The Sun.
London, England, 1846-06-15 00:00:00

TELE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY MORNING, JUNE 15, 1846.

Hallette and other gentlemen dissented from Mr.
Stephenson's opinion on this point, and maintained that
any accident to the machinery on an atmospheric
line could be repaired as promptly and easily
as on a locomotive line. Mr. Stephenson
futher referred to the inapplicability of the atmospheric
system to such a line as the London and Blackwall, in
consequence of the numerous intermediate stations. The
loss of time by five stoppages in a line less than four
miles in length, would be very great, and would prove
a fatal objection to the atmospheric system. Last week
107,000 persons had travelled on the London and Black-
wall line, and it is calculated that two-thirds of the en-
tire traffic are between the intermediate stations. These
stations, therefore, are necessary, and the required ac-
commodation could never be afforded by the at-
mospheric system. It was maintained on the
other side, that the London and Blackwall
was not a fair instance, because there was no other
line in which the intermediate stations were so nu-
merous. Mr. Stephenson admitted this, and also ad-
mitted that the time lost by stoppages on the atmospheric
system would be in a great measure made up by the
superior velocity 'at which it proceeded when at full
speed. Mr. Stephenson remarked that the atmospheric
system had this advantage over the locomotive—that
there were no limits to its velocity, while the locomotive
had already attained its utmost speed, so far as scientific
men at present knew. He repeated that he was willing to
assume that the atmospheric, as now improved, is per-
fect, and that on some lines it would be much superior
to the locomotive system ; but he still had his doubts as
to the commercial superiority of the atmospheric to the
locomotive system, and that was a very important ques-
tion in a commercial cc untry like England.

WHAT THE PRINCE MUST NOT
SEE. . . .

W hat can this be ? Much has been said and written
and printed on what the Prince Consort ought to see on
his intended visit to Liverpool, and projects are afloat,
and rumours circulated, and hopes entertained of his
going to one place and another place within forty miles
of Liverpool, as if he had nothing to do here, and must
needs go " killing time" in various side-excursions just
to prevent ennui. Many will be the disappointments if
any such fancies are really indulged in ; for the hours
and minutes during which his Royal Highness will
be able to be absent from the palace are so mapped
out that the only difficulty will be how to get through
the programme within the assigned limits : so much has
he to do ; so much has he to see. But one thing he
really must be prevented from seeing, or it will blind
him in the very act ; we mean the smoke, the dense,
massive, black, heavy, dirty, suffocating, defiling, smear-
ing, begriming clouds of unconsumed carbon gushing out
in interminable volumes from the summits of the funnels
of the countless smoke boats on the river Mersey : a
nuisance intolerable all around the heads and shoulders
of the residents here ; disgraceful to us in the eyes, yea,
and the mouths, too, of visitors from every part of the
world ; injurious to the public health ; destrnctive
to all pleasure in the vicinity of the pierheads and
parades, damaging to anything like decent, not
to say, elegant dress ; and which, in the crowds of
smoke-boats which will blacken the whole atmosphere
of the Mersey on the 30th and 31st July, will play
havoc with the gay attire, splendid uniforms, and
waving plumes of the Prince and his distinguished
friends. There was a time when there were some steam
boats on the river ; smoke, from them, was hardly ever
perceptible ; and it is as well known as the situation of
the Town-hall itself, that no smoke need to be percep-
tible, if the ready, simple, and undeniably efficacious
plan of Mr. Joseph Williams be only at once adopted,
which can immediately be done, entirely at Mr. Williams's
own cost, till found to answer completely. There must be
no cavilling about this now. The fact is reduced to a
mere display of very discreditable obstinacy on the
part of any proprietor of a smoke boat or a smoke fac-
tory, who, by the black ensign he issues from aloft,
declares that he will glory in smoke ; that he will ex
pend more money than he is required to do for fuel ; that
he will defile the air and annoy his neighbours, and that
he will do all this, as a wiseacre in Parliament-street
said he would, " till he was compelled by law to stop
the nuisance and to save his fuel." We say there must
be no cavilling about this, and we refer, without the
slightest fear of being contradicted on this point,
to the unquestionable evidence to be examined
on the subject at the following places, where
proofs are so glaring that he who runs
bwuiitlhdisntegasm; smoke—Josephsuperabundant,Nbuurtsneroy,lyaltun;
may read : furnaces may there be seen in full glow,
StringerF let
-
cher and Co., tobacco manufacturers, 3, Sir Thomas's-
and Mann, saw mills, 6Seel-street ; M. Hutchinson,
ropery, Lodge-lane; D. Chadwick, ditto,ditto; F. and T.
Dutton, cabinet-makers, Great George-street; Maddy and
Co., cigar manufacturers, Manesty-lane; J. Nicol and Co.,
saw mills, Stanhope-street; BootleWaterWorks, Egerton;
J. Lawrence, brewery, St. James'-street ; Groves
and Hartley, spirit, &c., depot, 100, Duke-street ; M.
Neville, brassfounder, Ranelagh-street ; E. Graham, to-
bacco-maufacturer, 25, Whitechapel. There are similar
proofs at Prescot, Northwich, Sheffield, and Manchester;

but our object at this moment is so entirely local and
urgent, that we will not go beyond the limits of the
town, where the parties who have adopted the plan have
certified, and will certify, not only the complete cure of
the nuisance, but the saving of money, by the reduced
consumption of fuel.—Liverpool Mercury.