The Sun.
London, England, 1845-08-30 00:00:00

RAIL WAY INTELLIGENCE.

CORNWALL DIRECTCENTRAL-COUNTY
MEETING.

%mute, Auc. 29.—The county meeting at Bodmin this
day attracted the greatest attention, and drew crowds to the
county town. Cornwall has long been desirous of participat-
ing in the benefits of railway communication, and the feeling
of the county, as expressed by the inhabitants at various public
meetings, has been decidedly in favour of a central line.
Against this feeling the Great Western Company have hither to
contended, and under their auspices the coast line was brought
out, and pushed before Parliament, till, having in the recent
session been forced through the Commons, it was suddenly
shipwrecked in the House of Lords. The declaration of the
Great Western people in favour of the coast line had paralysed
the hopes of the natives, who abandoned all thought of getting
their direct line. But on the defeat of the coasters their hopes
revived, and it was determined that a county meeting should be
held for the purpose of testing the feeling of the county on the
reopening of the question.
The Cornish people assembled in great numbers from the
coast and the west. Several parties from London, Exeter,
Plymouth, Bristol, -&c., also attended. Among the parties
from Exeter were the Mayor, Edward Woolmer, Esq., Mr.
James Woolmer, his son, Captain Hulme, John Daw, Esq.,
H. D. Barton, Esq., &c., connected with the direct route from
London or its proposed branches ; Mr. Wrey, connected with
a former plan to bring a line by the valley of the Taw to
Exeter, and a deputation from what may be called the great
central interest.
The requisition was signed by 1,300 freeholders ; and
amongst thoSe who attended were the following :—John Hearle
Tremayne, E. Archer, of Trelaske, J. K. Lethbridge, W. H.
Arundel Harris, Esqs. ; Captain Hext, Captain Collings, Dr.
Yen, Dr. Michel ; Rev. Mr. Kingdon, of Pyworthy, Rev.
H. A. Simcoe, W. Braddon, Esq., Goldsworthy Gurney, Esq.,
Humphrey Williams, Esq., Richard Harvey, Esq., of St. Day;
Steven Davy, Esq., Richard Davy, Esq., William Davy, Esq.,
'
Richard Thomas, Esq., of Falmouth • Thomas Harvey, Esq.,
James Bull, Esq., T. H. Tilley, Esq., Sergeant Gazelee,
T. C. Rowe, Esq., Captain Moreshead, William Sandys
Sandys, Esq., Richard Gully Bennett, Esq., D. P. Hoblyn,
Esq., &c. There were present also—The Chisholm, and
John Chapman, Esq., Directors of the South Western Railway
Company, who attended with the deputation from the London,
Salisbury, and Yeovil lines, with the secretary, L. Crombie,
Esq. , H. D. Barton, Esq., and Mr. Wrey, who attended as a
deputation from a proposed direct Barnstaple and Exeter line ;
Sir W. Tonkin, John Whidbori.e, Esq , Ed. Pryor, Esq., and
P. Pearce, Esq., who attended as a deputation from the Dart-
mouth, Torbay, ai.d Exeter line ; and W. D. Moore, Esq.,
who, with Mr. Collumbine, attended on behalf of the direct
project, which fell to the ground before the unanimity of the
proposed line.
The High Sheriff, E. Rodd, Esq., of Trebartha Hall, opened
the meeting at one o'clock, in the Nisi Prius Court of the
County Hall.
The SHERIFF said the meeting was convened, in consequence
of a requisition which he had received, bearing the signatures
of the Lord Lieutenant of the county, Lord Carteret, Lord
Vivian, besides a great number of the gentry, merchants, and
freeholders of the county.
The UNDER-SHERIFF read the requisition, after which
The Hum SHERIFF read letters from Mr. Carew, M.P.,
who declined to be present as he should not like to take part in
a meeting, the proceedings of which he might have to decide
upon in Parliament. Mr. Rashleigh would not interfere till
some specific line was decided on by the county. Sir Charles
Lemon was abroad, and Mr. Pendarves was ill. But, of the
latter gentleman, Mr. Rowe would probably report.
Sir W. S. TRELAWNEY, Bart., the Lerd-Lieutenant of the
county, was warmly cheered on stepping forward to propose
the first resolution. He said that so far as his own personal
interest was concerned, he should have been much more satis-
fied with the south line, as that line would be most convenient
to his little property. But it was such a line that he could not
sanction it, although it had been supported by gentlemen
whose talent and position made him most reluctant to oppose
them.—( Hear, and cheers.) About ten years ago the cen-
tral line was first brought before the country. A committee
appointed to consider the subject reported unanimously that
the line was one which afforded the prospect of a paying
traffic, and that there were no engineering difficulties which
could not be overcome. From that time to this the central
line had been his favourite plan—(Cheers)—and he believed
that there was now a fair prospect of seeing it carried into
effect. The Hon. Baronet concluded by moving the first reso-
lution, which was received . with great cheering :—" That the
general interests of the county of Cornwall, as well as the
public at large, absolutely required that no trunk line
should be sanctioned through the county which did not
afford the most direct, central, safe, and continuous railway
communication from Falmouth and Penzance to London."
JOHN K. LETHBRIDGE, Esq., Chairman of the Quarter Ses-
sions, seconded the resolution, and asserted that the cental line
was the only one which would be beneficial to both sides of the
county.—( Great cheering.) It would bring the north of the
county fairly into existence ; for if the south line had been
carried, a considerable portion of the north, as well as a por-
tion of the county of Devon, might as well have been in the
Box Tunnel for ever.—(Hear.) He should not enter into the
question of traffic, for it had been stated that there was a suffi-
cient traffic through the centre of the county, taking the Bod-
min moors into account, to afford a fair and reasonable profit to
the speeulator.—( Cheers. )
The High Sheriff put the resolution, and it was carried una-
nimously.
JOHN H. TREMAYNE, Esq., proposed the second resolu-
tion. When he found a line likely to pass which was a com-
plete one-sided scheme—a railway which was of such a nature
as to be described not only by its enemies but its friends in
terms which would give the public no confidence—the railway
