The Sun.
London, England, 1845-12-09 00:00:00

Alumni)

LONDON, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9 1845.

The number of railway companies that have depo-
sited their plans with the Board of Trade in proper
time is stated to be nearly 800. There has been,
therefore, a falling off of more than a third of the
1,263 projected companies in Mr. SPACKMAN'S table.
The sum which would be required to be deposited with
the Accountant-General for 800 companies (calculating
the deposits for all at 10 per cent., though several may
go to the House of Commons with only 5 per cent.
deposited) is estimated at 26,200,0001. Mr. SPACKMAN'S
estimate of the deposits for his 1,263 companies was
59,136,3001. Thirty millions makes a small difference !
It may be asked why that table of terror was not kept
back—only a fortnight—till after the 30th of No-
vember ?

Of the 800 companies which duly deposited their
plans at the Board of Trade, some, it is well known,
were too late in the country. Some again, though the
surveys have been completed and the plans deposited,
have not got in their money. The defectiveness of
Plans in other cases (considering the immense pressure
on surveyors, it is only surprising that so few of the
plans deposited kre spoken of as imperfect), will further
Help to reduce the number 800 to a more reasonable
num but.
-- - -

-
The period which will intervene before the meeting of
Parliament will probably be prolific of amalgamations.
There has, indeed, been a considerable number of amal-
gamatiens within the last month, while the preparation
of nlans was occupying the attention of Parliament; but,
r ow that the ordeal of the 30th of November is passed,
directors will have more time for arranging amalgama-
tions, and as the meeting of Parliament draws near
questions of amalgamation will become more urgent.
But, to whatever extent amalgamations of competing
schemes may or may not take place before the meeting
of Parliament, only one of any number of competing
schemes can be sanctioned by Parliament ; and when
this is considered, the number 800 will be forced ulti-
mately to submit to an immense reduction. We may
fairly take the residuum at not higher than a third of
the number. When it is considered that in several in-
stances there are not less than five or six competing

schemes, it will be admitted that this is at any rate not
too large a deduction.

Will it then be so impracticable, as alarmists have en-
deavoured to represent, for Parliament in the next ses-
sion to adjudicate on schemes to terminate at most in
2-50 Railway Acts ?
People are too apt to suppose that Parliament did the
most that could be done with its time in the last session.
A great deal of time was wasted last session in waiting
for the reports of the Board of Trade. This cause of
delay will not exist next session.
A great deal of time may be saved by allowing the
Home of Lords to originate Railway Bills, and thus
giving simultaneous occupation to the two Houses. As
it is, the House of Lords has no Bills before it for the
greater part of the session, and the House of Commons
none at the end. We mentioned a few days back that
this alteration of the practice of Parliament had been
recommended by Lord MONTEAGLE. We have also the
authority in its favour of Lord RELESDALE, whose expe-
rience in private Bill legislation in the House of Lords
is second only to Lord SHAFTESBURY'S. Lord REDES-
DALE stated, in his evidence before the Select Com-
mittee on Railway Bills of the House of Commons last
session—" I may say that, having turned my mind a
good deal to this subject, I think the whole difficulty of
legislation with regard to Railway Bills might be got
over if the House of Commons would allow a portion of
the Railway Bills to be originated in the House of Lords.
During the early period of the session the House has
very little to do, and the Members of it would attend
most willingly, and a very large portion of the business
might be advanced." Words could hardly be stronger
than these of Lord REDESDALE.

But it may be said, if more could be made of the time
at the disposal of Parliament, can more be made of the
Members ? Can they possibly be worked harder at
railways than they were last year ? A Parliamentary
return, moved for by Sir ROBERT Nom (No. 620 of
last session), shows the whole number of Members of the
House of Commons who served on railway Committees ;
and the whole number is only 220 out of the 658 Mem-
bers. And while some of these were certainly worked
hard, as the unfortunate members of the Committee on
Group X., who sat 83 days, others were worked very
little. As many as eighteen Committees, comprising 90
members, sat not more than five days each. Four Com-
mittees, comprising 25 members, sat only one day each.
No member served on two Committees. After all, then,
there is a deal of House of Commons' strength in reserve.

