892 REPORT—1896. 
in previous works. Special arrangements are devised for reducing the temperature of 
the air by many degrees, suitable houses are to be provided for the men, with excel- 
lent arrangements for enabling them to change their mining clothes, wet with the 
water of the tunnel, before coming in contact with the Alpine cold; every man 
will have a bath on leaving ; his wet clothes will be taken care of by a custodian, 
and dried ready for his return to work; suitable meals of wholesome food will be 
provided, and he will be compelled to rest for half-an-hour on emerging from the 
tunnel, in pleasant rooms furnished with books and papers. This may appear to 
some as excessive care; but kind and humane treatment of men results, not only 
in benefit to them, but also in substantial gain to those employing them, and the 
endeavour of our own authorities, and of Parliament, to secure for our own worl- 
people the necessary protection for their lives and limbs in carrying out hazardous 
trades and employments, is worthy of admiration. 
The great improvements in sub-aqueous tunnelling can be clearly recognised 
from the fact that the Thames Tunnel cost 1,150/. per lineal yard, whilst the 
Blackwall Tunnel, consisting of iron lined with concrete, and of 25 feet internal 
diameter, has, by means of Greathead’s shield and grouting machine, been driven 
from shaft to shaft a distance of 754 yards for 875/. per yard. 
Tunnels have now been successfully constructed through the most difficult strata, 
such as waterbearing silt, sand, and gravel, and, by the use of grouting under pres- 
sure, subsidence can almost entirely be avoided, thus rendering the piercing of the 
substrata of towns, underneath property without damaging it, a simple operation ; 
and opening up to practical consideration many most important lines of communi- 
cation hitherto considered out of the question. 
On the other hand, very little improvement has taken place in the mode of 
constructing tunnels in ordinary ground, since the early days of railways. The 
engineers and contractors of those days adopted systems of timbering and construc- 
tion which have not been surpassed. The modern engineer is, however, greatly 
assisted by the possibility of using Brindle bricks of great strength to resist pres- 
sure, combined with quick-setting Portland cement, by the great improvements 
which have taken place in pumping machinery, and by the use of the electric light 
during construction. 
A question which is forcing itself upon the somewhat unwilling attention of 
our great railway companies, in consequence of the continual great increase of 
the population of our cities, is the pressing necessity for a substantial increase in 
the size of the terminal stations in the great centres of population. 
Many of our large terminal stations are not of sufficient capacity to be worked 
properly, either with regard to the welfare of the staff or to the convenience of the 
travelling public. 
Speak to station-masters and inspectors on duty, when the holiday season 
js on, and they will tell you of the great physical strain that is produced upon 
them and their subordinates, in endeavouring to cope with the difficulty. 
This, if nothing else, is a justification for the enterprise of the Manchester, Shef- 
field and Lincolnshire Railway Company in providing an entirely new terminus 
for London. 
It is thirty years since the last, that of St. Pancras, was added, and during that 
period the population of London has increased by no less than two millions. 
The discussion, both in and out of Parliament, of the proposals for light rail- 
ways has developed a considerable amount of interest in the question. Experi- 
ence only c2n prove whether they will fulfil the popular expectations. If the 
intended branch lines are to be of the standard gauge, with such gradients and 
curves as will render them suitable for the ordinary rolling-stock, they will, in 
many cases, not be constructed at such low mileage costs as to be likely to be 
remunerative at rates that would attract agricultural traffic. The public roads of 
this country (very different from the wide and level military roads of Northern 
Italy and other parts of the Continent) do not usually present facilities for 
their utilisation, and, once admitted, the necessity for expropriating private 
property, the time-honoured questions of frontage severances and interference 
with amenities will force their way to the front, fencing will be necessary, and, 
