CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF RAILROADS AND TRAMROADS TO FACILITATE THE ASCENT AND DESCENT OF HILLS AND INCLINED PLANES
Year: 1838

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EUGEne
Viscount DE BEURET, of No. 28, Moorgate Street, in the City of London, send.
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Tenth day of August, in the second year of Her reign, did,.
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Eugene de Beuret, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Eugene de Beuret, my exors, admors, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Eugene de Beuret, my exors, adññors, or
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, the Invention consisting in "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE CONSTRUCTION OF RAILROADS AND TRAMROADS TO FACILITATE THE ASCENT AND
DESCENT OF HILLS AND INCLINED PLANES," communicated to me by a certain.
foreigner residing in Paris; in which said Letters Patent is contained a
proviso, that I, the said Eugene de Beuret, should cause a particular.
description of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be enrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within
two calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Eugene de Beuret, do hereby declare that the principle of the said Invention
consists in providing for the wheels of the locomotive engine on railroads and
tramroads a bed or course distinct from the rails laid down for the train, and
of a more adhesive character, whereby the engines and trains are enabled to
surmount hills and inclined planes; and also in the application of an apparatus
for moderating the tendency to accelerated swiftness in the engines and trains
when descending hills and inclined planes.
If it were possible in railroads to render the power of the locomotive engines
so effective that they might ascend inclined planes of a greater inclination
than five in one thousand, which at present is the maximum, and were it also
possible by means of a check superior in power to the common drag to go
down hill without danger, the expence now incurred by windings, clearings,
fillings in cuttings, viaducts, tunnels, and otherwise, would be henceforward
saved; or if the traffic on railroads were such as to render a large outlay of
capital of no importance, there would still be an augmentation of interest
resulting from the capability of the locomotive engine to drag trains of greater
length and weight up such hills and inclined planes as are to be formed.
Moreover, in many cases the expence and inconveniences of fixed engines
would be avoided, and in descents the lives of passengers would no longer be
exposed to the chance of a broken chain. The means for ascending and
descending must necessarily vary in their details, according to the command of
money and resources, as well as the locality. The less adhesion there is
between the wheels of train carriages or railroads or tramways and the road
itself, the lighter will be the draught, and the greater the expedition; but for
the locomotive, the absence of friction is not always desirable; at present let
the ascent in railroads be ever so trifling, the locomotive engine loses its hold,
and even on a level ground its power is affected whenever from any cause the
rails have become slippery, and the wheels have even been known to revolve
without producing any progress to the carriage. This circumstance is owing
to the wheels of the engine having too smooth a surface to run.
To avoid
this inconvenience, I place a train of carriages and waggons upon the iron rails,
because. the rails cannot be too slippery for the load; but in order to increase
the dragging power of the working wheels of the locomotive carriages, I
furnish the locomotive engine with separate rails, of a substance of such a
nature and so disposed as to cause the working wheels of the engine to have a
firmer grasp than they can have upon the iron surface on which the train runs.
On ordinary roads. the horse, which is there the moving power, has a firm
footing, but there is too much resistance offered to the carriage. On railways,

page_text: on the other hand, the progress of the train is easy, but the hold of the engine.
is defective. The plan which I have devised will at once give the motor the
resisting surface which suits its action, and the load the gliding surface best
adapted to its easy transport. The peculiar rails which I propose for the
engines,, and which may be used either on inclined planes only, or throughout
the whole line of road, as circumstances require, vary according to the weight
of the train, its velocity, the local materials for construction, and the expence to
be incurred. They may be made of granite, stone, bituminous cement, or of
a layer of hard materials, such as are usually employed in making roads, or of
blocks of wood well pitched, placed either lengthwise or in an upright position,
and faced with small pebbles or metallic plates less hard than iron, and the
materials last spoken of may be introduced in the groove of rails made for the
purpose, either of cast iron or other suitable substance. The adhesive rails or
bed in question need not be broad, since the friction depends on pressure and
not on extent of surfaces. Their construction varies according to the con-
struetion of the working wheels of the engine, which I proceed to describe.
The purpose may be effected in several ways, first, by giving two diameters to
the wheels of the locomotive engine, the smaller one serving for the ascents.
The two adhesive rails need not be above a few inches broad, and may be
laid down outside of the two iron. rails, and then the track for the locomotive
engine will be broader than that for the waggons, certainly an advantage,
since it will be possible thereby to make the locomotive engine more efficient,
particularly as this requires to be more stable than the waggons; but in this
case the adhesive rails will also be necessary on level ground as well as on the
inclined planes themselves. Secondly, with the adhesive rails outside the
wheels of the locomotive engine may be provided with fellies broad enough
to bear upon the iron rails if on level ground, and upon the adhesive rails if
passing on inclined planes, and with this view the adhesive rails. must be
raised a few inches above the level of the iron rails, and the ascent at the
commencement must be gradual, to admit of the outer wheel rising to the
level of the adhesive rails. Third, in allowing the same distance to exist
between the rails as well for the locomotive as for the waggons; one of
the adhesive rails may be placed on the outside, and the other inside-
against the iron rails; the locomotive engine will then be made to
pass upon the adhesive line when nearing an ascent, and by means of
a long link will drag the trains, which will themselves continue to progress
on the iron rails. On a level ground, or nearly so, the adhesive rails may
be omitted, yet if they are laid out the same locomotive will drag heavier
trains, or a less locomotive will drag the same train, and there will be unity

