72 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[Mabch, 



at Livcrpnnl, it nould lie 1 ft. 1 in. liiglier at high water at EUesmere Port, aii<l 

 lifteeii minutes later in arrivine at that point; 1 ft. 10 in. higher at Runcorn, 

 an<l would be thirtv-five minutes later than at Liverpool ; it would be 1 ft. 

 U in. higher at Fiddler's Ferrv. one hour after it was high water at Liverpool ; 

 it would be 2 ft. 3 in. hiEher'at Warrington bridge, 1 hour 25 minutes after 

 it was high water at Liverpool. Without going through the details of each 

 observation, the mean of three sprinci tides was 1 ft. 1 in. higher at EUesmere, 

 1 ft. 10 in. at Runcorn, 1 ft. 8 in. at Fiddler's Ferry, 2 ft. 3 in. at Warrington. 

 On the mean of the three neap tides, of the 8th, 9th, and 10th of June, 

 there was still an elevation, hut it was reduced on account of the stream not 

 heing so strong at the gorge, to .5 inches at EUesmere Port, 11 inches at 

 Itiincnrn, 10 inches at Fiddler's Ferry, and only 9 inches at Warrington ; 

 these differences are due to the differences of the neap and spring tides, or 

 in other words, the differences of the velocities through the gorge are as 

 8 inches at EUesmere Port, 11 inches at Runcorn, 10 inches at Fiddler's 

 Ferry, 1 ft. G in. at Warrington ; and it folU.ws, that anything that would 

 strengthen the velocity through tlie gorge at neaps, would necessarily tend 

 to make the approximation nearer between the elevations at those different 

 places at neap tides, as compared with springs. 



The diflerence in the quantity of water which passes up the estuary at 

 springs and neaps, I have taken from Captain Denham's survey ; and if you 

 could get the water at neap tides to stand at all ttiose diiferenl points with 

 the same differences above the Prince's dock as it does at springs, you would 

 pet an increased quantity of water (18,000,000 or 20,000,000 of yards) up 

 the estuary; any increase of the momentum in the gorge would tend to in- 

 crease the'quantity going up. The observations led me to that conclusion, 

 and I come to no otlier from the phenomena; at all events I am perfectly 

 convinced that all the water that now passes into Wallasey Pool, would go 

 up into the estuary. It is a mathematical question which I am not going to 

 touch, whether more would go up; but philosophers have endeavoured to 

 show, that a bulb upon a pipe (all other things being equal) would prevent 

 the same quantity of water being discharged as would be discharged in the 

 same time if the pipe were parallel, and this is a similar case, but I am not 

 going into that question." 



Rrindnm Hints on Railways and Railway Legislation. By Alex- 

 ANDKR DouLi., C.E., Assoc. Inst. C.E. London : Weale, 184.8. 



Tliis is a timely warning against the hill of the Railway Commis- 

 sioners, particularly addressed to the engineering profession. It 

 is so clear and practical, that we hope it will not be without its 

 ))roper effect; at any rate, Mr. DouU deserves the warmest thanks 

 for this exposure of the mischievous measures of the commis- 

 sioners. 



After showing the inconsistencies of the standing orders, and 

 explainintr the process adopted in preparing a line of railway for 

 parliamentary examination, Mr. DouU goes on to analyse the 

 .amended hill. The chief amendment is the lowering the deposit 

 by way of security from £500 to £'200 ; but which for a line of 

 200 miles, would still leave the enormous sum of £40,000 in the 

 hands of the Railway Commissioners, to be fooled away in such 

 manner as they may'think fit, — but which, at all events, is a seri- 

 ous impediment in the way of all new lines of railway. Mr. DouU 

 very well observes, that the commissioners are quite ready enough 

 to do work for the money, — indeed, the vvay in which they make 

 work would deserve credit for its ingenuity, if it were not so ob- 

 jectionable from its decidedly mischievous tendency. 



As is very well known, a preliminary survey, often extending 

 over miles in breadth, is necessary to select the line which is to be 

 surveyed in detail. No provision, howe\er, seems to be made for 

 this, or the bill is inconsistent with its performance. Most proba- 

 bly, Colonel Brandreth and Sir Edward Ryan are unaware how the 

 survey of a railwiiy is carried out. Tiie fourth clause of the bill 

 requires that " the promoters of any proposed railway shall apply 

 to the commissioners for authority to make the surveys necessary 

 to enable them to determine the line and level of such railway," 

 &c. ; but the fifth clause requires that " ten clear days at the least 

 before making such application, the said promoters shall give 

 notice by advertisements, each in the same words and form, in the 

 London Gazette and in some newspaper published or circulating in 

 each county through which the railway is proposed to pass, such 

 intended application specifying the course of the line of such rail- 

 way, " ^c. 



