1843.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



237 



THE FRENCH AND BELGIAN RAILWAYS. 



We are indebted for the following interesting and valuable paper 

 to Mr. Flanagan, a young engineer of considerable talent, who 

 has of late had much practice both in Belgium and France, in esti- 

 mating and superintending engineering works ; it is a document which 

 shows with what minuteness the continental railway engineers pre- 

 pare all their details, and likewise gives some idea of the cost of 

 railway works on the continent. The scale of prices is low, as the 

 tender which was accepted only allowed half per cent off the sche- 

 dule. 



The method of proceeding with contracts for public works in 

 France and likewise in Belgium, is in the following manner. The en- 

 gineer of the line prepares his contract drawings, which are executed 

 with great minuteness — he then prepares a schedule of prices in de- 

 tail, and the quantities of the works necessary to be done on the line 

 as per annexed list. Tenders are then advertised for. The parties 

 tendering have to state what per centage he will take off from the 

 schedule of prices, not upon any individual price but upon the whole ; 

 this method is analogous to the form of tendering for works to be 

 done for the Ordnance and Government in this country. After the 

 tenders are received they are immediately taken into consideration, 

 and the party whose tender is accepted is called in and informed of 

 the result; an appointment is then made with the engineer and con- 

 tractor to go over the country of the proposed line of railway, which 

 the engineer describes to the contractor, and at the same time furnishes 

 the latter with a bill of quantities priced out according to the schedule of 

 prices ; after going over the line, the contractor is allowed from four- 

 teen to twenty days to examine the quantities, and if no error greater 

 than one-sixth can be discovered the contract is considered binding, 

 but if any error is discovered an allowance is made; but after the 

 contract is concluded, at the end of the fourteen or twenty days as 

 the case may be, it is binding upon the contractor, notwithstanding 

 any error may be found out afterwards. We should also state that 

 the contract is subsequently sent to the minister of public works, who 

 has the sole power of rescinding it if he thinks proper. 



In this translation the French measures and currency have been retained. 

 They may easily be reduced to their respective values in this country by 

 taking in round numbers the cubic metre as equal to 1J cubic yard and the 

 franc as equal to lOrf. ; thus the first figure in the decimal part represents as 

 many pence as it has digits. The lineal metre is nearly 3 ft. 3 j in. 



BASIS OF THE PRICES. 



WAGES PER DAY. 



Not including Including 

 tools 8c profit tools & profit 

 of contractor, of contractor. 



Navigator for getting and tilling . . 



Navigator for wheeling 



Stone cutter and setter 



Assistant stone cutter and setter 



Ordinary mason 



Labourer 



Superintendent of mortars and betons . . 



Carpenter, sawyer, and joiner 



Paviour . . . . . . 



Assistant paviour , . . . 



Smith 



Assistant smith 



Painter . . . . 



Slater 



Assistant slater . . . . 



One horse and cart including driver 



Two horses ditto 



Three horses ditto . . 



1st Division. — Earthwork. 

 The earthwork to be measured in the cuttings per cubic metre. 

 No. 1. — Getting and Filling ; or one spade's throw every kind of 

 soil and every thing included, per c. m. 

 In transverse section, No. 1 to 44 .. .. .. 



Ditto 44 to 108 



Ditto 108 to 356 



Ditto 356 to 470 



Ditto 470 to 581 



N.B. These prices for getting and filling will be applied without 



0-65 

 0-46 

 0-59 

 0-46 

 0-14 



any exception, and without its being in the power of the contrac- 

 tor to demand any other classification than the above. 



No. 2. — Wheeling for each relay or run of 30 metres on a level, /; 

 or of 20 metres on an incline of 1 in 10, per c. m. . . ( 



No. 3. — Carting for the 1st relay of 100 metres on a level, or of 75 

 metres on an incline of 1 in 20, per c. in. .. .. ( 



No. 4.— Carting every relay after the first, of a 100 metres on a 

 level, or of 75 metres on an incline of 1 in 20, per c. m. . . ( 



If the centre of gravity of the cutting is on the same level, or 

 higher than that of the corresponding embankment, the distance 

 between the centres of gravity will he taken for the distance of 

 carriage ; if the centre of gravity of the cutting is lower than tha 

 of the embankment, it will be considered that the difference of 

 level has been surmounted in ascending inclines of 1 in 20 for 

 carts, and of 1 in 10 for barrows, and that then the carriage has 

 been completed on a horizontal plane. The length of lead is 

 taken in the vertical plane passing through the two centres of 

 gravity. It is only when the distance between the centres of 

 gravity is such that it is necessary to divert in order to obtain 

 inclines of 1 in 20 for carts and of 1 in 10 for barrows, that such 

 diversions will he paid for. 

 The fractions of relays will be counted by -]-. 



No. 5. Carriage bg Wagons. — The price will be determined by the 

 following formula : 

 a? equal to 2-50Lx 3D + 3-75R + 2-50C + 300 + 0-0000355 (L + 



1-50D + C + 300) +0-000389/+ 0-122 divided by m. 

 in which 

 L is the distance between the commencement of the cutting and 



the extremity of the embankment. 

 D, the length of the cutting. 

 R, the length of the embankment. 

 m, the cubic quantity of earthwork, measured at the cutting, to 



be tipped. 

 I, the horizontal distance between the centres of gravity of the 



cutting and embankment. 

 C, the length of sidings. 



The value of the letters which enter into this formula will be 

 fixed for each cutting. 



No. 6. — Spreading of a cubic metre of embankment in beds of 

 0-15 m. to 0-20, including trimming and dressing of slopes . . C 



When wagons and temporary railways are used, no price will be 

 allowed for spreading, as it is included in the price allowed for 

 the embankments formed in this manner. 



No. 7. — Ramming or Punning the embankments in beds of 0-15 »i. 

 to 0-20 m. thick, when the engineer considers it necessary, will 

 be paid for per cm. .. .. . . , , 



Previous to ramming, the soil must be properly watered 



The rammer must weigh 4 kilogrammes (9 lb.), and must strike 



at least four times the same spot. 



The engineer reserves the right of having the ramming done at 



the direct expense of the administration, by day work. 



No. 8. — Refilling, per cm. .. . . . . . , (J 



No. 9. — The picking out and laying aside the rubble and gravel 

 found in the cuttings will be paid for per c m. . , . . 



2nd Division. — Paving the Crossings and their Approaches. 



No. 10. — Siliceous gravel for roads, and beton broken to the re- 

 quired dimensions. 



Compensation for land . . , . , , 0-25 



Picking and breaking the large stones .. 1-70 



Filling .. .. .. .. 0-17 



Carriage to the distance of 2000 metres . . 1-64 



Laying aside in heaps .. ,, .. 0-15 



3-910 

 0-196 



4-106 

 OtlO 



Tools, &c. v£r. . . . . . , 



Profits of contractor, -fe . . ■ . i 



Price per cubic metre .. .. . . 1516 4*52 



No. 11. — Breaking stone, found in the gravel of cuttings, 



to the required dimensions of 0-06 m. in every direction 0-350 



Tools, &c. tjV .. .. .. 0-017 



Profit^ 



Per cubic metre 



No. 12. — Making macadamised roads, including the dres- 

 sing and ramming of the bed 



No. 13. — Sand from the sand pits of Brenil le See and de 

 l'Ecquipee, to be used between transverse sections, 

 No. 1 and 230. 

 Price at the sand pits ,, ,, ,, 



0367 

 0037 



0-404 0-40 



32* 



