The Sun.
London, England, 1845-09-25 00:00:00

YORK, SEPT. 24,

STOCK ETCHANGE.-I:he sales are—Newcastle and Dar-
lington Junction, New (Brandling), 50—North British (New) •
71/4—Ditto (Carlisles), 51/2—York and North Midland Es.-
tension, 301A—Coventry, Nuneaton, Birmingham, end Lei;
cester, 3A —Grand Union, 41. Cs. 3d.—Gre. t Grimsby and
Shrffield Junction (Docks), 10%—Lancashire,
and North Eastern, s—Leeds and York, 7%—Leicester and
Bedford, 44—London and York; GA anchester, Bux-
ton,. &c. 10 % .Newcastle and Berwick, 2014—North Western,
6r/—Welsh Midlands, 4 lA—West Yorkshire, 14—Yorkshire
and Glasgow Union, 41. 18s. 9d.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

FAMPOUX AND HA ZEBROUCK.
The first general meeting of the shareholders of this railway
was held yesterday afternoon at the offices of Mr. Benham,
the solicitor to the Company, in Austin-friars, for the pm-
_
pose of receiving the report of the Directors upon the pros-
-
perity of the undertaking.—
The chair was taken at three o'clock by Andrew Spottis-
- woode, Esq., and the usual formalities having been gone
92% through, the report was read by the Secretary, from which it
5% appeared that the line had been obtained for 37 years and
316 days ; that the road now possessed by the Company
left the Great Trunk Line at Fampoux or suburb of
Arras, and, passing near Lens, Merville, and through
Bethune, terminated at Hazebrouck, the whole dis-
- tance being 54 kilometres; at this place the branch
line of the Great Trunk Line from Calais end Dunkirk meet
the line belonging to the Company, which would afford a
shorter road to the metropolis ;hen by Lille and Douai. The
, present line ranked not only among the richest, but the most.
compact lines of France. From the engineer's report it
would appear that the estimate of the expenditure was
nearly one million offrancs below the capital. The line had
been carefully surveyed, and there were no difficulties of any
importance to overcome. The prospects of theCornpany would
be considerably brightened when the projected la orth Kent
railroad was opened, as travellerawould then, in all probabi-
- hty, go from Do-. er to Calais, and onwards by the Fampoux
line. Until the opening of the line, interest at the rate of
four per cent, would be paid on the paid-up capital.
The CHAIRMAN said, at the conclusion of the reading of
the report, that it was totally unnecessary for him to say a
word on the affairs of the Company, as the report was so ex-
- plicit on that subject. Captain Clinsier, who had just arrived
from Paris, was present, and would be happy to answer the
questions of any Proprietors.
Captain CHAMIER was happy to inform the Shareholders
that they were engaged with the most reTectable Committee
in France. It was generally thought when they came in
contest with the Rothschilds that they would lose their line,
but the high character of the gentlemen forming their Corn-
_
mittee saved it. He could assure the Shareholders that they
would form a most erroneous notion of the value of their
shares if they looked to the quota ions in the London news-
- papers, in all of which they were quoted at ditTerent
prices, and in same as low as fifteen or sixteen francs;
the real fact was, they were at 35 and 36 francs.—(Hear,
hear.) lie had no hesitation in saying that the line would
pay at least 6 per cent.; and the engineer had reported to
26% him that if the winter should turn out to be a mild one, it
would be completed in a year; added to this, the Minister of
Public Works had promised him that the line should be
placed on the same footing as the Great Northern. The
superiority f this line was great over many others, and its
merits only wanted to be more known to ensure its being not
only a successful, but excellent enterprise.
Several qua-stions having been put by different Proprietors
to Captain Chamier, and satisfactorily answered, thanks were
voted to the Chairman and the Gallant Captain, and the
meeting separated.

