The Sun.
London, England, 1845-06-05 00:00:00

IMPORTANT DECISION.

The Committee-room was then cleared, and, after remaining in
de'iberation for nearly an hour, strangers were admitted, when
The CHAIRMAN said it was no doubt known that the Committee
could do nothing that evening, as there was no House, but
as it would save much anxiety he would state what the
Committee would do when they met to-morrow :—THE COM.
MITTEE WOULD PASS THE PREAMBLE OF THE
CORNWALL BILL, BUT THEY WOULD NOT PASS
THE PREAMBLE OF THE WEST CORNWALL BILL.
He should wish to know, to.morrow, whether, after their deci•
•ion on the West Cornwall Bill, the St. Ives' Bill would be pro-
ceeded with..
The Committee then adjourned.

GROUP R.
BELFAST JUNCTION RAILWAY.

The Committee met today, Mr. Gibson Craig, Chairman.

...
The CHAIRMAN referred to an advertisement which appears in
the Morning Chronicle of this day, from the solicitor of the Dublin
and Cavan line, stating that the Committee had yesterday expressed
an opinion in favour of that line. He (the Chairman) begged leave
to say that such was not the case. The Committee had purposely
abstained from the giving of any opinion at all ; and the publishing
of the advertsement in question was highly Improper.
Jt was here stated by Counsel that the arrangement suggested
yesterday to be come to between the Belfast Junction and the
Newry and Enniskillen was in progress, but not completed. The
adjournment of the Committee was therefore requested in order to
effect that object.
The Committee, in pursuance with this request, adjourned for an
hour.

On resuming, the result of the negotiation was given in the fol..
lowing important agreement entered into by the competing Com-
panies :—" The Belfast Junction Company agree by their counsel
to withdraw all opposition to the Newry line, upon condition that
the Newry and Enniskillen Company, by their counsel, consent to
the preamble of the Belfast Junction being forthwith reported as
passed, and to the Committee so reporting it.
" The Newry Company to be at liberty to proceed with their
Bill, and to take their line from Newry by Armagh and Clones, and
the Dundalk Company to be at liberty to proceed with
their Bill, and take their line as far as Clones, all
without opposition from the one Company to the other;
the best line from' Clones to Enniskillen to be forthwith
selected by Sir John Rennie and Sir John M‘Neil, and both Com-
panies to combine in constructing, and afterwards in working the
line from Enniskillen to Clones, on such terms as they may mu.
tually agree upon. or the Board of Trade may settle if the parties
differ. The counsel for the three Companies to concur in re-
questing the approbation of the Committee on these Bills."

This agreement having been completed, the Committee pro-
ceeded to hear evidence in support of the
DUNDALK AND ENNISKILLEN.

Several witnesses were then examined respecting the traffic on
the line, the points of whose evidence presented no material feature
worth recording ; at the close of which the Committee adjourned
till to.morrew at twelve o'clock, when the evidence will be resumed.

GROUP SS.

COVENTRY, BEDWORTH, AND NUNEATON

RAXIAXTAY.

The Select Committee on this group re-assembled at the usual
hour this morning, when
Mr. Calvert made an application for an adjournment. All
parties, he said, now concurred in the propriety of an adjourn-
ment, and if the Committee agreed to it he had no doubt of a saving
of the time of the Committee, and a settlement of the differences
subsisting between the parties. He therefore prayed the Com.
mittee to put off the further consideration of this Bill till Mon.
day next.
The CRAIRMAN wished to know if all parties concurred in this
application ?
Mr. Spat:ass, on behalf of the London and Birmingham Com-
pany, was prepared to acquiesce in the application for an adjourn-
ment, but he was not in a condition to say that the result of this
adjournment would relieve the Committee from further entering
into this case,

Mr. HUMPHREY, on the part of petitioners for whom he ap-
peared, would be extremely unwilling to throw any obstacle in the
way of a satisfactory adjustment of the differences existing between
the parties, but he must confess that he did not think the result of
the adjournment would prove so satisfactory as his Learned Friend
anticipated.

Mr. DANIEL concurred in the adjournment upon the same
grounds, and hoped some satisfactory adjustment of the differences
would be made.

The CHAIRMAN said the Committee were willing to assent to the
adjournment, but they wished to iroceed at once with the

EREWASH VALLEY LINE.

Mr. CALVERT said he was not aware, until he entered the room,
that an adjournment would be required in the other case, and he
was therefore quite unprepared to proceed with the Erewash line.

In fact, he thought most of his witnesses were engaged in another
Committee. Under these circumstances he trusted the Committee
would not press him to proceed at once, or 4t all events until he
had had an hour or so to glance over his brief, and get his witnesses
and clients together.
Eventually the Committee decided upon adjourning
.till twelve
o'clock to-morrow, when it was understood ail parties would be
prepared to go fully into the case for the Erewash Valley Railway.

GROUP V.

MANCHESTER, SHEFFIELD, AND MID-

LAND JUNCTION RAILWAY.