We have thought that the publication of these facts
may be useful at this time, and tend to allay some of the
unreasonable fears which a great deal of vague writing
has increased, if not engendered, as to the impossibility
of Parliament dealing with the railway schemes which
will come before it in the next session. We believe that,
in this as in all other cases, it will be found -that " where
there is a will there is a way," and we are sure that
amalgamations, and other causes, will materially reduce
the present number of expected Bills, already materially
reduced since the 30th of November.

The students in the Universities appear to be the
only parties in France who claim the right of meeting
publicly, and expressing their grievances. When some
new law is made for the direction of their studies, or those
of a restless and independent spirit are expelled—when
a dispute between the Church and the University arises,
or the Minister of Public Instruction, and any of the
professors are at variance on points of doctrine or
discipline—the rising generation take up the question
with all the gravity and firmness of men in the full
maturity of life. They are always put down, it is
true, but, nevertheless, they persevere in maintaining
their privileges, and asserting the right of a free
people to petition their rulers for redress of griev-
ances. This forms a singular contrast to the
universal practice which prevails throughout France,
while it is in perfect unison with the system of self-go-
vernment which has long distinguished the inhabitants
of these islands, and which has been the real source of
their liberty and independence. Though France has a
House of Lords and a House of Commons, a Sovereign,
like ours, that can do no wrong, and all the other emblems
and exterior safeguards of a free constitution, the people
have little or no power, for they are debarred from express-
ing their sentiments at public meetings respecting either
the proceedings of Parliament, or the measures of the
Government, or any great national event whatever. The
voice of the people, in fact, is never ascertained by any
expression of public opinion. The newspapers are not
backward in saying what public opinion is, nor at
all choice in their expressions when the Minister is the
object of their attacks ; but it is impossible to learn f.eim
these the feelings of the people, for their representations
I vary according to their politics, and the Government
' itself has no means of knowing what measures are ap-
• proved or reprobated but through the functionaries called
Prefects, or ministerial agents, performing the duties of
spies. Such a system is at utter variance with a free
constitution, and most injurious also to the stability of
any government or dynasty. In France, the KING and
Cabinet, with some slight check from the Chambers,
govern the country. In England the reverse is the
case. Our system of representation is still defec-
tive, notwithstanding all the important changes
made by the Reform Act ; but, even with all its
defects, the voice of the people has a considerable share
of influence in its decisions, even as expressed through
their representatives. That influence, however, is little
or nothing compared with that created by the " pressure
from without," by public) meetings, and petitions, and
remonstrances, and continued agitation for the accom-
plishment of certain measures. It was the pressure
from without that carried the Emancipation Act and the
Reform Act, and but for the demonstration made pre-
vious to these two great events, GEORGE IV. and his
Cabinet would never have yielded to the just claims of
the Catholics, nor would Earl GREY have been made
Prime Minister to his successor, and received the
commands of his master to frame a measure
for extensive Parliamementary Reform. Need we
mention another instance, which is now palpable to
every observer ? We take for granted that the corn-
laws are doomed to destruction. About that desirable
consummation there is no doubt whatever among all the
well-informed and the most influential portion of the
people—the middloclasses. The Whigs, the only party
in the State that claim a rivalry with the Conserva-
tives in the government of the country, have gone over
in a body to the repealers; the Prime Minister himself
and all his free-trading colleagues are inclined to the
same views, and nothing is wanting but the sanction of
Parliament and the Crown to the final settlement
of the question. What has effected this won-
derful change? The privilege, which Britons
claim as their inalienable birth-right, of petition-
ing the ruling powers, and demanding the adop-
tion of measures essential to their security and welfare.
Sir ROBERT PEEL, or Lord JOHN RUSSELL, or any other
statesman might have talked in the Cabinet or the
Senate, during the whole of their political lives, about the
blessings of free:trade and the injustice of the corn-
laws, but they would have talked in vain without
the aid from without. To that WELLINGTON and
STANLEY and RIPON must yield without a murmur, for
we have no instance on record of the public being de•
feated in their purposes, when clearly ascertained, even
by the most powerful Ministry and the most obsequious
Parliament. This great priviltge every Englishman
ought, therefore, to prize as the first of his political
rights, and as the only real safeguard for a represen-
tative Government. When he looks to the state of
France, too, he will be still more inclined to prize
the system under which he lives. In that coun-
try monopoly is ten times more injurous than
here, yet no meetings can be called to obtain re-
dress. Everything must be left to the KING and his
Cabinet, and no remedy can be obtained, nor the
public voice be known till a revolution takes place.
Then there are meetings and speeches in abundance,
and the whole frame of society is loosened, simply be-
cause the complaints of the people had been pent up by
the wretched system of government, and, in a fit of
frensy, they were compelled to obtain relief by main
force.

