1840.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



2S9 



above. The tariff fcir the first is 40 cents, per ton, or 4 cents, per kilometre. 

 .or per 100 kilogrramines ; for the second, or all above 1.000 kilogrammes, tlie 

 invariable charge for all kiml.s, whether by measuie or weisht. is 1.31 cents. 

 per ton. There is a dillerence. however, in regard of the location of the 

 waggons, which may be .supposed to be optional with the carriers, and is 

 charged in that case 18 cents, per ton. These rates arc provisional only, and 

 are so headed in the list of charges, as " provisional tarifls for the carriage 

 of inerehandise."' It is hoped that by improvements, savings in expense, 

 and the increase of traffic, these rates liiay yet come to be reduced. 



It is singular that in the face of this extraordinary increase of railway 

 traffic, the travelling and carriage on common roads iri Relgium should not 

 only not have diminished, but progressively been on the increase, Tiie con- 

 trarr was universally anticipated there, as here, where in many localities 

 sucli a result has been verified. The following statement of the pro<iuce of 

 the peage des barrieres, answering to our turnpike tolls, will show how the 

 case has worked in Belgium : — The produce of the perige tolls leMO the highest 

 tender in 1 1-31 w as 2.390.882 francs ; in 1832, 2.19.5.343f. : in 1 833, 2.3t0,4(jlf ; 

 in 18.34. 2.41.5.769f. : in 1835, 2.38.5.4.30f ; in 1836. 2,447,9S5f. ; in 1837, 

 2,584.791f. ; in 1838, 2,759.548f. ; in 1839, 2,749.301f. 



M. Nothomb, the Belgian Minister, gives as the result of his calculations 

 the following comparative analysis of the advantages resulting to the public 

 in time and m' ney between tlie ancient mode of travelling by diligence ami 

 the railroad system, at the least increase of rates by ihe tarill of 1839. The 

 mean result is stated to amount to a " saving of one half in time, and of 33 

 per cent, upon fares.'' The saving in price is thus subdivided : by diligence 

 or first class carriages. 15 per cent. : by open carriages. 30 per cent. : by 

 waggons, 60 per cent. The more humble orders of society profit, therefore, 

 most largely, as ought to be the case everywhere, by the establishment of 

 r- ilroads. In Belgium, where the railroads'were undertaken directly by the 

 state, a consummation so desirable was. of course, more easy to carry in:o 

 eft'ect at any time. But (he fact may sufiice to show, that here it shoul i 

 have been the business of the legislature to introduce stipulations into all 

 railway bills which would have secured the same proportionate advantages 

 in favour of the lower classes. — Times, July 6. 



Edinhnrgh and Glasgow RaUimij. — The following particulars respeciing this 

 important undertaking are abridged from the Gln.sgoir Cmislifutimiiil of Satur- 

 day, the 4th ult. — The works on the line from Edinburgh to the Almond 

 Valley, a distance of about eight miles, have recently been commenced, but 

 tliey are neither of a difficult nor of an expensive character, 'ihe line will be 

 carried across the valley by means of a viaduct of 36 arches, of 50 feet span, 

 and vary from 60 to 85 feet high. Near this point it has been found, on 

 levelling some of the embankments formed last year, that the subsidence was 

 only three inches, although the earth had been raised so as to allow /A inches 

 to "subside. This arises from the mixed character of the materials used 

 (stones, blaxe, Sec.,) and will prove a great saving in the future maintenance 

 of the line. Onwards to the west, the line passes through the Winchburgh 

 H'liinstone Ridge, and here is a tunnel of 360 yards, of w hich 250 yards are 

 compleled. This important v.oik is proceeding rapidly. The Avon and the 

 valley through which it runs are crossed by a stone viaduct of 20 arches, 

 some of them upw ards of 90 feet high. This will be a beautiful piece of ma- 

 sonry, and will give increased eftect to the picturesque views of the Avon 

 valley. The approach to Falkirk presents many fine views ot the Carse and 

 the ft'ith of Forth. The high ground immediately behind Falkirk is crossed 

 by a tunnel of 880 yanls. of which '270 are completed, and the drift mines 



greatly advanced. The view, on emerging from the west end of the tunnel, 

 ursts on the eye, with the panoramic etl'cct of a splendid land.^cape — the 

 foreground — the rich valley of the Forth, w itli .Stirling Castle in the centre — 

