The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-07 00:00:00

BRAY'S TRACTION ENGINE,

Yesterday the powerful engine manufactured by
Bray's Traction-engine Company, to the order of the
Russian Government, for military service, was tested
in the neighbourhood of the Sevenoaks Junction
station of the London, Chatham, and Dover Rail-
way, in the presence of a select company of engi-
neers and practical men connected with locomotive
enterprises in almost every part of the world.
Among those present were Mr. H. D. Davies,
chairman of the company ; Mr. Osborne, director ;
Mr. Clark, engineer; Mr. Cyrus Field, director of
the Atlantic Telegraph Company ; M. Dudot, repra-
sentative of MM. Lafitte, constructors of the Mont
Cenis Tunnel ; M. Blanc, of Paris ; Mr. Lewis
Oirick, consulting and marine engineer; Mr. A.
Chaplin, engineer, of Glasgow; and other gentle-
men of great practical experience.

The ground selected for the trial was a steep
ascent, in some places not less than 1 in 15 feet, on
the old Maidstone road,which the continuous and
heavy rain for somewhere about 36 hours previously
had thoroughly soaked and softened. The experi-
ment therefore was made under every disadvantage,
and the result all the more creditable to the
company.

The engine itself in full working order weighs 14
tons; the driving wheel is 7ft. in diameter; the two
cylinders are 9 in., with a 15-inch stroke ; and the
train consisted of 5 loaded waggons, weighing 45
tons. Up the steep, soft, and rugged ascent the
engine smoothly and efficiently carried this heavy
load at a speed of about 2 miles and a quarter per
hour. The perfect command of the engine, and the
ease with which the work was performed, elicited
general and warm commendation from the engi-
neers and practical gentlemen present.
The cost of the engine itself is £1,500, but other
appliances have been added for the purposes of the
Russian Government, including the derrick and
steam lifting apparatus for raising timber, and
other heavy articles, which increases the cost to
about £1,700. The principle on which Bray's trac-
tion engine for common roads is constructed has
been so often and so fully described that it is un•
necessary to enter into details.
The experiment, or rather demonstration of its
capabilities, yesterday would have taken place
nearer to London but for the prohibition of the
Home Secretary of the use of those engines within
10 miles of London. As it was, the exhibition
seemed to satisfy completely the select company
who were invited to witness it.

At one point the ground was so soft that the
wheels of the heavily-laden waggons sank at least
4 inches into the ground, but the engine continued
its steady pace, and reached the brow of the hill
with ease and perfect command, which elicited
general admiration.
M. Dudot stated that he believed with a few
alterations, which he would point out to Mr. Clark,
the engineer the company, the engine might be
made to ascend Mount Cenis, dragging heavy loads
behind it.

Mr. Davies, the chairman, said the object of the
company was mainly to promote steam locomotives
on common roads, and they had no fear but that the
best engines would in the end obtain the largest
amount of public support.

Mr. Chaplin, of London and Glasgow, who has
now become the sole manufacturer of the engines
for the company, exhibited drawings of a new en-
gine, more simple, compact, and inexpensive, which
appears to possess all possible requisites for the con-
veyance of heavy loads on common roads, or rough
and soft surfaces, at a much less cost than they
have heretofore been made by the company ; and,
altogether, the party separated with the general
conviction that this important branch of mechanical
science is likely ere long to make such progress as
to effect an entire revolution in locomotion, not only
in this country but throughout the entire world.