BackTrack Volume 27 (2013)

Published by Pendragon, Easingwold, YO61 3YS

Number 1 (January)

Restored Midland Railway Compound 4-4-0 No.1000 has the signal to leave Nottingham Midland with a special on 27 September 1959. (R.C. Riley). front cover

The best exotic Midland Hotel. Michael Blakemore. 3
Editorial extolling the Art Deco delights of the Midland Hotel in Morecambe with its art works by Eric Gill: murals and bas reliefs in a style far removed from the austere Josaih Stamp.

Focus on Chester. Hugh Ballantyne. 4-5.
Colour photo-freature dominated by the London & North Western Railway's signal boxes, especailly the No. 2 box opened in 1890. Manchester to Llandudno DMU passing alongside No. 2 box on 25 August 1979; three white and blue livery DMU sets passing racecourse on 09.10 Manchester to Rhyl working on 15 September 1979; Class 40 No. 40 020 on 11.05 Manchester to Holyhead in deep sandstone cutting; No. 40 125 passing alongside No. 6 box on 15.40 Manchester to Bangor, and No. 47 198 passing No. 2 box with empty stock from Llandudno to Oxley sidings, last three on 25 August 1979.

Mike Thorne. Birmingham in the 1950 and '60s: a personal experience. 6-11.
Writer was a Great Western enthusiast who favoured watching trains at Tysley (including illicit entry into the locomotive depot) or Snow Hill station rather than New Street. but participated in pilgrimages to the West Coast Main Line at Atherstone (by bicycle), Tamworth amd Rugby where Gresley A3 Pacifics could be seen. Illustrations: rebuilt Patriot No. 45521 Rhyl at New Street departing with express for Liverpool; No. 6004 King George III arriving Snow Hill with a Birkenhead to Paddington express formed of carmine & cream stock (colour: T.J. Edgington); No. 6019 King Henry V departing for London from Leamington Spa; 57XX No. 9724 with short freight exiting Snow Hill Tunnel with nortbound freight; No. 90448 heading through Lapworth northwards with a set of London Underground stock; Class 5 Nos. 44814 and 44963 in Saltley roundhouse; Class 3F No. 43621 at Bromford Bridge heading towards Tamworth High Level; No. 45552 Silver Jubilee at Stafford heading north..

Jeffrey Wells. The Royton branch. 12-18.
Opened by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway on 21 March 1864 as part of its general improvement of its lines to and beyond Oldham, obviating the Middleton Incline and extending to Rochdale. The Railway Gazette in 1924 included an LMS announcement that lines to Oldham and beyond as far as Shaw and Royton would be electrified on the L&YR side-contact system and employ similar rolling stock. The junction off the Irk Valley loop was to be included. The cost was put at £600,000 and work was expected to be completed in twelve months. There was a brnach off the branch to Higginshaw Gas Works which had opened by Oldham Corporation in 1871. Two accidents are described: the first was on 31 October 1908 when a freight hauled by 0-6-0 No. 1114 failed to stop at the top of the 1 in 62 incline and ran into empty carriages standing in the station. The fireman was killed and the failure of the sanders contributed. E. Druitt reported on 31 December 1908. An empty stock DMU became out of control descending on 8 February 1961: the driver was able to jump clear. Illustrations: Royton Junction station looking towards Shaw on 19 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); Fowler Class 3 2-6-2T No. 40014 leaving Royton Junction towards Oldham with four-coach train in 1950s (Jim Davenport); panorama from Higginshaw Lane bridge showing Austerity 2-8-0 ascending bank tender-first and Gas Works siding in 1958 (Jim Davenport); Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42379 in Royton station with 11.00 for Manchester Victoria on 19 April 1964 (H.C. Casserley); Cravens two-car DMU at Royton in September 1965 (Eric Blakey); ex Midland 0-6-0T No. 47202 and Class 3 2-6-2T No, 82003 on Cotton Spinner railtour at Royton on 16 April 1966 (Jim Davenport); Royton signal box; Higginshaw Sidings Signal Box (Tom Wray); train in the street on 8 February 1961.

Alan Bennett. God's benison on the travelling public: the Great Western landscape experience. 19-22.
Very attractive feature. The Great Western Railway promoted itself through prestige advertising and might be accused of elitism. It was fond of expressions like "old world charm". It published literature with titles which expressed this clearly: The Glory of the Thames (1923) and Mary Munton's The Glorious Thames (1935)  (KPJ: these items appear to fall outside normal bibliography: the cover is reproduced which shows an upper class twit punting his lady friend whilst holding a cancer stick in his hand). In the latter much was made of Mapledurham and Mapledurham House, setting for Galsworthy's Forsyths. Come to the Isles of Scilly: land of flowers and sunshine (1931) made much of the islands' daffodil growing, the glorious natural flowers and the exotic gardens on Tresco (cover reproduced); S.P.B. Mais's Devon (1934: cover reproduced and described: depicts Bolt Head, cottages, a deserted sandy bay — Blackpool); and Western Hills and Moorland (covers of 1935 and 1939 reproduced: former shows hunting with hounds on foot; latter a surreal image which perhaps reflected national uncertainty). Other colour images included: coloured postcard of College Barges on Thames at Oxford (GWR postcard) and The Malverns (painting from Holiday Haunts).

Alistair F. Nisbet. The militant furies and the railways. 23-31.
Actions taken against railway property by members of the Suffragette movement which sought voting rights for women (KPJ considers that it is extraordinary that his Mother was not entitled to vote until not long before he was born: she always voted for the Labour Party). The article concentrates on the campaign of civil disobedience and minor acts of sabotage which included damage to golf courses at Cromer, Sheringham and Sandwich; vocal protests at public meetings (to which the ladies transported themselves by train) and sabotage through arson and explosions of railway property. Specific acts described included those on Saunderton station which was virtually new, Croxley Green station, Oxted station and on a train near Stockport. Newspaper reports which were usually hostile to the "cause" are noted. None of these attrocities are illustrated and the  article is illustrated by photographs of stations in their normal somnabulent state. Illustrations: Harrow-on-the-Hill station; Sacre 2-4-0T with GCR push & pull coach at Aylesbury station (see letter from Michael J. Smith on page 125 for correct interpretation of what was going on); auto-train at Saunderton in 1950; Croxley Green station entrance; Kettering station ("where a special watch was kept for arsonists"); Hazelwell station; Oxted station in Southern Railway period; Digswell Viaduct (Ken Nunn); Leuchars Junction station; Blaby station.; Eden Park station; Runcorn bridge with Transporter bride in background; Aylesbury station c1930

Crimson rambling. 32-3
Colour photo-freature of No. 1000 , preserved Midland compound: in Derby Works on 25 May 1959; on Stephenson Locomotive Society special in Toton yard on 27 September 1959 and arriving (see editorial correction) at Derby with same train (all R.C. Riley); at Sheffield Midland on another SLS tour on 30 August 1959 (P. Hughes), and on The East Midlander at Rugby Central on 11 September 1960.

Edward Talbot. Centre bearings, weak frames and all that. 34-7.
In 1934 the last Webb Jumbo 2-4-0 No. 5001 Snowden was broken up: it had its original frames of 1875. Yet Cox had insisted from the 1920s onwards that former LNWR locomotives suffered from weak frames: citing LMS Journal No. 7 (reproduction of memo to Symes), Locomotive Panorama, and writer could have added Chronicles of Steam. Most interesting is a reference to a talk given by Kenneth Cantlie to the London & North Western Society in the 1970s when he stated that he had chatted with Stanier when he was on leave from China and they had discussed the frame breakage problem which surprised Cantlie who found on visiting Camden shed that the centre bearings and the frames which supported them and provided increased rigidity had been removed. This is substantiated in Nock's Locomotives of C.J. Bowen Cooke, who added that Wicken, the DLS, could not understand the reason for this. The opening illustrations show in plan form a 5 inch gauge model of the centre bearings and additional frame supports  on a D class 0-8-0 and three photographs taken by Peter Ward of where the centre frame used to be on No. 49151 at Crewe Works on 26 February 1950. The other illustrations are of Cauliflower 0-6-0 No. 1244 at Willesden shed in eraly 1920s; Renown Class 4-4-0 No. 1943 Queen Alexandra at Tamworth in early 1920s and Beardmore Prince of Wales No. 25797 under coaling plant at Rugby. The article also introduces the shabby treatment of Beames and Cortez Leigh after the takeover of the LNWR by the L&Y. Hughes must have known about the significance of the centre bearings: KPJ were they used on Horwich products with Joy's gear? See also letters from Adrian Tester and Allan C. Baker on page 125. Also from David W. Green and  Joseph Cliffe on page 190.

Peter Tatlow. The romance of the journey to the Isle of Skye. 38-41
Based around a poem entitled At Euston by A.M. Harbord, about whom little is known, but Harbord is a North Norfolk name associated with the Gunton Estate and the Lords Suffield. Tatlow considers the journey in terms of train schedules in moderate detail between 1905 and 1936, although the poem probably reflects on a time before restaurant cars were provided on the trains and breakfast baskets were put on board at Kingussie. The availability of sleeping cars, both first class and third is also considered, as well as through carriages and sleepers conveyed to Inverness from King's Cross as well as Euston. Illustrations: Highland Railway 4-6-0 No. 149 Duncraig Castle at Drumochter with non-gangwayed lavatory stock (coloured photograph); Inverness station with arrival of reain formed of East Coast Joint Stock and connecting train for northward journey in early twentieth century; Highland Railway sleeping car ticket issued at Dalwhinnie; Jones 4-4-0 No. 100 Glen Bruar at Achnashellach heading toards Kyle and Duke class 4-4-0 No. 63 Inverness passing through Dirnish station with a works train during the construction of the extension to Kyle of Lochalsh and Kyle of Lochalsh station when new with Skye Bogie on a freight.

Below standard [gauge]. 42-5.
Black & white photo-freature: Jerry M (Hunslet 1ft 10¾in gauge quarry tramway locomotive at Dinorwic Slate Quarry near Llanberis; Festiniog Railway 0-4-0ST at Blaenau Ffestiniog c1900; Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway in early 1960s with 2-8-2 River Esk and Driver Dick Long ans small boy posed in Sunny South poster style (see caption correction); Vale of Rheidol Railway with Prince of Wales in BR corporate blue livery and brass "train station logo" on cabside; Baldwin 4-6-0T Hummy on 60cm gauge Ashover Light Railway; Leek & Manifold Light Railway (2ft 6in gauge) 2-6-4T J.B. Earle c1905: Southern Railway 1ft 11½ gauge: two trains cross at Blackmoor in August 1927 and Snowden Moutain Railway competing with walkers clad in unsuitable garments and footwear approach summit from Clogwyn..

Belonging to Glasgow 46-9.
Colour photo-freature (somewhat liberal interpretation of Glasgow's boundaries): No. 46102 Black Watch at head of southbound express in Platform No. 1 at Glasgow Central; Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80027 heading for Clyde Bridge from western side of Glasgow Central in April 1965 (T.B. Owen); Class 5 No. 44672 crossing City Union Bridge with train from St. Enoch in June 1963 (J.M. Cramp); Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42277 in Port Glasgow station on 2 June 1963 with 16.25 from Glasgow Central; J37 0-6-0 No. 64623 with enthusaists' brake van railtour at Springburn on 27 March 1963 (1964 see Editorial correction) with Blue Train Class 303 behind (David Idle and previous); Caprotti Standard Class 5 No. 73152 waiting vdeparture from Buchanan Street on 10 June 1965 (Alan Tyson); Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80118 "removing stock"?/departing (local train headlamp) from Glasgow Central on 19 April 1965 (David Idle); Duchess Pacific No. 46244 King George VI in red livery at St. Rollox shed on 27 March 1964 (David Idle); panorama across Clyde towards Craigendoran with Ladyburn shed in foreground with No. 76002 thereat in April 1965 (T.B. Owen); Caledonian Railway Pug 0-4-0ST No. 56039 with incorrect facing lion emblem on saddle tank at St. Rollox in 1958. See also letter from Leonard Rogers on page 125 which corrects overall thrust on dates of electrification given in captions.  

J.D. Bennett. No home was complete without a local railway timetable. 50-1.
Murray's of Glasgow is not included: so this article is far from complete: proffers lesser compilations including facsimile illustrations of Dobson's for Preston (1872 example shown); Ford's for Stourbridge (1914 for Severn Valley line); Bacon's Oxford ABC Guide (1926) and Reid's Newcastle ABC Guide (1949 shown). Others were produced for many British lesser cities like Liverpool. Southampton and Birmingham, but this author has never read about the Second City of the British Empire. Some local timetables were compiled by Bradshaw.

Mike G. Fell and R.A.S. Hennessey. Immingham 100: the port and its technology. Part Two. 52-6.
Part 1 see previous Volume page 720 et seq. Illustrations: Birds' eye view of Immingham Dock from Great Central Railway publication of 1913: Fortunino Matania); plan of Immingham Docks (Associated British Ports); Aerial photograph (all colour); SS. Dewsbury built Earles Shipbuilding, Hull in 1910 and named by Frances May (Sir Sam Fay's daughter); Head Wrightson coal hoisr on Western Jetty (colour: Matania); Immingham engine shed on 17 June 1951 with J94 Nos. 68080 and 68069 and J63 No. 68205; and O4/8 No. 63819 and O2/3 (both R.E. Vincent); and Eastern Jetty with passengers boarding a cruise liner from train on railway alongside.

Cornish crossings. John Spencer Gilks. 57
Colour photo-freature: Royal Albert Bridge, Saltash on 1 April 1992; St. Germans Viaduct on 4 October 1996

L.A. Summers. Swindon's acquaintance with rotary cam valve gears. 58-9.
Refers back to page 437 in previous Volume and to page 347. The interaction between the Associated Locomotive Equipment Co., who supplied Caprotti poppet valve gear the Great Western Railway which fitted Lentz poppet valve gear to No. 2937 Caynham Court, the possible modification of one of the 10XX County class with Caprotti valve gear, and the actual appliactions of this gear to No. 71000 Duke of Gloucester and to some of Standard Class 5 4-6-0s and later LMS Class 5. Swindon and its staff were involved with the controlled road testing of No. 71000.

Readers' Forum 60

Suffixes, Prefixes, Ampersands and Brackets/ Forty Days/Editorial gremlinia
On p742 of the December issue the first sentence of the second paragraph in the third column should read "On 12th March 1922 Amersham on the Extension Line became Amersham & Chesham Bois", My proofreading error – apologies to the author et al. In 'Forty Days' it is clearly No.D261 on the bottom of p730, while opposite on p731 the locomotive at Manchester LR is No.D236 (not D326). In the Editorial it was actually St. Leonards (though part of Hastings) which has Warrior Square and West Marina stations. Sorry, but I've not been to either! Ed.

Poets and railways. Robert Emblin
Regarding William Wordsworth's opposition to the proposed Oxenholme-Windermere branch line, it is not widely known that in opposing the railway scheme William was exercising double standards. Previously he had been left a significant sum of money and enquired of a friend who was well-versed in financial matters to recommend a railway scheme that would provide a good return for his money because he had heard that there was good money to be made in railway investment. It is many years since I turned up that particular nugget and I cannot remember what became of the enquiry but it provides a classic example of 'nimby' reinforced by 'do as I say and not as I do'.

Under the Woodhead wires. Ted Gibbins 
In 1952, at 21-years old, he was station master at Dovecliffe on the Sheffield Victoria-Barnsley route which joined the Wath- Penistone-Manchester line at Wombwell. His responsibilities included the formation of works trains from the electrification works depot (Blacker Hill) for the MSW at the Eastern Region end. At Dovecliffe there were sand drags in the main line. All loose-coupled trains had to come to a stand at the home signal before it was pulled off. Wagon brakes were then pinned down to descend the 1 in 56 gradient. Any train over-running the signal went into the sand drag and had to be drawn back clear by another engine. Westbound coal trains from Wath had an electric locomotive banking to prevent runaways down the steep bank. In pre-electric days there were two steam engines at the front and two at the back, the latter being replaced at times by the U1Garrett. The two electric locomotives were leading on the return journey with empty wagons to provide braking down the steep gradient. They had three braking systems: locomotive wheel brakes, rheostatic braking and regenerative braking: which put current back into the overhead line. In steam days it was the practice for the guard, after walking to the front to tell the driver what the load was, to wait at the yard exit and board his brake van as it came by. When this was attempted with electric locomotivess, guards were left behind because trains were moving too fast at the exit! The MSW lost its main traffic — coal — with the construction of bigger generating stations in the Yorkshire coalfields feeding the super-grid. Moving electricity via the super-grid was cheaper and quicker.

Tea on the train. John Macnab
It is correct to state that on The Elizabethan, newly renamed thus in 1953 from The Capitals Limited," the two sets used were post-war Thompson LNER stock, viz BG, FK, RF, TO (used for dining purposes), 3xTK, RB, 2xTK and BCK. The two RBs, Nos.1705/6, ran in the short lived Highwayman service of the ER in 1970, moving to Scotland in 1976 when it would appear that we had transferred out of the Scottish Region too many of our BR-built examples of such. They were withdrawn in 1979, the last passenger carriages to pre-nationalisation design in main line use on BR. (They also clashed with the TOPS numbering system in vogue by this time as there were two BR standard RBs with the same numbers!). The Gresley 1938-built restaurant car, No.E9194E, shown on p670 on a Newcastle-Bournemouth working, was the specific vehicle built for this service which, by appearing on this working in 1957, was possibly pure chance. The corresponding service from Bournemouth, in LNER days, was provided by the SR.

Tea on the train. George Moon 
In picture of Waverley station on page 669 (previous Volume), provided a challenge to identify it. The first clue is that the corridor tender is one of three cut-down at the rear end to clear the low ex-LNWR water columns at Euston and elsewhere on the LMR for the 1948 locomotive exchanges. The prominence of the chimney indicates a Kylchap-fitted engine. The three A4s involved in the 1948 exchanges were Nos. E22 Mallard with tender 5323, 60033 Seagull with tender 5325 and 60034 newly renamed Lord Faringdon, attached to tender 5332. By the date of the photograph, tender 5323 had passed from Mallard to single-blast A4 No.60029 Woodcock, leaving the field to Nos.60033/4 which exchanged tenders on 28 May 1954. The length of the nameplate indicates that the locomotive depicted is No.60034 Lord Faringdon with plate considerably longer than Seagull, paired with tender 5325. Having deduced all that, examination with a powerful magnifying glass shows the cab number just legible as 60034.

