The Sun.
London, England, 1845-10-28 00:00:00

and Exmouth (Head's line), % p.—North Devons, 21. 10s.
Central Cornwall, p.—Taw -Vale Extension, % p.—Bris-
tol and Exeter, New, 10.

HULL, Ocr. 27.
The flatness of Saturday's London market had its effect
I here this morning. At the afternoon meeting the tone of the
market was somewhat improved ; and, whilst there were
plenty cf buyers at the morning's rates, there were but few
&liars. The sales were—London and Blackwall, 83%—Lon-
don and Croydon, 20V!—Midland Iteilway Consols (40/.
Shares), 231,4—Y0rk and North Midland Extension, 21—
Chester and Holyhead, 171/o—Leeds and Thirsk, 15—Leeds
and Dewbbur):, 27—North British (Dalkeiths), 6—Ar-
tr agli. Coleraine, and Portrush, I%—Axholme, 455.
p.—Dudley, Madeley, and Iron Bridge, 13s. 91 p.
—East Lincolnshire, 3—Grand Union, 2%—Great North
and South Wales and Worcester, X—Hull and Barns-
ley Junction, 265, p.—Lincoln and I'Veinfleet, 10s. p.—Lon-
don and York, s—London and Norwich Direct, 7s. 6d.—
North Staffordshire, Si. 28.—Portsmouth Direct, 4M—Rugby
and Huntingdon, 2%—South Midland, 4/. 17s.—Yorkshire
and Glasgow Union, 3.

YORK, Om 27.
STocK EXCIIANGE.—The sales are—Eastern Counties, 21
—Newcastle and Darlington. New (Brandling), 471,4—North
British (Carlisles), 3%—York and North Midland Extension,
221A—Axholme, s—Coventry, Nuneaton, Birmingham, and
Leicester, 2—Grand Union, 2%—Leeds and York, et—New-
castle and Berwick, 14%—Nottingham and Boston, 3%—
North Staffordshire, Si. 4s.—Welsh Midlands, 3.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

WOLVERHAMPTON, CHESTER, AND BIRKENHEAD

JUNCTION RAILWAY.

• MARKET DRAYTON MONDAY NIGHT, .TENo•CLoc An im-
portant meeting of the landowners, occupiers of land, and trades.
men of Market Drayton, was held this afternoon at the Phcenik
Hotel, in that town, far the purpose of considering the proposal of
the *Wolverhampton, Chester, and Birkenhead Junction Railway
Company, to ccnstruct from Wolverhampton to Chester—by way
of Market Drayton, and effecting a junction with the Chester and
Birkenhead Railway—a direct line from London to Birkenhead
and Holyhead.
The chair was taken at two o'clock by Lokdale Warren, Esq.,
and among the gentlemen present were Mr. Sergeant Allen, one of
the Provisional Committee; R. Wrightson, Esq., T. Harris, Esq.,
H. Mayhew, Eg., T. Swinnerton, Esq., Thomas Harris, Esq.,
W. Warren, Esq., W. Goodwin, E-q., J. Bird, Esq., Sand-
well, Esq , and many other of the most respectable inhabitants of
the town and neighbourhood. Mr. J. Smith, solicitor to the Com-
pany, was also in attendance.

The CHAIRMAN, in opening the business of the meeting, said he
was fully aware of the benefits to be derived from railway corn-
' municafion to and from their own town; if he needed ass illustra-
tion of that advantage, he had but to mention a fact that came
within his own experience a few days ago. He travelled from Lon-
don to Stafford, a distance of 135 miles, in less than four hours,
for 1/. 12s. 6d., but it took him upwards of three hours to get from
Stafford to Market Drayton, and cost him 1/. 17s. 6d.—(Hear,
hear.) He thought that was enough to show the necessity of a
more direct communication between Market Drayton and London,
or Livcrpo.l, and other places. After some further observations,
the Chairman concluded by calling upon Mr. Sergeant Allen, as one
of the Directors, to explain to the meeting the objects of the Com.
pany, and the route they intended to pursue.
Mr. Sergeant ALLEN then addressed the meeting at great length.
He said he knew of no more valuable testimony that he could ad-
duce, than the remarks just made by the Chairman, to show the
advantages of railway accommodation, and he was confident that
Market Drayton must at no distant period be allowed to partici.
pate in the benefits to be thus obtained. After explaining the
route of the proposed line, the Learned Sergeant said that he looked
upon it as forming a direct communication, not only between Mar-
ket Drayton and the rising town of Birkenhead, but also tending
to form a direct line of railway from Holyhead to London, of
which parties travelling to or from Ireland would be sure to avail
themselves, indeed it would effect a considerable saving in the
distance, and, while saving time, would lessen the expense
of the journey. From Holyhead a line was about to
be made to Chester, and parties coming thence would
pass along the line whose claims they were about to lay
before the meeting. In addition to this, from Market Drayton a
branch line would be thrown and to Stafford, where it would join
the Trent Valley line, so that passengers would be conveyed on
that railway direct to Rugby, and from thence the line to London,
as is well known, was as direct as it could well be made. After
having alluded to a rival project, which, however, would carry

