blems, but fresh Parliamentary powers had to be obtained to construct
a branch from Llynclys to the Porthywaen lime quarries, and even a little
addition of this sort involved endless correspondence over details and
other wearing worries. Difficulties of another sort, more formidable,
began to appear. The Earl of Powis, whose influence counted for so much,
expressing regret for certain differences which had arisen in relation to
the policy of the Board, wrote to Sir Watkin resigning his seat, adding
the warning note, "I think you should for your own sake watch somewhat
jealously the proceedings with regard to the contract." Sir Watkin
hastened to assure his lordship of the "grief and astonishment" which his
withdrawal had occasioned his colleagues and to deprecate divisions at
critical hours.

And it certainly was a critical hour. Money was urgently wanted,
borrowing was barred until provisions of the Act were complied with, and
though an attempt by Mr. Barlow to seek an injunction in Chancery failed
after a hard struggle, the contract had to be dissolved in order to
substitute an arrangement by which payment could be made by shares and
debentures in lieu of cash. It was on this account that Messrs. Davidson
and Oughterson, who had earlier succeeded Messrs. Thornton and McCormick,
in turn gave place to the men who had already come to the rescue of the
Newtown and Llanidloes undertaking.

The arrangements by which these early undertakings were "leased" to the
contractors has been the subject of controversy among railway financial
experts, but they were stoutly defended in a letter to the "Times"
shortly after the completion of most of them by Mr. David Davies himself,
who claimed that by this means "Wales had the benefit of something like
700 miles of railway which would not have been made for at least another
century if we had waited for the localities to subscribe the necessary
funds." In the present case, at any rate, Mr. Savin's efforts at
financial re-establishment were the outcome of the suggestion of the
North Western, warmly supported by the Great Western party, including the
Chairman himself, who had become practically liable for 75,000 pounds, if
the railway was not made and the company set upon a sound footing. To
set free the powers of the Company no less than 45,000 pounds had to be
paid down, no small task with subscriptions to the share list not easy to
obtain. Yet, that Mr. Savin accomplished--and