The intelligence from Madrid is to the Ist inst., but,
as usual, is of little interest. The country is quiet; the
income-tax is collected with little opposition; NARVAEZ
has subdued the Progresistas and all his opponents in
the Cortes ; and in reality an absolute monarchy is es-
tablished in Spain. The only disturbance mentioned in
these papers lately occurred at Seville, caused by a party
of students, who :mutinied because their professors or-
dered them to wear clean cravat, and pay more atten-
tention to their college dress. A few of them were ar-
rested, and one youth was wounded in the patriotic rc-
ristance to their superiors.

On the Ist the Three per Cents. closed at 35 for cash,
and 35i at 60 days, and the Five per Cents. at 24, at GO
days. t

Most of the Paris 'papers advert to the procession of
the students to the residence of M. QUINET, and the
attack made on them by the police. The Opposition
journals are loud in their denunciations against the Go-
vernment for interfering at all, as the young men con-
ducted themselves peaceably, and after their visit to the
professor's house were quietlyreturning to their respective
colleges. The Journal des Debuts gives rather a dif-
ferent version of the affair, and says," the police interfered
ngt s ii;.
because the students, not content with v
were marching towards the hotel of the Minister of
Public Instruction, with the manifest intention of insult-

ing or injuring M. SALVANDY." The National denies this,
and asserts that on the address being finished, one of
the young men called out, " The object of the meeting
is now accomplished. Let us disperse." They accord-
ingly began to disperse, when some of the police in plain
clothes arrested the young man with unnecessary vio-
lence. An affray ensued, the student was rescued, and
then the municipal cavalry charged the crowd. It adds,
" this is one of those odious scenes which will form a new
page to the sanguinary history of the police since 1830."
The Courrier Francais is equally violent against the
police, though it does not deny that it was proposed to
march to the residence of M. SALVANDY. "It was not
till three o'clock," it says, " that the arrests took place.
The municipal police, and the police agents pushed
the students before them, and whoever complained of
their brutality was arrested. About twenty were taken
prisoners. Mounted and foot police then forced their
way into the court-yard of the School of Medicine, and a
body of police agents pushed open the dissecting-room,
demanding from the heads of the school the names Of
the students who were absent ; but this odious inquisi •
tion was treated as it deserved. All this time the arrests
went on out of doors, amidst the grossest language and
conduct. Some who witnessed these scenes of disorder say
that all would have passed off quietly but for the conduct
of the police"

A good deal of dissatisfaction has been caused by
the course adopted by some bankers of competing
companies, in deducting a certain amount from
the deposits, to be repaid to the subscribers for
payment of expenses. The Naeonal makes the follow-
in remarks on the subject :

