Railways and the State 277 



Great Western, the North-Eastern, the Midland, the Great 

 Northern and the Great Eastern. 



These considerations should be borne in mind by those 

 who might otherwise be disposed to criticise the attitude 

 adopted by the Government of 1845 towards the special 

 department here in question. 



The one experiment had been a failure with, as we have 

 seen, deplorable consequences for the country and serious 

 prejudice to bona fide railways ; but Committees of both 

 Houses, appointed in 1846, were now to recommend another. 

 They advised the creation of a Board of Commissioners of 

 Railways who were to discharge the dual functions of (i) 

 seeing that the railway companies did not contravene the 

 provisions of their special Acts or of any general Statutes ; 

 and (2) report to Parliament, if so directed, upon any pending 

 railway Bills. 



An Act to this effect was passed in 1846 ; but in the follow- 

 ing Session there was introduced a Bill which proposed greatly 

 to increase the powers of the Board of Commissioners. Clifford 

 says, concerning this Bill, that it made the Commissioners, 

 in effect, arbiters of all railway legislation. Promoters were 

 not even to survey an intended line until the Commissioners 

 gave permission. When the survey was made one of their 

 officers was to report upon the project. With them plans and 

 sections were to be deposited ; they were to examine into 

 compliance with Standing Orders and report to Parliament 

 upon engineering merits and proposed rates. Considerable 

 authority was also vested in them over existing railways. 

 They were to report annually to Parliament upon tolls, fares 

 and charges, and upon the regularity or irregularity of trains ; 

 and they might call for returns as to traffic and many other 

 details of management, inspect the books and documents of 

 railway companies, and settle disputes between companies 

 having termini or portions of line in common. 



" Parliament," Clifford further tells us, " was again jealous 

 of this proposed interference with legislation." The railway 

 companies also protested, and the measure was received with 

 such general disfavour that it was withdrawn before it reached 

 a second reading. As for the Board of Commissioners, instead 

 of getting more authority it got less. Part of its functions were 

 re-united to those of the Board of Trade in 1848, and the 



