The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1845-01-28 00:00:00

RAILWAY INTELLIGE CE,

The Board of Trade have decided in favour of the New.
castle and Berwick Railway, with branch to Kelso; and
against the Northumberland line, with branch to Kelso.
At a meeting of the Newcastle and North Sheilds rail-
way, on Friday, a dividend of £3 was declared. The re-
ceipts for the year were £19,152.
CALEDONIAN.--At a meeting of the Glasgow Town-
council, resolutions were passed unanimously approving
of this line, as likely to afford the best communication
between England and Scotland.

A gentleman of the neighbourhood of Totnes had ten to which that portion of the line which now exists from
shares allotted to him of No. 2, new stock, in the Dover Tnubridge to Reigate will be reduced, in having for the
Railway, and a fortnight since paid a deposit of £2 per future to look to its own local traffic for support. But
share. On Friday last they were sold for £128155., thus that is the affair of the South-Eastern Company not of the
leaving the trifling profit of £lOB 15s. on the outlay of Croydon. If the South-Eastern Company choose to
£2O for a fortnight.—Western Luminary. abandon, as a source of profit, that portion of their line
On Friday week, a splendid testimonial, consisting of a which they at first made, in the hope, and for the purpose
centre-piece and four accompanying ornamental dishes of enabling themselves to take advantage of the already
for fruit or flowers, with six salt cellars, all of silver gilt, existing Croydon—believing it to be more to their interest
in the style of Louis XIV., and valued at two thousand to revert to their own original course—they can only be
guineas, was presented to Mr. I. K. Brunel, the engineer accused of withdrawing their favours from the Croydon,
to the Great Western, Bristol and Exeter, Bristol and not of competing with it. Any supposed analogy between
Gloucester itailwas s, and other great public buildings. this case and that of the Great Wi stern is further dispel-
POTTERIES.—The deputation from the proposed Pot-
led by the recollection, that the connection of Bristol with
teries line have had an interview with the directors of the London on the one hand, and with Exeter on the other,
Grand Junction and Trent Valley Railway Companies, was always obvious and intentional, and the board have
and the result is, that the two companies adhere to their only extended the capabilities of such connection to the
plan of a crescent line from Stoke to Basford, near Crewe, utmost degree; whereas any original notion of Croydon
northward ; and from Stoke to Stafford, southward. The as a point which should stretch its arms to Li radon on the
committee have since memorialised the Board of Trade one hand, and to Dover on the other, is perfectly absurd.
against the line, as not calculated to meet the require-
, The same remark applies to Reigate, which is the real
point of junction at present. The true effect of the pre-
sent decision is, to leave the Croydon line to stand on its
NORFOLK AND SUFFOLK R AILW AYS.—The Board of own merits in connection with the Brighton, and to allow
Trade have reported in favour of the Bury and Ipswich; the South-Eastern to complete its natural course. The
Ipswich and Norwich Extension; Lynn and Ely; and gain or loss which will ultimately accrue by converting
against the Diss and Colchester; Eastern Counties ; Col- the portion of the line between Reigate and Tunbridge
chester and Bury Extension ; London and Norwich into a mere branch, is a private question with the com-
direct; Norwich and Brandon—Diss Branch ; Wells and pinny, not a point of public principle.
Thetford ; and recommending the postponement, until a Much has also been remarked upon the wholesale
future period, of the Direct East Dereham and Norwich ; ' rejection—not delay—with which a large proportion of
Norwich and Brandon—Dereham Branch ; Lynn and the projects are visited. Many are of opinion that the
East Dereham ; Diss, Beccles, and Yarmouth ; Diss aid board, alarmed at the probable exhaustion of capital—or,
Colchester—Redlsam and Lodden Branches. to speak more correctly, the destruction of equilibrium—
KINGSTOWN AND BRAY RAILWAY.—The directors of consequent upon such a mass of works being carried on
the Dublin and Kingstown Railway Company, met on at one time, have taken a summary mode of preventing
Saturday last, as the provisional committee of a company the evil, by dismissing the majority at once. This would
for constructing a line from Kingstown to Bray—the capi- be the height of injustice, after the vast expense to which
tal to be £200,000, in 4000 shares of £5O each-2000 to the projectors have been put in carrying their schemes
be appropriated to the shareholders of the Kingstown before the board, and we do not for a moment believe
Railway, in proportion to the interests, and the remainder them capable of it. "Whatever may be their amount of
placed at the disposal of the committee for distribution. competency or fallibility, of thus much we feel assured,
The Dalkey line (which is to be so altered as to remove that they have based t` eir judgments on integrity of pur-
the sharp curves) will be purchased by the new company pose ; and there is little doubt that any attempt to over-
at its cost price—£3s.ooo- The plans and sections have throw them will be discountenanced by the government,
been lodged with the Board of Trade. represented by a majority in the house, who will not be
BIRMINGHAM AND GLOUCESTER.—We understand that disposed, except on very strong grounds, to nullify the
the amalgamation between the Birmingham and Glouces- recommendations of those whom they called into existence
ter railway companies has taken place upon something like for the express purpose of their own guidance.
the following terms :—The Birmingham and Gloucester
capital to remain as it it. The Bristol and Gloucester to
create as many new £5O shares as will capitalize their
loan notes and debentures, to be paid up as the loan notes
and debentures become due, and by equal proportions,
extending over five years. Arrangements are nearly con-
cluded for laying down the narrow gauge between Bristol