 Benledi and the Oehil Hills, marking out the margin of the plain, and Ben- 

 lomond and the Grampians filling up the picture in the distance — the wdiole 

 forming an assemblage of objects of surpassing natural beauty. The line, 

 after crossing the Union Canal which it -Joes on a magnificent arch of 130 

 feet span, continues nearly level for some miles, is of easy execulion. and is 

 partly finished, and possesses no feature of engineering interest, until it 

 re.ach'es the neighbourhood of Castlecary, where it crosses the CumLernauld 

 road, and a deep ravine, by a viaduct of eight arches, nearly 100 feet liigh — 

 the one end tenninating on an embankment, and the other resting on the re- 

 mains of a Roman camp. Here will be the station for Stirling and towns to 

 the north of the Forth. The line beyond Castlecary commands an e-Vtensive 

 view of the valley. Croymill is the summit of the line, and here there is an 

 excavation of a ridge ot whinstonc and Ireestone of considerable depth, pre- 

 senting no difficuliy. lio» ever, but w hat time may overcome. At Co« lairs, 

 near Glasgow, will be erected the engine establishment ; and here the fixed 

 engines will be placed to work the tunnel to Queen Street. The incline w ill 

 be about 2.000 yards, consisting of open cut and a tunnel, divided by eyes 

 into three portions of 550. 300. and 298 yards. From the head of this incline 

 to Edinburgh, the ruling gradient is 1 iii 880 ; presenting, in the facilitv and 

 cheapness of working it. almost all the advantages ot a level line, of which 

 two-thirds arc nearly level. The distance being 46 miles, the mail trains will 

 easily run it in one hour and a half. Upwards of 400 yards of the tunnel are 

 completed, and upw ards of 200 yards of Guide Mine is carried forward. The 

 contract are all let to be completed by the 1st of August, 1841. and the en- 

 gineer is directing his energies to realise the opening of this great national 

 undertaking by that time. Much work is done, and this has been greatly 

 advanced by the late fine weather, but a great deal is still to do. There are 

 employed on the line, how ever, upwards of 8,000 men, horses to correspond, 

 and ten or twelve fi.xed engines; and, if the weather prove auspicious, this 

 force is adequate to the w ork. 



Hull and Seldy Railway. — The importance of this railway, of the ojiening 

 of which more detailed notice will be found in another part of the Journal, 

 justities a few remarks of our own. It is comparatively but little known in 

 London or in the share market, partly from the shares being held chiefly by 

 parties in and near Hull, and partly from one of the termini, Selby, being a 

 small town upon the banks of the Humber, or more correctly the Ouse. and 



many thinking that this is a branch from a main line terminating at Seliiy. To 

 con-ect this impression, the name " of Hull and Leeds Junction," has lately 

 been added in the Director's reports, which gives a better idea of the oiiject 

 of the line, although it is less correct, as the Leeds and Selby connects the 

 Hull and Selby line with Leeds, Selby being an intermediate station. The 

 Hull and Selby may, indeed, with equal truth be called the Hull and York, 

 or the Hull and Liverpool, or even the Hull and London, as the Hull and 

 Leeds, because, with the intervention of other railways, it connects Hull with 

 the metropolis and the other places we have named. In this remark on the 

 name we by no means intend to undervalue the importance of this railway, 

 and the very projierties we have named of so many lines being connected 

 into one or diverging from it, is proof of our opinion that it ought to be .and 

 will be better known to the public than it hitherto has been. In the more 

 extended sense, it forms the eastern link of the chain of railways which, 

 when the Manchester and Leeds is opened, will join the Irish Sea, and the 

 Atlantic with the German Ocean and the North of Europe. Mith the ex- 

 ception of the bridge over the Ouse, constructed so as to allow ships to pass 

 through, some other bridges, and a long embankment upon the Humber, 

 there has been hut little of expensive engineering works to contend with. 

 This railway is 31 miles long, is practically straight and level, excepting the 

 short lengths at the bridges, and to these unusual facilities arc, we suppose, in 

 a great measure, to be ascribed the rather unusual facts, that both the ways 

 of this line have been completed without a second application to Parliament 

 for additional power to borrow money, or otherwise, and that the Directors 

 have been enabled to complete both the ways before they opened any part to 

 the public. 



Tlie America}) Engines on the Birmingliam and Gloucester Rnilwny. — fCo?v.) 

 To W. GwvNN, Esq. — Sir, — In rcjily to your request, 1 now briell'y give you 

 the results of our trials with the Philadelpiiia engine (manufactured by Mr. 

