The Sun.
London, England, 1845-09-10 00:00:00

RUGBY, DERBY, AND MANCHESTER.

DERBY, TUESDAY EVENING.—This afternoon a public ,
meeting of the inhabitants of Derby and its neigh- ,
bourhooal was held at the Town-hall, Derby, to hear
from the promoters of the line a statement with respect
to its route, and the benefits it was likely to confer on'
the town. Most of the neighbouring gentry were pre-
sent, and a large number of the tradesmen of the town.
The Right Worshipful the Mayor presided, and in
opening the business of the day, said Derby had strug-
gled long against the advantages which had been held
out to its more fortunate neighbours, and there was not
one tradesman in the town who would not heartily
join in supporting the line. The proposed line would
proceed direct from London to Manchester, coming from
London to Rugby along the London and Birmingham
line, and proceeding from Rugby by Hinckley, through
Market Bosworth and Ashby-de-la-Zouch to Derby,
thence to Ashbourne, by Leek to Macclesfield and
Stockport, and Stockport and Manchester Railways into
Manchester. The principle of the railway was to obtain
a direct through line between some of the most
important districts of the kingdom, with the least,
possible amount of new railway, and consequently the
smallest expenditure. It would also establish the
shortest direct communication between Derby and Lon-
don, Sheffield and London, and between all the towns
on the North Midland Railway and London. The tine
would open a direct communication between Manchester
and Derby, and would considerably shorten the distance
between Manchester and Nottingham, and Manchester
and Leicester. Various schemes had been set on foot
for the joint accommodation of London, Manchester, and
Derby, but the line in whose behalf they had met pos.
sensed considerable advantages over them all. In this
case only 75 lines of railway would have to be made, in
place of 185,, the number proposed by the other Com-
panies. The whole line of railway from Rugby to Man-
chester would be completed and in working order within
ten months from the passing of the Act of Parliament,
which the promoters felt confident they would without
difficulty obtain. These, he believed, were the prin-
cipal facts connected with the proposed scheme, which
were peculiarly interesting to Derby, and which would
claim from the inhabitants their warm co-operation and
support.
Mr. BREWER, the solicitor of the Company, stated
that Mr. Charles Blount, the engineer, hail made his
report on the line. and his statements were thoroughly
satisfactory. The tunnels were not of great length, the
earth works not of great difficulty or extent, the gra-
dients were easy, and in many parts of the line favour-
able for the construction of railways. It might be an-
nounced as a fact that the Rugby, Derby, and Manches-
ter Railway presented the extraordinary feature that any
part of its line, between any of its termini, would return
a profit as a local line.
Mr. BLOUNT, C.E , said, so far as the survey had gone,
preliminarily, he had encountered no difficulties. The
places actually upon the line were Rugby, Harborough
Magna, Monk's Kirby, Hinckley, Dadlington, Market
Bosworth, Heather, Ashby-de-la- Zouch, Staunton Arrold,
Calk, Spring Wood, Melbourne, Stanton, Swarkes, Nor-
msnton, Derby, Mackworth, Bowbridge-fields, Mappleton,
Calton, Leek, and Macclesfield. A large number of im-
portant towns and villages were immediately adjacent. He
would pledge his professional character to the fact that
the proposed line presented no more than the ordinary
difficulty. The gradients presented no feature Parlia-
mentarily objectionable. The promoters of the other
line could not accomplish their object under four or five
years. This line could be formed in ten months, and at
a far less expense than any of the others.
Considerable opposition to the line was manifested,
but eventually resolutions were adopted expressive of
strong approval of the scheme, and pledging the meeting
to use their exertions in its support.

SOUTHAMP rON, MANCHESTER, AND
OXFORD.

A meeting of the supporters of this (Parsons') line
was held yesterday at Hungerford, in pursuance of a
requisition numerously and respectably signed by inha-
bitants of the town, calling on the Mayor to convene
them, for the purpose of expressing their cordial ap-
proval of the proposed undertaking in preference to any
other.

A deputation from the managing committee, consist-
ing of Mr. Parsons, solicitor to the Company and pro-
jector of the line, Messrs. Macmillan, C. H. Coape, Charles
R. Bigge, and H. Renton, engineer, attended for the
purpose of fully explaining the objects of the undertak-
ing, and showing the superiority of its claims over the
•
competing one.
Mr. D. Allen, the Mayor, presided ; and the meeting
was addressed by Mr. Coape, Mr. Parsons, Mr. Willes,
of Hungerford-park, Rev. Mr. Davies, Mr. Atherton,
Mr. Barker, and other gentlemen. The proceedings,
which we are compelled to abridge, were unanimous in
favour of the project.
Mr. PARSONS gave the following account of the pro-
posed line would—be the shortest, cheapest, and
most expeditious route that could well be planned, arid
-by far the best of any that had hitherto been proposed.
By looking at the maps, which were distributed about
the room, they would perceive that the line was a forked
one. It would commence at one point at the Didcot
station on the Great Western Railway (where
the Oxford line joined it), and running southward
through Newbury, would join the South-Western
railway at or near the Andover-road. The other branch
would run from the Swindon station of the Great
Western down through Hungerford to Whitchurch, thus
completing by two short lines, the united lengths of
which would be only about fifty seven miles, the railway
communication between Manchester and Southampton,
and the entire western district of England, from north
to south, on the one branch, and Oxford with the whole
north, north-midland, and north eastern districts, with
the southern, on the other. Having pointed out the
great advantages of such a thorough communication to
Hungerford and the counties of Hants, Wilts, and Berks,
Mr. Parsons directed the attention of the meeting to the
merits of the two other competing lines—one of which
proposed to make a direct road from Manchester to
Southampton, at a cost of 1.500,0001. ; and the other
(Bethell's line) to do only one half of what he (Mr.
Parsons's) proposed—namely, to connect Didcot and
Andover-road, at a cost of 500,0001. The united cost
of those undertakings would be two millions sterling,
whilst his line would effect the same purpose as both at
a cost not exceeding 900,000!.