[The Railway Record has the following remarks on
the subject of the decisions of the Board of Trade inserted
in the Gazette of Friday last, and the particulars of
which we have given elsewhere :—]
"This is indeed cutting down the numerical force of
the new schemes. Only 10 out of 22 " favourably "
received ! Supposing that none of the promoters of the
rejected schemes " show fight "—though we fervently
hope they will—the labours of Parliamentary Committees
will be most materially lessened.
" If we could overlook the dangerous principle involved
in entrusting powers so extensive to a Government Board,
several of last night's decisions would please us well. In
particular we are glad to find that the claims of the
Eastern Union Company—a company which has from the
first been most shamefully treated by chose who ought to
have favoured and fostered it—are fully recognised, while
justice is done on their oppressors of the Eastern Conn-
' ties Direction. Strangely indeed would the Board of
Trade have discharged the duty imposed upon them, had
!• their decision in this respect been other than it is ; and
we take some credit to ourselves for having foreseen and
foretold the well-deserved triumph of the one company,
and the equally deserved, but most mortifying, defeat of
the other. _

and Gloucester, thereby preventing the ruinous inconve-
nience and expense now caused by differently-gauged I

rails-
The monthly returns of the French railways show an
amount of nearly £50,000 for December on 289 miles of
railway. At the corresponding period of the previous year
the amount was only £37,000. The increase is stated
partly to arise from additional lines opened, but exclusive
of these sources the advance per month over last year
amounts to £7OOO, or 18 per cent. The following are the
French lines not yet opened, but now under course of
construction :—Amiens and Boulogne, 79 miles, by Laf-
fitte and Co. ; Avignon and Marseilles, 72 miles, by
Talabot and C. ; Orleans and Bordeaux, 300 miles, by
Mackenzie and Co. ; Orleans and Centre, 51 miles, by
the Orleans Company ; Paris and Sceaux, 6 miles, by
Among and Co. ; Rouen and Havre, 57 miles, by Laf-
fitte and Co.
IRISH RAILWAYS.—The Board of Trade have reported
in favour of the Belfast and Ballymena; DuQin and Bel-
fast Junction, with branch to Drogheda and Kells ; Dub-
lin and Drogheda—Howth Branch ; Ulster Extension—
Portadown to Armagh ; and of the Dundalk and Ennis-
killen (with the exception of the Monaghan Branch) ;
Newry and Enniskillen (with the exception of the portion
of the line between Newry and Armagh); subject to equi-
table arrangements for the construction and joint use f
the line between Enniskillen and Clones, common to the
two schemes ; and also for improving the railway commu-
nication by the Belfast Junction line to Newry, and for
securing due facilities to the Newry traffic; and against
the Great North Western (Irish); Northern Railway,
inland line (Armagh to Dublin).
MIDLAND RAILWAY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS.—The
accounts which were placed in the hands of the proprietors
prior to the general meeting of Monday, shew the follow-
ing facts :—ln the capital account there is, after deduct-
ing all manner of sets-off, in the form of premiums on
shares sold, interest, materials sold, rents, and carriages,
&e. sold, a total expenditure or investment of £6,259,838;
of which £15,092 have been laid out in land, compensa-
