early in February, and commenced active opere-
tions without delay. The directors have much
gratification in stating that the Government cf Bombay
has most readily met and promoted the views of the
directors; and the zeal and interest which are mani-
fested in the undertaking by the engineering and other
officers of Government—heartily co-operating with the
servants of this company,—give the directors a well-
grounded hope that the work will be rapidly ad-
vanced. At the date of the last dispatches,
the surveys in the island of Bombay were
completed, and between Bombay and Tannah the surveys
and working sections were being proceeded with, and
preliminary steps were already taken for staking out
a portion of the line, measures which hal received the
approval of the Government. Some material improve-
ments have been effected in the direction and proposel
formation of the line of railway; by which, without
adding to the length of the line, considerable expense
will be saved in construction." . . .

The balance-sheet representei the receipts to amount
to 95,0001., and the expenditure to 30,2571., leaving
64,743/. in hand.
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the re-
port, said it was highly gratifying to him to
meet the proprietors now for the first time as
an incorporated company, whom he assured that the
affairs of the concern were new r more prosperous than
they were at the present time. The work might be said
to have bee* commenced in India, where the company
were working with the cordial assistance and co-opera-
tion of the East India Company. The stiff of engineers
whom they had sent out, were proceeding with their
la' ours in a very creditable, because successful, manner;
and he, for one, had no doubt that this railway would
ultimately prove to be a most profitable under-
taking. Having seen the company to this advanced
stage of its progress, he felt somewhat anxious to resign
his position of chairman into the hands cf those who
placed him in it, but at their urgent request he intended
to retain his seat. It would be seen by the report that
the services of Mr. Chapman had been declined. Now,
however that course was to be regretted, he could as-
sure the meeting that it was not determined upon until
Mr. Chapman had made demands upon the directors
which were quite incompatible with their independence
as a board of management. In fact Mr. Chapman wished
to be placed in the same situation with regard to
this concern that Mr. Macdonald Stephenson stood
in with reference to the East India Railway
Company, and as the powers which such a posi-
tion would have given him must have had the effect of
superseetng the functions of the local board of direction,
the home management thought it to be their duty to de-
cline his service if they were only to be obt ‘inel upon
those terms.—(Hear, hear.) Besides, the remuneration
demanded by Mr. Chapman was extravagant in the ex-
treme, and upon economical principles they were justi-
fied in declining his services. The directors found that
the company's finances would not Lear the expense of
Mr. Chapman's services, valuing them at the rate he did
himself, and they had therefore no alternative but to
reject his offer.—(Cheers.)
After some discussion, the report was adopted,
and then the directors named in the Act of
Incorporation were confirmed in their office, and
five gentlemen rellident in India elected as a local
board of management, after which two shareholders
were appointed auditors.
Thanks were then voted to the Noble Chairman, and
the meeting terminated.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.
QUEEN'S BENCH, April 29.

EX PARTE NASH IN RE THE WATERFORD, WEXFORD,
WICKLOW, AND DUBLIN RAILWAY COMPANY.
Mr. KEANE moved for a rule calling upon theWater-
ford, Wexford, Wicklow, and Dublin Railway Com-
pany, to show cause why a mandamus should not
issue commanding them to take off from the register
of shareholders the seal affixed thereto at the 7th
ordinary meeting of the company ; or, in the alterna-
tive, for a rule to show cause why a criminal informa-
tion should not be filed against the Eirl Courtown
for certain misdemeanours at that meeting.
Lord CAMPBELL inquired of the Learned Counsel
whether there was any precedent for such an alterna-
tive motion.
Mr. KEANE said he was unable to cite any, and
that he would confine his motion to the first manda-
mus. The object of the application was to ascertain
whether the shareholders had any voice in authenti-
cating the register of shareholders.
Lord CAMPBELL.—Is there any clause in the Act
(the Companies' Clauses Consolidation Act) which
says that the seal shall be removed?
Mr. KEANE said there was not.
Mr. Justice ERLE—The sealed register is only
prima facie evidence of a person's being a shareholder.
Mr. KEANE said that though a party might defend
himself from liability in an action, there were other
rights and privileges which might be prejudiced.
Mr. Justice ERLE—Is your grievance that you have
been improperly placed en the list, or that others have
been put on ?
Mr. KEANE said the complaint was that persons had
been improperly placed on the sealed register.
Lord CAMPBELL said he had no doubt upon this
question, and the rule must be refused. The Court
would order an act to be done where the law imposed
a duty which the party refused to perform, but there
was no precedent for the Court's ordering a thing
done to be undone. The Court would order a seal to
be affixed, but no mandamus had ever
issued to tear a
seal from off the parchment. That would be a stretch
of the authority of the Court, and he (Lord Campbell)
would not give his sanction to the experiment now
made.

The rest of the Court having expressed similar opi-
nions, the rule was refused.

MIDDLESEX SESSIONS, April 29.
(Before Mr. Sergeant ADAMS and a Bench of

Magistrates.)
The Court sat to-day at Clerkenwell to take paro-
chial appeals and appeals against convictions by ins.,
gistrates. There were seventy-one entered for
bearing.
THE ESTREATBD RECOGNISANCES OF LOLA 2.IOIITEe
BAIL.

Henry Daniel Davies and Daniel Davies appealed
against an order made by Peregrine Bingham, Esq.,
one of the magistrates of the Marlborough-street
police-court, for the payment by them of two sums
of 5001., the amount of recognisances entered into by
them for the appearance before the said magistrate of
Maria Dolores Comtesse de Landsfe ld (Lola Montez),
who was accused of bigamy, and failed to surrender.
The order was made in October last.
When the case was called on a document was
handed to the Deputy-Clerk of the Peace, signed by
Messrs. Davies, Son, and Campbell, Warwick-street,
Regent-street, solicitors for the appellants, in which
they consented to the appeal being dismissed, the
appellants paying the costs.
The Learned JUDGE said, that as far as the ques-
tion involved in the appeal went, this was satisfactory,
but he could not receive it, except through counsel.
Mr. CLARKsorr and Mr. BODKIN, who had respec-
tively represented the parties in the matter, said that
they had not been instructed on this particular occa-
sion to take any step whatever.
The Learned JUDGE intimated that under the
circumstances he would allow time for the appellants
to give their consent through counsel.

THE ARGYLL ROOMS.

According to arrangements made on Friday last,
M. Laurent, sen., came to the court this day and en-
tered into the required recognisances of 2001. to ap-
pear when required to meet the indictment preferred
against him and three other persons named at the
last court, for keeping open a room for music and
dancing.
The rest of the day was occupied in hearing ap-
peals on the question of the settlement of paupers,

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