The life of George Stephenson, railway engineer - Lighthouse ...

CffliAP. XIX.] EXAMINATION IN COMMITTEE. 215
Mr. Alderson next cross-examined the witness on the dangers
of curves. " Do not wrought-iron rails bend ; take Hetton Col-
liery for instance ? " " They are wrought-iron, but they are
weak rails."— " Do you not know that those bend ? " " Perhaps
they may bend, not being made snfiSciently strong."— "And if
they are made sufiGiciently strong, that will involve an additional
expense ? " " It will."— " Then if you were to make them of
adamant, that would be very expensive ? " " It does not require
a very great expense to make them strong enough for heavier
I mean the difference between making them for easy work
work ;
and heavy work is not great."— " You say that the machine can
go at the rate of twelve miles an hour ; suppose there is a turn
on the road—what will become of the machine ? " " It would
go round the turn."— " Would it not go straight forward ? "
" No."— " What is to be the plan of the road, and the height of
the rail ? " " That has nothing to do with it."— " I ask you, what
is to be the height of the flanch of the wheel ? " " One and a
quarter inch."— " Then if the rail bends to the extent of an inch
and a quarter, it will go off' the rail ? " " It cannot bend ; I know
it is so in practice."— " Did you ever see forty tons going at the
rate of twelve miles an hour ? " " No, I have not seen it ; but
I have seen the engine running from eight to ten miles round a
curve." " What was the weight moved ? " "I think little, ex-
cept the engine—the weight of the engine itself." " Do you
mean to tell us that no difference is to be made between those
forty tons afler the engine, and the engine itself?" "It is
scarcely worth notice."— " Then, though the engine might run
round,' and follow the turn, do you mean to say that the weight
after it would not pass off? " " I have stated that I never saw
such a weight move at that velocity ; but I could see at Killing-
worth that the weight was following the engines, and it is a very
sharp curve ; I believe they came down very frequently at the
velocity of fully ten miles an hour ; it is a sharper curve there
than I should ever recommend to be put on any railroad."
" Have you known a stage-coach overturn when making not a
very sharp curve, when going very fast ?
—
" " That is a different
thing; it is top-heavy."— "Do you mean to say, none of your
wagons will be top-heavy?" "They will not; perhaps they