The Sun.
London, England, 1845-11-08 00:00:00

to be paid in September, in that point also a due regard was had
not only to the interests of the Company, but to strict equity.
The advantages which they would derive from this amalga-
mation were almost self-evident, bocvise the real capital of
the Birmingham and Manchester Company had not been fully
estimated, as the increase in their profits of late had been
very considerable. If any Honourable Proprietor should
desire him to enter into the details he was perfectly
ready to do so, as they were in the room at
the present moment, in the statement to which allusion had
already been made. These would convince any one who
should hear them, or take the trouble of perusing them, that
if any excess of advantage were on either side it was on the
London and Birmingham Company in this agreement merely
He confessed that there were other considerations also that in-
dtved them (the Directs rs ofthe London and Birmingham Com-
pany) to.enter upon that agreement, amongst the most promi-
nent of which was a desire to prevent the Birmingham and
Manchester line falling into rival hands. He would conclude
by proposing the resolution which he had already submitted
to them.

Mr. ENTWISLE, M.P., said that it was already known among
the shareholders that he was not altogether satisfied with
the arrangement that bad been made; but he had now to
state that he had been canvassing for proxies to give effect to
his views. He considered that the accounts to which the Hon.
Chairman had referredshould be laid before the meeting before
they were called on to agree to the terms which this resolution
embodied. There was one difficulty which strongly pre
vented his entering into the views of the Directors. What
he alluded to was the compact that had been entered into
as to the leasing of the line within twelve months.
He conceived that the Directors of the Birmingham and
Manchester line did not act with the great wisdom they con-
ceived they had done in entering into this agreement, or that,
indeed, either party had made so advantageous a bargain as
it appeared was the general impression they had done. For
instance, they knew that new lines would detract
from them as much as they would get by their amal-
gamation. The consequence was, in fact, that they would
have to pay eight or nine per cent. in conjunction with the
Grand Junction. He did not conceive that the Birming-
ham and Manchester should be considered in exactly the
same light as the other two companies, and receive as large
a proportion of the benefits pecuniary as well as otherwise
With these views he should not hesitate to express his dis-
satisfaction at the decision of the Directors. Perhaps the
views they had taken were wise, and in the main points
unobjectionable, but while they were ignorant of the figures
upon which their calculations were based, be could not con-
ceive that it should occasion much surprise that individual
shareholders should not evince unqualified approval of the
arrangement. The bargain was, in fact, made chiefly to
frustrate the views of rival companies, but, strange to say,
this was not the ground upon which they were
called to express their approval of it. The gain
that it was asserted would be realised was only
what the depression in their funds would balance, so that in
fact here there were no such evident profits obtained as the
report would lead them to imagine. Under these circum-
stances, he begged to say that he considered it would be
better if time were afforded them to investigate these figures,
and to arrive at a just conclusion.
The CHAIRMAN said he certainly was aware of the opinions
entertained by the hon. member whose presence amongst them
was always so agreeable, though he differed with them on
the present occasion. He was not, 'however, aware that he
had gone to the lengths which he himself had stated, namely,
in canvassing for proxies. However, he would meet the
Hon. Gentleman, and he trusted that before the meeting
was over that the Hon. Gentleman would be convinced that

the position he had taken in reference to this subject
was nut justified, and that he would alter his
views. He should recollect what were the exact circum-
stances. The Directors of the Manchester and Birmingham
Company had no doubt been hurried in forming the decision
they had arrived at, by the knowledge of the opposing lines
that were coming into existence. In fact, he bad no hesita-
tion in stating that all the advantages were on the side of
the London and Birmingham Company. The agreement
with the Birmingham and Manchester line, respecting the
6* per cent. which they were to receive, was based upon a
calculation of the rate of traffic in July, 1835. Now, they
had but thirty miles of their line in operation, and they
calculated the cost at 34/. per mile. There could be nothing
fairer than that calculation, and if gentlemen would consider
for a moment, they would see that there was an increase
in the profits of 10 per cent. on every third mile. He
did not deny that they had been actuated strongly
by a desire to prevent the line in question falling into the
hands of those who were hostile to them, and the reasons that
influenced them in that particular were the strongest that
could possibly be conceived. He trusted, therefore, that
Honourable Gentlemen would not object to the line of con-
duct which the Directors had deemed it their duty, under the
circumstances, to pursue.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. PEasE--That the Directors had done right in the
course they had adopted.
The CHAIRMAN then put the resolution to the meeting
and declared it to be carried with only one dissentient.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed a resolution, agreeably to th•
terms of the report, with respect to the Grand Junction line.
In doing so, he thought it right to say that the point on
which the Proprietors had a right to ask some ex-
planation was the reason why, on the amalgamation,
the Directors bad accceded to the increase of stock of the
Grand Junction. The reason was, that the property of the
Grand Junction line was of the value of a 21. dividend over
the London arid Birmingham line; or, in other words, the
Grand Junction was in a situation to show larger property,
upon which they might pay 12 instead of 1.0 per cent.
Mr. WILLIAMS wished to know whether the proposed
amalgamation with the Grand Junction Company included
the previous amalgamation that had taken place?
The CHAIRMAN said that it included all.

