The Sun.
London, England, 1849-05-10 00:00:00

INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGI-

NEERS.

JOSHUA FIELD,
ESQ., President, in the Chair.
TUESDAYS, MAY 1 AND B.—At the first of these
meetings the monthly ballot took place, when the
following candidates were elected :—W. Wilson and
R. Peacock, as members ; and W. E. Bott, W.
Sowerby, jun., and Captain H. James, R.E., as
associates.eedda ur crtieh Tdri
constructionnoh argumentgue gdawhti saacsnu bothk
ys
supporting
osei
definite
et discussion
Locomotive
were
without
r heti
onn
atufuhdt
it was desirable in all engines to lowerevenings.beoo: tothhhue ersT sides;itchnhesameesantntarntebhc uaeost;
gravity, in order to establish a great angle of stability,
and to arrive at a ratio between the circumference of
the driving wheel and the cubic content of the
cylinders, such as whilst the greatest speed might be
maintained, with an economical consumption of fuel,
every facility should be afforded for starting
rapidly, which was a point of importance on
lines running frequent trains. On the . one
hand it was argued, that small driving
otherwheels
awnedr e essentialit
was
contended,for quick starting;
that
wandwith
a ongi
given
amounttrac-
tive
powerf evaporating
would
be thesusermfaecein underth the
all boiler,
circumstances
t he
at the periphery of the driving wheel, provided a
noeeop sneoea viewsMmn r dniuCvonleftmr En nP gt nn ss
, paper,
w was
given relative proportion existed between the cubic
content of the cylinder and the circumference of the
driving wheel, and that large wheels reduced the
wear and tear.

The long disposed of question of the stability of
the long boiler engines was again cursorily touched
on and disposed of.

The diMinution of the wear and tear of the sides
of the brasses of the engines, having the driving
wheels behind, and the greatest weight upon the ex-
tremities, leaving a comparatively light load on the
centre wheels, was adduced as a proof of their
stability, an engine of that kind having run twenty-
five thousand miles without any appreciable lateral
wear ; whereas an ordinary engine on the same rail-
way, had worn away a thickness of a quarter of an
inch whilst running the same distance.
A short paper was read, describing a kind of per-
manent way, which had been somewhat extensively
laid down on the Lancashire and Yorkshire and
other Railways, in the north of England, by Mr.
Hawkshaw, M. Inst. C. E. The principle was that
of a bridge rail, weighing seventy-five pounds per
yard, placed upon continuous longitudinal timber
bearing, and the novelty consisted in having
at each joint a malleable iron plate chair,
with a projection on the upper surface, fit-
ting within the interior of the rail, and the
flanches, which were fourteen inches long by eight
inches wide, and half an inch in thickness attached to
the rail by rivets in such a manner as to fix them
firmly together, and yet to allow for the expansion
and contraction caused by the variations of tempera-
ture. The details of the arrangement were very sim-
ple and complete, and it appeareel to succeed perfectly,
as in an extent of twenty miles of railway so laid,
over which numerous heavy trains had ran daily, at
considerable speed, for the last year, only three rivet
heads were found to have been knocked off when re-
cently examined:
The paper announced to be read at the next meet-
ing of Tuesday, May 15, was " On the Theory of
Transverse Strain of Cast-iron Beams," by W. T.
Doyne, Assoc. Inst. C. E.
The President invited the members and visitors to
contribute and to procure models for exhibition, at the
annual Conversazione, which was announced for
Tuesday, May 22.

CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAILWAY.--Traffic for
the week ended May 5, 1849:—Coaching traffic, 1,0771.
14s. 5d.; parcels, 341. 14s. Od.; goods and cattle, 241/.
18s. 5d.; steam-boats 1521. Bs. Od.—Total, 1,5061. 14s.
10d., exclusive of toll from Shrewsbury and Chester
Company, and payment for conveyance of mails.

