The Sun.
London, England, 1845-08-23 00:00:00

/411 r. FTNLONDON, sApunDAy MORNT)=TtI. ATIGITST 28. iittoi.

R.ELATIVE
RAIL

SING
THE

PRICES OF
.RES

pm.—Preston and Wyre. liBlf SbAres, Bq—blacklArrl,
Damen, and Borton, WA—Caledonian, 1014 rest Grimsby
and Sheffield, Quarter Shares, 33s.—North British, Half
Shares, 9—Leicester and Birmingham, 17s. pm.—London
and Birmingham Extension, 12s. 6d. pin —London and York,
514—Newcastle, Durham, and Lancashire, 261. —N ewark
and Sheffield, 31—Nottingham, Erew ash, 40s. pm.—
Nottingham and Boston, 9s. 6d.—South Midland, 6% pm.
—West Yorkshire, 14X.
EUDDIntSTIELD, Auo 21.
STOCK EXCHANGE.—The sales are—Great Grimsby Dock
Extension, 21,4—Dundee and Perth, 4—Grand Union, 10s. p.
—Glasgow and Dumfries, 28s.—Great Grimsby and Sheffield
Junction, Quarter Shares, 35s.—Huddersfield and Man-
chester. 1-1;7 —Huddersfield and Sheffield Junction, 141.4
with new—Leeds and Thirsk, 1314—Liverpool, Ormskirk,
and Preston, 61/4—Manchester and Birkenhead Continuation,
15s. pm.

iVA '
IN

Attnlbeas, oSfhti44shi°rel‘,lll-I(lefi erfolrdigi,aelotoltellstiter4),T"uthklactiesh,
and the West of England, and, superseding the cir-
cuitous routes by Crewe and Birkenhead, will save
eighteen miles in one instance and twelve in another.
Ana:her line has been started connected with Ili-ken-
head ; Two cannot answer, though one would yield large
profits, and we would recommend an amalgamation as
likely to benefit the projectors and the public.
Indeed, we are inclined to think that the principle
of amalgamation might be advantageously brought to
bear upon some of the other lines. We think that the
Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Wcrcester Junction.
the Sheffield and South Staffordshire, the East and
West Junction, and the Leeds, Huddersfield, and South
Staffordshire lines, should properly be combined—and
thus the great series we have described would consist
of two lines instead of six. One line, that from Lon-
don to Manchester Direct, the other from the West of
England to the manufacturing districts of the North.
Taking a general glance at the statements which
we hare thus made, after close examination of the dif-
ferent lines now proposed, we perceive that if they be
carried out, not enly Manchester and Leeds, but the
North of England arid Scotland, will have the most di-
rect communication that can be made with London—
with Southampton and the south of England—with
Bristol and the great clothing districts of the West—
with South Wales and the agricultural counties which
border it—with North Wales—with Ireland—with Ches-
ter and Birkenhi ad—with Worcester, Gloucester, and
Cheltenham—with Wolverhampton and the Midland
manufacturing districts—and with the yet unopened
Staffordshire Potteries and the rich mines of Derby-
shire.

PRINCIPAL CITIES
SCOTLA

D TOWIS
AND IRK

cS IN ENGLAND,
LAND.

YORK, Atm. 21.
STOCK EXCHANGE.—'Tie sales are—Eastern Union Exten •
sion, 3 !--..N.Ldland, New, 261,4—North British, New, OA—
York and North Midland Extension. 9-11—London and
York, 51. 6y. 3,l.—Manchester, Buxton, &c.,
and Berwick, 2114—South Midland,
Pontefract, and Goole, • 16 '--West Yorkshire,
EXETER,-Ate. 21.
There has been little or Lofting done In railway matters
this day. 6/. 15.. 61—Wakefield,

