,transcribed from the #ahcc ,george     
,wightman edition by ,david ,price1     
email  ccx#jgdpglaf4org                 
,picture3 ,public domain book cover     
,a                                      
,,letter                                
,,to                        ,,the       
,,kensington ,,canal ,,company1         
,,on ,,the                              
,,substitution ,,of ,,the ,,pneumatic   
,,railway                               
,,for ,,the ,,common ,,railway          
,,by ,,which ,,they ,,contemplate       
,,extending ,,their ,,line ,,of         
,,conveyance4                           
,,by ,,john ,,valance4                  
99 99 99 99 99                          
99 99 99 99 99                          
,,printed ,,by ,,order ,,of ,,the       
,,company4                              
99 99 99 99 99                          
99 99 99 99 99                          
,,london3                    ,,george   
,,wightman1 #bd1 ,,paternoster ,,row4   
99 99 99 99 99                          

#ahcc4                                  
99 99 99 99 99        8,under           
circumstances of this sort1 there can be
 no doubt that those      microcosmic   
minds1 which1 habitually occupied in the
 consideration of      what is little1  
are incapable of discerning what is     
great1 and who      already stigmatise  
the proposition as a romantic scheme1   
will1 not      unsparingly1 distribute  
the epithets--absurd1 ridiculous1       
chimerical4      ,the commissioners     
must1 nevertheless1 have the hardihood  
to brave the      sneers and sarcasms of
 men who1 with too much pride to study1 
and too      much wit to think1         
undervalue what they do not understand1 
and      condemn what they cannot       
comprehend40                  ,report on
 the ,practicability of the ,erie and   
,hudson ,canal4                         
99 99 99 99 99                          
99 99 99 99 99               ,j4 ,s4    
,hodson1 ,printer1 ,cross ,street1      
,hatton ,garden4          ,a ,,letter1  

c4      ,,my ,,lord ,,and ,,gentlemen1  
,,the contemplated addition of a railway
 to your line of conveyance1  induces me
 to solicit the honour of your attention
 to a method of  effecting your object1 
which may1 perhaps1 prove the cheapest  
and best  you can adopt4    ,from the   
statements of the gentlemen who gave    
explanations on the subject  at the     
meeting1 your object appears to be1 to  
effect some method of  communication    
between your basin at ,kensington1 and  
some point of the  ,grand ,junction     
,canal1 and the proposed ,london and    
,birmingham ,railway1  which may enable 
you1 either to take advantage of the    
,grand ,junction  ,canal as a channel to
 convey and receive goods to and from1  
or of the  proposed railway to          
,birmingham2 so that you may be able to 
convey  passengers to and from that     
railway1 and to and from the western    
parts of  town1 should it be put into   
operation4    ,your present line being a
 water line1 ,i should1 were it not for 

the  intervention of the high ground    
which is between your basin and the     
,grand  ,junction ,canal1 recommend the 
extension of this water line2 because an
  additional expenditure of #ijjl4 or   
#ajjjl41 to provide a couple of the     
gigs by which passengers are now        
conveyed at the rate of ten or twelve   
miles an hour along the ,paisley and    
,ardrossan ,canal1 would then enable    
you to carry any number of passengers to
 and from the ,birmingham ,railway      
considerably faster1 and many times     
cheaper1 than omnibuses1 c4 c4  would   
convey them to and from the town end of 
that railway4    ,but as the numerous   
locks1 which the height of that ground  
renders  necessary1 would occasion the  
loss of all the time which the          
newly-discovered method of rapid        
conveyance on canals might save1 the    
extension of your present line appears  
to be incompatible with your  object of 
rendering such extension adapted to the 
rapid conveyance of  passengers1 as well

 as goods at the usual rate4    ,this   
impediment is not1 however1 the only    
circumstance which would make  me pause 
in recommending the extension of your   
canal4  ,it is publicly  stated that the
 estimated expense of extending your    
canal the two and a  half miles you     
contemplated was #aej1jjjl42 while this 
would not be the  sole expense attending
 it4    ,owing to there being no water  
to supply the waste of the numerous     
locks  which you must construct1 to     
raise barges to the height you wish to  
surmount1 you would have1 in addition to
 extending your canal1 to be also  at   
the expense of laying down large        
water-pipes all along it2 and of        
erecting steam-engines1 and pumps1 to   
raise up from the ,thames1 every  drop  
of the water you would require to lower 
your barges down to it4  ,the first cost
 of doing this would be very            
considerable3 since1 in  addition to the
 steam-engines1 pumps1 and two and a    
half miles of large  pipe which you must

 lay down1 you must also be at the      
expense of  purchasing ground at the end
 of your proposed extension1 for the    
site of1  and excavating the earth to   
form1 a large reservoir1 for the water  
to be  pumped up into to supply the     
locks4    ,great1 however1 as would be  
the first cost of thus providing water  
to  work the proposed extension of your 
canal1 yet would this first cost be     
less important than the current expenses
 of it2 since for every barge  that     
passed through your canal1 you would    
have to pump above two hundred  tons of 
water1 nearly #ajj feet high3 than      
which1 nothing can be conceived  more   
contrary to principles of economy2 it   
being tantamount to having to  lift a   
whole hundred weight up1 every time you 
extended your hand to  put a quarter of 
a hundred weight down4  ,were it        
necessary that those  two hundred tons  
of water should be pumped only when you 
raised a  barge up with 7or by means of7
 them1 it would not be so vexatious4    

,but to be forced to pump two hundred   
tons up1 in order to float the  smallest
 load a barge carries #d;a down your    
canal1 would be so  contrary to all     
principles of economical conveyance1 as 
well as costly1  that it becomes        
unavoidable to seek for some other means
 of transmission4    ,that which first  
struck you as applicable to your object1
 was a rail-way2  since1 by means of it1
 passengers may be conveyed as well as  
goods2 so  that1 should any circumstance
 connected with the ,london and         
,birmingham  ,railway ever render it    
desirable1 you might1 then1 convey      
passengers  along your line4  ,but      
though this could certainly be done1 yet
 would the  attainment of that certainty
 be attended with an expense1 which     
might  prove greater than the value of  
the purchase4    ,the avoidance of      
ascents which are at all abrupt1 is now 
stated to be of  such consequence as    
relates to the diminution of the daily  
expenses of  railways1 and so important 

with respect to what locomotive engines 
can do  upon them1 that it is current as
 the dictum of the principal engineer of
  the ,london and ,birmingham ,railway1 
that it is better to lay down six  miles
 of railway to avoid 7by going round it7
 a rise of #agd feet in one  mile 7an   
ascent of about an inch in a yard1 that 
is7 than to carry one  mile of railway  
over said rise4  ,and the junior        
engineer to that railway  stated before 
the ,lords' ,committee1 that for a      
locomotive engine to get  over a rise of
 fifty feet in height1 was 8nearly equal
 to going four  miles round40    ,the   
fuel consumed being the principal item  
of expense in locomotive  engines1 and  
the price of fuel with you being nearly 
ten times greater  than on the          
,liverpool and ,manchester line1 #d;b   
the attainment of the  desideratum of as
 regular an ascent as can be procured1  
becomes1  according to this doctrine1   
more important as relates to your line1 
than  it would be where fuel was        

cheaper1 in proportion to the dearness  
of that  fuel4  ,a regular plane of     
ascent may1 therefore1 be considered    
indispensable to the proper operation of
 any railway you might lay down    ,were
 you to do the utmost that could be done
 towards obtaining this  regular plane  
of ascent1 between your proposed points 
of departure and  arrival1 by cutting   
and embanking so as to make your line   
one continuous  inclined plane1 it would
 still be so remote from a level1 as to 
rise at  the rate of one foot of        
perpendicular height for #aed feet of   
horizontal  distance2 which would make  
the power required to draw any load     
along your  line nearly twice as great  
as that which would be requisite to draw
 the  same load on a level2 while it    
would also present a sharper rise than  
some railways where stationary engines  
are the only moving power  employed1    
owing to locomotives being considered   
unfit for railways so  inclined4        
,supposing your line1 which must have   

the same number of rails that the       
,birmingham ,railroad is to have 7two   
lines of way that is7 to be no  wider   
than that railway is to be in the       
narrowest part1 the amount of  embanking
 necessary to render your plane of      
ascent regular to this degree  would not
 be so little as one million of cubic   
yards4    ,in the evidence before the   
,lords' ,committee on the ,london and   
,birmingham  ,railway it is stated1 that
 on the ,liverpool and ,manchester      
,railway there  are about three millions
 of cubic yards of cuttings and         
embankments4  ,it  being known that the 
money paid by that ,company for this    
purpose has  exceeded two hundred       
thousand pounds1 it may be presumed that
 the expense  of one third of that      
amount of cutting and embanking on your 
line would  not be less than about      
#gj1jjjl42 while1 as the nature of the  
ground  your line must pass through1    
would render the proportion of          
embankments  much greater than that of  

excavations1 this amount of #gj1jjjl4   
would be  added to1 by your being       
actually compelled to purchase the earth
 itself  which would be required for    
those embankments1 as well as to pay for
 the  labour of digging and conveying it
 to where you wanted it4    ,long lines 
of work being done for much less expense
 per mile than short  ones2 the ,london 
and ,birmingham ,railway being a very   
long line 7#aab  miles72 the engineers  
of that railway having the very highest 
reputation  as railway engineers2 and   
the estimates laid before ,parliament by
 those  gentlemen for that railway1     
being the best authority it is possible 
to  refer to as relates to the probable 
cost of a railway--,i shall1 for these  
reasons1 and in order to prevent your   
supposing that my own opinion  affects  
my statement1 advert to the anticipated 
expense of that railway  per mile as a  
measure of the cost of yours4           
,deducting the estimated expense of     
cutting and embanking1 from the  general

 estimate of the ,london and ,birmingham
 ,railway1 the average  estimated       
expense of the other work of the two    
lines of way now  proposed for that road
 7instead of the four lines of which it 
was to  consist7 is #bj1fcal4 per mile4 
#e    ,and as it is not evident why your
 short line should be done for less     
comparative expense than this long one  
7while it is to be presumed that  it    
would cost much more71 it may be assumed
 that the actual expense of  attempting 
to make a railway1 on which the tractive
 force required for  any load would be  
nearly twice as great as on a level1    
along the line you  propose1 would not  
be so little as #ajj1jjjl4    ,and1     
supposing that you should be willing to 
adopt the less favourable  method of    
railway transmission--i4e4 levels and   
steep inclined planes1  with fixed      
engines on the summits--still might not 
expense be very greatly  reduced8       
,the original estimate of the ,liverpool
 and ,manchester ,railway was           

#djj1jjjl41 about #ab1jjjl4 per mile    
that is2 with respect to which the      
,quarterly ,review for ,march #ahbe     
says3 8,the estimate for the ,liverpool 
and  ,manchester ,railway we have       
understood to be taken at #ab1jjjl4 per 
mile4  ,but that road is meant to be    
executed on a magnificent scale2 to be  
sixty-six feet wide2 #f the rails to be 
laid down in the best possible  manner2 
and the purchase of land at the         
extremities must be paid for at  an     
enormous price4  ,this estimate also    
includes the cost of engines1  waggons1 
and warehouses40    ,most unwisely1     
however1 as well as untruly1 the        
advocates of railways  attempt to deny1 
that the original estimate for the      
,liverpool and  ,manchester ,railway was
 so low as this1 or that it included the
 8cost of  engines1 waggons1 and        
warehouses20 in order to show that the  
actual cost  of the railways now        
contemplated will not exceed their      
estimated  expense1 as the actual cost  

of the ,liverpool and ,manchester       
,railway has  exceeded that estimate4   
,for the facts of the case ,i appeal to 
the  original prospectus of the         
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1    
dated  ,october #bi1 #ahbd2 the #eth    
paragraph of which document is as       
follows3--        8,the ground has been 
surveyed by eminent engineers1 and the  
estimated      expense of a railroad    
upon the most improved construction1    
including      the charge for locomotive
 engines to be employed upon the line1  
and      other contingencies1 is        
#djj1jjjl4 which sum it is proposed to  
raise in #djjj shares of #ajjl4 each40  
,it cannot1 therefore1 but be contrary  
to good sense as well as fact1 for  the 
advocates of railways to attempt to deny
 evidence of this nature4    ,the first 
line of the credit side of the account  
given in to the ,lords'  ,committee on  
the proposed ,london and ,birmingham    
,railway1 by the ,treasurer  of the     
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1 on 

the #bdth ,june last1 stands  thus3 8,by
 amount expended 7up to the #cast       
,december1 #ahca7 in completion  of the 
ways and works1 #iib1jedl4 #cs4 #f;d403 
while the same document  says1 8,by the 
additional number of locomotive engines 
and carriages that  will be required for
 the increased number of departures1 and
 especially  by the outlay of capital   
for the construction of the new tunnel1 
and the  unavoidable cost of warming1   
lighting1 and working the same1 the     
,company  will incur an increased annual
 expenditure1 which will be very        
inadequately compensated by the saving  
of the charge for omnibuses40  ,now1 as 
exclusive of this 8additional number of 
locomotive engines and  carriages that  
will be required10 the expense of making
 this tunnel is  estimated at           
#acj1jjjl4--while1 if the degree to     
which the actual cost of  the railway   
itself exceeded its estimated expense1  
be taken as a rule1  the actual cost of 
this tunnel may be nearer #djj1jjjl4    

than  #acj1jjjl4--and1 as the following 
extract from the pamphlet entitled      
8,remarks on the ,birmingham and ,london
 ,railroad1 by ,investigator10 shews    
that an important item has been omitted1
 the whole expense of the  ,liverpool   
and ,manchester ,railway1 up to the     
#cast ,december1 #ahca1 will1 it        
appears1 exceed #a1bjj1jjjl4 which is   
above #dj1jjjl4 per mile4        8,there
 is a most important item entirely      
omitted in the treasurer's      account4
  ,nearly #gdj1jjjl4 were expended      
previous to ,may1 #ahcj1 all      of    
which has now been expended for nearly  
one year1 and different      portions of
 it in different years1 the first six   
years ago2 not one      shilling has yet
 been returned back again2 and1         
therefore1 the amount      must be      
increased by the interest on the        
successive sums expended4        8,we   
shall not fatigue our readers with the  
details2 but the following      abstract
 is very near the truth3--              

4                4       s4    d4       
,interest of                #bj1cig     
#g1jcd       #j       #j  ,ditto        
#bj1cig         #e1fbi       #j       #j
  ,ditto                     #ajj1jjj   
#ba1bab       #j       #j  ,ditto       
#aha1jfa        #bh1hfh       #j        
#j  ,ditto                     #aii1bdj 
#bj1ibe       #j       #j  ,ditto       
#gci1afe        #aa1hbc       #j        
#j                ,total 7underrated7   
#ie1dia       #j       #j               
8,omitting the odd hundreds1 as we wish 
to be under1 rather than to      exceed 
the truth1 there must1 therefore1 be    
#ie1jjjl4 allowed for      interest40   
,supposing1 therefore1 that you were to 
diminish the expense of levelling1  by  
adopting the system of steep inclined   
planes1 with stationary engines  on the 
summits of them1 to drag the loads up by
 means of ropes1 c41  according to the  
usual course of the stationary engine   
system1 expense  might not be very      
greatly reduced4  ,since it appears1    

from the accounts  laid before          
,parliament1 that1 deducting the money  
paid for cutting and  embanking on the  
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1 as 
well as the  #acj1jjjl4 of additional   
expenditure1 which ,i have just         
mentioned1 the  actual cost of that     
railway1 exclusive of cuttings and      
embankments1 has  really been so high as
 to amount1 very nearly1 to #bi1jjjl4   
per mile4    ,even1 therefore1 if there 
were not a single yard of cutting and   
embanking  to be done on your line1 the 
estimated expense of the ,london and    
,birmingham1 and the actual cost of the 
,liverpool and ,manchester  ,railway1   
bid you prepare yourselves for an outlay
 of not less than  #bj1jjjl4 per mile2  
while the money actually paid on the    
latter1 may  well make you anticipate   
that it would be nearer #cj1jjjl4 per   
mile2 and  this1 as has just been       
stated1 exclusive of the expense of     
cuttings and  embankments4    ,there are
 persons who will deny this4  ,but      

instead of occupying your time  by      
entering on any discussion of the       
question here1 ,i will merely refer  you
 to the paragraph quoted on the last    
page from the original  prospectus of   
the ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1
 and to the following  passage from the 
second prospectus issued by that company
 on the #bfth  ,december1 #ahbe1 when   
the capital was raised to #eaj1jjjl4    
instead of  #djj1jjjl41--that is1 to    
#ag1jjjl4 per mile1 instead of #ab1jjjl4
        8,a very prominent objection    
taken by the opponents of the bill1 was 
founded on the errors in the section and
 levels1 as exhibited before            
,parliament4  ,these errors1 the        
,committee at once acknowledged and     
regretted2 and1 to avoid all chance of  
similar complaint in future1      they  
have engaged the professional services  
of most eminent      engineers1 aided by
 assistants of undoubted talents and    
activity2      whose combined efforts   
justify the fullest assurance1 not only 

of the      correctness of the plans and
 sections1 but that the whole line will 
be laid and arranged with that skill and
 conformity with the rules of           
mechanical science1 which will equally  
challenge approbation1 whether          
considered as a national undertaking of 
great public utility1 or as a           
magnificent specimen of art40    ,yet1  
notwithstanding the 8undoubted talent0  
of those 8most eminent  engineers10 and 
their 8assistants10 whom the ,committee 
had thus  8engaged10 the actual cost of 
the ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1
 has  more than doubled the sum which   
the 8undoubted talent0 of those         
engineers and their assistants estimated
 it would cost1 on the second  survey of
 the line4    ,the objections1          
therefore1 of those who will say that ,i
 overrate the  expense of a railway1 may
 not be more consistent with fact1 than 
the  under estimate of these 8most      
eminent engineers10 and their           
8assistants  of undoubted talents and   

activity30 while if1 after being a      
second time  surveyed and estimated1 the
 ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway    
cost a  million and a quarter1 instead  
of the half million to which the revised
  and reconsidered estimates of these   
8most eminent engineers0 and their      
8assistants of undoubted talent and     
activity10 raised it1 it becomes a      
simple rule of three question to        
estimate how much the ,london and       
,birmingham ,railway will cost1 above   
the two and a half millions1 which it   
is now stated will complete the double  
line that is to be laid down1  instead  
of the quadruple line which was stated  
to cost three millions4  ,of the four   
sums which this railway has been        
estimated to cost 7one and a  half      
millions2 two millions2 three millions2 
and two and a half millions2  vide note 
on page #e71 nobody can tell which will 
be right2 though there  are those who   
have publicly stated 7and staked their  
critical accuracy on  its correctness71 

that the whole four added together1 will
 not be much  more than enough4    ,it  
is true1 that by having three very sharp
 indeed inclined planes1  of eight or   
ten feet perpendicular ascent each an   
almost perfect level  might1 without    
very great expense for cutting and      
embanking1 be obtained  for four-fifths 
of your line to the ,grand ,junction    
,canal2 while1 by  availing myself of an
 ascending power possessed by locomotive
 engines1  which has 7to my very great  
surprise7 hitherto been overlooked1 not 
only  by railway engineers in general1  
but also by the inventors and improvers 
of locomotive engines1 #h ,i could get  
your engines and their loads up  these  
ascents without any difficulty4  ,but as
 the rise1 during the sixty  feet       
7nearly71 of ascent1 which must be      
surmounted in the remaining fifth  of   
your line to the ,grand ,junction       
,canal1 must be at the rate of one in   
forty-seven2 as the power required to   
get the loads you must be prepared  to  

send up that ascent1 at the rate you    
must also be prepared to raise  them1   
will1 including the friction1 c41 of the
 ropes1 render it  necessary that the   
stationary engines should1 each of them1
 be1 roundly  speaking1 #aej horses     
power--in consequence of these things1  
and owing to  the delay and danger      
attendant on the steep inclined plane   
and stationary  engine system1 as well  
as for the following reasons1 this      
conjoint method  of levels and steep    
inclined planes1 and of locomotive and  
stationary  engines1 might be little    
better for you than making one          
continuous  inclined plane of your line2
 so as to admit of locomotives running  
over  the whole of it2 and1             
consequently1 not needing stationary    
engines at  all4    ,notwithstanding the
 efficacy of steep inclined planes with 
stationary  engines on the summits1     
where they are absolutely unavoidable1  
yet are  they so objectionable where it 
is any how possible to avoid them1 that 

the engineers of the ,london and        
,birmingham ,railway have recommended   
cuttings and embankments to the amount  
of twenty-three millions of cubic  yards
 7nearly7 in order to avoid them2 while 
evidence makes it appear1  that the     
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway     
,company prefer keeping extra           
locomotives waiting at the foot of their
 inclined planes1 to draw the  trains   
up1 rather than use the stationary      
engines1 which1 it has been  stated1    
they fixed at the top of those ascents  
for that purpose4    ,but these general 
objections against steep inclined planes
 and stationary  engines1 are not the   
only ones which would operate to the    
rejection of  this method on your       
proposed line4    ,to connect it with   
the ,london and ,birmingham ,railway1 it
 must either be  carried over the ,grand
 ,junction ,canal1 or the ,london and   
,birmingham  ,railway must be brought   
across that canal to come to it2 and as 
it may be  divined that ,mahomet must go

 to the mountain1 rather than that the  
mountain should come to ,mahomet1 it may
 be concluded that your crossing  the   
canal is unavoidable2 especially when it
 is considered that bringing  the       
,birmingham ,railway over to the south  
side of the canal1 would render         
necessary a second crossing of it1 in   
order to take that railway back  to the 
north side again4  ,and as1 exclusive of
 the expense of the wide  bridge1 you   
must provide to carry your line of      
railway across the canal1  it would     
cause1 first1 a second break1 or        
variation1 in your method of  draught1  
by compelling you1 after taking the     
loads from the locomotive  engines which
 brought them from your basin to the    
foot of the ascent1 and  getting them up
 that ascent by means of the stationary 
engines1 either to  have other          
stationary engines adjoining the        
,birmingham line1 to get the  loads from
 the canal to that line1 or else to     
transfer them for that  purpose from the

 stationary engines1 to locomotives     
again2 while1  secondly1 and in addition
 to this1 there would be the objection  
and  opposition of the ,grand ,junction 
,company1 to the large stationary       
engines  and buildings which you must   
erect close to their canal to be        
overcome1  it would appear that a method
 which should avoid the1 perhaps1 fatal 
objections1 and certainly most          
enormously expensive ,parliamentary     
opposition of the ,grand ,junction      
,company to the proposed extension of   
your line1 would be a desideratum4      
,in addition to this1 there must be the 
breadth of land required for a  railway2
 which1 looking at the width necessary  
for the embankments1  would1 considering
 the value of the ground through which  
your line must  run1 render the surface 
purchase 7comparatively7 equally        
expensive as the  cutting4    ,mere     
expense of purchase1 might not1 however1
 be the principal objection  to a       
railway along the line you contemplate4 

,according to the section of that line1 
the height of the embankment it  would  
be necessary to raise to give you a     
regular plane of ascent1 would  so      
effectually divide the grounds you      
passed through1 as to prevent your      
bridging across such embankment for     
private roads1 and compel you to        
8tunnel0 under your own line1 in order  
to admit of communication between  the  
divided properties you would intersect2 
while1 in the more level  part1         
considerable expense for bridging across
 it for the same purpose  might be      
necessary4  ,and let you do the utmost  
that could be done1 to  inconvenience   
landowners and occupiers as little as   
possible1 it is  impossible to avoid    
giving them real cause for objection on 
this  ground1 for the reasons pointed   
out in the following extract from a     
publication on the ,london and          
,birmingham ,railway4        8,parts of 
estates and of fields will also be      
separated from each      other1 by      

immense gashes and mounds2 over and     
under which expensive      bridges1 and 
long and wide tunnels1 must either be   
constructed1 or      the value of the   
land must be still further deteriorated4
  ,granting      these to be constructed
 7and they too would be an expense as   
great as      the other71 they would not
 be an adequate compensation2 for the   
passing and repassing of the numerous   
flocks and herds by them1 would         
completely trample down and ruin the    
adjacent fields4  ,there will      also 
be cutting of the veins that contain    
water2 the springs and      ponds will  
in consequence be dried1 and many of the
 sloping fields      adjoining the line 
so deprived of water1 that they will    
either become      unfit for the        
purposes of pasturage1 or the stock will
 have to be      driven to a distance   
for a supply1 at a considerable injury  
to its      own value1 and also at      
considerable expense40    ,now as the   
opposition which1 for these reasons     

only1 the landowners and  occupiers made
 to the proposed ,london and ,birmingham
 ,railway last  session1 was the cause  
of the bill being thrown out by the     
,lords'  ,committee2 #aj;a while1 in    
addition to thus losing them their bill1
 this  opposition of the landowners and 
occupiers also cost that company        
#ej1jjjl4 in parliamentary expenses1    
#aj;b it may behove you to  calculate   
seriously the consequences of similar   
opposition2 parliamentary  expenses     
being almost the same1 whether a bill is
 for a railway of #ajj  miles1 or of    
only one mile in length4    ,but this   
surface expense of the road may still   
form its least expense4  ,among the     
evidence before the ,lord's ,committee  
on the ,liverpool and  ,manchester      
,railway1 stands the following item3    
8,maintainance of way  #f1eiil4 #abs4   
#f;d40  ,this being for the six months  
ending on the #cast  ,december last1 it 
appears that the expense of keeping that
 railway in  condition1 notwithstanding 

that it has been opened only two years1 
was at  the rate of #dchl4 per mile1 per
 annum1 for the last half of last  year2
 an amount1 which1 on your proposed     
line1 would pay #e per cent4 on  above  
#bj1jjjl4    ,in the last general return
 made to ,parliament1 it was stated that
 the  average expense of keeping the    
whole of the turnpike roads of ,england 
in  repair1 was #fhl4 #acs4 #j;d41 per  
mile per annum4  ,therefore1 it         
appears1 that the expense of keeping the
 ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway  in
 repair1 is seven times as great as that
 of the average expense of  repairing   
the turnpike roads of ,england4    ,for 
the first half of the present year1     
these expenses seem to have  increased  
considerably in proportion4  ,since1    
notwithstanding that the  number of     
passengers carried between the #ast of  
,january and the #ast of  ,july1 #ahcb1 
is less by above #hb1jjj than during the
 preceding six months  7being only      
#agd1abb instead of #bef1cba71 the      

repairs of the railway cost  #gccal4 in 
that period1 which is at the rate of    
#dhhl4 per mile1 per  annum4    ,on this
 and a corresponding subject1 the       
,foreign ,quarterly ,review for         
,october1 #ahcb1 in its observations on 
two ,french publications on  railways1  
says1 speaking of the ,liverpool and    
,manchester ,railway1        8,the rails
 are not supported uniformly by laying  
on the surface of      the road1 but    
rest upon stone pillars1 or sleepers1 as
 they are      called1 placed at        
distances of a yard from each other2 and
 as the      great weights pass over    
them with considerable velocity1 these  
sleepers are driven deeper into the     
ground2 so that the rail-road      soon 
becomes uneven1 one rail having one     
direction1 and the next a      different
 one4  ,though these defects are not    
easily detected by the      eye1 yet    
they are very sensible upon close       
inspection with      instruments2 and   
still more so by the carriages that pass

 over them1      as the wheels1 on      
passing over a joining of two rails1    
receive a      severe jolt1 and also a  
change of direction4  ,driven first on  
one      side of the road1 then on the  
other1 the carriage rocks like a ship   
at sea2 whilst1 at every swing1 one     
wheel or the other strikes a rail       
with considerable violence4        8,the
 damage sustained by the ,liverpool and 
,manchester ,railway1 from      these   
causes1 is by no means trifling4  ,on   
examining the last half      yearly     
statement printed for the use of the    
subscribers1 we find that      the      
repairs of the railway cost #gccal4 in  
six months2 being more      than        
#ad1jjjl4 per annum4 #aa  ,but the evil 
effects of this action      are by no   
means confined to the railway itself1   
they are still more      destructive to 
the engines that run upon it1 as well as
 the      carriages2 as the former1 from
 their delicate mechanism1 receive the  
shocks with unmitigated violence2 by    

which every bolt is shaken      loose1  
and even the strongest parts of the     
machinery1 are speedily      torn to    
pieces4        8,the jolting they       
receive is very violent4  ,we have stood
 on one of      them for hours1 watching
 the action of the springs1 and have    
experienced1 on our own bodies1 every   
jolt of the railway4  ,the      effect  
produced is most sensibly perceived1    
where it is most sorely      felt1 in   
the revenue of the company2 for even at 
this moment1 when      their engines are
 new1 and in the best order1 the expense
 incurred      for their support and    
repairs1 is #aj1ehbl4 in six months2 or 
above      #ba1jjjl4 per annum1 making1 
with the maintenance of the road1       
#ce1jjjl4 of yearly expenditure2 the    
greater part of which is      occasioned
 by the imperfections we have been      
describing4  ,this      expense is      
easily accounted for1 when we consider  
that the company      have twenty-four  
engines2 out of which there are seldom  

more than six      fit for use2 the     
others1 undergoing the progress of      
thorough repair40    ,supposing this    
#aj1ehbl4 to be divided among the whole 
twenty-four  locomotives which are kept 
to do the work1 the expense of their    
repair is  #hhbl4 per engine1 per annum4
    ,but supposing it to be divided only
 by the number of those which  actually 
do the work1 this expense for repairs   
amounts to #cebgl4 per  engine1 per     
annum4    ,the ,edinburgh ,review for   
,october1 #ahcb1 in some measure        
accounts for this  enormity of expense1 
by saying1 8,it is said that in the     
engines used on  the ,liverpool         
,railroad1 new grate-bars have been     
melted in a single trip2  and the       
projector of a steam carriage has       
admitted that cylindrical  grate-bars1  
an inch in diameter1 could not last more
 than a week1 when  the carriage is in  
constant work40    ,now as you must have
 two locomotives 7if not more7 in       
constant work1 the  money expended in   

their repairs1 and in those of your     
railway--supposing  them to be equal to 
the similar expenses of the ,liverpool  
and ,manchester  ,railway3 and any      
circumstances which should render them  
less remain yet  to be made known--this 
money would1 provided it could be saved1
 pay #e per  cent4 on a capital of      
nearly #agj1jjjl43 an amount that may   
render a  method1 the repairs and       
current expenses of which1 should be    
importantly  less than this1 not        
undeserving of your attention4    ,in   
addition to these reasons against a     
railway1 it may be observed1 that1      
supposing you were to lay down such a   
line of communication for the  purpose  
of conveying passengers to the          
,birmingham ,railway from the west  end 
of ,london1 it will be necessary1 not   
merely that those passengers  should be 
willing to be so conveyed by you1 but   
also that they should be  willing to    
pay1 not only you for carrying them to  
the ,birmingham  ,railway1 but also     

other persons for bringing them to your 
railway 7which  will be two miles and a 
half from ,hyde ,park corner71 in order 
that they  may1 thereby1 be conveyed to 
the ,birmingham ,railway3 that is1 they 
must  pay you for carrying them thither1
 over the space of two miles and a      
half1 and other persons for bringing    
them two miles and a half more from     
,hyde ,park corner1 in order that you   
may so carry them4    ,now as the       
,birmingham ,railway crosses the        
,edgeware ,road only two miles  and a   
half from the bottom of ,oxford ,street1
 it admits of rather more  than doubt1  
whether1 even if you were to lay a      
railway down1 passengers  for the       
,birmingham ,railway would take the     
circuitous1 five-mile course1  of the   
,kensington ,road1 and of your line to  
it1 when they could get  thither1 both  
for less money1 and in less time by the 
two and a half  miles course of the     
,edgeware ,road4    ,therefore1 with a  
view1 first1 to obviate this objection1 

and render the  course by your proposed 
line1 quicker in point of time1 as well 
as  cheaper in point of expense1 than   
the shorter course by the ,edgeware     
,road2 and1 in consequence1 cause       
passengers to the ,birmingham ,railway  
to  give your line the preference3      
second1 in order importantly to reduce  
the  cost of the ground required for    
your proposed line3 third1 to remove the
  objections of the owners and occupiers
 of this ground to a railway being      
carried through their properties2 and   
thereby save you the expense1 as  well  
as the danger of their parliamentary    
opposition3 fourth1 to avoid  the       
opposition of1 and the great            
parliamentary expense you would be put  
to by1 the ,grand ,junction ,canal      
,company3 fifth1 to furnish you with a  
cheaper 7in point of current expenses as
 well as first cost71 and better  method
 of conveyance1 than either canal or    
railroad will admit of3 and1  sixth1 to 
possess you of a source of income       

additional to1 and exclusive  of1 all   
that either canal or railway would bring
 in3--for these six  reasons1    ,i     
solicit the honour of your attention to 
a method of conveyance1 which ,i  beg   
leave to introduce to your notice1 by   
the following quotations3--    ,first1  
from the pamphlet of the gentleman who  
has informed the world1  that what all  
engineers have hitherto pronounced an   
8impossibility0--rapid  conveyance on   
canals that is--is now proved perfectly 
practicable by  passengers being daily  
carried from ,johnstone to ,glasgow1    
along the  ,paisley and ,ardrossan      
,canal at rates of ten or twelve miles  
an hour3 #ac  and1 second1 from         
,philip's ,history of ,inland           
,navigation in ,england4    ,adverting  
to the aqueducts by which the ,union    
,canal is carried over the  various     
rivers in its course1 ,mr4 ,grahame     
says3--        8,each and all of these  
aqueduct bridges are higher than any on 
the      ,liverpool ,railway4           