LEEDS, DEWSBURY, AND MANCHESTER.
LEEDS, TUESDAY.—On Monday a special general
meeting of Shareholders was held at the Company's
office, South Parade, Leeds. Mr. John Gott, Chairman
of the Board of Directors, presided.
The CHAIRMAN then said, the first subject of import-
ance they had to consider was, an extension from the
main line to Wakefield, and through Wakefield to
Oakenshaw, for the purpose of joining the Midland, and
the Wakefield, Pontefract, and Goole Railway, and for
the purpose of meeting the projected Doncaster and
Wakefield branch of the intended London and York
line. The Directors, after ascertaining their ground by
communication with other parties who were interested
in the district, had come to the conclusion to ask the
sanction of the Shareholders for going to Parliament for
the purpose of carrying out this extension, and for a grant
of money. The line had been very carefully gone over
by the Company's survey or and engineer, and could be
constructed with very favourable gradients. There were
other branches from the main line which it would be
requisite to make to complete the original line in the
most efficient way. They were a branch from the main
line from near the intended Batley station, by way of
Throden Clough, towards Gildesome and Cockerkdale ;
an extension of the Bristol branch from Bristol towards
Birkenshasv. The extf.nsion to Wakefield, and from
thence to Oakenshaw, would require a capital of 300,0001.
The other branches, and sundry contingencies connected
with them, and also with the original line, would require
a further additional capital of 100,0001., making alto-
gether 400,0001. This the Directors proposed to do by
creating 16,000 half-shares—each half-share would of
course be 25/. They would be issued in the form of
scrip, on signing the Parliamentary contract, in the pro-
portion of seven half-shares to the holder of every five
original shares. They would have the support of the
Manchester and Leeds in carrying out their Wakefield
Extension. _ _

Resolutions empowering the Directors to take steps
for carrying out the extensions were passed, and after
some explanations from Mr. Atkinson, the solicitor, as
to the issue of the shares,
On the motion of Mr. SHAW, seconded by Mr. JOSEPH
BATES, it was agreed that 700/ a year should be placed
in the hands of the Directors for their services.
The CHAIRMAN intimated that Mr. Grainger, their
engineer, was arranging a junction with the Manchester
line in a very satisfactory manner.

FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENTS AT THE NEW HOUSES OF
PARLIAMENT.—Yesterday morning, about six o'clock, a dreadful
accident happened to a man named James Casey, a workman at
the new Houses of Parliament, living at 9, Wood-street, Millbank.
He had just got to the top of a scaffolding near the Victoria Tower,
and was proceeding along it to that part where his work lay, when
his foot slipped, and he fell with frightful violence the whole
height, nearly forty feet. He was instantly taken up in an insen-
sible state, and conveyed to the Westminster Hospital, when it
was found that his right thigh and arm were fractured in a very
dangerous manner. The broken limbs having been set, and every
attention paid him by the house surgeons, he is likely.to proceed
favourably. Ott the previous afternoon, about three o'clock, a
bricklayer named John Jarvis, living at 4, Wood's-place, West-
minster, and also working at the new House of Cosamons, fell
from the scaffolding on which he was, about twenty or thirty feet
high, and came with such violence to the ground, that his left leg
was doubled up under his body and broken in a very bad manner.
He was also taken to the Westminster Hospital, where the fracture
was set.

[ADVERTISEMENT.]— The following extraordinary
case as connected with Holloway's Pills cannot be made, too
public I—George Wright, of Hight-street, Vauxhall, well-
known at Hill's Potteries, Vauxhall-walk, where he formerly
worked during ten years, but for the last five his health has
been so bad that he could do nothing, being greatly emaciated,
suffering from a diseased liver, and also the dropsy, besides an
affection of the spine. He was in the Hospital at Winchester
for five months, and afterwards in Westminster Hospital for
three months longer. To sum up, from almost a dying
state, he has been restored to such comparative health and
vigour in the short space of five weeks as to astonish all who
know him, and this by Holloway's Pills, which may be had at
Professor Holloway's Establishment, 244, Strand ; and of all
respectable medicine venders throughout the civilized world.