SHEFFIELD, ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE, AND MAN-
CHESTER,

- This Company held their half-yearly meeting yesterday at their
offices iis the Manchester station, at which there was a very nume•
rous attendance of shareholders. John Parker, Esq., M.P. for
Sheffield, Chairman of the Board of Directors, having taken the
chair, the Secretary, Mr. John Platford, read the advertisement
calling the meeting, and the report of the Directors, which stated
that, with the exception of the tunnel, the works on the line had
been completed since the last report, and were open to the public
since the 14th of July last. That amongst other subjects of con.
gratulation, the Directors could refer to none more enccuraging
than the result of the imperfect experiment cn the prebable traffic
on the line; for, io spite of every interruption of four miles of
i , state,
s i e t ci r that
h uponat th
dei
and
sddhsl
eei
rin
snsrefieth
mountain road, the transit over which was necessarily most tedious,
5a4, and the total absence of goods traffic from by far the greater
534 portion of the line, the Proprietors could not but recognise
in the amount of weekly produce the certain indications of
an ample eventual return. The statement of the goods and
_
passenger traffic then followed, by which it appeared that from
_
December, 1843, to June, 1845,
goodstl-e garnodsspsiuumengreercseivaelodnhgy,htehler
° v r the rive
icepluyioirivedeudi
sif:titortiim..ent
and that the profit to the Con.
__
Board:ee:ld:I had:deat:e(ndfand
, Junction,
receivedheu Manchesterngeno,uer at f Parliamentaryiel o rn
te 1 ari
the
hetrneho yaßt
Great
al r
five,
ecl
a.
s:wo
etnsa:egGyr
nroaratcail . congratulate
proceedings
tynhet
hot
sesh
emoe
Canal,
f Railway,33)
eP
tori oi
lastthe
--
lineC o m
amountedp a Company for the,. transmission
overs ,2 ,
is,oif ;
pany on the goods and passengers' traffic, for the half year ending
June, 1845, amounted to 9,1171. The report then went on to
-- session; for of the seven Bills in the fate of which the Company
------
thewiltwr eelub:deueGd:mrei etnrhoasgrtfieeteoloHdrtivali Grimsby
_
A sixth, the Sheffield and Lincolnshire, from its unfortunate po-
sition In the London and York group, was barred by lapse of time
Ownoueldonblye,
ituhielyßoaprennseledy
from obtaining in the House of Lords that success which its supe-
-
Junction, wasunsuccessful, and the Directors had already taken
_
steps to repair and improve the disaster. That the Bill for
_ leasing the line to the Birmingham, Midland, and Manchester
3% Companies had been withdrawn, in obedience to a vote of the
--__ . Shareholders. That shares to the amount of 287,5001. had been
created, under the Ashton and Staley-bridge and South Junction
--- and Altrincham Acts, for the completion of the railway works.
That the Barnsley Junction Company had been amalgamated
with this Company, on the terms of the original understanding,
cincneerxtte,i sessione
teenofthPisaerloirnampeannyt,
and scrip for this andother objects, amounting to 1,030,0001., was
In the course of being issued. That it waposfutkthihenaatiennidteeiangntbidbooniuloeifhy fioteohdide.
Directors
--
1-1-
budforl.laawstterel levti (lielluerclaia°mrinneedisdnxiodfetwoeer but,rnranclesstdirhosoben;frsiat.nhnc -
troe c troorrsm themselves,to understand
participate therein would be
_
tconjunctioniohad just
withc oaminndoevti hthtaeoatrdi 0 tngihnievtteeonre conclusion
pts,h,ret i into a Canal
I% stwhhaoayrttlaC;amidiarmiel'asYsied to them, it was obvious that an exact specifics-
_
Von of branches would be at present premature, and that the de-
- signs already entertained might require modification. That inde-
- pendent of the above the Board Intended to prosecute with energy
- the extensions via Barnsley to the eastward, and that arrangements
- had been all but concluded with a powerful party at null, which
-
would not only give access to Goole in a manner at least equal to
that hitherto advertised, but place the Company in possession ef a
- far shoe er road to the first mentioned most important sea port of
- the Humber. That a treaty for the amalgamation of their line
- with the Sheffield and Lincolnshire and Great Grimsby Companies,
- involving a further amalgamation with the Great Grimsby Dock
- Company and the East Lincolnshire Company, had been brought
- to a successful termination. That it would become the duty of the
- Directors within a short period to call the Shareholders together for
the consideration of the subject, and they would of course
avail themselves of the occasion to state the result of the negotia-
: lions now pending, and to make a final settlement of
▪ the branches. In the meantime they had only to repeat their
• firm conviction that the possession of friendly and independent
' outlets if possible from sea to sea, was as essential as ever to their
prosperity. With the South Junction already in their hands, and
with access to the German Sea already within their reach, there
, must arise in the public mind an increased confidence in the
stability of their affairs. And that so convinced were they of the '
policy of amalgamation en fair and equitable terms, and upon a
basis of interest common to the three companies, that they had not
the smallest hesitation its recommending it for the adoption of the
Shareholders.
The Engineer's report was next read, from which it appears that
by the report of that officer, made in March last, he expressed his
conviction that the completion of the tunnel was likely to take
place in the following July; but he regretted to say that his anti.
cipations had not been realised ; that the difficulty of obtaining
men and keeping them at their work in such a situation as the
tunnel, was stated by the contractors to be the reason why
their proceedings had not been so vigorous as they had hoped;
but he was convinced that no exertions had been spared in order
to push on the work, though great inducements had been held out
to the men ; but still, in such a work of unparalleled magnitude, it
would be quite impossible to speak with any degree of certainty
as to the time of completion. The total length of excavation yet
remaining to be removed was 80 lineal yards, and about 230 yards
to be lined with masonry. From the progress hitherto made with
a
the work, he was inclined to believe that this would be completed
in about eight weeks; after a filch about 800 yards of ballasting
wouldn t
remaintheretfoorbeetlhaeidwhich
whole
would would
b e beted
finishedie il
by theou t
en a
d mouth,
and u
theh,
year. He concluded by stating that the work had been exceed-
ingly well and substantially executed, but regretted that the un-
fortunate accident which happened to one of the viaducts on the
Ashton branch, as well as the difficulty of obtaining the land, had
prevented its being completed; but every arrangement had since
been made, and the viaduct had been rebuilt.
A general abstract of the receipts and expenditure of the Corn.
pany since its formation in 1836 to June, 1845, was laid upon the
table, and by the statements it contained it appeared that the
amount of the sum received for deposit was 430,6951., that the