Tea on the train. W.M. Tollan
Despite food rationing the main hotel in Forres provided a Sunday afternoon High Tea. For only one shilling and sixpence, a customer could consume as much of the many varied items on offer as the customer wanted. Be assured that we ever-hungry 'erks' from RAF Kinloss never failed to make the most of that!

Where trains (and trams) meet planes. Robert Bushby 
Adds another tram-served airport, and one that lasted longer than the Paisley example. Blackpool Airport (Squires Gate) had a direct tram route via Lytham Road. Writer used it to go plane spotting by tram and recalled his disappointment on returning to Blackpool from a half-term holiday in October of 1961 in finding that the trams had been replaced by buses. But Squires Gate was and still is served by a station on branch to Blackpool South Shore. Although the platform is not contiguous with the terminal, recent experience shows that it  a five-minute walk with a wheeled suitcase to the check-in desk, whilst the total distance from train to plane can be somewhat shorter and quicker than, for example, at Gatwick or Manchester.

Oxford Gaudy. Allan James
Notes that picture at top of page 645 (previous Volume) shows the 'Swanbourne empties' from Oxford South Yard (at 15.55 to Fletton's Sidings in 1959 working timetable). It is heading down towards Oxford North Junction and not from the Bletchley line as stated. This was a regular ex-LNW 0-8-0 working and when the rails were greasy or there was a particularly heavy load of empties, it would grind to a halt on the gradient before the station and require banking assistance from the South Yard shunting locomotive.

Irish 0-6-0s.  J.A. Cassells.
Corrections to captions: p. 692, J15 No.186 was not making quite its first outing in preservation: The photograph was taken on 13 May 1967 after it had arrived light engine from York Road to Ballymena to double head the RPSI Dalriada railtour. While this was its first run in preservation on a passenger special, No.186 had already spent two days based at York Road in revenue-earning service. One was a day as the station pilot at York Road on 10 May. The other involved two Northern Ireland Railways ballast trains on 11 May, from Magheramorne to Carrickfergus and Ballycarry. The picture at Wexford (bottom page 693) features two separate trains. The steam engine is almost certainly working a Waterford to Wexford service via New Ross and Macmine Juntion. The train behind, hauled by an 'A' Class diesel locomotive, would have been on a direct service from Dublin, possibly continuing to Rosslare Harbour.

The summer of '62. Alan Hireson
Correction to number of locomotive on last northbound 'Pines' out of Bath on p680; it was No.44659 and not as stated. There are photographs and records which indicate that 44659 is the correct number. This is not the first time that No.44859 has been quoted over the years; a brief article of mine commemorating the 40th anniversary of the last 'Pines' published in a local heritage railway journal ten years ago was altered without my knowledge to the incorrect number; this article subsequently found its way on to the internet – unfortunately still in error – and efforts to correct the indentification have so far been fruitless [Google Pines Express Hireson]

Some Railway Recollections 1900-1914. Adrian Vicary
There is a minor, but long-lived, error in the caption on p660 of the November issue. This postcard, and the original photograph on which it is based, has been mis-captioned on many occasions even to the extent of stating that the river being crossed is the Yare. The bridge depicted is the Oulton Broad (sometimes Carlton) Swing Bridge situated between Lake Lothing and Oulton Broad itself just to the west of Lowestoft, Suffolk. The Trowse swing Bridge which crossed the River Wensum near Norwich was almost identical except that it had one short girder approach span at either end and the river was, and is, in a much less open situation. The Oulton bridge of 1907 is still in existence whereas that at Trowse (of 1906) was completely replaced in 1987 during the electrification of the London to Norwich main line. See also the photograph in Vol.21 No.5 p290.

Book Reviews 61-2.

Doing time inside: apprenticeship and training in GWR's Swindon Works. Rosa Matheson. History Press. LAS ****
Summers notes a serious error on page 106 but does not divulge its nature. He also observes a reference to Sammy Collett [sic] and Bill Stanier hosing down apprentices who were attempting to go on strike. One suspects from the review that the Author paints a fairly harsh picture of the apprentice system at Swindon, which is a picture that has been portrayed before. Trade apprentices were subjected to a cast system whereby they were expected to perform the same task as their father.

Macleod's other island: the story of the Southern Railway's first assistant for the Isle of Wight. Terry Hastings and Roger Silsbury. CPA *****
Phil Atkins' review gives sufficient information to greatly enrich the steamindex biography of A.B. Macleod. who was born in Harley Street, London in 1900: son of a medical physician. Apprenticed under Lawson Billinton at Brighton Works from 1919. Between 1928 and 1934 he became Assistant Isle of Wight in charge of overall operations thereon. Later became Stores Controller of the London Midland Region. During WW2 he assisted Ian Allan to start his publishing business and was the author of the McIntosh locomotives of the Caledonian Railway.

Peter's Railway – a dark and stormy night and Peter's Railway – a bit of energy. Christopher Vine. Author. DWM ****
"...suitable for children of all ages."

Steaming across Britain. Julian Holland. AA Publishing. DWM ***
This is the sort of trash which Norfolk Libraries buy (12 copies: none on loan, yet have not acquired copies of either of the first two titles which should be of interest to the readers of railway books). DWM states that this book is lavishly illustrated and excellently produced yet (in effect) has nothing to say. KPJ thinks that he saw a copy in the Book Hive, or it may have been Jarrolds in Norwich.

Southern rails around Southampton including the Fawley branch. Ian Drummond. Holne. JC ****
"Warmly recommended" (not bought by Norfolk Libraries: in spite of being far more interesting to railway enthusiast readers than rubbish above acquired by the truck load)

Britain's lost railways: the twentieth-century destruction of our finest railway architecture. John Minnis. Aurum, 192pp. GBS *****
This is an excellent review of an excellent book which was purchased by Norfolk Libraries and has already justified a page to itself on the steamindex website

Snow on high ground. D. Smith. rear cover
Snow on Whernside with steam hauled northbound freight crossing Ribblehead Viaduct in April 1967.

Number 2 (February)

Class 45 No.45 015 enters Scarborough Central station with the 08.47 Bridlington-London King's Cross on 2 August 1980, passing under the famous gantry which has a signal clear for a departing train. (Gavin Morrison). Front cover
See also colour photo-feature on pp. 96 et seq

To publish or not to publish? Allan C. Baker. 67
Comment based around a short history, which has remained beneath the electronic horizon so far as KPJ is concerned, on the history of locomotives: more correctly the Institution of Locomotive Engineers entitled One hundred years of locomotive & rolliing stock engineering. London: Institution of Mechaanical Engineers, 2011. This is a 53pp pamphlet and is similar to one published by the Stephenson Locomotive Society to commemorate its Centenary and reviewed in Backtrack, etc. This one seems to have been buried under a stone until now. Baker uses this examination of the history of publihing by two major institutions to call for accuracy and verification through verbal discussion and correspondence. See Editorial response and letters from David Andrews, Roger Hennessey and Martin Adams..

'Western' experience. 68-9.
Colour photo-feature of Western 2700hp diesel hydraulic locomotives which were popular with enthusiasts fot their "Ercoll" external features: No. D1073 Western Bulwark in maroon livery outside Swindon Works on 21 June 1964 (David Idle). No. D1028 Western Hussar with Class 50 No. 50 002 (both in rail blue) at Plymouth Laira on 26 June 1976 (Stephen Taverner); No. D1067 Western Druid (blue livery) with syphon wagons at Penzance on 26 May 1974 (Steven Taverner);  No. D1005 Western Venturer (in glorious red) on 16.10 Paddington to Birkenhead near Fenny Compton on 30 July 1963 (David Idle); and blue No. D1072 Western Glory on coal train from South Wales passing Pilning on 20 August 1976. (Steven Taverner)  See also rear cover.

James Johnson. The architecture of the Chester and Holyhead Line. 70-4.
Takes an Irish view of the features by begininning on Ynys Gybi (Holy Island) with large Doric-style arch erected to commemorate the visit by King George IV. The insciption is in Latin on one side and Welsh on the other. A Cob (embankment) links the Island to Anglesey (Ynys Mon) and the main road and railway share this access to Holyhead Harbour. The station originally included a large hotel, but this has been demolished. The Bodorgan Tunnel, more correctly two short tunnels, exist near the nearby halt. Maltraeth Viaduct (illustrated) was strengthened in 1966 to accommodate container traffic to the port. It is a squat structure and is Grade II listed.  The Britannia Bridge (only historical remains illustrated) was Robert Stephenson's masterpiece which complemented Telford's ealier suspension bridge across the Menia Strait. It was destroyed by an accidental fire in May 1970 and reopened as a steel arch bridge in January 1972 using the original stone piers amd was subsequently further diminished by adding a road above the railway. Menai Bridge station has disappeared; substantial early remains are in situ at Bangor: Francis Thompson buildings still in use and the Egyptian portal to Bangor Tunnel. Illustration of railway replacement bridge before road added from mainland in 1972. Bangor station includes both Francis Thompson's buildings which are still in use and later LMS additions which are now of interest in themselves. At Conwy/Conway the Robert Strephenson tubular structure still remains and the architectural endeavours to blend the railway with the Castle, but the railway station buildings have been destroyed. There are still a few remains at Llanfairfechan and Pemaenmawr. Llandudno Junction shifted location and Llandudno station is described as "somewhat dishevilled". Part 2 Volume 28 page 175 et seq

Bill Taylor. The railway in court: passengers' luggage.75-9.
Case law: on 10 March 1866 a Mr Hudson travelled from Beeston near Nottingham to King's Cross on a Midland Railway first class ticket and on the return journey he was conveying a toy — "spring horse" and was forced to pay half a crown for transporting this item. He won at the County Court in Derby, but the Midland Railway appealed and Mr Justice Lush decided in favour of the railway and in the process attempted to define "luggage". Earlier a travelling saalesman called Cahill lost his claim against the London & North Western Railway for losing his luggage as this "luggage" consisted of trade samples which should have been handed to the railway as merchandise and payment made for is conveyance. Similarly Talley lost his claim against the Great Western Railway as he was judged to have been negligent in attending to his possessions. On the other hand, Miss Patscheider won her claim against the same company when her luggage was stolen between Paddington station and the Great Western Hotel.

Meet the 'Clans' 80
Colour photo-feature: No. 72007 Clan Mackintosh (with red backing to nameplate) at Carlisle Kingmoor on 11 June 1962; No. 72002 Clan Campbell waiting to leave Carlisle with a Glasgow to Liverpool express in September 1960 (Trevor Owen); No. 72001 Clan Cameron at Shap Wells with a carmine and cream livried Blackpool to Glasgow train and banker at rear on 26 June 1957; No. 72008 Clan Macleod (with red backing to nameplate) at Carlisle Kingmoor, and No. 72006 Clan Mackenzie (with red backing to nameplate and yellow stripe on cabside) at Farington Junction with express freight.  

George Smith. 'Dear Timothy ...': fragments from the Hackworth Family Archive. 82-5.
Hackworth Family Archive is held in the National Railway Museum. Much of the Archive is concerned with the Timothy's family matters: he was a devout Christian and greatly concerned with family matters, including one daughter who suffered from severe illness. Nevertheless tha Archive does throw light on both of his key locomotives: the Sanspareil built for the Rainhill Trials and the Royal George which introduced the six-coupled type which successfully countered the haulage of coal by stationary engines on the Stockton & Darlington Railway. See also letter from Norman Hill on p. 253. and the author's Wylam: 200 years of railway history. (2012)

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'England's Edison': Magnus Volk and his electric railways. 86-91.
On 4 August 1883 Magnus Volk opened a short two foot gauge railway laid directly on the shingle beach at Brighton operated by electricity generated by a gas engine. In essence this replicated a system initiated by Werner Siemens in Berlin in 1879. On 7 April 1884 a greatly improved and extended version was initiated using 2ft 8½in gauge track. The railway extended for about half mile and included a passing loop and was powered by a larger gas engine and current was fed through the running rails until 1886 when an off-centre third rail was added to supply current. In November 1896 the Brighton and Rottingdean Seaside Electric Tramroad was opened from the Banjo Groyne to Rottingdean with piers at these points and at Ovingdean Gap. The track was based on concrete  blocks below the high tide mark and the cars travelled on tall legs. The system was severely damaged in the first winter and did not reopen until July 1897. The line suffered further storm damage and closed in 1900. The slow progress through the water at high tide made the system unreliable. Many of the blocks remain along the shore. In May 1901 the railway was extended to Black Rock where there used to be a lido, and there is now a Marina. Many of the illustrations are courtesy of the Tramway Mueum Society and the rolling stock is listed in a table. Some cars were acquired from the Southend Pier. The line is now run by the City Council. See also letter from Mike Hayward on p. 253.

Eric Bruton in Edinburgh. 92-5
Black & white photo-feature: V3 2-6-2T departing Waverley with 18.23 stopping train to Thornton Junction on Saturday 3 June 1954 (rolling stock must inspire letter from John Macnab) NB A3 in platform on left and Corporation tramcar on bridge behind; A4 No. 60012 Commonwealth of Australia leaving Waverley on 08.35 Glasgow Queen Street to King's Cross on 23 June 1954; Forth Bridge with J39 crossing on a freight photographed from steam ferry Mary Queen of Scots on 8 June 1951; J37 No. 64551 on northbound freight on Bridge photographed from 17.33 North Queensferry to Edinburgh on same day as previous; and D30 4-4-0 No. 62429 The Abbot arriving at North Queensferry on 15.43 ex-Edinburgh to Ladybank with Forth Bridge behind on same day as previous two; D49 No. 62713 Aberdeenshire climbing 1 in 70 towards North Queensferry Tunnel with 12.08 ex Thornton Junction on 29 June 1954; D11/2 No. 62678 Luckie Mucklebackit on 09.10 to Inverkeithing on 8 June 1951 exiting The Mound Tunnel; B1 Nos. 61342 and 61134 leaving Haymarket Tunnel with 17.00 ex-Glasgow Queen Street on 23 June 1954 see also letter from Heny Knox on p. 253 and J83 0-6-0T No. 68477 still lettered "BRITISH RAILWAYS" with St Andrew's House above presumably taken during 1951 visit as Thompson coach in ersatz-teak livery behind. ;

Sunny Scarborough. Gavin Morrison. 96-8
Colour photo-feature See also front cover illustration: all photographs taken on 2 August 1980. No. 45 062 arriving at Platform 1 from Wellingborough; No. 45 015 (as on front cover)now leaving on 10.15 for Birmingham; No. 40 085 on empty stock with No. 40 122 waiting for next working; diminutive No. 03 089 hauling empty stock; No. 45 062 at Platform 1 on 13.30 to Sheffield with No. 31 313 alongside, and Deltic No. 55 011 The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers leaving on 12.00 to Glasgow Queen Street and contributing black carbon particles to Global Warming!

Work in progress in Penrith. David Idle. 99
Colour photo-feature: 26 August 1967: Class 5 No. 45310 with strange very mixed freight of refrigerated containers and oil tank wagons (type seen on full-size model railways like Poppy Line) passing through approaches to and new concrete over unfinished M6 Motorway

Alistair F. Nisbet. The Lavenham Line. 100-8.
The Ipswich & Bury Railway opened to passengers on 24 December 1846. The projected Essex & Suffolk Railway would have served the area, but the areaa had to wait until 7 August 1862 to be authorised and was constructed by Brassey and opened on 9 August 1865, having failed its initial inspection by Colonel Yolland on 6 July 1865.
Illustrations: J15 No. 65451 (without discs or headlamp) with single line token being exchanged at Bury St Edmunds Junction on 13 April 1949; Cockfield station and goods yard in Great Eastern period; exterior of Bury St Edmunds station in Edwardian period; exterior of Lavenham station  in 1961; E4 Nos. 62797 and 62785 pass at Long Melford (Ian C. Allen), overall view of Sudbury station; E4 No. 62785 (without discs or headlamp) passing site of Eastgate station; C12 No. 67385 (without discs or headlamp) at Welnetham station (Ian C. Allen); F6 No. 67237 (with disc headcode) at Cockfield (Ian C. Allen), gentlemen's ornate cast iron toilet at Cockfield; J15 No. 65391 running tender-first leaving Lavenham with J19 No. 64666 shunting (Ian C. Allen); J17 No. 65503 on freight at Long Melford on 4 July 1959; Lavenham goods yard in 1961; J15 No. 65420 with spark arrester outside Bury St Edmunds engine shed; C12 No. 67367 (with disc headcode) at Long Melford on 2 April 1956 (T.J. Edgington); B1 between Lavenham and Long Melford on track lifting train (Ian C. Allen).

Greg Morse. Push-pull accident at Polmont. 108-11.
High speed push & pull operation began on the Southern Region with the need to provide through services to Weymouth, beyond Bournemouth which was the initial limit of electrification from Waterloo. Trailer sets were propelled by four-coach tractor units from Waterloo to Bournemouth where a type 33 diesel electric locomotive  hauled the trailer set forward to Weymouth and then propelled it back to Bournemouth. It was highly successful, but eventually replaced by an extension of the third rail to Weymouth. In Scotland the Edinburgh to Glasgow Type 27 locomotives were used at both ends of sets of Mark II coaches and in effect presaged High Speed Trains, but the Type 27 was not designed for this type of work and a replacement had to be found. Modified Type 47 (47/7) were used to power sets of Mark III coaches with a driving trailer formed from Mark II stock (known as DBSO). On 30 July 1984 one of these units whn forming the 17.30 Edinburgh to Glasgow service was derailed by a cow on the line which led to 13 deaths and 17 serious injuries. The DBSO was thrown into the air by the impact. The Inspector of the accident was Major Anthony (Tony) King. Illustrations: aerial view of actual crash scene: other two photographs by David Christie are in colour and depict Class 47/7 locomotives and their push & pull units painted in ScotRail livery: No, 47 701 St. Andrews in Edinburgh Waverley on 12 May 1986 and 47 705 Lothian at top of Cowlairs Bank on 26 June 1987. Additional information from Author on p. 317 and important letter from Allan C. Baker (pp. 317-18) who attended the derailment as a professional engineer.