page_text: and convenience of construction for a level ground as well as for inclined
planes, and the general celerity will not suffer from the addition of adhesive
rails, as the locomotive engine will have for itself a much greater swiftness
than a whole train can have, and the total number of carriages, with the
exception of the locomotive, will continue to progress on the iron rails.
The degree of inclination which may be surmounted with the help of
adhesive rails will depend on the effort which would be necessary to make
the wheel of the locomotive engine (supposing it is locked) slide on the
materials of different nature that may be employed. The descending faculty
will indeed always be submitted to the power of the engine, but at least a
footing will have been given to the wheels, whereby they will be enabled to
make use of the whole of its present power, and consequently it will become
possible to ascend planes more inclined than those which are asunder at
present, without recurring either to fixed engines or extra locomotives. By
this plan, moreover, the iron rails no longer supporting the locomotive engine
but the train alone, they may be made less strong, as they will be subjected to
less wear and tear, and the iron rails instead of being an inconvenience will be
an advantage, and when, instead of a great celerity for the conveyance of
passengers, a great force is deemed expedient for the transport of goods, the
wheels of the engine having firmer hold on the ground will drag much better.
The chief objection to inclined planes at the present moment is not only the
difficulty of surmounting them, but also the danger of their descent. Beyond
the limits of the power of the drag there is no other check than the chain of
the fixed engine, that is to say, that the lives of a multitude of persons are to
be committed to the safe keeping of a chain, the very length of which offers
every facility for rupture; a drag, whatever may be its power, of the
description usually employed at present, can only convert the train into a series
of sledges, and a sledge, if abandoned on an inclined, and at the same time a
highly polished rail, may soon acquire an uncontrollable velocity. To hold in
check a locomotive force as violent as that on railroads, the resistance ought
not to be placed upon the moving bodies themselves, or else they must
necessarily be carried away together. It is necessary then to establish on the
road itself means of resistance which, beyond what is produced by ordinary
checks, may be in proportion to the steepness of the declivities, and that
resistance must not depend on the care and diligence of the conductors. The
most rational means as in every system of checking speed are those of friction,
the action of which should be proportioned to the amount of
that may
pressure
be wished for, and multiplied by the effect of the lever, the most simple of all
mechanical agents. The object in view being to moderate velocity, I have

page_text: chosen the term moderator for the apparatus in question, which may be
applied in a variety of ways, the following one being one of the most simple:
-Between the rails on each side of the axis of the road, upon horizontal
supports firmly fixed in the ground, there are to be placed two small shafts
either in wood or metal, forming with each other an angle opening toward
the summit of the acclivity. The upper extremities of these shafts will face
the train in its descent, each turning upon an iron pivot, whilst the lower
extremities will bear upon two springs solidly fixed, and the force of which will
be calculated to counterbalance the increase of velocity arising from the
inclination in opposing the passage of a rubber attached to the carriage (sec
Plate 1). In order that the velocity may be gradually overcome, and that the
action, at first easy, may go on increasing, it will be advisable. to give
a slight curve to the internal surface of the two shafts, so that the friction may
first take place between two surfaces nearly parallel. The rubber placed
under the carriages (see Plate 2), in penetrating into the opening formed by
the upper parts of the shafts, will cause them to rotate on their own axis, and
in separating their lower extremities will press on the springs with the arm of
the lever seen in Plate 1; hence the suppression of all excess of velocity. The
carriage having passed, the springs will cause the shafts to resume their former
position, so as to afford a like resistance to the succeeding vehicles: Here
then, as means for resistance besides the smaller frictions, are combined the
action of the springs when pressed on the action of the arm of the lever, and
the friction against the surfaces of the shafts, which are iron bound. As trains
are in general less long than declivities, it will be less expensive, and a more
regular motion will be obtained, if the springs be set under the carriage, and an
uninterrupted rubber on the road, which will be a reverse of the first
disposition highly advantageous (see Plate 3). With this arrangement a' check
rail must be placed on the axis of the road; this road, either of metal or of
wood, covered with brass or iron, will receive two opposite pressures produced
by the springs fixed to the carriages. The thickness of the check rail will vary
on the same declivity, according to its inclination if the latter varies, in order
that the pressure of the springs may be at all times proportioned to the
inclination of the plane. This apparatus is very simple, nor does it require
that moderators necessarily numerous should be placed on the road, but as the
arm of the lever forms no part of this, multiplying as it does the action of the
springs, and as the carriages therefore must bear the weight both of the
springs themselves and of their wooden or iron supports, it can only offer
certain extent of resistance without becoming too heavy, and consequently will
not suffice in any case of very long and steep declivities. In this latter

