18-16] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



17 



RAILWAYS OF BELGIUM. 

 By JoHiN ANDtRsoN, Esq., F.R.S.S.A. 



{Abrirlgef! from a Taper read before the Royal Scottish Society of Arts.) 

 The accumul,ited leDgth of the Belgian railroads amounts to 348 miles. 



They consist partly of a double and partly of a sinftle way of 4 ft. ?.;, in. 

 betwixt the rails of the track, and a distance of G ft. GJ in. betwi.vi ihc iaii- 

 roads. — Tlie following table sives the length and cos! of tlie ditiWreut lines, 

 the stations thereon, and the total cost of the whole establishment : 



Up to the end of 1842, 271 -oST miles had been constructed ; and in the 

 autumn of last year the first way, and piobably more, of the remaining 

 lines had been completed. On taking an average of the cost of the British 

 railways, it will be found that those in England cost fully double, and 

 those of Scotland and Ireland fully a thiid, more than those of Belgiiini. 

 Eien the French railnays.on the following average, are constructed at 

 nearly double the expense of the Belgian lines : — 



Per Mile. 



£10,000 

 20,000 

 S9,000 



The line from Lyon to St. Etienne cost, in round numbers 

 I'aris to Versailles 

 Pitris to St. Germaia 

 In (he Belgian lines, both parallel aai fish-bellied rails are used. Thci-e 

 is nothing particular iu their mode of laj ing them down. Tiie ballasting 

 consists.of sand and giavel, and, from various circumstances, formed a con- 

 siderable item in the expenditure : — 



f. d. 



Weight and cost of rails. 



The rails were furnished in 18:i4-35.3G 37, and at different times in the 

 follovs'ing years, iu lengths of 15 feet, IG4 feet, and 14-8 feet. Those of 

 15 feet were furnished of diiferent weights, weighing 40-1 lb., 39 71b., 35-3 

 lb., 43 71b., 54 5 lb. to the lineal yard ; those of 17-4 feet weighing o0-41b., 

 and those of 14-8 feet weighing 50-4 and 48-S lb. to the lineal yard. Tlie 

 whole rails are of the manufacture of the country, with the exception of 

 about 200 tims, which were brought fiom England in IS34, to serve as 

 model.-;. Their price during the tirst four or live years varied very much ; 

 no doubt fruiu the coriipetitioo to which the extensive demand give rise. 

 The ton of rails, which could be furnished at Malines, for instance, in 1834, 

 for \Al, {'2s. 6(i., rose to 15/. 4s. 6d. and 18^ \s. Gd., and descended again 

 to nl. Is., 13/. 16s., and came even so low, in 1840, as lOZ. Gt/., but rose 

 again the stime year toll/. 8s. Gd. Those, however, produced in 1840 

 were much inferior to the rails first manufactured in the couuti-y. Until 

 1838, chairs, keys, and spikes, were fui-nished with the rails ; but since 

 that time the contractors have bargained to supply them separately. The 

 ton of chairs, in 1834, was supplied at 10/. 7s., but rose the year following 

 t«> JO/. 1.5s., and, iu ISSli, to 12/. 16s., 13/. 4s., and 14/. 4s. ; aiid. in ge- 

 neral, fluctuated with the price of rails. Keys and spikes, iu 1834, cost 

 22/, 7s. per ton, and rose the following year to 24/. 3s. Od.,21/. lis. 6d. In 

 1S2C-7, they varied from 2S/. 9s. to 30/. is. ; and, in 1838, came down, 



after many fluctuations, to 24/. 7s. Cd., and 23/. 19. 7d In short, the cost 

 iu general, likewi:>e varied iu proportion with the rails and chairs. ' 



Principal Works. 



From inexperience or oversight, the section from Brussels to Malines 

 was made upon so low a level that it -was often overflown by the Seuue 

 which greatly damaged, and sometimes even perfectly obstructed, the rail- 

 way. I'he rails, moreover, were too weak, and Ihe sleepers made from 

 white and [line wood. Froim these circumstances, it became necessary to 

 raise the railway at least upwards of a foot and a half, and protect the 

 banks, and form viaducts through which t\ie waters could flow. The old 

 rails were nearly all thrown aside, and others of greater strength laid down, 

 and the sleepers subjected to M. Bouchene's process for the preservation 

 of wood. Between Brussels and Quievrain. the ground on several sections 

 consists of peat, and bogs; on this account it has been necessary to build 

 a greater part of ti.e bridges on piles, aud raise the railway in some places 

 13 feet; the tunnel of Braine-le-C'omte is 16 4 feet of span, and 25-7 chains 

 in length. 



From a short distance from Malines the railway begins to ascend to Ans. 

 The works upon the line, though numerous, are light. The greatest un- 

 dertaking is the tunnel of Cumpiich, which has been lately cmistrucied for 

 the double way. It is entirely built of brick, and is 20-6 feet in height 

 ani 45 73 chains in length. The heavy works, however, of the Bel>>-ian 

 railroads only begin at Ans, where the railway descends into the valley of 

 Ihe Meuse. 



The Liege lacline. 

 Ans stands upon the west bank of the valley of the Meuse, about 581 

 feet above the level of the sea ; and Liege is situated in the bottom of the 

 valley, about 358 feet below Ans. The distance betwiitt Ans and the 

 .Meuse at Liege is 4 miles 9 chains, thus making on the length of the line 

 the general gradient about 1 in GO. To descend ibis valley'was a matter 

 of no little difiiculty, and it was only after many years' study, in whii-h 

 time numerous projects were examined, that the ailministratioQ saw the 

 necessity of descendiug it by inclined planes. The plan adopted by them 

 consists of two inclined planes of equal lengths, with a platform or level 

 space of ground, on which the engines are placed, situated at the bottom 

 of the first and the summit of the second incline. The platform is about 

 IG; chains in exteut, and the inclines 1 mile llr| chains each of length, of a 

 rise of 1 in 36, both of which are constructed with a double way, the one 

 beiug employed for ascendiug, and the other for descending. Referring to 

 the section, the railway proceeding from Ans describes a curve of 1 mile 

 37 chains of radius, and descends the lirst incline. Having crossed the 

 platform, it descends the second iucliue, and arrives at the principal station 

 of Liege. The trains descend the inclined planes by gravitation, their ve- 

 locity being regulated by drags attached to the carriages and wagons. Two 

 lixed engines, of 160 horse povver each, are placed on the platform for 

 raising the trains, which is accomplished by means of an endless rope. Both 

 engines being situated cl"Se together, are supplied with stuam from tl^e 

 same boilers. The system of signals, we are tohl, they employ, is some- 

 what noiel : — -\. lube of fully one inch diameter is laid along the railwi-.y. 

 E loh of its ext--emities communicates with the interior of a bell, the moeti 

 of which is immersed in water. Into the top of the bell a whittle is fixed 