8,the ,sankey viaduct bridge1 which cost
 nearly as much as all the      other   
railway bridges put together1 consists  
of nine arches of fifty      feet span2 
and is1 at the highest point1 sixty feet
 in height4  ,the      ,avon aqueduct1  
on the ,union ,canal1 consists of twelve
 arches1 each      fifty feet span2 the 
greatest height eighty-five feet2 and   
the      average height seventy-four    
feet above the valley and river40       
,therefore1 it appears1 that to carry a 
wide and deep canal across rivers1  is  
now a matter of as common occurrence1 as
 to build a suspension bridge1  or a    
chain pier4  ,yet mark how the first    
proposition for any thing of  this kind 
was treated half a century ago4         
,philips1 in his 8,history of ,canal    
,navigation10 speaking of the first     
proposition of the great father of canal
 navigation in ,england to carry a      
canal across a river1 says3--           
8,when the first canal ever cut in      
,england was completed as far as        

,barton1 where the ,irwell is navigable 
for large vessels1 ,mr4      ,brindsley 
proposed to carry it over that river1 by
 an aqueduct      thirty-nine feet above
 the surface of the water in the river4 
8,this1 however1 being considered as a  
wild and extravagant project1      he   
desired 7in order to justify his opinion
 towards his noble      employer7 that  
the opinion of another engineer might be
 taken2      believing that he could    
easily convince an intelligent person of
 the      practicability of the design4 
,an engineer of eminence was            
accordingly called2 who1 being conducted
 to the place where it was      intended
 that the aqueduct should be built1     
ridiculed the attempt2      and1 when   
the height and dimensions were          
communicated to him1 he      exclaimed1 
#8,i have heard of castles in the air1  
but never was shewn      before1 where  
any of them were to be erected4'        
8,this unfavourable verdict did not     
deter the duke from following the       

opinion of his own engineer4  ,the      
aqueduct was immediately begun2 and     
it was carried on with such rapidity and
 success1 as astonished all      those  
who1 but a little before1 thought it    
impossible2 and within a                
twelvemonth did the crews of the vessels
 navigating the ,irwell see      the    
duke's barges sailing over their heads1 
in the channel1 upborne      by this    
#8castle in the air4'0    ,now as the   
subject to which ,i solicit the honour  
of your attention1  though equally      
practicable as the passages which ,i    
have quoted prove it  to be to carry    
canals across rivers1 will1 at first    
sight1 appear still  more aerial than   
was this denounced 8castle in the air0  
of the great  introducer of canal       
navigation in ,england2 and1 as the     
engineers of the  present day will      
pronounce it still more 8absurd0 and    
8impossible0 than  his proposition was  
considered to be1 it behoves me to      
entreat1 that you  will vouchsafe a     

correspondingly increased portion of    
forbearance1 to  what ,i proceed to     
submit4    ,many years ago1 a           
circumstance which it is not necessary  
,i should state1  caused me to turn my  
attention to the best and cheapest means
 of  conveying our persons and goods    
from one place to another4    ,after    
much consideration1 a method of         
attaining these objects suggested       
itself1 which admitted of a rate of     
conveyance so enormously rapid1 and     
unprecedently cheap1 as to be1 at first 
sight1 rejected as one of those  utterly
 impracticable conceptions1 which enter 
the imaginations of only  poets and     
visionaries4    ,reflection1 however1   
convincing me1 that this idea was1 in   
point of fact1  no more absurd than     
steam navigation1 steam conveyance on   
land1 and gas  lighting were deemed     
twenty years ago1 ,i took the same      
course with it  which ,fulton took with 
respect to steam navigation1 which      
,winsor took  with gas lighting1 and    

which ,trevithick and ,vivian took as   
relates to  locomotive engines--that is1
 ,i proceeded to put it in practice4    
,for proofs of the scale on1 and success
 with which ,i did this1 ,i beg to      
refer you to the following evidences of 
fact4    ,the first evidence ,i submit1 
is the copy of a circular which was sent
 to  the principal inhabitants of       
,brighton1 by a number of gentlemen1    
whose  incredulity had been removed by  
witnessing and experiencing the         
operation  of the method of conveyance  
,i refer to4                            
8,brighton1 ,may #e1 #ahbg4             
8,,sir1        8,the undersigned1 having
 witnessed the operation of ,mr4        
,vallance's      principle for conveying
 persons and goods by atmospheric       
pressure2      and believing 7if what we
 have seen on a scale of yards can be   
extended to miles #ad;a7 that it may be 
rendered very advantageous to      the  
town of ,brighton1 beg to solicit your  
attendance1 on ,saturday the      #abth 

,may1 at the ,old ,ship1 at three       
o'clock4                                
8,t4 ,r4 ,,kemp4 #ad;b                  
,,philip ,l4 ,,storey4                  
,,david ,,scott4 #ad;c                  
,,thomas ,,yates1 ,m4,d4                
,,john ,,lawrence4                      
,,william ,,king1 ,m4,d4                
,,john ,,lashmar4                       
,h4 ,m4 ,,wagner4 #ad;d                 
,j4 ,s4 ,m4 ,,anderson4 #ad;e           
,,john ,,glaisyer4                      
,,isaac ,,bass40    ,meetings1 in       
consequence1 took place1 from the last  
of which emanated the  following        
requisition to the ,high ,constable1 to 
convene a 8,town ,meeting0  on the      
subject4                                
8,to the ,high ,constable of the ,town  
of ,brighton4        8,,sir1            
8,we1 whose names are undersigned1 do   
hereby request that you will      call a
 meeting of the inhabitants of the town 
of ,brighton1 for the      purpose of   
taking into consideration the best means

 of rendering the      method invented  
by ,mr4 ,vallance1 for the conveyance of
 passengers and      goods by           
atmospheric pressure1 beneficial to the 
town of ,brighton40                     
,signed by about eighty of the          
inhabitants4    ,in consequence of this 
requisition1 the ,high ,constable took  
the usual  course of convening town     
meetings at ,brighton1 by advertisements
 in the  newspapers1 and by crying1 and 
placarding the requisition all over the 
place1 with the following addition at   
the foot of it3--        8,in compliance
 with the above request1 ,i do hereby   
call a meeting1 to      be holden at the
 ,old ,ship ,tavern1 ,brighton1 on      
,tuesday1 #eth ,june1      #ahbg1 at    
eleven for twelve o'clock4              
8,e4 ,h4 ,,creasy1 ,h4 ,c40    ,a 8town 
meeting0 accordingly took place2 though1
 prior to stating the  resolutions which
 were then passed1 ,i solicit your      
attention to the  following paragraph   
from the ,brighton ,herald of the #afth 

,september  previous2 for the reason1   
that the explanation which it gives of  
the  method alluded to1 may serve to    
render more evident the justness of the 
decision to which the said 8town        
meeting0 came4                          
8,,new ,,mode ,,of ,,conveyance4        
8,our readers may remember that about   
two years ago1 we discussed1            
somewhat at large1 a principle of       
motion1 by which1 it was stated1 we     
might be conveyed from one place to     
another ten times as fast as we      now
 travel2 that is1 one hundred miles an  
hour instead of ten4  ,it is            
unnecessary to say that expedition such 
as this1 appeared so utterly      beyond
 what was conceived to be within the    
bounds of possibility1      that the    
theory was consigned to the oblivion it 
seemed to merit2 and      the author of 
it classed among those for whom1 in the 
opinion of the      world1 ,st4 ,luke's 
is the only fitting residence4          
8,general1 however1 as this opinion was1

 we have1 during the past      week1    
witnessed that which most importantly   
counteracts it as relates      to       
ourselves2 and could the doubts which   
the world at large entertain      on the
 subject1 have been concentered in a    
number of individuals1      small enough
 to have both seen and felt what was    
experienced by us1      we see not how  
the whole world could have avoided      
entertaining the      opinion1 that it  
is as certainly in our power to cause   
ourselves to      be conveyed from one  
place to another at the rate of #ajj    
miles an      hour1 by combining the    
operation of the necessary apparatus1 as
 it is      to cause ourselves to be    
conveyed at the rate of ten miles an    
hour1      by adapting wood and iron so 
as to form the combination of apparatus 
commonly designated a stage coach2 and  
that too1 with a degree of      safety  
and convenience at which stage coaches  
can never arrive4        8,it may be    
recollected that the principle1 or      

theory alluded to1 was1      that by    
properly combining the operation of     
steam-engines and      air-pumps1 such  
as are daily used for certain large     
manufacturing      processes1 we might  
create a kind of artificial wind2 which 
wind1 if      made to blow in a         
previously constructed channel1 would   
draw1 or      drive1 a properly         
constructed carriage1 at any rate not   
greatly      exceeding what has been    
adverted to4  ,since1 as in             
manufacturing      processes1 air is    
daily caused to move at rates varying   
from #bjj to      nearly #gjj miles an  
hour1 a proper combination of the same  
apparatus      must certainly enable us 
to cause it to move at the lower rate of
 #ajj      miles an hour2 and1 as the   
current of a river will carry a vessel  
down at nearly the rate at which itself 
moves in its channel1 so      would this
 current of air carry us along with a   
velocity nearly equal      to its own4  
8,this1 in brief1 is the theory4  ,what 

we have witnessed of the      practice  
is as follows4  ,it being impossible to 
give motion to the      whole           
atmosphere1 as nature does when she     
causes a wind1 we were      first shown 
into a construction which formed a      
channel1 within which      the motion of
 air could be so directed as to cause it
 to blow full      against any object   
placed inside such channel4             
8,this channel 7which is1 in fact1 a    
very large tunnel71 did not1 in         
this instance1 connect any two distant  
towns3 it being of a length             
sufficient only to illustrate the       
principle2 but it was self-evident      
that it 7or another7 might be extended  
to any length required4  ,on      the   
bottom of this channel 7or tunnel7 was a
 railway1 on which ran a      carriage4 
,this carriage had a circular end1      
composed of thin boards4      ,this     
circular end was as large as the tunnel1
 excepting about an inch      all round1
 and was fixed to the carriage1 so as to

 stand across the      tunnel2 as the   
sail of a ship stands across the line of
 her length4      ,consequently1 if     
motion were given to the air within the 
tunnel1 it      would press1 or blow1   
full against this end of the carriage1  
and tend      to push the carriage      
forward2 as the sails of a vessel going 
right      before the wind are pressed  
against by the atmosphere at large4     
,each      end of this tunnel was so    
connected to large air-pumps1 that air  
could be drawn from one end of it1 while
 the atmosphere was at the      same    
time permitted to enter freely at the   
other4        8,after examining the     
construction of the apparatus           
sufficiently to      give us to         
understand as above1 we got into the    
carriage2 and1 on the      air-pumps    
being set in motion1 we were moved along
 the railway from      one end of the   
tunnel to the other4  ,when we arrived  
there the motion      of the carriage   
was reversed1 and we were moved back    

again4        8,we continued riding in  
this way1 until we became so convinced  
that      the invisible and intangible  
medium we breathe1 might be rendered a  
safe and most expeditious means of      
getting from one place to another1      
as to be tired of riding4               
8,further investigation gave us to      
perceive that the carriage might be     
stopped1 and its motion reversed at     
pleasure2 that so trivial was the       
degree of exhaustion 7or vacuum7        
necessary to enable the atmosphere      
to drive the carriage forward1 as the   
air-pumps drew the air from      before 
it1 that though we were exposed to this 
8vacuum0 7as it is      called7 at every
 other turn of the carriage1 yet did we 
experience no      inconvenience from   
it4  ,in fact1 our feelings gave us no  
intimation      on the subject1 and we  
were wholly ignorant of it until it was 
pointed out to us4  ,we were satisfied  
that persons or goods might be          
taken up1 or set down1 in any place     

through which the tunnel ran1 or        
whose trade or population were at all   
important4  ,and1 as we were      also  
convinced that it would be impossible to
 be overturned1 it was      out of our  
power to resist the belief that we had  
witnessed the      operation of a       
principle by which we may be conveyed   
more safely1      more cheaply1 and many
 times more expeditiously1 than we now  
travel4        8,we cannot expect to    
carry to the minds of those who have not
      witnessed the operation of this   
principle1 the conviction felt by us    
who have4  ,but of this we are          
satisfied1 that whoever sees it1 will1  
with us1 be satisfied1 that we can      
render the principle practically        
effective1 whenever we choose to be at  
the expense of doing so4        8,it    
stands now1 exactly as the steam-engine 
stood1 when ,watt had      completed the
 first one he made3 that is1 certain in 
its effect1      provided we will be at 
the charge of combining the necessary   

apparatus4  ,we have steam-engines and  
air-pumps amply large enough      for   
the purpose4  ,so far from there being  
any insuperable difficulty      in the  
construction of the tunnel1 there are   
parties ready to      contract for1 and 
guarantee the execution of it1 as       
relates to being      air-tight2 and1   
although we should begin by going only  
at the rate of      ten1 fifteen1 or    
twenty miles an hour1 yet have we no    
doubt that1 in      the time necessary  
to instruct us how to manage the        
carriage under      higher velocities   
7as sailors get the 8trim0 of a new     
ship71 we      should be able to go     
several 7and we see not why ten7 times  
faster      than we now travel4  ,the   
chief1 if not the only1 difficulty to   
surmount in this1 as in most scientific 
improvements in their origin1      is   
public incredulity4  ,this difficulty   
was felt and experienced1 at      the   
outset1 in respect to the construction  
of steam-engines2 in      cutting       

canals2 in laying down rail-roads2 in   
rendering steam-engines      locomotive 
on them2 and superior to the tempest and
 the wave1 at sea4        8,but as the  
same spirit of perseverance which       
enabled us to overcome      these past  
difficulties1 will cause us to triumph  
over those before      us with reference
 to this principle of motion1 we are    
satisfied1 that      it is necessary    
only to go on1 and prosper40--,brighton 
,herald1      #afth ,september1 #ahbf4  
,this quotation from the ,brighton      
,herald serving to convey an idea of the
  method of operation1 ,i may return to 
the 8,town ,meeting03 with reference  to
 which the ,brighton ,gazette of the    
#gth ,june1 #ahbg1 states3--        8,a 
town meeting1 which we never saw        
surpassed in respectability1 and        
seldom more numerous1 was held at the   
,old ,ship ,assembly ,rooms1 on         
,tuesday last1 at the requisition of    
nearly eighty of our most               
respectable inhabitants1 for the purpose

 of taking into consideration      the  
best means of rendering the method      
invented by ,mr4 ,vallance1 for      the
 conveyance of passengers and goods by  
atmospheric pressure1      beneficial to
 the town of ,brighton4  ,the ,high     
,constable was in the      chair40      
,the course of the business not being   
important1 ,i beg to refer you to  the  
columns of the ,brighton ,gazette for   
it1 and state only the result2  which   
will be found officially advertised in  
all the ,brighton papers of  that week1 
to the following effect3--              
8,,town ,,of ,,brighton4        8,at a  
numerous and highly respectable ,meeting
 of the ,inhabitants and      ,visitors 
of the ,town of ,brighton1 held at the  
,old ,ship ,tavern1 on      ,tuesday1   
the #eth day of ,june1 #ahbg1 for the   
purpose of taking into                  
consideration the best means of         
rendering the method invented by ,mr4   
,vallance for the conveyance of         
passengers and goods by atmospheric     

pressure1 beneficial to the ,town of    
,brighton3                              
8,the ,high ,constable in the chair4    
8,a ,committee having been appointed at 
a former ,general ,meeting of the       
,inhabitants1 to investigate the merits 
of the measure now under                
consideration1 and their ,report having 
been read to this ,meeting1             
expressing a decided approbation of the 
undertaking--        8,resolved1        
unanimously1 that the ,report be        
sanctioned and adopted by      this     
,meeting4        8,resolved1 that in the
 opinion of this ,meeting the method of 
transmission proposed by ,mr4 ,vallance 
would be productive of the most         
important advantages to the ,town of    
,brighton2 and that the      application
 of it1 either as it relates to the     
transit of goods from      ,shoreham    
,harbour1 or to the conveyance of       
passengers between ,brighton      and   
the ,metropolis1 is entitled to the most
 cordial support of the      ,town4     

8,resolved1 that the thanks of this     
,meeting be given to ,mr4 ,vallance     
for bringing his important invention    
before the ,inhabitants of the          
,town4        8,resolved1 that the      
proceedings of this day be advertised in
 the      ,brighton papers4             
8,e4 ,h4 ,,creasy1 ,chairman4           
8,resolved1 that the thanks of this     
,meeting be given to the ,chairman      
for his impartial conduct in the        
,chair40                                
99 99 99 99 99          8,report of the 
,committee appointed at a ,meeting of   
,inhabitants of            ,brighton1   
held at the ,old ,ship1 on ,saturday1   
,may #ai1 #ahbg3        8,in pursuance  
of a ,resolution passed at a ,meeting   
held here1 on      ,saturday1 the #abth 
instant1 your ,committee have inspected 
,mr4      ,vallance's apparatus for the 
conveyance of passengers and goods by   
atmospheric pressure2 and can bear      
testimony to the success of it2         
having been repeatedly conveyed through 

the cylinder #ah laid down      by that 
gentleman in ,devonshire ,place4        
8,your ,committee are of opinion1 that1 
in the event of such a method      of   
conveyance being established from one   
town to another where much      traffic 
exists1 the advantages would be         
incalculable1 both as regards      the  
ready transit1 and saving of time and   
expense to the traveller      and       
merchant1 as compared with the ordinary 
mode of conveyance4  ,your              
,committee are informed that #ge1jjj    
tons of materials are annually          
imported into ,brighton coastways1 the  
greater part of which is landed      at 
,shoreham1 and from thence brought into 
,brighton1 at a land      carriage      
varying from #es4 to #hs4 #d;d4 per ton3
 and your      ,committee having been   
assured by ,mr4 ,vallance1 that by his  
principle      of conveyance1 the       
carriage of all goods from ,shoreham    
might be      reduced to a sum not      
exceeding #cs4 per ton1 and yet a net   

annual      profit of ten per cent4 be  
returned on the sum expended1 are of    
opinion that if such a communication    
were established between      ,brighton 
and ,shoreham1 it would materially      
benefit the inhabitants of      both    
towns2 and your ,committee feel         
confident it would receive the      most
 cordial and general support4           
8,your ,committee beg further to report1
 that the opinions of some of      the  
highest scientific authorities upon the 
principle of ,mr4      ,vallance's      
proposition1 have been submitted to     
them2 and they have      the            
satisfaction to state1 that these       
authorities concur in the               
practicability of the measure to the    
fullest extent2 and the                 
illustration of it which your ,committee
 have examined1 appears to be      on a 
scale of sufficient magnitude to        
demonstrate the truth of such           
opinions4  ,should it1 therefore1 be    
adopted between the town of             

,brighton and ,london1 it is impossible 
to calculate the important and          
beneficial changes to which it may lead4
        8,your ,committee1 in           
conclusion1 think that a successful mode
 of      transit by ,mr4 ,vallance's    
apparatus1 would be attended with the   
most      important advantages to this  
great mercantile nation1 and deem it    
entitled1 not only to the attentive     
consideration of the inhabitants      of
 ,brighton in particular1 but the       
community at large4        8,your       
,committee1 therefore1 recommend1 that a
 requisition be      addressed to the   
,high ,constable1 to convene a ,meeting 
of the      ,inhabitants of ,brighton1  
to take into consideration the best     
means of      furthering so important an
 object4                                
87,signed by the ,committee740    ,in   
proof of the above statements1 ,i beg to
 refer you to the ,records and          
,official ,authorities of ,brighton4    
,and1 as a summary of the other persons 

who have witnessed and experienced  the 
effect of this method of conveyance1    
additional to the parties  already      
mentioned1 ,i beg to submit the         
following extracts from a ,petition     
which ,i presented to ,parliament on the
 subject4        8,to the ,honourable   
the ,commons of the ,united ,kingdom of 
,great ,britain      and ,ireland in    
,parliament assembled2 the humble       
,petition of ,john      ,vallance1 of   
,brighthelmstone1 in the ,county of     
,sussex1'        8,sheweth1             
8,that your ,petitioner hath invented a 
method of conveyance1 by which      he  
can prove that persons may be carried   
from one place to another      very much
 faster1 cheaper1 and more safely1 in   
reference to security      from personal
 danger1 than can be done on turnpike   
roads1 or      railways2 and whereby be 
can also prove that goods may be        
conveyed      for less expense than by  
canal carriage4        8,that to shew   
the public importance of this method of 

conveyance1      your ,petitioner hath  
put it in operation1 on a scale capable 
of      carrying twenty persons at once1
 over a space sufficient to             
demonstrate its practicability2 as hath 
been proved by ,his ,grace the          
,duke of ,bedford1 the ,right           
,honourable the ,earl of ,lauderdale1   
the      ,noble ,baron ,holland1 and    
,lord ,william ,russell2 who1 with      
several      other persons of           
distinction1 at one and the same time1  
rode in1 and      experienced the effect
 of it1 on the #bnd ,december1 #ahbf4   
8,that on the #afth ,may1 #ahbg1 a      
,committee of seven ,gentlemen1         
nominated at a ,meeting of ,inhabitants 
of ,brighton1 also rode in1 and         
experienced the operation of this method
 of conveyance4        8,that ,his      
,grace the ,duke of ,rutland1 the ,right
 ,honourable the ,earl of               
,egremont1 one of the honourable members
 for ,yorkshire1 one of the             
honourable members for ,lewes1          

,professor ,leslie1 and many other      
gentlemen1 have since witnessed and     
experienced the effect of it4           
8,that it has also been seen by the     
,honourable ,member for ,dundalk1 by    
one of the ,honourable ,members for     
,essex1 for ,london1 for ,southwark1    
for ,barnstable1 for ,callington1 for   
,stafford1 for ,petersfield1 for        
,bedford1 for ,cambridge1 for ,bossiney1
 and for ,weymouth2 with other          
noblemen and gentlemen too numerous to  
mention4        8,that the whole of     
these noble and honourable gentleman    
whom your      petitioner hath          
mentioned1 appeared to be1 and it is    
your      ,petitioner's belief1 were    
convinced1 that this method of          
conveyance      is equally practicable  
as steam navigation1 gas lighting1 or   
locomotive steam-engines2               
notwithstanding that before they        
witnessed      and experienced the      
effect of it1 they deemed it more absurd
 and      impossible than those now well

 known triumphs of art were considered  
twenty years ago4        8,that the     
tunnel and other works whereby your     
,petitioner hath      produced this     
conviction1 combine the operation of the
 largest      pneumatic machinery in the
 world2 the air pumps being capable of  
exhausting above #ej1jjj cubic feet #bj 
of air in a minute2 and of              
conveying #ajj tons weight over a space 
equal to the distance between           
,manchester and ,liverpool1 in three    
hours2--while the tunnel is1 in         
point of calibre and strength1 equal to 
the conveyance of the whole      #ajjj  
tons of goods daily passing between     
those places1 at one time4        8,your
 ,petitioner humbly begs leave further  
to represent1 that the      information 
he hath obtained during five years which
 he hath devoted      to investigations 
relative to the practicability1 cost1   
and      advantages1 of putting this    
method of conveyance into operation     
between our principal manufacturing     

towns1 the outports1 and the            
metropolis1 will enable him to prove    
that it may be done of cast      iron1  
for an expense which would not exceed   
what canals cost2 while      he can also
 prove1 that in addition to combining   
the trade of the      turnpike road with
 that of the canal1 it would admit of   
goods being      carried for less than  
half what they can be carried for on    
canals2      and passengers in less than
 half the time1 very much less than half
      the expense1 and far more safely  
with reference to security from         
personal danger1 than can be done on    
turnpike roads or railways2 it          
being alike impossible to be overturned1
 to be driven against any      thing1 or
 to break down40    ,the last evidence  
,i adduce1 is that of a ,major of       
,engineers in the  ,russian service2    
whom the late ,emperor ,alexander1 after
 he visited  ,england1 sent over to     
inspect and report upon our canals and  
railroads4  ,this officer was directed  

by the ,russian ,ambassador to visit    
,brighton1  expressly to inspect my     
plan2 with reference to which he        
addressed to his  government a report1  
of which he favoured me with the        
following copy3--                       
,,report ,,to ,,the ,,russian           
,,government4        8,to ,his ,royal   
,highness ,prince ,alexander1 ,duke of  
,wirtemburg1 ,chief of         the      
,corps of ,engineers for the ,inland    
,communications of ,russia1             
,general of ,cavalry1 c4 c4             
8,your ,royal ,highness having commanded
 me to report upon all the              
inventions of importance that have been 
brought forward in ,england of      late
 years1 whether such were1 or were not  
named in the instructions      ,i had   
the honour to receive from your ,royal  
,highness in ,st4      ,petersburgh in  
,june #ahbd1a beg leave most humbly to  
submit the      following particulars1  
relative to a proposed mode of          
conveyance2      differing from every   

existing system1 as much as it will     
surpass them      in point of expedition
 and ultimate economy4        8,in      
,march1 #ahbe1 ,i was informed that a   
,mr4 ,vallance had invented a           
method of conveyance1 by which goods    
might be forwarded from place to        
place ten times faster than can now be  
done2 or equal to #ajj miles      per   
hour4  ,the apparent absurdity of the   
proposition1 and the      undefined     
explanation then given1 induced me to   
consider the scheme      as one of the  
nefarious and stock-jobbing bubbles of  
the day2      consequently ,i took no   
measures to become correctly informed on
 the      subject2 particularly as ,i   
was about leaving ,london for an        
extensive      journey in the interior4 
,recent circumstances have1 however1    
caused      me to entertain so different
 an opinion to that which ,i then held  
on      the subject1 that ,i can now    
confidently submit to your ,royal       
,highness      an account of a method of

 conveyance1 which will1 in my humble   
opinion1 within a few years1 operate a  
change in the condition of the          
whole civilized world2 and which would  
be productive of the most      important
 benefits to the ,russian ,empire4      
8,the theory of this method is stated in
 the ,treatise marked with the          
letter ,a4  ,the practice1 ,i have      
experienced personally3 having been     
conveyed over a space sufficient to     
demonstrate the practicability of       
the principle2 and although that space  
was not sufficient to admit of      any 
such velocity being attained as is      
adverted to in the ,treatise1      yet  
there is sufficient evidence of the     
velocity with which air may      be made
 to move1 to satisfy any one1 that on a 
line of proper length1      the only    
limit to the rate at which persons or   
goods may be conveyed1      will be that
 at which wheels will revolve4  ,i will1
 however1 first      advert to the      
general object of the ,treatise1 and    

then comment on      those parts of it  
which ,i conceive to require further    
illustration4        8,your ,royal      
,highness will perceive1 upon a perusal 
of the treatise1      that the general  
object of the author is to prove1       
8#a4  ,that it is practicable to render 
air a means by which we may      cause a
 peculiar sort of wheel carriage to     
convey both passengers and      goods   
ten times faster than horses can draw   
any vehicle now in use4        8#b4     
,that this may be done with perfect     
safety and convenience4        8#c4     
,that we may1 at one and the same time1 
move a weight exceeding      that of    
#ajj1jjj infantry or #aj1jjj cavalry2   
and1 consequently1 that a      whole    
army may1 in an hour1 be transported    
over a space of #ajj miles4        8#d4 
,that this method of transmission may be
 put in practice1 for an      expense   
per mile1 far less than what several    
canals have cost1 as      will be       
apparent from the amounts of the several

 inland navigations      of the ,united 
,kingdom1 stated in my ,report of       
,january last4        8#e4  ,that the   
expense of transport by it will be so   
many times less      than by any present
 method1 that military as well as       
commercial      benefits will result    
from it of the most important nature2   
and        8#f4  ,that the stoppages1   
inconveniences1 and delays1 which would 
otherwise arise from those who have     
charge of the exhausting      apparatus 
at each end of the line of transit1     
setting it in operation      at an      
improper time1 may be prevented by the  
new mode of telegraphic                 
communication described in the last     
section of the ,treatise1 which1        
being equally efficient during the most 
foggy weather and darkness1      as in  
day light and clear weather1 will admit 
of instantaneous      communication     
between those who direct the operations 
at each end2 so      that any thing     
which it may be necessary should be     

known at one end1      may be           
instantaneously communicated from the   
other1 independent of      the method of
 conveyance itself2 an arrangement1     
without which1 the      operation of the
 principle would ever be attended with  
doubt1 delay1      and danger4          
8,the vast importance which a method of 
transmission1 combining the             
advantages of tenfold expedition and    
cheapness1 must be1 to an empire      so
 extensive as that of ,russia1 ,i will  
not presume to point out to      your   
,royal ,highness1 but pass to those     
particulars which appear to me      to  
require further elucidation than the    
author's object allowed of      his     
giving4        8,the first thing is1 the
 velocity at which the cause of motion1 
in      this method of transmission1    
viz4 the air1 would move us1 provided we
      could construct wheel carriages to
 go so fast4  ,this velocity would1     
if raised to its maximum1 be between    
#ijj and #ajjj miles an hour4  ,but     

as saving nine-tenths the time now      
wasted in travelling post1 would        
render the saving of portions of the    
remaining tenth1 very      unimportant1 
it will be unnecessary to trouble your  
,royal ,highness      with proof that it
 might be possible to do so1 in perhaps 
a large      proportion2 and ,i         
therefore pass to the adduction of      
evidence1 which      shows that it is   
certainly in our power to save          
nine-tenths4        8,from the          
examination ,i have given to the        
construction1 and what ,i      have     
experienced as to the effect of the     
cylinder1 or large tube1 in      which  
,i was conveyed1 according to this      
principle of transmission1 ,i      am   
convinced that exhaustion1 to a degree  
which should give fifteen      inches of
 mercury1 may be effected--that is1 half
 a vacuum2 and as      this would give  
an initial velocity of between #bjj and 
#cjj miles an      hour1 there is no    
reason to doubt but that a rate of      

motion equal to      #ajj miles an hour 
may be attained1 provided wheels can    
revolve so      fast without igniting4  
,the operations of nature frequently    
impart to      air a velocity of above  
#ajj miles an hour2 and in the process  
of      fusing iron1 it is artificially 
caused to move at rates varying from    
#bjj to nearly #gjj miles an hour4  ,at 
the lower rate of #ajj miles an         
hour1 it must therefore be fully        
practicable to make it move4            
8,the second thing ,i advert to1 is1 the
 quantity in which air may be           
exhausted1 or taken out of a cylinder1  
or line of large pipe1 such as      is  
adverted to4  ,the blast cylinders used 
instead of bellows1 for      fusing     
iron1 are all air pumps1 and it is      
requisite only to arrange      the      
valves properly1 to render them         
condensing or exhausting pumps at       
pleasure4  ,many of these pumps are     
large enough to exhaust #aj1jjj         
cubic feet of air per minute4  ,assuming

 the area of the cylinder to      be    
#ajj square feet1 #bb;a and the velocity
 at which we are to be      conveyed to 
be #ajj miles an hour1 the combined     
operation of      eighty-eight of these 
pumps would be required4  ,but the one  
referred      to in page #ah1 will take 
out #bb1jjj cubic feet per minute2      
therefore1      only forty such pumps as
 that would be required to exhaust air  
from      the cylinder at the rate of   
#ajj miles an hour--a number1 the       
operation      of which there will be no
 difficulty in combining4        8,the  
pressure requisite to cause air to move 
at the rate of #ajj miles      an hour1 
appears1 by all experiments that have   
been made on the      subject1 to be    
less than half a pound per square inch4 
,calculating      from this datum the   
power requisite to move a column of air 
equal to      the area of the cylinder1 
at the rate of #ajj miles an hour1 would
 be      that of #aijj horses4 #bb;b    
8,a steam engine of fifty horses' power 

would1 therefore1 be required      to   
each air pump1 to cause the air to move 
at the rate of #ajj miles      an hour1 
independent both of the load to be      
moved1 and of the      friction of the  
air against the inside of the cylinder4 
,with      reference to the first of    
these--the load to be moved--it is to be
      observed1 that1 owing to the      
principle combining the operation of by 
far the best railway ,i have ever seen1 
or1 indeed1 can conceive1 with          
carriage wheels six times as high as    
those used on the patent single         
line railway1 friction is diminished to 
a degree which will admit of      the   
same power moving a considerably greater
 weight than on that      railway4  ,it 
will1 therefore1 be quite safe to       
calculate only on the      same effect  
being produced2 and1 according to this  
the extra power      requisite to move  
#ajj tons at the rate of #ajj miles an  
hour1 would be      only #bjj horses4   
,with reference to the friction of the  

air against      the inside of the      
cylinder1 as referred to at pages #fh to
 #gd1 several      times the power will 
be required2 so that1 were there no     
other means      of power and exhaustion
 than steam engines and air pumps1      
objection      might arise in point of  
expense4  ,but1 by what is stated at    
pages #ej      and #ea1 it appears that 
neither air pumps nor steam engines     
would be      indispensably necessary2  
and although ,mr4 ,vallance does not at 
present deem it prudent to give full    
explanation on this particular1      he 
informs me1 that whenever it may be     
requisite1 he is prepared to      prove 
that every purpose of exhaustion may be 
effected without other      apparatus   
than what he can construct out of rough 
hewn trunks of      trees2 so that the  
question may be considered free from any
      objections which the necessity for
 costly machinery would give rise       
to in ,russia4        8,thirdly1 that a 
vehicle capable of carrying both        

passengers and      goods1 can be so    
adapted to the inside of the cylinder as
 to be moved      in it by the air when 
operated upon by the air pump1 ,i can   
vouch1      from having seen and        
experienced it2 and as the rate at which
 this      vehicle moves1 is exactly    
commensurate with that at which the     
pumps      exhaust air from the         
cylinder1 it follows1 that1 at whatever 
rate air      can be pumped out of the  
cylinder1 the vehicle will be carried   
forward1 provided that velocity does not
 exceed the rate at which      wheels   
can revolve on their axes without       
ignition3 with reference to      which1 
it is to be observed1        8,fourthly1
 that the number of revolutions made by 
a carriage wheel      depends on the    
size of that wheel1 as well as on the   
motion of the      vehicle4  ,the fore  
wheels of the coaches which travel with 
the      greatest expedition1 revolve1  
on an average1 about #ajj times in a    
minute4  ,one of the peculiar advantages

