SECTION OF STEAM TRANSPORTATION. 125 



Chester, WoIvertOD, London, Southampton, Ilavre (France), Modane, 

 Mont Cenis tunnel, Milan (Italy), Venice, back to Milan, and through 

 the St. Gothard tunnel to Basle, Strasburg, Brussels, Cologne, Ant- 

 werp, and 'Sew York — over 11,000 miles. 



The great city of Loudon, 33 miles long and 22 wide, with the scores 

 of railway stations, its miles of underground rapid-transit roads, and 

 immense freight terminals, furnishes perhaps the most diversified field 

 of investigation in the universe to the engineer or railroad historian. 

 The management ot the signal box "A," at Waterloo station, Loudon 

 and South Western Eailway, under which more trains pass per day than 

 under any other box in the world, was most interesting. Notwithstand- 

 ing the fact that a dense fog, such as one only sees in London, was 

 prevailing at the time, the traffic inbound, which is very heavy about 

 9 a. m., was handled with comparative dispatch and perfect safety by 

 the interlocking-switch system. While I was in the box it was visited 

 by a government inspector, appointed by the board of trade, who ex- 

 amined the details of the working of the levers, and expressed satisfac- 

 tion that some changes in the mechanism which he had suggested at a 

 previous visit had been so promptly made. 



This surveillance by government officials is said to have been attended 

 by most beneficial results. 



As the extreme length of the British Isle is about 550 miles, what 

 we call here a long run is unknown there. The journey from London 

 (Euston Station) to Edinburgh, via the London, Northwestern and Cal- 

 edonian Kailways, 401 miles, via the 10 a. m. express, February 13, 

 1886, was made in a little less than ten hours, 541 minutes actual run- 

 ning time, at an average speed while running of 44J miles per hour. 

 The journey was made in a compartment with lavatory, in a carriage 

 which contained every convenience, for which a first-class fare of £3 As. 

 Od. was charged. This is a journey similar to that from Jersey City to 

 Pittsburgh, 444 miles, which is run by Pennsylvania Eailroad limited 

 express in 11 hours, with much better accommodations ; price of ticket, 

 including Pullman car, $13. 



Although luncheon baskets are generally to be had by telegraphing 

 auead on long journeys, it was not necessary in this case, since over thirty 

 minutes was consumed shunting carriages and transferring luggage at 

 the dining station. 



The city of Crewe bears the same relation to England that Altoona 

 does to the State of Pennsylvania, both being the mechanical head- 

 quarters of the most prominent railway in the region. Some idea of the 

 magnitude of the work carried on there may be gleamed from the fact 

 that I saw under one roof £150,000 ($750,000) worth of locomotives that 

 had never turned a wheel. 



Mr. Webb, the locomotive superintendent of the London and North- 

 western Bailway, who is in charge at Crewe, explained to me that they 

 found it cheaper to get their stock of one class of work up in a large 