Away to Notts County. 112-13.
Colour photo-feature based on locations in Nottinghamshire without a hint of a forest or a canary, but first would pass Arsenal: A1 No. 60117 Bois Roussel near Scrooby in winter with up express (P.J. Hughes); Southwell station with former Midland Railway 0-4-4T with train for Newark in April 1959; K3 No. 61973 leaving Askham Tunnel with express freight in July 1960 (P.J. Hughes); Retford crossing with O4/8 No. 63827 crossing ECML and tender-first J39 hauling freight along spur towards Lincoln (John C. Hart), and L1 No. 67756 entering Kimberley with stopping train on Nottingham Victoria to Derby Friargate line in January 1962 (J. Phillips}

Allan C. Baker. The statutory origins of the North Staffordshire Railway. 114-17.
Complex origins in that the railway originated in three Bills presented in the 1845-6 Parliamentary Session and one section of line was covered by more than one Bill (and as all three became law more than one Act). The Bills covered (1) Macclefield-Stoke-Colwich and the branches from Harecastle to Crewe; Stone to Norton Bridge, and Stoke to Silverdale; (2) Harecastle to Sandbach, and (3) the Churnet Valley line: Macclesfield-Leek-Uttoxeter with onward links to the Midland Railwayat Willington and Burton and a branch from Uttoxeter to Stoke. The Acts also gave provision for the acquistion of shares in the Trent & Mersey Canal Navigation. The section from Macclesfield to Churnet Valley Junction was covered by two Acts. The main opposition to the Bills cam from Granville George Leveson Gower (Earl Granville), Richard Edensor Heathcote, Thomas Kinnersly and Hungerford Crewe who sought to protect Crewe Hall and the views therefrom. The others were local industrialists and their objections were more complex. Sir Henry Every objected to the section between Marston Junction and Willington Junction and this short section eventually had to be abandoned and covered by a further Act for a line on a slightly different route. John Lewis Ricardo was the first Chairman of the North Staffordshire Railway.

Miles Macnair. Just add more cylinders — simple: the evolution of the British four-cylinder simple expansion locomotive. Part Two. 118-23.
Part 1 in previous Volume beginning page 756. A four-cylinder compound 0-8-0 with piston valves was introduced under Hughes on the LYR in 1904 and an 0-6-0 was fitted with a superheater. But in1908 Hughes introduced the Dreadnought class of four-cylinder 4-6-0s with small slide valves, Joy valve gear and no superheaters. They were sluggish and had high fuel consumption. From 1920 thet were rebuilt with long travel piston valves, Walschaerts valve gear and fitted with 28 element superheaters. They became good locomotives. In 1911 Hughes visited Belgium and met Jean Baptiste Flamme whose locomotives followed an unusual topography in which the cylinders were located in front of the smokebox and the trailing axles were to the rear of the firebox. The boiler was reltively short. There were Type 9 4-6-0s, Type 10 Pacifics and Type 36 2-10-0s which led Horwich to develop a design for a 2-10-0 (Robin Barnes Locomotives that never were Chapter 9). Hungarian four-cylinder designs were described in Loco. Mag., 1912, 18, 32 and Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1927, 33, 13. Italian four-cylinder designs are rejected by the author, but the German designs built for Prussia and for the Netherlands were worthy of note and in the case of the Dutch State Railway some were built by Beyer. Macnair states that Bowen Cooke would have wished to purchase Star class 4-6-0s from the Great Western following the exchange trials between a Star class on trains from Euston and an Experiment class out of Paddington where lack of water capacity was a hindrance and the LNWR locomotive was much smaller. The trials were probably inspired by the Great Western Board finding the cost of Churchward designs to be excessive and seeking cheaper, simpler alternatives. Bowen Cooke's answer to the Star class adopted a very different cylinder topography: four cylinders in line acting on the front coupled axle. The boiler followed previous Crewe practice to save cost and was too small and with too low a pressure. The Robinson 9P class of 1917 were four-cylinder engines with Stephenson valve gear, tortuous steam passages and poor ash pans. Watson on the Great Southern & Western Railway introduced the 400 class which lacked long travel valves and on some locomotives superheaters. They were extremely poor locomotives. Before concluding with the extraordinary Hookham four-cylinder 0-6-0T built by the North Staffordshire Railway the author repeats Churchward's assessment of the French compound Atlantics, namely that ccompounding was an unnecessary complication requiring specially trained drivers, most of the gains came from the use of higher boiler pressures, the 4-6-0 was superior to the 4-4-2, inside Walschaerts valve gear took less space than Stephenson, long travel piston valves only needed resolution of the problem of steam leakage and precision in valve setting was crucial. See also letter from L.F.C. Coombs on p. 190 and response to it by Author on p. 318 one from David Patrick on p. 253 who is highly critical of one statement namely that Star class cost Churchward his career; and one from Mike Zanker on p. 318; and further contributions from Joseph Cliffe and Edoardo Tonarelli on page 381. Part 3 see p. 690..

Rolling stock focus: Great Western four- and six-wheel stock. 124
Colour photo-feature based on photographs from Whittaker Archive and notes by Mike King: four-wheel former third-class saloon No. W14640 at Aberystwyth on 30 June 1964; CME Department mess and tool van at Oswestry on 21 July 1963 (four-wheel, former six-wheel gas-lit coach); grounded 31ft coach body at Tenbury Wells serving as offices of Frank Sharp Ltd.

Readers' Forum 125

January corrections. Editor
Crimson Rambling: on p. 32 No.1000 is approaching Derby station, not leaving; the station is in fact visible on the extreme right of the picture.
Below Standard: on p.43 the gauge of the 'old' Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway was 3ft, not as stated.
Belonging to Glasgow: on p47 lower the date of the photograph of No.64623 at Springburn was 1964, not as stated.

Tea on the train. Mike Whitley 
Alistair Nisbet surmises that a British Railways afternoon tea in around 1955 might have cost a shilling or one-and-six a head; it was a little more than that. The 1954 BR timetables give the refreshment car prices: two shillings (10p) for afternoon tea – no reduction for children, as he rightly says, though a child could have a half-price table d'hote luncheon (never referred to as 'lunch' in those days) – or dinner, both at full-price 7s 6d. Full breakfast was Ss 6d and plain breakfast 3s. Two shillings would today be considered a bargain, but the purchasing power of a two- bob-bit was the same as about £3 nowadays – still superb value for money (I've just paid £3.50 for a cup of coffee and a Danish pastry at our local cafe). By the end of 1963, when a student travelling the Bournemouth line four times a term, inflation was doing its worst, with afternoon tea on the train at 4s, full breakfast 9s, plain breakfast Ss, luncheon 12s 6d and dinner 13s 6d. Children were 'charged less' for afternoon tea, but there's no mention of half-price in the September 1963 passenger timetable.

The Tweed Valley's vanished Railway. Philip A. Millard 
Carriages shown on p715 were West Coast Joint Stock, not Caledonian: a Corridor Brake First D.18 and four Family Saloons D.l3.

Forty days. Leonard Rogers.
Train depicted at foot of p732 probably was Blue Circle Cement from the factory at Cliffe-on-Hoo to distribution depot at Uddingston. When inaugurated in December 1961 working regularly took a pair of Southern Region BRCW Type 3 diesels ('Cromptons'), later Class 33, up the ECML to York several times a week, working northwards with around 30 loaded cement tanks and returning with the empties. At York the SR locomotives handed over to NER power, typically a York EE Type 4, as in photograph. At that time the large new Blue Circle cement factory at Oxwellmains, near Dunbar alongside the ECML (still providing rail traffic and the recipient of domestic refuse trains from Edinburgh), was only under construction. A report of the opening of a new cement distribution depot at Grangemouth in December 1962 (published in Modern Railways, February 1963) stated that when Oxwellmains factory was fully operational in 1963, it would supply cement by rail to the Grangemouth depot, plus others at Aberdeen and Inverness, but that the Uddingston depot would continue to be supplied from Kent. The Cliffe-Uddingston cement train was still being double-headed to York by 'Crornptons' in summer 1962 – see, for example, a 3 August 1962 photograph at York published in Modern Railways, as above, but subsequently changed to haulage by a single BRCW Type 3 to York, and by 1964/65 'Cromptons' were no longer on this working.

The Steyning Line. Nick Gilliam
On page 746 the photographer is looking south east, not north, towards West Grinstead. In addition, the A24 does not pass over the site – it is a new local road built for the expanding village and taking the traffic away from the bridge on which the photographer was standing. The A24 bisected the line a further half a mile further on towards West Grinstead. The second error is the caption on page 750 for the Steyning picture. Again, the photographer is not facing north but due south towards Bramber.

Centre bearings, weak frames and all that. Adrian Tester
Reading Edward Talbot's article further supports my opinion that nothing E.S. Cox wrote can be taken on trust unless it can be verified elsewhere and ideally from original sources. Examples of where he has been economical with the truth or deliberately misleading include the following:
(i) When large lap valves were an advantage and when their presence served no useful purpose.
(ii) Axlebox performance - that of inside cylinder engines misrepresented.
(iii) Frame performance of other older classes but no mention of the worse track record of more modern classes, some of which he was responsible for designing.
(iv) Misquoting dynamometer test result figures - the erroneous numbers always support his case.
(v) Locomotive test results falsified at Rugby. To conclude, the machinations of this very fluid writer in promoting his own biased views on locomotive engineering have, for half a century, misled a great number of enthusiasts. It is time his opinions are treated with scepticism – if nothing else, one is likely to be nearer the truth!

Centre bearings, weak frames and all that. Allan C. Baker
I was very interested in my good friend Ted Talbot's analysis of the oft repeated story about LNWR engines having weak frames, along with the issue of the centre bearing for the crank axle. Whatever advantage the bearing had on the strength of the frame structure, this was, of course, secondary in the designer's mind of providing additional support for the crank axle where it is subjected to the maximum extent, by compressive, torsional and bending loads at one and the same time. Although crank axles usually fractured at the big-end journals or the adjacent crank webs, the greatest bending moment is in the area of the middle of the axle where the centre bearing was located. From the inception of railway locomotives, crank axles of inside cylinder engines proved to be an extremely troublesome component with frequent breakages, often with catastrophic results if they happened when the locomotives were traveling at any sort of speed. For many years it was almost considered the Achilles' heel of such designs. Moreover, it is why a lot of designers moved to outside cylinders for engines that were required to haul passenger trains, as opposed to slower-running goods and mineral trains. Advances in metallurgy led to improvements in steelmaking and manufacturing processes and the problem gradually diminished. In the period between the two world wars, incidents of broken axles almost, but not quite, disappeared. While I am the last person in the world to question the gospel of the late Colonel Cantlie, I was led to believe from my elders and betters during my apprenticeship at Crewe that the centre bearings were removed as crank axles of improved quality were fitted. Apparently, the centre bearing was very difficult, if not all but impossible, to adjust in a running shed environment without first removing the complete wheelset. Of course, once any amount of wear developed in the bearing, whatever support it was giving to the crank axle was considerably reduced. It was also related to me that some engines ran around for periods witlh the bearing removed, albeit with the supporting frame plate still in place. It was suggested that on occasions, running sheds did not replace the bearings when the wheel sets were removed for some other reason – a hot wheel axle bearing would usually be the case.

Militant furies. Michael J. Smith
The photograph of "a very short train" at Aylesbury Joint Station was not "waiting to depart southwards", despite the fact that was standing at the up platform. This is the push-pull train which lasted well into LNER days linking Aylesbury and Verney Junction and which would return northwards. The vans apparently attached had presumably been brought to Aylesbury and would be detached before departure in order for the shuttle to be driven from the auto carriage. Any vans going to Verney Junction with this train would be coupled behind the locomotive.

How long and how far? Nigel Whitwell
What a splendid article by Philip Atkins in the December issue; some interesting statistics there and a lot of food for thought. The facts about Gresley's Classes A1/A3 and B17 frame renewals are eye-openers, though I had heard that there were problems in this area. But I thought these days we had all advanced beyond the joke about Bulleid's 'Leader' being a replacement for Drummond's M7. In fact the 'Leader' was to be a mixed traffic locomotive type replacing many older classes and largely dispensing with the use of turntables. Also the old chestnut of ridiculing Bulleid Light Pacifies trundling along with two or three coaches is rather missing the point, as later in the locomotive's diagram it could usually be hauling 400+ tons of express on a tight schedule, something quite beyond the capability of any other motive power that was also available for use west of Exeter on former LSWR lines.

The Varsity Line's missing links. Brian Ringer
Update on the Oxford to Cambridge line and uses of extant sections by present-day freight traffic. The Bicester to Claydon LNE Junction section of tlhe route was used by domestic waste trains from Bristol, but these ceased running some eighteen months ago and up to November 2012 the Bicester to Claydon section had no regular traffic. In November 2012 a new short-term contract commenced conveying fly ash from Didcot Power Station to Calvert that means that there is a booked train each way over this section of line. This contract should run until spring 2013. There are more frequent freight flows on the Wolvercote Junction to Bicester section not mentioned by Jeffrey Grayer. The aggregate terminal at Banbury Road (approx. one mile north of Wolvercote Junction) handles regular trainloads from Whatley Quarry in the Mendips and, at Bicester, the Ministry of Defence Central Stores Depot receives a daily train from Didcot Yard. Finally tlhe author states that the section of line from Bletchley Flyover to Newton Longville was reopened in March 2006 for freight traffic to the Newton Longville landfill site. Unfortunately this is not correct; this section of line was relaid for the West Coast Route Modernisation Project so that the half-mile-long 'High Output Ballast Cleaner' trains from Stewartby depot could be run round before setting off for work on the WCML north of Bletchley.

Belonging to Glasgow. Leonard Rogers
The captions for the lower photographs on both pp. 46 and 48 imply that both North and South Clyde electrification schemes had been operational since 1959. In fact the North Clyde scheme, through Queen Street Low Level, only became fully operational from November 1960. Electric services were then suspended after only a month-and- a-half because of technical difficulties with the onboard equipment and steam returned during a nine-and-a-half month hiatus until the difficulties were resolved. Central station did not see electric services instituted until May 1962 with the inauguration of the South Clyde scheme and the Low Level platforms here had to wait for electrification until November 1979, with the reopening of the Argyle line. Finally, Queen Street High Level still awaits its turn to see electric trains, although these are promised in the Edinburgh & Glasgow electrification scheme.

Book reviews. 126

Fowler's Fury – the story of a unique British locomotive. Ian Carney. Noodle Books. 96pp. APT *
Very badly received.

Chester to Rhyl. Vic Mitchell and Keith Smith. Middleton. AJR. ***
"... shows signs of having been researched and compiled from a distance by non-local authors."

Engines that bend – narrow gauge articulated locomotives. David Joy. Atlantic. 128pp. DWM *****

Way out West. Stephen Taverner. rear cover
No. D1071 Western Renown entering Lostwithiel at head of train from Penzance on 25 May 1974. See also colour photo-feature on pp. 68-9.

Number 3 (March) Issue 262

Former GWR Hall 4-6-0 No.4949 Packwood Hall heads 15.45 South Wales express out of Paddington at Westbourne Bridge on 27 August 1960. (R.C. Riley). front cover

Accoeding to press reports... Michael Blakemore. 131.
Editorial

To Portsmouth by Class 50. David Cable. 132-3.
Colour photo-feature of Class 50 (all in Network South East livery with trains to match) on trains routinely diverted off normal diversionary route via Winchester during May 1989: No. 50 027 Lion on eastern side of Farlington triangle approaching Portcreek Junction with a down service; same train crossing Portcreek; No. 50 048 Dauntless leaving Buriton Tunnel on a Portsmouth Harbour to Waterloo service: No. 50 018 Resolution with down train south of Buriton Summit in April of same year; No. 50 029 Renown leaving Guildford with an up train. Further information on this working in letter from Gerald Goodall on p. 317.

Jeffrey Wells. Railway participation in the Royal Agricultural Shows. 134-8.
The English Agricultural Society was formed in 1830 and became the Royal Agricultural Society of England in 1840 and staged annual shows in a different location from then on, broken by the two World Wars, cattle plague in 1866, a brief spell at a fixed location at Park Royal in the early 1900s until 1963 when it settled at Stoneleigh until its demise in 2009. The event was a source of considerable railway activity in the transport of cattle, machinery, equipment and guests, especially if Royalty were involved. For the 1851 at Windsor the Great Western Railway ran a hour hourly service from Paddington and organised many specials from the West of England. In 1854 it was staged in Lincoln and involved heavy traffic on both the MR and GNR. In 1857 it was held in Salisbury and a visit by Prince Albert caused further for the LSWR. In 1858 it was staged in Chester and in the following year in Warwick. Thereafter the author only describes a few venues, but in greater depth. These were: Canterbury in 1960; Oxford in 1870; Carlisle in 1880 (which was located adjacent to the Caledonian Railway); Plymouth in 1890; Norwich in 1911 and at Cambridge in 1922. The Norwich show was located near Crown Point and involved the erection of temporary bridges across the railway and River Yare. Special trains of unbeleivable (in 2013) luxury provided meals and toilets between London and Trowse and the Show Ground stations. A comparable effort was made in 1922 when there was also involvement by the GNR, LNWR and Midland Railways. Illustrations: GER tremporary booking office at Cambridge Show ground; Norwich Thorpe exterior on 10 June 1969; B1 No. 61270 waiting to depart Norwich with express composed of neat Gresley coaches on 31 August 1951 (H.C. Casserley); Cambride Showground platform with crowds arriving; maps of Norwich and Cambridge Showgrounds; steam road rollers arriving Cambridge including one with two rollers on SECR flat wagon; horses arriving Cambridge; D15 No. 2518 on 11.05 Ely to Liverpool Street arriving Cambridge on 15 April 1947 (H.C. Casserley). Further information in letters  on p. 318 from Claude R. Hart (on that staged at Shrewsbury in 1845) and from Peter Rance on considerable involvement by Great Western Railway when such Shows held on Great Western Railway centres. Page 510 Peter Thirwell comments on experience gained at Windsor Riverside of Royal Agricultural Show staged in Windsor Great Park during 1950s or 60s and effort made by British Railways tp please customers..

