The Sun.
London, England, 1850-01-09 00:00:00

upon without doubt and suspicion, so be looked upon
this with special doubt.—(Hear, bear.) It became
them, therefore, to consider whether they were legally
or morally bound to go on with this purchase. It
was first entered into in 1845, when they were asked,
as they were still asked, to give 2501. for every 1001.
share in that line.. Yet is July, 1845, these 1001.
shares were sold in the market from 137/. to 1471. ;
in July, 1844, they brought 851;; in July, 1843,
they brought 651 ; while in January of the same
year they did not bring 601. He could not help
thinking, therefore, that some deception had been
practised here. It was another suspicious circum-
stance that the shares of this company rose from a
large discount to a considerable premium a short time
before the purchase, that was to say, in June, 1845.
He should like to have a committee to investigate the
circumstances under which this rise had taken place.
(Hear, hear.) The committee of investigation stated,
in one of their repor's, that the question of the pur-
chase had been submitted to eminent counsel, who
gave their opinion that its legality admitted of serious
doubts, and he did think that the directors or the corn
mittee of investigation ought to remove the doubts
they themselves started before the purchase was ra-
tified. He moved, as an amendment, that the con-
sideration of the purchase of this line be postponed
till next half-yearly meeting, and that in the mean-
time the directors be instructed to take the opinion of
eminent counsel as to the legality of the agreement.
Mr. RAMSEY seconded the amendment.
I4r. CHAYTOR said he was not a shareholder of the
Great North of England Company, but he was not
prepared to repudiate the agreement. At the same
time he must agree with Mr. Wylie 4titit the committee
of investigation did not probe this`matter to the bottom,
as they had done other questions. He also complained
of the short notice which had been given of this meet.
ing, which looked as if the shareholders were to be
surprised into the agreement.
Mr. STACIE, of Durham, also held, from the terms of
the notice, that they were at liberty to discuss the
whole question ab initio. He agreed with Mr. Wylie
that the shareholders in the Great North of England
should separate themselves from the rest of the meeting
—(Cheers)—that they might see who were interested
in the question, and who were unbiassed.—(Loud
cheers.) For his part he was prepared to vote with
Mr. Wylie, not that he wished at once to repudiate the
contract, but that he thought it ought to be postponed
till the whole matter was sifted to the bottom. He
highly approved of the conduct of their late committee
of investigation, but he must add that they had not
made this matter so clear to their understandings as
they had made other parts of the great Hudson frauds
—fur frauds they were—a stain and a blot on the
commercial men of England. He was the more
surprised at their smothering this matter, as it was
matter of notoriety that their late directors, on the
very evening when they knew a committee was to
be appointed, ran, rashly at least, if not dishonestly,
and put the seal of the company to this transaction.—
(Cheers.) This showed that there was fraud in the
contract, and he, for one, therefore, would insist that
all further proceedings be stopped till the matter was
investigated to the bottom.
The CHAIRMAN defended the directors in the call-
ing of the meeting. Mr. Wylie ought to have made
the remarks he did now on the 23d of August
last, when the subject was before the shareholders,
and not to have allowed the directors to go on with
the negotiations in the idea that the company bad
assented to the principle of the purchase. He denied
that any doubt or mystery had been left by the
committee of investigation on the subject of the Great
North of England purchase, for every part of the
operation was detailed with a particularity and mi-
nuteness which did not belong to any other part of
the report. The question was again brought before
the shareholders on the 23d October, and again Mr.
Wylie might have come forward, but he did not.
There was no further information now to be obtained.
He could assure the meeting that the directors most
earnestly deprecated any further delay—(Great
cheering)—for so long as it was delayed so long
would the interests and the reputation of this company
suffer. He could assure them that, having been in
London lately and conversed with commercial men,
he knew the injury this company suffered by hanging
up this question. Suppose the question were hung
up till February, by that time the Bill ought to be
making way through Parliament; and though he
would not go into the question, he could assure them
Whitt, 'tts'yralicre'lly fansrparkj.nterests financially that
In answer to a shareholder, the CHAIRMAN said

that gentlemen holding shares in this company, and
also in the Great North of England Company, had
a legal right to vote, but he would put it to them as
a matter of good taste whether they should exerci:e
that right.
The amendment was then put, and negatived by a
large majority.
Mr. IV YLIB here explained that the reason why he
did not bring forward the question at an earlier pe-
riod was, that the committee had stated that the
matter was involved in legal doubts.
The CIIAIRMA.N said he was sure the committee's
recommendation to modify the terms of purchase put
an end to all these doubts.