 of the method ,mr4 ,vallance           
proposes1 is1 that it admits of the     
wheels of the vehicles which move       
in the cylinder being several times     
larger than the wheels of      carriages
 which run on roads2 owing to their     
being always kept in an      exactly    
perpendicular position1 and consequently
 free from the strain      thrown on the
 spokes of a common carriage wheel1 by  
the deflections      from the           
perpendicular1 which the nature of and  
obstructions upon      roads continually
 occasion4  ,owing to this1 the wheels  
of the      vehicles which move in the  
proposed cylinder may be from ten to    
twelve feet in diameter2 or nearly four 
times as large as the fore      wheels  
of a coach4  ,the same number of        
revolutions1 therefore1 which      the  
fore wheel of a coach makes in an hour1 
would move the vehicle in      the      
cylinder forty miles2 and twice and a   
half that number of      revolutions    
would give #ajj miles an hour4  ,now if 

a common coach      wheel which moves   
under the disadvantages of being        
constantly exposed      to all the      
clogging and impediments arising from   
the dust and dirt of      the road1 can 
revolve for hours together at the rate  
of #ajj times a      minute1 without    
being greased1 excepting at the end of  
its journey of      perhaps one hundred 
miles1 it may fairly be presumed1 that a
 wheel      which would be not only free
 from all dust and dirt1 but also moving
      in a reservoir of oil would       
revolve #bej times a minute without     
heating1 even had we no such evidence as
 that referred to in page #cf4      ,but
 when that is taken into the            
consideration1 all anxiety with         
reference to the effect a velocity of   
#ajj miles an hour would have on        
the axes of the wheels1 may be          
dismissed4        8,fifthly1 nor is it  
necessary that any anxiety should be    
entertained1      as to the effect such 
a velocity would have on respiration2   

for in      addition to what is urged on
 this matter at pages #bh1 #bi1 and #ce1
 ,i      have to state that1 though ,i  
was purposely exposed to the #8vacuum'  
as      it is termed1 many times during 
my examination of1 and riding in the    
cylinder1 yet ,i did not experience the 
least inconvenience from it4            
,indeed1 ,i should not have been aware  
of it1 had my attention not been        
directed to it2 the degree of exhaustion
 necessary to move a      carriage1 not 
being much more than the ten-thousandth 
part of a      vacuum3 a diminution of  
density1 which would not lower the      
barometer      so much as the           
two-hundredth part of an inch4          
8,sixthly1 a degree of exhaustion1 or   
vacuum1 which is not sufficient         
visibly to affect the barometer1 being  
enough to move the carriage      with   
persons in it1 so as for them to        
experience the effect1 and      fully   
comprehend the operation of the         
principle1 it becomes evident      that 

the idea at first entertained of a      
perfect vacuum being      indispensable1
 is most erroneous2 and the objections  
which at first      present themselves  
to us1 relative to the difficulty of    
constructing      the cylinder--of      
making the joints air tight1 and of so  
adapting the      ends of the vehicle to
 the cylinder1 as should prevent the    
passage of      any important quantity  
of air1 without occasioning great       
friction1      are all seen to exist    
only in imagination4  ,in the cylinder  
which ,mr4      ,vallance has in        
operation at ,brighton1 there is a space
 of above an      inch in width1        
purposely left all round between the    
cylinder and the      end of the        
carriage which forms the piston1 against
 which the air      presses to drive the
 carriage along2 yet does not the air   
which      rushes through this crevice  
7though it is in the whole equal to an  
aperture of two square feet71 prevent   
the operation of the principle3      its

 sole effect being a loss of a          
proportion of the power employed to     
drive the air pumps2 a loss which ,mr4  
,vallance intentionally submits      to1
 for the sake of proving that a very    
large portion of air may rush      by   
the piston end of the carriage1 without 
preventing the effect of      the       
principle4--,vide pages #cj and #ca4    
8,seventhly1 nor will the degree to     
which it may be necessary to            
exhaust1 or1 as it may in other words be
 termed1 the degree of      #8vacuum'   
required1 to move even a very great     
weight1 interpose any      insuperable  
difficulty4  ,in the cylinder at        
,brighton1 a party1      consisting of  
his ,grace the ,duke of ,bedford1 the   
,earl of ,lauderdale1      ,lord        
,holland1 ,lord ,w4 ,russell1 ,lady ,w4 
,russell1 and another lady and          
gentleman1 were all at the same time    
experiencing the operation of      the  
principle1 on the day ,i was last at    
,brighton1 with a degree of             

exhaustion not exceeding two drachms per
 square inch2 a proportion of           
vacuum which would lower the barometer  
about one-hundredth of an      inch4    
,practice therefore proves1 as well as  
the arguments in pages      #dg and #dh1
 that a very trivial degree of          
exhaustion will be      sufficient to   
move a considerable load2 and as it will
 be perfectly      practicable to       
exhaust to a degree1 that should render 
a barometer      exposed to the vacuum  
inside the cylinder1 several1 if not    
many      inches lower than one would   
stand exposed to the atmosphere1 ,i do  
not      think the amount stated in page
 #cg more than it may be possible to    
move at one time4  ,and with reference  
to weights of #ej or #ajj tons1         
such as locomotive engines draw at once1
 there will certainly be no             
difficulty at all1 let the velocity they
 are moved at be what it may4           
8,eighthly1 under the trivial degree of 
exhaustion which will thus1             

generally speaking1 be necessary1 your  
,royal ,highness will perceive1         
that rendering the cylinder sufficiently
 air-tight for the purpose1      will be
 far less difficult than it is at first 
supposed4  ,indeed1 ,i      see so many 
different ways of doing it1 that ,i am  
satisfied it would      not1 in         
practice1 prove more difficult1 nor     
indeed so difficult1 as      causing    
some canals ,i have seen1 to retain the 
water let into      them4--,vide p4 #de4
        8,ninthly1 nor will there be any
 difficulty in regulating the motion    
of1 and stopping the vehicle4  ,the     
shortest way of rendering this          
evident to your ,royal ,highness1 will  
be to suppose the end of the            
carriage which1 when in motion1 stands  
across the cylinder1 at a      right    
angle with its course1 to be capable of 
turning on a pivot2 so      that it may 
be moved one quarter of a circle1 and   
placed in a line      with the course of
 the cylinder3 or edge to wind1 like a  

sail when it      shivers4  ,the        
consequence of this would be1 that as   
the air would      pass by without      
pressing against it1 the power which    
moved the      carriage forward would be
 taken off2 and as the wheel could at   
the      same time be dragged by a      
friction lever1 while other levers      
caused      friction against the side of
 the cylinder1 the progress of the      
carriage could be commanded and stopped 
at pleasure4  ,this method of           
removing the effect of the pressure of  
the air against the carriage1      not  
being that which would be made use of in
 practice1 my reason for      adverting 
to it1 is solely to enable your ,royal  
,highness to perceive1      that a very 
simple arrangement will admit of its    
being done4  ,for the      same reason1 
,i only state1 that to the axis of each 
carriage1 would      be connected clock 
work1 which would shew the person who   
has charge      of the carriage how far 
he has gone1 and where he is1 to a yard2

 so      that there will be no          
uncertainty as to when and where to     
prepare for      stopping1 by gradually 
diminishing the motion of the carriage4 
,there      will be every facility for  
perfect vision1 as at each end of every 
carriage will be fixed a portable gas   
light4        8,tenthly1 this principle 
possesses an advantage over common      
roads1 as      well as rail-roads and   
canals1 which will1 under all           
circumstances1      be generally1 and1  
in some cases1 highly important4  ,this 
advantage      is1 that the cause of    
motion 7the atmospheric pressure7 will  
act      vertically as well as          
horizontally2 and that in consequence of
 it1      the filling up of hollows1 and
 also deep cutting1 as for canals and   
rail-roads1 is unnecessary4  ,not that  
it would be advisable to select         
hilly ground2 though perfectly possible 
to go over any1 the most      abrupt    
rises1 even were they nearly            
perpendicular4  ,but that any rise      

or fall over which a carriage road can  
be cut1 would be quite level      enough
 for the operation of the principle4    
8,eleventhly1 ,i now mention the expense
 per mile1 which ,i think will      not1
 in ,russia1 exceed #aj1jjjl4  ,the     
calculations on which this      opinion 
is founded1 ,i do not here submit to    
your ,royal ,highness2 but      at such 
time as may be necessary they will be   
ready for transmission4                 
8,twelfthly1 the expense of transit1 or 
carriage1 by this principle4            
,assuming that the combined effect of   
the improved railway in the             
cylinder1 and the six-fold diameter of  
the wheels1 should not render      any  
given power capable of moving more than 
on the single-line      railway 7vide my
 ,report of ,august1 #ahbe71 one horse  
would move twenty      tons2 but        
independent of the effect which the     
wheels1 being six times      larger1    
would have in diminishing friction1 the 
expense of      transmission would be   

diminished many times1 from the         
following      circumstances3--,on the  
single-line railway1 the power employed 
is that      of horses2 and1 considering
 the construction of that railway1 and  
the      height the rail must be in some
 situations above the ground1 ,i do not 
conceive that locomotive engines can be 
ever used upon it4      ,horse-power is 
twenty-four times as dear as elementary 
power1      employed in the way the     
,treatise points out4  ,assuming1       
therefore1      that the friction of the
 rarified air against the inside of the 
cylinder1 as stated at pages #fh and    
#gd1 should increase the power          
required ten times1 still would the     
expense of carriage be less than      by
 the single line railway1 while we      
should attain the important             
advantage of being able to transmit     
#aj1jjj tons1 at any rate between       
what railways now transmit at1 and #ajj 
miles per hour1 for an expense          
which1 as relates to power1 would be    

only the twenty-fifth part of a         
farthing per ton per mile4        8,but 
even were the friction of the rarefied  
air against the inside of      the      
cylinder to increase the power required 
ten times1 as ,i have      supposed1 it 
is not imperative that the expense of   
transmission must      be increased in a
 similar degree4  ,owing to its being   
well-known and      universally         
received1 steam is the first mover1 or  
power1 ,mr4      ,vallance has referred 
to4  ,the researches of men of science  
in      ,england have1 however1 been for
 some years directed to means of        
rendering the gases first movers1       
instead of steam1 under the hope of     
obtaining an agent1 which should serve  
as a mechanical first mover1            
without fuel4  ,from the year #ahbj1 the
 attention of ,mr4 ,vallance has        
been directed to this subject1 with a   
view of rendering the method of         
conveyance the ,treatise refers to      
perfect1 in the particular of           

cheapness of transmission2 and about two
 years ago he obtained a      patent for
 a first mover1 which will give ten     
times the power of      steam1 without  
any expense for fuel2 the principle of  
which is stated      in the ,tract1     
marked letter ,b1 which ,i have obtained
 from him1 for      the perusal of your 
,royal ,highness4  ,the power therein   
referred to1      proposed to be used   
instead of steam1 would so greatly      
reduce the      expense of transmission1
 that the cost of power would be ten    
times      less than by the single line 
rail-road4        8,it will also be     
equally superior in point of safety and 
security      from accidents1 as it is  
in point of economy and expedition3 it  
being1 as stated in page #ha1 absolutely
 impossible to be overturned4           
8,thus combining expedition exceeding   
that of posting1 with economy      equal
 to that of canal transmission1 it must 
appear that this      principle is most 
importantly advantageous to an empire so

 vast in      its extent as that of     
,russia1 and1 consequently1 fully       
authorizes me      most strongly to     
recommend that the ,government should   
immediately      contract with ,mr4     
,vallance1 to send a practical          
illustration of the      principle1 such
 as he has in operation at ,brighton1   
which1 being      capable of carrying   
your ,royal ,highness1 the ,members of  
the ,council1      and ,generals of the 
,arrondissements1 over a space          
sufficient to      demonstrate the      
practicability of the proposition1 will 
place within      command a reply to all
 objections from ignorant or interested 
persons4        8,it has been deemed    
essentially important to the welfare of 
,russia to      promote internal        
communication by canals1 and immense    
sums have been      expended in cutting 
them2 but owing to the long duration of 
winter1      they are useless during    
half the year2 and so slow is the rate  
of      transmission by them1 that1 even

 when in full operation1 they can       
hardly serve to convey goods from one   
part of the empire to the      other1   
before winter locks them up again4      
,railways also1 owing to      the period
 the snow lays on the ground1 and the   
continual drifting of      it which     
takes place1 would be available scarcely
 more than half the      year4  ,but the
 principle here adverted to1 being      
liable to      interruption from neither
 frost nor snow1 and equally effective  
by      night as by day1 offers a means 
of rendering the extremities of the     
empire contiguous to each other2 and    
will do this at a much less      charge 
than can ever be done by canals1 or any 
other mode of      conveyance4          
8,the vast importance of this principle 
to ,russia1 both in a military      and 
commercial point of view1 it is         
unnecessary for me to state to      your
 ,royal ,highness2 but ,i consider the  
manifold advantages it      presents    
sufficiently demonstrated1 to prompt me 

to recommend its      speedy adoption   
from ,st4 ,petersburgh to ,tsarsko-selo1
 the river      ,volga1 ,moscow1 and the
 ,black ,sea4                           
8,,william ,,couling1 ,k4 ,v4 c4        
8,london1 ,dec4 #ba1 #ahbf40    ,with   
these evidences that ,i do not presume  
to request your attention  relative to a
 mere theory1 ,i trust ,i may be        
permitted to hope1 that the  following  
observations relative to effecting a    
communication between your  canal at    
,kensington and the point of termination
 you propose1 may be  deemed not wholly 
undeserving attention4    ,were you to  
purchase land for either a canal or a   
railway1 the width  required would not  
be less than sixty or seventy feet1     
while in some  parts it would be much   
more on account of the cuttings and     
embankments4  #bf    ,supposing the     
method which ,i submit to you were to be
 adopted1 a width of  only eight feet   
would be necessary1 even were the tunnel
 to be carried1  as a canal or railway  

must be1 along the surface of the       
ground2 so that  my proposition has1 to 
recommend it1 this first feature1 that  
only  one-eighth of the ground would be 
wanted that must be required for either 
a canal or railway2 while this          
recommendation would be attended with   
the  additional advantage1 that1 instead
 of the tunnel rendering the lands      
through which it would pass1 open1 and  
liable to the depredations of the       
bargemen and drivers1 as canals or      
railways do1 it would1 owing to         
communication going on inside the       
tunnel1 leave them still as private1    
untrenched upon1 and uninvaded1 as a    
water or gas pipe would do4    ,in      
order1 however1 still more to obviate   
objections as to the course1 and        
additionally to reduce expense as to the
 nature of the ground required  for the 
line of communication which ,i suggest1 
,i propose carrying the  tunnel under   
ground1 in lieu of upon it2 while1      
instead of taking its  course across    

fields and cultivated grounds--as a     
canal or railway must  do--,i propose   
taking it along the line of 7though     
buried underneath7  certain bye-roads   
and 7to coin a word7 uncultivatible     
grounds lying  between your basin and   
the ,grand ,junction ,canal1 and the    
line of the  ,london and ,birmingham    
,railway2 by doing which1 ,i anticipate 
that very  great expense1 and still more
 important opposition1 will be avoided2 
while1 as the farm-roads and tracks1    
along and underneath which ,i propose   
to carry the tunnel1 would be so        
importantly improved by it1 as to be    
rendered almost equal to turnpike roads1
 the execution of the work would  be an 
actual benefit1 instead of an injury to 
the land under which it was  carried4   
,in addition to these things1 the line  
,i propose would save five per cent4  on
 the whole cost2 owing to its being in  
that proportion shorter than the  line  
pointed out on the plan for the railway 
which was laid before the  meeting4     

,the course ,i propose is as follows4   
#ast4 ,along the road on the east of    
your basin1 to the turnpike road2 in    
which length ,i should sink it so as  to
 go under the turnpike4  #bnd4          
,diagonally across the turnpike to the  
bottom of ,addison ,road2 up and        
underneath which it would be continued  
to  the ,uxbridge ,road4  #crd4 ,under  
that road1 and the farm yard and ground 
opposite ,addison ,road1 to the ,green  
lane which runs upwards by the side  of 
,morland ,hall2 where would be the only 
cultivated ground 7and that  only two or
 three furlongs7 which it might be      
necessary to purchase4    ,from this    
point it would go under the track to    
,notting ,barn ,farm2 and  from thence  
under that farm yard up the track to the
 bridge now crossing  the ,grand        
,junction ,canal2 where ,i propose      
obviating any opposition of the  ,grand 
,junction company1 by fixing the bridge 
which must be thrown across  to carry   
the tunnel1 close to that bridge2 so    

that there would still  be1 as it were1 
but one bridge for their barges to pass 
under4    ,from this point it might be  
carried under the short piece of road   
leading  to the ,harrow ,road2 and      
thence1 under and across that road1 up  
7though  under7 ,kilburn ,lane1 to the  
line of the ,london and ,birmingham     
,railway4    ,there being only between  
three and four furlongs1 which are      
cultivatible  throughout this route2 and
 as the tunnel 7being carried under     
them7 would  be no impediment to the    
usual operations of agriculture 7unless 
some  repair should1 by chance1 be      
necessary1 while the crops were on the  
ground7 the expense of the ground line1 
would1 comparatively1 be not  worth     
speaking of2 instead of proving the     
costly matter it would be1 as  relates  
to a canal or railway4    ,and the      
foundation which the width of the       
8lengths0 of the tunnel would  give for 
the railway inside it1 being thirty     
times greater than those of  the bases  

on which the rails of the ,liverpool and
 ,manchester ,railway are  laid 7those  
bases too1 being of an extra and unusual
 size7 the tunnel  would be less likely 
to need repair as relates to its        
foundation1 than  the ,liverpool and    
,manchester ,railway is1 by thirty      
times4  ,indeed1 owing  to the less     
weight there will be on each 8length0 of
 the tunnel1 in  comparison with that   
thrown on the railway bases1 the        
probability of  repair proving necessary
 will be less than this4    ,the stone  
blocks1 or bases1 which carry the rails 
of the ,liverpool and  ,manchester      
,railway are two feet square4  ,the     
weight of the large  locomotive engines 
on that railway1 is above ten tons2 more
 than half of  which1 being thrown on   
two of the wheels1 each block has three 
tons  weight on it when those wheels    
pass over it4  ,the pressure on every   
square inch of the foundations of the   
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1    
is1 consequently1 above four times as   

much as on the boilers of ,boulton  and 
,watt's steam-engines2 from which result
 the sinkings1 8drivings into  the      
ground10 and the twenty-fold more       
expensive repairs than were  originally 
calculated on1 alluded to in the extract
 from the ,foreign  ,quarterly ,review1 
given at page #aa4    ,now as the       
construction of the carriages which     
would go in the tunnel1  would prevent  
more than three tons being thrown on a  
8length0 of the  tunnel2 and as each of 
these 8lengths0 would expose a base of  
#abj square  feet to the ground1 the    
pressure on each square inch of the     
foundation of  the tunnel1 would not be 
one-thirtieth of what it is on the bases
 of the  ,manchester and ,liverpool     
,railway2 which1 taken in conjunction   
with the  superior bases exposed by the 
tunnel1 would1 perhaps1 render the      
probability of sinking less than one    
hundredth4  ,it may1 therefore1 be      
presumed that after the tunnel was once 
fairly set in its place1 it never  would

 be necessary to disturb the ground over
 it4    ,neither will the height to be  
surmounted by your extension1 prove an  
at  all serious impediment to the effect
 of the principle which the tunnel  will
 enable us to put in operation4    ,as  
the pressure of the atmosphere1 acting  
in all directions1 admits of a  tunnel  
being effective even were it fixed      
vertically1 all gradations of  ascent1  
fall1 necessarily1 within in its range2 
with varieties of effect1  increasing in
 proportion as their angles approach the
 horizon4  ,in  consequence of this1 the
 height to be surmounted in the course  
of your  extension1 is merely an        
impediment of degree2 while the         
following  circumstance will render that
 degree comparatively unimportant4      
,few things are better known than that a
 ,stage ,coachman1 when he  approaches a
 rise of the road1 pushes his horses to 
a gallop2 because  8the swing of the    
coach0 7as he expresses it7 8carries his
 cattle up the  hill40  ,the principle  

is known to every one2 while it is      
almost equally  well known that the law 
of its operation1 is according to the   
square of  the velocity2 so that the    
momentum of a coach which meets the hill
 with  the horses pushed into a gallop  
that causes the rate of the vehicle to  
be  #af miles an hour1 will 7friction   
abstracted7 rise four times as high as  
one that meets the hill when going at   
the rate of #h miles an hour3 the       
continuance of the operation of the     
power which overcame friction on the    
level1 being 7so far as relates to its  
counteractive effect7 equivalent  to an 
annihilation of friction4    ,this law  
is well known4  ,now let us see how this
 knowledge has been taken  advantage of1
 by those who have had the expenditure  
of hundreds of  thousands1 placed at    
their discretion4    ,rates of from #ce 
to #dj miles an hour1 have been attained
 on the ,liverpool  and ,manchester     
,railway for these four years4          
,supposing friction to be  counteracted 

and neutralized1 the momentum of a      
vehicle that was moving  on a level at  
the rate of #cf miles an hour1 would    
8swing0 and cause it to  rise up an     
inclined plane to the height of #dc feet
 perpendicular1 let  the angle of       
ascent1 or rate of rise1 be what it     
might2 while1 as a  velocity of #bj     
miles an hour1 would1 under similar     
circumstances1 8swing0  a carriage up   
#ac feet perpendicular1 and a velocity  
of #aj miles an hour1  #c feet          
perpendicular1 it needs not1 nor ever   
has needed any thing more  than a proper
 arrangement of levels and inclined     
planes1 to avoid all  deep cutting1 high
 embanking1 or tunnelling1 in the line  
of a railway1  except where a           
precipitous rise or hollow interposed   
itself4    ,it is true that it may1 with
 reference to the deep cuttings and high
  embankments of the ,liverpool and     
,manchester ,railway be replied1 that at
  the time these works were executed1 it
 was not known that such great          

velocities could be attained on         
railways4 #bi;a  ,but though it was not 
then known that these rates of motion   
could be attained1 yet was it as  well  
known as it is now1 that rates of ten   
miles an hour could be  attained by     
horses3 while1 though the first line of 
the railway was laid  out in #ahbd1 and 
the present line in #ahbe1 it was not   
till ,october1 #ahbh1  that it became   
decided whether horse or elementary     
power should be  employed3 vide pages   
#fb1 #fg1 #fh1 and #fi of ,mr4          
,treasurer ,booth's 8,account  of the   
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway40   
,and notwithstanding that instances of  
velocities equal to ten miles an  hour  
having been attained by locomotive      
engines1 were not very common at  the   
time the line of the ,liverpool and     
,manchester ,railway was laid out1  yet 
do the under-quoted extracts from       
various publications of the period      
prove1 both that they had been attained1
 and that much higher  velocities were  

confidently anticipated3 while ,mr4     
,treasurer ,booth1 at  page #cg of his  
book1 says1 that 8the earth work        
7comprising the cuttings  and embankings
 along the whole line7 was not commenced
 till ,january1  #ahbg40 #bi;b    ,such 
statements being 7as it were1           
officially7 promulgated1 and such       
opinions entertained relative to the    
velocities attainable by locomotive     
engines3--the question as to the        
employment of horses being1 thus1 an    
open  one1 not only during the survey   
for the second line1 but also for two   
years and a half after the ,act for the 
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway  was
 obtained2 and it being equally well    
known as it is that the sun gives       
light1 that for the gallop which        
coachmen push their horses to just      
before touching a hill1 in order to give
 their vehicles the momentum  which     
imparts the 8swing that carries their   
horses up the hill01 rates of  #ae or   
#af miles an hour could be attained--it 

being thus known at the time  the line  
of the ,liverpool and ,manchester       
,railway was laid out1 that  average    
velocities of #aj1 and occasional       
velocities of #ae miles an hour  could  
be attained3 and it being unquestionable
 that if friction be  counteracted 7as  
it is by the continuance of the         
operation of the moving  power7 the     
momenta imparted by those velocities    
will carry any vehicle up  any inclined 
plane to the heights of #c and #g feet1 
it was necessary  only to have laid out 
the railway in short levels1 with sharp 
inclined  planes rising a foot or two   
between them1 to have avoided all deep  
cutting or high embanking4    ,it is    
true that owing to velocities of ten    
miles an hour1 having at that  time1    
been only occasionally attained by      
locomotive engines1 it might  have been 
proper to keep these ranges of levels1  
and inclined planes  within the limit   
prescribed by that rate4  ,but as this  
limit is not  within a vertical rise of 

#c feet #d inches1 it would have been   
perfectly  possible1 by arranging short 
levels with sharp inclined planes of    
three  feet in height between them1 to  
have avoided the whole of those deep    
cuttings and high embankments of the    
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1 of 
which the under-quoted extract from ,mr4
 ,treasurer ,booth's book gives such    
glowing descriptions4 #cj    ,admitting1
 however1 7for the question's sake7 that
 the 8most eminent  engineers0 and their
 8assistants of undoubted talents10 by  
whom these  8,pelion-upon-,ossa-like    
spoil banks1 towering over the adjacent 
land0 were  ordered--and of which ,mr4  
,booth says1 in addition1 8this         
aggregate mass  has been removed to     
various distances1 from a few furlongs  
to between  three and four miles2 and no
 inconsiderable portion of it has been  
hoisted up by machinery from a depth of 
#cj to #fj feet0--admitting that  these 
gentlemen should have been warranted in 
expending the hundreds of  thousands    

which were paid for making these        
mountains between ,liverpool  and       
,manchester1 by the uncertainty then    
prevalent as to what velocities  were   
attainable by locomotive engines1 it    
cannot be said that the  engineers of   
the ,london and ,birmingham ,railway    
have any similar  justification to      
plead4  ,that line was not1 ,i believe1 
laid out till  #ahca1 while the         
velocities attained on the ,liverpool   
and ,manchester  ,railway1 and the short
 time within which ,london and          
,birmingham could1 in  consequence1 be  
brought of each other1 form the main    
features of the  prospectus3 rates of   
from #ce to #dj miles an hour having    
been 7then7  long attained on the       
,liverpool and ,manchester railway4     
,yet does the 8,estimate0 laid before   
,parliament shew no less a sum than     
#dbi1bhfl4 appropriated to              
8,excavations1 ,embankments1 and        
,tunnelling10  which1 with 8the increase
 in the number of arches in the         

,wolverton  viaduct10 will give an      
estimated expenditure of nearly half a  
million  to do that1 which1 taking      
proper advantage of the law of motion ,i
 am  adverting to1 would entirely have  
saved2 except where a hill as           
perpendicular as a wall1 or a hollow as 
precipitous as a well1 rendered         
tunnelling1 deep cutting1 or filling up1
 absolutely unavoidable4    ,at the time
 the ,birmingham ,railway was before    
,parliament last session1  maps of it   
were issued from the office of that     
company1 which gave the  8,section of   
the line of railway2 shewing the rises  
and falls40    ,this section is on too  
small a scale to shew either the height 
of the  embankments or the depth of the 
cuttings3 and though it has not suited  
my  convenience to spare the time       
necessary for examining the section     
deposited in ,parliament1 yet as the    
cubic yards of cuttings and  embankments
 amount to nearly twenty-three millions3
 as the map and  section ,i have just   

mentioned shew ten tunnels 7some of     
which are a mile  and upwards in        
length73 and inclined planes1 in        
unbroken rises of #f1 #h1  #aj1 #aa1    
#ac1 #bj1 and #be miles1 there can be no
 doubt but that much deep  cutting and  
high embanking is included in it4  ,now 
though ,i do not mean  to imply that the
 expense of all cutting and embanking   
could have been  saved1 by taking proper
 advantage of the power of ascending    
heights1  which is imparted by the      
momenta of the velocities whereat       
locomotive  engines now go1 yet ,i do   
mean to state it as my full conviction1 
that had  this railway been 7as the     
second prospectus of the ,liverpool and 
,manchester ,railway1 stated that line  
should be7 8laid down and arranged  with
 that skill and conformity with the     
rules of mechanical science1  which will
 equally challenge approbation1 whether 
considered as a  national undertaking of
 great public utility1 or as a          
magnificent  specimen of art0 the whole 

of the anticipated expenses of deep     
cutting  and high embanking would have  
been expunged from the estimates2 it    
being certain1 that deep cuttings1 high 
embankments1 and long inclined  planes  
are no more evidences of engineering    
skill1 than winning a battle  by hard   
fighting is of generalship3 while the   
expense of the numerous  8very small    
cuttings varying from #h to #aj feet10  
which are spoken of in  the 8,minutes of
 ,evidence taken before the ,lords'     
,committees10 might as  certainly have  
been saved1 and those rises passed over 
by the vehicles in  consequence of their
 momentum2 as a cricket ball will roll  
over a  mole-hill4    ,but if these     
remarks are applicable to the           
,birmingham ,railway--the line of       
which1 was ,i believe1 laid out in      
#ahca--what must be said relative to the
  now proposed ,london and ,bristol     
,railway8    ,for nearly twelve months  
the principle of avoiding level1 and    
constructing 8undulating railways0 has  

been discussed1 in consequence of  ,mr4 
,badnall having taken out a patent for1 
and published a work1  proposing such   
8undulating railways03 and though1 owing
 to the fall on  your line being wholly 
7as well as greatly7 one way1 it is not 
necessary to express any opinion here on
 a proposition1 which appears to  have  
for its object the construction of      
unlevel railways in preference  to level
 ones1 and the labour of toiling up hill
 for the sake of the  momentum to be    
obtained by running down hill1 yet as1  
in consequence of  it1 the effect of    
momentum in carrying moving bodies up   
ascents1 has been  largely and widely   
adverted to for the last twelve months  
7nearly71 it  must have been within the 
expectation of every one1 that1 let the 
gentleman who has been employed to lay  
out the line of the ,bristol  ,railway  
be anxious as he might1 to avoid any    
8undulating0 proposition1 he  would be  
equally anxious to call in the aid of   
all known and  established principles1  

to diminish the expense of the line he  
was  required to lay down4 #cb    ,now1 
nothing1 ,i believe1 is more certain1   
than that if a vehicle be  moving along 
a level at the rate of #b 7#b4gbgb7     
miles an hour1 it will1  on coming to an
 inclined plane1 and provided the       
operation of the power  which overcame  
friction on the level1 be continued1 so 
as to neutralise  and 7as relates to    
counteractive effect7 annihilate        
friction during the  ascent1 8swing0    
itself up1 and rise to the height of    
7that is1 its  momentum will cause it to
 rise to the height of7 three inches    
perpendicular2 let the angle of ascent1 
or rate of rise of the plane1 be  what  
it may4    ,equally certain is it1 that 
if the velocity of the vehicle be twice 
#b  miles an hour1 that is #e4dedd      
miles1 the momentum will 7under similar 
circumstances as to counteraction of    
friction7 then cause the vehicle to     
rise up said inclined plane to four     
times the height to which the former    

velocity raised it2 or to the height of 
one foot4  ,and it is equally  certain1 
that the momenta imparted by increased  
velocities will1 under  the circumstance
 of the friction of the vehicle being   
overcome1  neutralised1 and 7as relates 
to counteractive effect7 annihilated1 by
 the  continued operation of the moving 
power during the ascent1 cause the      
vehicle to rise up any inclined plane to
 the perpendicular heights stated  in   
the following table3--    ,carriages    
moving on levels1 at the      ,have     
momenta1 which 7friction                
under-mentioned velocities1 the         
being counteracted and  motions of which
 are changed from       neutralised7    
will cause them  horizontal to          
ascending1 by means1      to rise to the
  either of circular or angular         
under-mentioned heights  ascents4       
7perpendicular7 above the               
level where those velocities            
were attained3 let the rate             
of rise1 or angle of ascent1            

be what it may4  ,,miles4               
,,miles ,,per ,,hour4                   
,,perpendicular4            #b  or      
#b4gbgb                       #c inches4
            #e  or                      
#e4dedd                       #a4j foot4
            #aa  or                     
#aj4ijhh                       #d4j     
feet4            #bb  or                
#ba4hagf                        #af4j   
do4            #dd  or                  
#dc4fceb                        #fd4j   
do4            #hh  or                  
#hg4bgjd                       #bef4j   
do4           #agf  or                  
#agd4edjd                      #ajbd4j  
do4      #ceb #cc  or                   
#cdi4jhjh                      #djif4j  
do4    ,now1 let it have been proper as 
it may1 that the gentleman whose name   
appears as 8,engineer0 to the ,bristol  
,railway1 should 7in laying out that    
line7 have avoided encumbering the      
subject with the 8undulating0  question1
 there can be no doubt that it was      

incumbent on him to diminish  expense in
 every way which established principles 
admitted4  ,and as the  usual railway   
rate is now #bj miles an hour1 while    
that rate will give  momentum enough to 
cause any vehicle to rise up any        
inclined plane to the  height of #ac    
feet 7perpendicular7 above the level on 
which it was  running at the rate of #bj
 miles an hour1 it is necessary only to 
lay out  the line of this railway in    
levels1 and rises of #aj feet each1 to  
avoid  7very nearly1 if not quite7 all  
necessity for cutting1 or embanking2    
while deep cutting1 high embanking1 and 
tunnelling1 might 7except in  very      
peculiar cases7 have been as certainly  
avoided1 as erecting a  suspension      
bridge will obviate the necessity for   
piers and arches over a  river4  ,yet   
does not this gentleman appear to have  
any more called in the  aid of this law 
of motion1 than did those equally       
8eminent engineers0  who laid out the   
line of the ,liverpool and ,manchester  

