426 TH-E COACHING AGE. 



1830, after having, like the Stockton and Darlington, 

 encountered very strong opposition, and being de- 

 feated in one Session of Parliament, but eventually 

 passed in 1826. The opening of this line, which 

 was intended to have been quite a gala day, was, it 

 will be recollected, sadly marred by the accident 

 which occasioned the death of Mr, Huskisson. 



It having then been established beyond all doubt, 

 from the experience of these two companies, that 

 railways could be constructed to travel at a rate of at 

 least twelve miles an hour, almost the highest rate 

 of speed which the engineers, including Stephen- 

 son, considered practicable for ordinary travelling, 

 the railway spirit began gradually to spread over 

 the country ; not so very rapidly, though, for some 

 ten or fifteen years as might have been expected, as 

 from the year 1830 to 1841 only two hundred and 

 sixty-two Eailway Bills were brought into Parlia- 

 ment, and the greater number of these were to amend 

 former Acts. In 1832 only eleven Bills were brought 

 in, while in 1837 there were sixty-four, being the 

 smallest and largest number in the years between 

 1830 and 1841. This was very different from the 

 state of things in 1847, when there were three 

 hundred and thirty-one Bills before Parliament. 



The formation of the different companies for con- 

 structing lines out of London would appear to have 



