MEETING OF THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION. 121 



The attraction at the evening meeting at the Rotundo was Dr. 

 Lardner's lecture on steam-carriages — and it must be allowed that 

 much gratification was the result of the clear and able manner in 

 which he treated the subject. After commenting on their national 

 utility^ and on the improvements which were likely to add to their 

 convenience and speed, he glanced briefly at the great lines of com- 

 munication which are projected: the most forward is the line between 

 Liverpool and London — a railway is to run from Liverpool to Bir- 

 mingham, and from Birmingham to meet the Manchester railway 

 at a point about half way to Liverpool — this railway will be two 

 hundred miles long; there is a magnificent viaduct over the valley 

 of the Ouse, a mile and a quarter long, and several tunnels — one 

 under Primrose-hill, close to the Regent's Park, of half a mile, ano- 

 ther a mile and a half, with several of shorter lengths. By this 

 railroad, even were no further improvement to be effected in the 

 speed of the engines beyond the ordinary rate of travelling, the jour- 

 ney from London to Liverpool would be effected in ten hours ; but, 

 as it is probable that carriages built expressly for the purpose of 

 speed, which has never yet been made the object of attention, could 

 keep up during the whole way the rate of 40, 50, or even 60 miles 

 an hour, — which speed has been attained on the Kingstown railway, 

 in experimental trips, — the mail might be conveyed from London to 

 Liverpool in three hours and a half. Dr. Lardner then referred to 

 a map on which all the projected railroads were marked — one from 

 London to Southampton, another from London to Bristol. It was 

 impossible to calculate the moral, political, and commercial effects of 

 these railroads. It was found that the making a railroad trebled 

 the intercourse along the line. The intercourse between London 

 and Liverpool was 1,300 persons a day, as ascertained by stamp re- 

 turns. The intercourse between London and the three towns he 

 had mentioned was annually a million and a quarter — very nearly 

 the amount of the whole population of the metropolis. Other rail- 

 roads were projected to York, Edinburgh, and Lincoln; and last — 

 not least — one that he trusted yet to see — the highway to New 

 York ; he meant the projected one to Valentia — (renewed and loud 

 cheering). From this the greatest good must follow ; steam packets 

 could ply from Valentia to Halifax in twelve days, and thus the 

 whole intercourse with America be brought within the reach of 

 steam navigation ; ail passengers from the western world would 

 then pass through Ireland, and he (Dr. Lardner) knew of no pro- 

 ject more calculated to tranquillize and enrich Ireland than the con- 

 struction of the proposed railway, in the line of which there is no 

 insuperable obstacle — (great cheering). Our transatlantic brethren 

 had done much in constructing railroads, which were not inferior to 

 ours, as had been erroneously stated — 46 were completed, and 137 

 either completed or in progress; one was now projecting from Balti- 

 more to the vale of the Ohio, which would be 330 miles in length. 

 QThe learned Professor concluded his interesting lecture, which was 

 one of the most popular, and the clearest exposition of scientific 