Mr. WILLIAMS was also desirous of knowing whether a
meeting of the Proprietors of the Grand Junction Company
was now taking place at Liverpool, and also one of the Bir-
mingham and Manchester Company.
The CHAIRMAN said that the meeting of the Birmingham
and Manchester Company had already taken place, and he
was in hopes a meeting was now taking place of the Grand
Junction at Liverpool, at which similar resolutions, to those
proposed at the present meeting, would be agreed to.
The resolution was then put to the meeting, and declared
to be carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed another resolution, by
which the Proprietors gave authority to the Directors to
apply to Parliament for powers to carry the pro-
posed amalgamations into effect. In proposing this re-
solution, the worthy Chairman stated, that if it
should turn out there was any technical mistake with re-
spect to notice, each Company was pledged to the other to
apply in a future session for the powers required.
The resolution was carried unanimously.
Mr. ELIAS MOSELEY, of Liverpool, then moved a vote
of thanks to the Chairman and Directors, which was seconded
by Mr. Williams. and carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN, in returning thanks, assured the Proprie-
tors that neither himself nor the Directors would relax in
their endeavours for the interest of the Proprietors or the
convenience of the public. They were now preparing to
enlarge the station in Euston-square, and were endeavour-
ing to obtain an entrance into the heart of the City,
in which he had no doubt they would be suc-
cessful ; added to this, he had been informed by
an influential individual, that it was determined to have a
railway from the City to the West India Docks, and should
such be the case, he need not say how much that Company
would be benefited thereby. In conclusion, he begged to
thank the Proprietors for their confidence in the Directors
and himself, and ventured to hope that what they were now
doing and proposed to do, would be adequate to the wants of
the public.
The meeting then broke up.

GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY
COMPANY—SPECIAL MEETING.
A special General Meeting of the Proprietors of the Great
Western Railway was held yesterday, at the station, Padding-
ton, for the purpose of taking into consideration tke terms of
an agreement entered into with the Directors of the Bristol
and Exeter Company for the leasing of tke latter line, and
also for the purpose of determining upon a plan for making a
direct railway from London to Exeter. Charles Russell, Esq.,
M.P. presided.
The SECRETARY having read the advertisement convening
the meeting,
The Cfisinsinn rose and said, that the purposes for which
the Directors had thought fit to convene the meeting had
been fully stated in the advertisement which had been just
read. The, terms of the agreement with the Bristol and
Exeter Company had already been published by the Di-
rectors of that railway, and they were in consequence known
to all present. They had, however, been included in the re-
port of the Directors of the Great Western, which would
afterwards be read by their Secretary, and those present must
necessarily be fully acquainted with them. The circumstances
which led to that agreement could be very briefly related.
In the rage for extended railway communication several
projects were started for the purpose of making a more direct
and central line to Exeter and the West of England. The
course was open to them (the Great Western) to resist those
lines in Parliament. They might contend that a direct
communication was afforded by the Bristol and Exeter line
and the other new lines along the coast, and they might
show that no direct traffic could exist to support
a third line. They would have been 'assisted
in this opposition by the report which bad
last year emanated from the Board of Trade.
But it appeared to them that this course would have been a
very hazardous one, and that it would look as if they ne-
glected the requirements of the public or the wants of the
district. The project of a more central and direct
communication had taken firm hold of the public
mind, and the claims of Falmouth, Plymouth, and the other
ports of the west, recommended that they should endeavour to
supply the want in question. The South-Western Company
had undertaken to complete a line for the purpose of afford-
ing accommodation to those parts. The South-Western, it
was true, did not, as a body, collectively directly support
such a line, but the leading proprietors of that company, at
a public meeting, denounced the agreement which was
made by the Great Western Company, and it had
been ostentatiously put forth, that the solicitors and en-
gineers were embarked in that line; and some of the pro-
prietors stated also that, although the Directors might feel
themselves bound by that agreement, still they (the proprie •
tors) were at liberty to come forward in spite of it, to lend
their aid to the adverse line. It seemed to them, therefore, that
the only security and defence which they in that case pos-
sessed was the somewhat hazardous result of a Parliamentary
investigation. They thought, therefore, that the wisest and
the best course was for themselves to take the more direct
line to Exeter and the west—(Hear, hear)—by
an amalgamation of interests with that Company.
They thought it also fair to consult them, and to offer a par-
ticipation in the scheme. They met and discussed the ques-
tion ; but before the discussion closed, it was intimated by the
Directors of the Bristol and Exeter that they thought
there were some preliminary matters that ought to pre-
cede the question they were then met to discuss.
They asked what were to be the permanent relations
that were to subsist between themselves and the Great
Western Company? What were to be those relations at the
the termination of the lease? Was that lease to cease, or to
be renewed, and, if renewed, in what form, or on what terms ?
They (the Directors of the Great Western) were not very
desirous to agitate this question. They thought
it would be more judicious to po.tpone the
consideration of this question to a further period, when the
result of the present changes would be known, and when
they might be able more correetly to estimate and know from
experience what was the real value of the Bristol and
Exeter line. They were, however, bound with that
Company, and could not shrink from the risk
to which they might be exposed. The meeting
was convened for the purposes of business; the parties came
to it with a really bone fide intention to enter into some ar-
rangement. The Directors of the Bristol and Exeter pro-
posed to them, as the basis of the agreement, a
perpetual rent charge. That was agreed to, and
the discussion turned chiefly on the terms of the
rent charge. Those terms had been for a long time
before the public, and those present were therefore aware
that some portion of the proprietors of the Bristol and Exe-
ter Railway had objected to them; but he could not help
thinking that their opposition had arisen from net suffi-
ciently comprehending the principle on which the
agreement was based, or from not having taken time to exa-
mine their own actual position. The rent which they had
engaged to pay to the Bristol and Exeter Company
had enabled the Directors to give to their share-
holders a dividend of 4 per cent. 157 this