The Sun.
London, England, 1845-02-18 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

PROCEEDINGS IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS.
COMMITTEES ON PETITIONS FOR PRIVATE BILLS.
Yesterday the railway campaign commenced with the sit-
ting of the Sub-Committees on standing orders, to whom is
committed the preliminary proceedings on railway Bills,
prior to their examination by the Select Committees of the
House. It may here be necessary to state that these Sub-
Committees are appointed by the Select Committee on the
standing orders, composed of the chairman of the Sub-Com-
mittees, Mr. Escott, and other Hon. Members. The railway
Bills brought before the two Sub-Committees yesterday were
fifteen, the number of Members on each Committee amount-
ing to eleven. Their attention was directed to the ascertaining
whether the necessary Parliamentary notices of intended ap-
plications to Parliament had been inserted in the Gazettes
during the months of October and November, in conformity,
with the standing orders; whether the necessary applica-
tions had been made to the owners, lessees, and occupiers,
before the 31st December, the deposits with the clerks of the
peace and Board of Trade and Private Bill-office of the
plans, sections, and books of reference, made before the 30th
November. Also the depositing, in the Private Bill-office of
lists of the owners of estates, and of the deed of partnership
and subscription contract. The inquiries of the Committees
further extended to the service of notice upon landowners
before 31st December, either by personal delivery, or leaving
at their place of abode, or, in their absence abroad, with their
accredited agents, in which latter case the production of a
written acknowledgment was required. Sir William Heath-
cote, the Chairman of one of the Sub -Committees, theught
that proof of the handwriting of the parties in the latter case
was required, a point apparently not provided for by the
standing orders of the House. The other requirements had
reference to depositing the engineering plans with the Clerk
of the Peace for public inspection, giving a description of the
line,its works, and the lands through which it passed ; of the
usual subscription contract, furnishing an estimate of ex-
pense, and showing that subscriptions had been entered into
to the extent of three-fourths the amount of the estimate,
and that one-twentienth part of the amount subscribed had
been duly deposited. From this outline of the duties de-
volving on the Committees and on the Companies, it will be
seen that to the proceedings, although chiefly of a routine
character, there attached considerable importance. Upon
the passing through the ordeal of the standing orders hinges
the future progress of every railway measure. Inadvertence,
or non-compliance with the strict letter of the provisions, ex-
poses a Company to the chance of being thrown over until a
future session, and becomes fatal to its further progress; the
mere circumstance of plans being deposited only one hour
after midnight on the 30th November, the misdirection or non-
service of a notice, being sufficient to invalidate the claims of
the best equipped schemes. This was proved yesterday in
the case of the London and York line, the inquiry into which
occupied upwards of three hours. Imperfect compliance with
the standing orders in three cases only out of twelve thou-
sand was sufficiengto induce the Sub-Committee to refer the
question to the Select Committee on standing orders. The
number of witnesses examined on the part of the London and
York amounted to nearly 100 ; on the Leeds and Bradford
to between 30 and 40; and it is expected that on many of
the lines to be brought on in Committee, more particularly
in the larger ones, there will be nearly 100 witnesses exa-
mined in each. When it is remembered that there are upon
an average 240 Bills to come before Parliament this session,
representing a capital of nearly 100,000,0001., one of the
causes of this great fertility in new lines being the recent re-
peal of the deposit on standing orders from 10 to 5 per cent.,
it will be seen that this extraordinary pressure of new pro-
jects portends an amount of labour hitherto unparalleled in
railway legislation. Sub-Committee No. 1: Sir John Yarde
Buller (Chairman), Mr. Bramston, Mr. Richard Walker, Mr.
George Philip, Mr. 8011, Mr. Gibson Craig, the O'Oonor Don,
Mr. Forbes Mackenzie, Mr. Horsman, Mr. Eliot Yorke, Mr.
Kemble. The Chairman, after the usual inquiries, announced
that the standing orders had been complied with in the fol-
lowing cases, with the exception of the Wakefield, Pontefract,
and Goole :

MANCHESTER AND LEEDS. —To raise further capital.
Agents—Messrs. Dorrington, Hayward, and Ellicombe.
MANCHESTER AND LEEDS.—} or extending the Oldham
and Heywood Branches, to join the Manchester, Bury, and
Rossendale Railway, in the township of Bury, reported in
favour of by the Board of Trade. Agents—Messrs. Dorring-
ton, Hayward, and Ellicombe.
LONDON AND SOUTH-WESTERN (METROPOLITAN EXTEN-
sms).—The object of this extension is to afford a central
terminus to the South-Western, London-bridge, and other
railways in the neighbourhood of Humrford Suspension-
bridge. The agents were—Messrs. Dorrington, Hayward,
and Ellicombe.
ASHTON, STALYBRIDGE,
AND LIVERPOOL JUNCTION (AIM-
WICK AND GUIDE BRIDGE BRANCHES). -- Agents—Messrs.
Dorrington, Hayward, and Ellicombe.
LEEDS AND WEST RIDING JUNCTION.—The object of this
application was to connect the towns of Leeds, Huddersfield,
Bradford, Dewsbury, and Halifax, with each other, and with
the intervening districts, forming three points of junction
with the Manchester and Leeds, and bringing the whole of
the West Riding of Yorkshire into immediate commUnioa-