passengers a considcr.tble distance out of their direct course, the
Learned Gentleman adverted to the proposition of the Wolver-
hampton and Ellesmere Canal Company to convert their canal into
a railway, and contended that, as they had no power to effect such
an alteration, so neither would any Act of Parliament sanction it.
That proposition was one of the most immodest he (Mr. Allen)
ever knew:to emanate from a publiccompany. It must be recollected
that at the time the Canal Company obtained their powers for the
purchase of the necessary land, with or without the owners' consent,
for the construction of the canal, it was obligatory on their part to
keep up a water communication, and indeed that provision had
induced other parties to cut intersecting and branch canals to a very
large extent ; and he (Mr. Allen) should like to know how they
were to be disposed of if the main canal was done away with. Were
this to be allowed, the branch would be of no further service than
to remain as pools for the feeding of pike and perch. Another
reason why the canal scheme could not be supposed to answer the
ends of the projects was, the great addition which it would snake in
the distance between Wolverhampton and Chester, anti con-
sequently in the fares of the passengers. The expense of tra-
velling was not all, for, as the meeting were aware, the charge by
railway was so much per ton per mile upon merchandise ; and if
the Wolverhampton, Chester, and Birkenhead Junction would
effect, as it was intended, a saving of twenty-five miles between
the termini—the usual charge: was 2d. per ton per mile on iron
from South Staffordshire or Shropshire—a saving of 4s. 2d. per ton
on iron would be effected in the present price at Liverpool. The
ironmasters of the district through which the line passed would
thus be enabled to compete with the Scotch markets.—(Hear, hear,
and cheers.) After some other observations, the Learned Sergeant
concluded by moving the first resolution, which was—" That a
direct railway communication between Wolverhampton and Birken-
head, by way of Chester, was essentially requisite."
R. Wasosizsoss, Esq., seconded the resolution in a long and
able speech, after which

The CHAIRMAN submitted the motion to the meeting, and it
was carried unanimously.
SWINNERTON, Esq., of Market Drayton, moved the second
resolution, to the effect that the proposed Birkenhead, Chester,
and Wolverhampton Junction Railway offered the greatest advan-
tages as a direct line between the respective towns, and pledging the
meeting to support it.

W. GODWIN, Esq., of Market Drayton, having seconded the
resolution, it was put to the meeting, and carried by acclamation.
SANDWELL, Esq., of Market Drayton, proposed that a local
committee be formed for supporting the views of the projectors of
the line.—( Cheers.)

M. MAYHEW, aq., seconded the resolution in an able speech. He
contended that the policy of the nation was progressive, and that con-
tinued improvements were requisite fer the benefit of the population.
of the county. One of those improvements was railway accommo-
dation. With reference to the recent panic in the money mar.
ket, he maintained that it was both groundless and futile, and had
originated with parties who were actuated by interested views.

It had been stated that 40,000,0001. was required for the purpose
cf bringing forward the various railway projects of the present day,
and that it cculd not be accomplished without bringing the coun-
try to the eve of bankruptcy. At that announcement he was
aware some parties gazed in stupid ignorance, but the fact was,
such people were not acquainted with the vast resources of the
country. In the time of the late war that sum, and more than it,
was raised every year for the carrying on of the conflict, and in
later years It was found that 20,000,0001. could readily be paid for
the emancipation of' the poor slaves.—(Loud cheers.) It must be
recollected, too, that the sum now required was not for the purpose
of being sent out of the country, but would be the means of pro-
viding a vast amount of employment, and of conferring a lasting
benefit upon the country. After deprecating the conduct of the
Bank of England in raising the amount of discount. Mr. Mayhew
conc4ried by seconding the resolution, which was passed unani-
mously.