proposed by the Great Western, which was to take them round
the sinuosities of the coast, across the valleys of Lone and
Fowey, through the deep ravine of St. Austell, and finally trun-
dle them on to the flying bridge of Hamoaze ; finding that
this was the scheme projected, he had thought it necessary to
call the attention of the Lord Lieutenant, in a letter which
was afterwards made public, in the hopes of inducing him (the
Lord Lieutenant) and others to give a substantial evidence
of their opinion on this question—and they did do it in the
House of Lords.—( Cheers.) Now the fashion had been to
say, that this railway had been postponed : he said it had been
most essentially defeated—( Great cheeering)—and the word
postponed was a deceptive one. The Hon. Gt-ntleman then
sketched the route which in his opinion the line branching from
Truro to Falmouth should take, and having gone into some de-
tails on this point, said the question was, were they to go by
Plymouth or straight to Exeter? He said straight to Exeter,
by the moors to Launceston, where there was as fine a line as
could be by Hatherleigh to Exeter. That was the line which
should be adopted. The stream of traffic was ample. After
adverting to the great services of the Committee of the House
of Lords, he concluded, amid cheers, by proposing a resolution
in support of the project which should best carry out the de-
sired central line.
Mr. C. B. SAWLE, in the absence of Sir J. Sawle, seconded
this, and it was carried by acclamation.
Captain NEXT said that, in the event of war, Falmouth
would be the rendezvous of merchantmen. The increased dan-
ger of the Channel navigation from the war steamers of the
enemy would make them land their valuable cargoes at Falmouth,
and probably the most valuable cargoes for exportation would
be sent by land to Falmouth, which would become a most im •
portant mercantile place. For these reasons he thought the
county ought not to be satisfied withou,t it got the best and
speediest line of railway.
Jens; CHAPMAN, Esq., Chairman of the Salisbury and
Yeovil line, ,aid the latter Company originated with men who
saw what the west of England required, and saw that the
South-Western Company was bound by a most absurd agree-
ment not to do their duty in the matter.—( Cheers.) This
Company was called into existence by the absolute necessity
there was for a direct line of communication from London to
Exeter.—(Cheers.) They had the same solicitor and the same
engineer (Mr. Locke) as the South-Western Company, and
many of its members were influential shareholders in that
Company. So far with regard to the London, Salisbury, and
Yeovil Junction Company. Then there was the Yeovil and
Exeter Company, which had the most influential noblemen
and gentlemen of Dorset and Devon in its directory. But the
two Companies, though distinct in locality, were one in object
and unity of design, having the same engineer in both cases.
They were two lines before Parliament, but one in unity. They
had no solicitor to beat up for names, no engineer to be en-
gaged, no apprehension about means, for all that was done;
- their capital was subscribed, their deposits paid, and the Lon-
don and Salisbury line possessed 1,300,000/. of available capi-
tal ; the Salisbury and Yeovil had, in like manner, 1,500,0001.;
the two Companies, therefore, which through him tendered
their co-operation, had 2,800,000/.—ample to cover all contin-
gencies.—( Cheers.) Mr. Chapman concluded his address by
tendering the aid of the Companies he represented towards
carrying a line through Cornwall.
The Cmsnotsr presented himself as one of the Directors of
the Exeter and Yeovil Company. Anxious as they were to
advance this scheme, they had desired him to say that they
would lend the county of Cornwall all the aid they could to
promote what they believed to bo an object of national im-
portance—(Cheers)—and he would hand in a list of the names
which they were desirous of adding to the Committee of the
Cornwall and Devon central line of railway.—( Cheers.) Hav-
ing read the names, he said he thought that by their united
efforts, aided by such auxiliaries as they would hear named that
day, and acting on the Cornish motto, " one and all," they
could not fail in getting a happy and triumphant result.—
(Cheers.) He concluded amid loud cheering by proposing
names for the Provisional Committee.
The Mayor of Exeter (EDWARD WOOLMER, Esq.), fol-
lowed to the same effect.
Mr. Sergeant GAZELEE appeared as' a shareholder of the
. South-Western Railway Company.—( Great cheering.) He
wished he could appear as an authorised delegate, to take up a
position which he thought was their own—a position which he
thought fur the sake of the public they ought to occupy. But
there was an unfortunate agreement which their Directors, in
their infatuation, had entered into with the Great Western
Company. But though he had not the authority of the Direc-
tors, be came to hold out the right hand of fellowship, and he
believed he could do so on behalf of the great body of the pro-
prietors—( Great cheering)—who were indignant that their
• interests should be sacrificed, and he offered them (the Cornish
people) help.
Sir WARWICK TONKIN came from the small company of the
Dartmouth and Torbay and Exeter Railway, and tendered their
co. operation in promoting the great work.
Mr. W. A. H. ARUNDEL proposed that the best thanks of
. the meeting were due to the number of gentlemen who had
come forward in aid of the county of Cornwall, and that their
prospectus be accepted, and that the Provisional Committee he
immediately formed, for the purpose of carrying out the central
line from Exeter to Fal mouth.—( Cheers. )
HUMPHRY WILLYAMS, Esq., seconded this in a brief ad-
dress, and hoped the meeting would join him in a general de-
claration of a central line or none.—( Loud cheering.)
Mr. TILLEY, solicitor, then read the report of Mr. Locke
and Mr. Neale, the engineers of the proposed line.
Mr. W. C. Howl', barrister, tendered the names of Lord
Vivian and Mr. Pendarves for the Provisional Committee.
Mr. Edward Archer, of Trelask, added his name to the Pro-
visional Committee ; and thanks having been given to the
High-Sheriff, the immense assemblage separated.