EDINBURGH, AUG. 19.
STOCK EXCHANGE.-The s ales are-Aberdeen, 31. 65.-
Aberdeen, Band'. and Elgin, 2/. lls 6d.-Arbroath and For-
far, 251.-Ditto, Ilalf Shares, 15/.- Armagh and Portrush, 2/.
-Banffshire, 2/. 2s -Briti,h, and Irish Union, 3/. 95.-Bel-
fast and County Down, 3/. 17s. Cd -Cambridge and Lincolfi,
31. lOs -Caledonian, IW. 10s.-Caledonian Extension, 2/.
if s. 6-1.-Caledonian and Dunbar ton, 3/. 17s. 6d.-Clydesdale
Junction, 9L-Direct Northern, 2/. 55.-Dundee and Ar-
broath, 371. Is. tid -Ditto, New, 18L-Dundee and Perth,
41. Cs. 6d.-Edinburgh and Bathgate, 2/ 4s. 6d.-Edinburgh
and Glasgow, S6L-Ditto, Quarters. 911. 155-Ditto, New,
14/ 155.-Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Dumbarton, 1/. 175. 6d.
-Edinburgh, Leith, and Granion, 24/. 10s.-Ditto, Prefer-
ence, 161. 10s.-Edinburgh and Northern, 1/. 135.-Ditto,
New, 1/. 25.-Edinburgh and Peebles, 9/. 123.-Edinburgh
and Perth, I'. 14s. 6d.-Glasgow and Ayrshire, 891.-Ditto,
New Stock. 221.-Glasgow and Belfast Union, 3/. I Is. 6d.-
Glasgow and Neilston. 21/. 10s.-Glasgow and Garnkirk, 411.
-Glasgow, Dumfries, and Carlisle, IL Is.-Glasgow and
tireenock. 211.-Ditto, New Stock, 10/. 55.-Ditto, Pre-
ference, 2/.-Great North of Scotland, 2/. Iss. 6d.-Inver-
ness and Elgin, 11. 35.-Kilmarnock and Ardrosran, 5/. 15s.
-London and York, 4/. 10s.-Londonderry and Coleraine,
3/. 17s. 6 1.-Londonderry and Enniskillen, 3/. 155.-Monk-
land and Kirkmtilloch,33./.-Morayshire, IL-North British,
311. 10s.-Ditto, Halves, 81. 17s. 6d.-North Wales Mineral,
New, 61 54-Perth and Inverness, 2/. 25.-Scottish Central,
71. 14s. 6d-Scottish Midland, 2/. 75.-Shrewsbury, Os-
westry, and Chester, 4/. ls. 6d.-Slamannan, 181.-South
Midland, 5/. ISs.-Shrewsbury and Hereford, I/. 10s.-Stir-
ling and Dunfermline, 11. 15t-Waterford, Wicklow, and
Dublin, 1/. 165.-Wishaw and Coltness, 39/.

An essential point ccnnected with these lines remains
to be noticed—the respectability of the Direction in
aach case. When we see men of wealth, judgment, in-
fluence, and character, heartily aiding such project•z, and
not sparing personal exertions and money to advance
them, we cannot entertain a doubt of the stable grounds
upon which they are bAsed—the sound principlt-s upon
which they have been formed. On the other hand, the
companies formed to carry those lines into execution,
and confer permanent benefits upon the public, have
been most fortunate in having, as their " right-hand," a
solicitor with that energy and judgment which unite
boldness in design with caution in action. We have had
personal knowledge of that gentleman for many years,
and have often had occasion to admire his grasp of mind,
his untiring devotion to businesi, and his comprehensive
ability in carrying out whatever of he might have
in view.

We shall take an early opportunity of showing what
railway lines, whether in operation or in course of
formation, directly bear upon and must serve as feeders
to the great direct trunks which we have been describ-
ing. The traffic which must flow from these sources is
considerably beyond what may ba imagined, and will
show that those projects have not been lightly entered
upon.

