TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 213 
old railways, the additional traffic on new lines, and the increased complexity of 
the railway system asa whole, there have been during recent years more numerous 
accidents than in the earlier times of railways. It is to be recollected, however, 
that with a greater number of people travelling daily, more numerous accidents 
might be expected, and that their increased frequency, on the whole, does not 
necessarily indicate increased danger to the individual traveller, Referring to the 
Statistics of Railway Accidents published by the Board of Trade in Captain Tyler’s 
Report for the year 1873, I find, for various periods during the last 27 years, 
throughout the United Kingdom, the proportion of passengers killed from all causes 
beyond their own control, to the number of passengers carried, to have been, in 
round numbers :— 
Proportion of number killed to number carried in the 
three years, 1847, 1848, and 1849................ lin 4,782,000 
In the four years, 1856, 1857, 1858, and 1859.......... lin 8,708,000 
In the four years, 1866, 1867, 1868, and 1869.......... 1 in 12,941,000 
In the three years, 1870, 1871, and 1872 ............... 1 in 11,124,000 
Anoin the singlo:year LS7Se Se re ee ee 1 in 11,381,000 
Tt is thus gratifying to observe that, in spite of the increased risks naturally 
tending to arise through the increased and more crowded traffic, and the more com- 
plicated connexions of lines, the danger to the individual traveller is now less than 
half what it was 26 years ago; at least this result is indicated, in so far as we can 
judge, from the statistics of deaths of passengers from causes beyond their own con- 
trol. That the conducting of the tratiic of railways still involves hazards far from 
inconsiderable, and that we have much to wish for towards abatement of dangers 
of numerous kinds, is proved by the fact that, during the single year 1873, there 
-haye been killed of the officers and servants of the railway companies in the United 
Kingdom 1 out of every 323; so that, at this rate, extended through a period of, 
for example, 20 years’ service, there would be 1 out of every 16 of the officers and 
servants killed. 
These deaths of officers and servants are not to be supposed to be caused in any 
large proportion by collisions and by other accidents to trains in rapid motion. 
The great majority of them arise in shunting and other operations at stations and 
along the lines, and occur in numerous ways not beyond the control of the indi- 
viduals themselves. In respect to the passengers, too, it ought to be known and 
distinctly recollected, that although collisions and other violent accidents to trains 
in rapid motion, together with other accidents beyond the control of the individuals, 
usually cause by far the deepest impression on the public mind, yet the numbers 
of these fatal accidents are small in comparison to others arising to passengers from 
causes more or less within their own control. For instance, it may be noticed 
that in last year, the year 1873, while the deaths of passengers arising from all 
causes beyond their own control, in the United Kingdom, were only 40 in number, 
there were four times as many killed, namely 160, in other ways; and of these there 
were so many as 62 killed in the simple way of their falling between carriages and 
latforms. 
In respect to the conducting of the traffic of the trains in motion, it appears to 
me, on the whole, that when we consider the vast complexity of the operations in- 
volved in working many of our ramified and crowded railways, and when we con- 
sider the indefinitely numerous things which must individually be in proper order 
for their duty, and must be properly worked in due harmony by men far away from 
one another, some stationed on the land, and others rushing along on the engines 
or trains, the wonder is, not that we should have numerous accidents, but that 
accidents should not be of far more frequent occurrence. There can be no doubt, 
however, but that of the accidents which do occur many arise from causes of kinds 
more or less preventible according to the greater or less degree in which due pre- 
cautions may be adopted. 
Gradually, during a period of twenty or thirty years past, a very fine system of 
watching, signalling, and otherwise arranging for the safety of trains has been con- 
trived and very generally introduced along our principal lines of railway. In 
saying this, I allude chiefly to the block system of working railways, with the aid 