A vote of thanks to the Chairman having been passed, the meet-
ing soon afterwards separated. The whole of the resolutions were
passed unanimously, and the best feeling pervaded the meeting.

BpULOGNE AND AMIENS RAILWAY.

A meeting of the Shareholders and Proprietors in this rail-
way took place on Thursday at Paris.
Shortly after two o'clock M. LAFFITTE opened the busi-
ness of the meeting, and said that these were the usual pre-
liminary forms required by law; but as he believed it would
be sufficient to lay them upon the table, and would not be
necessary to read them, he would now proceed to read the
report of the Directors. The document was written in the
French language, and occupied nearly twenty closely written
folio pages. There was also, we were told, but one copy of it,
for it had not been " printed and circulated among the share-
holders." Apprehending that such would be the case, we
applied in the early part of the day at the proper quarter, and
at much personal inconvenience, for permission to copy it or
translate it, either in the assembly-room, or in any other part
cf the building, where the meeting was to be held, or such
portion of it as we should be able to accomplish before the
business of the day commenced ; but, notwithstanding that we
represented as strongly as we could the great convenience
that such an accommodation would afford us," the immense
distance we had travelled to be present at the meeting, the
great importance it would be to the English shareholders
in the line to have the report translated and published in
the English newspapers with as little delay as possible ;
notwithstanding that we urged all this, and a great deal
more, we were peremptorily refused any such accommoda-
tion ; and were told that to get a copy of the report was
out of the question, either before or after the meeting; and
that, therefore, we should take notes of the substance of it as

it was read by the chairman. Owing, however, to tha
courtesy of that gentleman the report was handed to us after
the meeting had separated to make extracts from ; but it
was then past four o'clock, and as the only mail for Egland
that d ty left at five, we were obliged to make a very hurried
summary of the report which we subjoin, and which contains
all the substantial facts set forth in it. It contained, in the
first two or three pages, the usual congratulatory paragraphs,
such as that since the directors (le conseil d'admistration) had
obtained the necessary powers to proceed with the work, they
had lost no time in making all the preliminary arrangements
for doing so ; that it was a line which promised to prove not
only a profitable one to the shareholders as a commercial specu-
lation, but also one of great advantage to the many large dis-
tricts of country which surrounded it on all sides, which at
present bad no railway accommodation of any sort, as well
as to the constant influx of strangers to France, from the
ports of Dover and Folkstone, who wished to reach Paris by
Boulogne in a shorter time than that now occupied in accom-
plishing the journey by the long and wearisome route tra-
versed by the public diligence; that the line from Amiens
to Paris would also, it was expected, be put in course of
formation in a short time, and thus give a complete railway
communication from Boulogne to the French capital by the
Amiens route; that the ground for the formation of the

line to Amiens had been obtained with very little
diffiulty, owing, the administration felt convinced, to the
fact that the project was one which enjoyed a large share
of the public confidence ; that it would pass either through,
or close by, many small towns along the course it proposed
to traverse, the inhabitants of which looked upon it as quite a
desideratum ; that the engineers had applied, and were
still applying themselves to their part of the work with
all due diligence, and that their working engineer, M.
Bazacl, would leave nothing on his part undone to facili-
tate the execution of those works; that the administration
had had assurances from the municipal council of Belgium
to the effect that every facility would be offered by them fur
the extension of the line in that direction, that travellers
who were now compelled to take the route by Abbeville, Bau-
vais, and the other towns in that direction to Paris, would very
gladly avail themselves of this, in consequence of the much
shorter time the journey to the French metropolis from
Boulogne would then occupy. The report then went on to
say, that the line of route from Amiens, it was proposed by
the " administration," should be bey Noyelles-sur- Mer from
Amiens, close by the town of \ alery; that as it passed
through Amiens it should cross the river that watered that
town, and thence on to Estaple, leaving which town, it
would run along by the valley of the Liami to Boulogne,
where it would for the present form its second tern-urn:
that the total length of the line so far would be 123
hiloms., which could be easily traversed in about seven
hours; that the line was almost a perfect level for one half
of the entire distance, and that the other half was to run
along a country of such a nature, that the cuttings would be
very trifling, the gradients by no means steep, the works
generally presenting no engineering difficulties whatever,
and-that there would not be a single tunnel upon the whole
of the line; that near the town of Estaple the line will
crow the river Conehep at the part delineated in the map, by