The new era. (Walden, Colo.) 1906-19??, 1909-09-09
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The development of train service is
often not fully realized until our at
tention Is called to the number of
trains running between our chief
towns. Taking the summer time
table of 1908. for example. there were
% down and 20 up trains between
London and Glasgow: between Lon
don and Edinburgh there were 80
down and % up: while between the
metropolis and Leeds there were As
down and so up. and between London
and Manchester no less than IS down
and SO up. that Is. on an average. a
26-minute service. 1t must be borne
in mind. however. that different routes
are taken by many of these trains and
consequently different towns are con-
rected up by trains running between
the same points.
Although comfort and frequency Of
service are two important features in
railway Improvements. the increase
In speed and in the number of long
nonstop runs daily being performed
on many Of our main lines emphasizes
perhaps more than anything else the
high degree of efficiency our railways
have attained. During the past sum-
mer the time tables of our chief lines
more than 100 miles without a stop
OF these the fastest running is done
by two expresses on the Great West
ern railway. which cover the 1857
miles between Paddington and Bristol
in two hours. giving start to stop
average speed of 59.S miles per hour.
Next to these comes a run on the
Great Northern railway from Grant
ham to Kings Cross. 105N miles, at
an average speed of SIT miles per
hour.
To maintain such high speeds for
so many miles demonstrates what vast
improvements have taken place in the
steam locomotive. for in 1870 the quick
est average speed in this country was
only AZ miles per hour 1t is only by
the aid Of water-troughs that these
long nonstop runs can be made; the
troughs. which are about 500 yards in
length. are placed between the rails
and are automatically kept full Water
can thus be picked up while running
by a scoop under the tender. which is
lowered into the trough by the engine
men. the speed of the train forcing
the water up the scoop into the ten
der tank.
In the development of train work
ing nothing has played more impor-
tant part than the locomotive. for. as
the traffic and the demand for rapid
transit have increased. SO has the To-
connective been brought up to the nee
essary state Of efficiency. not only as
regards speed. but in economical
working. without which 1t would have
been an impossibility to give the pub
lie what they desired The modern
locomotive is an evolutionary product.
and although the main principles re-
main much the same as in the early
engine. 1t would be hard for the lay
man to recognize any Of the old in
the new The invention of the loco
motive is nowadays absolutely indis-
pensable to our daily existence. In
its earliest days It has been lfkened
in appearance to a medieval engine of
war and was originally used only on
few more trucks than could a horse.
The idea of speed never seemed to
enter into the minds of its promoters.
and at the opening of the Stockton
and Darlington railway in 1925. when
the locomotive made its first appear
ance. in the interests of the public,
considerable surprise was caused by
the speed 1t attained of some ~ miles
per hour. 1t is recorded that the
horseman who preceded 1t with flag
had promptly to clear out of the way.
to the wonder of the assembled crowd.
At first it met with considerable
amount Of opposition and many
strange objections were taken to It:
but as soon as 1t began to be recog-
nlzed what commercial prosperity was
wrapped up in its development all
these objections disappeared 1t was
not, however. until the famous loco
motive contest at Rainhill in 1929 that
the hitherto doubtful question of Its
practical success was settled once and
for all. On that occasion the Rocket,
designed by Stephenson. astonished
the spectators by running IS miles in
one hour As minutes and attaining a
speed OF nearly so miles per hour
pulling load Of Is tons.
This historic engine weighed In
working order ~ tons and was car
rssd On four wheels: its tender fully