Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-02-04 00:00:00

STREET. RAILWAYS.

IThat, the Americans 'have got considerably a-head of
jus in the means and appliances of locomotion, whether
by land or water, every'onp who has visited the "United
States must be well convinced ; and in nothing, per-
. •
!haps, is their superiority,in this, respect more'clinspicu-
owl, rtharcin the excellent snbstitute,they have provided
for the cumbrous and inconvenient omnibus in, crowded
cities, 'by their Street Railways. •' These railways
it'e'ProvidedWith spacious and commodious cars, which •
are drawn by horses—or by mules—and they afford an
amount of accommodation for passenger-traffic, which
no extent of omnibus provision that our streets could
contain would ever be able to furnish. The lines, of
course, extend tii,janfigfitti beyond, the Suburbs—Just
as the routes of our 'ibnitibuses do ;—and the facilities
they afford for. people moving abOut in all directions,
conveniently and economically, far exceed anything
that we'can yet boast of in'-this country. It is well
observed in a Practical Treatise on these Railways, by

an AmeriCan Engineer, that "by the convenience
afforded the public by the cars, the sidewalks are re-
licked. from pedestrians, and the Centre of the street
from vehicles ; a seat canbe taken and vacated without
trouble 'or danger to the occupants of the oar, whether
invalid or infirm;, and the rails _present such an even
and smooth surface. for the !wheels of ordinari vehicles,
that the'drivers avail themselves of their. continued use."
The slightest thought, indeed, Must satisfy; any one of
their greatutilitY,Of 'their vast superiority over on.i-
nilnises,—of their being, in short, a , public convenience
'which every populous town would find it advantageous.
to adopt.
Still there are prejudices apt to arise,---=not against
the accommodation Of the, cars, but against there being
I4.l.lwaYsli our pliblicfitreets and thoroughfares. As the_
Engineer we have just quoted further remarks,—" It is a
most difficult matter to dispel from the ignorant or preju-
diced mind the idea that the railways will be constantly oc-
ciipied by continuous trains of cars, which beyond a doubt.
would block up the street, obstruct the tiavel,;and be a
most confirmed nuisancerruinous to the locality; where-
as, in reality, the rails themselves form no obstruction,
but rather invite vehicles on the, track ; the passage of
the little car' is 'momentary, as it movesquietly,ahitig the
street ; and the nuisance occasioned by the rattling of
omnibuses over the rough stones is abolished, leaving the
streets nearly as_ noiseless as when covered with saow,;-,
the advantageS of the smooth rail are thus neither few
nor animpoitant.''''Any One, firiiiliar with the laws of
momentum, can:readily understand the effect of the con-
stant jar to buildings occasioned by the passage of.
omnibuses,..and 'particularly in the thronged. thorough-
fares, 'where 'buildings are most elevated,!!'; These, ad-
,
vantages,` however; require to be witnessed in order to'
be fully appreciated; and,Englishmen who haVe experi-
enced,,them, iu the American cities, are generally struck
with them as presenting one of the greatest improve-
ments in locomotion, for urban and suburban purposes,
of-this imprOving.RgC, '
Through the enterprise of an American gentleman,
well.known in Liverpool, it seems we are about to have
this great improvement. introduced here. Mr. G. F.
Train has ,not only published an interesting pamphlet *
'on the subject, with a copy, of -which he: has kindly
favoured but he haS himself offered to midertakelhe
experiment upon, the .rails,nf.the Dock Company, 'along
the line of Docks..ln his pamphlet, Mr. Train thus sums
up the advantages of the system::-=
Each .railway `ear I:displacei 'two omnibuseS • and four
horses, thus relieving the street of one of the main cause's of
the cift• recurring lock-ups: •••• • • I
2. The wear and tear froth these omnibuses being transferred
to the rail, as well as .that of:many other vehicles that prefer
the smooth surface of the iron to the uneven stone pavement,
the rate-payers save a large per tentage in.taxes.. • . ;
3. The Gas and Water Commissioners art not inconvenienced
when making repairs, as the rails are laid on longitudinal
sleepers which can be diverted in case of need ; and as these
cars as well as cuts and carriages that take the Tail, move on
a direct line, it is a- self-constituted police system saving con-
fusion without expense to the public.

- - - •
4. The cars move on one-third faster than the omnibuses,
and so gentle is the motion, the passenger can read, hisi
journal Without difficulty. . •
~
5. The rails are so constituted, that no inconvenience arises
at cr :sings from wrenching off carriage wheels ; and as the
improved rail is dearly flat, even with the surface, and some
five inches wide, no grooVe impedes the general traffic, and the
giuge admits all vehicles that prefer the track to the pave-
6. The facility of getting in and out at each end of the ear,
' and di each .side, giving' the passenger the choice of four
places together with the almost instantanevue stoppagt
by means of the patent break, permits passengers 'to step
in or out when in motion, without' danger, instanced by
the, fact, that nearly thirty-fire millions of passengers passed
over the, New York and Brooklyn roads last year, with 'only
twalVe accidents.

