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

CHAP, xxvm.] BEPOET ON THE EAST COAST LINE. 343
The project, however, slept until August, 1838, when Mr. Ste-
phenson "was requested to make a further careful inspection of
the country between Newcastle and Edinburgh, and " report his
opinion on the best line of railway between those places, upon
levels to which locomotive steam power can be advantageously
applied, preparatory to such line being more minutely surveyed,
and ultimately adopted." After again making a careful inspec-
tion of the country, he sent in his report.* He went at great
length into the comparative merits of the routes by Carter Fell
and by Berwick, and expressed a decided opinion, as before,' on
the superiority of the latter route. As the report presented by
him on this subject contains many points of interest, and may be
taken as a fair specimen of the character of his railway reports,
we venture to give the following extract :
" In laying out a line of railway from England to the two
principal cities in Scotland, and as a great thoroughfare between
the two countries, there are many circumstances to be taken into
consideration. The first and most important of all, considering
it as a great national work, and desirable for the convenience and
advantage of the whole community, is to endeavour to obtain a
railway with such inclinations as will secure a certain, speedy,
and safe conveyance between the two countries, not merely for
the conveyance of passengers, but more especially for the mails.
We should endeavour to obtain a railway on which the engines
should at all times be enabled to perform the duties required of
them, without having to encounter steep inclined planes totally
unfit for the profitable employment of the locomotive engine, and
also without having to depend in a great measure upon the pecu-
liar state of the atmosphere, in order to enable the engines to
surmount such inclined planes at all.
" It is extremely desirable, in laying out a main line of rail-
way Jike this, to avoid as much as possible passing through a
high country, as in so doing you not only invariably meet with
difiiculties in the form of extensive works to be executed, and
inclined planes to be overcome, but you also traverse a country
much more subject to the inclemency of the weather, especially
in winter, where in high countries the snow, a great impeder to
railway travelling, remains so long a time upon the ground.
—
* Report, September 13th, 1838.