The Sun.
London, England, 1845-08-28 00:00:00

THE DUNSTABLE RAILWAY.

The first ordinary general meeting of the Shareholders
of this Company was held 3 estei day, at the office of the London
and Birmingham Railway, Euston-square, W. Mangles, Esq.,
M.P., in the chair.

The SECRETARY (J. Long, Esq.) having read the advertise-
ment convening the meeting, the seal of the Company was
affixed to the register of shareholders.
The SECRETARY then pre4ented the report which, mention-
ing with gratulation the fact of the Bill of the Company
having received the royal assent, stated that the works were
in a forward state, and the line, in all probability, would be
opened to the public in the ensuing summer: that Mr. George
Stepheu,on had been elected chairman, and that a tranch was
projected by the London and Birmingham Company from
Watford to St Alban's and Luton. Mr. Charles Anstead and
11r. Edward Ellis, were appointed auditors, and Mr. T. Long
secretary, at a salary of 50!. per annum. And the meeting,
after passing a formal vote of thank to the chair, separated.

[ADVERTISEMENT.]

DIRECT LONDON andi MANCHES-

TER RAILWAY.

TO THE EDITOR OF 7'HE SUN.

SIR,—Mr. Remington has replied to my letter. He
is kind enough to say, in the opening, that if any ex-
pressions condemnatory of the course taken by me have
been used by any parties, they have not been published
by him or with his privity or consent.
I was compelled to vindicate myself against a charge
as absurd as it is untrue. To repel a charge of stealing
Mr. Remington's line, I was obliged to use arguments to
show the absence of all inducement to do it ; and for that
purpose I was obliged to show that Mr. Remington had
asked the several sums of two, three, four, and five
minions of money to make his line.
That he had varied that line.

That he had subsequently started a London and Man-
chester and York line, asking seven millions to make tho
two.

That he might as well have charged the London and
York Company with having stolen their line, as charge
me with stealing a line to Manchester.
Mr. Remington does not deny asking for the various
sums of money which I have mentioned, to accomplish
the same line.

Either his judgment was unsound, or he varied what
he calls his line as often as he asked different sums.

I have founded my statement on documents issued by
himself.

Mr. Remington says—l quote his own words :
" In 1840 it was proposed to carry out the scheme
alone between London and Manchester, for which I
thought then, and think now, four millions sufficient."
If he Ctinks so mw, how can he reconcile with that
opinion his prospectus, to which I refer him, in the
Morning Herald of the 23d of May last, asking for
two millions only, in forty thousand shares of fifty
pounds each ?
How does he reconcile with this his improved judg•
meat, asking three millions ? _ _

Or his sounder judgment, asking four ?
With his present (Onion that four millions are
enough, why does.he ask five ?
I have published no names in support of the line to
which I have been appointed solicitor, but such as were
given to me in or subsequent to June in this year.
It is a sufficient answer to the statement about my
not joining the Compiny of 1844 to say that which
Mr. R,ming-ton has said for me—that I was unwilling.
proceed to show, from Mr. Remington's answer, the
absurdity of his calumny that I have stolen hip line.
Speaking of a direct line, he says, " Where two pro-
jected lines start from the same termini, go near the
same towns, cover the same route from beginning to
end, it becomes a mttter of grave consideration which of
the two competitors have the priority of conception."
Now this will be seen by any one who will pause to
consi ler it, to he nothing but a verbose mode of claim-
ing the conception of a straight line !
It is Mr. Reuaington's mode of cheating himself into
the idea that he h ad made a discovery, and the man who
can flatter himself with such a bubble, is just the matt
to destroy himself by raising the foolish cry that another
had robbed him of his novelty, and attracting men's
attention to its airy nothingness.
Mr. Remington says he concedes that no vested inte-
rest can exist in a line drawn on a map between two
termini, but that he has yet to learn that the pencil and
the map are the only requ sites in the firmation of a
railway. This is an admission of the question, for ho
had oo other claim.