NATIONAL SYSTEM of RAILWAYS.
(From the Railway Exp, ess of yesterday.)
The advantages of the direct lines of railway com-
munication are so obvious as to require neither com-
ment nor recommendation. The whole system of tra-
velling has undergone a great organic change within the
last twenty years. Instead of crerVng on at the snail-
pace of eight miles an hour—the mails did not average
more than ten and a half—we have learned to complain
of thirty miles as tco dilatory. Nor is there any doubt
that even double that speed will be readily and safely
accomplished within the hour, ere we are much older.
The word is " Forward," and Science is busy, even now,
in devising means by which that Idvance may be car-
ried our. We are by no means sure—so great have
already been the triumphs of science—that, in the ful-
ness of time, some mode of travelling will not be dis-
covered by which even 100 miles per hour may be ac-
complished. Meantime, let the public have the full ad-
vantage of all the " aids and appliances to boot" now at
their service.
The acceleration of speed, great as it is, has not yet
done fur the public all that it could and ought to have
done. Our lines of railway have been so formed that
they do not take the shortest routes. In almost every
instance they take circuitous routes, and thus, whatever
speed may be obtained, the prolonged distance is a bar to
the gui4e4 transmission of goods and passengers. If
this objet be sought, the means must be DIRECT INDE-
PENDENT RAILWAYS. Oa the Continent, this principle
is universally recognised, and hence the admirable re-
sult—viz., the shot t.st lines from place b puce. In this
country, hitherto, the formation of railways has been
almost independent of control or cheek from the powers
that be, and the natural issue is, our main lines of rail-
way run zigzag, take a bend here, and an angle there,
and have ben made, in fact, to accommodate particular
districts and towns rather than the community at large.
When we speak of " direct lines," we du not mean
that a prejector is to take the map, draw a lisle from
one terminus to the other, and declare tiat to be the un-
deviating course of the future railway. But we do say
that a direct line so drawn should be ever held in view
by the rail eay projector, as that which should be the
guide-track as far as possible. No occasion, if a mountain
be iu the direct way, to cut through it, or to run a via-
duct over an extensive valley, when hill and hollow can
be avoided, with lessened expense, and very slightly in•
creased distance, by the skilful divergement of the rail-
road to the right or to the left ; but the straightest line
should ever be adhered to when it is in the power of the
engineer to do so. His aim should be to "annihilate
both time and space," by taking the shortest route and
using the most rapid means of transit.
So universally is this principle in course of recogni-
tion, that we venture to predict its adoption to the fullest
by the Legislature. Our opinion, formed upon no light
grounds, is, that in the next session the Parliament will
take a dee.ded line for the public advantage, and give
the pref. rence to such Bills as have for their object
direct and independent railway communication between
important termini. The great trunk lines must be the
shortest that can be made.
One great chain of direct independent railroads has
been laid before the public, and the favour with which
the series has been received affords the best confirma-
tion of the points we have endeavoured to illustrate.
These are:-
1. London and Manche,ter Direct (Remington's).
2. Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Worcestershire
Junction.
3. Sheffield and South Staffordshire.
4. East and West Junction.
5. Leeds, Huddersfield,
and South Staffordshire.
6. Chester and Manchester.
•
(clp,
rj eeoe rncu
tdgslehtneoet nivri
ever
Railway
r
ra)
eflablr: (en'sa(tTou brought
Lltt.ob:be:
before
a iobfonoarene,
os ,rnoldßteheedl\pfioumarbndoleir:ihet
.eKsi tmeelt
Dp
will Vet acepttlactlsonsnpdtsrehi
tering, Market Harborouoh Leicester, Ashby-de-la-
Zouche, Burton, Uttoxeter (with a branch through the
Staffordshire Potteries to Crewe), Leek, and Macclesfield,
to hlanchester, The places which we have marked in
italics have now no direct railway communication. Lon-
don is the starting point, and Manchester the terminus—
the actual capital of the country, and the real capital
of the great manufacturing districts, being thus brought
into direct and rapid communication. The district of
