Suppltmt'U In I.ASli ASl) Water, February 8, I91!> 
THE PART PLAYED BY RAILWAYS IN 
MODERN WARFARE 
By "AMLCE." 
(Collr 
Railways are, of course, a very important factor in any 
mobilisation scheme, and when war was dechired on Angiist 4 
last the British Government took control of the railways, 
under Section 16 of the Regulation of the Forces Act, i.Sji. 
This control is exercised through an executive committee 
composed of the general managers of the leading British 
railways, its object being to work the different railways as 
one system, so that military trains can pass easily from one 
line to another. Although the Government has control 
of the railways their operation is left to the executive ofticcrs. 
On Tuesday, August 18, 1914, the official Press Bureau 
issued the folk)wing statement : " The Expeditionary Force 
as detailed for foreign service has been safely landed on 
French soil. The embarkation, transportation, and disem- 
barkation of the men and stores were alike carried through 
with the greatest precision and without a single casualty." 
At the present time it is, of course, impossible to give 
particulars of the wonderful work done by the railway 
companies, but we can quote the words of Mr. Walker, 
Chairman of the Railway Executive Committee, who said : 
" The Government gave the railways a time limit of 60 hours 
to make ready for dispatch to Southampton, the port of 
departure for the Expeditionary Force, 350 trains of, roundly, 
30 vehicles each. We delivered these trains in 48 hours. 
At Southampton for practically every day of the first three 
weeks of the war we handled — during a period of 14 hours — no 
fewer than 73 of these trains, including the running of them 
to the boat side and the unloading of the full equipment of 
guns, ammunition, and horses. The trains arrived at 
intervals averaging 12 minutes. It was a matter of special 
pride to all the railwaymen concerned that practically every 
train, without exception, came in on scheduled time ; some 
of them came from remote parts of the kingdom — Wales and 
the north of Scotland." 
In connection with the military operations during 
August the cross-country and connecting lines have proved 
of the utmost value. 
The present, however, is not the time to speak of the 
wonderful work the British railways have done and are ■^tiii 
doing. Even in the first three weeks of .August, although the 
ofBcial notice stated that the public railwa\- facilities had to 
be somewhat restricted, the public in the I'nited Kingdom 
suffered but little inconvenience compared with other 
countries, while since the first week in September the railway 
services have been normal. Contrast this state of affairs 
with other countries such as Germany and France. It is 
true that the number of troops handled was far larger, but 
the public facilities were at times completely withdrawn, and 
when the trains resumed running they kept no time whatever, 
and ran anyhow for several days. Even in countries such 
as Holland the railway service has ever since mobilisation 
been much curtailed and completely disorganised. The 
British railways are well laid out for the handling of large 
bodies of troops. Nearly all our lines are double-tracked, 
and military trains can therefore be run " non-stop," as there 
is no necessity to stop or slow down for crossing places where 
single lines are in use. Another advantage is the duplication 
of lines and the fact that stations are not very far apart. If 
several trains have to be sent to a district one-third of them 
can be sent to station A, another third to station B, and the 
rest to station C, as the stations are rarely more than four 
miles apart. Instead of concentrating all the trains at one 
station they can be conveniently divided among several, so 
that not one of them has to deal with an abnormal demand. 
Again, all the British railways are fitted with a complete 
installation of the block system of signalling, with telephonic 
communication between the signal boxes ; consequently, 
trains will be better protected and shunting movements can 
be carried out more expeditiously and with greater safetv 
than on railwaj's not provided with such apparatus. 
No railways have, however, been built in this country 
for purely strategic reasons. London is the centre of the 
principal railways, which radiate in all directions, so that the 
quickest route to go from the North to the South is generally 
via London. This, of course, is a disadvantage from the 
military aspect. The French railways have been greatly 
The BEST for USE on 
LAND and WATER 
ROYAL ARMS 
RARE OLD 
SGOTCH WHISKY 
SPECIAL LIQUEUR 
The most perfect example of the Art of 
Blending — the result of 130 years' experience. 
SCOTCH 
Proprietors : 
J. G. THOMSON & Co., Ltd. 
LEITH, SCOTLAND. 
A 
Also at 17 FENCHURCH STREET, LONDON, E.C. 
GUN 
DEAFNESS 
PREVENTED 
DEAFNESS IS A TRIAL THAT CANNOT BE 
BORNE PATIENTLY. 
There are many men home from the front suffering keenly 
from this affliction, which is much less easily cured than 
prevented. Let us then prevent it. This is immensely 
simplified by the invention of Harbutt's 
PATENT 
FIBROUS PLASTICINE 
A small piece made into a plug and placed in each ear effectu- 
ally cuts up the nerve-shattering concussions while interfering 
but little with ordinary conversation, the word of command, or 
the bugle call ; and the price is only yd., in a strong tin box, 
post paid. Every man at the Front ought to have a box. 
Send one to your friend there. 
HARBUTTS PLASTICINE, LTD., 50 BATHAMPTON, BATH. 
The Regulation British- made "Smith's" 
ELECTRIC SIGNALLING & READING LAMP 
<- — Pus h-pi fccc 
This view shows the importance 
of the Lamp for map and 
despatch reading. The push- 
piece can be operated on without 
opening the case, and the case 
can be detached without un- 
buckling the belt. Suitable for 
any climate and waterproof. 
Batteries " British Made." 
Price complete, 1 »j/\) 
Including two extra bulbs in lid. 
Extra batteries i/6 each 
Extra bulbs i/- each 
In ordering Extra Batteries the following 
will lie sufficient ; — 
I'ost immediately Batteries No. 295 
Size of Lamp, r:( v,j. ,^ inrhen. ^° ■/■ 
S. SMITH & SON I TD.. TRAFALGAR SQ., LONDON, W.C. 
jj. oiMurr oc ovji^, l, .nd 68 Piccadilly, london, w. 
Htldtrs c/lin Rnal H'trrants. ( F.ilabliihld -*J-,' 
