326 History of Inland Transport 



Chaplin and Home, which became exclusive agents for the 

 London and Birmingham Railway. When the London and 

 South-Western Railway Company found themselves faced 

 with serious difficulties he devoted alike his means, his ex- 

 perience and his energies to helping them out of their trouble, 

 rendering services so invaluable to the company that he 

 soon became deputy chairman of the line, and was raised to 

 the chairmanship in 1842. Another coach proprietor, Sher- 

 man, who had had a large number of coaches running be- 

 tween London and Birmingham, threw in his lot with the 

 Great Western Railway as soon as it was opened, and did 

 much of the London carrying business in connection with 

 that line. 



Other coach proprietors there were who, less far-sighted, 

 or less fortunate, held on to their old enterprises, influenced, 

 it may be, by the views of such authorities as Sir Henry 

 Parnell, who, in the second edition of his " Treatise on Roads " 

 (1838), declared in reference to railways : 



" The experience which has been gained from those already 

 completed, and from the enormous expense incurred on those 

 which are in progress, has led to a general opinion that there 

 is little probability of more than a few of these works affording 

 any ultimate return for the money expended upon them. 



" The heavy expense which is proved by experience to be 

 unavailable in keeping the railways and engines in repair, 

 where great speed is the object, will in numerous cases soon 

 make it evident that no dividends can be paid to the share- 

 holders, and the cheaper method of using horse-power will be 

 adopted. . . . 



" The attaining of the speed of 25 or 30 miles an hour, at 

 such an enormous expense, cannot be justified on any principle 

 of national utility. The usefulness of communication, in a 

 national point of view, consists principally in rendering the 

 conveyance of all the productions of the soil and of industry 

 as cheap as possible. . . . But a speed of 10 miles an hour 

 would have accomplished all these purposes, and have been of 

 great benefit to travellers, while it could have been attained 

 at from one half to one third of the expense which has been 

 incurred by the system that has been acted upon. It is no 

 doubt true that travelling at the rate of 25 or 30 miles an 

 hour is very convenient, but how it can be made to act so as 