which Manchester is the centre comprises the important
towns of Bury, Bolton Rochdale Ashton, Oldham, Mac-
clesfield, Soickpert, and the population is nearer
1,500,000 than 1,000.000. It cannot be denied that a
district so important requires other than a circuitous
and dilatory railway communication with London, and
the centre of the kingdom. Yorkshire, Lancashire,
Staffordshire, the Northern, Eastern, Western, and Welsh
counties, besides Scotland and Ireland, must inevitably
feed such a line, by an abundant supply of goods and
passengers. The branch through the S affordshire Pot-
teries (a district yet without a railway) must be im-
mensely productive.
The direct East and West Junction, although a com-
paratively sh Tt line, will possess commanding advan-
tages. It is to commence at Kidderminster (at the sta-
tion of the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton
Railway), proceed through Tenbury, and Leominster,
and Hereford, where
it will join the Hereford and
Monmouth, and other lines converging from Here-
ford, and running through the west of England into
South and Central \Vales. It has been decided that
Port Dynllaen shall be the terminus and port of the
communication- line from London to Dublin. The direct
route of that railway will he through Wales, by Ludlow,
and into Tenbury ; whence goods and passengers
brought by it can have the shortest and quickest transit
by th East and West Junction to the midland and eas-
tern counties. On the other hand, a new and direct
communication will be opened, through this line, be-
tween South Wales and the west of England, and the
great manufacturing districts of Lancashire and York-
shire, with ready access to the more norihern parts of
England and the whole of Scotland.
The Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Worcestershire
Junction Railway is intended to continue the line of
railway which we have just described. It will run from
Uttoxeter through Rugeley, with a fork to Dudley on
a which Uttoxeter is the capital.
one side, and to Wolverhampton on the other. At
Dudley it will join the short line to Kidderminster. To
with its immense agricultural, min-
ing,Wolverhampton it will give the incalculable advantage
of direct communication with the agricultural district of
ten ; while the rich mineral dis-
tricts hl
leLyirCetu' ring wealth, will thus be brought
of Derbyshire will, for the fir.q tune, be thoroughly
opened. From Uttoxeter, by Remington's Direct
London and Manchester, there will be communication
with these great termini, south and north. Wolver-
hampton,
e\Cf‘Nnfearadln%lsu'lerharnp
which has hitherto gained so little by the
railway system, cannot fail to benefit immensely by this
line, which will place it in a very commanding position,
by opening new outlets for its important manufactures.
It will thus be placed in advantageous rivalry with
East ss tel
a)Str°l:i
Birmingham.
Another section of this great project is the Leeds,
Huddersfield, Sheffield, and South Staffordshire Direct
Railway, commencing at Uttoxeter—which seems in-
tended, by position, to be the key. stone, one. as it were, to a
most extensive series of railway communication—this
line will proceed through Huddersfield to Leeds. The
line, passing through the most picturesque part of Der-
byshire (and opening that beautiful county to tourists),
will give Leeds a direct rail Way through South Stafford-
shire to Wales, and the West of England ; and what is
no less importance, to Southampton—thus saving a
great circuit which must now inevitably be made, owing
to the want of direct lines. The mineral produce to
which it will give a ready outlet, north and eouth, is of
incalculable value. New markets will also be opened for
agricultural produce, for building materials (with which
the district abounds), and for a supply of wood from
Needwood and other places. We would venture to sug-
gest the great advantage of carrying a branch from Ash-
bourne into the Derby and Gainshorough line near
Belper, which would introduce the traffic of at least
200.030 inhabitants.
The direct line from Chester and Birkenhead to Man-
chester, also belongs to the series. The effect will be to
res'ore Chester to the commercial stetion she once held
and sh.t.t!d: still occupy; to bring that city into direct
communication with the manufacturing districts, arid to
unite Manchester with the docks of Birkenhead. Holy-
head will continue to be a considerable port of transit
and intercourse between England and Ireland ; this
line places it in connexion with the great manufacturing