7::In case of necessity, troops can be transported from +one
part o: the city to the other, at ten miles an hour.
4. It is a special botm to'the working :span who, often," in
America, saves threepence beei-money, t.) buy a ticket from
his work in the city; to his cottage in the subuibs.
In short, the Horse Railway is as much a necessity as ga,-,
sewerage, the steam rail, or the electric telegraph, and I chal-
lenge any one to refute the arguments in its favour hergiu
advanced. Once introduced, you will miss the passenger'-car
as much as any great public benefit. You ride for a less ,price
less time—with,less noise—less confusion—les.4 accidents
—with the additional luxury of more room--,raore.:atteution
7,raere comf3rt--,more light--and better ventilation. ,fi

But Mr. Train is not alone in this movement: The
Messrs. Busby, the extensive omnibUs pioiiiietori; have
applied to the Town Council for permission to'lay down
rails froM the top of Lord-stieet to Qld Swan, a distance
of three, miles into the suburbs. Let us hope then that
the subject will meet. with the careful attention it de-
serves. -As Mr. Forwood so well' observed at the Dock
Board on Thursday,--,il He hoped the • reference to'the
Works Conimittee would not lie'upon the 'simple ;ques-
tion of' the rate to be charged. The. question should be
fairly looked at. In other countries millions of passen-
gers passed over these iron roads, and in -this town no
doubt it world be a great public, convenience, both as
respected goods and passenger traffic. He did not see
hoW they were to work the immense traffic upon the
road up to the Canada-dock Without the adoption of
this principle of carriage. He hoped the whole ques-
tion would be considered by the Works Committee; not
merely with a view to imposing a tax, but-With a view
also- to affording every, facility for conducting the,im-
menie traffic on the line of cloaks." This as regards
the route along the line of docks. It is the right spirit
in which to consider the question; and let us hope the
Town Council will take it up in-that spirit, as well as
the 1)oek Board.*
Observations on Horse Railways by George Francis Train, addrcs,ed to the Right' lion. Milner 'Gibson, M.P.,
President of the Board of Trade, London. London : Sampson
Low, Son & Co. • Liverpool : Adam holden. 1860.

BANKRUPTS.

Edward Ellis Hill, merchant and broker, Liverpool.
Christopher Storry, fishmonger, of Aldershott and Farn-

ham.
Theodore Hyla Jeunens, papier machi manufacturer,

Chelsea. - -
Isaac Nathan Berry, merchant, City.
Thomas Sharp, hotel keeper, Aldershott.
George Cuckow, grocer, Woodbridge.
William Boswell, victualler, Birmingham.
Richard Rees, cabinet maker, "dunelly, Carmarthenshire.
JoSeph Chapman, china dealer,. Scarborough.
Joseph Gawthorpe, cloth manufacturer, Horbury Bridge,
near Wakefield. ,
Thomas 1101,,en' ,grofer, Sheffield.
Thomas Nicholson, steel" file, and nail merchant, Sun-
derland., _

The news- by telegraph from Dublin is, that 'Dr:
Cullen has issued letters authorising a collection 'to. be
made,OU the first Sunday in Lent, in aid of the exhausted
treasury of the Pope.
• The Advertiser says the Conservative party are every-
where affirming that, should they, make the attempt,
they will, with the greatest ease, turn out the Ministry
on the commercial treaty with France,

THE LATEST NEWS.

lET BRITISH AND IRISH, MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH.I
jilpf

FRANCE. ,

PARIS, Feb. 3.

The Pays of this evening says appears cer-
tain that the question of the annexation of Cen-
tral Italy will be subordinate to the result of the
universal suffrage. All the powers are agree-
ing as to the propriety of that measure, the early
appearance of which will possibly make known
the state of fitiblic opiniorA in Italy. '
The Pays also contains the following :—The
statement of an .approaching departure of the
French toops from Rome is completely false.

• THE FRENCH FUNDS.
. . ' PARIS, Feb. 3.
12.10 P.M.—Rentes opened at 67f. 65c., but
have since fallen to 67f. 50c,

2.16 P.M.—The%artiele in the Morning Post has
imparted buoyancy to the funds, and Rentes have
risen to 67f. 80c.,
3.25 P.M.—The market closed firm. Renter
67f. 85c., being a further improvement of since
yesterday.