The Sun.
London, England, 1853-10-25 00:00:00

e3r----e -
~141,117.41? IN TELL.I4INCE.

2

NEWALL's RAILWAY BREAK,
On Saturday a public trial was made on the ELa.M
aucashire Railway, -between :Ifanchester and Accring•-
o , of Newall's patent railway break, intended to pre
those fearful collisions by which of late years so
..ii)
many lives have been sacrificed. A train fitted with the,
new breaks left the Salford station at 2 o'clock on
Saturday. It consisted of seven carriages and a van,
besides the engine and tender, weighing in all between
58 and 60 tons. There were four breaks. The passen-
gers were mostly practical and scientific men, who had
been invited to take part in the experiments for testing
the efficiency of the patent, and included officials from. the London and North-Western, Lancashire and York-
shire, and East Lancashire lines, Mr. J. Newall, the
patentee, and Mr. Crompton, of Bury. The principal
feature of the plan is a long horizontal shaft which passes
over the top of the entire train, from the engine in front
to the van at the rear, and is connected with each break,
so that it is in the power of any of the railway servants
in charge of the train, from the engine-driver himself to
the guard behind, to apply in an instant and simul-
taneously the whole of the breaks with which a train
may be furnished. The shaft is about two inches in
diameter, and it is so contrived that it matters not if one
carriage be higher than another, or if the train be curved,
elongated, or contracted while in motion ; the difference
in the height of carriages being provided for by a ball-
and-socket joint, bolted through at right angles, two
of them being sufficient for each carriage, and the sud-
den elongations and contractions to which trains
are subject in starting or stopping are provided for by a
portion of the connexion made of two-inch round iron
tubing, having a steel square welded in the end, and a
square bar, five feet long, working longitudinally inside,
so that when the engine starts or stops this slide expands
or contracts, as the motion of the train may require. if
the shackle by which any of the carriages in a train are
coupled together were to break, leaving the train to by
held together by the side chains, the slide referred to is
still long enough to be held in the socket. The con-
nexion between the shafting on the-top of the train and
the breaks is effected by an upright cylinder at the end
of a carriage or van (for they may be attached to eithei.),
which contains a spiral spring acting on a cross pin, and
worked by a wheel and pinion at the top, -between
double racks with connecting links to act on the lever.
The object of having two upright racks, • bely being
used at a time, is to enable the motion
_toreversed,
should a carriage or train have to go in a contrary direo-
tion without being turned round ; and this is effected by
an eccentric, throwing one rack out and the other in
gear. One important feature of the new patent is, that
all the Breaks are self-acting. They are turned off to,
enable a train to start by means of a wheel and pinion,
which wind up the spiral spring, and which are held in
suspension by a mere catch ; so that in case of danger
the catch has only to be slipped (and when the catch for
one break is slipped, by a slight motion of the wheel the
catches on all the others slip also) and the whole of the
other breaks on the train instantly apply themselves.
The trial train having started, it was first pulled up on
a level run at the Ringley-road station, six miles from.
Manchester. The train had been going about 20 miles
per hour, and a drizzling rain had fallen, making the
rails very slippery. The notice of the first trial was
given suddenly by the crack of a Couple of fog signals,
previously placed on the rails. A moment or two were
lost before the breaks were let slip. The speed of the
train for 20 or 30 yards seemed scarcely checked, and
then decreased sensibly, but without the slightest shock
to the passengers. A guard got out and measured the
distance back from the engine to the exploded fog sig-
nals, and found it to be 80 yards. The hold of the
breaks on the train was now such that the engine had c• ;
not power to move the train until they were lifted off.
The second experiment was at the Bury station, and
the third at Ramsbottom, where the train was brougkit
to a stand in from 40 to 50 yards, and as at Ringley,A:
..
without the engine having to be reversed. The next trial
was at H.eltnshore, up a gradient, and the application of 0.,' :-
the break was very effective. The great experiments of
the day were reserved for the descent into Accrington,
The Accrington bank, as it is called, is a descent of
nearly two miles, a considerable portion being gradients
of one in 37 and one in 40. The train was allowed to
attain great speed down this bank. Hitherto no
train was allowed to get beyond a speed of 10 to 15
miles per hour, in case it would not be possible
to check it without running through the station at
the bottom. On the present occasion the train
had gained a speed of 35 miles per hour, when the
guard thought it prudent to apply a slight
check. The
next moment the wheels of the engine passed over three
or four fog signals' which were notices to apply the
breaks, and, this being done, the train was brought to a
stand in 228 yards. By the ordinary system the train
could not have been stopped before reaching the station,
it was said, half a mile further. , Several experiments
were made with one, two, three, and four breaks en at
a time, and subsequently the train was taken back for
the experiments to be repeated. The main test after-
wards was upon a gradient of 1 in 38, and the train was
allowed to attain a speed (as nearly as could be ascer-
tained) of 40 miles per hour. The distance in which it
was brought to a stand was measured, and found to be
380 yards. The patentee, after watching these experi-
ments, was of opinion that some slight improvement
might be made iii the apparatus, as regarded the weights
for turning on the break.
The East Lancashire Company have had a train con•
stoutly running on their line for six weeks, fitted with
this apparatus, making 1,600 stoppages in that time ;
and it is reported to have kept in perfect order, and to
have :inswcred on every occasion. As the train on the
Ist of October, which consisted of five carriages and three
bre .iks, was (-ruing from Manchester, the driver perceived
that a pair of facing points to a siding before him, near
Accrington, had been h-ft open. He signalled the guard
with his steam whistle, the breaks were let go, and the
train went into the siding against some waggons. The
distance in which it was necessary to pull up to avoid
the danger was said to be only 20 yards, yet the train
went into the siding at a speed so reduced that the col-
lision with the waggons was scarcely felt, and no injury
was done either to the passengers or rolling stock.
About the 3d or 4th inst., on a foggy morning, as a
train was approaching Bury, it came upon a fog signal,
and the break stopped the train in 30 yards. The rail-
way superintendents present on Saturday said that trains
going down the Accrington bank would be able to run
these two miles, hitherto considered so dangerous, in
four minutes less time than with the ordinary breaks.
The patentee says:—
"It is not required that every carriage should be
supplied with a break, but in every train there should
be a sufficient number of break-carriages under the con-
trol of one guard, so that he may be enabled to stop a
train in a very short distance. Those carriages not
fitted with breaks need only the simple connexion to be
continued over the top, so as to carry the communica-
tion to the engine-driver or fireman. For my own part,
I cannot see the use of signal between guard and engine- .
driver when there is danger of a collision, unless the
guard cr driver have power at band to arrest quickly
the train on which they are travelling. There is another
great advantage in using a number of breaks at once,
which consists in the saving of wear of wheels and rails."
The self-acting power of
the breaks was so adjusted
to the train on Saturday as to bring the utmost resist-
ance to the motion of the wheels short of stopping their
revolution ; but the apparatus is so contrived that the
guard of a train can, if he thinks it desirable, by a mere
turn of any one of the wheels and pinions fitted to each
break carriage, entirely lock the wheels. Railway en-
gineers hold it highly desirable to prevent the sliding-of
trains, it it can be effected, because at present not only
do the wheels get much damaged by having flat surfaces
worn upon them, but they become dangerous agents for
mischief afterwards, each wheel so flattened not being
any longer a mere revolving machine, but striking the
rails at every turn like .a hammer, and becoming so much
more likely to break the tire, besides battering and in-
juring the permanent way.