WELSH MIDLAND.

The first meeting of the Directors of this Company was held
on Saturday, to lay before the landed proprietors of this county
the various lines which had been explored from Birmingham
to and beyond Brecon, and to take the views and wishes of the
gentlemen whose properties would be interfered with relative
to any deviation of the line which any particular interest might
lead them to desire.
Brecon, as the great centre of the Welsh Midland, was se-
lected for holding the meeting. Viscount Hereford, Mr.
Williams of Penpont, the Lord-Lieutenant of the county,
Lloyd V. Watkins, Esq., of Pennoyre, Walter Maybery, Esq.,
Captain Stretton, of Dan y Park, H. Allen; Esq., of Oakfield,
Rev. Hugh Bold, Re•. Thomas Powell, Rev. Thomas Vaughan,
Colonel Charles Wood, and the other large owners of land
on the intended course of the line, Were in attendance. At
the conclusion of the business the Directors and gentry of
the district in attendance sat down to a sumptuous dinner.
On Tuesday a meeting, also in furtherance of the interests of
the Welsh Midland, was held at Bewdley, the Mayor, Mr.
Joseph Farmer, presiding. Deputations from the Birmingham
Canal Company, the London and Birmingham Railway Com-
pany, the Welsh Midland and Trent Valley, and Midland
Companies, attended. Scott, AL P., Mr. W. L. Childe,
and others, addressed the meeting, and resolutions were passed
unanimously to the effect that the proposed Welsh Midland,
through Leominster to Ilewdley, and thence to Kidderminster,
to communicate with the Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and
Stow Valley Railways, and thereby with the Trent 'Valley,