He admits he had not surveyed the line from Leicester
to Manchester, and he told me that he had examined the
sections deposited by other engineers.
His imputation induced me to make inquiry who had,
as he had not, surveyed the country, and I now give him
an extract frOm a later written by an engineer who did
survey it, and deposited the plans and sections of the
greatest portion of the country:—
"Birmingham, Aug. 22, 1845.
" Dear Sir,—Just as I was leaving Manchester to-day
you inquired of me when it was that I first made a sur-
vey down the Churnet Valley. I told you, as I had tha
plans amd sections in my portmanteau, I would, as soon
I arrived here, refer to them, and send you my answer
by pest. I have done so; and I find, in the year 1837,
at the request of the then. styled Man hest, r, Cheshire,
and Stafford Railway Company,' I took plans and sec
tions in almost every part of the country between the
Grand Junction Railway and the Staffordshire Potte-
ries, as well as to Macclesfield and Congleton, and also
from the Potteries at Stoke and Lane End across the
country down the valleys of the Tean and the Blythe to
Uttoxeter, Tutbury, Burton-upon-Trent, and Welling-
ton. I also, in the year 1839, made a survey from
Stockport, by way of Macclesfield, the Rhudya Reser-
voir. down the Churnet Valley to Uttoxeter, Tutbury,
and the Birmingham and Derby Railway at Wellington.
" And in the year 1840 I was employed by Mr.
Macauley, on behalf of the Midland Counties Railway,
to set out a line fro:n Stockport to Macclesfield and to
Leek, down the Churnet Valley and the Valley of the
Dove, to join the Midland Counties Railway at Derby.
"The plans and sections are regularly deposited with
the Clerks of the Fiace.
"I also surveyed a line for a rail Nay from Stoke, in
the Potteries, to join the last-mentioned line at Leek,
which was also deposited with the Clerks of the Peace.
"Although these plans were, as I have stated, regu-
larly deposited with the Clerks of the Peace, no further
proceedings ever took place upon them. I believe this
is all the information you asked of me.
" I am, dear Sir, yours truly,
"JOHN M. RASTRICK.
" Messrs. Ashurst and Son, at the Royal Hotel,
111anehester."

It is now fir Mr. Remington, who did not survey the
country, to show the superiority of his claim against
those who did. _ _

Mr. Remington says that he examined the valleys of
the Derwent, the Wye, the Dove, and the Tean, and
satisfied himself that any direct route from London to
Manchester must pass by one or other or both of the
latter valleys.
Now, if Mr. Remington were to tell us that he had
examined the Channel between Dover and Calais, anti
had satisfied himself that the man who wished to go di-
rectly from the one place to the other must pass that
Channel, he would give just as much inforina:ion on the
one subject as he gives on the other, and would have
just as mach reason tor c Wing it an original conception,
and to cry " sto thiet !" after eyery steamer that he
din not pilot. Why, tliere' is not an engineer of any
name in.practice'who has not examined". thoss yalleys.
They are traversed, or propooi to i traversed, by a
variety of cornpanies, I‘'lloig and their respective
efgineev.s Yin ficintrignin, upon his own tactics, ought
to shout " stop thief !"
The plan he published, and to which he refers, in-

• ...LI. ,'J .
stung • fir i:aing ,thrnuoi. vait4ys, t7,4u Willi '0
I)crhy, and this he called a direct line frt m London to
Manchester.

He claims to have pu'Tsl-1(-d a direst r.ute from Lon
don to Manchester in TS-tO.

That ran to Dcriiy and tLe hills by the Midll.nd Coun-
ties Railway; the present one goes no nearer Derby
than Leicester, and this deviatit.n, he sari, is eastl)
explained, for that he found that by carrying the line
over Charnwood Forest, north or south of Barden
M,,unt, his line wa.,, rendered more perfect and direct,
nviependent of the Midland Counties Railway, and eon-
sid,rably shorter in distance.

