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

RAILWAY SYSTEM AND ITS RESULTS. 457
our viaducts I am not able, at present, to give the precise extent ; but
some estimate may be formed from the fact of there beinff, in London
and the suburbs, nearly 11 miles of viaduct, passing through the
streets. Of Railway Bridges there must have been built at least
twenty-five thousand ; far more than all the bridges ever previously
known in England. But perhaps the magnitude of the railway works
undertaken in this country will be still more clearly exhibited, if you
consider the extent of the Earth-Works. Taking them at an average
of 70,000 cubic yards to a mile, they will measure 550,000,000 cubic
yards. What does this represent ? We are accustomed to regard St.
Paul's as a test for height and space ; but by the side of the pyramid
of earth these works would rear, St. Paul's would be but as a pigmy
by a giant. Imagine a mountain half a mile in diameter at its base,
and soaring into the clouds one mile and a half in height ;—that would
be the size of the mountain of earth which these earth-works would
form ; while St. James's Park, from the Horse Guards to Buckingham
Palace, would scarcely afford space for its base.
It is computed, that no less than 80,000,000 mUes are annually traversed
on our railways. Now, to run 80,000,000 miles per annum
aj miles of railway, at least, must be covered by trains, during every
second of time, throughout the entire year.
To work our railways, even to their present extent, there must be
at least 5,000 locomotive engines ; and supposing an engine with its
tender to measure only 35 feet, it will be seen, that the whole number
required to work our railway system would extend, in one straight line,
over 30 miles, or the whole distance from London to Chatham. But
these are only the engines and tenders. The number of vehicles of
every sort employed cannot be much less than 150,000. Taking the
length of each vehicle at 20 feet, you will find that, could 150,000 be
linked together in one train, they would reach from Loudon to Aber-
deen, or a distance of 500 miles.
Has any one present considered the value of this railway stock ?
Take the cost of each engine and tender at £2,000, and the average
cost of each carriage, truck, and wagon at £100, and you have a total
exceeding £25,000,000 invested in rolling stock alone.
But these are far from being all the startling facts connected with
railway enterprise. There are as many as 2,416 railway stations in
the United Kingdom,—one at least for every 45,000 passengers. The
various Companies have, in their direct employment, no less than
90,409 officers and servants. The consumption of coke by railway
engines amounts to no less than 1,300,000 tons of that fuel, repre-
senting upwards of 2,000,000 tons of coals ; so that in every minute
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