CHAP. XVI. THE MANCHESTER AND LEEDS. 327 



feet deep. The structure lias a solid and majestic appear- 

 ance, and is perhaps the finest of George Stephenson' s 

 viaducts. Although designed by him, it was carried 

 out by Mr. Locke, on the latter succeeding Mr. Stephen- 

 son as engineer to the Grand Junction Railway. * 



The Manchester and Leeds line was in progress at\ 

 the same time an important railway connecting the ! 

 principal manufacturing towns of Yorkshire and Lanca- 

 shire. An attempt was made to obtain the Act as early 

 as the year 1831 ; but its promoters were defeated by 

 the powerful opposition of the landowners aided by the 

 canal companies, and the project was not revived for 

 several years. Mr. Stephenson, having carefully exa-/i 

 mined the district, had in his own mind settled the * 

 proper direction of the line, and decided that no other 

 was practicable, without the objectionable expedient of 

 a tunnel three and a-half miles in length under Black- 

 stone Edge, and the additional disadvantage of bad 

 gradients. The line as laid out by him was somewhat 

 circuitous, and the works were heavy ; but on the whole 

 the gradients were favourable, and it had the advantage 

 of passing through a district full of manufacturing 

 towns and villages, the teeming hives of population, 

 industry, and enterprise. The Act authorising the con- 

 struction of the railway was obtained in the session of 

 1836 ; it was greatly amended in the succeeding year 

 and the first ground was broken on the 18th of August 

 1837. 



An incident occurred while the second Manchester 

 and Leeds Bill was before the Committee of the Lords, 

 which is worthy of passing notice in this place, as illus- 

 trative of George Stephenson' s character. The line 

 which was authorised by Parliament in 1836 had been 

 hastily surveyed within a period of less than six weeks, 

 and before it received the royal assent Mr. Stephenson 

 became convinced that many important improvements 

 might be made in it, and communicated his views to 



H 



\ 