Brian Ringer. Acton: twilight of a marshalling yard. Part One. 139-45.
Author was a participant in British Rail's Operation Management Training Scheme which began with six weeks spent in Cowley Yard, Oxford, followed by a longer period at Acton from April 1877 when he acted as Relief Supervisor. Illustrations: panorama of yard with No. 56 036 shunting aggregate empties (Gavin Morrison); msp, plan, chargeman Arty Kingham; vanfit (12-ton van); VDA (24.5 tonne van with full-side opening to allow access for fork lift trucks): No. 45 053 arriving on 05.30 ex-Toton Yard with coal; two Sulzer Class 25 on same vworking on 20 January 1978; Class 50 No. 50 024 Vanguard with Class 47 on Severn Tunnel Junction to Temple Mills service on 8 June 1978. Concluded pp. 296 et seq Further highly detailed information on page 317 supplied by David Ratcliffe.

Tony Kirby. Malton: memories of a Yorkshire junction 1950-67. 146-53.
Writer's granfather was a carriage & wagon examiner at Malton: he had moved there from Normanton in 1931. His father had married a local farmer's wife and he was born at the end of WW2. Early memories included a bright green B1 and a huge Austerity locomotive viewed from his grandfather's hut. Malton is on the mavigable River Derwent and on the York & North Midland Railway's York to Scarborough line which opened on 7 July 1845 together with a branch to Pickering which linked into the older Whitby & Pickering line: this last was one of the Beeching tragedies. On 19 May 1853 lines opened to Pilmoor on the East Coast main line and to Driffield: both lines are long closed. During the period observed by the writer there was a transition from steam to diesel traction. The most interesting workings were the Saturday holiday trains from Scotland and the North East to Scarborough which used the Gilling line and had to reverse in Malton. This line was also used on the exeat specials run to Ampleforth College to and from King's Cross. Freight traffic was in terminal decline during the period of observation.  Illustrations: Class 5 No. 44728 on Scarborough bound train and DMU for York at Malton station on7 August 1965 (colour: Alan Tyson); D49 No. 62769 The Oakley on up train in 1950s; Malton station looking east in March 1966 (colour: J.M. Boyes); trolley bridge on 26 May 1960 (J.S. Gilks); A8 No. 69864 on York to Whitby through train with G5 No. 67308 on shed on 9 August 1954 (C.J.B. Sanderson); special on the Gilling line crosing Scarborough to York line on 2 June 1957 (H.C. Casserley); Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41265 banking northbound train via Gilling line; coal drops in May 1979 (colour: J.S. Gilks); platform trolley on 1 September 1956; A4 No. 60028 Walter K. Whigham departs for King's Cross with Eastern Region Royal Train following wedding of Duke and Duchess of Kent on 8 June 1961; J39 No. 64850 coming off Gilling line with a short freight on 15 July 1961 (N.W. Skinner); Whitby local in bay platform on 26 May 1960 (J.S. Gilks); engine shed with A8 No. 69867 and J27 No. 65849 (J.W. Armstrong); flooded station in 1947; Class 150 DMU and general scene in June 1987 (colour: J.S. Gilks). See also letters on p. 317 from Mike Wynn and from Mike Pellatt.

R.A.S. Hennessey. The British steeple cabs. 154-8.
North Eastern Railway No. 1 forms part of the National Raiway Museum collection and was constructed along with another to work the steeply graded branch from Trafalgar Yard alongside the East Coast Main Line down to River Tyne Quayside.They were supplied by British Thomson-Houston and were Bo-Bo working at 600V dc with third rail and overhead pantograph pick up. The two most numerous designs were those supplied to the Central London Railway and the Metropolitan Railway. The former had a short life due to their gearless motors and heavy weight which caused damage to buildings above the tube and led to their rapid replacement by multiple units. The consultant involved was the American Horace Field Parshall. In the case of the Metropolitan Railway the consultant was Thomas Parker from Coalbrookdale.Two of the former CLR locomotives were acquired by John Smith Raworth and used in traction and braking experiments. Another steeple cab locomotive was employed on the Great Northern & City Railway for shunting at Drayton Park. The Metropolitan District Railway used four service locomotives which may have conformed to the steeple configuration: two were flatcars with a cab at each end, but these were replaced by battery electrics supplied by W. Renshaw of Manchester. The LSWR built a steeple cab for the Waterloo & City Railway, but this spent most of its life at Durnsford Road power station working as a shunter. Dugald Drummond signed the drawings. The Manx Electric Railway had a 12-ton Bo-Bo constructed in 1900 and given the number 23. It was rebuilt in 1926 in steeple caab form under the direction of Frank Edmondson, Chief Engineer. The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway had a 1-B-1 electric locomotive designed by O'Brien with a chassis formed from an Aspinall 2-4-2T. This had third rail and overhead pick-up and jackshaft drive. It worked near Aintree. Two  battery-powered steeple cabs built by the North Staffordshire Railway and by the Midland Railway are described and appear to be have been linked in their origins possibly through the DP Battery Co. of Bakewell. The NSR one worked at Oakamoor and drew power from Bolton's Copper Works where it performed shunting. The Midland locomotive worked at West India Docks and was charged from a public supply in Poplar. The Glasgow Corporation system was used by steeple cabs in the Govan area to link the railway network to shipyards. The Harton Electric Railway in South Shields used steeple cabs. Greenwood & Batley (Greenbat) of Leeds supplied "locomotives" for coke charging machines and to railways in mental hospitals. Illustrations: English Electriuc battery locomotive in company's works at Stafford? in 1968 (Mike G. Fell); B.E.L. No. 2 at Oakamoor (W.A. Camwell); Metropolitan Railway hauling Pullman car train near Harrow (H. Gordon Tidey): see letter from Michael J. Smith on p. 317 correcting caption; NER No. 1 as restored at NRM in 1977; LYR 1-B-1; General Electric Bo-Bo for St Louis & Illinois Southern RR; Central London Railway locomotive; Paris-Orleans Railway steeple cabs and B.E.L. No. 1 at Poplar c1953.

Peter Butler. Saint Pancras and his station, 159
Pancratius was a Christian martyr being beheaded in 304 when aged fourteen during Diocletian's persecution. When Augustine was sent  to England by Pope Gregory he established St Pancras Church near the future site of St Pancras Station. When the Midland Railway was building its approach it crosed the historic graveyard and Thomas Hardy was given the task of ensuring that desecration was minimized, and a tree commemorating this is surrounded by gravestones. Church and tree are illustrated. This is Old St Pancras Church and should not be confused with New St Pancras Church in Euston Road.

At Carlisle. 160-4.
Colour photo-feature: No. 46239 Duchess of Buccleugh (green livery) on up Midday Scot on 9 August 1960; No. 60082 Neil Gow on down The Thames-Clyde Express on 20 August 1960; panorama of Carlisle Upperby mpd on 22 May 1961 with Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45700 Amethyst and No. 46248 City of Leeds (red livery); No, 46134 The Cheshire Regiment passing Upperby yard with a Birmingham to Glasgow express on 9 August 1960 (all G.W. Morrison); 3F 0-6-0T No. 47415 at south end of station on 15 April 1963 (David Idle); No. 46107 Argyll and Sutherland Highlander at Kingmoor mpd on 8 September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); No. 72008 Clan Macleod at Kingmoor in September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); No. 46203 Princess Margaret Rose on turntable at Kingmoor on 8 September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); V2 No. 60855 at Kingmoor on 18 April 1965 (David Idle); A3 No. 60041 Salmon Trout in September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); No. 37 419 in English Welsh & Scottish livery on engineer's train passing through Carlisle Citadel station; Class 153 on Whitehaven train in Maryport bay on 14 May 2002 (both Gavin Morrison).  

South by South West: steam on the former London & South Railway lines in Devon, Cornwall and Dorset, 165-7.
Black & white photo-feature: N class 2-6-0 No. 853 at Barntaple Junction ith Great Western Train, c 1927; M7 0-4-4T No. 30107 at Poole on 13 April 1961; Battle of Britain 4-6-2 No. 34055 Hurricane with two coach down stopping train at Axminster on 16 August 1960; 2-4-0WT No. 30586 at Wadebridge on 15 August 1960; O2 0-4-4T No. 30225 at Callington on 14 April 1961; T9 4-4-0 No. 30313 at Padstow with 15.13 to Exeter on 15 August 1960; 4-4-2T No. 30583 at Axminster with single coach for Lyme Regis on 15 April 1916 (most Alan Tyson).

R.E. Charlewood. Some railway recollections 1900-1914. Part three — Principal features of railway travel 1900-1914; transcribd by Howard Burchell. 168-75.
Dining cars were introduced for second and third class passengers on the LNWR from the 1890s and the 20 minutre luch stops at Preston (and at York and Normanton were abolished). The GWR was slower to act: in 1900 it had only two first class dining vehicles, but composite cars were introduced for the Limited in 1904. The LSWR ran cooking vans from 1903-4. The cost of meals is listed and it is observed that the Midland and Great Eastern Railways provided the best catering. Some railways provided teas and light refreshments from modified coaches or compartments. Refreshment rooms and railway hotels. Through carriages to a very wide range of destinations including some trains, such as the 10.30 from Paddington and the 11.00 from Waterloo with coaches to a great number of branch lines in Devon and Cornwall. Slip coaches. There were also through carriages over complex routes, such as Windermere to Leicester and Stratford-upon-Avon to Euston. The shunting could be very complicated at places like Bristol and Charlewood remembered sorting of family saloons at Waigan aided by the map from a pocket timetable. Pullman and drawing room cars. The Caledonia Railway probably introduced third class passengers to Pullman travel as their cars were treated as dining cars. Notes on sleeping cars, weekend fares, the end of second class, publicity material including postcards. Illustrations: 4-4-2 No. 171 Albion on Cornish Riviera (F. Moore Oilette coloured postcard); interior of kitchen of LNWR American Special boat train stock of 1908 (LNWR coloured postcard); LNWR twelve wheel dining saloon exterior; interior of Great Eastern Railway clerstory dining car; H1 Atlantic hauling Southern Belle Pullman past Balham (coloured); Caledonia Railway No. 903 Cardean with corridor train on Beattock bank (coloured); LNWR menu card; advertisement for Midland Railway Railway hotels; interior of LNWR first-class compartment (coloured publicity postcard); T9 4-4-0 No. 715 on down express passing Earlsfield in 1900; LBSCR H1 Atlantic No. 38 with three American Pullman cars; LNWR sleeping car No. 151; Furness Railway 0-6-2T No. 104 calling at Grange-over-Sands c1905; Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway advertisement for the Switzerland of the Pennines (Hrdcastle Crags). .

Clive Baker. A return ticket to the pre-grouping era. 176-9.
Visit to the Isle of Wight in summer of 1966. Crossing was made aboard MV Shanklin. Journey from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin was made behind 31 Chale, and onward to Sandown behind 28 Ashey. Return was behind No. 33 Bembridge and the day was completed by a crossing on paddle staemer Ryde. There are colour illustrations of No.35 Freshwater at Ryde Pier Head and PS Ryde

Adrian Tester. Stationary locomotive testing. Part One. 180-6.
A locomotive testing station consisted of a special plant on which a tender locomotive,  with tender removed, could be run at speed and all power outputs while remaining stationary. A fundamental prerequisite  was that it could absorb continuously the power developed by the engine on test.
(a) could keep locomotive speed, and therefore running conditions, constant for long periods, typically for two hours or more. Normally, a testing station also:
(b) enabled fuel and water consumption figures to be determined accurately.
(c) could measure locomotive speed accurately thereby also providing a value for the distance run.
(d) enabled the indicated horsepower to be established conveniently and accurately.
Professor Goss of Purdue University designed and built the first plant designed for one specific locomotive: Schenectady No. 1, a small 4-4-0. The energy absorbing system was designed by George Alden and was based on frictiion. The plant opened in 1891 but burned down in 1894, but was rebuilt and a larger locomotive Schenectady No. 2 was acquired in 1897: this was capable of running as a Vauclain compound. Robert Quayle,Master Mechanic, of the Milwaukee, Lake Shore & Western Railway built a temporary test plant at Kaukauna in 1894. He became Superintendent of Motive Power on tjhe Chicago & North Western and built a permanent test plant in Chicago. In 1899 Columbia University opened it testing plant using 2-4-2 Columbia. The Pennsylvania Railroad built a test plant which featured as an exhibit at the St Louis Exposition and was later moved to Altoona. F.J. Cole and his 4-cylinder compound were associated with the plant at St. Louis. In 1904 a test plant was opened at the Putiloff Works in St. Petersburg and was associated with the work of Gololoboff and Smirnoff. Alden brakes were used. The Japanese Railways opened a test plant at Oi, near Tokyo with 3ft 6i gauge tracks. In 1907 Goss moved to the University of Illinois at Urbana. In 1905 the Royal Prussian Railway Administration opened a test plant at Grunewald near Berlin and it used Froude brakes. The French plant at Vitry-sur-Seine, which opened in 1933, also used Froude brakes. George Lomonossof built a portable test unit which was used at Esslingen. Illustrations: Schenectady No. 1 in test house at Purdue University; digram (elevation) 0f Purdue plant; diagram of relationship between steam consumption, speed and cut-off from test data at Purdue; diagram of Quayle plant in Chicago; cross section and end elevation of St Louis Exposition plant; Pennsylvania Railroad testing sttzion at Altoona (two views); Grunewald plant (diagram: section) and Kitson-Still locomotive on test in Kitson's Works.

Town and Country 'Halls' 187-9.
Colour photo-feature: No. 4993 Dalton Hall in BR lined black livery with carmine and cream train leaving Oxford with an up Weymouth train on 21 April 1954; No. 4956 Plowden Hall (green livery) on 07.10 Paddington to Wolverhampton at Oxford on 15 August 1959; No. 5920 Wycliffe Hall leaving Whiteball Tunnel with 09.15 Liverpool to Plymouth on 21 July 1956; No. 4970 Sketty Hall coming off sea wall on approach to Teignmouth station with a stopping train on 14 July 1959; No. 4986 Aston Hall in Sonning Cutting on an Oxford to Paddington service on 10 September 1960 see letter from Paul Joyce on p. 317 which states that not Sonning Cutting, but is the next cutting eastwards; depicting the train at Ruscombe; No. 4902 Aldenham Hall on up express passing Hanwell & Elthorne station in August 1957; No. 4909 Blakesley Hall passing Kensal Green Gasworks with 14.35 Paddington to Weston-super-Mare via Devizes on 13 August 1960; No. 4980 Wrottesley Hall passing Newton Abbot East signal box with 09.05 Kingswear to Swansea High Street formed mainly of ex-LNER stock painted mainly in carmine & cream livery, but at least one (Gresley) still in teak glory on 19 July 1958 (R.C. Riley all except two from Ken Wightman/David Clark Collection)

Readers' Forum. 190

Belonging to Glasgow. Nick Stanbury
The caption to the photograph of 'Pug' No.56039 on p49 of the January issue is incorrect in its reference to the BR emblem displayed on the engine. This 'bicycling lion' device (adopted 1950-56) was never a heraldically-approved 'crest' and existed quite legitimately in both left- and right-facing versions, the intention being that the lion always faced the front of the engine. (The 'crest' misnomer is repeated in relation to No.49151 on p35 of the same issue; the engine, as pictured in 1950, lacks an emblem or totem, not a crest.) In 1956 full armorial bearings were granted by the College of Heralds to the British Transport Commission. These included a BR crest, comprising a left-facing lion sitting in a crown and holding a wheel. This crest (a true heraldic device) could be used by itself or within an emblem and was thus incorporated within the new 'ferret and dartboard' emblem introduced in 1956, as displayed for example on No.64623 on p47. This emblem was also initially applied in both left- and right-facing versions but the College soon objected to display of the latter as it had never been heraldically approved. Rather than paying again for a second version, BR was obliged to stop using the right-facing crest but it was still found displayed on some locomotives for a couple of years.
The 1956 crest was also incorporated into other BR emblems, eg the wholly-circular version used on multiple units and some coaching stock and used by itself in relief on certain electric locomotives and as a cap badge etc.

Just add more cylinders. L.F.E. Coombs
The article in the February issue by Mr. M. Macnair is both interesting and informative. On p.121 he refers to the valve gear of the Robinson GCR 9P (B3) 4-6-0s as having cross-ported piston valves. However, G. Dow¹ refers to rocking levers for the inside and outside admission valves on the 9Ps. This then raises the question of why with 180° crank settings between each cylinder pair and rocking levers was it necessary to have both inside and outside admission valves? Other writers have recorded the use of inside admission for the two inside engines and outside admission for the two outside engines. Haresnape and Rowledge² wrote " ... with the cranks of the adjacent inside and outside cylinders set 180° to each other and with the valves driven by the same eccentrics and rockers thereby causing adjacent valves to move together, but in opposite directions. However, if they did move in opposite directions then both valves could have been inside admission, whereas if the valves were cross-ported then each pair could move in unison which suggests that each Stephenson gear drove two valves together and side by side. Or did they?
What of the valve gear on the other Robinson 4-6-0s. And were there four valve boxes on the four Caprotti B3/2s?
1. G. Dow, Great Central Vol.3 p.330: Loco. Pub. Co. 1965
2. Haresnape and Rowledge, Robinson Locomotives: Ian AlIan 1982 , London
And response from Miles Macnair on p. 318 and Joseph Cliffe on p. 381.

