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history of the world, of national progress almost unchecked, and of prosperity and happiness increased beyond all precedent. In considering the results produced, it is impossible to pass over the magnitude of the Works. Our tunnels have traversed hills and penetrated beneath mountains to the extent of nearly 70 miles. Of our viaducts I am not able, at present, to give the precise extent; but some estimate may be formed from the fact of there being, 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 miles are annually traversed on our railways. Now, to run 80,000,000 miles per annum, 2 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 London to Aberdeen, 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 waggon 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, representing upwards of 2,000,000 tons of coals; so that in every minute of time, throughout the year, 4 tons of coals are consumed, and 20 tons of water are flashed into steam of high elasticity. What does this represent? The water would afford a supply to the population of Liverpool at the rate of 22 gallons per head per diem, and the steam evolved is adequate to the maintenance of stationary engines of more than 130,000 horse power. The consumption of fuel is almost equal to the amount of coal exported from Great Britain to foreign countries, and is more than one-half the whole consumption of the Metropolis. If to this be added the amount that must be used in producing the rails and other iron required for the whole system, the value of railways to the coal-owner must be evident.

Ten years ago, in 1845, the entire number of passengers carried upon railways was 33,791,000 in the year. The railway system was, at that time, thought to be pretty well developed, at least as regarded the main channels of communication. Five years afterwards, in 1850, the number of passengers conveyed was 72,854,000, and in 1854, the number conveyed was 111,206,000. Thus the number of passengers has been more than trebled in ten years; and assuming an average of 14 persons to a ton, there would be a gross weight of upwards of 8,000,000 tons of passengers conveyed annually.

The average distance which these passengers are conveyed appears to be about 12 miles. The average number carried per day is about 300,000. Under the old coach system it was assumed, that on an average 10 passengers could be carried by each coach; therefore, to carry 300,000 passengers a day, 12 miles each, at least 10,000 coaches and 120,000 horses would be necessary. The national saving will be forcibly illustrated, if you

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consider the cost of running these coaches and maintaining these horses, against the fact that locomotive expenses on railways do not, on an average, exceed 94d. per mile.

The railway receipts for passengers have been in the following proportions:

The total receipts for goods, passengers, and from all other sources, were for the same years :

There has been no instance in the annals of any railway, where the annual traffic has not been of continuous growth. Some remarkable facts illustrate this truth. At one period the Midland Railway had the monopoly of the whole traffic to the North; that line being "the route" to the North of England and to Scotland. When the Caledonian was opened, some years ago, the North Western Railway, working in conjunction with it, was able to abstract the bulk of the Scotch traffic from the Midland line. Nevertheless, the Midland traffic continued to increase. At a later period the Great Northern was opened, affording almost a direct route to Nottingham, to Leeds, to York, and to Edinburgh. The Scotch traffic of the Midland was thereby annihilated, and its trade to the large towns named almost entirely abstracted; yet, with all this, the Midland receipts. continued to increase largely, chiefly in consequence of its local growth and the development of its mineral traffic.

This is one only of the many illustrations that might be offered of the rapid progress of a system which is now producing a gross annual revenue exceeding TWENTY MILLIONS STERLING.

Looking at all the circumstances of a Railway, the nature of its component parts, and the enormous amount of traffic over it, the constant depreciation necessarily becomes a source of serious consideration.

A permanent way may be said to consist of sleepers, chairs, and rails. The rails, it has been already stated, are 30,000 miles in length; which, at a reasonable average weight, will give about 2,225,000 tons of iron laid down in rails alone; resting upon not less than 50,000,000 iron chairs, weighing nearly 750,000 tons. So that you have, in the whole, not less than 3,000,000 tons of iron on the permanent ways of the United Kingdom.

Estimating the waste of iron, from wear and tear, oxidation, and loss in re-manufacture at (say) half a pound per yard annually, there cannot be less than 20,000 tons of iron to be every year replaced, and 200,000 tons of rails to be re-rolled. The sleepers, of which there are not less than 26,000,000 on our lines of railway, perish still more rapidly. What with decay from wet and other causes, the sleepers disappear at the rate of 2,000,000 per annum, at the least, and require to be wholly replaced every twelve or fourteen years. It is curious to consider the effect of this annual demand for sleepers. To provide 2,000,000 of new sleepers, 300,000 trees must every year be felled, supposing that each tree" will yield as many as six good sleepers. Now 300,000 trees can scarcely attain growth and maturity on less than 5,000 acres of forest. Consequently, 5,000 acres of forest must be annually cleared of timber to provide sleepers for our lines of railway.

A very important question presents itself as to the mode of meeting this heavy annual depreciation. The practice of some Railway Companies has been to set aside a fund, to make good the waste of material in the permanent way. With many Companies the amount which has been, or which ought to be thus set aside, as a Renewal Fund, has frequently occasioned great conflict of opinion. Among engineers there is, no doubt, much discussion on the details and various bearings of the question. Perhaps, however, it may be well to consider, whether there really is any good argument for a renewal fund at all.

When a railway is first opened, every thing being new, the annual depreciation will for some time go on in an increasing ratio. But it is obvious, that there must be a period in the age of the railway, when that annually-increasing ratio of depreciation must cease, and when the sum required for regular restoration and repair must become fixed and (except under extraordinary circumstances) almost certain. This may be illustrated by the case of an Insurance Company. Probably in the first year of the

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existence of such a company it sustains no loss by death, and in the second and third years only one or two lives drop. For some succeeding years the losses from this source increase in an augmenting ratio. But a period arrives, when the annual decrement of life becomes fixed, and except in the case of pestilence or other extraordinary occurrence, nearly certain. As it is with humanity, so it is with rails and sleepers. The depreciation, small at first, increases gradually, until at length it arrives at an average, and becomes fixed and nearly certain every year. This being so, why should an extraordinary special fund be set aside to provide for renewals and repairs? Those renewals and repairs are, under such circumstances, as well established a charge as the salaries of officers or the cost of fuel. If there is to be a Renewal Fund, the true principle would seem to be, to set aside a considerable sum in the earlier years of a railway, until the period when the average is reached, after which time the repairs should be a regular charge upon receipts.

The argument by which a Renewal Fund is supported, is the assumed desirability of equalising dividends; but it has been already stated, that there has never been a case where the gross annual receipts of a railway have diminished. The growth of a railway is, and must be, progressive, save under very exceptional circumstances. Not only does the very existence of a railway furnish excitement for trade and create taste for travel, but our population increases at the rate of 15 per cent. in every decade, which of itself affords assurance that, apart from transitory causes of disturbance, the traffic of railways must increase. The ground for a Renewal Fund is removed by these considerations; and if Railway Companies would only, honestly and fairly, keep their roads in sound and substantial condition, the better system, probably, would be to make the annual costs of repairs a charge on revenue, and to entirely dispense with such a Renewal Fund.

Let it be observed, that the arguments which apply to the permanent way, apply equally to the Rolling Stock of Railways. Accountants and Committees of Investigation have been in the habit of calling for annual valuations of rolling stock, as if such valuations threw any light upon the real state of the affairs of a Company. The truth would seem to be, that a valuation of rolling stock is a fallacy. Suppose a Railway Company commences with 100 engines, costing £2,500 a piece, its locomotive stock will