The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-10-11 00:00:00

RAILK AY INTELLIGENCE

We are sorry to find that the Manchester and Birmingham
Railway Company again raised their first-class fares on
Monday last. The result is, that a first-class passengei•
now pays one shilling more from London to Manchester
than when he went round by way of Parkside, some twelve
miles further ! So much for competing lines ! One train
less a-day, and one shilling more for the passage, is all that
the good folks of Manchester have gained by securing what
they call " a line of their own," upon which about two
millions sterling have been expended!—Railway Times.

However much the proprietors of the Lancaster and Pres-
ton Railway may benefit by the leasing of their line to the
Lancaster Canal Company, it does not appear that the
arrangement will contribute much to the advantage of the
public. We understand that the cheap boat has been taken
off the canal, and that the mode of communication in the
district is now an unmitigated monopoly.—Railway Times.
THE MANCHESTER. AND SHEFFIELD RAILWAY.—WC
have just heard, says the Sheffield Iris of Tuesday, of an ex-
traordinary instance of the accuracy which can be attained
by high talent, perseverance, and a skilful application of mo-
dern instruments. The tunnel now making on the Sheffield
and Manchester railway, situate at Saltersbrook, will be up-
wards of three miles in length, and more than six hundred
feet below the surface or top of the hill at its greatest height,
and on rock formation throughout its entire length, pene-
trating what is commonly called the backbone of England.
These works were commenced about two years ago, and are
now under the superintendence of Mr. Nicholson, the acting
manager, and Mr. Purdon, the assistant-engineer of Joseph
Locke, Esq., C. E. Five shafts were opened about half a
mile distance from each other, for the purpose of proving
the formation, of facilitating the driving of the driftways,
and ultimately of ventilation. in These shafts are now com-
pleted. Whilst they were progress, the driftways were
carried on from each side or face of the mountain, the dis-
tance or length effected on the eastern side extending to
about 1,000, and from the next shaft 180 yards. The junction
between these two points of the drift-way met on the 17th
ult., and such have been the admirable skill and attention
with which the arrangements were made and carried out by
Messrs. Nicholson and Purdon, the manager and superin-
tendent of the works, that the junction has been character-
ised by singular precision of range and level,—the levels,
when checked on a tie-bench at the point of meeting, having
varied but nine decimals (one inch nearly.) The range is
within two inches of being geometrically true. When it is
considered that this has been attained whilst driving upwards
of half a mile through hard rock formation, it must he ad-
mitted to be highly creditable to all the parties engaged in it.
This great tunnel, from its magnitude and position, was con-
sidered by many as almost impracticable, and the most un-
founded misrepresentations have been circulated by inter-
ested companies and parties to strengthen this opinion ; it
must, therefore, be very gratifying to those who may be in-
terested in such matters, and to the public generally, to learn
that all doubt is now removed as to the time and amount of
cost, within which the work may ,be completed, both of
which were originally calculated with a correctness equally
accurate with what has been already accomplished. Two-
thirds of the driftways are already made, the remainder
will be opened throughout early next spring, and the com-
pletion of the entire works is expected in the following year,
the whole of the heavy contracts being now let, three of them
being decided on Wednesday last, at a price averaging above
20 per cent. below the engineer's estimate, taken by Messrs.
Buxton and Clarke, of Sheffield, (for the Dinting Vale
viaduct), and Messrs. Miller and Blackie, of Liverpool, for
the Longdendale contracts from the said viaduct to the
western face of the before-named tunnel. These parties have
already proved to the directors their excellent qualifications
and ability as contractors, having lately completed two of the
best contracts on the line. The old Park Wood contract,
near Sheffield, is now in the hands of the first-named con-
tractors, who have made arrangements with the guardians of
the poor of the Sheffield and other unions to employ a large
number of able-bodied paupers, several of them being what
are commonly denominated navies. This is a great advan-
tage to the ratepayers and poor of Sheffield, and a mutual
accommodation to all parties concerned. We understand it
is the intention of the directors to enter into contracts for
the remainder of the line forthwith, if they can make ami-
cable arrangements with Lord Wharncliffe for the immediate
possession of the portion of the land for the line through
Wharncliffe Wood. The line, from the small amount of tne
cost of construction, bids fair to become one of the best and
soundest undertakings of the kind in this part of the coun-
try : its completion will not only confer great advantage
upon the town of Sheffield, but upon the large and import-
' ant manufacturing district through which it passes. The
Dinting Vale Viaduct was estimated by the engineer to cost
' £38,467 ; but was let for £31,000; and the two Longdendale
' contracts, estimated by the engineer at £55,033, were let for
£46,400 ; being at least £15,500 below the estimate of the
engineer upon the three contracts.