Centre bearings, weak frames and all that. Joseph Cliffe 
Ted Talbot (BT January) has raised the vexed question of the removal of the centre bearings on ex-LNW locomotives in early LMS days. Webb had previously fitted a centre bearing on the crank axle, which Joy gear allowed, thereby reducing the load on the main axlebox bearings and minimising hot boxes. The 1923 directive to remove the centre bearing was almost certainly from Hughes, the new CME of the LMS, but he was neither a knave or a fool. He was merely following his own experience on the LYR where he removed the centre bearings on Aspinall and Hoy engines and did not use it on his own designs. He had found after extensive testing that crankshaft life was reduced with a centre bearing especially when wear took place on the main axleboxes, causing increased loads and bending stresses in the outer crank webs. Crankshaft failure usually took place at the web trunnion interface. Hughes was therefore following this approach. A three bearing system is wrong in principle unless precision alignment can be obtained, which is not easy on a locomotive. Calculating the load on a centre bearing is problematic and indeterminate. We have no information on failures of LNWR crankshafts which were of built-up type, but the vast Crewe resources could deal with this and renew parts as necessary. At Horwich it would be a one-off operation and major task and they later adopted a built-up type crankshaft with forged outer webs and trunnions.
In my view frame cracking is not related to centre bearings as such and is the reason why E.S. Cox did not mention it. Frame cracking was endemic on all railways and is generally due to fatigue stress cracks in the horngap and stay area and is exponential with age. In his 1948 paper Cox quotes the 'Royal Scot' frame cracks as accelarating after eight years in service and requiring complete renewal from 1943 with the 'Rebuilt Scots'. If J.M. Dunn is correct the centre frames were still in position in the early 1950s so was not a factor in 1934 when Cantlie reported to Stanier. Crewe frames were only lin thick which is below the norm of 11/8in on other lines including the LYR and Swindon used even thicker 1¼in frames. Fowler would have supported Hughes at the time as he was an ex-Horwich man and probably took part in the testing there. He was an advocate of forged crankaxles and wrote a paper on it in 1924. H.G. Ivatt, a Crewe-trained man, also disliked three bearings because of the alignment problems and extra work involved Reducing maintenance times was a live issue on the LMS at that time, culminating in the reorganisation of Crewe Works in 1928. One would have thought that the removal of the centre frame as well as the bearing would stem from this period.
The identity of a knave or fool, then, is obscure but overall Hughes did not do the LMS any favours in this respect with resulting increased hot boxes and the demotion of LNW 'Princes' and 'Georges' to second-line service.

Centre bearings, weak frames and all that. David W. Green
In a conventional locomotive the wheels are allowed to move up/down the axlebox guides as dictated by the rail levels. However, the centre bearing on the crank axle would hold that axle in a fixed position creating a twisting effect on the main frames as each wheel responded to the rail levels. I would suggest that it was this twisting action that weakened the frames to the point where they finally fractured.

Book Reviews. 190

The Kinver Light Railway, echoes of a lost tramway. Paul Collins. 128pp, The History Press, £12.99. RH ****
The UK had few systems akin to the American 'Interurban' or the continental European vicinal; the Grimsby & Immingham and Wemyss & District lines come to mind, largely by virtue of their extensive use of single-decker cars and private rights of way. The other was the Kinver Light Railway, furthest west extension of the Birmingham and West Midlands 3ft 6in gauge network and a subsidiary of the British Electric Traction empire.
The KLR, a true child of the Black Country, ran from the Fish Inn and the smoky cones of a glassworks at Amblecote, where it met the Dudley & Stourbridge system, on through the streets of Wollaston and out into the countryside. At the intriguingly named Stewponey Inn it became unambiguously rural, crossing the Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal, running through meadows by the waters to Kinver. Kinver may have been 'in the sticks' but it was an immensely popular goal for tourists at weekends and holidays. They came by electric tramway in their tens of thousands to boat on the Stour, listen to bands, sample fine refreshments and wander about, maybe to see the famous cave-dwellings whose entirely up-to-date inhabitants did a brisk trade serving teas to the craw-stalled (Black Country dialect - 'thirsty'). The clientele of this singular street railway thus included commuters, shoppers, tourists and schoolchildren, carried to and fro by an interesting fleet of tramcars including the uniquely long 'Cradley Bogies', single-deckers with the capacity of a double-decker — the Board of Trade having forbidden the latter in view of some sharp curves. Other rolling stock included cut-down double-deckers with flat roofs, standard cars with ogee-shaped roofs, open toast-rack cars, popular with summer tourists, and combines — closed saloons at either end, open in the middle. Modern H&S would surely come all- overish at the sight of nimble conductors taking fares by swinging along the outsides of open cars in motion. The KLR lasted 1901-30. Its full story is related in this work by a native Black Countryman on top of his wide range of sources and imbued with considerable local knowledge. The text contains a brief overall history of the line, introducing dozens of photographs and reproductions, many of excellent quality, supported by extensive, readable captions, set out on the lines of a journey from Amblecote to Kinver. The final section of the book records what is to be found of the KLR today, more than might be supposed after some 82 years. Although the book lacks a really good map of the system (and other desiderata: a bibliography and index) it nevertheless supplies the reader with a thoroughly researched and entirely readable account of the Midlands' very own vicinal. A pity that deficient legislation was unable to encourage more such useful and interesting systems.

Calling for coal: BR Britannia Pacific No. 70016 Ariel under coaling tower at Leeds Holbeck mpd in 1967. Mike Kinder. rear cover

Number 4 (April)

LSWR T9 4-4-0 No.120 at Norwood Junction shed on 15 September 1963, the occasion of its run with CR No.123 from Victoria to Sheffield Park on the Bluebell Railway. J. Grayer. front cover
See also feature p. 210

Whether to enter the House of Lords or join the Underground. Michael Blakemore.
Editorial comment on response to Guest Editorial by Allan C. Baker

Parcels from Bolton. Tom Heavyside. 196-7
Colour photo-feature: parcels trains at Bolton Trinity Street: Type 47 No. 47 489 Crewe Diesel in red Parcel Sector livery on 30 July 1893; No. 31457 (blue livery) with two vans on 9 August 1988; No. 47 565 in InterCity livery on 16 August 1993, and No. 47 536 (blue livery) under Orlando Street bridge on 16 August 1993.;

Michael H.C. Baker. Suburban South London. 198-206.
The Southern Railway and Southern Region as viewed from the Norbury/Thornton Heath area by a boy growing up. The electric multiple units displayed a strange mixture of modernity in the traction system and antiquity in its rolling stock much of which clearly stemmed from another age and where a single coach could display a multiplicity of origins due to the practice of using single compartments to fill the gaps left between two six-wheelers mounted upon a new steel underframe. Special mention is made of units 1809-12 which worked the service from East Croydon to Wimbledon which were formed from former first class vehicles. His father used  these to get to work at the NAAFI Headquarters in Ruxley Towers and his son sometimes accompanied him to savour the delights of the gas works and electricity generating station near Purley Way, the strange sub-rural scenery with donkeys in fields, Mitcham Junction and stretches of single line. It is now part of Croydon Tramlink.  Most of the multiple units are regarded with affection, although the 2-HAL and 2-NOL were not.The hut used by the Wolf Cubs was adjacent to the railway and this is where he first saw a malachite green Marsh Atlantic Beachy Head on a Newhaven boat train. The I3 class was first seen at the same spot. He attended Whitgift School and this afforded opportunities for travel as did National Service spent with the RAF at West Malling. An endeavour to impress a dress designer from a northern art school witha trip on the Brighton Belle misfired as the coffee landed in her lap due to the lurching of the car. Freight is covered although the author regrets not inspecting Norwood Junction shed in his youth as he was not interested in goods engines. The K class 2-6-0s and W class 2-6-4Ts were largely ignored in favour of the Oxted line services. Illustrations: 4-SUB No. 4501 formed from two LSWR and 2 LBSCR parts of sets at Victoria on 22 May 1959; Thornton Heath station c1910; I3 class No. 32022 passing Wansworth Common with Victoria to Tunbridge Wells West train in 1949; nformer LSWR 3-SUB No. 1430 passing Honor Oak Park with Charing Cross to Tatenham Corner service, c1939; electric locomotive No. 20002 passing Tooting Bex with Victoria to Newhaven boat train in 1969; H class No. 31544 leaving Tunbridge Wells West with 15.00 to Oxted on 3 June 1961; up Brighton Belle passing Hassocks in July 1967; J2 4-6-2T No. 32326 at Clapham Junction with Oxted line train in 1949; E3 tramcar No. 1991 at Norbury in 1950; No. 32424 Beachy Head passing Norbury with RCTS Susssex Coast Limited on 13 April 1958; 6-PUL/6-PAN leaving Lewes for Eastbourne and Hastings in 1966; O1 0-6-0 No. 31048 as station pilot at East Croydon on 13 May 1959; Three Bridges shed with C2X No. 32438 and another of class on 13 October 1956; D7662 on inter-regional freight at Selhurst in 1979.

Barry Rigg. The line that ended in the middle of the sea: the line to Piel Pier. 207-9.
Notes that George Stephenson had been associated with the Great West Coast Railway which intended to obviate climbing through the Cumbrian Fells by crossing the Duddon and Morecambe Bay estuaries. This did not happen but Lord Burlington promoted the Furness Railway to assist with the export of slate through Piel Harbour and an Act was passed on 23 May 1844 to construct a railway from Kirby [sic] Kirkby-in-Furness to Dalton and from Goldmire Junction to Rampside. In 1840 the island of Roa was bought by John Abel Smith, banker and politician, who promoted the construction of a railway to Piel Pier. Shipping services from here operated to the Isle of Man, Ireland and Fleetwood (where Abel Smith had further interests see Backtrack, 11, 166). See also letters on pp. 381-2 from Les Gilpin who augments and corrects some of the information given about railways on Piel Island and the influence of the Midland Railway; and Ian Breeden (on pre-railway history of area).

Jeffery Grayer. A 'Greyhound' in the slips 210-12.
The Drummond T9 class was preserved and repainted in LSWR green. For a time it was used as part of the normal motive power and worked parcels trains from Eastleigh and some normal passenger trains as well as several "specials". Illustrations: on 12.42 Waterloo to Basingstoke passing Berrylands on 30 June 1962 (John Spencer Gilks); passing Guildford shed with its breakdown crane and brilliant red support coach on Locomotive Club of Great Britain outing to Horsham on 24 June 1962 at Haywards Heath on Blue Belle from Victoria to the Bluebell Railway; with U Class No. 31790 at Culworth Junction and on Woodford Halse mpd on 12 October 1963 (Culworth is in "NO HS2" country!) and in Fratton shed with Z class 0-8-0T No. 30954.; See also front cover

Edward Gibbins. British Railways' first modernisation .213-17.
British Transport Commisssion Modernisation Plan of 1954 and how it was perceived to be funded. Plans for electrification, diesel traction, marshalling yards, cartage (including a paragraph headed horses), manpower and closures. The role of Sir Reginald Wilson is mentioned. Brings into focus the extraordinary story of how the private owner wagons, mostly those antiques which attempted to convey coal, were acquired by the State for over £40 million. Sources cited include Wolmar, Joy and Henshaw, but not the official history by Gourvish (sadly not to hand in bibliographical Siberian desert).

Philip Atkins. Tuxford Works and Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway locomotives. 218-22.
The railway was incorporated in 1891 and conceived on a grand scale to link Warrington on the Manchester Ship Canal witha new North Sea port at Sutton-on-Sea and was driven by the development of coal mining near Chesterfield in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. In actuality the grand long tunnel under the Pennines did not get built and the line was limited to that between Chesterfield and Lincoln plus a northward link towards Sheffield. The Markham family was involved in its promotion. A Crewe (or more accurately a Melton Constable) was developed at Tuxford to service its locomotives (all supplied by Kitson's: Sir James Kitson had a financial interest in the railway) and the Great Eastern Railway was involved including its works at Stratford: an increase in its coal traffic was sought. Tuxford had one works manager: C.E. Bressey who remained in charge after the railway's takeover by the GCR On the other hand Tuxford was notable for the rapid turnover of its locomotive superintendents: Charles Broxup; Thomas B. Grierson;  W. Greenhalgh, James Conner, J.W. Dow and R.A. Thom. The locomotives were all tank engines and shared a common form. The Class A 0-6-2T type (LNER N6) was similar to locomotives supplied by Kitson's to the Taff Vale Railway. Due to financial difficulties on the LDECR some of the initial order were diverted to the Hull & Barnsley Railway where they became Nos. 99-103 (Class N11) and were known as trawlers due to their deep toned whistles. Some of these were reboilered at Darlington and enjoyed much longer boiler lifes. LDECR No. 26 was rebuilt with Marshall valve gear (vended by Manning Wardle). It was also rebuilt with a Belpaire boiler and in this form as capable of hauling the Royal Train from Ollerton (in the previous year two locomotives had to be employed for this working). Atkins considers that this work was linked with Stratfork Works and may eve have been done there. Similar locomotives were supplied by Kitson's to the Rhonddha & Swansea Bay Railway and to the Lambton Railway where one of these survives on the North York Moors Railway. Two 0-4-4T locomotive supplied to the Dublin, Wicklow & Wexford Railway shared an affinity with this design and lead to the downfall of Grierson as they were overweight and were rebuilt as 0-6-0s. There were two classes of smaller locomotive: Class B 0-6-0T (LNER J60) for shunting and C (LNER G3) 0-4-4T for light passenger work. The D class 0-6-4T (LNER M1) was intended for the long haul to Sutton-on-Sea. Atkins tends to dissociate Thom from this design, but implies that Charles Paxton Markham was involved. In 1901 Deeley supplied advice on water softening at Tuxford where boiler life was exceedingly short. An en passant note records that Thom thought up Green Arrow name whilst shaving. Notes that wagon repair continued until 1971.  Cites Locomotive Mag., 1907, 13, 2. See also corriegenda from Author in letter on p. 381.

Mairhead Mahon. The Necropolis train. 223.
Due to a shortage of space in London cemeteries in London Sir Richard Brown developed a 2000 acre site at Brookwood near Woking, In 1852 the London Necropolis and National Mausoleum Company was formed with a separate station in York Street adjacent to Waterloo station from which the deceased and the mourners could be conveyed by special train to the cemetery with its two stations: the South Station for members of the Church of England, and the North station for others. Cremation eroded this market and a bomb falling onto the York Street station on 16 April 1941 finishrd the railway link Illutrations of the South Station and the Company's seal. See also letter from Nicholas Daunt on p. 382 for correct translationm of Latin motto.

Going to Gloucester. J.T. Bassingdale. 224-7.
Colour photo-feature: Castle class No. 5089 Westminster Abbey at Central for local train for Cardiff in July 1956; No. 73065 at Central had taken over on a South Wales to Sheffield express in July 1957; 4P Compound No. 41095 at Eastgate with Horton Road engine shed behind in June 1957; GWR diesel railcar No. W27W? in carmine & cream livery at Central with service for Ledbury branch; No. 1441 with grubby carmine & cream auto trailer on Chalford service at Central in June 1957; No. 73048 leaving Central for Sheffield with LMS coaches in carmine & cream livery passing Horton Road engine shed in June 1957; No. 3824 passing through Central with train of coal from South Wales in July 1956 (gas tank wagon behind); Jubilee class No. 45662 Kempenfeld at Central light engine in July 1957;  Castle class No. 5075 Wellington with 14.30 local service for Swindon in June 1955.;  

Robert Humm. The repatriation of the Middle East 8Fs 228-31.
Based on Ron Jarvis's Report dated 5 November 1947 on the state of the 195 locomotives shipped to the Middle East in 1941-2 at the behest of the War Department and their possible return to Britain. The Report was found amongst Jim Jarvis's papers and books which were sorted by the author in late 2012. Jim Jarvis was born in 1922 and studied locomotive balancing in the United States in 1951. Some mention is made to this Report in Chackfield's biography of Ron Jarvis (pp. 82-9), but the full document is replicated within this feature. This Report assesses the condition of the locomotives based at Jaffa and Sarafand Camp No. 169 Railway Workshops of the Royal Engineers in Palestine (as defined in 1947) and those at Suez No. 163 Railway Operating Company, Azzib. The report noted in genral terms where the 8F class had been used including in Persia (Iran), Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey and the sale of some locomotives to Middle Eastern countries for a variety of reasons. Noted how the locomotives responded badly to the harsh operating conditions in Persia, but were "well liked" in Palestine and Egypt. The actual shipment of the locomotives selected for use in Britain is covered in Chackfield (includes photographs being loaded). Illustrations with feature. Further: information (lots) from Walter Rothschild in letter on p. 381

Not where you'd expect to find them. 232-4
Black & white photo-feature: GWR No. 5000 Launceston Castle at Euston (arrival side) in October 1926; 57XX 0-6-0PT Nos. 4616 and 4631 on climb from Folkestone Harbour with a boat train in 1959; 43XX No. 6359 with GWR brake van passing through Warrington Bank Quay (probably 1939 or before when GWR exercised its running powers to Manchester Exchange); A3 No. 60077 The White Knight leaving Beattock station with stopping train for Glasgow on 3 April 1961; A4 No. 60009 Union of South Africa in Buchanan Street station with 09.15 for Aberdeen on 12 May 1962 [Fraank Jones's sixty first birthday]; rebuilt West Country No. 34039 Boscastle approaching Rainbow Hill Tunnel Worcester with Southampton to Birmingham Snow Hill FA Cup semi-final on 27 April 1963; GWR Bulldog No. 3369 David Mac Iver in Crewe station with train for Wellington probably pre-1939) 

Alistair F. Nisbet. The Television Train. 235-9.
In 1956 television was a novelty in Scotland and the Glasgow Evening Citizen sought to raise its profile by organizing railway excursions between Glasgow and Oban with closed circuit televsion entertainment for the passengers provided en route. Some consideration is given to earlier attempts at providing entrertainment on trains, but the Irish (CIE) Radio Train of 1954 is not mentioned. The LNER had attempted to transmit BBC broadcasts to a London to Leeds services and on services from London to Edinburgh. Subsequently, the trains were used for further scenic excursions, in connection wityh major sporting events ad as an exhibition train. W.A.C. Smith photographed one of the initial trains run at the Glasgow September Weekend? (24 September 1956 at Ardlui) and the two trains awaiting return from Oban hauled by Class 5 Nos. 44908 and 44956; footpale crews at Oban (Driver Dugald McPhail, Station Master Neil McDougall, Driver Neil McMaster, and Firemen Maurice Tindall and Alistair McRae; TV train leaving Oban in May 1960 (Michael Mensing), and same train headed by Class 5 4-6-0 Nos. 73108 and 73072 near Connel Ferry on 24 May 1960 (Michael Mensing), interior of LNER tourist stock with television screens; television studio. See also letter (p. 381) from John Macanb on vehicle composition of train

David Joy. Rails in Wensleydale. 240-9.
The railways which once extended the full extent of the dale from Northallerton to Garsdale on the Settle & Carlisle line were opened slowly in stages. The initial one extended to Leeming Lane and formed part of the Newcastle & Darlington Junction Railway. It opened on 6 March 1848. It should have reached Bedale, but lack of finance impeded progess. An independent Bedale & Leyburn Railway was incorporated in August 1853 which extended services to Bedale in 1855 and to Leyburn for feeight in November 1855 and passengers on 19 May 1856. Illustrations:  K1 No. 62005 with Type 2 diesel No. D5160 near Wensley en route to Redmire with Three Dales special on 20 May 1967 (colour: J.S. Gilks); J21 No. 65075 with milk tank wagons at Leeming Bar; approach to Bedale station (colour: J.S. Gilks); BTP 0-4-4BT No. 207 with long passenger train at Yorebridge; Leyburn station viewed through front of DMU (colour: J.S. Gilks); Leyburn with Eclipse excursion on 29 June 1927 (H.C. Casserley); D20 4-4-0 No. 711 and B16 4-6-0 No. 1372 at Leyburn with Eclipse excursion on 29 June 1927; Sentinel Y3 shunting milk tank wagons at Leyburn on 27 February 1954; Leyburn station with horsebox; Redmire station; Finghall Lane station; J21 No. 65038 at Garsdale on 24 April 1954 with last through train to Northallerton; DMU at Hawes on 6 September 1958; K1 No. 62003 on stone train crosses another freight at Jervaulx on 27 May 1960; entrance to Mossdale Head Tunnel; Nos/ 37 514 and 37 512 with train loading stone at Redmire on 30 April 1990 (Gavin Morrison) and army tanks being loaded at Redmire on 14 February 1997 (Gavin Morrison).

