EVOLUTION OF THE A.O.S. 93 



Action by Great Eastern Railway. 



It was this particular phase of the controversy that lead 

 to an invitation being addressed by Lord Claud Hamilton, 

 chairman of the Great Eastern Railway Company, to 

 Lord Winchilsea and a few leading agriculturists repre- 

 senting the district served by the Great Eastern Railway to 

 meet the directors and the principal officers of the company 

 at Liverpool Street Station on October 20th, 1895, with a 

 view to ascertaining in friendly conference whether the 

 railway company could do anything to help the agricultural 

 interest. Lord Claud Hamilton was accompanied at the 

 conference by the deputy chairman, Colonel Makins, and 

 various of the company's officers, while the agriculturists 

 were represented by, among others, the Earl of Winchilsea, 

 Sir Walter Gilbey, president of the Royal Agricultural 

 Society, Mr. M'Calmont, M.P., Captain Pretyman, M.P., 

 and Mr. T. Hare, M.P. 



On the part of the railway company it was pointed out 

 that while there should, in the interests of all parties con- 

 cerned, be a certain co-operation between the railways and 

 the producers, it was also essential that each side should 

 have its distinct organisation. The railways had organised 

 a carrying service, and it was for the producers, in turn, to 

 organise their consignments for delivery to the railways and 

 for subsequent sale. The greater economy to a railway 

 company in dealing with large or bulked instead of an 

 equivalent weight of small and separate consignments was 

 pointed to, and the fundamental principle was laid down 

 that, if the railways were to help agriculture, agriculture 

 should, in turn, facilitate the operations of the railways. 

 To this end Lord Claud Hamilton recommended that there 

 should be opened at leading stations in the agricultural 

 districts served by the Great Eastern Railway Company 

 depots to which the farmers of the locality could send their 

 produce in order that, through combination, they could 

 secure the lower rates for large collective consignments. 

 On the part of the agriculturists these proposals were 