,railway2 or those  who have laid out   
that of the ,birmingham ,railway3 the   
8,report0 of the  public meeting held at
 ,bristol1 on the #cjth ,july last1     
stating that  8although the line of     
country 7except for about #cj miles at  
the ,bristol  end7 is very advantageous1
 yet the comparative levelness of the   
railway  will be attained by a great    
deal of deep cutting1 and several       
tunnels20 while the prospectus issued   
from the ,london office of the  ,company
 states1 that 8the construction of a    
road so nearly level1 in the  hilly     
country about ,bath and ,bristol1 will1 
unavoidably1 be a costly  work40    ,the
 length of the ,birmingham ,railway is  
#aab miles2 that of the ,bristol        
,railway 8from #aae to #aah or #abj     
miles10 average #aag4  ,the estimated   
expense of the cuttings1 embankments1   
and tunnels1 of the ,birmingham         
,railway is #dbi1bhfl4 or #c1ahel4 per  
mile4  ,the same expense on the         
,bristol ,railway is 7#hce1cjjl4        

#ae1jjjl47 #hej1cjjl4 or #g1bcfl4  per  
mile2 that is1 above twice as much3 and 
this too1 notwithstanding  that the     
,report states that 8this expensive part
 of the work1  fortunately1 lies        
principally in two of the most          
favourable materials--the  chalk and the
 freestone20 and also notwithstanding   
that the estimate of  the ,birmingham   
,railway has undergone two years'       
scrutiny1 and the most  rigid           
investigation1 by several ,parliamentary
 ,committees2 while that for  the       
,bristol ,railway is the result of only 
a 8preliminary survey10  directed by a  
8,provisional ,committee30 so that were 
it to be increased as  the estimate for 
the ,birmingham ,railway has been       
increased1 it would be  many times as   
much as the similar work on that        
railway4  ,indeed1 the  parties         
themselves have made a considerable     
increase already3 #aj per  cent4 being  
added to the above amount of #hej1cjj by
 the ,bristol  ,committee1 and #g per   

cent4 by the ,london ,committee2 #cd;a  
so that  #igh1didl4 is the whole amount 
at present allowed for works1 which     
taking proper advantage of the momentum 
of the vehicles would have saved4       
,yet1 with well-known laws of motion    
thus set at nought and neglected1 and   
with expense thus unnecessarily as well 
as most enormously added to1 are  the   
,committee--gentlemen who were1         
unavoidably1 as entirely dependant on   
the opinion of their engineers1 as the  
,ministry of #aghi were upon that of    
the 8,insanity ,doctors10 relative to   
the mental affliction of ,george ,,iii42
  or as those of #ahcj were on that of  
the physicians who attended ,george     
,,iv4 during his long illness--under    
circumstances of such entire dependence 
on the opinion of their engineers1 are  
the 8,provisional ,committee0 of the    
,bristol ,railway led into the following
 expressions of approbation in  their   
,report3 8,the ,committee think it but  
justice to say1 that the zeal1  the     

diligence1 the ability and other        
valuable qualities manifested by  these 
gentlemen1 have given them ample reason 
to congratulate themselves  on their    
choice062 and 8,the ,committee1 in      
conclusion1 repeat that they  have      
carefully availed themselves of the     
resources of skill and  experience in   
investigating the probable cost of the  
railway40 #cd;b    ,now as1 were ,i to  
presume to manifest 8skill1 experience1 
ability1 and  other valuable qualities10
 such as these1 with respect to your    
line1 or  thus to throw away1 not only  
hundreds of thousands1 but also half    
millions1 on any other1 ,i should be    
sure to experience the truth of that    
proverb1 which says that merely looking 
over the hedge shall subject one  man to
 the operations of 8the finisher of the 
law10 while another man  may steal the  
horse with impunity1 ,i must avail      
myself of this law of  motion1 which    
8skill1 ability1 experience1 and other  
valuable qualities0  so neglect and     

despise1 to get loads up the rise which 
you wish to  surmount1 without resorting
 to deep cutting or high embanking4     
,sixty feet of the rise to be           
surmounted1 occurring in the last       
half-mile  of your line1 ,i shall have  
nearly two miles to acquire the         
necessary  velocity in3 and as the      
continuation of the action of the power 
which  overcame friction on the level1  
will neutralise1 and1 as relates to     
counteractive effect1 annihilate the    
friction of the carriages while         
ascending these sixty feet1 ,i have only
 to cause them to attain a  velocity    
somewhat greater than has yet been      
attained on railways1 that  is1 #db     
miles an hour during the two miles1 to  
enable them to 8swing0  themselves up   
these sixty feet1 in consequence of the 
momentum which that  velocity will      
impart3 while1 let the height of ,rodway
 ,hill 7which is  adverted to as so     
desirable to avoid1 in the ,report of   
the ,provisional  ,committee of the     

,bristol ,railway7 be what it may1 all  
that would be  requisite to obviate the 
necessity for the 8inclined plane and   
stationary  engine0 spoken of as        
unavoidable there1 would be to attain   
the velocity  due to the altitude of    
said hill1 to enable my vehicles to     
surmount it  from their momentum4       
,nor would the ascending power imparted 
by the vertical operation of the        
pressure of the atmosphere1 be much less
 important with respect to  diminishing 
the expense of bridging1 on the line of 
this ,bristol ,railway1  than would     
8momentum0 as relates to the expense of 
cutting and embanking4  ,from the map   
issued from the ,london office of that  
,company1 it appears  that that railway 
is to be carried five times across the  
,avon2 twice  across the ,kennet and    
,avon ,canal2 three times across the    
,wilts and ,berks  ,canal2 and four     
times across the ,thames4  ,these       
various crossings are not  for the sake 
of approaching places of magnitude1 or  

commercial  importance2 but solely      
because the principle of railway        
transmission  compels the level to be   
servilely adhered to3 while1 though the 
right  line distance between ,london and
 ,bristol is only #ajh miles1 yet is the
  line of railway there laid down1 shewn
 as being #abj miles long2 the #ab      
additional miles being added by the     
curves taken in thus crossing these     
waters for the sake of the level4       
,now though ,i do not mean to say that  
it would be possible1 by laying down  a 
tunnel instead of this railway1 to avoid
 all bridging whatsoever1 yet  owing to 
hills and rises being no impediment to  
the operation of this  principle1 the   
line for a tunnel might be several miles
 shorter than this  line of the railway1
 and yet the whole of these bridges be  
saved1  excepting one over the ,avon2   
while not a quarter of the expense would
 be  incurred for carrying a tunnel over
 the waters which its course must       
cross1 which will be incurred in        

bridging the railway over those other   
waters that intersect its course1 which 
are not laid down in the map  shewing   
its line4    ,the estimated expense of  
bridging for the railway is #dgd1hjjl42 
which1  when increased by the per       
centages allowed by the ,committees1    
amounts to  #eef1aidl4 as the whole     
estimated expense of bridging4  ,what   
proportion of this amount is for        
bridging over waters1 and what for      
bridging over roads1 is not stated4  ,on
 the ,liverpool and ,manchester         
,railway #ajh1efel4 #aas4 #i;d4 was     
expended on #fc bridges2 of which  only 
five were over waters3 the other #eh    
being over roads1 or to carry  roads    
over the railway4  ,on the ,birmingham  
,railway the number of bridges  is #cjj2
 of which only nine are stated to be    
over waters1 the others  being for      
roads4  ,the estimated amount of them is
 #cej1egdl4  ,one bridge  alone 7the    
,sankey viaduct7 on the ,liverpool and  
,manchester line1 cost  nearly #ej1jjjl4

    ,now as the power of going up or    
down1 imparted by the vertical operation
  of the pressure of the atmosphere1    
would render it wholly immaterial       
whether the level was preserved in the  
line of a tunnel2 as burying it  under  
ground1 in the manner proposed at page  
#bg1 would equally do away  with any    
occasion for the many hundreds of       
bridges1 which1 on the three  lines ,i  
have mentioned1 must be provided to     
carry those railways clear of  roads1 as
 it would save bridging over the roads  
on your line2 and as a  tunnel could    
have been carried under the ,sankey1 for
 almost one-tenth  of the expense it    
cost to construct the viaduct by which  
the ,liverpool  and ,manchester ,railway
 is carried over that canal--as my      
principle offers  facilities of this    
kind for obviating the necessity of     
bridging--,i do not  hesitate to say1   
that1 on the whole three lines1 and     
considering how much  the actual1 will  
exceed the estimated amounts1 above one 

million sterling  might be saved in the 
item of bridging alone1 by substituting 
tunnels for  railways2 which1 when added
 to1 as it would be1 by the almost equal
  amount that would be saved in the     
expense of the land1 in consequence of  
my plan requiring a width of only ten or
 a dozen feet under ground1  instead of 
from #fj to #cjj on the surface1 will   
admit of my saying that  7in round      
numbers7 nearly two millions might be   
saved by my plan1 in  these two items of
 bridging and land1 on the lines of the 
,liverpool and  ,manchester1 the ,london
 and ,birmingham1 and the ,london and   
,bristol  ,railways3 while1 if what my  
plan would save of the #cih1bhfl4       
allowed  for the cost of land1 and of   
the #bfa1ibhl4 allowed for that of the  
entrances to ,london1 ,bath1 and        
,bristol1 be added to the savings ,i    
have  stated it would effect in         
bridging1 cutting1 embanking1 and       
tunnelling1 ,i  may say that it would   
also save nearly two millions 7of the   

present  estimated expense7 on the      
,bristol ,railway alone4    ,the ten    
times greater heights than ,i have yet  
specified1 which may be  surmounted by  
combining the operation of the momentum 
of the air itself  with that of the     
vehicles1 it is not necessary for me to 
trouble you  with1 owing to the         
shortness of your line1 and the small   
height to be  ascended3 though it may be
 permitted me to observe1 that as       
attaining  only equal velocities to     
those which have been spoken of as      
attainable by  locomotive engines and   
steam-coaches1 will enable my vehicles1 
of  themselves1 to surmount hills of    
many hundred feet in height2 while      
combining with their momentum1 the      
momentum of the air itself 7that which  
is before the vehicles2 the friction    
whereof will be overcome1 and           
neutralised by the operation of the     
exhausting apparatus7 in tunnels of     
proper length1 and loads of             
corresponding weight1 will enable me to 

ascend more thousands of feet1 than the 
momentum of the vehicles alone  will    
carry them up hundreds1 ,i may be able  
to extend ,louis le ,grand's            
exclamation1 8,il n'y a plus des        
,pyrennes10 to 8il n'y a plus des       
montagnes sur la terre10 so far as      
relates to their longer preventing      
intercourse between countries2 and      
consequently render the whole earth     
level to us1 in point of effect4    ,in 
reference to the force required to      
overcome the friction of the medium  by 
which the moving power operated to impel
 the carriages1 would a tunnel  be also 
superior to a railway4  ,from ,messrs4  
,r4 ,stephenson and ,locke's  reply to  
,mr4 ,walker's ,report to the ,directors
 of the ,liverpool and  ,manchester     
,railway1 it appears that the friction  
of the ropes by which  stationary       
engines draw waggons up inclined planes1
 is one-twelfth of  their weight3 while1
 as the latter part of your line gives a
 sharper rise  than that of the         

,liverpool tunnel1 the weight of the    
rope you must use  should not be less   
than #glbs4 per yard2 the friction and  
gravitation of  which would be          
#j4gcbca;b4 per yard1 or #abhilbs4 per  
mile4  ,the line in the  plan for the   
railway1 which was laid before your     
meeting1 being #b miles  long1 the whole
 resistance of friction and gravitation 
upon it would be  #cbbb lbs4    ,from   
experiments on the friction of air in   
tubes1 ,i am enabled to state  that both
 the inertia and friction of the air    
against the inside of an  equal length  
of the tunnel ,i propose to you to lay  
down would not1 when  said air was moved
 by exhaustion1 and conveying #ej tons  
at the same  rate at which the same     
quantity is drawn up the tunnel of the  
,liverpool  and ,manchester ,railway    
7i4e4 ten miles an hour71 be so much as 
one  sixteenth part of this2 while it   
would have this important advantage1    
that the heavier the load was1 the less 
would be both the inertia and  friction 

of the air4  ,for instance3 the degree  
of exhaustion requisite to  admit of an 
equal load to what is drawn up the      
,liverpool tunnel 7i4e4 #ej  tons7 being
 moved up a tunnel of the same size as  
that ,i constructed at  ,brighton1 and  
rising at the same rate your's must rise
 7#a in #dg7 by the  pressure of the    
atmosphere1 would be about the #djth    
part of a vacuum4    ,but supposing ten 
times this load were to be raised1 the  
degree of  exhaustion must be ten times 
as great1 or about the fourth of a      
vacuum4  ,and1 as the greater the       
exhaustion1 the less the expansive      
power1 and1  consequently the less the  
inertia and friction of the air inside  
the  exhausted part of the tunnel1 this 
8rope of air0 as it has1 derisively1    
been called1 possesses the important    
advantage of decreasing as relates  to  
the density1 inertia1 and friction1     
which itself opposes1 in  proportion to 
the increase of the load drawn by it3   
while1 as the valves  ,i should place at

 every quarter1 or half1 or whole mile1 
to be opened by  the carriages as they  
pass them1 and admit air immediately    
behind said  carriages1 would prevent   
there being the inertia and friction of 
more  than a few hundred yards of air of
 the natural density behind the         
carriages to be overcome1 the impediment
 which presents an insuperable  obstacle
 in the opinion of the numbers who have 
condemned the proposition  7because they
 deemed operating by exhaustion the same
 as operating per  plenum7 diminishes1  
in point of fact1 to a far less         
important hindrance1  than that which is
 occasioned by the old system of drawing
 loads by means  of stationary engines  
and ropes2 since1 in the present        
instance1 the  inertia and friction     
would not be the                        
one-hundred-and-sixtieth part of  what  
it would be1 to move an equal quantity  
by the stationary engine1 and  rope     
system4    ,and notwithstanding that the
 superiority which the tunnel possesses 

over  the locomotive system is not so   
great at this1 yet is it important4     
,in the instructions given to ,mr4      
,walker by the ,directors of the        
,liverpool  and ,manchester ,railway    
7and which called from him the ,report  
criticised  by ,messrs4 ,r4 ,stephenson 
and ,locke71 it is stated that 8the     
quantity of  traffic for which it will  
be expedient to provide the power of    
conveyance0 is about #djjj tons1 from   
each to the other of those places1      
daily4    ,in his publication on the    
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1    
,dr4 ,lardner  says1 8,in the           
experiments which ,i have detailed1 it  
appears that a steam  engine is capable 
of drawing #ij tons at the rate of about
 #bj miles an  hour2 and that it could  
transport that weight twice between     
,liverpool and  ,manchester in about    
three hours40 #ch;a  ,the weight of this
 engine alone  being #h4a tons1 the     
whole weight of itself1 and its tender1 
with the  necessary supplies of fuel and

 water1 will not be less than twelve    
tons4  ,therefore1 the friction of the  
engines 7and their tenders7 requisite to
  carry these #djjj tons at the rate of 
#bj miles an hour1 would be #dbfg lbs4  
,the friction of one mile of air in a   
tunnel eight feet in diameter1 when     
moved at the rate of #bj miles an hour  
by exhaustion being #bhhlbs41 the       
friction of it in a tunnel extending    
from ,liverpool to ,manchester1 will  be
 #hfdjlbs43 which1 though double the    
friction of these locomotive  engines1  
might be far cheaper for the following  
reason2 and independent  of the         
circumstance1 that ,i could lay down a  
tunnel capable of carrying  all these   
#djjj tons at one and the same time1    
from ,liverpool to  ,manchester1 for    
one-fourth of what that railway has     
cost2 #ch;b and also  independent of the
 circumstance that the enormous expense 
now incurred  for the repairs of the    
locomotives 7as stated on page #aa7     
would also be  saved4    ,it is well    

known that the smaller a steam-engine   
is1 the larger is the  proportionate    
quantity of fuel it requires1 and the   
greater the  proportionate expense of   
working it2 while it is equally well    
known that1  owing to the imperative    
importance of lightness and efficiency  
over  economy in locomotive engines1    
this disadvantage increases in a most   
rapid ratio with respect to them4  ,in  
consequence of this1 a quantity of      
fuel1 which1 in large stationary        
engines1 such as ,i should use for      
exhausting air from the tunnel1 would do
 a given quantity of work1 would1  in   
the best of the locomotives on the      
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1  do
 only one-sixteenth as much work4       
,therefore it results1 that1            
notwithstanding the friction of the air 
in a  tunnel #cj miles long would1 at   
the rate of #bj miles an hour1 be twice 
as  much as the friction of the         
locomotive engines1 yet1 owing to the   
fuel  consumed by the latter1 to move   

themselves and their tenders1 being     
sixteen times as great as large         
stationary engines1 such as ,i should   
use1  would require to do the same work1
 the tunnel would1 supposing the whole  
quantity of goods were to be carried at 
once1 be eight times the cheapest  mean 
of conveyance1 in point of current      
expenses only1 and without  reference to
 its first cost being only one-fourth   
that of the railway2  and also without  
reference to the whole of the enormous  
expense now  occasioned by the repairs  
of the locomotive engines being saved4  
,but this is not the only proportion in 
which a tunnel might be cheaper4  ,the  
#acth paragraph of the ,russian         
,engineer ,officer's ,report1 states1   
that  he is 8convinced that exhaustion  
to a degree which should give a pressure
  of fifteen inches of mercury may be   
effected in the tunnel40  ,now1         
notwithstanding that much more than this
 may be done in an iron tunnel1  yet    
will ,i calculate on this only4         

,fifteen inches of mercury being #g4c   
lbs4 that pressure on the area of the   
tunnel1 would move above twice the      
#djjj tons which the ,directors of the  
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway     
estimated would be carried from one to  
the other of those places every  day2   
which1 supposing that weight to be      
conveyed at one time1 would  reduce the 
expense 7per ton of goods carried7 of   
overcoming the friction  of air moving  
in a tunnel from ,liverpool to          
,manchester1 at the rate of #bj  miles  
an hour1 to one-sixteenth of what the   
power required to overcome  the friction
 of the locomotive engines required to  
draw the same weight  would cost4       
,and though1 owing to its being a       
received opinion that the power required
  to overcome the friction of fluids    
increases according to the square of    
the velocity1 we are to suppose that at 
#dj miles an hour1 the fuel  required to
 overcome the friction of the air would 
be one-fourth that of  the locomotive   

engines1 while at #hj miles an hour it  
would be equal to  that of the engines1 
still would a quadruple velocity be     
attained1 by the  expenditure of only an
 equal quantity of fuel4    ,the amount 
of the power required to overcome the   
friction of the  locomotive engines 7and
 their tenders7 necessary to carry #djjj
 tons  weight from ,liverpool to        
,manchester daily1 at the rate of #bj   
miles an  hour1 is1 when expressed in   
8horse' power0 equal to the power of    
#bbe  horses working for an hour and a  
half4  ,in other words1 these           
locomotives  must exert power to this   
amount1 beyond what is required to draw 
the #djjj  tons weight4    ,the power   
required to overcome the friction of    
air1 which was moving 7by  exhaustion7  
at the rate of #bj miles an hour1 in a  
tunnel of eight feet  diameter1         
extending from ,liverpool to            
,manchester1 would be equal to that  of 
#def horses3 which1 though double the   
preceding1 would yet be eight  times    

cheaper1 owing to large stationary      
engines1 such as ,i should use1         
requiring only one-sixteenth part of the
 fuel required by locomotives to  do    
equal work4    ,at #dj miles an hour    
7supposing locomotives could go so fast7
 the number  of horses' power required  
to overcome the friction of the air in  
the  tunnel would 7according to the     
received opinion of that friction       
increasing to the square of the         
velocity7 be #cfej3 which1 though       
sixteen  times greater than that of the 
locomotive engines and their tenders1   
yet1  in consequence of this power being
 exerted only for three-quarters of an  
hour1 instead of an hour and a half1 and
 of fuel doing sixteen times as  much   
work in large stationary engines as in  
locomotives1 would be only  half so     
expensive as the locomotives and their  
tenders would prove4    ,at #hj miles an
 hour 7which is twice as fast as        
locomotives can go7 the  power required 
to overcome the friction of the air in  

the tunnel1 would  7on the calculation  
that it increases according to the      
square of the  velocity7 be equal to    
that of #bi1aif horses2 which is nearly 
#acj times as  much as the locomotive   
engines would require3 though1 owing to 
this power  operating only #bb minutes1 
instead of an hour and a half1 and to   
fuel in  large stationary engines doing 
sixteen times as much work as in        
locomotives1 the expense would be only  
twice as great as in the  locomotives1  
exclusive of the whole of the most      
enormous expense now  incurred1 by the  
repairs of the locomotives being saved  
7which would1  alone1 more than make up 
the difference7 and also exclusive of   
the tunnel  costing only one quarter of 
what the railway has cost1 and of the   
rate of  conveyance being four times as 
fast4    ,but it is not with respect to 
a tunnel only1 that the resistance of   
the  air opposes an impediment3 this    
resistance being found so serious an    
obstacle to the progress of the         

locomotive engines and their loads1 that
  in all trials of1 or experiments with 
them1 the state and direction of  the   
wind is noted and allowed for4  ,in the 
8,account of the ,liverpool and         
,manchester ,railway10 published by the 
,treasurer of that ,company 7,h4        
,booth1 ,esq471 he says3 8,moreover1 at 
great velocities1 the resistance of  the
 air must not be left out of the        
calculation4  ,at ten miles per hour1   
it has been found by experiment1 that   
the resistance of the atmosphere is     
about half a pound weight on a square   
foot of flat surface2 at fifteen  miles1
 the resistance is #alb4 per square     
foot2 and at twenty miles1 about  #blbs4
 per square foot3 the increased         
resistance being1 nearly1 as the        
squares of the velocities40 #dj    ,the 
surface opposed to the air by a         
steam-coach1 the engines of which its   
proprietor told me were equal to ten    
horses power1 ,i found to be #cj  square
 feet4  ,that1 opposed by another1 the  

engines of which were said to  be equal 
to twenty horses power1 ,i found to be  
above #ej square feet3  while1 when     
carrying four outsides on the front of  
the roof1 this coach  exposed nearly #gj
 square feet to the action of the air4  
,the surface  opposed to the air by the 
large locomotive engines now used on the
  ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1  
,i understand 7when chimney1 axle-tree1 
wheels1 and every thing that cuts the   
air1 is taken into account7 to be  about
 #dj feet square4  ,supposing it to be  
so1 at #bj miles an hour1 the  air will 
oppose resistance equal to #hjlbs4 to   
the progress of the engine2  which      
resistance having to be overcome at the 
rate of #agfj feet per  minute1 is equal
 to #d horses power4  ,at #dj miles an  
hour1 this  resistance would be         
#cbjlbs42 which resistance having to be 
overcome at  the rate of #cebf feet per 
minute1 would be equal to #cd horses    
power4  ,at  #hj miles an hour1 the     
resistance of the air would be          

#abhjlbs42 which  resistance1 having to 
be overcome at the rate of #g1jdj feet  
per minute1  would be equal to #bgj     
horses power2 while at #ajj1 and #abj   
miles an hour1  the power required would
 be1 respectively1 that of #ebh and #iab
 horses4    ,now1 as the force required 
at #hj miles an hour1 is a few times    
more  than the whole power of those     
engines1 and as ,dr4 ,hutton found that 
giving the moving body the form of a    
cone1 the height of which equalled  the 
diameter of its base1 diminished the    
resistance of the air only half1  it may
 serve to shew that the statements of   
those who have given currency  to the   
opinion that we may be conveyed at any  
velocity on railways1 are  promulgated  
by persons who pronounce upon questions 
without examining  them3 since1 in      
addition to this resistance of the air  
to the  locomotive engines themselves1  
would be its resistance to the tenders1 
and coaches or waggons they drew2 and   
that1 too1 independent of1 and          

additional to1 the resistance opposed by
 the railway friction of the  engines1  
tenders1 and loads1 behind them4        
,that something of this kind prevents   
very high velocities from being         
attained on railways1 is evident4  ,at  
the locomotive engine competition  on   
the ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway 
four years ago1 velocities of  from #ce 
to #dj miles an hour1 were attained by  
engines which were not  one-tenth the   
power of some of those now used2 while1 
at the opening of  that railway1 three  
years ago1 the engine by which the      
surgeon was  brought to ,mr4 ,huskisson1
 after his deplorable accident1 went #ae
 miles in  #be minutes1 which is at the 
rate of #cf miles an hour4  ,yet do not 
the so  much more powerful locomotives  
now used on that road1 go faster than   
this3 a circumstance which may prove    
that the limit to the velocity of       
railway conveyance1 will arise from a   
source not calculated on4    8,but10 it 
may be observed1 8this objection to the 

possibility of very  high velocities on 
railways1 is counterbalanced by the     
dilemma in which  you place yourself1 by
 supposing it to be possible that any   
such power as  that of #bi1aif horses1  
can1 at one time1 be made to operate on 
a tunnel2  since1 as relates to         
practical application1 it would prove   
#8an impossible  quantity4'0    ,the    
inference ,i deny2 and1 when necessary1 
will disprove4 #da  ,but the  term ,i   
accept2 and will avail myself of1 to    
shew that it is equally 8an  impossible 
quantity0 that even if a tunnel were ten
 times as long as one  between          
,manchester and ,liverpool1 the friction
 of air which is caused to  move in it1 
in consequence of exhaustion taking     
place at the opposite  end1 can ever    
oppose an impediment such as is here    
adverted to4    ,according to the       
opinion that the friction of the air    
would increase as  the square of the    
velocity1 the friction of the column of 
air1 which1  when moved by exhaustion at

 the rate of #bj miles an hour1 in a    
tunnel  eight feet diameter and a mile  
long1 was #bhhlbs41 would1 when moved at
  the rate of #hj miles an hour1 be     
#dfjhlbs42 which1 on the whole area of  
the tunnel1 would be equal to #a4c      
inches of mercury4  ,therefore1         
supposing that at every mile of a tunnel
 extending from ,liverpool to           
,manchester1 barometer tubes were to be 
inserted1 the bottoms 7or basin  ends7  
of which should be open to the          
atmosphere1 and the tops open to the    
inside of the tunnel1 the mercury in    
each successive tube would  7reckoning  
towards the end at which the exhaustion 
took place7 rise #a4c  inches higher    
than that in the preceding4    ,now as  
#a4cbc gives #cj1 while #a4ccj gives    
#ci1 it appears that at #bc  miles from 
that end of the tunnel at which the     
atmosphere was admitted1  and seven from
 that where the exhaustion took place1  
there would be such  a vacuum as would  
raise mercury the whole height of the   

barometric  column2 while1 at the end of
 the #cj miles there would be--or rather
  ought to be1 according to this        
calculation--#ci inches of mercury2 or a
  vacuum and a third2 which1 in addition
 to its being 8an impossible  quantity10
 places those who contend that the      
resistance of the friction  of air which
 is caused to move through a tunnel by  
the pressure of the  atmosphere in      
consequence of exhaustion taking place  
at the opposite end1  increases         
according to the square of the velocity1
 in the dilemma of  assuming that there 
is a certain place in a tunnel #cj miles
 long1 where1  notwithstanding that a   
man1 a horse1 or even an elephant1 might
 walk as  freely and unobstructedly     
along1 as a mouse could through a       
rat-hole1  that subtle1 permeating1 and 
all-pervading element which we breathe1 
would1 like the stream of the ,jordan   
when under the influence of the  miracle
 by which the ,israelites passed over   
that river1 stop1 stick fast1  and be   

unable to move farther2 a position1     
which necessarily throws us  for an     
escape from this dilemma1 on the        
conclusion that1 though it is  certain  
that the friction of air against the    
inside of the tunnel will be  an        
impediment1 and though it is probable   
that this impediment will be of  some   
importance1 yet must it be equally      
certain that it will not be the  serious
 impediment which it is supposed it will
 prove3 and it may  therefore1 safely be
 assumed1 that the objection which      
presents an  insuperable obstacle in the
 minds of the many who have condemned   
the  method of operation by exhaustion  
which ,i propose 7because they deemed it
  analogous to operating per plenum7    
becomes removed1 and is found to be     
what all the other 8insuperable         
objections0 which have been arrayed     
against the proposition are found to be 
when grappled with2 i4e4 baseless  and  
unreal3 it being necessary only to put a
 valve at every half1 or  quarter of a  

mile1 which should be opened by the     
carriages as they  passed1 to render the
 length of the column of air of the     
natural density1  which must be behind  
the carriages to drive them along1 only 
a few  hundred yards1 and its friction  
consequently unimportant2 said valves   
being 7as can easily be done7 so        
arranged1 as to close themselves again  
the moment the carriage had arrived at1 
opened1 and passed by1 the next         
succeeding one4    ,but though ,i freely
 admit that the friction of the air     
against the inside  of the tunnel may   
waste power to a degree which shall     
prove not  unimportant1 yet may it be   
doubted whether it will be more         
important than  the waste of power      
occasioned by the present method of     
railway  transmission by locomotive     
engines4    ,in the documents laid      
before the ,lords' ,committees on the   
,london and  ,birmingham ,railway1 by   
the ,treasurer of the ,liverpool and    
,manchester  ,railway1 on the #bhth     