And this deviation, he says, he made in compliance
with public opinion!
Now mark, an engineer, who on such a subject is to
guide the public, says he bends the straight line to suit
t!-e public tas-e ; and, though not born on the (,ther side
of the Channel, adds, that he found by deviating some
twenty miles that he made his Oirect line consideraby
shorter in distance ; this is another original Conception.
lle must take care that Mr. Babbage, or st.me other
eminent mathematician, does not filch it.

Mr. Ildmington talks of mcetirgs to support his line ;
there was but one meeting, that was at lii-dtord, got up
by hia.self to aid his project to yo ti Yoth and Man-
chot3r.

The people of Bedford were only anxious about a line
to or through their own town.
They did not know that he had not surveyed it below
Li ester, nor was it in the order of things for them to
inquire, for they thought, as was natural, of the import-
ance of g tting a railroad, not of getting an engineer.
Ile chose to attend, and a then active patron of his took
the initiative of the busines,, and praised his " original
conception" most entxmously. The e•ult of conceiving,
too much was a miscarriage. It never entered into any-
body else's head but Mr. Rt-mington's that because a
meeting at 13• dfurd pa:setl r, solutions in favour of a
railway to York and Manchester through their town. that
he thereby acquired a fee simple in a line to Manchester,
though he had not surveyed it.
I have shown that other engineers had surveyed the
ccuntry and deposited sections.
Mr. Remington has shown that he made no survey,
but that he published a map and a line notwithstanding.
I don't say he filched it, but he says he did not survey
it, and he has published it as his own.
Ile thus exhibits an engineer hoisting himself with
his ov4n petard. W. 11. ASHURST.
Aug. 28, 1845.

In the City article of the Tithes yesterday, it was said
that a rumour had got about 'Change that the London
and York,and London and Manchester Direct
Line had coalesced, with the intention of being better
abie to cope with the Birmingham Company, and this
r. port seems to have sent up the Manchester Direct
Shares, but %,.e find to-day that, no such arrangement
has taken place between these Companies.

WORCESTER MUSICAL FES-
TIVAL.

WORCESTER, AUGUST 26.—The 12.24 musical festival at
Worcester, Herefaid, and Gloucester, for the benefit of the
poor clergy of those dioceses, awl their widows and orphans, has
already commenced. The three great days are Tuesday (this
day), tomorrow, and Thursday. It may he proper to men-
tion, for the information of those unaware of the tact, that this
triennial festival is held alternately in each of the three
above-mentioned cathedral cities, it being the turn of Wor-
cester this year.
The selection of music for the present festival is such as can
hardly fail to satisfy the severest taste for the grand and the
classical. Of Handel we have a perfect bar.quet, both in the
Cathedral and the College. hall.

The festival duly commenced this morning at eleven o'clock.
The prices of tickes fluctuated from half-a crown—which sum
commanded an admission into the western gallery and aisles—
to 55., which gave the payer the 'privilege of the nave. This
part of the sacred edifice was swept and garnished for the occa-
sion. Rows of benches extended along the entire length