[ADVERTISEMENT.]
LONDON AND MANCHESTER

DIRECT RAILWAYS.

Sir,—Amid the hosts of railway schemes intruded on
the public attention, I have been much struck with the
prominence the two direct independent, London and
Manchester lines, commonly called Remington's and
Ashursts, have assumed. The daily, the weekly, papers
seem to be crowded with advertisements of thes:,
schemes, sometimes as many as five or six in one paper
expatiating on their respective merits—why is this ? Are
the public at the present time so devoid of railway excite-
ment—so little disposed to gambling, that it is only by
dint of published meetings and accumulated advertise-
ments, repeated, as has been the case in reference to
these projects for months, till the eye and ear are
wearied H ith them, that the great railway speculators
and the public are to be induced to take shares ? Or is
it that these lines are in truth so vast, so little trusted
to by sensible capitalists, so marked by want of real
strength in their committees, or of sterling merit in
their object ; so late in the day, and so littl likely to
be successful in the inevitable contest with existing
interests, that they require lengthened and inordinate
puffing, even in present times, to force them upon the
market. Looking at the matter as a plain person, I
cannot but think the latter is the fact, and I will adduce
some few of the many reasons that have struck my mind
with conclusive force in reference to these projects.
Taite, for example, Remington's line. If the weight of
London and Manchester really supported it, would
months have elapsed before the shares were taken, when
in ordinary schemes the shares are allotted and paid for
in as many weeks. How many of the landowners are
on the committee ? Without something of landed sup-
port, can they hope to get through the standing orders
in any reasonable time ? Will their surveyors even
have permission in all places to surrey ? This is
doubtful, especially when it is considered that in many
of the district schemes the owners of miles and miles of
the land through which the lines would pass are on the
committees. Again, look at the absurd opposition of
Remington's line to existing railways, take, for instance,
the Manchester and Birmingham Railway, already made
from Manchester by Stockport to Macclesfield, though
not opened for part of the distance. Why, Remington's
is laid out as an independent and competing line from
Macclesfield to Manchester, consequently it must pass,
not at the distance of a mile or two from the Manchester
and Birmingham, but absolutely parallel with it at
the distance of a few hundred yards most part of the
way, at times almost running against it, in a manner
unknown in the annals of railways ; another viaduct
would probably be required through Stockport, and
fresh mills and houses to be cleared away. The expense
of the present line from Manchester to Macclesfield has
been stated, and, I believe, not understated, at 40,0001.
or 50,000/. a mile, and it has been questioned whether
the Macclesfield Branch would pay, at any rate it has
not yet been opened. How absurd, then, to suppose
that Parliament will sanction such unheard of competi-
tion as this. Besides, the London and York line has
almost passed through Parliament ; this proceeds in its
course from London to Bedford, and here would be
another competing parallel like the former, equally
out of the question. The independent line, of course,
does not intend amalgumating, or its very fundamental
propositions of independence would fall to the ground.
Again, look at the capital as an evidence of weakness,
this was first stated at 3,000,0001., but this being too
palpable it is now stated at 5,000,0001. It is well
knows, however, that the London and Birmingham cost
near 8,000,0001. Is it conceivable then, even with
modern improvements, that a line of nearly twice the
length will cost much less ? Besides this, as I have
sometime seen noticed, the Manchester and Buxton,
Midland Counties, Leicester and Bedford, and London
and York, would form one complete line, and
the London and Birmingham, Trent Valley, Chur-
net Valley, and Manchester and Birmingham, another
complete line, from Manchester to London ; these
would surely be sufficient for the Manchester
traffic, which, according to the late returns of the
Grand Junction, was only 17,000/. a year on their
line, and do away with any necessity for the vast
undertakings alluded to. And I have good authority
for believing that the London and Birmingham and the
above lines in connexion with it will be absolutely
nearer, as between London and Manchester, than
Remington's project.
One more remark, and I have done—l cannot but
confess my surprise that some of the inhabitants of the
intermediate towns seem to have been induced to sup-
port the independent lines, which seems especially
absurd as regards them, for the very !pecial object
and distinguishing intent of the above schemes, is to
give the great termini of London and Manchester a
direct line independent of the district towns ; there is to
be little or no stopping for cross or luggage-trains, or
waiting for local traffic, nothing materially to interfere
with the unimpeded transit from end to end. And yet
these are the projects, those very intervening places
(which are professed in some measure to be neglected),
think it well to support I
Surely, after what has been said, it will appear to any
person exercising reasonable reflection, that it did not
require that the chances of success should be divided
between Ashurst's and Remington's projects, to detract
anything from their respective merits.
I ate, Sir, your obedient humble servant,
AN OBSERVER.
London, August 21, 1845.

BANK OF 1/NGLAND.
(From last Night's Gazette.)
An Account, pursuant to the Act 7th and Bth of Victoria,
cap. 32, for the Week eliding on Saturday, the 16th day of
August, 1845.