The Sun.
London, England, 1868-02-28 00:00:00

LAW AND POLICE.

THE " ORCHESTRA," <<HANOVER SQUARE," AND "BOND
STREET." —ln the Court of Common Pleas a case has just
been concluded of some importance in the musical world.
It was an action by the firm of Ashdown and Parry, pro-
prietors of the new musical magazine Hanover Square,
against the firm of Cramer and Co., to recover damages
for an alleged libel. The defendants are proprietors of the
Orchestra, and in reviewing Hanover Square and Bond Street
they spoke of the proprietors of the former in such a way as
to create (as the plaintiffs alleged) the impression that
they were insolvent. The defendants contended that there
was no libel. They had always been willing to apologise
in' terms which ought to have been accepted for any
expressions of which the plaintiffs might think that
they had a right to complain. Lord Chief Justice
Bovill, in summing up, said that it seemed to him
that there had really been very little difference between
the parties as to the terms of the apology. The
defendant was willing to print in his paper, "We
retract it, and express our sincere regnt that the matter
ever was inserted," and to state that no imputation was
intended ; but d?,clined to say that it was " unjustifiable
and without foundation." The apology actually inserted,
after detailing the negotiations regarding it, said "We
have only to state that no imputation was intended
on Messrs. Ashdown and Parry, whose firm indeed
stands too high to be affected by anything of
the kind. If anything in the article appears to convey
a contrary impression, we are most anxious to re-
move it, and to express our regret for any annoyance
that a dubious or inadvertent phrase may have been the
cause." His lordship then went through the alleged libel,
and left it to the jury to say whether, in their opinion, the
article was a fair comment or was libellous. After the
jury had been locked up for three-quarters of an hour it
was agreed that the finding of the majority should be
accepted as the verdict. Upon coming into court, they
stated that the whole of them were agreed that the article was
a libel, and the majority of them thought that the damages
should be one farthing. His lordship declined to certify
for costs.

ANOTHER RITUAL CASE.—Another case relative to
Ritualism is before the Court of Arches, Mr. Cordinley,
a churchwarden, removed from the communion table in
Atherton Church, Warwickshire, a super-altar nod other
articles ; and the incumbent, the Rev. F. 11. Ricliings,
has taken proceedings against him for so doing. The case
is one not only of interest as affecting the Ritual contro-
versy, but also the powers of churchwardens.

OBTAINING GOODS UNDER FALSE PRETENCES.—At the
Mansion House John Pennicaud, John Tow, and James
Fennell were charged before Alderman Sir Robert Carden
with obtaining by false pretences goods of the value of
£156 from the Indiarubber, Gutta Percha, and Telegraph
Works Company, of 100, Cannon-street. Mr. Richard
Wardrop, a clerk to the Indiarubber Company, said
that on the 4th November last a letter was received
from James Fennell and Co., of 21A, Hyde-park-place,
ordering goods to the amount of £BB 12s. 2d., and
giving as a reference James Webb. In consequence the
company wrote to that person, and received in reply an
answer speaking in high terms of Fennell and Co.
Believing that there was such a firm, and that the reference
was correct, the company supplied goods to the amount of
£23 14s. 9d. Witness had since ascertained that those goods
were pledged immediately for £7 by the prisoner Pennicand.
He visited Hyde - park-place, and was told that Fennell
find Co. were fitting up awl decorating houses in Belgravia ,
and that in consequence they had laid out their money,
and that they did not like to press for payment for
fear their customers would be offended. Witness asked
where the goods supplied by the company were, and The
prisoner replied that they bad been used in the ordinary
course of business, and were laid down in different billiar,l-
- for flooring. On the 9th December further goods
were supplied. He took Tow in custody by virtue of hi:
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was completely empty. After some corroborativeP evidence,
the prisoners were committed for trial.

Mr. Spencer Perceval, who was Principal Secre-
tary to Lord Chelmsford, has been appointed Principal
Secretary to the new Lord Chancellor, and the lion.
Frederick Thesiger retains his office of Gentleman of the
CI amber,

lAILTVAY INTELLIGENCE.

-- ®- -

SOUTH-EASTERN.