" The Company d'Anthouard (for the Strasbourg line) re-
tains a franc per share for the expense of management. This
should certainly be enough for the purpose. It is right, how-
ever, to notice, on the other hand, the conduct of the Hin-
guerlot Company, which is reimbursing promptly and in their
public office, without any trickery, chicanery, or delay, and
who do not charge or retain a single centime, although they
have had to bear expenses, which are calculated at 500,000
francs. We are glad to meet with a little straightforwardness
and dignity in those tortuous paths, and we regret not to have
more often to praise similar acts of probity and good
sense. As to the Aymard Company, of which Messrs.
Gentil and Fol are the bankers, it has been re-
marked to us that they have only received the deposits
on 160,000 shares, as the rest were reserved for the
English subscribers. It is, therefore, on these 160,000
shares that Messrs. Gentil and Ful retain—first, 40c. per
share, and secondly, lf. 25c. to cover the unfavourable
differences in the reports effected by M. Isot, agent de change.
One of our correspondents remarks to us that there can never
be a loss on reports when they are made for cash, and that
the avowed loss proves that there have been losing trans-
actions proceeding from illegal gambling, and the weight of
which it is now attempted to throw upon the subscribers.
Our correspondent asks us if M. Isot himself be not gravely
compromised by the advertisement which the bankers of that
Company have published ; for Ai. Isot, an agent de change,
thus pointed out as having lost considerable sums in his
reports, must have broken the laws and constitution of his
profession, and also the law of the 15th of July, 1845.
There is nothing in all this but these facts, which are too
clear to the subscribers :-Ist. That they are not admitted
to compete in a serious adjudication. 2d. That they have
not touched a farthing of interest. 3(1. That in place of re-
ceiving back their capitals they leave in the chest of Messrs.
Gentil and Fol the sum of 164,000 francs. This is the way in
which bankers and administrators manage the funds belonging
to their shareholders."

Dispatches had been received from Marshal Bu-
GEAUD of the 23d of November. It appears that the
province of Oran is still in a very disturbed state, and
that the French have quite enough to do in keeping
down insurrection in the subdued districts without
marching on Morocco.

The Three per Cents. were done at TORTONI'S on Sun-
day at 83f. 10c. The following are the quotations of
the price of shares in new lines at Marseilles and
Lyons :

INIAnsEILLEs, DEC. 3.—Marseilles and Avignon, 825 f. ;
Boulogne,49sf. ; Vierzon, 627 f. 50c. ; Orleans and Bordeaux,
682 f. 50c.

LYONS, DEC. 5.--Marseilles and Avignon, 870 f. ; Paris
and Orleans, 1,150 f.; Paris and Rouen, 030 f.; Orleans and
Vierzon, 632 f.
BUSINESS DONE IN FOREIGN RAILWAYS AT THE
LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE, DEO. 8.
Anglo-Belgian — IMauritius
Boulogne and Amiens.. 8 'Namur and Liege
Bordeaux &Mediterran North Jamaica
Bordeaux and Toulouse Orleans and Vierzon
Do. & Cette (Espeleta) Orleans and. Bordeaux 1014
Do. (Mackenzie's) .. 1% OverYssel .........
Callao, Lima, and Pa- Paris & Lyons (La!Etta) 2N,
rifle Coast
Central of Spain .. Ditto (Calon's)....
Ceylon .
Demerara
Dendre Valley 1 Paris and Rouen .
Dutch Rhenish
Dieppe & Paris Jima — (Ganneron*s)
Dijon and Mulhouse Do. (Coupe de L'Est) 2
East Indian
Fampoux & Hazebrouk Paris and St. Quentin
Grt Northern of France Rouen and Havre 7
Constituted
Do. Pepin le Halleur — Sambre aid Meuse ....
Great Paris and Lyons 2 Strasburg and Basle ...
Great Western Bengal Tournay,Jurbiso, Lau-
Great Western Canada den, and Hasselt
JantaicaS Mid. Junction Tours and Nantes
Do. North (Mackenzie's)
Do. Extension
Jersey — Do. (O'Neill's)
Louvain and Jemappe.. Trinidad
Lyons and Avignon.... Verona an 4 Ancona.... 217
Luxembourg
Madrid and Valencia...

CHANCERY.-(THIS DAY.)
The Lord Chancellor did not sit to-day..

ROLLS' COURT.-(THIS DAY.)

His Lordship was occupied during the greater portion of
the day in hearing short causes and unopposed petitions,
which deserve no particular notice.

VICE-CHANCERY.-(THIS DAY.
The further arguments in the part-heard case of

DAVIS V. COMBERMERE
occupied his. Honour the Vice-Chancellor of England the
whole morning.

