of only a single gauge were employed. If a single rail were inserted eccentrically in a broad gauge way, so as to form, in conjunction with one of the broad gauge rails, a narrow gauge way, the expense of the insertion, and the danger of the crossings, as well as the difficulty of packing the rails, would be somewhat diminished, but it would be imprudent to run carriages of the different gauges in the same train; and as it would probably be the policy of the railway company to adopt for their own stock of engines only one of the two gauges, and to interpose those difficulties which amount to a prohibition of the use of other companies' engines, the inconveniences of a break of gauge would exist in almost all their force at every junction of a branch railway on a different

gauge.

We consider, therefore, that the general adoption of such a system ought not to be permitted.

We remark, however, that the difficulties to which we have alluded may be greatly diminished on any railway where the system of combined gauges is cordially taken up by the company; and we think that great respect ought to be paid to the rights which the companies may be supposed to possess in the methods or systems which they have devised or adopted. At the same time, we lay it down as the first principle, that intercommunication of railways throughout the country ought, if possible, to be secured. If, to obtain the last-mentioned object, it should be necessary to alter or make a change in any existing railways, we think that it may be left as a matter of ulterior consideration for the Legislature, whether in these limited

1. We will commence with the question of safety.

We are of opinion that experience will, in this matter, afford a better test by which to compare the systems of the broad and the narrow gauge than any theory; and we, therefore, have made inquiry into the nature of the accidents recorded in the official reports of the Board of Trade, as well as of such as have happened since the last report was published.

We find that railway accidents arise from collisions, obstructions on the road, points wrongly placed, slips in cuttings, subsidence of embankments, a defective state of the permanent way, loss of gauge, broken or loose chairs, fractures of wheels or axles, &c.; and, lastly, from engines running off the line from some other cause.

Of these several classes of accidents, all except the last are obviously independent of the gauge; and with reference to this last class, we have thought it right to endeavour to determine whether

the advocates of either gauge could fairly claim, in regard to these accidents, a preference for their respective systems, on the score of greater security to the traveller. In these lists we find only six accidents of the kind we are considering recorded from October 1840 to May 1845; whereas there have been no less than seven within the last seven months, and these are all attributable to excessive speed, the majority having happened to express trains. Of the whole number of these accidents, three have occurred on the broad gauge, and ten on the narrow; the former, however, differ in their character from the latter, the carriages only, in the last two cases, having been off the line, whereas, in all the ten narrow gauge cases, the engines have run off, and the consequences have been more fatal. We must here observe, however, that the extent of the narrow gauge lines is 1,901 miles, and that of the broad only 274; therefore, the comparison would be unfavourable to the broad gauge if considered merely with regard to their relative length; but it must be borne in mind, that the general speed of the Great Western considerably exceeds that of many of the narrow gauge lines, and that some consideration is on that account due to the broad gauge.

The primary causes of engines getting off the rails appear to be over-driving, a defective road, a bad joint, or a badly balanced engine. If, in consequence of heavy rains or other unfavourable circumstances, any part of the road becomes unsound, the engine sinks on one side as it passes along such part of the rail, suddenly rises again, and is thus thrown into a

rocking and lateral oscillatory motion, with more or less of violence according to the rate of speed; and a very similar effect is produced in passing at high speeds from one curve to another of different curvature. A succession of strains is thus thrown upon the rails, and if, before the rocking subsides, the wheel meets with a defective rail or chair, which yields to the impulse, the engine and train are thrown off as a necessary consequence; but, as far as we can see, such casualties are equally likely to happen on either gauge, other circumstances being similar.

It has indeed been stated, by some of the witnesses whom we have examined, that the broad gauge is more liable to such accidents, from the circumstance that the length of the engine, or rather the distance between the fore and hind axle, is less in proportion to its breadth than in the narrow gauge engines, and that therefore the broad gauge engine is liable to be thrown more obliquely across the lines, and, in case of meeting with an open or defective joint, more liable to quit the rail; but we cannot admit the validity of this objection against the broad gauge lines. It may be that the proportion between the length and breadth of the engine has some influence on its motion, and that the motion is somewhat less steady where the difference between the length and breadth is considerably diminished; but practical facts scarcely lead to the conclusion that the safety of the trains is endangered by the present proportion of the broad gauge engines; for it appears that on the London and Birmingham Railway, where the engines hitherto employed have been, generally,

short four-wheeled engines, the distance from axle to axle not exceeding 7 feet, or 7 feet 6 inches, no such accident as we are considering has been reported; and we are informed by Mr. Bruyeres, the superintendent of that line, that no such accident has ever occurred. The same remark applies to some other narrow gauge lines; and if, as has been stated, exemption from these accidents has resulted from the close fixing of the engine and tender adopted on this line, the same system might be adopted on any other line, whether on the broad or narrow gauge. An evil may also sometimes arise in six-wheeled engines, by the centre of gravity of the engine being brought too much over the driving wheels, and the springs being so adjusted for the sake of the adhesion of the wheels to the rails, that the front wheels would have little or no weight to support, and would be thus in a condition, by any irregularity in the road or other obstruction, to be more easily lifted off the rails. But here, again, if this fault in the construction or adjustment has been anywhere committed, it is a fault or defect wholly unconnected with the breadth of gauge.

Another cause of unsteady or irregular motion, dangerous to the safety of the train, has been stated to be the great overhanging weight beyond the axles of some engines of recent construction, and of the weight of the outside cylinder beyond the axle bearings. So far as this construction is concerned, it certainly appertains to narrow gauge lines only; but at the same time we must remark that it is not essential to their working.

Upon the whole, therefore, after

the most careful consideration of this part of the subject, we feel bound to report that, as regards the safety of the passenger, no preference is due, with well-proportioned engines, to either gauge, except, perhaps, at very high velocities, where, we think, a preference would be due to the broad gauge. On this part of the subject, we would beg to point to the nature of the evidence of Mr. Nicholas Wood.