page_text: instance, which will seldom occur, we shall have a carriage constructed on the
same plan, on which will be concentered by powerful springs a quantity
of resistance, as considerable as may be deemed expedient to employ, and this
carriage, added to the trains, will moderate their velocity, so that in the same
manner as there are rails for speed there will be a moderating rail, and there
will be extra checks for steep descents, precisely as there are extra reinforce-
ments of power for steep acclivities. This apparatus may become more
economical by substituting for the uninterrupted rail a series of single rubbers,
more or less distant from each other and more or less broad, and in substituting
also for one of the pairs of springs shown in Plate 3, two pivots, so as to
present to the rubbers placed on the axis of the road an open angle, and the
arm of a lever which would be under the carriages, exactly the disposition of
the figures reversed and simplified. If it should be found expedient to use a
locomotive engine, the working wheels of which should act upon a central
rail, an important application of this principle would be found in making a
central rail, of which the upper part would be composed of adhesive materials
for the ascent, whilst the side service would serve for resistance. The steel
springs are not to be employed exclusively; steam, wood, and air will also
answer the purpose. The use of the steam spring, however, is attended with
difficulties, whilst the wooden one might be applied to a species of moderator,
something like the one described in Plate 1, and the air spring, by means of a
cylinder and piston, might prove advantageous whenever there is a great rapidity
of passage. The pistons need not fit very exactly, since the air has no
sufficient time to escape, and thus a force of three or four atmospheres can
impart a considerable resisting power to a very simple apparatus. The
excentres may also be substituted for the springs, and this with advantage in
several cases. The moderators should be made more or less effective and
more or less distant from each other, according to the steepness and length of
the declivity, yet, generally speaking, moderators very powerful and at the
same time very distant from each other are not expedient; it will be advisable
on the contrary to make them as smooth and as near each other as possible,
that the effect may be uninterrupted, and without any sudden jerks or sharp
reaction. And in order that by the progress of the first carriages being stopt,
the succeeding ones may not be allowed to rush against them, the first
moderator should be made very weak, the next stronger, and so on pro-
gressively, so that the first carriages may not be entirely slackened in their
speed before the succeeding ones are themselves engaged with the moderators.
Beyond the ordinary length of trains the moderator should be of equal power.
When a train approaches a steep declivity it will be necessary as at present to

page_text: slacken its speed, for when the effect of a descent requires moderating agents,
it would be inconsistent to allow the full action of that very power which the
moderating agents are destined to keep under control. In the accompanying
Figures the general forms of the checks in question may be observed. The
dimensions must differ according to the steepness of the hills, and the
materials employed will be guided in their proceedings by the locality.
Having thus described the nature of the Invention imparted to me, and
which I believe to have been hitherto unpractised in this country, I would
have it understood that I claim the combination of a double set of rails or bed
for the locomotive and the train distant from each other, whereby the wheels
of the engine may have a hold or grasp on the surface on which it runs more
firm and tenacious than would be suitable for the train; I also claim the use
and adaptation on railroads and tramroads (either in conjunction with or
without the Invention above described) of certain apparatuses for checking the
speed of locomotive engines and carriages on railroads and tramroads, such as
I have above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Eugene Viscount de Beuret, have
hereto set my hand and seal, this Ninth day of October, One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.
(L.S.) VT BEURET.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Ninth day of October, in
the year of our Lord 1838, the aforesaid Eugene Viscount de Beuret
came before our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknow-
ledged the Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained
and specified, in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid
was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Tenth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.

page_text: ABAB. Small beams or shafts forming an arg
which will open by the introduction of the rubber E in
pressing on the springs C.C. and remaining touched
to the pivots D.D.
E is a rubber in brass or in wood provided with iron pla
for friction
F.rubbing plates of the small iron beams or shafts
GG. supporters for the springs
HHHH. a piece which receives and guides the extremity
of the springs (the scale is 20 for the plan a for
the elevation but will vary according to the innation
of the Hills
a.a. the position wherein the distance between the
small shafts is equal to the breadth of the rubber

page_text: A. A check rail in Brass or in weed provided with iron or Brass bars for fricti
B.B. Rubbing Plates hanging from the waggons.
CC. Suspending branches of the rotting plates.
DD. Springs, the pressure of which produces the friction.
EEEE Branches, which bear the strings.
FF. Supporters of the springs.
GG. Supporters intended against the action of rubbing plates on the underside
rail. (The scale is, but will vary according to the inclination of the Hill