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

358 I-IFE OF GEOEGE STEPHENSON. [chap. xxix.
theless, the majority of the proprietors determined to support
Mr. Brunei, and to carry out his experiment to an issue. The
Great Western road was formed, and set to work with the aid
of George Stephenson's locomotives ;
result of the new system.
and the public waited the
Its inconvenience was not felt so long as the Great Western
line remained in the position anticipated by Mr. Brunei ; but
when, after the lapse of a few years, railways on the narrow
gauge met it at various points, and a break of continuity oc-
curred, involving the change of carriages both for passengers
and goods, it was felt to be a great public nuisance, loudly call-
ing for a remedy.
The same mistake was committed on the Eastern Counties
Railway, on which a gauge of five feet had been adopted, Mr.
Braithwaite, the engineer, being of opinion that an increase of
three and a half inches in the width of his line, would give him
better space for the machinery of his locomotive. But when
the northern and eastern extension of the same line was formed,
which was to work into the narrow gauge system of the Midland
Railway, Mr. Robert Stephenson, its new engineer, strongly
recommended the directors of the Eastern Counties line to alter
their gauge accordingly, for the purpose of securing uniformity
and they wisely adopted his recommendation. Mr. Braithwaite
himself afterwards justified the wisdom of this step, and stated
that he considered the narrow gauge " infinitely superior to any
other,'' more especially for passenger traffic*
The Great Western Company, however, would not adopt a
similar step ; they held by the superiority of their gauge. The
Company had invested a vast sum of money in constructing
their line, and perhaps thought it was too late to remedy the
admitted inconvenience of the want of continuity. The Birmingham
manufacturers were the first to experience its evils, in con-
sequence of the break of gauge at Gloucester, which involved,
great delay and loss from the transfer of goods. In 1844 they
held a public meeting on the subject, and protested against it
" as a commercial evil of the first magnitude." This formed the
* Evidence before the Gauge Commission, 1845.
;