2. We have now to advert to the question of the relative accommodation and convenience for passengers and goods.

The first-class carriages of the broad gauge are intended to carry eight passengers in each compartment, and the compartments are sometimes subdivided by a parti, tion and inside door. On the narrow gauge lines the first-class carriages are usually constructed to carry only six passengers in each compartment; and we find that about the same width is allowed for each passenger on both gauges. Some of the original mail carriages were adapted for four passengers, and we believe that the public had a preference for these carriages over both the other descriptions.

Until lately the broad gauge carriages were altogether more commodious than those of the narrow gauge, but recently carriages have been introduced on several of the narrow gauge lines nearly as lofty as those on the broad gauge, and equally commodious; in short, we now see no essential difference as regards accommodation and convenience to individual passengers in the firstclass carriages of the two gauges.

In the second-class carriages on the broad gauge, six persons sit

side by side, each carriage being capable of holding seventy-two passengers. On the narrow gauge, generally, only four persons sit side by side, the total number in each carriage being thirty-two; in this respect we are inclined to consider the latter are more comfortably accommodated.

With reference to the ease of the carriage, and the smoothness of the motion, we have had very contradictory evidence; and it must be admitted that great difference is experienced on the same line at different times, depending upon the state of the road, the springs of the carriage, the number of persons in a carriage to bring the springs into action, the position of the carriage in the train, and the speed at which the train is propelled,-all of which conditions are independent of the breadth of the gauge. We have, however, with a view of making our observations on this question, travelled several times over all those lines having their stations in London; and after making, to the best of our judgment, every allowance for the circumstances above mentioned, we are of opinion, that at the higher velocities the motion is usually smoother on the broad gauge.

It is now to be considered whether either gauge has a superiority over the other in regard to the conveyance of general merchandize.

Under this head we class manufactured goods and their raw materials, mineral products, such as coal, lime, iron, and other ores; agricultural produce, such as corn, hops, wool, cattle and timber.

On these points we have taken the evidence of persons well acquainted with the carrying trade,

and from their information, and our own observation, it does not appear to be of consequence to the parties sending or receiving goods whether they are transmitted in waggons containing five or six tons, or in waggons of larger capacity, provided that the cost and security are the same, and that the carriers undertake the responsibility of any damage that may result from the size of the load. But Messrs. Horne and Chaplin, and Mr. Hayward, who are largely interested, and have had great experience in the carrying trade, have expressed a strong opinion that the smaller waggon is far the more convenient and economical. The same opinion is still more strongly expressed by those witnesses we have examined who have experience of our mineral districts. These persons state that the smaller waggon can be more easily handled, and can be taken along sharper curves than would be suited to a broader waggon; that such sharp curves are very common in mineral works and districts, and that the broken nature of the ground would render curves of greater radius inconvenient and expensive.

Another important difference between the two gauges, in this commercial view of the question, would present itself in localities in which there may be a difficulty of readily obtaining full loads for the waggons at road stations. Here the defect of the dead weight, which we find to apply more particularly to the broad gauge, would be greatly increased, unless another evil of still greater commercial importance were created, that of detaining the waggons to receive full loads. On the whole, therefore, we consider the narrow gauge as

the more convenient for the merchandize of the country.

3. We now come to the important consideration of relative speed.

With a view to form our judgment on this subject, we have examined the time-tables of the several companies having express and fast trains, and the returns furnished by those companies of the actual speeds attained by the express trains, on thirty successive days, from the 15th of June to the 15th of July, 1845.

We have also, on various occasions, travelled in the express trains, and noted the speed, mile by mile.

The result has been, that we are fully satisfied that the average speed on the Great Western, both by the express trains and by the ordinary trains, exceeds the highest speed of similar trains on any of the narrow gauge lines. But some of the latter have trains which exceed in speed the corresponding trains of the Bristol and Gloucester line, and also of the Swindon and Gloucester line, both of which are on the broad gauge; but these latter, it is to be remembered, are still of recent construction, with unfavourable curves and gradients; and we have been informed by Mr. R. Stephenson, in his evidence, that at one period the speed on the Northern and Eastern line even exceeded that of the Great Western.

In treating of a difference in the speed, other circumstances besides the mere gauge must be considered. The inclinations and curves of the Great Western Railway, between London and Bristol, and even for forty miles beyond Bristol, are, with the exception of the Wootton-Basset and the Box

inclines, particularly favourable to the attainment of high velocities; and it is important to remark, that the inclinations and curves on that part of the Northern and Eastern Railway, where the competition in speed with the Great Western was the most successful, are generally of a similar character.

One of the principal motives professed for constructing the Great Western Railway on the broad gauge was the attaining of high speeds, and the credit of the proposers and defenders of that construction has therefore been deeply engaged in maintaining them.

The effect of gradients on the speed of the Great Western trains, even with the powerful engines used on that line, is shown in the time table, page 24, where we find that, while the speed from Paddington to Didcot by the express train is 47 miles per hour, from Didcot to Swindon it is only 41.1, and from Swindon to Gloucester only 31.7; from Swindon to Bath it is 48.2, but returning, only 37.2; from Bristol to Taunton the speed is 46.3, and from Taunton to Exeter only 39.2.

We must observe, however, that while the Great Western company have not altered in any degree the plan of their engines, the higher velocities of the narrow gauge lines have been attained by the introduction of a more powerful kind of engine than was employed at an earlier period, and probably the new engines now used on the narrow gauge lines are as powerful as they can well be made within the limits of their gauge; whereas the broad gauge lines have still a means of obtaining an increase in the power of their engines, and of increasing their speed, provided