,june1 #ahcb1 it is stated that the     
8number of trips  of thirty miles0      
performed 7or travelled7 by the         
locomotive engines  between ,liverpool  
and ,manchester1 in the half year ending
 the #cast  ,december1 #ahca1 was       
8#ecib03 which1 as the same document    
shews that the  whole amount of         
profitable weight conveyed over those   
#cj miles during  that half year was    
less than #ia1jjj tons1 gives an average
 of only #ag  tons as the profitable    
weight carried each 8trip40  ,the weight
 of the  engines by which these loads   
were drawn it may be difficult to fix   
upon3  though1 as the locomotives now   
used on that railway1 are1 some of them1
  above six tons1 others above eight1   
and others above ten tons in weight1  it
 may1 perhaps1 be fair to take eight    
tons as the average weight4  ,the       
weight of the tenders with fuel and     
water1 appears to be rather a  delicate 
subject4  ,the weight of the tender of  
the ,rocket1 with its load  of fuel and 

water1 at the grand locomotive engine   
competition in ,october1  #ahbi1 was    
three-fourths that of the engine itself4
  ,there have since been  many accounts 
of immense loads drawn on the railway1  
of which those by  ,dr4 ,lardner1 in his
 8,lectures on the ,steam ,engine10 are 
considered as 8by  authority40  ,but    
though we find the weights of the       
engines1 as well as of  the loads1 and  
various other particulars 7even to the  
state of the wind7  given1 yet does it  
happen that the weights of the tenders1 
with their  supplies of fuel and water1 
are 8unascertained0 and omitted1        
throughout4  ,under these circumstances1
 ,i can do no other than act on the best
  information ,i have obtained1 and     
suppose the weight of the engines and   
tenders with their cargoes of fuel and  
water to be twelve tons for each        
8trip40    ,assuming it to be so1 the   
weight of the moving power will be above
  two-thirds of the profitable weight   
conveyed2 while1 supposing the same     

proportion to obtain as to the #djjj    
tons just mentioned1 the amount of  the 
effect of the friction of the power by  
which they were conveyed at  the rate of
 #bj miles an hour1 would be twice and a
 half as much as the  friction of the   
air would be in a tunnel when twice the 
tonnage was  conveyed from ,liverpool to
 ,manchester in it1 at the same rate2   
which1 for  equal quantities1 is five   
times the friction while1 as relates to 
the  fuel consumed1 it would be very    
many more times than this1 dearer4      
,there is one class1 who1 above all     
others1 might derive benefit from       
properly considering what ,i thus       
submit1 relative to the friction of the 
air4    ,when what was termed 8the      
railway mania0 was at its height1 it was
  calculated that no body of men would  
be so much benefited by it as the  iron 
trade2 in proof of which the following  
statement was circulated3--        8,we 
are authorised to state1 that the       
rail-roads already projected1      will 

require considerably more than two      
millions of tons of iron4      ,now1 as 
iron has recently advanced from #gl4 to 
#adl4 per ton1 it      appears that the 
iron masters 7by the way1 the           
originators of1 or      principals in1  
many of these schemes7 will receive from
 the      subscribers twenty-eight      
millions sterling40    ,but1 instead of 
the iron trade having been benefited by 
the principal  portion of what is       
expended on railways being for their    
article1 scarcely  more than            
one-twentieth-part has been expended for
 iron2 the remainder  having gone for   
labour in 8cutting and embanking10 c4 c4
    ,in the account in ,mr4 ,treasurer  
,booth's book1 of the expenses of the   
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1 the
 line which1 in the statement1 runs     
8,iron rail account10 gives only        
#ff1hcjl4 as paid to the iron masters3  
the other hundreds1 which make up the   
aggregate of #fg1iabl4 there  mentioned1
 being for 8oak plugs1 freights1 und    

cartages20 which is little  more than   
one-twentieth part of the whole that has
 been expended on this  railway4    ,the
 rails of the ,london and ,birmingham   
,railway are to be half as heavy  again 
as those of the ,liverpool and          
,manchester ,railway4  ,yet does the    
expense of the 8rails1 chairs1 keys1 and
 pins10 in the estimate of that  railway
 laid before ,parliament1 amount to only
 #bab1idj3 one twelfth1 that  is1 of the
 two millions and a half1 which form the
 aggregate of the  estimate there given 
in4    ,one of the inducements which    
railway advocates have held out to the  
landed proprietors of the ,houses of    
,parliament1 in order to lead them to   
support railway bills1 has been the     
degree to which poor rates1 c4 would  be
 diminished1 in consequence of the      
labourers there would be employed in    
digging out the earth for the cuttings  
and embankments1 in the different       
parishes through which the lines of     
railway would run2 and in the papers  of

 the end of ,june and the beginning of  
,july 7#ahcb7 is a very long            
advertisement of the ,london and        
,birmingham ,railway ,company1 one part 
of  which states that 8,the landed      
interest will be benefitted by the      
expenditure of upwards of two millions  
of the capital of the ,company in       
labour40    ,according to their own     
shewing1 therefore1 the expenditure for 
the  benefit of the landed interest will
 be 8upwards of two millions10 while    
the cost of the iron rails1 c4 will be  
only upwards of two hundred  thousand   
pounds4  ,and as both this1 and other   
advertisements1 and the  evidence before
 ,parliament1 announce the extension of 
the railway from  ,birmingham to        
,liverpool1 when this first half of it  
from ,london to  ,birmingham is         
done--which extension will be about the 
same length as this  first half--the    
statements of the railway advocates     
themselves1 give the  iron masters to   
see1 that the result of the time1       

trouble1 and expense1  which they 7the  
iron masters7 have devoted to bring     
forward railways1 is1  to put more than 
a shilling into the pockets of the      
agricultural interest  7by the degree to
 which they will save parish rates1 c4  
c47 for every  farthing they put into   
the pockets of the iron masters         
themselves2 all  that is saved to       
country parishes1 being actual gain to  
the agricultural  interest2 while the   
#abth or #afth paid to the iron trade is
 for value in  iron2 out of which the   
usual trade profit is all that the iron 
masters  will gain4  ,in other words1   
about four millions sterling will be    
paid  for the parishes between ,london  
and ,liverpool1 in the shape of wages   
for labourers1 while only about four    
hundred thousand pounds will be paid  to
 the iron masters for the iron rails1   
c42 out of which the iron  masters will 
have to pay the wages of their men who  
smelt c4 the iron1  and the royalties   
7or rent7 for the ore1 coal1 c4 c4 used 

in making it4    ,the difference there  
is in the specific gravities of ore1    
coal1 and  limestone1 in different      
places1 will render any estimate not    
correct  for every place2 though1       
generally speaking1 ,i believe it may be
 received  that the quantity of iron    
stone1 coal1 and lime stone1 which it is
  necessary to raise to produce a ton of
 pig iron1 will be about #f cubic       
yards4    ,in the evidence laid before  
the ,lords' ,committees upon the ,london
 and  ,birmingham ,railway1 it is stated
 that the whole amount of 8earth work0  
required for that railway1 amounts to   
#bb1ggi1dca cubic yards2 of which a     
detailed statement is given in the      
minutes of evidence4    ,dividing the   
twenty-three 7nearly7 millions of cubic 
yards of 8earth  work0 which are to be  
excavated and embanked on the           
,birmingham ,railway1  by the number of 
cubic yards of ore1 c4 which it is      
necessary to dig to  make a ton of iron1
 will show1 that if the wages which will

 be paid for  levelling on that railway1
 were to be expended in digging iron    
ore1 c4  the nation would be benefitted 
by having three millions and a half tons
  of iron more than it now possesses2   
while the labour expended on the        
railway will be not only worth nothing  
to the nation1 but also worse2  insomuch
 as it appears by the evidence before   
the ,lords' ,committees that  it will   
render #abej acres of land1 which are   
now cultivated and  productive1 sterile 
as a turnpike road4    ,it is supposed  
by ,mr4 ,treasurer ,booth1 in his book  
on the ,liverpool and  ,manchester      
,railway1 that three thousand miles of  
rail-road1 will1  eventually1 be laid   
down in ,england4    ,supposing these   
#cjjj miles to require 8earth work0     
7cuttings and  embankments1 i4e47 in the
 same proportion that the ,london and   
,birmingham  ,railway will do so1 and   
also supposing that the wages which will
 be paid  to the ,irish1 c4 labourers1  
who do the digging for this 8earth      

work10  were1 instead1 to be paid to the
 workmen of the iron masters for raising
  ore1 c4 c4 and converting it into     
iron1 the nation would be richer by     
nearly one hundred million tons of iron1
 than it will be if these said  wages   
are paid merely for 8cutting and        
embanking0 for railways4    ,now though 
,i do not mean to insinuate that this   
hundred million tons of  metallic worth1
 would increase what is now termed the  
8monetary wealth0  of the nation1 yet1  
as surely as their ignorance 7and       
consequent want7 of  iron1 rendered     
,mexico and ,peru such easy conquests to
 the iron of the  ,spaniards1 as to make
 them most striking examples of the     
truth of ,solon's  warning to ,crsus1   
8,he who has more iron1 will soon be    
master of all this  gold10 so surely    
would the possession of this hundred    
million tons of  iron1 be enormously    
more advantageous to the nation1 than   
the cuttings  and embankments required  
for these #cjjj miles of railway will   

be4    ,although iron be not1 at the    
present day1 either with ourselves1 or  
in  any other part of the world1 the    
symbol of value1 medium of exchange1 and
  money1 which ,lycurgus made it in     
,sparta1 when that state was in her     
glory1 yet has it1 as a commodity which 
will obtain us the gold and  silver of  
,mexico and ,peru in exchange for it1 a 
value1 which will procure  us the amount
 of its worth in those metals1 as       
certainly as any other  commodity that  
we export4  ,in whatever proportion1    
therefore1 this  hundred million tons of
 iron would procure us either the gold  
or silver1  the corn and flour1 the     
silks and cottons1 the wines and wools1 
the tea  and coffee1 the sugar and      
spices1 c4 c4 of other countries1 would 
devoting the wages which will be        
expended in cutting and embanking for   
these #cjjj miles of railway1 to the    
raising and smelting of iron ore1 be    
more valuable to the nation at large1   
than if so employed4    ,nor is this    

all2 since the substitute ,i propose for
 railways1 would give  us food for one  
hundred thousand people1 which these    
railways will  deprive us of4    ,the   
documents laid before the ,lords'       
,committees1 state1 that this           
,birmingham railway will cover and throw
 out of cultivation1 #abej acres of     
land4  ,supposing the proportion thrown 
out by the #cjjj miles of railway  to be
 the same1 the whole amount will be     
#cc1ccc acres4  ,allowing these  acres  
to produce three quarters of corn each1 
is no very excessive  allowance4 #de    
,and each individual of the kingdom     
being estimated to  consume a quarter of
 corn every year1 here is land that     
would produce  bread for one hundred    
thousand people thrown out of           
cultivation by the  railway system4     
,now as1 in addition to its being       
perfectly practicable for my tunnels  to
 be buried underground1 it would be     
decidedly best for themselves1 and  for 
the operation of the principle1 that    

they should be so2 and as  ploughing1   
sowing1 reaping1 mowing1 and all other  
operations of  agriculture1 may go on   
over them1 as over any drain1 or        
water-pipe1 there  is1 in addition to   
the metallic difference which my plan   
would make to  the riches of the nation1
 the circumstance1 that1 besides        
providing this  exchangeable metallic   
wealth1 or exportable value1 it would   
also provide  us1 every year1 with food 
for one hundred thousand more people1   
than the  railway system can provide    
for4    ,the metallic part of the       
question being1 however1 that which     
concerns  the iron trade1 ,i will keep  
to that4    ,one of my early views of   
this method of conveyance1 was1 that it 
might  prove important to the iron      
trade1 from the much greater quantity of
  their production which it would       
consume1 than railways require3 and it  
has1 for these seven years1 been an     
object with me1 to awaken the  attention
 of the iron masters to 7as ,i          

conceived7 its importance to them1  and 
to endeavour to convince them of the    
propriety of giving to a plan1  which   
would consume tons of their article1    
where railways consume only  hundred    
weights1 the same fostering and support 
which they gave to  bringing forward    
railways4    ,but it has not pleased the
 iron masters to see the case in the    
same light  in which it presented itself
 to me4    ,it is well known to them1   
that in the year #ahaj we had neither a 
steam-vessel nor a gas-work in the      
kingdom3 the propositions to adopt  both
 those important inventions being then  
termed and treated1 just as  this       
proposition of mine is now termed and   
treated1 i4e4 as 8impossible1  absurd1  
and madness to think of40  ,yet have    
they seen that a sum of  7roundly       
speaking7 ten millions1 has1 since that 
period1 been sunk in the  construction  
of gas-works and steam-vessels4    ,with
 proofs such as these before them 7and  
which have led to the  consumption of so

 much of their production as gas-works  
and mains  require71 that1 what they1 a 
few years ago1 deemed utterly           
impossible1  may1 nevertheless1 be quite
 the reverse--it might have been        
supposed that  the iron masters would   
not prove1 either incredulous to1 or    
bigoted  against1 the belief that a     
still more important extension of the   
use of  their article was about to open 
to them4    ,but1 to my great surprise1 
,i have found1 that of all unbelievers1 
the  iron masters have proved the most  
unbelieving4    ,other people doubted   
only because the want of knowledge on   
the subject1  which they openly avowed1 
left them no alternative4  ,but1 in the 
iron  masters1 ,i have had 8to contend  
with the pride of false knowledge40     
,the  world at large said1 8,we cannot  
believe1 because we cannot understand40 
,but the iron masters say1 8,we do not  
believe1 because we know better40    ,on
 asking them how and why they 8knew     
better10 ,i found that it was not1  as  

some might suppose1 from any doubt or   
difficulty as to the tunnel  itself2    
which they admitted could be cast and   
laid down1 of any size or  dimensions   
that might be required4  ,neither was it
 from any doubt as to  steam-engines or 
air-pumps being large and powerful      
enough to do what was  necessary2--the  
tens of thousands of gallons of air     
ejected per minute1  from the air-pumps 
which they use to blow the fires of     
their  smelting-furnaces1 and the       
hundreds of horses power they know      
steam-engines are made equal to1        
removing all question on these points4  
#df  ,but their incredulity arose from a
 difficulty which one of them had  met  
with1 in forcing air through a pipe2 and
 of which they supposed me  ignorant2   
but to which ,i had adverted1 in a      
publication years before1 in  the       
following words3        8,it is too well
 known1 to be at all affected in point  
of veracity1 by      an inability to    
mention either the exact time or place1 

that the      proprietor of an iron work
 in ,wales had1 some years ago1 occasion
 to      erect an additional furnace1 at
 the distance 7recollection states7 of  
about three-quarters of a mile from his 
old ones4  ,the blast      apparatus of 
these old works being large enough to   
supply this new      furnace in addition
 to the old ones1 he conceived it would 
prove much      cheaper1 if1 instead of 
having power and blast cylinders erected
 at      the new work1 he were to lay a 
pipe from the old ones1 to convey to    
the new one the superfluous blast4      
,this he accordingly did2 and as        
soon as the pipe was completed1 set the 
apparatus going1 to ascertain      the  
strength of the blast he could thus     
apply to the new furnace4  ,to      his 
great surprise1 however1 no blast was   
produced2 a gentle current1      which  
would hardly blow a candle out1 being   
all that was perceptible4      ,for a   
result so adverse to his expectation1 he
 could account in no      way but by    

supposing that1 from accident or design1
 the pipe was      stopped up4  ,as the 
readiest way to ascertain whether it was
 so1 he      put a cat in at one end1   
and blocked it up1 leaving her to find  
her      way to the other4        8,thus
 situated1 puss had no alternative but  
that of seeking an exit      at the     
other end3 this she accordingly did1    
and1 contrary to his      expectations1 
soon made her appearance there4         
,convinced by this that      the pipe   
was not stopped up1 he concluded that   
the disappointment he      had          
experienced arose from the friction of  
the air against it2 and      finding    
that he could in no way obviate this    
difficulty1 he was      obliged to      
abandon the design1 and be at the       
additional expense of      blast        
apparatus for his new furnace4          
8,now1 had the proposition this treatise
 submits1 been1 that we should          
convey ourselves through a tunnel such  
as has been adverted to1 by             

employing apparatus on the principle of 
blast furnaces1 to blow us      through1
 by forcing air in behind us1 the       
circumstance which has      just been   
stated would be fatal to that           
proposition4  ,but when1      instead of
 being blown through1 by air forced in  
behind us1 it is      proposed to cause 
the air which is behind the vehicle to  
operate to      push it forward1 in     
consequence of some being taken from    
before it1      the case is widely      
different4  ,air which is forced to move
 in a pipe1      in consequence of other
 air being driven into that pipe behind 
it1      operates 7in degree7 as a      
wedge1 and opposes to the power which   
moves      it1 resistance1 arising from 
becoming1 as it were1 wedged against the
      pipe1 through its whole length4   
,but air which1 instead of being        
forced to move by an impulse from       
behind1 that1 as it were1 wedges      it
 against even the very end of the pipe  
it enters at1 is allowed      to move1  

owing to some being taken out from      
before it instead of      being forced  
in behind it1 becomes affected as any   
thing from which a      wedge is        
withdrawn is affected2 that is1 freedom 
of motion is      allowed1 and its parts
 play so much more freely1 that friction
 is      diminished instead of          
increased4  ,the impediment would prove1
      therefore1 less important in this 
case than in the other1 even were       
there no method of altogether obviating 
it2 happily1 however1 the      means of 
doing this are in our power4  ,between  
driving a vehicle      through the      
proposed tunnel by forcing air in behind
 it1 and      according to the method   
which has been stated1 there is this    
difference1--that in the former case the
 impulse can be given only      from the
 end where the moving power operates2   
while1 in the latter1      arranging    
valves1 which should be opened by the   
vehicle as it passed      over them1    
would admit of that impulse being       

renewed at every hundred      yards1    
could it be necessary to do it so       
frequently4  ,let the      friction of  
the air against the pipe be what it may1
 therefore1 a      valve at every mile1 
or at every half or quarter of a mile1  
which 7as      may be done7 should be   
opened by the vehicle as it passed      
along1 and      caused to remain open   
till it 7the vehicle7 had arrived at the
 next      valve1 would prevent any     
diminution of the velocity at which we  
might      be conveyed1 that would prove
 important4        8,this reasoning may 
be illustrated by a figure relating to  
an      experiment4  ,air was forced    
through a pipe #ef feet long1 at the    
rate      of #bj miles an hour1 under a 
pressure which is equal to #b4b inches  
of      water2 and as it required a     
pressure which is equal to #j4f inches  
of      water to make air move at that  
rate through a hole in the side of a    
vessel1 there was consequently #a4f     
inches greater pressure at that      end

 of the pipe at which the air entered1  
than at the end from whence      it     
issued4        8,now if the length of   
the pipe--the tenths of pressure at the 
entering--and those at the issuing end1 
be expressed by two lines               
approximating each other1 as shewn      
below1 it may be conceived how          
#8air which is forced to move in a pipe 
in consequence of other air      being  
driven into that pipe behind it1        
operates as a wedge2 and      opposes to
 the power which moves it1 resistance1  
arising from      becoming as it were   
wedged against the pipe1 through its    
whole      length4'0                    
,picture3 ,two lines illustrating the   
above point        8,since the length of
 these two lines bears the same         
proportion in      hundredths of an inch
 to #ef feet1 as the spaces between the 
ends of      them bear 7in tenths of an 
inch7 to #b4b inches of water1 and #j4f 
inches of water2 #dh;a and if we        
conceive that forcing air to move in    

this way1 is1 in some degree1 analogous 
to drawing an elastic endless      rope1
 the size of which should be equal to   
the larger end of the      pipe1 through
 it1 and out at the smaller end1 we may 
form some idea      of the degree to    
which power would be absorbed in        
operating by a      plenum4  ,and not   
only this2 since1 reversing the         
operation1 and      supposing the rope  
to be drawn from the smaller to the     
larger end1      will also give us some 
idea of the effect of operating by      
exhaustion1      or vacuum2 and enable  
us to conceive that #8air which is      
allowed to      move1 owing to some     
being taken out from before it1 instead 
of being      forced in behind it1      
becomes affected1 as any thing from     
which a      wedge is withdrawn is      
affected2 that is1 freedom of motion is 
allowed1 and its parts play so much more
 freely1 that friction is               
diminished instead of increased4'0      
,unconvinced1 however1 by arguments of  

this kind1 the iron masters persist  in 
maintaining what ,i propose to be       
impossible1 because one of them found   
that the exactly reverse process is so4 
,in other words1 they act just  as those
 8impossibleists0 did1 who1 in their    
ignorance that high steam  would admit  
of the vacuum1 air-pump1 ponderous      
condensing chest1 and ton  of cold water
 per horse power per hour1 which are    
inseparable from  low-pressure engines1 
being dispensed with in high-pressure   
engines1  pronounced it to be utterly   
impossible ever to make steam-engines   
capable  of running upon roads1 because 
such engines could neither carry the    
ponderous apparatus inseparable from the
 condenser1 nor the immense  quantity of
 cold water required to produce the     
vacuum which1 alone1  renders           
low-pressure engines efficient4    ,in  
vain did ,i point out to them1 not only 
that ,i had not overlooked their        
objection1 but that my earliest views of
 the subject1 had adverted to1  and     

expressly guarded against it4  ,it was  
of no use3 for no 8,demetrius0  or other
 8craftsman0 of that day ever           
vociferated1 8,great is ,diana of the   
,ephesians60 more perseveringly1 than   
the principal iron masters of the       
present day have exclaimed in honour of 
the idol 8,impossible10 whom it  pleased
 them to set up and worship1 in         
opposition to the 7as they deemed  it7  
heresy ,i presumed to attempt to teach  
them4    ,had they done me the honour to
 prove me heretical1 and that theirs was
  the true faith1 ,i should have been   
importantly benefitted1 as well as      
convinced3 insomuch as it would have    
prevented me from devoting at least     
seven additional years of time1 and all 
the means in my power during that       
period1 to the subject4  ,but when they 
would not trouble themselves to         
examine1 and condemned1 solely because  
they proclaimed 8impossible10 a  method 
of operation1 which ,i not only did not 
advocate1 but which my  publications    

proved ,i had long and openly           
disclaimed1 ,i could not but  feel1     
first1 the truth of ,dr4 ,robertson's   
observation1 8,as in ,genoa  ignorance  
had opposed and disappointed ,columbus1 
in ,lisbon he had to  combat with       
prejudice1 an enemy no less formidable20
 and1 secondly1 that  just as the       
reasoning of the pilot who was chosen to
 execute the  treachery planned against 
,columbus1 failed1 because he had       
courage only  to go half-way1 so did the
 reasoning of these gentlemen fail1     
because  they have done only half what  
is necessary to disprove the            
practicability of what ,i propose4 #dh;b
    ,in publications1 besides that just 
quoted1 ,i have not only stated my      
conviction that the method of operation 
which the iron masters condemn  would be
 impracticable1 but also have           
endeavoured to analyse the  question1   
and show why it would be so4  ,but as ,i
 do not1 like them1  stop there1 and 7in
 effect7 say that it must ever be       

impossible to  discover a 8,north-,west 
,passage10 or reach the ,north ,pole1   
because  ,captain ,cook could not get   
within #cj of the ,south ,pole1 these   
gentlemen  are pleased to act the part  
of 8,alexander the coppersmith10 against
 me1  rather than to give themselves the
 trouble of examining whether the part  
of another ,alexander might not prove   
more honourable1 as well as more        
advantageous to them4    ,the quotation 
given a few pages back1 states that the 
price of iron was  raised from #gl4 to  
#adl4 in #ahbe1 in consequence of what  
was then  called 8the railway mania40   
,but1 so far from maintaining this      
price1 the  following extract from a    
,memorial1 which was agreed to at a     
meeting of  the ,staffordshire ,iron    
,trade1 held at ,dudley1 on the #dth    
,october1 #ahca1  shews1 that in six    
years the price of iron had fallen lower
 than ever  before was known4           
8,memorial to the ,right ,honourable    
,earl ,grey1 ,first ,lord of ,his       

,majesty's ,treasury4        8,we1 the  
undersigned ,iron ,masters1 of the      
,staffordshire ,iron and ,coal          
district1 think it our duty respectfully
 to represent to ,his      ,majesty's   
,government the following facts3        
8#a4  ,that for the last five years1    
ever since what is called the      panic
 of #ahbe1 we have found1 with very     
slight intermissions1 a      continually
 increasing depression in the prices of 
the products of      industry1 and more 
particularly in ,pig ,iron and ,bar     
,iron1 which have      fallen           
respectively from upwards of #hl4 per   
ton to under #cl4      per ton1 and from
 #ael4 per ton to under #el4 per ton4   
8#b4  ,against this alarming and        
long-continued depression1 we have      
used every possible effort in our power 
to make head4  ,we have      practised  
all manner of economy1 and have had     
recourse to every      possible         
improvement in the working of our mines 
and manufactories4      ,our workmen's  

wages have1 in many instances1 been     
greatly reduced1      and such reduction
 has been attended with1 and effected   
by1 very      great suffering and       
distress3--but the royalties1 rents1    
contracts1      and other engagements1  
under which we hold our respective works
 and      mines1 have scarcely been     
reduced at all1 nor can we get them     
effectually reduced1 because the law    
enforces their payment in      full4    
8#c4  ,the prices of the products of our
 industry having thus fallen      within
 the range of the fixed charges and     
expenses which the law      compels us  
to discharge1 the just and necessary    
profits of our      respective trades   
have ceased to exist3 and in many cases 
a positive      loss attends them4      
8#d4  ,under these circumstances1 we    
have long hesitated in determining      
what line of conduct our interest and   
our duties require us to                
adopt3--,if we should abandon our       
respective trades1 our large and        

expensive outlays in machinery and      
erections must be sacrificed1 at      an
 enormous loss to ourselves1 and our    
honest and meritorious workmen      must
 be thrown in thousands upon parishes1  
already too much      impoverished by   
their present burdens1 to support       
them3--and if we      should continue   
our respective trades1 we see nothing   
but the      prospect of increasing     
distress1 and certain ruin to all around
 us40    ,the remaining part of this    
8,memorial0 touching on politics1 need  
not be  quoted here4    ,if the iron of 
the #cjjj miles of railway which ,mr4   
,treasurer ,booth1 in  his book on the  
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway     
supposes may eventually  be laid down in
 ,england1 should be of the same weight 
which ,i understand  that of the        
,birmingham ,railway is to be1 the whole
 quantity consumed will  be about       
#hjj1jjj tons4  ,supposing an equal     
application of the system here          
advocated1 and that only ten times as   

much iron should be used in the  tunnels
 as is used in the railways1 eight      
millions of tons1 instead of  eight     
hundred thousand1 will be the aggregate 
consumption4    ,now as iron1 though    
unquestionably the best1 is neither the 
only1 nor the  cheapest material of     
which tunnels can be constructed1 it may
 not1  possibly1 be unpardonably        
presumptuous in me to submit to the iron
  masters1 that if they persist in      
doing1 by this proposition1 as the      
,genoese did by that of ,columbus1 they 
will also lose an opportunity1  which   
would1 to them1 prove equally important1
 as would have been that of  ,columbus  
to ,genoa4    ,i have asked1 and ,i     
still ask of them only one thing3 a     
full1 and  fair investigation4  ,by the 
result of that ,i am content to abide2  
though ,i must1 in common justice       
stipulate1 that this investigation shall
  be entered on in a different spirit to
 what it has hitherto been my lot  to   
meet with4  8,there is always a         

proneness0 says ,washington ,irving1 8to
  consider a man under examination as a 
kind of delinquent1 or impostor1  whose 
faults and errors are to be detected and
 exposed40  ,most truly can  ,i say that
 ,i have 8always0 experienced the       
effects of this 8proneness0  in         
reference to this subject3 and that the 
object of those who deemed my           
proposition worthy throwing away a      
fragment of their time upon1 was        
infinitely less to ascertain its truth  
and justice1 than to display their  own 
penetration and wit1 in discovering and 
turning to ridicule1 every  part which  
admitted 7as they thought7 of being     
sneered at and made the  subject of a   
jest4    ,had it been my good fortune to
 have met with but one candid examinant 
of  influence1 ,i had been spared years 
of trouble and anxiety4  ,but my        
proposition being deemed deserving only 
of contempt1 candid examination  has no 
more been vouchsafed me1 than to the    
wanderings of a lunatic4    ,should1    

however1 the iron masters1 instead of   
granting me this candid  investigation1 
continue1 8in the pride of half         
knowledge10 7as ,dr4 ,wells  terms it7  
to condemn what ,i propose1 because they
 have found that a  something has       
failed1 which is as different from it1  
as would be1 saying  that it is         
impossible we can ever get to the ,north
 ,pole1 because ,captain  ,cook could   
not get within #cj of the ,south1 ,i    
venture to commit myself  to the        
prediction that they will repent it1 as 
bitterly as ,genoa repented  her        
rejection of ,columbus's proposition1 to
 discover1 and possess her of  ,america4
        8,they inconsiderately rejected 
his proposal1 as the dream of a         
chimerical projector10 says ,dr4        
,robertson1 of the ,genoese1 8and lost1 
for ever1 the opportunity of restoring  
their commonwealth to its      ancient  
splendour40    ,for1 equally certain as 
it is that iron1 though the best1 is not
 the  only material of which tunnels can

 be constructed1 is it1 that unless     
this proposition is very differently    
treated by them to what it has  hitherto
 been1 will they drive the manufacturing
 of tunnels from their  own line into   
another3 and that1 too1 notwithstanding 
that opportunities  are arising which1  
in addition to bringing them to their   
own doors1 would  give such facilities  
as relates to the transmission of the   
large stocks  of iron which the         
uncertainty1 and occasional long        
interruptions of the  present method of 
conveyance1 compel them to keep in      
,london1 as to do  away with the        
necessity for keeping those stocks4     
,the ,welch papers announce the plan of 
a railway which is to connect the  iron 
districts and ports of that country with
 ,london4  ,in this plan1  ,merthyr     
,tydvil1 the centre of the ,south ,wales
 iron manufacture1 is stated  to be #agf
 miles from ,london4    ,now1 even      
supposing that this railway1 instead of 
costing the many  thousands per mile    

which it must cost1 could be laid down  
for nothing1  still1 the circumstance of
 the bare expenses of conveyance on the 
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway1    
amounting to #d;d4 per ton1 per mile1   
exclusive of the charges necessary to   
pay one farthing of interest1 or  return
 on the capital sunk in laying that     
railway down--and for which  #c;d4 per  
ton1 per mile1 is charged1 in addition  
to the #d;d4 required  to cover the bare
 expenses--the mere expenses of railway 
conveyance1  exclusive of interest or   
return on the capital invested1 being so
 great  as this1 it appears that1 even  
were this railway laid from their own   
doors to the metropolis1 the iron       
masters could not1 including the charge 
to pay interest or return upon the money
 sunk in laying the railway down1  get  
their material to ,london for less than 
#dl4 #ajs4 per ton2 which1  on an       
article the selling price of which      
7pigs7 in ,london is only about  the    
same amount1 is in effect a prohibition2

 especially with the expense  of freight
 for coast conveyance1 only #abs4 per   
ton from ,south ,wales to  ,london4     
,but as the expense of carriage by a    
tunnel would be as much less than  this 
over-sea freight1 as that is less than  
railway conveyance2 while1 in  addition 
to this superiority over both1 a tunnel 
would save all the  risk as well as the 
delays and uncertainty of over-sea      
transmission1  ,london and the iron     
districts might be brought within so few
 hours of  each other1 as to obviate the
 necessity of the iron masters keeping  
the  heavy stocks of their article in   
,london which they are now obliged to   
maintain1 and the capital so locked up  
become1 in consequence1 liberated  for  
other purposes3 while1 were the tunnel  
extended to ,milford ,haven1 as  it has 
been announced the railway would be1    
that port1 as well as  ,swansea1 might  
be brought within a few hours of        
,london2 and the  advantages of its     
7perhaps7 unequalled harbour1 rendered  

fully available  to the nation at large 
for commercial purposes1 as well as to  
,government  for our fleets4    ,this   
consideration merits the serious        
attention of the advocates of the       
,bristol ,railway4  ,swansea and        
,milford ,haven being both more         
advantageously situated for all vessels 
from foreign ports that would  make     
,bristol their port of delivery2 and    
their harbours being  7particularly the 
latter7 incomparably superior to that of
 ,bristol1 a  tunnel would1 were it to  
be laid down between either of them and 
the  metropolis1 be the certain ruin of 
any railway from ,bristol to ,london4   
,the mere expenses of carriage on the   
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway     
being #d;d4 per ton per mile1 and the   
whole charge #h;d41 it is  evident that1
 supposing the ,bristol ,railway were to
 cost only half what  the ,liverpool and
 ,manchester has cost 7the 8,capital1   
#c1jjj1jjjl40  placed at the head of the
 prospectus of the ,bristol ,railway1   

allows  #be1jjjl4 per mile for each of  
the #abj miles the map accompanying said
  prospectus shews the line will be in  
length7 the whole change for  carriage  
along its line could not be less than   
#f;d4 per ton per mile3  the aggregate  
of which1 #cl41 would be equal to what  
cargoes have been  brought from the     
,east ,indies for2 and more than equal  
to freights from  the ,west ,indies1    
,mediterranean1 c4 c42 so that only such
 cargoes or  freights1 as stress of     
weather drove into ,bristol1 would be   
sent to  ,london by the railway2 while1 
by a tunnel from ,milford or ,swansea1  
they  might be sent so cheaply1 as      
actually to command the trade which it  
is  supposed the ,bristol ,railway will 
command4    ,but to return from the long
 digression1 into which the             
consideration of  the question relative 
to the effect of the friction of the    
air1 and the  importance of the subject 
to the iron trade1 has led me4          
,supposing the possibility of the       

,liverpool and ,manchester railway      
proving  a failure1 that company would  
have scarcely any more saleable value in
  their possession1 in exchange for the 
million and a quarter which it has      
already cost1 and the million and a half
 which it will cost them1 than  the     
7about7 #ejjj tons of iron which is in  
their rails4  ,their long1  narrow1 slip
 of ground1 dear as it has been to them1
 would be worth  nothing2 while the     
labour of taking up the between two and 
three hundred  thousand stone blocks 7or
 bases7 they have laid down to carry the
 rails1  would be more than those blocks
 are worth4  ,also would the #dej1jjjl4 
expended in levelling the line and      
forming the road1 be utterly lost4  #eb 
,whereas1 had a tunnel been laid down1  
not only would the whole of  the        
hundreds of thousands expended in       
levelling have been saved1 but as  not  
one-tenth of the labour would have been 
required to lay a tunnel  down1 compared
 with what the railway required1 a large

 sum would have  been saved for that    
also2 while what was laid out1 being for
 metal1  instead of labour1 there would 
have been from ten to twenty times more 
saleable value in their hands1 than they
 now have4    ,and as the same          
circumstances would1 in a similar case1 
apply to the  ,birmingham1 and ,bristol 
7and indeed to all7 ,railways1 as well  
as to  your line1 it would1             
comparatively1 be almost as much better1
 in this  particular1 to have a tunnel  
instead of a rail-road or canal1 as it  
would  be to hold specie instead of     
paper1 during a run on the bank3 though 
this  advantage would be greatest in    
relation to a canal2 the greater        
proportion of the expense of which1 is  
for that irrecoverable outlay1  labour4 
,in point of the friction of the wheels 
would the carriages that moved in  the  
tunnel be importantly superior to       
railway carriages4    ,owing to         
circumstances which it is not necessary 
to discuss1 the height  of the wheels of

 the coaches and waggons on railways is 
confined to about  three feet4  ,wheels 
of twice that diameter have been tried1 
but thrown  aside in consequence of     
their liability to cause accidents by   
running off  the rails3 the only thing  
by which the wheels of all vehicles     
running on  edge railways are kept on   
them1 being a rim1 which1 projecting one
 inch  beyond the bearing part of the   
tire of the wheels1 keeps them on the   
rails2 as the brim of a hat will keep   
the body of it from rising on a  table1 
over the edge of which said brim hangs4 
,in consequence of this1 all carriages  
running on open railways are liable  to 
accidents1 such as those mentioned in   
the notes below1 many of which  have    
occurred2 though1 owing to their having 
happened either in the  excavations1 on 
the levels1 or on the low embankments1  
the  dashings-to-pieces which will take 
place when they occur on the high       
embankments have1 hitherto1 been        
avoided4 #ec;a    ,but as the carriages 

inside the tunnel cannot get off the    
railway in  it1 as they do on common    
railways1 while1 owing to the constantly
  vertical position in which the wheels 
can be kept1 they may be twice1 or      
three times1 as high as on common       
railways1 so great a diminution in the  
power required to move any load will    
take place1 as to admit of any  weight  
being moved in the tunnel with less than
 half the power required  to move it on 
the ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway4
    ,in point of repairs1 too1 would the
 tunnel be importantly cheaper than a   
railway4  ,supposing you were to have a 
railway1 there would be1 in every  mile 
of it1 above seven thousand stone       
blocks1 or bases1 to carry the  rails2  
every one of which bases would be liable
 to sink1 and disarrange  the level of  
the line1 as they are so constantly     
doing 7vide page #aa72  while the rails 
themselves would be liable to bend1 and 
break1 between  these bases4  ,sinkings 
of the bases1 and bendings and breakings

 of the  rails1 c4 c4 being 7like       
fractures of the harness and apparatus  
of  stage-coaches1 or the ropes of      
ships7 matters of constant occurrence1  
there are1 in the whole1 and including  
every liability to  disarrangement and  
repair1 above eighty thousand parts or  
places1 in  every mile of the ,liverpool
 and ,manchester ,railway1 where        
adjustment or  repair may daily be      
required2 while1 were that railway to be
 made a  quadruple one1 by having two   
more lines of road 7four more lines of  
rails1 i4e47 laid down1 these           
liabilities would increase to above one 
hundred and sixty thousand per mile2    
though1 for the present1 ,i refer  only 
to fractures and loosenings of the      
chairs1 c4 bendings and  breakings of   
the rails1 and sinkings1 c4 of the      
bases1 which are now  possible to the   
amount of above #dj1jjj per mile2       
whereas1 in a tunnel1  the corresponding
 disarrangements would be possible to   
the amount of only  #ajef per mile3 an  

advantage which time will prove to be of
 much greater  importance than it may at
 first be considered2 owing to the small
 expense  of repair it will occasion4   
,supposing the ,london and ,birmingham  
,railway  were to have the 8quadruple   
line0 adverted to when the capital was  
raised  to three millions1 there would1 
in its whole length1 be nearly twenty   
millions of parts or places where       
repair1 or adjustment1 might1 daily1  be
 necessary3 a number which might well   
double the #dhhl4 per mile1 per  annum1 
charged under the item 8,maintainance of
 way10 in the half-yearly  accounts of  
the ,liverpool and ,manchester          
,railroad4    ,but neither is this the  
last circumstance with respect to which 
a tunnel  would be superior to a        
railway4    ,from the statements laid   
before ,parliament1 it appears that in  
the  half-year ending the #cast         
,december1 #ahca1 8the number of trips  
of #cj  miles0 made on the ,liverpool   
and ,manchester ,railway was #ecib4     