Steaming through Kent. Ken Wightman. 250-2.
Colour photo-feature: Schools class 4-4-0 No. 30916 (not as caption) Whitgift ckimbing Sole Street bank with a Ramsgate to Victoria express in August 1958; D1 class 4-4-0 No. 31505 leaving Bromley South ith an excursion to Margate on 24 August 1957; L class Nos. 31764 and 31766 at Tombridge with 14.35 to Ashford on 24 April 1954; N class 2-6-0 No. 31411 passing Shortands Junction with a parcels train from Ramsgate on 23 June 1957; H class 0-4-4T No. 31517 leaving Tonbridge with short train for Maidstone West on 18 July 1959; Merchant Navy (unrebuilt) No. 35001 Channel Packet in eruption near Shortlands Junction with 09.00 Victoria to Dover boat train in 1958; H class No. 31308 with Westerham push & pull in September 1958; N15 class 4-6-0 No. 30795 Sir Dinadan on down Kentish Belle Pullman train near Shortlands Junction.

Readers' Forum. 253

February Editorial. David Andrews.
Each of the letters gives a slightly different slant on whether to seek verification before publishing. In this letter the writer points to the significance of the discussion sections of the transactions of the major engineering institutions: [KPJ: Stanier for instance was highly vocal on many issues]

February Editorial. R.A.S Hennessey.
Against formal vetting, but possibly exagerates the gold-plated nature of the proceedings of the major engineering institutions

February Editorial. Martin Adams.
Advocates second opinion before publishing

England's Edison. Mike Hayward.
Discusses whether the vehicle on the Brighton and Rottingdean Seaside Electric Tramroad picked up electricity from a sigle wire with return through the rails or whether a two wire system was used; also suggests online information sources

'Dear Timothy...'. Norman Hill.
Writer considers Timothy "by birth a little further up the social scale than George'

Just add more cylinders. Part two. David Patrick.
Disputes suggestion that Churchward's Star class "cost him his career"

Eric Bruton in Edinburgh. Henry Knox
Working from Glasgow (Eastfield): would return on down Queen of Scots leaving Waverley at 22.00

Book reviews. 254

A detailed history of British Railways Standard steam locomotives. Vol. 5. The end of an era. Railway Correspondence & Travel Society. John Walford. 208pp. MB *****
Very well received in what is comparable to the concluding volumes in the LNER and GWR series: that is a tying-up of loose ends, but in this case the whole issue of building standard steam locomotives when other forms of traction should have been develeoped is considered.

F.W. Webb 1836-1906: a bibliography. J.E. Spink. London & North Western Society. CPS ***
"very thorough piece of research... produced to the LNWR Society's usual high standards": then why only three stars?

Somerset & Dorset local. Paul Strong. rear cover
4F 0-6-0 No. 44560 calls at Evercreech Junction with an up local on 3 July 1962.

Number 5 (May)

LNER D49 4-4-0 No.62709 Berwickshire at York shed in 1959, preparing to make its way back home towards Edinburgh. Derek Penney. front cover

What the doctor ordered... and others. Michael Blakemore. 259.
Editor celebrating fifty years since the infamous Beeching Report.

On the Birkenhead Joint Line. Michael Yardley. 260-1.
Colour photo-feature: Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42597 leaving Rock Ferry for Birkenhead Woodside on 22 June 1963 see also letter from Chris Magner on p. 510; Horwich (Crab) 2-6-0 No. 42727 with maroon backed smokebox number and shed code plates light engine at Bebington & New Ferry on 5 August 1966; Standard Class 4 4-6-0 No. 75046 on 14.45 Birkenhead Woodside to Paddington service on 7 May 1966; Horwich (Crab) 2-6-0 No. 42859 leaving Birkenhead Woodside on parcels train for Chester with SS Falcon towering above on 24 August 1966; Class 9F 2-0-0 No. 92126 passing Ledsham with oil tanks from Stanlow on 7 May 1966. 

Alistair F. Nisbet, The Brechin & Edzell District Railway. 262-7.
On 31 May 1896 Colonel Yorke inspected the line on behalf of the Board of Trade and opened for passenger traffic on 8 June 1896. Illustrations: CR 171 class 0-4-4T No. 231 at Edzell (locomotive worked line for considerable time); Edzell station in 1912; CR 0-4-4T No. 55193 on freight at Edzell c1951;

A.J. Ludlam. Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway workings in North Lincolnshire in 1886. 268-71.
Lord Worsley of Brocklesby Hall (it is not clear which Worsley alias Yarborough played at trains) promoted the Great Grimsby & Sheffield Junction Railway. The engine workings from Lincoln, Grimsby and New Holland in 1886 are described. Illustrations of Sacré locomotives: Class 6B 4-4-0 No. 434B (built 1877); Class 24 2-4-0 No. 183 (built 1865) at Manchester Central; Class 1B 2-4-0 No. 31 (built 1868); Class 18A 0-6-0 No. 61; Class 15 2-4-0 No. 215 (built by Beyer Peacock for Sardinian Railway; Class 6A 0-6-0 No. 385 (built 1876).

Ivor Lewis. The Great Western Railway 'Krugers'. Part One: The background to their design. 272-80.
This is an odd piece about an odd locomotive design and this part examines the literature about William Dean without noting the new book by Clements, nor Gibson's Great Western locomotive design, nor Hamilton Ellis's biographical study. Jones Highland Goods is mentioned, but Wilson Worsdell's brave ventures are ignored. The article enjoys a brief excursion into technological innovation and the phrase paradigm shift is mentioned. Without question Dean attempted to shift the form of the steam locomotive, but with conspicuous lack of success: his successor, Churchward, was far more successful. Illustrations: Kruger 4-6-0 No. 2601; Churchward with his design team (including James Armstrong Robinson. John Armstrong, H.C. King, F.G. Wright, W.H. Waister, F.W. Marillier and W.H. Williams);  4-6-0 No. 36; Queen class 2-2-2 No. 55 Queen; replica Rocket at Castle Hedingham in September 1991 (colour); Rocket in Science Museum (colour); 4-2-2 Achilles class 4-2-2 No. 3077 Princess May at Westbourne Park; experimental locomotives: 2-2-2 No. 10; 2-4-0 No. 14; 4-4-0 Earl Cawdor. Swindon drawing office. p. 278 Hawksworth surrounded by Drawing Office staff allegedly including A.E. Leader, G.H. Pearson, J.W. Cross, G. Burrows, W.H. Pearce, and D.E.F. Deverell. 2-6-0 No. 2602. See also letters on p. 510 from L.F.E. Coombs on Serve tubes, and from Adrian Tester.

Closing the Palace Gates. David Idle. 281.
Colour photo-feature of the last day of passenger services on the Palace Gates branck, namely the cold 5 January 1963: Class 31 No. D5666 at Stratford Low Level on 12.10 North Woolwich to Palace Gates; drinking fountain at Palace Gates; and D5619 at Palace Gates having arrived on the last train – the 12.40 ex-North Woolwich.

The Midland single-wheelers. 282-4
Black & white photo-feature of 4-2-2 locomotives: No. 16 at Bedford (later renumbered 641; No. 683 at St. Pancras; No. 133 on down express at Cheltenham with M&SWJ 4-4-4T in bay platform; No. 662 with 4-4-0 No. 520 at Kings Norton in August 1921; No. 672 at Leicester London Road; No. 614 on turntable at Chinley on 7 August 1923; No. 600 with inspection saloon formed from ex-steam railmotor in LMS livery in July 1926; No. 633 at Chinley on 20 September 1926 with 12.55 ex-Liverpool Central.;  

Focus on Wellingborough. Ken Fairey. 285-7
Colour photo-feature: 2F 0-6-0 with Belpaire boiler No. 58148 on shed on 18 May 1962; 3F 0-6-0T No. 47437 on shed on 16 July 1960; Stanier Class 5 2-6-0 No. 42946 on 16.53 Wellingborough London Road to Northampton service on 1 May 1964; Franco-Crosti boiler 9F 2-10-0 with smoke deflector plates running light engine on 16 July 1959; Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80097 on shed on 29 June 1961 with former Franco Crosti 2-10-0 No. 92029 behind; Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41227 at London Road with push & pull working from Northampton on 29 April 1964.

Hunting the 'Shires' 288-90.
Colour photo-feature: both D49/1 Shire and D49/2 Hunt type 4-4-0s: No. 235 The Bedale at York shed in 1938 (H.M. Lane); No. 62709 Berwickshire leaving York light engine  in 1959 (Derek Penney); No. 62712 Morayshire at Carlisle with a northbound passenger train in 1960 (J.C.W. Halliday); No. 62739 The Badsworth at Scarborough in August 1960 (K.R. Pirt); No. 62706 Forfarshire ex-Darlington Works in September 1954 (I. Davidson): No. 62739 The Badsworth at Scarborough Central in September 1960; No. 62734 Bedfordshire at York hauling carmine & cream rolling stock on express at south end of York station in mid-1950s.  

Robert Emblin and Bryan Longbone. When push came to shove: some effects of the Great War on the railways of Britain. 291-5.
Shoddy financial arrangements imposed by the Government upon the railways in respect of the costs forced upon them carrying traffic during WW1: the shipping companies were allowaed to profit from their wartime activity. The recompense, such as it was, was based on financial data for 1913 and no allowance was made for inflation. This shabby treatment depressed railway income during the Grouping period as is shown in summary financial statistics. The Scottish railways fought unsuccessfully for fairer treatment.

Brian Ringer. Acton – twilight of a Marshalling Yard. Part Two. 296-301.
First part see pages 139 et seq. Traffic through the Yard included coal, mainly to the West Drayton coal concentration depot; scrap iron and stel (where the 16 ton mineral wagon enjoyed market edge); beer from Guinness's brewery at Park Royal; china clay; milk (notable for its odour) and new cars (associated with overtime earnings by the footplate crews). Illustrations: No. 73 128 with two brake tenders on coal train between Old Oak Common to North Pole Junction in May 1976 (colour); No. 50 023 Howe on 19.15 Acton to St Erth with empty milk tanks and vans and clay hoods on 21 July 1978 (two picture);  Acton West signal box interior in July 1978; No. 37 022 on 13,37 Ilford to Acton milk empties at Acton Wells Junction on 20 January 1978; No. 47 014 on 20.14 Langley Oil Terminal to Ripple Lane empty bogie tank wagons on 21 July 1978; No. 31 118 on 18.28 Park Royal to Acton Steel Liner return working.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'I Remember Adlestrop': Ernest Marples and the eclipse of Britain's rural railways. 302-9.
Precis written during "National mourning" for Baroness Thatcher whom it should be noted was less damaging to the railway network than either Harold Wilson or John Major: during her period of office the East Coast route was electrified: the major loss was coal traffic. By happenchance KPJ's own assessment of Marples went online slightly before this Issue of Backtrack appeared and largely based on his ODNB biography and Wikipedia which revealed his rapid exit from Britain on the Night Ferry which is gloriously ironic. Skelsey presents a more measured assessment of Marples and Beeching and the political environment in which they operated: namely, the failure of the British Railways Modernisation Programme to curb the mounting financial losses created by the railways, and the loss of freight caused by the introduction of a motorway building programme by Marples' predecesor as Minister of Transport. The Conservative administration contained some strident anti-railway MPs notably Enoch Powell and David Renton. Ivan Stedeford considered that electrification shold be abandoned. Beeching's lack of political sensitivity is noted: both he and Marples were surprised at public dissent. Illustrations (captions reflect upon post Beeching status): Warship passing Lavington on 16.30 Paddington to Truro The Mayflower on 7 June 1963 (intermediate rural on main line – station closed in 1966); Class 4 2-6-4T No. No. 80061 on local train near Newton Stewart in May 1965 (colour – Dumfreies to Stranraer closed one month later – strategic nature of Northern Irish traffic not taken into account); Alderley Edge – two EMUs pass (the modern railway, but caption notes Stedeford's reservations on electric traction);  Park Royal railbus leaving Hitchin for Bedford in August 1958 (colour); H class 0-4-4T No. 31533 at Clavering Halt on Westerham branch (closed HST in original dignified livery at Cardiff Central in November 1977 (colour notes success of InterCity brand); Adlestrop station sign now resited in centre of village (colour –  allegedly closed to asssit construction of M25 orbital car park); No. 46251 on passenger train at Rhayader in June 1962; Alcester with a Barnt Green to Ashchurch train (part of line reatined as part of Birmingham cross-city route); 57XX No. 9654 at Witney on Fairford branch in 1962 (would probably support a passenger service in 21st century); Hemyock with No. 1470 on 4 September 1962 (hemlock branch??); Class 5 No. 45298 at Swansea Victoria (Central Wales line passed through too many marginal constituencies to be closed completely); Class 24 dieseel electric at scenic Kyle of Lochalsh (colour); and DMU at Buxton (colour). Generated a considerable correspondence on page 443: from Robin Leleux (thr failure to); Keith Fenwick (on 1959 election manifestos); J. Lord (on Government involvement) and Tony Reinhardt-Rutland (on Castle and Marples).

Steve Banks. Trains and formations of the LNER streamliners. 310-14
The Silver Jubilee was introduced in September 1935 departing Newcastle at 10.00 reaching King's Cross at 14.00 and returning north at 17.30. High speeds were attained, and the standard of accommodation was high especially in first class.  There was a triplet articulated restaurant car plus a pair of twin articulated vehicles making a seven coach train. The Coronation service to Edinburgh required two eight coach sets formed of articulated twin units and a third reserve set was also built. A beaver tail observation car was added during the period of the summer timetable. The West Riding Limited extended streamlined services to Leeds and Bradford and the formation was similar to that of the Coronation, but minus observation car. Illustrations: A4 No. 4491 Commonweath of Australia on Flying Scotsman at Ganwick (E.R. Wethersett) compared with Silver Jubilee hauled by No. 2509 Silver Link (in original condition with recessed coupling at front) at same location showing shorter train (H. Gordon Tidey); blue A4 No. 2510 Quicksilver with extended Silver Jubilee set on down service at New Barnet; No. 2511 Silver King on up Silver Jubilee passing Peterborough (T.G. Hepburn); No. 4490 Empire of India on down Coronation with beaver tail at Harr; No. 4491 Commonweath of Australia with up Coronation on Cockburnspath bank (E.R. Wethersett); No. 4469 Gadwall on up West Riding Limited at Potters Bar on 28 December 1938 (E.R. Wethersett); A1 No. 60144 King's Courier on down West Riding at New Southgate c1950; A1 No. 60124 Kenilworth with up Northumbrian leaving Stoke Tunnel on 30 July 1951 (set included triplet unit off Silver Jubilee) (E.R. Wethersett). See also letter from John Macnab on p. 382; and from Robert Carroll  on p. 443 (on formation of West Riding operated by British Railways and use of streamliner stock in Master Cutler set.

Forgetting your lines [remains of former railways]. Neil Taylor. 315
Colour photo-feature: notice indicating where Duffryn, Llynfi & Porthcawl Tramroad used to be on 15 May 2005; rails in road at site of former Tir John power station at Jersey Marine on 19 February 2012; remains of siding to a scrapyard at Maesmawr bear Tonteg on 24 May 2012; engine shed at Aberthaw Cement Works on 21 July 2012; railway track on a bridge formerly linking Aberpergwm Colliery.

A.J. Ludlam. A right Royal ending. 316
On 19 November 1958 Prince Philip spent the night on the Spilsby branch in a portion of the Royal Train and this article reports on the sanitary arrangements made by the permanent way staff to ensure that nothing untoward was left behind as trays were placed beneath the waste outlets of what are incorrectly described as "Pullman coaches". Burnished B1 No. 61258 provided warmth during the night before the Prince inspected a rocket site at North Cotes. Members of the gang were Edward Borrill, who kept a diary, Harry Tomblin and Bill Rinison. Weeding on the branch is described, but the big event came shortly before final closure. Illustrations: Firsby station with level crossing in late 1960s and Halton Holgate station (intermediate station) on Spilby branch.

Readers' Forum. 317-18

Town and country 'Halls'. Paul Joyce
The picture of No.4986 on p. 188 lower is not of Sonning Cutting:. it is next cutting eastwards and depicts the train at Ruscombe.