QUEEN'S BENCH.-(THIS DAY.
(Before Mr. Justice COLERIDGE.)
TOPIIAM V. PRICE.

This case was resumed this morning at the sitting o f
the Court. The plaintiff's case having closed last night
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL opened the case for the de-
fendants in a very long and elaborate address to the
jury, in the course of which he said he was prepared to
contend that this attempt to compel the defendants to
pay the sum demanded by the plaintiff, was an attempt
to commit a fraud, and that a false representation had
been made as to the amount of stock alleged to have
been destroyed by the fire. He contended that it had
been proved by the cross-examination of the plaintiff's
witnesses that a great quantity of goods had been re-
moved from the house on the night of the fire, and that
every light in the house had been put out at an early
hour. Yet, with:regard to the latter assertion, he was
instructed to say, that witnesses would be produced who
would prove distinctly that lights were seen flitting
about in the windows that night at a late hour, and just
before the fire broke out.

William George Carter, apprentice of Mr. Thomas
Fob°, the printer, deposed that he was at work on the
premises in St. Martin's-lane, and that a great portion
of the type in use there was not in good condition. Large
quantities of type had been removed from the premises
from time to time. Witness took some himself to his
own house, by the orders of Fobs, a few weeks before
the fire. Was on the premises the day of the fire. Some
goods were removed that day. Left the premises that
night at about half-past eight o'clock, and locked
them up. There was no fire or light throughout the
house then. Heard of the fire next morning. Went
there, and saw a key in the counting-house-door.

EXCHEQUER.—(THIS DAY.)
:Sittings after Term, before the LORD CHIEF BARON
and a Common Jury.)
GREENWAY V. MARSHALL.

This was an action of assumpsit upon a warrant, to
which the defendant had pleaded the general issue.
Mr. Jervis and Mr. Miller appeared for the plaintiff,
and Mr. Humfrey for the defendant.
It appeared that the plaintiff had purchased a mare
from the defendant, which was warranted to be sound,
but subsequently the mare exhibited lameness in its fore
feet, and the present action was brought to recover back
the amount which had been paid for her, namely 16/.
For the defence, it was urged that previous to the sale
of the mare she had never presented any symptoms of
lameness whatsoever, and the defendant, therefore, gave
the warranty, fully convinced and believing that the mare
was without a blemish.

The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE ruled that this was no de-
fence to the action. It mattered not whether the un-
soundness was not discovered, or whether the defendant
became aware of it prior to, or after, the sale, provided
it could be proved that it actually existed at the time the
warranty was given. That was the case here, and the
jury must find for the plaintiff:

The jury returned a verdict accordingly—Damages 161.

COMMON PLEAS.—(THIS DAY.)
;Sittings in London at Nisi Prius, before the LORD

CUIV.F JUSTICE and a Common Jury.)
SYMMONDS V. DEXTER.

This was an action of debt to recover the sum of 341.,
being the price of three horses, which the defendant was
alleged to have bought from the plaintiff. The latter is
a veterinary surgeon, the former a publican and horse-
dealer, in Whitechapel. The defence set up was, that
the defendant received the horses to put into good con.
dition, and then sell upon commission ; but, that, in con-
sequence of the plaintitrs obstinacy in refusing to allow
them to be sold, when reasonable offers were made, they
were kept on expensive food—oil cake, white peas, and
mf adow hay, until the cost of their keep exceeded the
amount for which they were ultimately sold. The evi-
dence, as is frequently the case where horses are con-
cerned in the cause of action, was quite contradictory.
Mr. Petersdorff appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr.
Sergeant Allen for the defendant.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE having summed up with
great clearness and minuteness, the jury without hesita-
tion returned a verdict for the plaintiff—Damages, 341.

BANKRUPTCY.—(TIIIS DAY.)
(Before Mr. Commissioner SHEPHERD.)
IN RE BRADSHAW.
This bankrupt, who was a draper at St. Alban's, came
up for his certificate. He was opposed on the ground
that he had improperly assigned the whole of his pro-
perty just previously to his bankruptcy, to secure a