,now as the  whole weight carried during
 this half-year was under #ia1jjj tons1 
it  appears that the average profitable 
weight 7passengers1 or merchandise7     
carried each trip1 was less than #ag    
tons4    ,the average weight of an      
engine and its tender1 with fuel and    
water1  being1 ,i believe1 not less than
 #ab tons1 while there is the weight of 
the  coaches and waggons additional to  
this1 it would appear that for every    
ton which pays any thing1 that is       
carried on the ,liverpool and           
,manchester  ,railway1 they also carry a
 ton which pays nothing4    ,now1 owing 
to the manner in which the carriages    
that move in the tunnel  can be         
constructed1 and owing to there being no
 locomotive engines1 and  tenders       
carrying fuel and water1 required to    
move them1 this proportion  of dead and 
unprofitable weight will be so much     
reduced1 as for it not to  amount to    
more than one-fifth of the similar      
weight on the railway4    ,the whole    

expense of conveyance on the ,liverpool 
and ,manchester ,railway  during the six
 months ending the #cast ,december1     
#ahca1 was1 it appears by  the statement
 laid before the ,lords' ,committees on 
the ,london and  ,birmingham ,railway   
bill1 fourpence farthing per ton1 per   
mile2 while the  whole charge for it was
 eightpence per ton1 per mile4  ,coal   
being  nearly ten times dearer here than
 it is there1 there is no reason to     
suppose that what it might cost you for 
conveyance along a line of  railway     
would be less than this2 while it may be
 presumed that it would  be so much more
 as1 perhaps1 and of itself1 totally to 
counteract the  advantages afforded by  
the shortness of your line1 compared    
with the  present route4    ,in addition
 to the advantages which ,i have stated 
a tunnel would hold out  to the ,company
 ,i have the honour to address1 there   
would be one of a  peculiar nature4  ,it
 is generally understood1 and appears   
from evidence  to be the fact1 that a   

considerable portion of the income of   
the  ,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway
 ,company has arisen from persons who   
have  visited and paid for riding over  
their line1 solely from curiosity2 while
  it is well known that the income      
derived from visitors to their tunnel1  
by the ,thames ,tunnel ,company1 is     
considerable2 the average annual amount 
having been #abjjl4 per annum4    ,the  
curiosity excited by the public relative
 to the tunnel ,i constructed  at       
,brighton1 surprised me4  ,thousands    
manifested a desire to see it3  hundreds
 applied to be permitted to do so2 and  
when they found ,i would  not let them1 
offered guinea after guinea to be       
allowed to gratify their  curiosity1    
under the idea that mercenary motives   
gave rise to the orders  ,i left that no
 one should be admitted2 while many of  
the very highest  rank 7including every 
class of our nobility7 made personal    
application  to me to oblige them with a
 sight of it4    ,as ,i could convey    

persons in your tunnel 7supposing you   
were to have one7  most safely at the   
rate of a mile in a minute1 and as a    
velocity of that  kind being attained   
near the metropolis1 by a method so     
novel as this1  would induce very many  
thousands to visit and ride through it  
for  curiosity1 it may be expected that 
a considerable part of what it would    
cost to lay a tunnel down would be      
returned from this source2 enough 7in   
the end7 ,i am bold to say1 to pay for  
the cost of the iron whereof it  would  
be constructed4    ,the ,thames ,tunnel1
 supposing it never should be completed1
 will for years  bring in the #abjjl4   
per annum1 which is the average of what 
has been  received from people visiting 
it2 and ,i am fully satisfied that      
proper  measures would1 in the end1     
bring in1 from this source alone1       
perhaps1  more than would cover the coat
 of the iron1 of which the tunnel ,i    
propose  to you would be constructed4   
,in the prospectus of the ,greenwich    

,railway ,company is the following      
paragraph3--8,moreover1 when it is      
considered that the population of       
,london1 ,westminster1 and the ,borough1
 is about one million and a half1  and  
that the population of the surrounding  
towns and villages1 within a  circuit of
 from forty to fifty miles round the    
,capital1 amounts to nearly  double that
 number2 and that1 in short1 the number 
of persons visiting  ,london during each
 year1 make up a total exceeding five   
millions of  persons1 it is not         
unreasonable to expect that1 through    
mere curiosity  alone1 two millions of  
persons will gratify the same1 when it  
can be  accomplished at a low price1    
suppose only one shilling1 to go and    
return1--yet if so1 that item alone     
would produce #ajj1jjjl40    ,now1 as   
supposing that the curiosity excited by 
my novel proposition1  will produce only
 one quarter of what the ,greenwich     
,railroad ,company  calculate may come  
into their pockets from the same source1

 will1 ,i  think1 be allowing sufficient
 pre-eminence to the superior curiosity 
which an old method of conveyance must  
excite1 ,i trust that my idea1  that the
 cost of the iron composing the tunnel  
may be repaid from this  source1 will be
 considered a not immoderate one4    ,in
 the ,thames ,tunnel there is nothing   
but the bare arch to see2 while in  this
 there would be the tunnel itself1 the  
largest air-pumps1 c4 c4 in  the world1 
and a ride to and fro at the rate of    
sixty1 or more1 miles an  hour4    ,nor 
would the objection which1 it may be    
imagined1 must arise from the  want of  
daylight in the tunnel1 prove an        
objection in point of fact4  ,so        
trifling is the degree of exhaustion and
 pressure required to move a load  of   
#ajj tons1 that1 but that the advantages
 which would arise1 as relates  to      
cheapness of site1 and evasion of       
opposition on the part of the           
land-owners and occupiers1 from carrying
 the tunnel under ground1 prevent  it1  

,i could window light the tunnel        
throughout its whole1 length3 that      
which ,i constructed at ,brighton having
 light admitted into it through  windows
 of common thin glass2 strong           
plate-glass not being required4         
,indeed1 so far as relates to           
possibility1 the upper half of the      
tunnel  might be one continued window   
7like the top of a green-house71        
throughout  its whole length4  ,but as1 
even if this was done1 artificial light 
must  be had for sixteen hours out of   
the twenty-four in the winter2 as the   
tunnel might be gas-lighted throughout  
its whole length2 or as1 instead  of    
thus wasting light unnecessarily1 each  
carriage might carry lights  before and 
behind1 the objection that the tunnel   
being underground would  render it dark 
as midnight1 is no more a serious       
objection than it would  be1 were the   
,thames tunnel finished1 that it would  
be better to cross the  river by ,london
 ,bridge1 than through that tunnel1     

because on the bridge  you would have   
natural1 while in the tunnel you must   
have artificial  light4    ,it is true  
that there could be no 8view of the     
country0 by this method of  conveyance4 
,but1 as the object of it is the        
perfection of travelling1 in  the three 
particulars of safety1 expedition1 and  
economy2 as even the  comparatively low 
rates attained on the ,liverpool and    
,manchester ,railway  prevent objects   
that are by the road-side being         
distinctly seen1 owing to  the velocity 
with which the passengers are whirled by
 them2 and as the  much greater velocity
 at which conveyance may be effected in 
the tunnel1  would render any attempt to
 look on what was passed productive of  
the  effects experienced by a child who 
looks on the ground while leaning out   
of the window of a coach1 no real loss1 
as relates to 8seeing the  country10    
would result from transmission taking   
place inside the tunnel  instead of     
outside it3 though1 even if it should1  

it might be submitted  to1 when economy 
of both time and money1 and complete    
obviation of the  dangers attendant on  
breaking down1 being overturned1 run    
away with1 or  driven against any thing1
 became the equivalents4    ,have we    
occasion to travel to ,edinburgh by the 
mail1 we unrepiningly  submit to the    
inconvenience of passing two nights 7#cb
 hours in mid  winter7 not only in total
 darkness1 but also 8cabinned1 cribbed1 
confined0 to a degree which prevents us 
even from 8changing a leg10  except by  
previous arrangement with our opposite  
fellow-passenger4  ,but  when it is     
proposed that we shall go in vehicles   
which1 in addition to  being as large   
and commodious as the cabins of many    
steam-vessels1 will  be as much shorter 
a time in going1 as they are larger and 
more  convenient than the inside of     
mail-coaches1 and in which the most     
brilliant light may be enjoyed1 we      
proclaim it to be 8impossible0 to       
consent to go by such vehicles1 because 

they would move inside a tunnel3  not   
considering that this very circumstance1
 of being inside said  tunnel1 would as 
certainly secure us from being          
overturned1 driven  against any thing1  
run away with1 breaking down1 or any    
other of the  dangers to which          
turnpike-road travelling is liable1 as  
it would give us  the ease1 comfort1 and
 accommodations of the cabin of a       
steam-vessel1  instead of the privations
 and endurances experienced in          
mail-coaches4    ,and as the valves     
which have been adverted to as fixed at 
every quarter1  or half1 or whole mile1 
would1 in point of effect1 be doors1 by 
means of  which exit from the tunnel    
could be effected1 the bugbear of being 
8shut  up in a tunnel many miles long1  
with no place to get out of it1 if any  
thing should happen10 need not be       
seriously replied to4    ,such are some 
of the benefits which laying down a     
tunnel1 instead of a  railway would     
procure you4  ,but the most important of

 all is yet to be  mentioned4    ,as it 
does not follow that1 because you may   
think proper to lay a railway  down1 the
 public will think proper to use it1 it 
becomes vital to your  interest1 that   
some inducement which shall lead them to
 use it1 and cause  them to prefer the  
more circuitous route to the ,birmingham
 ,railway by  your line1 to the more    
direct one by the ,edgeware ,road1      
should be laid  before them4  ,this     
inducement will be furnished by the     
tunnel which ,i  propose to your        
adoption4    ,the carriages which would 
go in said tunnel1 may be rendered so   
superior  in point of size1 of the room 
they will give to each passenger1 of    
comfort1 and of general accommodation1  
as to be more like the cabin of a       
steam-vessel1 rather than any thing else
 ,i can compare them to4    ,in one of  
those ,i used in the tunnel ,i          
constructed at ,brighton1 above  twenty 
people have sat with a table between    
them1 covered with  provisions1 plates1 

dishes1 c4 c4 which provisions were     
consumed  according to the usual course 
of a dinner table3 so that              
accommodations  7even to that of a sofa 
for each person7 which could not be     
thought of in  coach or omnibus         
travelling1 might be given to           
passengers4    ,owing also to the size  
and construction of these carriages     
admitting of  my using the air for      
springs1 their motion would be soft and 
7as relates  to the avoidance of all    
jolting7 air-balloon-like1 to a degree  
which you  cannot conceive2 and which no
 railway carriage1 far less any common  
road  vehicle1 could compare with4      
,in point of safety1 too1 would they be 
incomparably superior2 since1  instead  
of being liable to break down1 to be    
driven against any thing1 to  be run    
away with1 or to be overturned1 c4 c4   
these accidents would be  so impossible1
 that absolute immunity from danger1 and
 certain security  to life and limb1    
would be consequent on this method of   

conveyance2 while  the rate of transit  
under which this safety would be        
secured1 being so  great as to admit of 
the journey being effected in as few    
minutes as you  thought proper1 your    
route might be rendered as much shorter 
as you  pleased in point of time1 than  
the route by the ,edgeware road could be
  rendered4  ,the expense of the power  
too1 by which your passengers would  be 
conveyed1 being above twenty times      
cheaper than coaches or omnibuses  could
 convey them along the ,edgeware ,road1 
you would have a still greater          
advantage in this particular4  ,it      
remains1 therefore1 only to point out   
how the public may be caused to take    
your circuitous line1 in preference  to 
the nearer route by the ,edgeware ,road4
    ,in order to effect this1 and to    
save the public from having to go from  
,hyde ,park ,corner to your line1 as    
must be done were you to lay a railway  
down1 ,i propose bringing your line to  
,hyde ,park ,corner1 by extending the   

tunnel2 branching it eastward from your 
basin1 either through ,kensington  and  
,knightsbridge1 under the turnpike road2
 or 7in order to avoid all  interference
 with1 or opposition from1 the ,turnpike
 ,commissioners7 along  the shorter line
 across the vacant grounds to the south 
of the road1 at  the back of ,kensington
 and ,knightsbridge2 across 7though     
beneath1 and  indeed underground all the
 way7 ,earl's ,court ,lane1 ,gloucester 
,road1 ,grove  ,lane1 the ,brompton     
,road1 and ,sloane ,street1 to the      
vacant ground on the  ,north and ,east  
of ,wilton ,crescent4    ,i am not1 at  
present1 prepared to point out either   
the best route1 or the  best spot for   
the termination towards ,hyde ,park     
,corner2 having  investigated only so   
for as to satisfy myself that such a    
course is  practicable4    ,you will1 at
 first1 be startled at1 and disposed to 
object to this  extension1 because you  
will suppose that it involves the outlay
 which  would be required for two       

additional miles of tunnel1 without     
bringing in  any more return than would 
be received from passengers to the      
,birmingham  ,railway4  ,this           
conception1 however1 is an erroneous    
one4    ,were a method of conveyance in 
operation1 by which the inhabitants of  
the  west end of ,kensington1 of ,earl's
 ,court1 of ,north ,end1 of ,walham     
,green1  of ,brook ,green1 of           
,hammersmith1 of ,turnham ,green1 of    
,chiswick1 c4 c4  could be carried 7more
 safely than by coaches7 from your basin
 to ,hyde  ,park ,corner in two or three
 minutes1 instead of the twenty minutes 
or  nearly half an hour which it now    
takes to get over that ground1 they     
would so prefer your method of          
conveyance1 as to render the additional 
outlay required for said two extra miles
 of tunnel1 the most remunerating       
portion of your whole line2 while1 in   
addition to enabling you thus to  convey
 passengers1 said branch would enable   
you also to deliver coals1  and other   

goods at ,hyde ,park ,corner from your  
canal1 for an expense of  less than a   
penny per ton carriage from your canal  
thither2 so that you  would rival the   
,grosvenor ,canal1 and add importantly  
to the tonnage trade  of your own canal 
by it4    ,should the ,birmingham and   
,bristol ,railways be completed1 this   
branch  would also enable you to convey 
goods1 as well as passengers1 to and    
from  them1 and to and from the western 
parts of town1 more cheaply than could  
any how else be done2 an accommodation  
which laying down your railway  could   
not give4  ,and as ,i could so construct
 these two extra miles of  tunnel1 as to
 render their cost--the cost of the     
tunnel itself1 i4e4--not  more than     
about five thousand pounds per mile1 the
 expense of this branch  would not prove
 any ruinous addition to your           
contemplated outlay4    ,therefore1 for 
these reasons1 ,i recommend you to      
prevent its being  necessary that people
 should pay omnibus 7or other7          

proprietors1 to carry  them from ,hyde  
,park ,corner to your basin at          
,kensington1 in order that you  may then
 convey them to the ,birmingham 7or     
,bristol7 ,railway1 by  extending your  
line towards ,hyde ,park ,corner1 in the
 manner ,i have  pointed out4    ,your  
case1 brought into a focus1 is as       
follows4  ,you have expended a  large   
sum in opening a line of conveyance     
which1 owing to its not being  carried  
far enough at first1 does not combine   
all the advantages your  situation      
admits of4  ,you are1 naturally1        
desirous that it should do  this4  ,if  
you open a communication for goods with 
the ,grand ,junction  ,canal1 by        
extending your own canal1 you will do   
this in degree4  ,you  have1 therefore1 
for some years1 contemplated carrying   
your canal up the  height between your  
basin and the ,grand ,junction ,canal4  
,but the enormous  expense of this has  
prevented you from doing it4    ,being  
now informed that your object may be    

better effected by a railway1  you      
entertain that idea2 and as1 were you to
 lay a railway down1  passengers1 as    
well as goods1 might be conveyed by it1 
you are desirous  of1 if possible1      
bringing the 8passenger trade10 between 
the ,birmingham  ,railway and the west  
end of ,london1 to your line4    ,owing1
 however1 to the distance of your line  
from the west end of ,town2  and to the 
,edgeware ,road1 offering a shorter and 
cheaper communication  from the         
,birmingham ,railway to that part of the
 metropolis1 your laying  down a        
railway1 will1 for the reasons ,i have  
pointed out1 certainly prove  a losing  
speculation4    ,as the method ,i       
propose would be most importantly       
cheaper than a railway1  in point of    
first cost1 and still more importantly  
cheaper in point of  current expenses1  
,i venture to offer it to your notice4  
,and as it would  obviate the objection 
which your distance from ,hyde ,park    
,corner would  occasion1 supposing you  

were to have a railway1 ,i presume to   
recommend it  to your consideration1 as 
more worthy notice than any thing else  
you can  have laid before you2 for the  
reasons1 that it will1 in the first     
place1  be much cheaper in point of     
first cost than any other method of     
conveyance you can lay down3 second1    
because it will be still more           
economical in point of current expenses3
 third1 because1 in addition to  being  
incomparably safer1 as relates to life  
and limb1 than any other  method of     
conveyance1 it will be so much more     
expeditious as to render  your          
circuitous route quicker1 in point of   
time1 than the shorter route  by the    
,edgeware ,road1 as well as cheaper1 in 
point of charge3 and1  fourth1 because  
it will be productive of an important   
profit1 additional  to1 and exclusive   
of1 what a railway will bring in2 and   
which will return  no inconsiderable    
proportion of what it costs to lay it   
down4    ,were the statements ,i have   

given relative to the cost and expenses 
of a  railway1 from my own estimates    
only1 they might be doubted by you4  ,in
  order1 however1 to avoid this1 ,i have
 been careful to quote only the         
8evidence10 which was laid before       
,parliament1 and other documents2 which 
leave no doubt that the first cost and  
current expenses will be1 at  least1    
equal to what ,i have stated1 though    
they by no means prove that  they will  
not be more4    ,indeed1 it appears     
susceptible of proof that they will be  
more4  ,mr4  ,grahame1 in his 8,letter  
to the ,traders and ,carriers on the    
,navigations1  connecting ,liverpool and
 ,manchester10 relative to that railway1
 says1 8,i  pledge myself1 however1 to  
prove 7in case the fact be denied by the
  ,directors7 that the aggregate        
expenditure of the half year1 ending on 
the  #cast ,december1 #ahcb1 bears a    
higher proportion to the income of that 
period than the expenses of any         
preceding half-year bear to the income  

of the same40    ,mr4 ,graham also says1
 8,the ,railway ,corporation keep two   
separate accounts  of expenditure1      
8ordinary0 and 8extraordinary40  ,the   
8ordinary  expenditure0 is paid from the
 annual returns received from working   
the  railway2 and the 8extraordinary0 is
 paid by borrowing money1 or a  creation
 and sale of shares2 which is termed    
8adding to the capital  account40  ,the 
ordinary expenditure1 only1 affects the 
dividend2 and it  is the interest of    
every one concerned to make that        
expenditure appear  as low as possible2 
and1 whenever the outlays are           
commingled1 or  doubtful1 to throw the  
burden on the obnoxious shoulder4  ,this
  8extraordinary outlay10 or1 as it is  
termed1 8outlay on the railway and      
works10 or 8,capital ,account10 has been
 as great since the railway was  opened1
 as during the period when it was       
forming4  ,the amount thus laid  out in 
the first fifteen months after the      
opening of the railway1  amounted to    

nearly #bjj1jjjl4  ,the outlay on this  
account in #ahcb is not  stated2 but the
 interest on borrowed money paid in that
 year1 is given as  #aj1ebbl4 #ajs4     
#f;d41 while the interest paid in #ahca 
was only  #efdgl4 #gs4 #f;d40           
,railway advocates may dispute this2 but
 that ,i shall not heed4  ,should  they1
 however1 disprove it1 ,i shall not be  
able to deny that ,i am  liable to the  
censure due to him who investigates in  
the spirit of a  partisan1 rather than  
in that of a candid examinant4    ,it   
may be objected1 in answer to the       
advantages which ,i have stated would   
result from your substituting this      
,pneumatic ,railway for the common      
railway you contemplate1 that you have  
never heard of it before1 except  in the
 way of ridicule and contempt2 while not
 only have the engineers of  the day    
condemned it1 but also do even some of  
yourselves entertain  doubts as to the  
sanity of the man who can propose such a
 thing to you4    ,in allusion to       

objectors of this latter description1   
the ,m4 ,d4 who did me  the honour to   
propose the first ,resolution at the    
8,town ,meeting0 at  ,brighton1 said1 in
 the course of his speech on the        
occasion1 that 8,mr4  ,vallance had had 
to contend with the greatest            
difficulties2 such as were  enough to   
appal any man3 he had been derided and  
ridiculed3 his system  had been treated 
as visionary1 theoretical1 and          
fantastic3 he had been  called a wild   
projector--nay1 some had even gone so   
far as to say that he  was mad4  ,if so1
 he 7,dr4 ,yates7 must say1 with        
,polonius1 #8there was  method in his   
madness4'  ,and to such insinuations he 
7,dr4 ,y47 would  reply1 in the words of
 ,hamlet1 there was that which #8sense  
and sanity  scarce could be delivered   
of4'0    ,with my defence against       
insinuations of this kind thus provided1
 ,i may  turn to the more serious       
objections of the engineers whom you may
  consult3 who1 ,i am well aware1 will  

treat the proposition only as           
,brindsley's proposal to carry the canal
 over the ,irwell was treated by  the   
engineers of his day4    ,were this any 
thing new1 ,i might feel it4  ,but when 
we have it on record  that the professed
 engineers of the period have done the  
same by every  proposition that has been
 brought forward1 until its being       
established by  others1 caused them to  
see that money might be made by         
imitating1 instead  of continuing to    
decry the inventor1 their exclamations  
of 8impossible10  8absurd10 and 8madness
 to think of10 may well be disregarded4 
,had ,telford1 or ,stevenson1 or        
,rennie1 or ,brunel1 or any other       
first-rate  man1 originated the         
proposition1 then1 indeed1 they might   
have had some  faith in it6  ,but for an
 unknown nobody to do such a thing1 is  
of itself  enough to prove that it      
cannot be worth attention4    ,to these 
gentlemen ,i reply1 by asking them--to  
whom are we indebted for  the           

steam-engine in its application to      
steam-vessels1 and locomotive  purposes1
 as well as a first mover for machinery8
  ,savary1 its first  inventor1 was a   
miner4  ,newcomen and ,beighton1 its    
first improvers1 were1  one of them a   
country blacksmith1 and the other a     
plumber1 while its  grand improver1 the 
great ,watt1 was a                      
mathematical-instrument maker4  ,to     
whom are we indebted for our canals--for
 our nationally-important cotton        
machinery--for the public application of
 the gas-light principle--for the       
system of railway transmission--for the 
hydrostatic press--and the other        
manifold improvements1 which have raised
 us to the station we fill8  ,is  it to 
men1 who1 at the periods when these     
improvements were first  devised1 were  
of high name1 and established reputation
 as civil  engineers8  ,hear what one   
whose situation enabled him to decide1  
says on  the subject3--        8,what   
has been the means of raising our native

 country to that      eminence in       
civilization which renders her the      
admiration of the      world8  ,her     
improvements in the arts and sciences4  
8,from whom have those improvements     
chiefly sprung8  ,from men who have     
emerged from the humbler walks of life4 
8,what was ,sir ,richard ,arkwright2 a  
man to whose genius this country      is
 indebted for very much of its          
commercial prosperity2 to whose         
improvements in the machinery for       
spinning cotton1 we are indebted        
for being enabled to keep the cotton    
trade chiefly confined to               
ourselves4  ,what1 ,i say1 was the great
 ,arkwright8  ,a barber4  ,yet do       
we owe our proud superiority in this    
department of our national              
greatness to the unassisted efforts of  
,dick the barber4        8,who was      
,ferguson8  ,a simple peasant2 a man1   
who1 wrapped in his      plaid1 passed  
the winter nights on the ground in      
contemplating the      heavens2 and who1

 by arranging his string of beads on the
 cold heath1      at length completed a 
map of the stars1 and raised himself to 
the      knowledge of our late          
sovereign4        8,who was ,dr4        
,herschel1 the discoverer of so many    
important      astronomical facts8  ,a  
boy who played the pipe and tabor in a  
foreign      regimental band4  ,who was 
the great ,watt8  ,a mathematical       
instrument      maker4        8,who was 
,smeaton1 the builder of the ,eddystone 
lighthouse1 and the      first engineer 
of his day8  ,an attorney4        8,who 
was the great ,brindsley1 whose canals  
have given such an      accession of    
power to our commerce1 by the facilities
 of internal      communication8  ,a    
country millwright4        8,nicholson  
was a cabin boy3 and ,ramadge1 the best 
maker of reflecting      telescopes in  
the world1 was a cutler40    ,in        
continuation of this list of 8nobodies10
 to whom we owe so much of our  national
 greatness1 ,i ask1 to whom are we      

indebted for the very  inventions which 
the engineers of the present day claim  
as their own1  with justice equal to    
that wherewith the organ-blower         
considered the  tones of the instrument 
his8    ,railways have been in use among
 us for a century and a half2 and1      
notwithstanding that those of this      
remote date1 were no more comparable    
with those of the present day1 than the 
matchlocks of the same period are  with 
a modern gun1 the principle was equally 
developed in the one case  as in the    
other4  ,yet is there no engineer who   
can claim the credit of  having said    
8,as this principle admits of most      
important benefits being  conferred on  
society1 provided it be worked out1 and 
carried to the  perfection it admits of1
 ,i will devote myself to such working  
out and  perfecting40    ,locomotive    
engines have been seen among us for     
these thirty years4  ,yet  did the      
engineers of the day no more perceive   
and seize their  advantages than they   

did those of railways4  ,but1 after the 
perception  and talent of various       
persons1 who were in business had1 for  
the purpose  of adapting them to the    
necessities of their different trades1  
so  improved railways and locomotive    
engines1 as to have rendered the latter 
capable of running regularly upon the   
former1 at rates of from five to  eleven
 miles an hour1 forth came our          
engineers1 and1 claiming both           
inventions as their own1 set themselves 
up as having enlarged the  boundaries of
 science1 enabled man to outstrip the   
fleetest animals1 and  almost to vie    
with the winds6    ,and1 last of all1 ,i
 ask1 to whom are we indebted for the   
latest important  discovery1 by which   
unprofessional perception has shewn1    
that what  every engineer of the present
 day had pronounced to be1 not only a   
mathematically-demonstrated1 but also a 
practically-proved  8impossibility10 is 
as perfectly1 and as easily practicable1
 as it was  for ,columbus to make the   

egg stand on its end4    ,we have nearly
 #cjjj miles of canals in the island2   
the draught on which  being twenty times
 easier than on common roads1 and the   
8wear and tear0  equally less1 it has1  
ever since they were first cut1 been an 
important  object to render the rate of 
conveyance along them rapid enough to   
induce  persons to travel from place to 
place on them1 as well as to send their 
goods by them4    ,this became more     
particularly important1 when1 in        
consequence of the  rapidity attained on
 railways1 it was found that they could 
combine the  conveyance of passengers   
with that of goods2 and ,i do not       
hesitate to  say1 that any engineer1 who
 had1 in #ahbe1 informed the ,canal     
interest  that he had discovered a      
method by which conveyance could be     
effected on  canals at the same rate as 
by mail-coaches1 or post-chaises on turn
  pike-roads1 and for one-tenth of their
 expense of draught1 might have  made   
terms with them for the adoption of this

 method1 which should have  brought him 
in above #ajj1jjjl4 sterling4    ,but1  
so far from the engineers of the day    
informing the canal interest  that they 
could do any thing for them in this     
case1 they universally  preached despair
 with respect to it2 satisfying them1 by
 mathematical  demonstration1 that1     
owing to the resistance of fluids to    
bodies moving  through them1 increasing 
according to the square of the velocity1
  rapidity of transmission along canals 
was no more possible than for a         
coal-barge to beat to windward like a   
cutter4    ,it is true they admitted    
that the steam-engine gave them power   
enough to  more vessels on canals as    
rapidly as steamers move on rivers4     
,but1 they  said1 owing to the surge    
which it was unavoidable such rapid     
motion  must create1 the banks of the   
canals would be so soon washed down1    
that  it was impossible to avoid ruining
 the canals1 if rapid conveyance were   
attempted on them4  ,therefore1 though  

steam has been in use as a moving  power
 on our rivers for above these twenty   
years1 it has never yet been  employed  
for a similar purpose on our canals1    
except in the way of  experiment4    ,in
 consequence of these things1 they could
 do nothing to meet the wishes  of the  
canal interest3 and1 in the evidence on 
the ,birmingham ,railway1  before the   
,lords' ,committees1 on the #bith ,june1
 #ahcb1 it is stated1 in  answer to an  
inquiry as to what was the quickest kind
 of canal  communication between ,london
 and ,birmingham1 that 8,the fly boats  
go by  the shortest route1 and they are 
three days and three nights on the      
road40  ,now as this 8shortest route0 is
 #aeb miles1 it appears that the        
quickest rate of canal conveyance by    
8fly boats0 was less than #bth miles  an
 hour2 while in answer to the question1 
8,what time is occupied by the  slow    
boats80 it is replied1 8,about six or   
seven days3 they seldom travel  at      
night40    ,in this state of despair on 

the part of the canal interest1 and amid
 this  chorus of 8impossible10 on the   
part of the whole of the engineers of   
the  present day1 a private gentleman   
7,william ,houston1 ,esq4 of ,johnstone 
,castle7 became impressed with the      
opinion that1 equally as we can1 by     
giving it rapid motion1 cause a flat    
stone to skim over the surface of  the  
water 7as boys do1 when playing at what 
they call 8making ducks and  drakes07 so
 might we1 by giving rapid motion to a  
properly constructed  boat an a canal1  
cause it1 not only to skim over the     
water1 so as to  avoid raising the wave 
which the engineers had pronounced      
equally  unavoidable as it would be     
fatal to the banks of canals1 but also  
much  more easily than boats can be     
drawn through the water4    ,on putting 
this thought into practice1 ,mr4        
,houston found the result to be  what he
 had anticipated2 and the consequence   
is1 that it is now  established by      
actual and daily practice on the        

