194 REPORT—1840. 
and had also ‘thus designed all the government railways to the south 
and west of England. On the second system was the Bolton and Man- 
chester Railway, by the late Mr. Nimmo, Mr. Macneill’s government 
railway lines to the north districts of Ireland; and that engineer had 
lately altered the Dublin and Kilkenny, and the Dublin and Drogheda 
Railways, from better but more expensive gradients, to those on the 
second system; and Mr. Vignoles was about to apply it to the Dubiin 
and Kingstown Railway ; and he had set out the whole extent of the 
Sheffield and Manchester Railway, for 40 miles, on an average gradient 
of nearly 40 feet per mile, mixed with occasional inclinations of 1 in 
100, and with curves of one-third mile radius. Mr. Giles had also 
adopted the same system on the first ten miles eastward of the New- 
castle and Carlisle Railway. 
Mr. Vignoles went on to state, that on either one or both of these 
systems, introduced as might be considered most advantageous by the 
directing engineer, lines of railway might be laid out so as not to ex- 
ceed 10,000/. per mile, being particularly applicable where fertile, 
populous, and manufacturing districts, or the metropolis, with the 
extremes of the empire, had to be connected through difficult and 
unproductive districts. When a continued stream of heavy traffic jus- 
tified the expense, Mr. Vignoles saw no reason to vary from the general 
rules adopted hitherto by engineers for laying out railways, or from 
his own former opinions and practice. But it was forced on him by 
daily experience, that, to accommodate the public convenience, the 
Post Office arrangements, and business in general, it was scarcely once 
in twenty times that a locomotive engine went out with more than half 
its load, and in general the engines were only worked up to two-fifths 
of their full power: he was, therefore, conclusively of opinion, that it 
was much cheaper to put on additional engines on extraordinary occa- 
sions ; and on such principles railways should be constructed through 
the more remote parts of the country, so as to be made in the cheapest 
possible manner. The possession of all the profitable lines of railway 
by private companies, was likely to throw on the government the onus 
of constructing theirlines through such districts, inwhich case economy 
was desirable: or, if not to be constructed by the government, then 
was ceconomy still more important ; for Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and 
the western and eastern parts of England would be deficient in rail- 
ways, until some such system as those now promulgated could be 
brought to bear in the laying out lines of internal communication. 
On Extinguishing Fire in Steam Vessels. By Mr. Watvace. 
Mr. Wallace proposes to effect this by steam itself. The plan has 
been some time before the public, and many successful experiments 
made in the presence of sciéntifie persons. Among the most important 
was the following, made on board the Leven steam-boat:—On the 
cabin floor, a space of ten feet by fourteen was covered with wet sand, 
on which was laid iron plates, and on these a fire was kindled with 