CRIEFF JUNCTION.

The first general meeting of this company was held at
Crieff on Thursday ; Sir D. Dundas, Bart., in the chair.
The report stated that the act incorporating the com-
pany received the Royal assent on the 15th of August
last. The Scottish Central Railway Company had agreed
to work the line when completed at cost price, and to
find the necessary working stock. They had also agreed
to allow the Crieff Company, for the first ten years after
the opening of the line, one-third of the net revenue of
the additional traffic brought upon the Scottish Central
line by means of the CrieffJunction Railway. The line
was estimated to cost 45,0001., and responsible contrac.
tors would undertake its construction for a sum within
the estimate.
The CHAIRMAN moving the adoption of the report,
Mr. MoNTEATH seconded the motion, which 'was
agreed to.
Resolutions were passed electing the directors and
auditors.
thankspancommittee
Thanks were voted to the managing
of
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he chair-
man.

PRESTON AND LONGRIDGE.
The half-yearly report of this company showed that
the receipts for the half-year had been 2,146/., and that
after payment of expenses there remained a balance of
1,453/., equal to a dividend of 9s. per share, which was
declared payable.

GLASGOW, DUMBARTON, AND HELENS-
BURGH.
A Committee has been appointed to negotiate with
the landowners along the proposed line, who (together
with the Edinburgh and Glasgow and Caledonian Rail-
ways) arc reported to be favourable to the undertaking
to the extent of 10 out of the 20 miles.

RAILWAY TRAFFIC RETURNS.
LONDON AND OUTII-EASTERN itAlLWAY,—Traffic
turn for the week ending Oct. 22, 1853 1a7,519 6 $
Corresponding week last year 16,70 4 it

Increase in 1853.

£753 1 5

LONDON, BRIGHTON, AND SOUTH COAST RAILWAY.
Traffic return for the week ording Oct. 22,
1853 £13,012 9 9
Corresponding week last year 12,795 5 5
Total of the half-year to this date, 1853 257.64 5 4
Total of the half-year to this date, 1852 235,397 15

THE LATE MILITARY FRACAS IN DUBLIN.—We hear
that the dissensions between a commanding officer of
one of the corps in Dublin and one of his majors have
resulted in the latter's withdrawing the offensive allega-
tions relative to a little messroom merriment (which was
strangely converted into an imputation of usage), and
generated by private pique, and that the major, who
has proceeded on leave of absence, will pot again rejoin
the regiment,—United Service Gazette.