,paisley and ,ardrossan  ,canal1 that   
boats which carry more passengers than  
7on an average7 the  locomotive engines1
 of twenty and thirty horse power each1 
draw on the  ,liverpool and ,manchester 
,railway1 at rates of from #ae to #bj   
miles an  hour1 #fb are drawn from      
,johnstone to ,glasgow at the rate of   
ten miles  an how by two horses only2   
while a velocity so high as #ae miles an
 hour  has been attained3 8and this     
speed was not limited by the labour of  
the  draught1 but by the power of speed 
of the horses40    ,in other words1 that
 which the whole of the engineers of the
 present day  had pronounced and        
demonstrated to be utterly impossible1  
is now  constantly done1 several times  
every day1 as a regular                 
passenger-carrying  business1 on the    
,paisley and ,ardrossan ,canal4    ,and1
 although the charges for this rate of  
conveyance are 8just one-half1  and     
one-third1 of the fares in the          
,liverpool ,railway coaches1 the profits

  are such1 as to have induced the      
proprietors to quadruple the number of  
boats on the canal20 while the          
passengers1 instead of being boxed up as
  in the railway coaches1 and exposed to
 the weather1 as in the railway  8second
 class carriages10 may either take      
exercise on the decks1 or seat          
themselves in the long cabins of these  
passenger-boats4    ,as this method of  
rapid canal conveyance is becoming      
generally adopted1  this simple idea of 
a private gentleman1 has not only put to
 shame the  whole of the engineering    
talent of the present day1 but has also 
possessed the kingdom of nearly #cjjj   
miles of liquid way1 which1 as if by    
the stroke of a wand1 are raised from   
the low value of heavy1 miry1 cross     
country roads1 on which no greater      
velocity than that of a carrier's       
waggon could be attained1 to the high   
value1 not merely of the best           
turnpike-roads1 on which the conveyance 
of persons1 at mail-coach and           

post-chaise rates1 can be effected1 but 
also of routes on which two  horses can 
7and daily do7 draw one hundred people  
as fast and 7,i  understand7 more easily
 than four draw sixteen persons on our  
best  mail-coach roads1 with less than  
one-twentieth the wear and tear to the  
vehicles than takes place as to coaches 
on roads3 on advantage1 the money  value
 of which will be inadequately expressed
 by saying1 that as it would  cost above
 thirty thousand pounds per mile to give
 us roads on which the  same power could
 do the same work1 with the same small  
expense of wear1  tear1 and current     
expenses1 the simple thought of a       
private gentleman1  whom the engineers  
of the day would have pronounced a      
8nobody0 in point  of scientific        
authority1 has possessed the nation of  
what it would have  cost above one      
hundred millions sterling to purchase1  
had said engineers  been employed to    
procure an equal amount of roads1 of    
equally easy  draught1 and little 8wear 

and tear0 for us4    ,yet are these     
gentlemen looked up to as infallible2   
and allowed to  fulminate their         
anathemas with respect to what they     
please to pronounce  8impossible0 as if 
they were omniscient4    ,the actual    
charges the passenger-boats1 which now  
run daily 7at the rate  of ten miles an 
hour7 between ,johnstone and ,glasgow1  
are1 one penny per  head per mile in the
 first cabin1 and three farthings per   
head per mile  in the second cabin4     
,how much less these charges are than   
turnpike-road fares1 need not be        
pointed out3 my object being to submit1 
that equally as our canals having  for  
these three-quarters of a century       
remained only routes for goods at       
carriers'-waggon rates1 when they might1
 all along1 have been routes for        
passengers at the highest rates whereat 
it is possible for horses to go1  proves
 that the engineers of the day knew     
nothing whatever of a subject  which    
they professed fully and entirely to    

understand--so may they be  equally     
ignorant of the merits of the           
proposition which they have so          
ridiculed and condemned me for presuming
 to bring forward2 and which is1  as    
exactly what they term it1 as they      
demonstrated it to be  8impossible0 to  
be conveyed at mail-coach and           
posting-rates along canals4    ,now1    
great as is the honour due to the       
engineers of the present day1 for  thus 
permitting the accidental thought of a  
private gentleman to possess  the nation
 7as it were by the stroke of a wand7 of
 #cjjj miles of liquid  way1 over which 
conveyance may take place at rates of   
from #aj to #ae miles  an hour1 for     
one-tenth the expense1 and less than    
one-tenth of the wear  and tear that    
takes place on roads1 after they had    
demonstrated that no  greater rate than 
two or three miles an hour could be     
attained on said  routes2 and1 greatly  
as the canal interest must be indebted  
to them1 for  suffering them 7the canal 

interest71 in consequence of said       
demonstration1 to lose the millions upon
 millions they might have  received of  
the public1 for conveyance at these     
rates of #aj or #ae miles  an hour1     
during the three-quarters of a century  
canals have been in  operation among    
us--equally as the engineers thus       
deserve public  gratitude1 do they also 
deserve it for the manner in which they 
have  suffered the law of motion1 by    
means of which the stage-coachman       
8swings0  his vehicle up the first part 
of a hill1 to remain useless with       
respect  to that improvement of our     
turnpike-roads which it admits of2 and  
which1  though not equal in money-value 
to the 8idea0 of ,mr4 ,houston1 which   
has  just been described1 is yet highly 
important4    ,the law itself is 8old as
 the hills20 and1 notwithstanding that  
the  advantage taken of it by           
stage-coachmen when coming to the bottom
 of a  rise1 is not quite of such long  
standing1 yet is it old enough to have  

pointed out an advantageous alteration  
in the arrangement of all our  turnpike 
roads1 had the engineers under whose    
direction said roads were  laid out1 but
 availed themselves of it4    ,by the   
table given on page #cc it appears1 that
 if a vehicle be moving on  a level with
 a velocity of #b miles an hour1 its    
momentum will 7under the  circumstances 
there stated7 carry it up a rise to     
three inches of  perpendicular height3  
while1 if the rate of motion be twice1  
and four  times #b miles an hour--i4e4  
#e and #aa miles--the momentum will     
carry it up  heights of one foot and    
four feet respectively3 and the         
following table  gives the altitudes due
 to every intermediate mile of rate3    
,bodies moving on levels at the under   
,have moments1 which  mentioned         
velocities1 the motions of which        
7friction being  are changed from       
horizontal to ascending1 by             
counteracted7 will  means1 either of    
angular or circular ascents4   cause    

them to rise to                         
the under-mentioned                     
heights above the                       
level where those                       
velocities were                         
attained1 let the                       
rate of rise1 or                        
angle of ascent1 be                     
what it may4  ,,miles ,,per ,,hour4     
,,feet4      ,,inches4                  
#c          #j           #c             
#d          #j           #f             
#e          #j           #aj            
#f          #a           #b             
#g          #a           #g             
#h          #b           #a             
#i          #b           #h             
#aj          #c            #d           
#aa          #d            #j           
#ab          #d           #i            
#ac          #e           #g            
#ad          #f           #f            
#ae          #g           #f            
#af          #h           #f            
#ag          #i           #g            

#ah         #aj           #i            
#ai         #ab           #j            
#bj         #ac           #d    ,a      
velocity of six miles an hour being thus
 capable of giving momentum  sufficient 
to enable any vehicle to surmount an    
ascent of above one foot  in            
perpendicular height1 let the angle of  
ascent or rate of rise1 be what  it     
might1 it has been necessary only to lay
 out our turnpike-roads in  alternate   
short levels1 with sharp rises of one   
foot in height between  them1 similar to
 the line below1 to render all our roads
 level1 in point  of effect1 to every   
vehicle which went at the rate of six   
miles an hour2  since1 as the continued 
draught of the horse would overcome1    
neutralise1 and 7as relates to its      
counteractive effect7 annihilate the    
friction of the wheels and axes during  
the ascent1 the momentum imparted  by   
that velocity would enable the vehicle  
of itself to rise up1 and  surmount the 
ascent1 without any extra effort on the 

part of the horse3  while1 supposing    
that the practice of stage-coachmen were
 to be imitated1  and the horses of     
these six-miles-an-hour vehicles pushed 
to a pace of  twelve miles an hour for a
 few yards before the wheels actually   
touched  these rises1 so as to give the 
vehicle a velocity of #ab miles an hour 
at  the moment of its beginning to      
ascend them1 the momentum imparted by   
this velocity would carry the vehicle up
 four feet nine inches  perpendicular1  
instead of one2 so that the road might  
be laid out in  alternate levels and    
rises of four feet4    ,it is true that1
 supposing this principle to be acted   
on1 half the width  of the road must be 
left in the usual manner1 in order to   
enable waggons1  which do not move      
faster than two or three miles an hour1 
to pass over  it4  ,but as the slow rate
 of two miles an hour will give momentum
 enough  to admit of a rise of #a inches
 being surmounted1 the principle might  
be  taken some advantage of1 even on the

 half of the road appropriated to       
waggons2 since rises not exceeding #a   
inches each1 could be surmounted by     
vehicles which did not move faster than 
two miles an hour4    ,however1 leaving 
the waggon-half of the road to the usual
 arrangement1  the advantage of1 as it  
were1 doing away with all hills and     
rises1 and  rendering all our roads     
level 7in point of effect7 to all       
vehicles  travelling at the rate of six 
miles an hour1 might have amply repaid  
the  expense of this suggested          
alteration in the form of the roads1 had
 the  engineers under whose direction   
they were cut1 but laid them out in that
  manner3 while1 supposing that a rate  
of #af miles an hour could be  attained 
by pushing the horse to a gallop just   
before reaching the  ascent1 the levels 
and rises might be laid out in          
gradations of eight  feet each instead  
of four feet4    ,but let the heights of
 these proposed elevations be what they 
might1 the  advantage of 7in effect7    

doing away with all hills and rises1 and
 of  rendering our roads level to us all
 over the kingdom would be attained2    
which might prove ample reward for      
varying the mere form of the roads2  and
 would not1 ,i think1 have been unworthy
 the notice even of our  omniscient     
engineers2 notwithstanding that the way 
in1 and degree to  which they have      
neglected and slighted this law of      
motion1 with respect  to its application
 to railways as well as to              
turnpike-roads1 proves them1  one and   
all1 to have been equally percipient of 
its advantages1 as they  were of the    
practicability of rapid conveyance on   
canals2 and as they  are of the merits  
of the method of transmission which the 
individual  who has now the honour of   
addressing you is presumptuous enough to
 think  deserving even of ,,their       
attention3 omniscient as they deem      
themselves  relative to it2 and         
omnipotent as they have1 hitherto1      
proved1 with  respect to its            

condemnation and rejection4    ,should  
,i1 however1 be fortunate enough to meet
 with any who will measure  the         
competence of these gentlemen thus to   
condemn1 by the following  standards1 ,i
 cannot but trust that my appeal from   
their decision will be  favourably      
received4    ,the question1 divested of 
technicalities1 resolves itself into the
 three  following considerations4       
,first1 can we construct iron 7or any   
other kind of7 tunnels1 such as  would  
be requisite for the operation of the   
principle8  ,secondly1 can we  construct
 air-pumps large enough to exhaust from 
the said tunnels with  the necessary    
rapidity8  ,and1 thirdly1 can we make   
steam-engines powerful  enough to work  
these air-pumps8    ,now as there is no 
one who denies that we have the power of
 making  tunnels of any size1 not       
exceeding 7say7 twelve feet in diameter1
 nor  that we can form the separate     
segments1 or pieces1 in which such      
tunnels  might be cast1 into cylindrical

 8lengths10 of from ten to fifteen feet 
each1 so as to lay them down and connect
 them as 7suppose for the  present7 gas 
mains are laid down and united--as no   
one denies this1 the  second question1  
relating to the air-pumps1 is the first 
to be replied  to4    ,in #ahbg there   
were1 in ,great ,britain1 #bhd smelting 
furnaces2 the quantity  of iron made    
during that year by which1 was #fij1jjj 
tons4    ,blast apparatus being as      
indispensable appendages to smelting    
furnaces1  as the flux is to the        
ironstone which is to be smelted in     
those furnaces1  it follows1 that 7with 
the possibility of exception where one  
blast  apparatus may be made to serve   
more than one furnace7 there must1 seven
  years ago1 have been #bhd sets of     
pneumatic apparatus for urging the fires
  of these furnaces to the necessary    
intensity1 by forcing currents of air   
into them4  ,these apparatus formerly   
varied in form1 from common bellows  on 
a large scale1 to the diversities of the

 8water blast40  ,but the whole  of     
these varieties of blast apparatus are  
now found so inferior to what  are      
termed 8blowing cylinders0 that no one  
who erects a smelting furnace  ever     
thinks of applying to it any other means
 for urging its fire than  this latter  
description of apparatus4    ,these     
8blowing cylinders0 are all air-pumps on
 a large scale2 differing  from the     
common air-pump only in being of iron   
instead of brass2 in  having their      
valves so arranged as to cause them1    
instead of exhausting  air from the     
vessel they operate on1 to blow into it2
 and in their  being as much larger than
 a common air-pump as the 8monster      
mortar0 used  at the late reduction of  
the citadel of ,antwerp is than a boy's 
sixpenny  cannon4    ,the largest of    
this kind of air-pumps that ,i have seen
 was nine feet in  diameter1 by an equal
 or rather superior height2 though an   
iron-founder  has informed me that he   
once cast one of eleven feet in         

diameter4  ,and it  is unquestionable1  
that it will require only the           
preparation of the  necessary moulding  
and boring1 c4 c4 apparatus1 to make any
 number1 of  any diameter we please1 not
 exceeding 7say7 twelve feet4           
,supposing them  to be #aa4c feet in    
diameter1 their area would be equal to  
#ajj square  feet2 and1 supposing the   
velocity with which their pistons moved1
 to be  only half that of the average   
velocity of the pistons of              
steam-engines1  each of these air-pumps 
would cause #aa1jjj cubic feet 7i4e4    
about #gj1jjj  gallons7 of air1 to pass 
through each of them per minute2 which  
air would  be drawn out of1 or forced   
into1 any thing1 according as the valves
 were  arranged4    ,every one of such  
pumps that was used to exhaust air from 
a tunnel of  eight feet in diameter     
would produce a current in it1 moving at
 the rate  of two miles and a half an   
hour2 while1 supposing that its piston  
moved  at the same velocity whereat the 

pistons of steam-engines in general     
move1 this current would pass through   
the tunnel at the rate of five  miles an
 hour4    ,it being evident1 then1 that 
it is necessary only properly to arrange
 the  size and number of the pumps1 to  
cause the atmosphere to rush along the  
tunnel at any rate we desire2 and it    
being a fact that we have1 in daily     
operation1 about #cjj such air-pumps as 
these 7though not quite so large7  there
 is only one remaining shelter behind   
which these 8impossibleists0  can       
pretend to screen themselves4    ,the   
first steam-engine which ,boulton and   
,watt erected in their  manufactory of  
,soho as a specimen for the examination 
of those who wanted  such machines1 was 
about the year #aghj4  ,the exact number
 we now have  among us there are no     
means of ascertaining4  ,but the        
authority which ,i  have quoted for the 
existence of #ae1jjj steam-engines in   
,great ,britain1  states them to be of  
the average power of twenty-five horses4

    ,if this may be received1 the whole 
amount of 8horse power0 in operation    
among us in #ahca was equal to that of  
#cge1jjj horses4  ,and even though it   
should be necessary to lower this down  
to ,m4 ,dupin's estimate of #bjj1jjj    
horses in #ahbd1 there would remain an  
aggregate ample for our purpose4        
,since1 if there was not in #agij one   
steam-engine in ,manchester1 while      
there are now nearly #cjj there1 it may 
safely be assumed that so much the      
larger proportion of the thousands of   
them which are now spread over the      
kingdom have been made within the last  
thirty years1 as to admit of its  being 
fairly inferred that we have1 for many  
years past1 constructed them  at a rate 
equal to ten thousand horses' power per 
annum4    ,yet1 with these facts almost 
as easily verified as it would be to    
obtain  copies of all the newspapers    
published in the kingdom1 and with some 
of  these engines so large as to be     
equal to #cjj1 or #ejj1 or 7as quoted in

  page #df7 even #ajjj horses' power1 do
 these 8impossibleists0 say we cannot   
obtain power enough to work the         
air-pumps we should require to pump the 
air out of the tunnel4  ,just as1 twenty
 years ago1 they said we could not  use 
steam to carry us across the seas1 nor  
gas to light our streets4    ,in reply  
to a demand of the great ,lord ,chatham 
that a certain naval force  should be   
ready by a certain day for an expedition
 be contemplated2 and  which1 the nature
 of the service rendered it necessary   
should be  despatched as promptly as it 
was determined on1 the then first lord  
of  the admiralty stated1 as an intended
 conclusion to several notes 7or        
messages7 which had passed between the  
two departments on the subject1  that   
8it could not be done1 because it was   
impossible40  8,inform the  first lord  
from me10 said the minister1 8that the  
service of the state  requires the      
immediate despatch of the expedition3   
and that if he1 with  the military      

marine of the kingdom at his order by   
virtue of his office1  and the          
commercial marine at his command by the 
course of hiring  transports1 delays the
 departure of the expedition because he 
deems it  impossible1 ,i will impeach   
him40  ,under this alternative1 the     
8impossibility0 vanished1 and the       
expedition sailed4    ,now as the facts 
which ,i have adduced relative to the   
existence of all  the necessary means   
for rendering importantly available to  
general use  the principle here         
described1 prove that the gentlemen of  
that profession  which is devoted to the
 practical application of mechanical    
science to  the public service have1 for
 these seven years1 proclaimed to be    
8impossible0 that which is as easily    
practicable as it was for the first     
lord of the admiralty to prepare the    
naval part of the expedition  referred  
to1 ,i leave it to themselves to make   
evident why they should not  be         
impeached1 as equally traitors to the   

cause of practical science1 as  the     
first lord of the admiralty would have  
been to the state1 had the  expedition  
not sailed at the period the minister   
required4    ,those who will give       
themselves the trouble of the           
calculations necessary  to establish the
 truth of the preceding statements      
relative to the effect  of momentum1 it 
will be unnecessary to remind of any of 
the occurrences  which prove it4  ,but  
those who do not choose to take that    
trouble1 may be  reminded1 that a       
circumstance often witnessed1 gives     
practical  demonstration of the accuracy
 of these statements4    ,during certain
 adhesive states of the crust of the    
road1 it is frequently  seen when       
travelling1 that the pressure of the    
wheels causes particles of  earth to    
adhere to1 and rise from the ground1    
sticking to the tire of the  wheel4     
,the adhesion of these particles of     
earth being1 however1 soon destroyed  by
 the centrifugal force imparted by the  

revolution of the wheel1 they  become1  
the moment it loosens them from the     
wheel1 and allows the other  influence  
to operate1 projected in directions     
varying according to the  position of   
the part of the wheel to which they     
adhered1 at the moment of  their        
quitting it4    ,some of them1 being    
carried to the top of the wheel1 fly    
forward2 but the  majority1 leaving the 
wheel at about the height of the        
axle-tree1 become  projected vertically1
 and are seen bobbing up and down by the
 windows of  the carriage1 somewhat like
 motes in the sunbeam4    ,their thus   
rising and falling may1 perhaps1        
hitherto have been observed1  without   
being regarded as demonstrative of any  
principle which may be  rendered        
subservient to our purposes4  ,but as   
they are1 in point of fact1  evidences1 
that the momentum imparted by the       
velocity at which the tire  of the      
wheels is revolving1 will cause bodies  
to rise to the height of  three or four 

feet perpendicular1 above the point of  
the wheel from which  they fly2 and as  
this velocity is exactly commensurate   
with that at which  the carriage goes   
over the ground1 they are unquestionable
 proofs1 that1  provided friction be    
annihilated as relates to counteractive 
effect1 by  the continued operation of  
the moving power1 the vehicle itself    
would  ascend an inclined plane of any  
rate of ascent1 to the same height to   
which they rise above the position of   
the part of the wheel they adhered  to1 
at the moment of their flying from it4  
,but1 to leave this question relative to
 momentum1 and return to that of  the   
steam-engines and air-pumps4    ,it     
being the property of air to neutralise1
 or absorb1 a smaller portion  of       
whatever impulse may be imparted to it1 
than1 perhaps1 any other  ponderable    
medium nature offers us1 the power of   
the steam-engines which  operated on the
 air-pumps that exhausted air from the  
tunnel1 might be  brought to bear1--and 

that too1 without their energy being so 
diminished  as even to approach an      
insuperable objection--on the vehicles  
in it2 and  an effect in consequence    
produced1 which we cannot1 at first1    
conceive to  be possible4    ,it is     
evident1 that it will not require the   
power of the engines 7each  equal to    
several hundred horses' power71 by which
 the air-pumps would be  worked1 to move
 one1 or even many vehicles4  ,what then
 will become of the  surplus power8     
,will it be lost in overcoming the      
friction of the air1 as  adverted to at 
page #da2 or1 rather1 may it not operate
 to increase the  rate at which the     
vehicles will move8  ,and if so1 how    
many times will the  rate at which we   
may be conveyed1 exceed that at which we
 now travel1 and  what is the limit that
 will be attained in this particular8   
,it is well known that air will rush    
into a vacuum at the rate of nearly a   
thousand miles an hour4  ,now although  
it is no more expected we should be     

conveyed at any such rate as that1 than 
it is intended we should be  placed in a
 vacuum1 yet are1 both this almost      
inconceivable velocity1 and  what is    
generally expressed by the term         
8vacuum10 so connected with the  subject
 of consideration1 that it becomes      
unavoidable to advert to them1          
injurious as they must prove1 and       
strongly as they will array our         
preconceived notions and prejudices     
against the proposition4    ,it cannot  
be denied that we have the power of     
laying down a tunnel1 such  as has been 
referred to1 and of adapting a railway  
to the inside of it1  for any distance  
we please3 and1 though it may not be in 
our power so to  connect the separate   
8lengths0 or cylinders which compose it1
 as to  render the joints perfectly     
air-tight against a vacuum1 yet1 with   
reference to the trivial degrees of     
exhaustion necessary for the purpose    
here contemplated1 every joint may most 
easily be made 8air-tight03  since1     

supposing the degree of exhaustion to be
 equal to the pressure at  which gas is 
forced through the mains of a public    
company whose works ,i  know1 a load of 
above #ajj tons would be carried along a
 tunnel of eight  feet in diameter1 at  
whatever rate the air was pumped out of 
it4  ,equally  certain1 as it therefore 
becomes1 that we have the power of      
extending  this tunnel at pleasure1 is  
it1 that the power of making and working
 any  number of air-pumps1 such as have 
been referred to1 will enable us to     
exhaust from1 and consequently cause air
 to rush through it1 at rates so  vastly
 exceeding any at which we now travel1  
that our preconceived  notions and      
prejudices cause us to look on the      
proposition as both  impossible and     
absurd4    ,one of the circumstances    
which at first strikes us as fatal to   
the  proposition1 is the inability to   
respire1 which we all feel we should be 
liable to1 if conveyed rapidly through  
the air4  ,a moment's reflection  will1 

however1 enable us to see that this     
objection has no application  whatever  
to the case4  ,it is not proposed that  
we shall be conveyed  rapidly through   
the air1 but that we shall cause air1   
which we have  first set in rapid       
motion1 to convey us along with it1 as  
fast as  itself goes3 a state of things 
so different from going through1 or     
against1 and meeting the air1 that our  
supposed objection does not apply  to   
the case4    ,stating facts will1       
however1 be the best way of settling    
this question2  and for this purpose the
 experience of our aeronauts is referred
 to4  ,much as they have sometimes been 
inconvenienced from the rarity of the   
air1 at the heights to which they have  
ascended1 yet have we never heard  them 
complain of being unable to breathe     
freely1 owing to the velocity  with     
which they were carried along over the  
earth's surface1  notwithstanding that  
they have been conveyed at rates of #gj1
 #hj1 and1 in  one instance1 #afj miles 

an hour4  ,and why8 because that which  
was the  cause of motion went with      
them4--8,i had not10 says ,lunardi1 in  
his account  of the first ascent ever   
made in ,england1 8the slightest sense  
of motion  from the machine4  ,i knew   
not whether ,i went swiftly or          
slowly--whether it  ascended or         
descended--whether it was agitated or   
tranquil1 but by the  appearance or     
disappearance of objects on the earth40 
,rapidly1  therefore1 as they have      
moved1 yet have they felt as if in a    
calm4  ,now  exactly similar in point of
 respiration1 would be the feeling of   
those  who might be conveyed in the     
proposed tunnel4  ,the air1 being the   
cause  of motion1 must go1 at least1    
equally fast as it drove them1 and      
necessarily be wherever they were4  ,let
 the rate of motion therefore1 be  what 
it might1 the feeling of those who      
experienced it1 must prove that  of     
being in a perfect calm4    ,nor are the
 objections we at first conceive1       

relative to the effect which  pumping   
air from the tunnel1 and producing what 
only the word vacuum  7inapplicable as  
it is7 will enable us to convey the idea
 of1 at all more  tenable4  ,the degree 
to which air would be exhausted from the
 tunnel  might scarcely ever be         
sufficient to sink a barometer two      
inches lower  than one exposed to the   
atmosphere stood at2 so that even were  
we exposed  to it no inconvenience would
 be felt4 #fi  ,but we never shall be   
exposed  to it1 any more than those who 
witness the cruel experiment of putting 
a  mouse under the receiver of an       
air-pump1 and then exhausting it1 are   
exposed to what the little animal       
suffers4  ,between those who see and    
the poor creature which feels the effect
 of the apparatus1 is the side  of the  
receiver4  ,and between the part of the 
tunnel in which the  exhaustion1 or     
rather the difference of density is1 and
 the passengers in  the vehicle1 would  
be the end of the vehicle2 so that      

though close to  them would be an       
atmosphere rarer than 7we will suppose7 
it might prove  pleasant to be in1 yet  
would the atmosphere they actually were 
in be  the same as that of the air at   
large4  ,no inconvenience1 therefore1   
can  be experienced in this particular4 
,equally untenable is the idea we take  
up1 that it will be impossible so  to   
adapt the ends of the vehicles to the   
inside of the tunnel1 as to  cause them 
to act as pistons in preventing the     
passage of the air by  them1 without    
occasioning friction to a degree which  
should deprive us of  all the advantages
 the air would otherwise give1 as a mean
 of  communicating motion4    ,in the   
last carriage which ,i had for the      
tunnel ,i constructed at  ,brighton1    
there was a space of above an inch and a
 half in width left all  round between  
the piston part of the carriage and the 
tunnel1 through  which air rushed       
unimpeded4  ,yet did not this 8windage10
 or leak1 though  equal in the          

aggregate1 to an aperture of three      
square feet1 prevent the  carriage from 
springing forward to the impulse of the 
air-pumps1 with a  readiness ,i was     
surprised at4  ,nor did it ever cause   
the least  perceptible diminution in    
their effect2 owing to the small        
quantity of  air that passed through it1
 in comparison with the immense quantity
  exhausted by the pumps4    ,when the  
,brighton ,committee rode in that       
tunnel1 one of them brought with  him a 
mountain barometer1 that he might       
ascertain the degree of 8vacuum0  or    
exhaustion necessary to move the        
carriage4  ,this barometer was          
accordingly suspended in the part where 
the 8vacuum0 was to be produced1  and   
the vernier adjusted with the greatest  
accuracy4  ,but to his surprise  the    
degree of exhaustion was not sufficient 
to lower the barometer in the  least    
degree4  ,being aware of this1 ,i had   
spirit gauges previously  prepared1 one 
of which was fixed in the end of the    

carriage4  ,but even  this gauge1 though
 nearly fifteen times more sensitive    
than the  barometer1 was affected hardly
 enough to be visible1 the amount of    
8vacuum0 indicated by it1 being only    
about ten grains per square inch1 or    
less than the ten-thousandth part of a  
vacuum4    ,nor would the quantity of   
air that rushed by the piston-end of the
  carriage be at all important1 even    
when travelling at very great           
velocities1 and with heavy loads4  ,in a
 tunnel of the diameter which  would be 
proper for such lines as those to       
,bristol1 or ,south ,wales1 the         
pressure requisite to move a load of    
#ajj tons would not be more than  about 
#ajj grains per square inch2 which would
 cause air to rush past the  piston-end 
of the carriage at the rate of about #cj
 feet per second4  ,therefore1 even     
could no better adjustment of the       
piston-end of the  carriage and the     
inside of the tunnel be effected1 than  
took place with  respect to that at     

,brighton1 only #ij cubic feet of air   
per second would  rush past1 even were  
the carriages standing still2 which is  
only  one-tenth of what the air-pumps ,i
 used there were capable of exhausting  
in the same time2 while1 on such a line 
as the ,bristol1 or ,south ,wales1  it  
would not be one-hundredth of what the  
exhausting apparatus would take  out in 
the same period2 so that not            
one-hundredth of the power would be     
lost by it3 and even this hundredth     
could easily be reduced to a            
thousandth3 the space left between the  
piston-end of the carriage in the       
tunnel at ,brighton being purposely an  
inch and a half in width1 in  order that
 ,i might shew1 by actual proof1 how    
utterly unimportant was  that objection 
which engineers of the highest name and 
reputation had  assured me must1        
inevitably1 prove fatal to the motion of
 any  carriage in any tunnel4    ,and as
 the carriage1 instead of standing      
still1 would be moving forward1  the    

loss of power1 which would1 otherwise1  
result from the pressure  requisite to  
give the velocity as well as move the   
load1 would be  equally unimportant as  
that arising from the pressure requisite
 to move  the load alone4    ,with      
pressures so trivial as these capable of
 producing practical  effects1 and with 
it fully practicable so to adjust the   
8piston0 part of  the carriages to the  
tunnel1 as to render this 8windage10 or 
leak1  perhaps less than one-hundredth  
of that which ,i purposely caused in the
  tunnel at ,brighton1 there can be no  
difficulty1 either in preventing any    
important quantity of air from rushing  
past the carriages2 or in so  connecting
 the 8lengths0 of which the tunnel would
 be composed1 as to  render the joints  
air-tight4    ,and as there are no      
objections which the engineers can bring
 forward1  that cannot be replied to in 
an equally satisfactory manner1 ,i need 
not  trouble you with any additional    
answer to them4    ,it is now four years

 ago since the locomotive engine        
competition took  place on the          
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway4    
,in all probability no  proprietor of   
the ,kensington ,canal happened to be   
present at that  contest2 yet is it     
equally probable that all were as fully 
convinced of  the fact from the accounts
 which appeared in the newspapers1 as if
 you  had seen it4  ,now though ,i      
cannot give the conviction arising from 
the  evidence of your senses1 yet can ,i
 give stronger evidence than the public 
vehicles of intelligence gave as to that
 competition1 by referring you to  the  
public authorities and records of       
,brighton1 to know whether ,i did not   
carry an appointed number of its        
inhabitants to and fro1 as the          
locomotive engines went during that     
competition2 8when10 says ,mr4          
,treasurer ,booth1 in his 8,account of  
the ,liverpool and ,manchester          
,railway10--8the prescribed distance1 it
 should be understood1 was1 owing  to   

the circumstances of the railway1       
obliged to be accomplished1 by  moving  
backwards and forward on a level plane  
of one mile and three  quarters in      
length40  ,i did not1 it is true1 carry 
those gentlemen so far  as those engines
 went4  ,nor1 indeed1 was there any     
occasion for it4  ,had  it been         
necessary1 they could have continued    
riding to and fro in my  tunnel1 as long
 as the locomotives ran to and fro on   
the railway4  ,but1  as when they had   
satisfied themselves that there was no  
trickery in the  motion of the carriage1
 and that it was really moved by the    
air1 they  had1 then1 seen all that it  
was necessary to see1 to convince them  
that a  longer tunnel would enable me to
 move a carriage equally far1 as a      
longer  railway would have admitted of  
the locomotive engines going1 they gave 
over riding1 8because10 as the ,editor  
of the ,brighton ,herald says1 in the   
extract which ,i have quoted from that  
paper1 8because they became so          

convinced that the invisible and        
intangible medium we breathe1 might be  
rendered a safe and expeditious means of
 getting us from one place to  another1 
as to be tired of riding40    ,were it  
necessary for your interest that a      
gas-pipe should be laid  throughout the 
line you propose1 your inquiry of the   
engineer you might  employ would be1 not
 whether the gas would pass through such
 a length of  pipe1 because you know    
that to have been long established1 and 
to be  every day acted upon1 but what   
would be the expense of it2 that is1 it 
would be a money question1 not a        
question of practicability4    ,the     
tunnel ,i constructed at ,brighton was  
nearly eight feet in diameter1  while   
the air-pumps ,i adapted to it were     
large enough to make an  artificial wind
 blow through it at the rate of ten     
miles an hour4  ,and  doubling1         
tripling1 quadrupling1 c4 c4 the size1  
or number of the  pumps1 would have     
doubled1 tripled1 c4 c4 the rate at     

which this wind  blew4    ,a common size
 for gas mains is eight inches4  ,were  
it propounded to  you--8,can a mouse run
 through a rat-hole1 let that bole be as
 long as it  may80 your answer would not
 be dubious4  ,why1 then1 if it be      
proved1 that  we can1 with pneumatic    
apparatus of an almost infinitely less  
efficient  nature than that which ,i    
purpose using1 make air move through    
smaller  pipes five1 fifteen1 or even   
fifty miles long1 #gb should any doubt  
be  entertained whether air-pumps will  
cause it to move through one of eight   
feet in diameter2 more particularly1    
when it is well known1 that the  larger 
the pipe the less the proportionate     
friction2 and when your line  will be   
little more than two miles long4    ,the
 pressure by which the gas is driven    
through the pipes of the work ,i  know  
the most of1 is equal to an ounce and a 
half per square inch4  ,a  similar      
pressure on the carriage in my tunnel   
would have moved above one  hundred     

tons4  ,the length of your line would be
 only about eighty times  longer than   
the tunnel ,i constructed2 and as the   
area of your tunnel  would be nearly    
#aej times larger than the eight-inch   
mains through which  the gas is carried 
many times farther than the length of   
your line1 there  need be no more       
question as to whether1 or not1 the     
principle will act  throughout your     
line1 merely because it is eighty times 
longer than my  tunnel1 than there is   
whether gas would pass through eighty   
lengths of  gas-pipe4    ,and as the    
joints which connect the different      
8lengths0 of gas-pipes can  easily be   
made air-tight1 so could the 8lengths0  
and joints of the  tunnel4  8,under the 
trivial degree of exhaustion which will 
be  necessary10 says the ,report of the 
,russian ,engineer ,officer1 8rendering 
the tunnel sufficiently air-tight will  
be far less difficult than is at  first 
supposed4  ,indeed1 ,i see so many      
different ways of doing it10  continues 

the ,report1 8that ,i am satisfied it   
would not1 in practice1  prove more     
difficult than1 nor1 indeed1 so         
difficult as1 causing some  canals ,i   
have seen1 to retain the water let into 
them40  ,following up the  illustration 
which this gentleman thus gives1 ,i beg 
to assure you ,i will  guarantee that   
the tunnel shall not leak1 or let air   
improperly in1 so  much as ,i see the   
basin of your canal leaks water out4    
,adverse as were the original           
circumstances of the great father of    
canal  navigation in ,england1 yet did  
he put to signal shame the opposition   
and  predictions of the engineers who   
proclaimed him a madman for pretending  
that it was possible to carry a canal   
over a navigable river4  ,ten  thousand 
times more mad as the engineers of the  
present day proclaim me1  and a hundred 
thousand times more absurd and          
8impossible0 as they have  pronounced my
 proposition to be1 yet1 owing to having
 in my favour 7what  ,brindsley had not 

in his7 the circumstance of my principle
 having been  tried1 ,i am enabled to   
oppose to their ridicule and sneers the 
,,fact that  ,i have proved it on a     
scale1 which1 as relates to size1 was   
fully1 and in  every particular         
practical2 while it was less than       
practical in point  of length1 only     
because no individual could do that     
which it requires a  public company and 
an act of parliament to do1 that is1 lay
 it down  between places for actual     
trade4    ,short1 however1 as it was1   
yet was it many times longer than the   
pipes  through which gas was first      
carried1 to prove the practicability of 
lighting our streets with that          
illuminator3 while its length was great 
enough to be equally conclusive1 as the 
movement of the first  steam-vessel     
built by the introducer of              
steam-navigation4    8,when10 says      
,fulton1 8,i was building my first      
steam-boat at ,new ,york1 the  project  
was viewed by the public either with    

indifference or with  contempt1 as a    
visionary scheme4  ,my friends1 indeed1 
were civil1 but  they were shy4  ,they  
listened with patience to my            
explanations2 but with  a settled cast  
of incredulity on their countenances4   
,i felt the full  force of the          
lamentation of the poet3                
#8,truths would you teach1 to save a    
sinking land1      ,all fear1 none aid  
you1 and few understand4'    8,at length
 the day arrived when the experiment was
 to be put into  operation4  ,to me it  
was a most trying and interesting       
occasion4  ,i  invited many friends to  
go on board1 to witness the first       
successful  trip4  ,many of them did me 
the favour to attend as a matter of     
personal  respect2 but it was manifest  
that they did it with reluctance1       
fearing to  be the partners of my       
mortification1 and not of my triumph4   
8,the moment arrived in which the word  
was to be given for the vessel to  move4
  ,my friends were in groups on the     