 Noiris, of Philadelphia, U. S..) and the following are the iacts up to the 

 present time. 7fi chains in the incline of 1 in 37J have been made ready with 

 a single way, and 3 chains nearly level have been laid temporarily to rest 

 upon" before starting. The road is quite new. and consequently not firm nor 

 well gauged, and the works going on close at hand occasionally cover the 

 rails with dirt. The waggons used are of a large class, like those on the 

 Siancbester and Leeds Line, and weigh, when empty, rather more than 2i 

 tons, but having been sent fresh from the shops a few days ago. they worfc 

 very stiffly. They are loaded with 4 tons, and generally wei,i;h, including 

 persons upon them, about 6^ tons The Philadelphia weighs fas she works') 



12 tons 3 ewt.. and her tender weighs nearly 7 tons, being in all 19 tons. 

 She has 12i incli cylinders. "20 inch stroke. 4 feet wheel, not coupled. The 

 weight on her driving wheels is 6\ tons, (as I weighed her at Liverpool,) 

 without water. The usual loads she takes in the present state of the plane 

 are— eight waggons, engine, and tender, w ith persons equal to 74 tons, gross 

 weight, in ten minutes, or nearly 6 miles per hour ; the last quarter of a mile 

 being at the rate of OJ miles per hour. Seven waggons, &c.. equal to 67i 

 tons, gross weight, in about 9 minutes, or 6i miles per hour mean speed. 

 Six waggons. &:c., equal to 61 tons, gross weight, in sometimes 5\ and some- 

 times 61 minutes, say in 6 minutes average, or 9 miles per hour mean speed ; 

 the last'quarter of a mile usually giving a speed of nearly U miles per hour. 

 Five w.agaons, equal to about 53 tons gross, are usually taken at a speed of 



13 miles per hour for the last half mile up. The foregoing results have gene- 

 rally occurred during fine weathr-r. but sometimes the rails have been par- 

 tially wet. and this has occasioned a difference of speed in the ascent of from 

 ha'f a minute to a minute and a half. 'J'he worst day we have had was the 

 19lh instant, when drizzlirg showers, and the men svalking over the rails 

 »ith marl on their boots, rendered the way very greasy and slippery. On 

 this day, also, the lower part of the plane had been tbrmed only a few hours, 

 and was very soft and badly gauged. Under these circumstances, the Phila- 

 delphia took five waggons a'nd self and tender, being a gross weight, including 

 persons, of about 53 tons, up at a mean rate of rather more than 5 miles per 

 hour, and tlie last quarter of a mile was passed at the rate of 8 miles per 

 hour. A\"e then took two waggons off, and the Philadelphia took the remain- 

 ing three waggons, self and tender, being a gross weight, including persons, 

 of 40 tons, up at a mean rate of 12 miles nearly per hour, her maximum 

 speed being nearly 16 miles per hour. I sm now making trials to determine 

 the actual pull required by these new and large waggons, and 1 must beg you 

 to excuse the rough form of this paper, as I am mut4i pressed for time. 



Believe me faithfully yours, 

 Worcester, June 22, 1840. W. S. Moorsom. 



P.S. — I ought to add that the pressure of steam in the boiler has been 

 from 55 to 62 per square inch. — M . S. M. 



Opening of Ihe North Midland Railway. — The North Midland Railway, 

 which was opened on Tuesday. 30th June, not only completes the communi- 

 cation between this county and London, but also for several miles forms the 

 line by which the Manchester and Leeds, and the York and North Midland 

 Railways enter Leeds. When the Great North of England Railway shall be 

 opened from York to Darlington, (which it will be in October,) and the 

 Manchester and Leeds shall be opened throughout, (as it will be in Decem- 

 ber,) Leeds will, as it were, stretch out its arms to the German Ocean on one 

 side, and the Irish Sea on the other— to tlie .seat of government and the 

 great emporium of the w orld southwards, and the county of Durham north- 

 wards. Of late years Y'orksliire has been considerably behind Lancashire in 

 commercial activity and general enterprise, in the accumulation of wealth 

 and the progress of improvement. But is not this in part to be ascribed to 

 the earlier connexion of the towns of Lmcashire among them.selves and with 

 London by railways':* M"e think it is ; and when Yorkshire has the advan- 

 tage of the same means of rapid, cheap, safe, and agreeable transit that 

 Lancasiiire has liad, we anticipate that her great manufacturing and com- 

 mercial resources will be brought out in fuller development, and that she will 

 advance in the race of improvement at the same or nearly the same speed as 

 the sister county. Yorkshire is the seat of several of our most important 



