The Sun.
London, England, 1845-09-01 00:00:00

CALEDONIAN.

The first ordinary meeting of he Shareholders was held on
Wednesday, at the Royal Hotel, Edinburgh ; Mr. J. Hope
Johnstone, of Annandale, 11. P., in the chair. There was a
numerous attendance of Proprietors.
The Secretary, Mr. RANKINE, read the Directors' report,
after which
The report of Mr. Erringten, the engineer, was read, which
stated that the works at the Beattock summit had been com-
menced, and that the contractors were at work.
The CHAIRMAN then addressed the Proprietors, congra-
tulating them on the success of their Parliamentary contest.
The opposition which they had met with had been of the most
determined character, conducted by powerful and wealthy
public bodies, and maintained throughout every stage of the
Parliamentary proceedings, and even after, as he really be-
lieved, the slightest hope of succeeding in throwing out the
Caledonian Bill continued to exist in the mind of
any reasonable man among their opponents. Upon several
occasions proposals of arrangement had been made, but
these never came in any official shape, and they invariably
were based on the concession of many of those points
which formed the distinguishing and mast valuable
features in the Caledonian system. Under these circum-
stances, those who had charge of the Bill had no choice as to
the course which they should follow. Every tribunal before
whom they came yielded to the force of the reasons which they
brought forward. The Government Commissioners, the Board
of Trade, the Committee of the House of Commons and that
of the Lords in succession, by their decisions, put the impress
of their sanction upon the project, and they were enabled, by
reference to the concurring testimony of all these impartial
bodies, to show that they had not hastily, or without cause,
taken up the position for which they had contended. This was
not the day of monopoly in any shape, but least of all was it
the (lay of railway monopoly, and unquestionably prejects
might, and probably would, be brought out, in some] degree
inimical to the Caledonian Company, and which it might be
their duty to resist. But it was no part of their system to act
as aggressors, or to deal with any other parties in a grasping and
overbearing spirit. On the contrary, they were most anxious
to meet other companies with a sincere desire to accommodate
differences, and to adjust matters on fair terms, and with a view
to mutual advantage; and here he would say, that he truly
believed that if such a feeling influenced more generally the
councils of these powerful bodies, it would be for their advantage.
Lord BELHAVEN, in moving the adoption of the report, re-
ferred to the expediency of effecting arrangements with some
of the short lines near Glasgow. The expenses had, no doubt,
been great, but this was mainly owing to the determined oppo-
sitionthey had met with in Committee.
Baillie ANDERSON seconded the adoption of the report,
which was put and carried unanimously, and after some obser-
vations from Colonel Macdonald, Colonel Graham, Mr. Lock-
hart, M.P., Dr. Cormack, and others, Donald Lindsay and
Henry Brock were appointed auditors, and 1,000 guineas were
voted to the Directors for their services.