deck4  ,there was anxiety1 mixed  with  
fear1 among them4  ,they were silent1   
and sad1 and weary4  ,i read in  their  
looks nothing but disaster2 and almost  
repented of my efforts4  ,the  signal   
was given2 and the boat moved on a short
 distance1 and then  stopped--and became
 immoveable40    ,when my opponents can 
prove1 that because ,fulton's first     
steam-vessel  would1 on its first trial1
 move only the 8short distance0 stated  
in the  above quotation1 it was1        
therefore1 impossible to move any other 
vessel  farther by means of steam1 ,i   
may heed the clamour they raise about my
  proposition not being practicable     
through a long line of tunnel4    ,until
 then1 ,i can consider it only as a     
proof of their knowledge being on  a par
 with the wisdom of that most learned   
opponent of ,galileo's theory  that day 
and night are occasioned by the         
revolution of our planet on its  axis1  
who1 in answer to the query1 8,how then 
is it that the sun gets back  to1 and   

always rises in the east of a morning80 
replied1 that he went  back by night1   
when nobody could see him4    ,in       
concluding1 ,i will endeavour to guard  
against a circumstance that may         
otherwise be injurious to me1 by an     
observation4  ,you will perceive that   
the evidences which ,i have quoted have 
been in existence six or seven  years4  
,how then1 it may be inquired1 is it1   
that a method which is  spoken of so    
highly as those evidences speak of this 
mode of conveyance1  should have        
remained seven years without having been
 put into actual  practice1 or brought  
any nearer to that consummation than it 
was when  those documents were written8 
,during the many years which elapsed    
between the period of ,columbus's  first
 proposing to ,ferdinand and ,isabella  
the discovery of ,america1 and  their   
actually setting him afloat to do it1 he
 sent his brother  ,bartholomew to      
,england1 to lay the proposition before 
our ,seventh ,henry1  who1 he expected1 

would entertain it4  ,henry did         
entertain it2 and would  have possessed 
,england of the southern more firmly    
than she afterwards  became possessed of
 the northern half of ,america1 but for 
the misfortune  which prevented         
,bartholomew ,columbus from approaching 
him1 till ,isabella  had agreed with1   
and dispatched ,columbus himself4       
8,in his voyage to ,england10 says the  
historian of ,america1 8,bartholomew    
,columbus had been so unfortunate as to 
fall into the hands of pirates2  who1   
having stripped him of every thing1     
detained him a prisoner for  several    
years30 reducing him to such poverty1   
that when released from  captivity1 he  
could in no other way obtain the means  
of procuring a dress  fit for his       
appearance before the king1 than by     
employing himself in  drawing maps4     
,circumstances which1 morally speaking1 
are exactly similar to this  captivity  
and imprisonment of ,bartholomew        
,columbus--excepting that they  failed  

in compelling me to sign away the patent
 rights1 to wrest which  from me they   
were instituted--have equally hindered  
and reduced me3  occasioning the        
destruction of the tunnel which ,i      
constructed to  demonstrate1            
practically1 the truth of the           
proposition2 and depriving me  of all   
means of proving it1 except by carrying 
small things on an  experimental scale1 
instead of persons on a practical one4  
,as relates to myself1 ,i have no desire
 to obtrude the details of the          
oppression and injustice practised upon 
me1 on any one4    ,but with respect to 
the subject ,i advocate1 ,i am most     
anxious that the  whole world should    
know that ,i court the fullest inquiry1 
and am ready  to answer every question4 
,as one proof of this1 and to shew that 
there is nothing which ,i need to  blush
 for1 any more than ,bartholomew        
,columbus had cause to blush for  being 
imprisoned by the pirates1 ,i beg to    
direct your attention to the  annexed   

copy of the ,petition ,i presented to   
,parliament2 of which only an  extract  
is given in page #ai4  ,soliciting the  
favour of your perusing it1  ,i have the
 honour to be1    ,my ,lords1 and       
,gentlemen1                             
,your very obedient1                    
,and most humble ,servant1              
,,john ,,vallance4          ,,appendix4 
,,as the first evidence that 8the       
observations which will be found in the 
course of this letter relative to the   
effects of momentum1 are not of  such   
recent origin in my mind1 as ,mr4       
,badnall states his idea relative to    
the undulatory railway to have been in  
his10 ,i observe1 that in the           
specification of my patent1 after       
declining to level for the course of my 
tunnel by cutting through hills or      
filling up vallies1 as is done for      
railways1 ,i state1 that ,i carry it up 
and down them 7provided they are  not   
precipitously abrupt7 for the reason1   
that 8the momentum it 7the  carriage7   

may thus acquire1 will be advantageous  
in other ways than  merely carrying     
itself forward40    ,secondly4  ,the    
last sentence of the paragraph          
commencing 8,tenthly10 in  the ,report  
of the ,russian ,engineer ,officer1     
implies that that gentleman  had        
understood what ,i have stated relative 
to this effect of momentum1  from my    
communications to him4    ,thirdly4     
,the plan and section of the ,brighton  
and ,shoreham ,pneumatic  ,railway1     
which ,i deposited in the ,county ,court
 in #ahbg1 and in ,parliament  at the   
beginning of the session of #ahbh1 prove
 that the whole rise from  ,shoreham    
,harbour to the spot on the top of the  
hill above ,brighton  7old7 ,church1    
where ,i intended said ,pneumatic       
,railway should terminate1  was 7,i     
forget the exact amount1 but7 about #ahj
 feet3 of which rise1 about  #aej feet  
took place in the last half mile2 giving
 a rate of about #a in  #ah3 up which   
rise ,i looked to momentum1 as the      

principal means of  getting the #ajj1jjj
 tons of goods ,i calculated on carrying
 between those  places4    ,fourthly4   
,in my letter to ,mr4 ,ricardo1 in      
answer to his pamphlet against  me1 ,i  
observe1 that after totally omitting to 
take into consideration the  important  
effect which momentum 7as well of the   
air itself as of the  vehicle7 would    
have in modifying the motion1 and       
preventing the stoppage  of the         
carriage1 in the way you describe at    
page #ba1 you exclaim1 8,this  then1 is 
a true philosophical explanation1 of    
what will take place in the  action of a
 carriage impelled by atmospheric       
pressure60    ,against such philosophy  
as this ,i protest1 in justice both to  
myself and  the public4  ,as the basis  
of lectures delivered at your           
,mechanics'  ,institution1 where        
--8words of learned length and          
thundering sound      ,amaze the        
operatives rang'd around10    it may    
have sufficed4  ,but when held up as a  

criterion by which the  public mind is  
to take its tone for my condemnation1 ,i
 am compelled to  pronounce it          
philosophy of which its author ought to 
be ashamed4    ,these evidences being   
all of dates several years anterior to  
the period  when ,mr4 ,badnall states   
the idea of his 8,undulating ,railway0  
first  occurred to him1 ,i shall be     
liable to no charge of proposing to     
avail  myself of momentum in consequence
 of his having proposed 8,undulating    
,railways40                             
99 99 99 99 99                          
99 99 99 99 99             ,j4 ,s4      
,,hodson1 ,printer1 #ae1 ,cross ,street1
 ,hatton ,garden4          ,,footnotes4 
#d;a  ,i have known a barge of          
7apparently7 fifty tons burthen1 come up
  the whole length of your canal1 with  
nothing but fourteen tons of coal to    
land at your basin4    #d;b  ,in his    
,report on the ,liverpool and           
,manchester ,railway1 ,mr4 ,walker      
states the price of the #dj1jjj tons of 

coal1 which he supposed might be        
required for the locomotive engines1 at 
#es4 #aj;d4 per ton4  ,the #be1jjj  tons
 which he supposed might be required for
 the stationary engines1 he  states at  
the price of #bs4 #f;d4 per ton4    ,in 
their review of this ,report1 ,messrs4  
,stephenson and ,locke state the  price 
of coal at #ds4 #f;d4 per ton for       
#cg1bbb tons4    #e  ,the capital       
requisite to complete this railway was  
first announced  to be a million and a  
half4  ,then it was raised to two       
millions4  ,then it  was raised to three
 millions1 in order to admit of a       
8quadruple line0  7that is1 eight lines 
of rails17 being laid down4  ,and credit
 is now  taken for its cheapness1       
because1 after announcing that three    
millions  would be sufficient to lay    
down a 8quadruple0 railway1 two millions
 and a  half are stated as the estimated
 expense of a 8double0 railway4  ,that  
is1 after having1 by advertisement upon 
advertisement1 announced that  three    

millions would be enough to lay down    
eight lines of rails1 credit  is taken  
for finding out that four lines will    
cost two millions and a  half3 when the 
fact is1 that the estimated expense is  
reduced only  one-sixth1 while the work 
which said three millions were stated to
 be  enough to do1 is reduced one half4 
,in other words1 twopence-halfpenny is  
charged for half the loaf1 after it had 
been1 in every possible way  trumpeted  
forth1 that the whole loaf would be sold
 for threepence3  while even this       
twopence-halfpenny is liable to         
additions such as the  following pages  
advert to4    #f  ,i believe that the   
average width is not the half of #ff    
feet3 and  that it is1 in parts1 much   
less than half1 is proved by various    
circumstances2 one of which is the      
following account of an 8,accident on   
the railway4--,an accident fatal to a   
poor man named ,thomas ,ryans1 took     
place on the railway on ,monday last4   
,ryans was employed by the ,railway     

,company as a breaksman2 and was engaged
 in his business on a small train  of   
goods drawn by the ,vulcan engine4      
,when within a short distance of a      
bridge1 he1 for some purpose1 projected 
his head over the side of the  waggon1  
and1 melancholy to relate1 it came in   
contact with the buttress  of the       
bridge4  ,the poor fellow's brains were 
knocked out on his cheek2  but he       
lingered some time before death ended   
his sufferings4--,manchester            
,courier40--,morning ,herald1 #bgth     
,sept4 #ahca4    #h  ,mr4 ,badnall's    
recent patent may make it advisable to  
state that this  paragraph1 as well as  
the far greater part of the ,letter1 was
 written  prior to1 and got ready for   
delivery at a meeting of the ,kensington
 ,canal  ,company1 which was fixed for  
the #bfth of ,september1 #ahcb4  ,owing1
  however1 to this meeting having been  
deferred1 sine die1 by an  advertisement
 in the ,times of the #bast of that     
month1 opportunity has  been given for  

additions2 though the paragraph to which
 this note refers1  has neither been    
added to1 nor altered1 since it was     
first written4    #aj;a  ,the decision  
of the ,committee reported to the ,house
 of ,lords1 was1  that 8,it does not    
appear to the ,committee that the       
promoters of the bill  have made out    
such a case as would warrant the forcing
 of the proposed  railway through the   
lands and property of so great a        
proportion of  dissentient landowners   
and proprietors40    #aj;b  8,the       
,london and ,birmingham ,railway1 in    
seeking an act1 spent  #ej1jjjl43 and1  
as they did not get the act1 that sum   
was lost to them40    ,mr4 ,hodgson's   
speech1 at the ,liverpool and           
,birmingham ,railway meeting1  held at  
,liverpool on the #bast of ,september   
last4    #aa  #dhhl4 per mile1 per      
annum4    #ac  ,vide ,grahames' ,letter 
to ,wood on ,chapter ,,ix4 of his       
,practical  ,treatise on ,railways3 and 
his 8,letter to the ,traders and ,canal 

,carriers1  on the ,navigations         
connecting ,liverpool and ,manchester40 
#ad;a  ,this allusion is to the number  
of miles between ,brighton and  ,london3
 which was the comparative length of    
what they saw4    #ad;b  ,member for    
,lewes1 and principal ground landlord of
 ,brighton4    #ad;c  ,baronet and      
magistrate for the county4    #ad;d     
,vicar4    #ad;e  ,curate4    #ah  ,this
 word 8cylinder0 means the tunnel4      
#bj  ,that is1 between three and four   
hundred thousand gallons4    #bb;a      
,that is1 #aa4c feet in diameter4       
#bb;b  ,in the best of the large        
stationary engines now made1 a bushel of
  coal will do the work of #dd horses   
for an hour4  ,therefore to make a      
current of air which should be capable  
of conveying #aj1jjj tons #ajj miles  in
 an hour1 would require #dc bushels of  
coal3 which is not twice so much  as    
some steam vessels burn in the same     
time4    #bf  ,the proposed ,london and 
,birmingham ,railway is to be sixty feet

 wide  in the narrowest places2         
notwithstanding that it is to have only 
the same  number of lines of rails which
 you must have2 while1 in some parts1 it
  will be between two and three hundred 
feet wide4  ,the average width of  its  
whole line will be #ib feet4    #bi;a   
,an idea of the amount of these cuttings
 and embankments may be  given by the   
following statement4  ,every one        
remembers what our school  days taught  
us1 relative to the 8,great ,pyramid30  
the many years it was in  building3 the 
multitudes of workmen employed3 and the 
vast sums expended  to supply those     
workmen with merely 8garlic and onions40
  ,the excavations  of the ,liverpool   
and ,manchester railway1 would1 if put  
in one lump1 have  formed a mass larger 
than that of the 8,great ,pyramid30 its 
cubical  contents being only #b1ihc1bfc 
yards2 while the excavations for that   
railway amount 7according to its        
treasurer's statement7 to #c1dje1jjj    
cubic yards3 or #aa1chf1hii cubic feet  

more than the whole mass of the  8,great
 ,pyramid40        #bi;b  8,a locomotive
 engine of ten-horses power will draw   
#abj tons at      the rate a            
draught-house generally travels2 or #ej 
tons at the rate of      six miles an   
hour4  ,i may here remark that the rate 
of travelling may      be increased to  
surpass that of mail coaches2 and that  
the locomotive      engine will as      
readily convey #be tons 7including its  
own weight7 at      the rate of twelve  
miles an hour1 as double the weight in  
twice the      time40--,mr4 ,jessop's   
,second ,report to the ,committee of the
 ,proposed      ,railway from ,cromford 
to the ,peak ,forest ,canal1 at ,whaley 
,bridge4      ,dated #bith ,november1   
#ahbd4        8,an engine of four       
horses' power1 employed by ,mr4         
,blenkinsop1      impelled a carriage1  
lightly loaded1 at the rate of ten miles
 an      hour2 and when connected with  
#cj coal waggons1 each weighing more    
than three tons1 it went at about       

one-third of that                       
pace40--,observations on a ,general     
,iron ,railway1 by ,thomas ,gray4       
#ahbe4        8,they saw two locomotive 
engines1 for drawing along these roads2 
but      they were not at work4  ,the   
boilers of these engines were eight feet
      long1 and four feet diameter3 and 
they usually took down fourteen         
waggons1 carrying #ec cwt4 of coals     
each1 at about four miles an hour4      
,the engineer said that he once took    
nine loaded waggons1 one mile in        
five minutes and a half1 which is equal 
to eleven miles an      hour40--,report 
of a number of gentlemen1 who were      
deputed to inspect      the rail-roads  
in the north of ,england1 relative to   
the ,liverpool and      ,manchester     
,railway4 #ahbd4        8,the ,company  
are also fully persuaded1 that by means 
of the same      power1 they will be    
enabled to convey passengers with       
perfect      security1 and at a speed of
 at least twelve miles an               

hour40--,report      relative to the    
,liverpool and ,birmingham ,railway     
given in ,cumming's      8,illustrations
 of the ,origin and ,progress of ,rail  
and ,tram ,roads1 and                   
,steam-,carriages40  #ahbd4        8,it 
is estimated1 that on a level railway1 a
 well-constructed      locomotive engine
 of ten horse power will1 without       
difficulty1 convey      fifty tons of   
goods at the rate of five miles an hour1
 and lighter      weights at a          
proportioned increase of speed4  ,a     
powerful engine will      work goods    
over an elevation of one-eighth of an   
inch in the yard4      ,nor is there the
 least doubt but carriages for the      
conveyance of      passengers1 or light 
packages1 may1 with perfect ease and    
security1      be propelled at the rate 
of twelve miles an hour40--,cummings'   
,illustrations of the ,origin and       
,progress of ,railways4 #ahbd4          
8,by the locomotive engine1 fifty tons  
of goods may be conveyed by a           

ten-horse-power engine1 on a level-road1
 at the rate of six miles an      hour2 
and lighter weights at a proportioned   
increase of speed4      ,carriages for  
the conveyance of passengers1 at the    
rate of twelve or      fourteen miles an
 hour40--,courier's preliminary remarks 
to the      8,memorial of the           
,subscribers to the projected ,railway  
between      ,liverpool and             
,manchester30 dated #ast ,june1 #ahbd4  
8,one of the railway companies at       
present contemplates a speed of only    
eight miles an hour2 but another1 in its
 prospectus1 speaks of      conveying   
passengers at twice the speed of the    
present      stage-coaches2 and we look 
forward1 pretty confidently to the      
attainment1 in a few years1 of a        
velocity of #bj miles an hour4          
,several millions sterling are already  
subscribed for accomplishing      these 
great projects40--,leeds ,mercury1 #bdth
 ,december1 #ahbd4        #cj  8,the    
railway a little beyond ,wavertree-lane 

is carried through      a deep marle    
cutting1 under several massive stone    
archways1 thrown      across the        
excavation to form the requisite        
communications between      the roads   
and farms on the opposite sides of the  
railway4  ,beyond the      marle cutting
 is the great rock excavation through   
,olive ,mount1 about      half a mile to
 the north of the village of ,wavertree4
  ,here the      traveller passes       
through a deep and narrow ravine1 #gj   
feet below the      surface of the      
ground1 little more space being opened  
out than      sufficient for two trains 
of carriages to pass each other2 and the
      road winding gently round towards 
the south-east1 the prospect is         
bounded by the perpendicular rock on    
either side1 with the blue vault        
above1 relieved at intervals by a bridge
 high over head1 connecting      the    
opposite precipices4  ,at night1 when   
the natural gloom of the      place is  
further deepened1 the scene from the    

bridges above will      readily be      
imagined to be novel and striking4  ,the
 light of the moon      illuminating    
about half the depth1 and casting a     
darker shade on the      area below--the
 general silence interrupted at         
intervals by a noise      like distant  
thunder--presently a train of carriages1
 led on by an      engine of fire and   
steam1 with her lamps like two furnaces1
 throwing      their light onward in    
dazzling signal of their approach--with 
the      strength and speed of a        
war-horse the engine moves forward with 
its      glorious cavalcade of          
merchandize from all countries and      
passengers      of all nations4  ,but   
the spectacle is transient as striking2 
in a      moment the pageant is         
gone--the meteor is passed2 the flaring 
of the      lamps is only seen in the   
distance1 and the observer1 looking down
      from the battlement above1        
perceives that all again is still1 and  
dark1 and solitary4        8,emerging   

from the ,olive ,mount cutting1 you     
approach the great ,roby                
embankment1 formed of the materials dug 
out of the excavation we have           
described4  ,this embankment stretches  
across the valley for about two         
miles1 varying in height from #ae to #de
 feet1 and in breadth at the      base  
from #fj to #ace feet4  ,here the       
traveller finds himself affected      by
 sensations the very reverse of what he 
felt a few minutes before4      ,mounted
 above the tops of the trees1 he looks  
around him over a wide      expanse of  
country1 in the full enjoyment of the   
fresh breeze1 from      whatever quarter
 it may blow4        8,this vast        
embankment strikingly exhibits how much 
may be      accomplished when our       
efforts are concentrated on one grand   
object4      ,there is a feeling of     
satisfaction by no means common-place1  
in thus      overcoming obstacles and   
surmounting difficulties1 in making the 
high      places low and the rough      

places plain1 and advancing in one      
straight      and direct course to the  
end in view2 while the pleasure afforded
 by      the contemplation of this great
 work is further enhanced1 when         
considered in contrast with ordinary and
 every-day impressions40 p4      #ej-eb4
        8,a few miles beyond ,newton is 
the great ,kenyon excavation1 from which
      about #hjj1jjj cubic yards of clay
 and sand have been dug out1 part       
being carried to form the line of       
embankment to the east and west of      
the cutting2 and the remainder1         
deposited as spoil banks1 may be seen   
heaped up1 like ,pelion upon ,ossa1     
towering over the adjacent land40       
p4 #ee4        8,beyond ,chat ,moss we  
traverse the ,barton embankment1        
crossing the low      lands for about a 
mile between the ,moss and the ,worsley 
,canal1 over      which the railway is  
carried by a neat stone bridge40 p4 #eg4
    #cb  ,in evidence that the          
observations which will be found in the 

course  of this letter1 relative to the 
effects of momentum1 are not of such    
recent origin in my mind1 as ,mr4       
,badnall states his idea relative to    
this  8undulating railway0 to have been 
in his1 ,i beg to direct attention to   
the testimony given by the ,appendix4   
#cc  ,i give this latter doubling to    
8excite the energies0 of a renowned     
steam-coach proprietor2 who1 in answer  
to the question1 8,if your  steam-coach 
has1 as you say1 gone at the rate of    
between thirty and forty  miles an hour 
over common roads1 how fast would it run
 on a rail-road80  replied1 8,at least  
#bej miles an hour40    #cd;a  ,by      
heading their prospectus1 8,capital1    
#c1jjj1jjjl40    #cd;b  ,there is one   
manifestation of 8skill and experience0 
#cd;c in  the manner in which the       
,committee have been induced to lend    
their  sanction to statements in their  
,report1 which merits observation4  ,the
  paragraph immediately preceding the   
abstract of the estimate1 states that   

8,the locomotive engines will1 in no    
part of the line1 have to surmount an   
inclination greater than #a in #cdj2 and
 for the first #ej miles out of         
,london1 none greater than #a in #ebh4  
,this degree of approach to a level1    
will render the locomotive engines much 
more effective1 and subject them  to    
less wear and tear than they are on the 
,liverpool and ,manchester  ,railway1   
part of which has an inclination of #a  
in #ih40    ,at page #fj of ,mr4        
,treasurer ,booth's 8,account of the    
,liverpool and  ,manchester ,railway10  
is given a 8,section of the line of     
,railway1 from  ,liverpool to           
,manchester10 which states that for     
#e-iths of a mile 7from  ,liverpool7 it 
is 8level20 that for the next #e miles  
it has a fall of #a  in #ajib2 for the  
next #a mile1 a rise of #a in #if1 c4 c4
 according to  the following table3--   
,,miles4  #e_/i         ,level4  #e     
,fall1 #a in #ajib2 or #a foot in about 
l-#eth of a mile4  #a          ,rise1 #a

 in #if2 or #a foot in #if feet4  #a    
,level4  #a          ,fall1 #a in #if4  
#b          ,fall1 #a in #bfdj2 or #a   
foot in half a mile4  #f          ,fall1
 #a in #hhj2 or #a foot in #a-fth of a  
mile4  #d          ,rise1 #a in #abjj2  
or1 #a foot in about  of a mile4  #d    
,level4    ,now as it appears from this1
 that1 with the exception of the mile   
and  half which rises at the rate of #a 
in #if 7up from l-#fth to l-#crd of     
which  their momentum carries them7 the 
part of the ,liverpool and ,manchester  
,railway over which the locomotive      
engines work1 has no rise that is half  
so sharp as the #a in #cdj1 nor any     
which is near so sharp as the #a in     
#ebh1  adverted to on the ,bristol line1
 it surpasses my comprehension to       
conceive what there can possibly be to  
8render the locomotive engines  much    
more effective1 and subject them to less
 wear and tear than they are  on the    
,liverpool and ,manchester ,railway02   
while ,i am beyond measure  surprised1  

that the confidence of gentlemen could  
be so misled1 as to  expose them to a   
refutation so palpable1 as the statement
 they have thus  been betrayed into     
admits of4        #cd;c  8,confound that
 word6 my unfortunate pen      ,had well
 nigh prefixed to it i and n40    #ch;a 
8,extraordinary ,performance by ,steam  
,power4--,on the occasion of a          
scientific gentleman lately visiting the
 ,liverpool and ,manchester  ,railway1  
some very extraordinary performances    
were effected4  ,on two  occasions1 a   
load amounting to #ajj tons1 was drawn  
by one engine from  ,liverpool to       
,manchester1 a distance of above #cj    
miles in an hour and a  half2 being at  
the average rate of #bj miles an hour4  
,it is said no  former performance      
effected on the rail-road has come near 
this  result40--,liverpool              
,advertiser4--,times1 #beth ,june1      
#ahcb4    #ch;b  ,the tunnel which ,i   
constructed at ,brighton1 was strong    
enough to  bear the pressure thrown on  

it by one-third of a vacuum4            
,one-fourth of a  vacuum would move     
above #djjj tons in a tunnel #h feet in 
diameter1 while  any tunnel ,i might now
 lay down1 would be ten times stronger  
than that ,i  laid down at ,brighton4   
#dj  ,dr4 ,hutton1 at the end of a table
 of resistances to bodies moving        
through still air1 at rates varying from
 two to thirteen miles an hour1  says1  
8,the resistance to the same surface is 
nearly as the square of the  velocity2  
but gradually increasing more and more  
above that proportion  as the velocity  
increases40    #da  ,a hint on this     
point4  ,the engine with which ,watt    
first proved his  principle was not     
equal to a dog's power4  ,there is one  
now in ,cornwall  said to be of #ajjj   
horses power4    ,in our first          
steam-boats1 engines of only two or     
three horses power could  be employed2  
and the proposition to use larger ones  
was met by the usual  exclamation1      
8,impossible60  ,we have now many steam 

vessels in which  engines of #bjj hones 
power are employed2 while there is one  
in which they  are above #cjj horses    
power4    #de  ,the average produce per 
acre1 throughout the island1 is         
estimated  at #b quarters for wheat1 #d 
for barley1 and #d for oats2 average1   
#crds4        #df                       
8,steam-,engines4--,it has been         
ascertained that there are now in       
,great ,britain not less than #ae1jjj   
steam-engines at work2 some of          
almost incredible power4  ,in ,cornwall 
there is one of one thousand      horses
 power40--,new ,monthly ,magazine1 for  
,july1 #ahca4    ,independent of the    
large air-pumps which the iron masters  
themselves use1  those ,i put up to     
exhaust air from the tunnel which ,i    
constructed at  ,brighton would1 if     
worked at an extraordinary rate1 have   
pumped five  hundred thousand gallons   
per minute through it4    #dh;a  ,the   
limits of the page render it necessary  
that the scale of  length should be in  

hundredths of an inch2 but as the width 
would have  been imperceptible had the  
same scale been observed1 tenths are    
adverted  to for it4        #dh;b       
8,having performed what was due to his  
country1 ,columbus was so      little   
discouraged by the repulse which he had 
received1 that1      instead of         
relinquishing his undertaking1 he       
pursued it with fresh      ardour4  ,he 
made his next overture to ,john ,,ii4   
king of ,portugal1 in      whose        
dominions he had been long established1 
and whom he considered1      on that    
account1 as having the second claim to  
his service4  ,here      every          
circumstance seemed to promise him a    
more favourable reception4      ,he     
applied to a monarch of an enterprising 
genius1 no incompetent      judge in    
naval affairs1 and proud of patronising 
every attempt to      discover new      
countries4  ,his subjects were the most 
experienced      navigators in ,europe1 
and the least apt to be intimidated1    

either by      the novelty or boldness  
of any maritime expedition4  ,in        
,portugal1 the      professional skill  
of ,columbus1 as well as his personal   
good      qualities1 were thoroughly    
known2 and as the former rendered it    
probable that his scheme was not        
altogether visionary1 the latter        
exempted him from the suspicion of any  
sinister intention in      proposing it4
  ,accordingly1 the king listened to him
 in the most      gracious manner1 and  
referred the consideration of his plan  
to ,diego      ,ortiz1 bishop of ,ceuta1
 and two ,jewish physicians1 eminent    
cosmographers1 whom he was accustomed to
 consult in matters of this      kind4  
,as in ,genoa1 ignorance had opposed and
 disappointed ,columbus2      in        
,lisbon1 he had to combat with          
prejudice1 an enemy no less             
formidable4  ,the persons1 according to 
whose decision his scheme was      to be
 adopted or rejected1 had been the chief
 directors of the      ,portuguese      

navigations1 and had advised to search  
for a passage to      ,india1 by        
steering a course directly opposite to  
that which ,columbus      recommended as
 shorter and more certain4  ,they could 
not1 therefore1      approve of his     
proposal1 without submitting to the     
double      mortification1 of condemning
 their own theory1 and of acknowledging 
his superior sagacity4  ,after teasing  
him with captious questions1      and   
starting innumerable objections1 with a 
view of betraying him      into such a  
particular explanation of his system1 as
 might draw from      him a full        
discovery of its nature1 they deferred  
passing a final      judgment with      
respect to it4  ,in the mean time1 they 
conspired to rob      him of the honour 
and advantages which he expected from   
the success      of his scheme1 advising
 the king to dispatch a vessel secretly1
 in      order to attempt the proposed  
discovery1 by following exactly the     
course which ,columbus seemed to point  

out4  ,john1 forgetting on this         
occasion1 the sentiments becoming a     
monarch1 meanly adopted this            
perfidious counsel4  ,but the pilot1    
chosen to execute ,columbus's      plan1
 had neither the genius1 nor the        
fortitude of its author4      ,contrary 
winds arose1 no sight of approaching    
land appeared1 his      courage failed1 
and he returned to ,lisbon1 execrating  
the project as      equally extravagant 
and dangerous40--,robertson's ,america1 
,vol4 ,i4      p4 #hf-hh4    #eb        
,items3 up to the #cast ,may1 #ahcj4    
s4    d4  ,bridge account               
#ii1jfe      #aa       #i  ,fencing     
#aj1bjb      #af       #e  ,chat ,moss  
account                #bg1gai      #aa 
#aj  ,cuttings and ,embankments         
#aii1gfc       #h       #j  ,formation  
of ,road                #bj1efh      #ae
       #e  ,land account                
#ie1cje       #h       #h               
#deb1fbe      #ab       #a    ,and this1
 exclusive both of the #cjj1jjjl4       

7nearly7 which has been  expended since1
 and of the #acj1jjjl4 which is the     
estimated expense  of the tunnel now in 
course of construction4        #ec;a    
8,railway ,accident4--,we are sorry to  
have to mention a very      serious     
accident1 which occurred on ,saturday1  
on the railway between      ,kenyon and 
,bolton4  ,the locomotive engine was    
going up the lower      inclined plane1 
with a heavy load of goods1 and at the  
turn-off at      ,colonel ,fletcher's   
colleries1 ran off the road1 and was    
unfortunately      overturned against a 
bank1 and fell upon the engineer and    
fireman1      who were killed on the    
spot4  ,two other men were riding on the
      tender1 one of whom was           
dangerously hurt1 the other scalded4    
,this      engine1 we understand1 was   
the only one which was ever worked on a 
railway with wheels of six feet         
diameter2 and1 on that account1 had     
never been allowed to take the          
coaches40--,times1 #bfth ,july1         

#ahca4        8,on ,wednesday morning1  
the engine drawing the first-class train
 of      carriages from ,manchester to  
,liverpool1 on the railway1 had the     
misfortune to break an axle-tree1 when  
at full speed1 near ,chat ,moss2        
which1 after ploughing the ground for   
some time1 went off the rails1      and 
drew the whole train over the           
embankment1 #ec;b when1 most            
providentially1 out of two hundred      
passengers1 not a life was lost1      or
 a limb broken4  ,several persons were  
bruised1 and some                       
seriously40--,morning ,herald1 #ith     
,december1 #ahca4    #ec;b  ,there1 only
 a foot or two above the ground4    #fb 
,the average number of passengers drawn 
by the locomotive engines  between      
,liverpool and ,manchester during the   
most successful half year  since that   
railway has been opened1 is #hg each    
journey4    ,these boats can and have   
carried #aaj passengers at one time1    
though #ajj  may be considered an       

average number4    #fi  ,air of only    
three-fourths1 two-thirds1 half1 and in 
,joliffe and  ,cornillot's ascent1 of   
less than half the usual density 7the   
barometer  sinking to #ab4ae7 has       
frequently been respired1 without any   
serious  consequences4        #gb       
8,railroads1 in many instances lighted  
with gas for a      considerable        
distance 7in one instance for sixteen   
miles7 are1 more      or less1          
traversing every district of the        
country40--,new ,monthly      ,magazine1
 ,july1 #ahcj4        8,the ,liverpool  
and ,leeds ,railway4--,a bill is now    
under the      consideration of a select
 committee of the ,house of ,commons1   
for the      purpose of connecting by   
rail-roads ,liverpool with the ports on 
the      ,humber1 and thereby to bring  
the ,german ,ocean and the ,irish ,sea1 
the      eastern and western sides of   
the island1 within six hours' journey of
      each other4  ,it is proposed to   
have four lines of railway1 two for     

swift carriages1 going and returning    
with light goods and passengers1        
and two for slower carriages1 with heavy
 goods and animals4  ,the      whole is 
to be lighted with gas1 so as to be     
traversable by night as      well as    
day1 and the plan of the iron rails will
 secure the carriages      from         
obstructing one another40--,times1 #agth
 ,march1 #ahca4        8,the outline of 
a plan has been stated to us1 for       
lighting up the      intended line of   
railway from this city to ,london with  
gas4  ,our      correspondent says1     
#8,of the practicability of the thing   
there can be      no doubt2 and it      
certainly would be an improvement1 and  
create a      great demand for coals2 as
 the gas might be continued from the    
parent      line to any                 
extent4'0--,felix ,farley's ,bristol    
,journal1 #crd      ,august1 #ahcc4