Of course this cannot be done without a preliminary survey, and 

 how is this to be effected ten clear days before the engineer can 

 apply to the commissioners for leave to go over the ground ? 



Again, if this notice and this permission be as a protection to 

 the occupiers, it is difficult to conceive how a notice is to be framed 

 to cover the wide extent of country over which it is necessary for 

 the engineer to go, if he is to choose the best line of railway. 



It is evident to all practical men that a very large expense must 

 be incurred for advertising voluminous notices (drawn uj) liy law- 

 yers) in the Lomlun Gazette and a number of country newspapers. 



It will be worth the while of the enterprising proprietor of the 

 Snrrey Times to publish it all the year round, instead of bringing 

 it out as now for the occasion of the advertisements of intended 

 applications to parliament for rail-.vay bills.. 



Mr. DouU thinks from the sixth clause that the permission to 

 snrvey only extends to the very lands through which the proposed 

 line of railway is to pass. If so, a large sum of money has to be 

 paid down, much time has to he wasted, and a cumbrous process to 

 be gone through, for a permission which is worth very little. 



The tenth clause, regulating the return of any remaining portion 

 of the £200, provides that " one month after the bill for giving 

 power to make the railway, in respect of which such deposit was 

 made, shall have passed or been thrown out or withdrawn by leave 

 of either House of Parliament, the commissioners shall by a draft 

 or cheque signed by two of the commissioners order the balance 

 standing to their (the depositors) account, in respect of such de- 

 posit, to he paid to the i)romoters by whom the deposit was made." 

 — Mr. DouU observes, that the framers of the hill do not appear to 

 have contemplated the return of any portion of the deposit to 

 those promoters who may not advance so far as the threshold of 

 the legislature. AVe may add, that there is an opening for litiga- 

 tion, in case of any dispute among the promoters of a new com- 

 pany, such as has hajjpened before, and snch as may happen again, 

 under the auspices of Mr. Spackman and others. If Mr. Spack- 

 man should give notice to the commissioners not to return the 

 remaining deposit to the committee of the railway company, the 

 commissioners may be very well disposed to act upon the hint, and 

 wait for the direction of a court of law. 



The thirteenth clause provides that "before the said promoters, 

 or any of their officers enter upon any lands to survey the same, 

 or to mark out the line of their proposed railway, as hereinafttr 

 mentioned, they shall give to the occupying tenant thereof not less 

 than two nor more than seven days' notice in writing of their in- 

 tention to enter and survey the lands." The object of giving not 

 less than two days' notice explains itself, but the restriction as to 

 not giving more than seven days' notice must often be most incon- 

 venient to surveyors and engineers, for within seven days many 

 circumstances may occur to delay the survey, while no inconveni- 

 ence can accrue to the occu]iying tenant from any length of notice. 

 Under this clause, it might frequently become necessary to serve a 

 fresh notice, the finst seven days' notice having expired. 



Mr. DouU contends, and with justice, that the number of occu- 

 piers who would require to be noticed previously to commencing 

 the survey or levels, would be considerably more than tlie number 

 at present necessarily iiK-luded in a railway book of reference, even 

 supposing the survey to extend only to the usual breadth of 20 or 

 30 chains. It would therefore be necessary to get up a reference- 

 book before commenoiug the survey ; and this would be attended 

 with very great expense, besides the risk of some occupier being 

 left without a reference. 



The fourteenth clause is in keeping with the rest. It enacts, 

 that " the said jiromoters shall mark out the line of the propose 1 

 railway by means of stakes fixed in the ground not more than thirty 

 yards apart, and in such manner as clearly to point out the pro- 

 posed line of such railway ; and they shall put up posts along the 

 line, so marked out at convenient distances for the purpose of 

 showing the level of such line, and shall mark on such posts in 

 legible characters the number of feet and inches at which the 

 rails are proposed to be laid above or below the surface of the 

 ground." 



Our readers will agree with Mr. DouU, that staking out a line 

 of railway, and exhibiting the levels in feet and inches along the 

 line, is a very difficult and complex operation. He estimates that 

 it would double the expense of preparing parliamentary plans and 

 sections. A higher class of surveyors would have to be employed, 

 and a number of devices must be resorted to and superior instru- 

 ments used to stake <iut curves of given radii with accuracy, in the 

 face of the numerous obstacles to he encountered, and of the 

 variety of circumstances to be met with, on an extended survey. 



As more damage must he done by staking out the line than by 

 an ordinary survey, another ch.arge will he imposed on the compa- 

 nies, and further claims for compensation be given to the land- 

 owners and occupiers. 



A new set of parties must be employed in painting the leveU 

 posts. 



What good is to be got from stating, in "inches," a level which 



will differ whether the land be (iloughed or unploughed, whether it 



he trenched or in grass, we do not profess to see. It can only 



cause a serious expense without answering any useful purpose. 



At present, staking out is delayed to the period when it can be 