tion and new works of roads and stations during the half-
year ending Dec. 31st, 1844 ; and there had been pre-
viously expended by the North Midland Company,
£3,329,933; by the Midland Counties, £1,708,170; and
by the Birmingham and Derby, £1,206,644. Total, prior
to last half-year, £6,244,747. The paid up capital of the
Midland Railway amounts to £4,510,514, of which
£11,624 has been received during the half-year, ending
December 31, 1844, and of the remaining £4,498,890, the
North Midland had previously contributed £2,514,205 ;
the Midland, £1,153,424 ; and the Birmingham and
Derby, £831,261. The debenture account amounts to
£1,608,717, and the loan notes have during the half-year,
been reduced from £139,850, to £99,850, the amount
paid off during that period being £40,000. The revenue
account for the half-year, including the balance ot £3BO
from the preceding half-year, amounts to £276,130, of
which, after paying the working expenses, interest, and
government duty. there remains £152,793 for the divi-
dends ot the half-year : which will pay the dividend now
declared at the rate of 1 per cent. per annum, and leave a
surplus of £5,000.

" In the decisions as to Irish schemes, the conservative
policy indicated in previous reports is still more strongly
exhibited. The Dublin and Drogheda and Ulster Com-
panies secure the extension of their lines ; while the
Newry and Enniskillen—an undertaking which we have
frequently had the pleasure of noticinz with commenda-
tion—is likewise received with pleasure by the Board of
Trade."

PROBABLE QUANTITY QUANTITY OF IRON REQUIRED

FOR THE NEW RAILWAYS

It has been estimated, that out of the numerous railway
bills coming before Parliament next month, there will be
forty-five carried, or about one-fifth of the present appli-
cations. Taking these lines at an average length of forty
miles each, there will be 1800 miles of railway to be
formed, commencing from the autumn of this year, and
extending over 1846 ; for, though these lines will not be
all completed at that period, the deficiency may he more
than made up by the lines which were passed during last
session, and which are now being formed. A yard of
•railway requires 280 lbs. of rails, 98 lbs. of cast-iron
chairs, and about 701bs. of iron girders—making 4 cwts.
per yard, or 352 tons per mile. In addition to this, it is
pretty clearly ascertained, that en equal amount of iron is
,required for each mile, in waggons, carriages, stations,
engines, and locomotive establishments, &c.—making
700 tons of iron for each mile, or 1,260,000 tons for 180
miles of railways about to be constructed in this countr
or, as nearly as possible, the whole make of iron in Grea
Britain for one year. This is independent of the contrac
tors' rails, which are immense; and, if to this tremendou
consumption be added what will he required for the new
water and gas companies, the docks, and other great pub-
lic works, as well as the extra demand arising out of the
prosperous trade of the country, it can hardly be con-
ceived that our capabilities for the production of iron,
great as they are, will be sufficient to supply what will be
required. This is also entirely independent of our foreign
trade, and as railways are likely to be constructed in al-
most every country, the exports of iron must also be
greatly increased. Under these circumstances, there
can hardly be a question that iron must shortly be much
enhanced in value.—Mining Journal.