The original resolution was then put, and carried
amidst general applause.

Some discussion then took place on the question of
the preference shareholders. Mr. Maude having put
a question how this arrangement would affect those
shareholders who had paid the calls in full on the six
per cent. preference shares, to which the Chairman
replied that they must rank with the others, and if
the others were nev, allowed an extension of time for
paying their calls, it must be remembered that those
who had paid their shares in full had been enjoying
ever since a 6 per cent. dividend ; Mr. Chaytor again
raised the question of having a committee appointed
to investigate this subject; hut on the Chairman put-
ting it to the meeting whether they wished to have
the propriety of appointing such a committee dis-
cussed at the next half yearly meeting, a very few
hands were held up in favour of the proposition, and
the great body of the meeting decided against having
such a discussion.

The CnAntmert said he would now come to the
second matter before the meeting. He was aware
that this subject would to some minds present matter
of excitement, and that it would be scarcely possible
to discuss it with the same calmness which distin-
guished the discussion of that question they had now
disposed of. But yet he would invite their calm and
dispassionate attention to the subject, and to consider
it like men of business, while he briefly laid before
them en
relation to The different
whichcetshisincornpay
n b.lr. Hudson was
placed
thi
reports of the committee had referred to the
transactions in which Mr. Hudson had been
engaged in the allotment of the Newcastle and
Berwick shares, as well as to a considerable amount of
money which had been improperly taken from the
coffers of this company, and applied to the purchase
of shares in the Sunderland Dock Company. They
also referred to the purchase of iron rails, and to other
matters, and they recommended, in respect to them
all, that the shareholders should take steps to recover
from Mr. Hudson the sums of money he had thus
improperly obtained. The shareholders, accordingly,
passed a resolution, authorizing the directors to take
legal proceedings against Mr. Hudson for the re-
covery of the money. The directors acted upon that
resolution by filing two bills in equity—the one with
reference to the Newcastle and Berwick Original and
Extension Shares, and the other with reference to the
purchase of the Brandling Junction. Another bill
was prepared, and ready to be put upon the file at
the time to which he was about to call their atten-

tion. These bills, as the shareholders might
conceive, were somewhat ponderous doucuments.
They called for answers to a vast number of inter •
rogatories ; and Mr. Hudson, or any one else in his
situation, was entitled to a considerable Atne to put
in answers. No answers had yet been put in to the
bills ; but since they had been filed a proposition had
been made to the directors by some friends of Mr.
Hudson, and he thought be might also say friends to
this company—(Hear, hear)—their object being to
put an end to litigation, and to place in the coffers of
this company a portion of the money which had irn•
properly been abstracted. He must say, on behalf of
his co-directors, that in the first instance they received
this proposition with considerable jealousy, and that a
long period elapsed before it appeared to them that
the offers were such as they could consistently bring
before the shareholders fur their adoption. Before
bringing forward the terms they were now about to
recommend, they had endeavoured to make themselves
acquainted with all the circumstances, of which they
must necessarily be informed before they could come
to a right judgment. They were precluded by the
terms of the negotiation from bringing these circum-
stances before the shareholders in detail, but he could
assure them that the directors had considered them
maturely and anxiously, and. they had taken the
opinion of counsel—men of eminence—who were en
gaged in the cause, and they cordially concurred with the
directors in the recommendation that this compromise
should be accepted. Ile had with him a document
which contained at great length the terms provision-
ally agreed to by the directors, subject to the appro-
bation of this meeting. lie believed that in point of
law it would have been competent fcr the directors
to have entered into an agreement of this sort Rithout