412 
Rail-ways recommendedfo\ 
have I understood to have offered very 
material benefit. 
I beg to suggest a plan that would, in 
mv estimation, be of best advantage to 
the country at large, give employment 
to a great number of hands, and ope¬ 
rate in some measure, as a spur to 
trade, if acted upon. The plan I have 
to propose is that of making rail- roads 
for the use of stage coaches throughout 
the kingdom; and in order to show the 
utility of the undertaking at large, I 
will specify one instance in fact, by 
which to illustrate the whole. 
From Southampton to Loudon there 
start daily (say for example at least) 
S coaches." Allowing 12 miles for each 
stage, the number of stages will be 6. 
and allowing S horses to each coach 
(going and coming) for every such 
stage, the number of horses employed 
daily for each of the 8 coaches from 
Southampton to London, is 48. Mul¬ 
tiply 48 (number of horses) by 8 (num¬ 
ber of coaches,) and the whole will 
amount to 384 horses. 
Now, observe tile saving of horse-la¬ 
bour by means of rail-ways. It is well 
known that, on a rail-road, one horse 
has more than the power of four; so 
that where four horses are used, one 
would do the work with greater ease to 
the animal, (no trifling consideration), 
greater expedition to the traveller, and 
greater safety to the passenger, besides 
the saving in the wear and tear of 
coaches. Thus 12 horses would supply 
the place of 48, required for each coach, 
making a reduction in the whole of 
288 ; and this, too, from one small town 
to the metropolis, the distance of only 
72 miles. What the reduction would 
prove in the aggregate on all the roads 
to London throughout the kingdom, 
may easily he conjectured from this 
single specimen. 
The keep of a coach horse, at the very 
lowest, may he fixed at £50. £50., 
multiplied by 2SS (reduction in num¬ 
ber of horses), is £14,400,; so that, in 
this one instance, a saving would be 
effected annually of £14,400.; and 288 
horses, which are now a burden on the 
community, would be rendered no lon¬ 
ger necessary. A labouring man can, 
and does keep h imself,his wife, and six 
children, on a less sum than £50. a- 
year—a less sum than is required to 
keep one coach-horse. Thus eight 
people might be maintained with what 
is requisite only to keep one horse: 8 
(number of souls) multiplied by 288, 
(reduction in number of horses), is 
r the use'of Stage Coaches. [Dec. 1, 
2304 souls* which might he kept in the 
room of such a useless number of ani¬ 
mals, that are now such a tax upon the 
community. Here on one road, the 
distance of only 72 miles, is a saving of 
the labour oft288 horses, which would 
be rendered useless by means of this 
plan, and thereby an addition made to 
tile population, and consequently to the 
strength of the country, of 2304 people. 
From this solitary instance, we may 
judge what advantages would he deriv¬ 
ed from the making of rail-ways 
throughout the kingdom, by at once 
adding to the comfort of the labouring 
classes, and strengthening the country 
against a foreign enemy. For surely 
it is no good policy in time of peace, 
more than in time of war,, to diminish 
the population of any country, as it is 
always uncertain when a reverse of for¬ 
tune may occur. The rendering useless 
such a vast number of animals, I consi¬ 
der the chief advantage of this plan; 
for ahorse, if not absolutely required, is 
the least profitable of all animals, and 
the expense of keeping him will main¬ 
tain in comfort eight people. Though 
this be the primary consideration, 
that of giving employment to a great 
number of idle hands, is, at these times, 
of no very inferior import. And the 
benefit to trade arising from tile de¬ 
mand of iron, would not be inconside¬ 
rable. 
Bnt the oppositionist, (for there must 
be opposition to every new plan, whe¬ 
ther good or had—His the infirmity of 
human nature), will object to this plan 
on the ground of its impracticability, 
owing to the uneven state of the coun¬ 
try. To this objection I answer, that 
in makiug of rail-roads some hills may 
he avoided, and others cut through, and 
even vallies mav be a little elevated; 
but a very gentle declivity would be no 
impediment. The same objections lie 
against canals, as they are precisely on 
the same principle. Whoever consi¬ 
ders this undertaking impracticable, 
has only to cast his eye on China— 
there lie will see roads cut through im¬ 
mense mountains, and carried over .stu¬ 
pendous vallies—and his objections 
will immediately vanish. I will ven¬ 
ture to say, that government would find 
its account in laying cut money on rail¬ 
roads, and the principal returned with 
interest; and I would recommend that 
a road be made first somewhere near 
the metropolis, by way of experiment. 
The expence of making a rail-road of 
course must vary according to the na¬ 
ture 