sum received for reissued shares amounted to 133,310/. 19s. Bd.,

the loan account to 446,671 i the traffic receipts to 86,6901., and
the gtoss account, including minor items, to 1,313,2251. On the
chbit aide of the account there appeared an item for law charges to
the amount of 1,195,7014, stock 54,2301., traffic department,
34,5811, to the Manchester and Birmingham Company, including
tolls, &c., 21,3111.; and leaving a balance to the credit of the
Company, to the amount of 45,3981.
The CHAIRMAN addressed the meeting at very great length, upon
the general state of the affairs of the Company, and dwelt upon the
fact of their having obtained last session five Bills out of seven, as a
most important and cheering feature in their favour. He went over
in review, and with great minuteness, the position and peculiarities
of each of the Company's proposed branches. He said he conceived
that the Directors were warranted in opening to the public as

much of the line as had beencoMpleted, even though it was not

expected to Tay. He was aware that their arrrangeroents for the

conveyance of passengers along the line were very incomplete,
and often gave rise to complaints ; but he had reason to believe
their subsequent arrangements had been found more satisfactory.
He admitted that laying the account of the receipts and expendi-
ture before the Company as it appeared to day was rather a clumsy
mode of doing it, but they could adopt no other course while the
entire line was open. With regard to the Lincolnshire line, he
bad every hope, from the favour their other project had met with,
that it would pass next se,sion ; for it would only require to be j
. .

reproduced in the House of Lords, having passed the Commons.
With regard to their ruction with the Watt Grimsby Com.