COMMITTEE FOR PRIVILEGES.
HOUSE OF LORDS.
REPRESENTATIVE PEERS OF IRELAND.
The Committee for Privileges, amongst other mat-
, ters which came before them, heard counsel and wit-
nesses in support of the claims of the following noble-
men for the privilege of voting for representative peers
of Ireland :
THB CLAIM OF VISCOUNT MELBOURNE.
The Hon. F. PONSONBY appeared in support of this
claim, and called
Mr. J. Thomas, the solicitor for Lord Melbourne,
who produced the patent conferring the Irish title,
from which he read the date of the creation and the
limitations. The witness then proceed to read the
patent of the English peerage, when
Lord BROUGHAM asked what the Learned Counsel
was now about ?
Mr. PONSONBY was giving proof of the patent
creating the English peerage of Lord Melbourne.
Lord BROUGHAM—What did the Committee want
with such a proof as that ? It was nonsense.
What possible necessity was there to prove the Eng-
lish title ?
Mr.'PoNsoracr —Only to show the limitations.
Lord BROUGHAM—Nonsense. Why, any of their
Lordships could prove the English title. Any of
them could do that. His Noble and Learned Friend
(the Lord Chancellor), who had summoned Lord
Melbourne to that ouse, could, prove that; or he
could himself prove it. What occasion was there for
the production of proofs of the title to the English
Peerage at the bar of that House, when all of their
Lordships could give the evidence ? But, what was
the occasion for it in a matter where the English
ale had nothing to do with the claim which consti-
tuted the subject of their Lordships' present inquiry?
That subject was one which arose out of the Irish
Peerage, and not out of the English Peerage, of
which the Learned Counsel was now seeking to give
evidence.
Lord REDESDALE—Yes, the claim here was in right
of the Irish title, and not of the English title.
Mr. PONSONBY said that it had been his object to
offer evidence to the Committee of the English
title, and also of the fact that the present Lord
Melbourne 'had been summoned to Parliament
in the usual manner under that title. This latter
fact he proposed to establish by putting in the
writ of summons under the great seal. His object
therefore in offering the patent of the English title
was to show that the limitations in both patents were
similar. Having done that he should then proceed to
submit that he had tendered sufficient evidence to
establish the claim of Lord Melbourne to vote for
representative Peers of Ireland. He might probably
be permitted by their Lordships to mention that a
similar course to that which he now proposed to adopt
had been acted upon last year in the case of the
Drogheda claim.
Lord REDESDALE remarked that there was a dif-
ference in the two cases, because, in the Drogheda
claim his Lordship had taken his seat, whereas in the
present instance Lord Melbourne had not done so.
Lord BROUGHAM said—Yes, that was so. Well,
what had they 'now to do with hearing evidence as to
the English title ?—it was altogether unnecessary.
But where was the evidence that really was necessary'?
Where was the proof of the death, where was the
proof that the late Lord had died without issue, where
was the proof that there was no son left, and where
was the formal proof that the present claimant was
the next heir ? All these proofs were necessary, and
all these proofs he, in his own person, was in a con-
dition to give.
The Earl of SHAFTESBURY was understood to re-
mind the Noble and Learned Lord that he had not
been sworn.
Lord BROUGHAM.—No, that was very true, so he
could not give the proofs, and there was no house,
and he could not then be sworn. The matter must.
stand over for the present, then.
After the house had been made, the parties were
again called to the bar, when
Lord BROUGHAM asked if the Learned Counsel was
prepared with the necessary evidence.
Mr. PONSONBY was not in a position at the present
moment to offer the proofs which his Lordship had
required at an earlier part of the day, but if—
Lord BROUGHAM—Yes, you have, Sir. You have
myself. lam here prepared to give evidence.
Mr. PONSONBY had understood that his Lordship
had not been sworn, and therefore was not in a con-
dition to give evidence.
Lord BROUGHAM—Yes, I have been sworn ; now
I can give the proofs you want. His Lordship then
went on to give the necessary evidence, after which
The claim to vote was declared to have been esta-
blished.