392 NORTH OF SPAIN RAILWAY. CHAP. XVII. 



of the Castile canal; and that property was also surveyed. 

 He next proceeded to El Escorial, situated at the foot 

 of the Gruadarama mountains, through which he found 

 that it would be necessary to construct two formidable 

 tunnels ; added to which he ascertained that the country 

 between El Escorial and Madrid was of a very difficult 

 and expensive character to work through. Taking these 

 circumstances into account, and looking at the expected 

 traffic on the proposed line, Sir Joshua Walmsley, acting 

 under the advice of Mr. Stephenson, offered to construct 

 the line from Madrid to the Bay of Biscay, only on con- 

 dition that the requisite land was given the Company 

 for the purpose ; that they should be allowed every 

 facility for cutting such timber belonging the Crown 

 as might be required for the purposes of the railway ; 

 and also that the materials required from abroad for the 

 construction of the line should be admitted free of duty. 

 In return for these concessions the Company offered to 

 clothe and feed several thousands of convicts while 

 engaged in the execution of the earthworks. General 

 Narvaez, afterwards Duke of Valencia, received Sir 

 Joshua Walmsley and Mr. Stephenson on the subject 

 of their proposition, and expressed his willingness to 

 close with them ; but it was necessary that other influ- 

 ential parties should give their concurrence before the 

 scheme could be carried into effect. The deputation 

 waited ten days to receive the answer of the Spanish 

 government ; but no answer of any kind was vouchsafed. 

 The authorities, indeed, invited them to be present 

 at a Spanish bull-fight, but that was not quite the busi- 

 ness Mr. Stephenson had gone all the way to Spain to 

 transact ; and the offer was politely declined. The 

 result was, that Mr. Stephenson dissuaded his friend 

 from making the necessary deposit at Madrid. Be- 

 sides, he had by this time formed an unfavourable 

 opinion of the entire project, and considered that the 

 traffic would not amount to one-eighth of the estimate. 



