Railways a National Industry 425 



It will be seen that while the subjects for Part I. cover 

 the practical work at a station, those for Part II. deal more 

 with the principles of railway operation. To assist clerks in 

 preparing for these tests the company have issued several 

 brief textbooks ; they have arranged for the delivery of 

 series of lectures ; they are utilising railway institutes for the 

 purpose of instruction, and they offer facilities for the circula- 

 tion of standard works on railway subjects. The company 

 also conduct at various centres railway block-telegraph 

 signalling instruction classes fully provided with the necessary 

 apparatus, examinations being held and certificates awarded. 



Coming next to what is being done by educational bodies 

 working in connection with railway companies, reference 

 should first be made to the London School of Economics and 

 Political Science. 



Railway transport is a subject in which the authorities of 

 the school have always taken great interest, and in the session 

 of 1896-7 a course of lectures on railway economics was given 

 at the school by Mr W. M. Acworth. On this occasion the 

 Great Western Railway Company paid the fees for members 

 of their staff to attend the course. When Mr Acworth gave 

 a further series of lectures in 1897-8, the Great Eastern Rail- 

 way Company also paid the fees for members of their staff 

 who desired to attend. In 1904 seven of the leading railway 

 companies gave a definite guarantee which allowed of a more 

 elaborate system of railway instruction being organised at 

 the school (now one of the schools of the University of London, 

 as reconstructed in 1900). Under the scheme in question a 

 complete course of instruction is given in the " History, 

 Theory and Present Organisation of Transport," leading up, 

 if desired, to the degree of B.Sc. (Econ.), with honours in 

 transport. The course is_umdfi1^ general supervision of a 

 " Committee of Governors on Railway Subjects," consisting 

 of five prominent members of the railway world. The lectures 

 are as follows : 



(A) Courses on railway subjects : 



1. Railway economics : operating (20 lectures). 



2. Railway economics : commercial (20). 



3. Economics of railway construction and locomotive 



operation (20). 



4. The law of carriage by railways (20). 



