The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-08-23 00:00:00

GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY MEETING.

The half-yearly general meeting of the Great Western
Railway Company was held at the terminus, Bristol, on
Thursday, Mr. Charles Russell, M.P., in the chair.
The Chairman said, the report which the directors had
had the pleasure to lay before them that morning was so full
on every point, that it would be unnecessary for him to de-
tain the meeting with many observations. The receipts for
traffic during the last half-year had not been quite so large
as in the preceding one, but that was to be fully accounted
for, by its being the winter half-year, in which the receipts
never were so large, and by the depressed state of trade; he
was, however, happy to say, that their receipts would bear a
comparison with those of any other railway in the kingdom.
The directors were happy to say that they were enabled to
declare a dividend upon the half-year of 3 per cent.
The report stated, that the gross receipts during the six
months ending the 30th of June, 1842, were £310,87 16s. 2d.
for the three lines.—Great Western, Cheltenham, and Great
Western Union, and the Bristol and Exeter. Of this sum,
£273,877 12s. 4d. had been received on the Great Western
Railway exclusively. The line having been only partially
opened at the same period last year, no perfect comparison
could be made of the receipts. They were, however, only
£187,780 16s. 2d. for an average distance of about 100 miles,
as contrasted with £273,877 12s. 4d. for a distance of 118*
miles. The falling off in reveaue during the first six
months of 1842 as compared with the last six months
was £26,480 18s., which was accounted for by the dif-
ferent season. The number of passengers conveyed for
the last half-year, was 736,571. The conveyance of
merchandise had increased during the last half-year, not-
withstanding the general depression of trade, presenting
an augmentation of £7,612 ss. 7d. over the former half-
year. The directors considered this item susceptible of
considerable increase ; but they had a vigorous compe-
tition of water carriage to contend with, and they felt
that it would be necessary to proceed with caution in redo-
cing their charges, lest they should be losers in the carriage
of koods for local purposes for which there was no competi-
tion. The report referred particularly to the articles of
stone and coals, and stated that measures had already been
taken to improve that branch of traffic. The expense for
the past half-year had somewhat exceeded those of the pre-
ceding period, which was accounted for by the augmentation
of the accommodations for the merchandise traffic, and by
the expenses of the accident at Sonning cutting. The main-
tenance of way had also been heavier, which was to be ac-
counted for by the repairs necessary from the wet weather.
The maintenance of way had now been let by contract, at an
average of less than £3 per mile per week for the 1474 miles.
The expenses in ratio to the receipts was 41 per cent. The
balance of interest on loans during the last half-year was
£72,438 Is. 7d. ; this sum, with £8,500 to the Cheltenham
and Great Western Union Railway Company, and £17,237
Os. lid. to the Bristol and Exeter Railway, being defrayed
out of the general revenue account, a balance remained of
£93,355 6s. Bd. The directors declared a dividend of 3 per
cent. for the half-year on the capital called up, to be paid on
the Ist of September next. This was the same dividend as
that paid in March, and would amount to £90,750, leaving an
undivided balance of £2,605 6s. 9d. for the current half-year.
The property-tax for one quarter of a year from the sth April
would be deducted from the present dividend. A call of £8
per share on the fifths of shares would be made in Jan. next,
to liquidate the debentures on loan notes then falling due. A
report having been circulated that an eminent geologist had
given an opinion that the Box tunnel was insecure, the Presi-
dent of the Board of Trade had ordered an inspection of the
tunnel by Gen. Pasley, inspector-general of railways, who had
reported it perfectly secure. The report stated that the Chel-
tenham and Great Western Union Railway Company had
obtained further powers from Parliament, which enabled
them to treat for the purchase of the finished portion of the
line, and for its completion. The directors had been in com-
munication with that company, and were of opinion that the
most desirable mode of obtaining a continuous line of rail-
way from the Great Western to Cheltenham, as well as traf-
fic from South Wales, &c., would be by an undertaking on
the part of the Great Western Company to lease the lines at
a fixed rental, when completed, for a stated number of years ;
and the report concluded by asking the proprietors to give
their sanction to a negotiation with the Cheltenham Com-
pany being entered on for that purpose, the result to be sub-
mitted to a special meeting.
Mr. Oventon rose to propose the adoption of the report,
with the exception of the 3 per cent. dividend, in lieu of
which he proposed that the reserved fund of £20,000 should
be abolished, and a dividend of 31 per cent. declared.
The motion having been seconded, an amendment, viz.,
" That the report be adopted," was moved by Mr. W.
Roskell, and a long debate ensued ; after which the amend-
ment was put and carried. Resolutions declaratory of the
dividend, empowering the directors to negociate with the
Cheltenham Company, and the usual resolutions of form,
were then carried, and the meeting, which was at one period
a very stormy one, broke up at half-past four o'clock.