To Portsmouth by Class 50. Gerald Goodall 
As is stated, the long-standing Brighton-Exeter (previously Plymouth) service indeed still ran on Saturdays, but there hadn't been a daily Monday to Friday service on this axis for many years and certainly not from and to Portsmouth. One reason, again alluded to in the text, might have been difficulty of dealing with a large diesel locomotive at Brighton. Probably more important would have been resourcing the coaches, as there was essentially nothing useful they could have done other than one single journey each day. This didn't matter so much on Saturdays, when coaches from weekday commuter trains could be made available – and it would be an interesting article in its own right to go through the several methods that were used to deliver a set to Brighton for the morning westbound train, often involving long ECS trips. Network South East's clever idea was to provide a weekday service within commuter resources and this could be done by terminating at Portsmouth and using the Portsmouth Direct Line to get from and to Waterloo. Thus the morning westbound train from Portsmouth had begun its day by being an up morning service from the Salisbury line into Waterloo, and likewise the eastbound train, having run up from Portsmouth to Waterloo, formed an evening down service on the Salisbury line. The overall effect was still that one extra train set was needed, but not two. Getting the locomotive somewhere near a suitable depot may have been important as well but not, I think, the key reason for the use of Portsmouth in this way. ,

Acton Yard. David Ratcliffe
Further information based on 1976 Working Timetable (letter writer did not have access to that for 1978. Argues for importance of Wellingborough Yard and lists coal source collieries and destinations.

British steeple cabs. Michael J. Smith 
The two trains in photograph were not on "Met & GC Joint line": the 'Joint', set up in 1906, was responsible for the line from Verney Junction as far as Harrow South Junction (plus the Brill and Chesham branches). On the left, the original Metropolitan tracks, electrified in 1904/5; on the right the tracks opened in 1901 by the 'Met' from Harrow South Junction to Canfield Place, leased to the GCR for the exclusive use of its own traffic.

Malton. Mike Wynn 
Writer lived in Norton for 21 months, and memories were rekindled. Norton was in the East Riding of Yorkshire and Malton in the North Riding, both were classified as towns with their own services and administration including the police forces and the level crossing on the road linking the two was the cause of long delays to road traffic before the bypass was built.The signalman at Malton East blew a whistle for the East Riding policeman to stop the traffic. This process was more important for the homegoing railway traffic especially on Sunday evenings and Bank Holidays. The writer sat on the wall at Malton East and watched the East Riding policeman – usually his father – directing traffic. The signalman blew his whistle every eight minutes; all the traffic had to be stopped on a staggered junction, the gates closed and then wait for the inevitable whistle and loud rumble as the train roared past. A few seconds would elapse as the signals were returned to danger before the gates were opened and road traffic could roll forward. Once over the level crossing the amount of traffic that could proceed depended on the North Riding police in the narrow centre of Malton half a mile away having cleared the roads sufficiently, On no account could any traffic be allowed to stop on the level crossing because within a few minutes the signalman would blow his whistle again. Whilst the trains rolled westward, road traffic inevitably built up, creating queues four miles long as far back as Rillington or even further.

Malton. Mike Pellatt
Mention made of a light engine working to Goathland summit setting down platelayers' wives at Farworth and Raindale, which were public sidings, and bridge No.60. This is obviously an error in the working timetable – writer's copy for Summer 1950 gives the same – as there are only 42 bridges on the line. The publication Private and Untimetabled Railway Stations by Croughton, Kidner and Young gives a map reference at SE822931 which shows either bridge No.16 or 17, both over Pickering Beck.

Push-pull accident at Polmont. Greg Morse 
Reading up on 'animal incursions' for a report being  written for RSSB (Raiul Safety & Standards Board), writer found a nugget of information that may interest those who read article on the Polmont derailment of 1984 (February). British Rail and Liverpool University were researching the implications of push-pull operation ahead of planned 100 mile/h services on the East and West Coast Main Lines. The study "took the HST power car as its benchmark, there having been no HST derailments despite numerous collisions with animals since its launch". It seems that this remained so until 17 August 1999, when a Penzance-Paddington service struck two bullocks at Carn Brea, between Redruth and Camborne. On passing beneath a road bridge shortly after 15.50, the driver spotted the animals standing on the track about 800 yards ahead. He applied the brakes and sounded the horn, but they kept coming towards the train. The leading power car (No.43 147) struck them at around 55 mile/h, causing the leading wheelset to derail. Four bullocks had managed to escape from a field, but only two had got themselves into a contractors' yard. They ran its length before plunging into a thicket, which led them through a (non-existent) boundary fence and on to the line. Carn Brea reinforced the message that fence maintenance is absolutely vital if these sorts of accidents are to be avoided. It also confirmed that HSTs are not immune to derailment. However, given that there were no passenger or staff injuries, and that the incident was unusual to say the least (both bullocks being side-by-side within the four-foot), the investigation recognised that the risk remained low. See also letter from Dave Carter on p. 573..

Push-pull accident at Polmont. Allan C. Baker 
Reproduced verbatim: At the time of the accident I was the Area Mechanical & Electrical Engineer based at Eastfield depot in Glasgow. On the day in question, I had literally just arrived home when the phone rang to tell me of the accident and I immediately made my way to Polmont. I would like to make three points as I was the first Senior Officer on site. First, after helping with the casualties, I made an inspection of the complete scene. As Major King mentions in his report, the cess rail fractured about 98 yards from the point of impact and I formed the view that had this not happened, there was a good prospect that the DBSO might not have veered to the left and run up the inclined side of the cutting, when most of its damage was caused. It was, of course, this vehicle where all the fatalities occurred. In my experience of attending numerous incidents over a 50-year career, vehicles, even when derailed, derive an amount of sideways control from the rails provided they do no break. Secondly, I would like to dismiss the off-repeated point, which the author raises, that the locomotive at the rear of the train was exerting a propelling force after the collision — he just calls it a force. It was not. When a brake application is made with power still applied, as the automatic air brake pipe pressure drops to 65psi (the running pressure was 70), the air brake pipe governor on the locomotive would open and via an interlock the motor contactors would drop-out, completely shutting off power.This would have happened once the brake pipe was interrupted; however, in this case we do know that the driver had shut off power and made an emergency brake application prior to hitting the animal. The locomotive brake would also apply and with a brake force of around 85% of its weight, more than all the other vehicles in the train put together, the locomotive was applying a significant retarding force to the train rather than the reverse. Lastly, it took me some time to work out that the First Open coach, No.11004, which had been the vehicle behind the DBSO, had not only been ejected from its correct place in the formation, but had also turned through 180 degrees! We first noticed that the stone wall on the north side of the line had been demolished for some distance and scratched our heads as to how this could be!
It is worth adding that in typical BR fashion of the times, with the Eastfield and Haymarket breakdown gangs, we had all the vehicles clear of the running lines within 36 hours of the accident, although we were criticised for the haste with which we cut-up on site the DBSO. In similar circumstances today, I wager the wreckage would have be left for days before the breakdown gangs would be allowed anyway near it – a scene of crime, no doubt!
It was the first occasion the new 76-tonne Cowans Sheldon hydraulic jib crane allocated to Eastfield had been used in anything serious. It proved to me just how much more adaptable the design was compared with the fixed jib cranes which were all we had for breakdown operations hitherto — not only because of its jib, but equally the power operated outriggers which saved an enormous amount of time and effort on the part of the crew. Working from the Glasgow end we were able to re-rail on to the north (up-side) track coach by coach, arriving at the locomotive which Haymarket, with a 75-ton fixed jib crane, only re-re railed about the time we reached that end of the train! Incidentally, Major King in his report mentions that the third vehicle in the train, the TSO No.12006, was cut up on site. It was not, although it was broken up later, as was No. 11004, the FO, second vehicle in the train. The only one we cut up on site was the DBSO No. 9706. The MkIII coaches stood up to the incident extremely well as, of course, we now know they always do. However, their integral monocoque construction is such that they can rarely be repaired if they sustain any amount of body damage, in particular twisting. Response from Greg Morse pp. 443/6. See also letter from Dave Carter on p. 573..

Just add more cylinders. Mike Zanker 
The four-cylinder article states on p. 121 that Robinson's Class 9P had two sets of piston valves with cross-ports, seemingly implying that each pair of cylinders shared one valve set. However, E. L. Ahrons states on p355 of The British Steam Railway Locomotive 1825-1925 (Ian Allan 1969) that they "have valves driven by inside Stephenson's link motion actuating the bottom lever arm of a rocking shaft, of which the two upper arms, working in synchronism, are attached to the valve spindles of the inside and outside cylinders respectively. Since the cranks on each side are at 180 deg., the valves of the inside cylinders have inside admission and those of the outside cylinders outside admission."

Just add more cylinders. Miles Macnair 
Gratitude to L.F.E. Coombs for pointing out out his incorrect simplification of Robinson's unique valve arrangements for the GCR 9P (B3) 'Lord Faringdon' 4-"novel and ingenious".) Further research has revealed the truth and explains the dichotomy of the words 'rockers/rocking levers': quotes from the Locomotive Publishing Co.' s book of 1924, Locomotive valve gears and valve settings, p96. "A horizontal shaft unites the valves of the adjacent cylinders on each side by means of vertical arms, the ends of which consequently move simultaneously in the same direction. But since one valve is arranged for inside admission and the other for outside admission, and the cranks are set at 180 degrees to each other, the same effect is secured as with rocking levers working two identical valves travelling in opposition." Writer understands this to imply that each of the two inside Stephenson gears drives a sort of 'T' -bar with the valve stems connected to the extremities, though the use of the words 'vertical arms' is geometrically enigmatic. This article infers that this arrangement also applied to the 9Q (B7) Class as well. [KPJ: the bibliography of valve gears is far from satisfactory: neither Ottley nor Jones tackled this properly: the authorship of the 1924 book is far from certain; KPJ has always relied upon Shields ILocoE Paper No. 443, but he suspects that this is now also available as a book]

Railways and Royal Agricultural Shows. Claude R. Hart.
The Royal Agricultural Society held its annual meeting in Shrewsbury in July, 1845. The show was well covered in the Illustrated London News (ILN) at the time: "The inhabitants had calculated on a great influx of visitors to their ancient town ... but I regret to say these expectations have been sadly disappointed... Additional coaches had been put upon the road at Wolverhampton and Whitmore but many of them came in with far from a good load... A more striking proof of the utility of railroad conveyance could not be desired that afforded on this occasion: for, independently of the expedition and comfort of such a mode of travelling, it possesses the additional comfort of regulated fares." No railway, fewer visitors! The Shrewsbury & Birmingham Railway between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury did not open until November 1849 (recorded, with an illustration, in ILN for 17 November 1849) when a train consisting of 50 carriages was pulled by two engines, Salopian and Wrekin. Another example of the importance of railways involves the Smithfield shows held in Islington in mid-Victorian times. One local Shropshire farmer wanted to exhibit a prize Hereford at this show – but still no direct rail link. This interesting anecdote, taken again from the ILN of the period, refers to this Hereford animal being sent to London by an owner from Cound in Shropshire which travelled thus to the 1842 Smithfield show in London: three miles by foot, seven miles by cart, 50 miles by boat, 100 miles by railway. The owner won a prize of £20 and a silver medal! ,

Railways and Royal Agricultural Shows. Peter Ranee. 
The archive held by the Great Western Trust at the Didcot Railway Centre  holds relevant internal staff operational documents for five events on GWR territory: namely Reading in 1882, Shrewsbury in 1884, Park Royal in 1905, Windsor in 1939 and Oxford under BR(WR) in 1959. To grasp the extent of 'organisational commitment' in 1882 a 54-page booklet was produced covering Special Excursions, Special Trains and other General Arrangements. Far from getting any easier, that by BRWR in 1959 also extended to 30 pages and detailed not only General Arrangements, but Organisation (ie staff and roles) and Documentation (form-filling is nothing new).

Book Reviews. 318

Against the grade – working on the Settle-Carlisle Railway. Bob Swallow. Great Northern Books. 160pp. DWM ****
Series of reminiscences of railwaymen and women working on the Settle and Carlisle: the author has brought together tales from the platform, signal box, permanent way and footplate. The inclement weather of the S&C gets a chapter to itself as does the saga of the saving of the line and the on-going up-grading.
The book is lavishly illustrated with photographs, both ancient and modern, line drawings and cartoons – one error, however, on p137, that's the 'old original' Duchess of Hamilton blazing away up Mallerstang and not the 'young pretender' Duchess of Sutherland – not that the latter would have had any difficulty with 'fourteen on' over the northern fells! This isn't then a dry formal history, it's a book about the people who made the railway what it was by the people who made the railway what it was. It's an unashamed celebration of one of the most remarkable pieces of railway in the United Kingdom. It is beautifully produced and can be highly recommended!

Merry-Go-Round on the rails. David Monk-Steel. Historical Model Railway Society, 2012, 194pp, PT *****
The development of the 275/400kV super-grid from the mid-1950s allowed electricity power stations to be located nearer collieries than before, mainly in the Midlands and the North of England, Wales and Central Scotland. This book is a record of the substantial operation involved in the transport of prodigious quantities of coal from the collieries to the new 2,000 megawatt power stations constructed during the mid-1960s onwards.The author, a railwayman by profession, has drawn on his experience and carried out further research to set down the story of the Merry-Go-Round, more colloquially known as MGR. He sets the scene by briefly describing the electricity supply industry prior to the '60s and goes on the deal with inauguration of the MGR operation, the development of its maximum capacity air-braked hopper wagons, the loading and unloading facilities at the collieries and power stations respectively. This enabled fixed formations of train to circulate between colliery and power station in an unceasing procession to meet the huge appetite for coal. Having devised a much more efficient system of operation than of old, of course the technique was in due course also adopted for the movement of imported coal from the ports and for alternative uses like the manufacture of cement. Other bulk materials, such as limestone, gypsum, china clay and the substantial quantities of fly-ash produced by burning powdered coal in the furnaces of the power stations, were likewise transported. Technical details of the plant employed, its deployment, modification and maintenance are considered, together with personal accounts of the operation over the years. This book is liberally illustrated with 202 colour and monochrome photographs and 60 drawings, maps and diagrams. Regrettably just a few photographs are reproduced at too small a format to be useful. Nonetheless, this book is thoroughly recommended as a well researched interesting read about the little-explored field of railway operation.

Forth crossings. D.A. Kelso/Colour-Rail. rear cover
D49 No. 62704 Stirlingshire on local train to Stirling formed of carmine & cream liveried rolling stock (mainly Gresley coaches) crossing the Forth Bridge in June 1957 with ferry Sir William Wallace at South Queensferry terminal below.

Number 6 (June)

LMS Stanier Class 4 2-6-4T No.42604 collects stock of a sleeping car express from Willesden carriage sidings to take to Euston. Geoff Rixon. front cover
See also p. 352

Breaking away. Jeffrey Wells. 323.
Guest Editorial: accidents caused by coupling failure leading to collisions on steep gradients and the former need for catch points.

Ipswich Class 86s .John D. Mann. 324-6.
Colour photo-feature: No. 86 425 St. Mungo in mainly red Parcels Sector livery and train in InterCity livery on Norwich to Liverpool Street service on 8 July 1997; two pairs of class 86/6 (one in Freightliner grey livery) on 25 May 1999; No. 86 242 James Kennedy GC in Virgin livery with train in Anglia Railways livery awaiting departure for Liverpool Street on 23 July 2002; No. 86 238 European Community (both it and front of train in InterCity livery); No. 86 218 NHS 50 (both it and train all in Anglia Railways livery) on 28 April 1999; No. 86 615 Rotary International plus one other Class 86 in Freightliner green livery on a container train on 17 March 2003.

Jeffery Grayer. Ten-coupled over the Mendips. 327-31.
Brief use of 9F 2-10-0 class to increase productivity and reduce double-heading. Illustrations (black & white): No. 92001 approaching Bath Junction with tablet catcher out on 07.45 Bradford to Bournemouth West on 14 July 1962; No. 92245 on Bath Gre3en Park shed on 28 September 1962; No. 92210 entering Bath Green Park on 09.25 from Bournemouth for Manchester and Liverpool on 21 July 1962; No. 92233 on 07.47 Bradford to Bournemouth in July 1962 near Cole; . See also letter from Cedric Catt on p. 573.

Alan Taylor. Anglo-Scottish East Coast express freights. 332-5.
Very partial examination of motive power workings during the transition from steam (Pacifics and V2 types) to diesel. Illustrations: A1 No. 60117 (in LNER apple green and lettered BRITISH RAILWAYS on 23.45 Edinburgh to King's Cross south of Welwyn Garden City near low searchlight colour light signals on 5 March 1950 (E.D. Bruton), A4 No. 60001 Sir Ronald Matthews approaching Stoke Tunnel on 7 July 1964 with northbound express freight; V2 No. 60854 on down express freight at Stoke Summit on 21 July 1962; Class 40 No. D254 at Beningbrough on up fast freight;  Class 33 Nos. 6563 and 6579 on return cement train from Uddingstone to Cliffe south of York on 16 June 1962,

Jeffrey Wells. Crossing the Nidd at Knaresborough. 336-9.
A fine Grade 2 listed viaduct dominates the town which is now on the route of the railway between York and Harrogate, but was originally on the line between thee cities of York and Ripon, but which lost this useful link under Beeching (see below). Knaresborough began as an end-on junction brtween the Leeds & Thirsk and East & West Yorkshire Union Railway, the former building the viaduct and being responsible for the flooding in the town when it collapsed. The laying of the foundation stone on 5 April 1847 and associated festivities are retold in much detail The  actual opening took place on 30 August 1851. Illustrations: No. 37 411 (in EW&S red livery) and vtrain in Arriva livery cross viadut on 6 July 2004 (Gavin Morrison: colour); several photographs of detail in stonework; D20 4-4-0 arriving at station on Harrogate to York train on 30 April 1949. Same Author gives a more extensive (in geography) account of Leeds & Thirsk Railway in Rly Archive Number 39 p. 31 et seq

Fireless at the paper mill. David Idle and John Scholes. 340.
Colour photo-feature: beginniong as Wallpaper Manufacturers Ltd at Greenhithe this German-owned works obtained a Orenstein & Koppel locomotive in 1909, No. 2299. This locomotive used a modified for of Hackworth valve gear. WW1 enabled Andrew Barclay to enter the fireless marker without infinging the German patents and WN 1567/1917 was suoolied to Brunner Mond at Northwich. In 1920 this locomotive was sold to the Greenhithe paperworks which had become Empire Fine Papers. Fianally, Empire acquired No. 3 from W.R. Cunis Ltd, a firm of lightermen and contractors who dumped rubbish at Aveley marshes near Rainham. This was constructed on the frames of Barclay fireless WN 2167/1946, but powered by a diesel engine via a torque converter.