(covered with crimson cloth); and at the end opposite he
orchestra, which wa., of course, erected under the organ, and
before the " screen," which separates the more sacred from the
less sacred portion of the cathedral, there were placed seats,
elevated one above the other, so as to command a better
view of the orchestra from that distant part. The " hal-
lowed ground" being generally too chilly for the feet of modern
congregations, was considerately covered over with clean and
comfortable matting. The building was not illumed, as Milton
says, with " a dim, religious light," for the sun shone brightly
and shed a warmth upon the otherwise cold interior of a Gothic
cathedral, and served, moreover, to show off to a greater ad-
vantage the beautiful bonnets, elegant silk dresses, and gaudy
shawls with with the fair visitants were adorned. There was
no lack of female loveliness, and still less of its " foreign aid of
ornament." The heavens were propitious, and the whole scene
wore a smiling aspect. The Bishop of the Diocese, and the
Bishop of Rochester were present on the occasion.
There is not much room for critical remark on the music of
to-day, inasmuch as the first performance consisted merely of
the solemn cathedral service, interspersed and diversified with
the grand Dettingen Te Thum, Pure.ell's Jubilate in D, Dr.
Crotch's sublime anthem ( Psalm xcvii), " The Lord is King,"
and Handel's fine coronation anthem, " My heart is inditini,s,"
with which the whole service coneluded. The Te Deum of
Handel has now for the space of a century commanded the
admiration of Europe. It was performed here on the
whole with great spirit and admirable effect. The prin-
cipal vocal parts were sustained by Mr. Young (alto),
Miss A. Williams (soprano), Miss M. Williams (contralto),
Mr. Hobbs (tenor), and Mr. Machin (bass). The two
Misses Williams are already favourably known in London, and
it is highly creditable to them that they are able to enunciate
the sacred music of Handel so respectably. Mr. Hobbs is an
old established favourite. Mr. Machin sings with purity and
good taste, but the volume of his voice is too limited for the
extent of a cathedral, and the lower notes seemed to be weak.
As Staudigl is engaged to sing this evening, I am at a lass to
conceive why he was not especially retained ; we shall,however,
have a "taste of his quality" to-morrow in the Last Judgment.
Alns Rainforth is the leading soprano, but she sang the air
in Dr. Crotch's anthem, "The Heavens have declared his
righteousness," somewhat ineffectively. Miss Rainforth'sforte
is evidently not the sacred style, and this air appeared rather a
abour t r her. We shall hear her to more advantage at the
concerts, where she is always at home.
In the orchestra I recognized the veteran Lindley and
Harper, whose performance on the trumpet (especially the
obligato in Purcell's Jubilate) was exquisite, both as regards
purity of intonation and aristical expressiveness. Baumann,
the two Cards, W. Cramer, T. Cooke, Dando, Betts, Lucas,
Hatton, Howell, Lartrus, and many other picked performers
may also be mentioned. The leader of the band is Loder, and
the conductor Mr. W. Done, the organist of the Cathedral, a
young musician whose talents are held in great estimation here.
The chorusses appear to have been well drilled ; but, thanks
to their small number, there is not the same overpowering,
stunning torrent of sound as at Exeter-hall.
The sum collected was 261/. 13s. 6d. A donation of 50/.
has been sent by the Queen Dowager. 50/. from Mr. Bailey,
M.P., and 251. from Sir Thomas Wiide, also 5/. from
Lord Lyttleton, the lord lieutenant of the county.

