308 



RAIL W A Y. 



Railway. ] O ad than the edge-rail represented in Figs. 3. and 4. 

 ' ~ ~' J in which the rail b c is set on edge on the principle 

 of joisting in house carpentry. The plate-rail is also 

 liable to be rutted or worn unequally, as will be obvious 

 on examining the action of the wheel c e d upon the 

 plate of the rail a b, Fig. 2. which, from the situation of 

 the rail, is much exposed to work among dust and small 

 stones, to the great disadvantage of the load, 

 whereas, the wheel c g h, Fig. 3. adapted to the edge- 

 rail, is much less exposed to accident from adventi- 

 tious matters. It has been observed of the wheels of 

 the edge-rail, that the rim c k is liable to wear unequal- 

 ly. This is, no doubt, an objection, but the evil does 

 not seem to be remedied by the use of the plate-rail, 

 the surface of which, as before noticed, is apt to be 

 rutted, so that the rails, when worn in this manner, 

 must be lifted and replaced by an operation greater, 

 and ultimately more expensive, than the occasional re- 

 newal of a waggon wheel. 



Of com- It is believed, that one of the chief advantages ori- 



mon carts ginally expected from the use of the plate-rail, was the 

 and rail- prospect of employing the cart in common use upon it, 

 as well as the waggon expressly constructed for the 

 railway. This would certainly, in many instances, 

 prove a great conveniency, but in others it would 

 prove a waste of labour. As for example, the horse and 

 man which brought a full load to town, could not ac- 

 complish its delivery. The adjustment of the wheels 

 of a carriage, intended for the common road, is also dif- 

 ferent from that suitable for the railway, so that where- 

 ever this has been attempted, it has been found highly 

 prejudicial to the road. It seems, therefore, better, up- 

 on the whole, to suppose the traffic to be carried on in 

 waggons specially constructed for the railway. In 

 the delivery of coal and such articles, an arrangement 

 might be made for lifting the body of the waggon upon 

 the wheels of a common cart, and so to be conveyed to 

 the houses of the consumers. 



To lay rails in a proper manner, so as to prevent 

 their getting loose, and thereby forming an irregular 

 track, it has long been a desideratum to preserve their 

 connected form, and at the same time to provide some- 

 what for the expansion of the metal. The edge, as 

 well as the plate- rail, is often so injudiciously laid, that 

 the surface of the track is kept too nearly upon a level 

 with the horse-path, and the wheels are thereby con- 

 tinually exposed to work in mud. This earthy stuff- 

 ing, in many instances seems to be pertinaciously 

 preserved round the rails, though it cannot be sup- 

 posed to add in the smallest degree to their stability. 

 It seems therefore much better to keep the rails wholly 

 above the level of the horse-path, without the use 

 of sleepers or cross-bars, a construction which may 

 be termed a Skeleton railway. The rails are thereby 

 set above the road, and being completely exposed, ad- 

 ditional facilities are afforded for drainage and repairs. 

 This mode of laying rails has been used with advantage 

 in various situations, particularly at Lord Elgin's ex- 

 tensive lime and coal works. The iron chairs or guides 

 into which the rails are fixed at the joints, and at regu- 

 lar distances between them, generally rest upon blocks 

 or props, marked a c, Fig. 1. measuring about eight 

 or ten inches square. In fixing plate-rails, a hole is per- 

 forated in the stone prop, and filled with an oaken plug. 

 The ends of the plate b b are brought together, and a 

 spike nail, with an elongated countersunk head is 

 driven into the plug, and in this simple, but not very 

 effective manner, the connexion is formed, and the 

 joints kept in their places, to which the addition of the 

 .saddle-piece, before noticed as in use at the Troon, 



Of laying 

 rails. 



has been found a great improvement. In fixing the Railway, 

 edge-rails, a great many methods have been adopt- v< ^~- /"*-' 

 ed, both in the form of the joint and construc- 

 tion of the chair or bed. That represented in Figs. 

 3. and 4. while it provides for the expansion of the 

 bars, seems to be as effectual and simple as any. 

 Fig. 4. is an elevation of the edge-rail, showing the 

 meeting of the two rails a b and a c at the point d, 

 where a joint is formed and commanded by the chair 

 a d a, in which an oblong square hole is formed through 

 which a strong iron spear bolt is driven, as shown in 

 the section a b c Fig. 3. These chairs are placed at 

 distances suited to the strength of the rail, and it seems 

 proper that at least three should be allowed to each fa- 

 thom of rail, every alternate chair to have a spear-bolt, 

 one being always introduced at the joints.. 



It has lately been proposed by Mr. Palmer, civil engi- Mr. Pal- 

 neer, to erect a single rail, supported upon standards of mer's rail- 

 timber, metal, or masonry, according to circumstances. wa y' 

 Upon this rail the load is to be contained in a sort of ba- 

 lance waggon, having a receptacle on each side of the rail, 

 on which it is to be suspended on the axles of two Wheels, 

 placed the one before the other. In the descriptive 

 account of this railway, Mr. Palmer has given many 

 useful remarks upon railways in general ; and dis- 

 cusses the difficulties to which the use of a single track 

 is incident in a very distinct and candid manner. In- 

 stead of square blocks of stone for supporting this single 

 rail, he proposes to use stakes of timber or cast-iron, the 

 downward ends ,of which are to be of a tapering form, 

 and notched in such a manner as to give resistance to 

 the pressure, a prop which, in many situations, may 

 be found convenient and suitable. 



Various opinions exist not only about the preferableOf wag- 

 form of rails, and modes of fixture, but also regardinggons, &c. 

 the weight or load proper to be carried upon them. 

 This was long regulated at the Newcastle collieries, by 

 making the waggon a measure of capacity connected 

 with the duty on the chaldron of coals carried coast- 

 wise ; when the waggon and its load were made to 

 weigh about four tons. The inconveniences of these 

 ponderous vehicles were for along period little attend- 

 ed to, especially on the tram or wooden railways, laid 

 with their whole length bearing upon the ground. But 

 when the expense of a metal railway, capable of sus- 

 taining such loads, came to be considered, the pro- 

 priety of using smaller waggons was obvious. Such 

 heavy loads are attended with much inconveniency ; 

 they distort the best laid rails by shaking the whole 

 fabric of the road, and ultimately produce much more 

 friction than the introduction of a few additional axles 

 in the- use of smaller waggons. When the wheels of 

 such vehicles get off the tracks, it becomes often a work 

 of great difficulty and stoppage to replace them. We 

 are, therefore, of opinion, that a load of from one 

 ton to a ton and a half, independently of the weight 

 of the waggon, should be the maximum upon four 

 wheels. The axles of the waggons should be made 

 straight, and the wheels set at right angles upon them, 

 and care taken that the whole is strong enough, not 

 only for working with a precise weight, but for sus- 

 taining the casualties of the road. Railway waggons 

 should not exceed the weight of ten or twelve cwt. ; 

 they are generally made of hardwood, and sometimes 

 of plate iron ; they ought to be of a square form, with 

 perpendicular sides, rather low and broad, which will 

 make them travel more steadily in stormy weather 

 than when they are high. To carry a ton and a half 

 of coals, for example, they will measure about six feet in 

 length, four feet in breadth, and 1^ foot in depth. 



