The Hawaiian gazette., 1888-10-16
FAST TRAINS.

/
spondent in Edinburgh, cables that
paper, under date August 9th, as fol-
lows: Z" Flying Scotchman' has been
beaten by the West Coast Flyer
When the London and Northwestern, or
West Coast Express, ran into Edinburgh
station at 3 80 O'Clock this evening it
broke all previous records OF high rail-
road speed, not only for England, but in
the railway world in general, This was
the first day OF the great 400 mile race
between two OF the biggest English COM
panies, and the faster train OF the two
traversed the greater part OF that dis
! lance at a speed of mile a minute. :"
The correspondent further states that
he, in company with Assistant Superin-
tendent Turnbull, of the West Coast
Line, and William Acworth, railway ex-
pert OF the London Times, entered
firstclass compartment at Euston this
morning lust before 10 o'clock. The two
trains pulled out at the same moment,
the 'Scotchman' from Kings Cross and
the West Coast from Euston. Every
body in our compartment tiourished
watch The engine had single pair of
driving wheels, seven feet, six inches in
diameter, and weighed q tons. 1t
burned a pounds OF coal per mile dur
ing the run. The tender, loaded, weigh
ed % tons. Behind il were four coaches
filled with passengers, making weight
of 20 tons each, or so tons in al" The
time to firing, up grade, distance OF
31ls miles, was made in 40 minutes.
Alter leaving this place the speed was
increased to y miles an hour, the next
10 miles being made in u minutes and
30 seconds. From Euston to Rugby the
distance is S294 miles, and the time
occupied in going over this space was 81
minutes. The distance to Cpewe, l5S
miles, was run without stop in hours
and IS minutes. At Crewe five minutes
was spent in changing the single wheel
driver engine for 81 ton engine with
two pairs of driying-wheels. The
speed was then increased; the run from
Crewe to Preston, 81 miles, WIS made in
oil minutes; 20 minutes were spent there
in eating luncheon. At Carlisle 10 min
utes were spent in changing engines.
The l01 miles from Carlisle to Edin-
burgh was run in l04 minutes, and this
too over a pass l ,0l5 feet high. The en-
tire distance run from Euston to Edin-
burgh was 400 miles, and the actual time
occupied on the trip, excluding stops,
was hours and % minutes, an average
of 50 90 SO miles per hour. 1.-The fastest
continuous record in England hitherto
was that OF the special train which took
the Prince of Wales from Liverpool to
London, 200 miles, in hours and 50
minutes, an average slightly over 81
miles" The "West Coast Flyer" beat |
the Flying Scotchman" Z minutes in
time and miles in distance.
The Times OF August Sth says: The |
best run on record in this country which |
can be fairly compared with the English |
run was made over the West Shore Road |
from Buffalo to New York on July 9,
1885, when 426 miles were covered in |
hours and q minutes. Quite a large |
number of railroad men, including OF
icials of the Baltimore and Ohio, Wabash, |
Grand Trunk and West Shore Roads, |
at Buffalo together enroute for
New York. 1t was decided to see how
quickly they could move over the new
road. At the start the railroad men had |
their watches out and soon the mile posts
we're flying past every 40 seconds. That
speed was held so steadily that the
greater part of the run was made at the
rate OF 45 seconds to the mile, or from 20 |
10 So miles an hour. From East Buffalo
10 Genesee Junction, 81 miles, took SO
from East Buffalo to Newark,
g. 4 miles, 81 minutes; from Alabama
20 Genesee Junction, 1868 miles, 80 min
ltes. The 81 minutes to Newark in
,luded stops of minutes, making the
actual running time for the 1914 miles So
minutes. From Newark to Frankfort,
where the conditions for running were
lot so good as before, the run Of 1858
niles was made in l34 minutes, includ-
ng IL minutes for stops. From East
Buffalo to Frankfort, 202 miles, the time
vas 240 minutes, of which 80 minutes
we're consumed in stops. There was only
single track at that time on the road a
,ood part of the way between Buffalo
nd Syracuse, and that journey had to
,e made at reduced speed, especiallyover
he switches. The journey was timed
Nth the utmost care for the purpose of
abulatIon. In the table there are
marked several miles which were made
{ the rate of IS miles an hour, l at 81
niles, and the next, between Genesee
JUNCTION and Chill, at 81 miles. New
ngines took the train at Buffalo, New
TX, Frankfort and Coeymans.
On Oct. s, 1885, over the same road, a
urst of speed was tried for II miles, be-
geen Genesee Junction and East Buff
llo, to satisfy Superintendent ]. E.
ayng, who was on the train The run
coupled 5l2 seconds, an average rate OF
4 miles an hour. Three of the miles
ere made at the rate of so miles an
our, l at II, and Fat 70.