TILE FIFTY FIFTH REGIMENT.—It was expected
that the light division would have left these barracks on Mon-
day, to be succeeded by the head quarters on the following
day, but fresh orders have been received delaying their de-
parture, and the mpjority of the comi.anilts will leave on
Saturday (to-day). In consequence of the recent disclo-
sures which have taken place, respecting the floggings and
severity of discipline to which the regiment has been ex-
posed since its arrival here, the Colonel, Sir James Fl,lmes
Schoedde, K.C.8., left the barracks on Tuesday for the Horse
Guards. Notwithstanding all the privacy kept upon the
subject, it appears that the amount of flogging has not been
at all exaggerated. Amongst other new regulations of which
the men complain, is that for falling asleep at church (which,
after a severe drill and the afternoon repast is not at all
unusual), when the men are subjected to three days' con-
finement in the barracks. A corporal and private received
this last Sunday week, for merely having their eyes closed,
although they persisted that they were not asleep; and those
who neglect taking their Bibles and Prayer Books are
liable to punishment. A drummer boy was also confined in
the guard-room from Sunday night to Monday morning,
for merely sitting in the seat appropriated to the band. The
men also complain of the withholding of the library, or the
accounts of its sale at Calcutta prier to the departure of the
regiment for China, when it was sold for 360 rupees, whilst,
there was a further sum of 1,500 rupees placed to their credit.
The old privates, who are many of them of superior intel-
ligence, state that the deprivation of the means of recreation
which their library (which by a 1 is acknowledged to have
been a very superior one) afforded, leads many into ex-
cesses and indulgences which might otherwise have been
avoided. The severity of treatment has attracted the at-
tention and sympathy of the citizens ; and, we understand,
on good authority, that Colonel Shaw, who commands the
Coldstream Guards in these barracks, has stated to Sir J. H.
Schoedde, that the only way in which he can improve the
discipline of the regiment is to give the men a greater de-
gree of indulgence. The severity of discipline appears
however, to have been much more severe at Chichester,
from whence the regiment came to these barracks ; and it is
a well-known fact, that whenever thirteen or fourteen men
were confined in the guardroom at one time, the whole regi-
ment was kept in. There have been four desertions within as
many days during the past week. The unfortunate man
( Emanuel Ackroyd) who struck the colonel is still kept con-
fined to the barracks, and the man who struck him at Samar-
cand was a bugler of the name of !Macklin, a volunteer from
the 48th Regiment.—llampshire Advertiser.
EXECUTION BY TIII GUILLOTINE.—The appeal of
Jacques Burrhus (condemned for murder) to the Court of
Cassation having been rejected, the execution was fixed to
take place at Colmar (Ilaut (thin), on Monday last, at six
o'clock. and at a quarter past five the culprit having been
roused from his sleep, the fatal news was communicated to
him, which he received with great apparent calmness,
merely saying "I am prepared. This is my birth-day, I
die at twenty-four years of age." At six, Burrhus having
preriou-ly embraced the governor of the gaol, and begged his
pardon, the mournful cortege left the prison. Before leaving,
z glass of wine was offered him to support his strrength,
which he refused, saying that he did not need it. Qn
getting outside the prison, at the sight of the vast crowd,
illumined by the light of the rising sun, the prisoner's
courage seemed to fail him, for he turned pale and
staggered ; but en being exhorted by the worthy cure, who
walked by his side, he collected himself, and proceeded
steadily the remainder of the road to the scaffold. On
arriving at the Champ de Mars he cast a melancholy and
hasty glance at that lovely promenade, never again to be
trodden by him ; the next object that met his gar, was the
guillotine, to the platform of which he ascended, accom-
panied by the cure, M. Maimbourg, who continued adminis-
•.ering the consolations of religion to the last, and holding the
crucifix before the eyes of the culprit, who frequently kissed it
with great fervour. On reaching the platform, the good prie;t
begged the spectators to offer up a prayer for the unhappy man,
who also made the same request, a demand which drew tears
from most of those present. Burrhus then embraced M.
Maimbourg, and prepared himself to receive the fatal stroke.
In an instant after he had ceased to exist. The priest was
so moved that be nearly fainted, and required the assistance
of two men to descend the steps of the scaffold,--- Gazette des
Tribunamr.

THE RING.-.-4UPSCIfty a blank was drawn in the
affair between Brooks (the slashing painter), and Beesoo, who
were matched to fight for 101. '1 he parties interested left
London for St. Alban's (the proposed locality for the contest),
where they arrived and prepared lor action, but were com-
pelled to make their exit, in consequence of the police entering
vol appearance, and another more suitable spot was found,
when, to the surprise of the spectators, Brooks refused to fight,
and the fancy returned to London much disappointed.
(;:ii:NERAL STEAM NAVIGATION C)mPANY..—The
usual hal'-yearly meeting of the General Steam Navigation
Company was h 5 on Tuesday a, their offices in Lombard-
street, John Wilkine, Esq., in the chair. The report gave
most satisfactory account of the affairs of the Company, which
arc in a more prosperous condition than at any lsaen,er meeting.
'1 he usual dividend of five per cat. was &clued, and tbre iy
a considerable surplus.