The Committee, consisting of the O'Conor Don, chairman,
Mr. I. A. S. Davies, Mr. Hope Johnstone, Sir John Rae Reid, and
Sir Denham Norreys, met this morning at half-past eleven, and
Mr. JOHNSTONE proceeded to cross•ezamine Mr. Paul Bright,
who had estimated the value of land required for spoil banks, sta-
tions, and other purposes on part of the line. The witness stated
that he had received the quantities of land required from Mr.
Fairbank, and had estimated it at the rate at which he really
thought it worth.

Mr. William Flockton—Was an architect and surveyor in the
town of Sheffield, and he was also proprietor of some 150 houses in
that town. He knew the value of land upon the line, and had
carefully examined it lately, with a view to valuation. On the two
miles reaching from the town of Sheffield he placed the value of
23,7291. That value was accepted in every case, with but one
exception. He had been instructed to be very liberal in his valua-
tions, and he had followed out his instructions. He had also
valued the ground which would be required in the hay and cattle
markets of Sheffield ; and the ground required for piers be had esti.
mated at 1,4821. The estimates, he was sure, were not taken be-
neath the real value of the property required.

Mr. Fall, on the part of the Duke of Norfolk, was called to prove
that the amount of toll paid on the Dumfries-road was only 181.
per annum ; and that, therefore, the statement of 1,200 tons of
coal passing along it was preposterous, because, averaging 9d. per
mile for toll, that would be 2251. a year. He was certain,
therefore, that the statements already given in were founded in
error. •

Mr. L. R. Reed had gone over the line, and he was certain that
the estimates for the construction of the project were greatly
underrated.

Mr. John Barlow, a farmer, near Sheffield—Was in the habit
of using the hay and cattle.market of Sheffield, and he knew that
the epace now was much too limited for the purposes of the mar.
kets, and any partition of it, or contraction of the space, would com.
pletely destroy it.
The Committee then adjourned at tbur till to-morrow.

GROUP W.
BRAYTON AND GOOLE RAILWAY.

The Committee on this line met at twelve o'clock, Mr. Faking-
ton in the Chair ; Mr. Bouverie, Mr. Maxwell, Mr. Whitmore,
and Lord Seymour present.
Mr. Sheriff, whose evidence was partly heard yesterday, was
cress-examined by Messrs. Bliss and Wilkins. He could give no
evidence on the passenger traffic, being only engaged on the goods
traffic on the Selby and Leeds line.
Mr. Singleton, land valuer, had valued the land between Bray-
ton and Goole. A great deal ,` it was poor land, chiefly a sandy
soil. The length of the line twelve miles, and he valued the
cost, allowing 10 acres to mile, at 11,4001. He consi-
dered the line would eonfc tt benefit on the trade of that
district.

By Mr. W11.1E1115-11 we . an advantage in affording facili-
ties for the trade in lime a .uals, and also for the conveyance
of agricultural produce.

Mr. Birkenshaw, engineer of the line, was examined by Mr.
KNOWLES—He had considerable experience in the working and
construction of railways—laid out the Brayton and Goole. The
line was nearly level, except that part near the River Aire and the
Selby canal. The length of the line was 12i miles. There were
not many curves, and these were not objectionable. The greatest
curve was only three.quarters of a mile in radius. The worst
gradients were 1 in 130. The line did not interfere with any ho,ise
or park, &c. The line would afford a good communication with Leeds
and Bradford, and even Wakefield, and would also open a communi-
cation with the North of England. Comparing it with the Wake-
field and Goole line he did not hesitate to give the preference
to it, even as a communication with Wakefield itself.
By Lord SEYMOUR—The reason he thought so was the more
favourable gradients it afforded. The difference in distance was
very little.

By: Mr. KNOWLES—The engines on the Brayton and Goole
line would carry out a load 50 per cent, greater than engines of the
same power would do lay the Wakefield and Goole line. The
ruling gradient on the Wakefield, Pontefract, and Goole line, was
1 in 150. That continued for 11 miles. The population on the
Brayton and Goole line was about 31,000, and on the other line
about 21,000. The witness then gave evidence on the gradients on
the line of country between Goole, Leeds, Bradford, and the west,
to show how much greater facilities, both in gradients, economy of
construction, and in accommodation of goods and passenger traffic,
the proposed line would afford as compared with the Wakefield,
Pontefract, and Goole line.

Cross-examined by Messrs. WILKINS and Buss—Got his popula-
tion returns from the census of 1841 that had been officially pub..
fished. Did not omit any town he found in the official returns.
The reason he omitted Rocklin was because, in his opinion, it
naturally belonged to the Goole line.—(A laugh.)
Mr. Good, engineer, examined by Mr. PICKERING—Had consi-
derable experience in railways. Lived in London. The station at
Bradford of the Leeds and Bradford line was very near the town,
and was as favourable as could be selected for the public accommo-
dation, The Leeds and Dewsbury line was 60 feet above the level of