The half-yearly general meeting of this company
was held yesterday at the City Terminus Hotel,
Cannon-street—Mr. E. W.Watkin, M.P., the chair-
man, presided.
Mr. Chubb, the secretary, having read the no-
tice convening the meeting, the report, an abstract
of which appeared in The Sun, was taken as read.
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the adoption of the
report, said that since the railway was opened for
traffic they had carried 400,000,000 passengers and
10,000,000 tons of merchandise. The advantage to
the district through which the line passed amounted
to a much greater sum than the whole of the com-
pany's capital. The traffic was commenced on the
24 miles of the line from Lewisham to Tunbridge
on the 3d inst. for goods traffic, but it would not be
ready for passengers until the early part of next
month. It was a matter of considerable regret to
him that the opening of that line had been so often
postponed. He had been very much disappointed
in that respect, because the effect had been to add
to the cost of the railway, arising from difficulties
in completing the works. Those additions t) the
cost had made it exceed th 3 dire tors' Estimate of
1866. They, of course, got nothing in the shape of
dividend to cover interest on the capital expended
on the works. He proposed to sell the extra mate-
rials and other property left after the construction
of this line, as, owing to the failure of the
contractor, the works had been finished by their
own engineer. He had gone over the line, and
he could say that it had been constructed
with great solidity and economy ; but he was
sorry to say they had in the district through
which it passed been met in too many cases by
obstructio❑ and extortion. The shareholders had
passed a resolution on a former occasion to the
effect that no capital should be expended on new
works until the dividend on the ordinary stock was
increased to 5 per cent. per annum. (Cheers.) To
that order he would pay implicit obedience. Let the
time be long or short, he never would allow any
amount to be expended unless it would produce
them 5 per cent. The Acts of Parliament for pro-
jected lines by the company involved an estimated
outlay of £782,000. For some of these they would
require an extension of time. The proposed Green-
wich and Woolwich line involved a capital of
£340,000 ; the extension to Cranbrook a capital of
£207,000 ; the Hythe and Sandgate a capital of
£71,000 ; the Tenterden, 01,000 ; and another
line £73,000. He proposed that the Greenwich and
Woolwich line should be abandoned, as it was to
form an extension of the Chatham and Dover,
Greenwich line, over which the latter were to have
running powers, and in return the Chatham Com-
pany was to give the South-Eastern Company run-
ning powers over the extension line to the Crystal
Palace ; but, as the Chatham Company were unable
to carry out that arrangement, he proposed they
should abandon the making of the Greenwich and
Woolwich, which would reduce their liability to
£442,000. The Hythe and Sandgate was one of
those projects that might be abandoned, reducing
the liability to £367,000. There was the Cran-
brook line, with regard to which some pledges had
been given to the landowners in the district, but
the company could not raise money on preference
shares for that purpose. If the landowners and
others in the district would provide the capital, the
South-Eastern might guarantee 3 per cent. on the
required capital, and work the line on reasonable
terms. The revenue account for the past half-year
was satisfactory, and yielded a bona fide dividend of
4 per cent. The net earnings were equivalent to
£4 12s. 6d. per cent. on the capital expended on
lines in operation ; but, as it was thought advisable
to charge the interest on unproductive works
to revenue, it reduced the dividend to
4 per cent. He was bound to say at the
same time that the interest of capital expended
on new works was an element of their cost during
construction, and he therefore did not agree in the
opinion that it was a legitimate charge on revenue.
Were it not for engineering difficulties and other

delays they would have opened the direct Tunbridge
line for traffic two years ago. They had no capital
now to pay interest oat of, and therefore they put
the last half-year's interest to revenue. The direc-
tors published a monthly statement of their traffic
receipts and expenses, so that any shareholder might
judge for himself as to what amount of net receipts
would be available for dividend during each half-
year. It would therefore be the fault of the share-
holders if they did not know quite as well as the
directors what dividend was likely to be declared.
(Hear, hear.) They had not expended any capital
during the half-year on new works ; but only for
the completion of old contracts, and, moreover, they
had DO bill in Parliament to authorise new works.
(Hear, hear.) They had had an increase in the
receipts of the past half-year of £BO,OOO over those
of the corresponding period in 1866, and a reduc-
tion in the working expenses of £7,000, and he
believed that was a thoroughly honest account.
With regard to the fares to various places, they
had made some revision in them. Some were re-
duced, but a much greater number were increased
in a reasonable and fair way, to which the real
public did not object. The reduction of expenses
had been caused by a fall in the price of materials
and other matters, for which the directors asked for
no credit. Considerable economies had been effected
by Mr. Eborall, their general manager, who had
managed to place a staff on the new line out of the
existing staff. They had run 14,000 train miles
less in the past half-year, because they were deter-
mined not to run trains that did not pay. The per-
manent way and rolling stock were maintained in
first-rate order, and he mentioned that during the
past ten years the company had expended £468,000
in renewal of engines and tenders, and £502,000 in
renewal of permanent way, making in the course
of ten years an outlay of £1,000,000. The aver-
age annual outlay on the permanent way for re-
pairs and renewals had been £345 per mile, but
in the past year they had expended £362 per
mile, being £lB per mile more than the average of
ten years. Their working expenses were less per
train line than the Lancashire and Yorkshire, the
London and North Western, and other great lines.
The company had now more than an ample supply
of rolling stock ; they had 243 engines, of which 45
engines were held in reserve. They estimated the
increased traffic from the French Exhibition at only
£34,700, and the remainder arose from the general
development of traffic over their lines. The great
advantages of their Charing-cross and Cannon-street
stations were gradually telling upon the general
traffic. The season tickets on the line in 1859
amounted to 27,400, but in 1867 they amounted to
58,690, showing a very considerable increase. He
then stated that 12 engines and 170 carriages had
been fitted up with signal apparatus, and had acted
perfectly. Their steamboats had run 26,000 miles
in the course of the past half year, some at the rate
of 14 statute miles per hour, and the new boats at
17i miles per hour with great success. When the
working of the Chatham and Dover boats and the
South Eastern boats was under one management
considerable economy would be the result, and also
in working the trains of the three companies. Ile
then adverted to the offers they had made to the
London and South Western Railway Company to
use their Charing-cross line and Cannon-street sta-
tion. They had offered to refer the matter to the
Board of Trade, and subsequently to Mr. Moon,
chairman of the North Western Railway, but those
offers were rejected by the South Western Com-
pany. It must be clear that there was some differ-
ence in carrying passengers over such a line as the
London and South Western that had cost £400,000
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Company.the proposed
of London
thatand Western
to make some modifications in the terms of agree-
ment between the South Eastern and London,
Brighton, and South Coast Railway Companies for
the joint working of those lines, so as to enable each

. _
company to ascertain what the right proportions of
traffic should be, with a view to prevent any mis-
take in arriving at a just conclusion. The whole

of the facts would be submitted to Sir W. Erie for
his decision. On the Ist of January, 1869, the
final period would be fixed for a settlement of the