Maurice Hopper. Fifty years on – a reflection on the 'Beeching Report'. 341-7.
Railwayman son of a senior railway officer: Edward Hopper who introduced the General Railway Course at Dillington House. The son, like KPJ, was introduced to the Report by it being extracted from his father's briefcase. His father considered it to be an excellent report, but then it could be argued that Hawick is not on the Southern Region: it would have been a different story if Woking had been listed for closure. Hopper Senior came from the Southern Railway which had been far more conscious of the need to modernise in a way which none of the other companies attempted. Electrification reduced the staffing on trains by a third. Hopwood Senior regarded electrification synonymous with modernisation. It also greatly reduced terminal costs including expenditure on trackwork. He was highly critical of the steam locomotive procurement policy, eespecially the ordering of steam shunting locomotives once it had beeen agreed that diesel shunters were more efficieent. Smilarly light wight diesel railcars cost 26 pence per mile to opearte as compared with 87 pence per mile for steam. No attempt was made to increase wagon productivity by using higher capacity wagons. In its early days the Southern had greatly rationalised its lines in Thanet with gains rather than losses to its customers. Illustrations: Achnasheen station (in the Beeching list and extant in 21st century): Princeton branch (last day of passenger services and track across Dartmoor); Ashstead station c1963 (vcaption notes slow rate of modernisation to signalling and level crossing control); Swanage station June 1964 (Hopper does not say it, but surely Swanage should be part of network not on a toy go nowhere railway); diesel hydraulic D1033 Western Trooper at Exeter St Davids (why was motive power modernisation so haphazard).

Michael J. Smith. Blunders at the buffers 348-51.
Terminal accidents on the District line: on 18 November 1909 a multiple unit hit the buffers at Ealing Broadway station due to the incorrect operation of the air brake. This led to the deaths of Motorman Tibbles and Conductor Beadell. On 14 October 1920 Motorman Charles Rigby underestimated the speed of his train and collided with the buffers at Wimbledon. The Board of Trade Inspector, Major G.L. Hall was critical of the design of the stop blocks which were designed for side, rather tha central, buffers and the lack of sanding on the multiple units.

The LMS Class 4 2-6-4 tanks 352-5.
Colour photo-feature: Fowler type with side-window cab No. 42417 arriving Birmingham New Street on 4 March 1961 (R.C. Riley); Stanier type No. 42611 with Royal Scot No. 46111 Royal Fusilier about to haul empty stock out of Platform 1 at Euston on 14 March 1962 (Geoff Rixon); Fairburn type No. 42277 near Wemyss Bay with 19.50 to Glasgow Central on 2 June 1963 (David Idle); Stanier type No. 42604 at Euston with empty stock in 1962 (Geoff Rixon); Fowler type No. 42378 on West Coast Main Line near Morecambe South Junction with local passenger train (Derek Penney); Fairburn type No. 42169 on Blair Atholl sub-shed in September 1959 (Geoff Rixon); Stanier type No. 42546 on banking duty at Manchester Victoria in 1964 (Geoff Rixon); Fowler type with side-window cab No. 42409 at Wetherby station on RCTS Nidd Valley tour on 19 October 1963 and Stanier type No. 42483 and Class 5 No. 44984 near Morecambe South Junction with express passenger train (Derek Penney). See also letter on p. 510 from R.L. Vickers on Class 3 2-6-2Ts and from W.T. Scott on p. 702 on the Ulster derivatives (2-6-0 W class) and 2-6-6T No. 4 which is extant, but the failure to preserve a Mogul is regretted

Bill Taylor. The railway in court - Tickets, Please 356-60.
Failure, either by accident or design, to comply with the regulations printed on or implied on railway tickts: several cases are considered. Cases examined include Miss Knights' lack of a ticket on the London Chatham & Dover Railway; the failure by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway to get Mr Duckworth on time on 18 October 1900 when the 05.45 from Rose Grove to Burnley was held up by signals and Mr Duckworth lost a day's wages (he won his case); the Furness Railway attempted to evade compensating Mr Hooper who was injured on an excursion sailing from Fleetwood and there was a complex case brought by the Southern Railway against one of its season ticket holders had used his wife's ticket (it began to read like speeding points) to travel between Paddock Wood and London Bridge; the LMS won against an action brought by one of its customers who had sustained injuries when stepping from a carriage at a point before it reached the platform at Darwen on 21 January 1928; the LNWR was successful in recovering its claim against a passenger who atempted to reduce the cost of a Huddersfield to Manchester journey by purchasing tickets to and from Stalybridge with a lower total fare; and Horace William Chapman was sent down for hard labour when he attempted to defraud the Midland Railway by purchasing a ticket without the means to pay for it..

The last of the Hastings units. Keith Dungate. 361
Colour photo-feature: Diesel electric multiple units: Set No. 1032 climbing away from Tonbridge on 10.45 Charing Cross to Hastings on 29 April 1986; DEMU No. 1032 at Sevenoaks on 10.03 Cannon Street to Hastings on 1 May 1986; and sets No. 1002 and 1032 at Hastings on arrival of final 22-45 from Charing Cross on 11 May 1986. See also letter from Tony Reinhardt-Rutland on p. 572 concerning type still in service on NIR.

Take the 'Port Road'. 362-5.
Colour photo-feature: Jubilee No. 45588 Kashmir on Scottish Rambler tour at Castle Douglas with 80023 taking train along Kirkcudbright branch on 15 April 1963 (David Idle); Class 2 2-6-0 No. 46467 and former Caldonian Railway 0-6-0 No. 57374 at Newton Stewart on 15 April 1963; Class 5 No. 45485 at Stranraer Harbour on 13.40 to Dumfries on 14 August 1963 (viewed from Caledonian Princess) (David Idle); BR Class 4 2-6-0 No. 76073 at Kirkcudbright in 1963 (David Cramp); Class 5 No. 45471 at Creetown  on freight in May 1965 (C.J. Gammell); Class 5 No. 45492 leaving Castle Douglas with 12.01 Dumfries to Stranraer on 15 April 1963 (David Idle); No. 80061 at Newton Stewart with train for Dumfries with Royal Mail van on platform; No. 45588 Kashmir on Scottish Rambler tour at Lochkerrow on 15 April 1963; No. 80119 at Castle Douglas (David Lawrence|). Tony Reinhardt-Rutland wrote at length on railway connections with Stranraer on p. 572 and S.C. Somerville, an Ulsterman, again on p. 701 (noting that Northern Ireland has prefered to invest in roads).

Michael R. Binks. The changing craft of the permanent way man. Part one. 366-70.
Hand tools used by platelayers: "T" auger for drilling holes in sleepers, "T" spanner for securing bolts; fish plates to connect rails (Birkinshaw had proposed welding in 1820); the crowbar; the hammer (modified for its new application), shovel (modified to handle ballast), rail lifting jacks, and track gauges. Some jobs were seasonal like grass cutting and tree lopping. A career progression emerged and switches and crossings evolved to meet new needs. Illustrations: Midland Railway near Wickwar; Newcastle Central, lengthman on patrol, gangers aligning track, two Class 2 2-6-0s climbing away fron Keswick; the Forth Bridge with its special trackwork; Cannon Street trackwork assembled prior to intallation; LNER petrol inspection trolley. See also letter from P.D. Dunn on pp. 572-3.

There you are [station name signs]. Roy Hobbs. 371.
Colour photo-feature: Hunmanby oil lamp with North Eastern Railway name tablet on 21 April 1973; Llandovry LMS totem running in sign in August 1972 and Shap BR London Midland Region totem bneath oil lamp in May 1966.

Ian Travers. The Southport Extension of the Cheshire Lines Committee 1884-1952. 372-7.
A group of landowners, Thomas Weld-Blundell, Walter Smith and Samuel Boothroyd, sought to compete with the West Lancashire Railway by constructing the Cheshire Lines Extension Railway from Aintree to a new terminus at Southport Lord Street. This would enable through services to be run to London King's Cross and St. Pancras. An Act was obtained in 1882 and services began on 1 September 1884. The prize express ran non-stop from Birkdale to Manchester Central in 60 minutes non-stop. A branch from Hillhouse Junction gave access to a West Lancashire Railway branch which would enable through service to be run beyond Southport in a northerly direction. Traffic did not develop and the LNER brought in a Sentinel railcar to reduce operating costs. The line was useful on Grand Ntional days and during WW2 when the electric service to Liverpool Exchange was disrupted,

Wider still and wider [Great Western Railway broad gauge]. 378-80.
Black & white photo-feature: (caption writer describes 8ft singles as "4-2-2" but in reality they were 2-2-2-2 as they had two non-driven front axles – not a bogie): Iron Duke class Sultan at Westbourne Park; view from above dawlist station with an 8ft single passing along sea wall with westbound express; Rover class 8ft single Grreat Western (built in 1888); 8ft single passing through Flax Bourton at speed (KPJ: A.H. Malan?); 2-4-0ST Melling; 0-6-0 No. 1205 at Bristol on 4 April 1891;  2-4-0 convertible No. 3508; Rover class Courier entering Paddington on Flying Dutchman on 1 May 1890 and Swansea Docks with Vale of Neath 0-6-0STs and container wagons for coal.

Readers' Forum. 381.

Hugh Ballantyne
Death on 30 March of the distinguished railway photographer Hugh BalIantyne. Hugh took his first photographs in the late 1940s and his last only a few weeks before his death. He had a wide-ranging interest in all railways and once main line steam ended in the UK in 1968 he continued to pursue modern traction here and steam overseas with unabated fervour.

Tuxford Works and LDECR locomotives. Philip Atkins 
A double error has occured on p. 219. Dublin, Wicklow & Wexford Nos.4 and 5 were 0-6-2Ts (ie very similar to LDEC Class A) and not 0-4-4Ts. Also, prior to 1906 Royal Trains on the LDECR were worked by a pair of Class C 0-4-4Ts. A further interesting fact to emerge is that Allan valve gear, made to pecisely the same drawings as that on LDEC Classes A and D, was employed on the Hull & Barnsley Class J 4-4-0s and L 0-6-0s, built by Kitson & Co. in 1910-11, and the two Maryport & Carlisle Railway 0-6-0s Nos.29 and 30, built by the Yorkshire Engine Company in 1921, which were 'cosmetically altered copies with domes' of the H&B 0-6-0s.

The Television Train. John Macnab
From writer's time in the Coaching Rolling Stock section at Glasgow North DOSO from 1961, the train had settled into set formation: BSO 16642, TSOs 13233/62174, 13429/64, 13510/21, BSK 16197 and either RBs 9140/2 plus generator van BR Standard BG M 81030. It made its last run on the September holiday weekend of 1964 from Glasgow Central to Blackpool and return hired by Colville's, the steelmaking business. On return to Cowlairs CS it was taken out of use and all seven TSOs plus the BSO were wired out by him on 14 October to Shipbreaking Industries at Faslane. BSK 16197 would follow soon after for disposal. The two RBs, 9140/2, had an extended period in departmental use as detailed in the article.
The earlier withdrawals of TV Train coaches such as BSK 16143, BSO 16596 and RB 9141 (only used intermittently) were connected with the blanket instruction issued in late 1961 to withdraw wooden-bodied LNER stock built up to 1935 and it was only certain other individual coaches within the set, TSO 13233, BSK 16197 and RBs 9140/2, that were reprieved for a few more years. The BG, M81030, had been acquired for use as the ScR had no allocation of full brake vans. It was returned to normal status and lasted until the early 2000s.

Just add more cylinders. Joseph Cliffe
The excellent articles by Miles Macnair are well researched, especially the early nineteenth century locomotives in Part One. However, some corrections are needed regarding valve gears and crossed ports. The four-cylinder GNR Atlantic No.271 had two piston valves with double valve heads, not crossed ports as Tuplin says. Ref. GNR Loco History RCTS Vol 3A p82, and I have also seen a Doncaster drawing confirming this.
The Prussian three-cylinder S10 4-6-0s of 1914 did not have three sets of Walschaerts gear, but had horizontal conjugated levers behind the cylinders and thus pre-dated Gresley's version of this gear. The four-cylinder S10s of 1911 were the real prototypes for the LNWR Claughtons, which Bowen-Cooke would have seen when visiting Schmidt regarding high temperature superheating. There is now a preserved S10 in the Berlin technical museum.
The Great Central four-cylinder 4-6-0s did not have crossed ports but had separate valves operated by a vertical rocker lever, each side moving in the same direction, the valves having alternate inside and outside admission. This answers Coombs's query (p. 190).
Macnair's so described 'dreaded' crossed ports had the advantage of only a single valve for two cylinders with the fewest number of rings, compared with the double headed arrangement, A disadvantage was that crossed ports had an increased clearance volume, but this was needed in the case of compounds and as such were successfully used on Goldsdorf's compounds in Austria and also in Sweden. The G&SW Whitelegg 4-4-0 No.394 with crossed ports ran very satisfactorily at speeds up to 70mph and was in the top link at Ayr until 1929 (David L. Smith), and would doubtless have been multiplied but for the grouping.
Macnair's description of the Irish '400' Class performance as "dire" is unfair and in 1924-26 they did good work on the 'Mails' with up to twelve bogies (R.K. Ryan) and could run fast, speeds of 80mph were attained. Their alleged "short travel valves" were the same as those on the two-cylinder '500' Class usually described as having long travel and both had the same 1¼in lap, also used on the two-cylinder rebuilds. It seems there is a fine distinction between what is short lap and what is long lap, The LMS 'Jubilees' with 13/8in lap are always stated to be long lap. R.N. Clements, the doyen of Irish railway writers, opined to Cliffe that perhaps all the '400s' really needed was thicker frames like the GW 'Stars'. The three saturated examples were built by Bazin because after the troublesome Watson superheater there was no suitable replacement then available. Bazin returned to the Maunsell-type superheater on the '500s', which the initial '400' also did have. In truth the GSR did not really need ten express 4-6-0s and three were scrapped early.

Just add more cylinders. Edoardo Tonarelli.
In his article (p. 118) Macnair expressed opinions on Italian steam locomotive design based on some tired old canards that in turn appear to be based on secondary sources, superficial and limited observations. For example, the statement "but it seems that the Italians never managed to get the settings right" in respect of Walschaerts valve gear: this is pure nonsense, as the record clearly shows. The writer noticed a number of errors in respect of building dates and class details. The Class '691' 4-6-2s were rebuilds in the 1928-33 period of the Class '690' and not a new class of 1912. Principal features were the replacement of the original boilers with the steamier Class 746 boilers and the rear trailing axle by a Bissel truck. The Class '685' 2-6-2s of 1912 were four-cylinder superheated simples built new between 1912 and 1927 to which were added many rebuilds from the earlier four-cylinder 2-6-2 Plancher compound Class '680', first introduced in 1905. Originally saturated, some were fitted with superheaters and had cylinder sizes altered, becoming Classes '681' and '682', then, in most cases, further rebuilding as simples to Classes '685' and 'S685'.
Regarding design and performance, the author possibly lacks practical knowledge of Italian steam traction and may not have consulted any primary sources or even the voluminous Italian railway technical press of the time which frequently published test and performance results and evaluation reports for virtually all FS steam locomotive types. The latter are freely available for consultation in most public reference libraries in Italy.
Whilst the construction of new steam ceased in 1929, the FS continued with its policy of continuous steam improvements that included the further development of Caprotti valve gear, the fitting of feed water heaters and wide diameter chimneys together with lower blastpipes, boiler redraughting and so on. The final phase was the rebuilding of most Class '740' 2-8-0s with Crosti boilers up to 1960. The top speed ever officially recorded for steam (Class '691') was 135kph (83.8mph), while the 'S685' was permitted up to 120kph (74.5mph) on certain selected routes. In the past the writer frequently travelled on and behind free-running steam which easily reached 110kph (68.3mph) — the Caprotti-fitted Class 'S685'. So much for the "near strangulation at the very hub of the whole power producing circuit" to which the author refers.

Repatriation of Middle East 8Fs. Walter Rothschild
Very grateful for Robert Humrn's transcription of the Ron Jarvis report on the Stanier 8Fs. The photograph of No.70573 shows it probably on a freight from Tripoli via Beirut on the HBT line. Azzib was a loco depot and marshalling yard north of Nahariyya, the transfer point between the Palestine Railways and the military line. The place is now called Betzet but the line, run for many years freight-only from Nahariyya to this point, is now closed. The train comprises steel-built bogie vans built by Burns of Howrah (imported by the WD) and at the front a USATC 'caboose' — one of these latter is still preserved at the Railway Museum in Haifa. The vans were later converted for grain traffic by Israel Railways with roof-mounted loading chutes. IR also acquired several of the former WD locomotivess, which were named by local railwaymen 'Ha-Ellemmess' — for obvious reasons!
IR acquired 23 locomotives: WD Nos.70305, 70308, 70335, 70336, 70369, 70374, 70388, 70391, 70397, 70400, 70410,70412,70414,70503,70510,70513, 70515,70521,70541,70572, 70586, 70596, 70605. Of these, No.70513 hauled the inaugural freight train from Haifa to Hadera on 4 January 1949. The last to be withdrawn was No.70414 and there is an iconic film of this engine's last journey in 1957, hauling a passenger train of four old PR coaches from Beersheba to Lod (Lydda) and thence light engine to Qishon Works north of Haifa. The film can be found by googling '70414'. In addition No.70372 was 'stranded' at Tulkarm during the civil war of 1948, the station ending up in Arab hands and the line north and south of it in Israel. So it rusted away there until June 1967 when, following the Six-Day War, it was unfortunately scrapped.
A long-standing dream has recently been fulfilled by the re-importation into Israel of one of the 8Fs — actually one of those despatched originally to Turkey and therefore not in the Jarvis list — and it is now being externally restored for display at Beer Sheba. Formerly WD No.341, it will be restored as the iconic '70414'.

The line to Piel Pier. Les Gilpin.
J. A. Smith's purchase of the Roa Island estate was definitely a speculation on his part, most probably made when the West Cumberland & Morecambe Bay Railway Bill of 1839 failed in Parliament.

The line to Piel Pier. Ian Breeden. 382
History slightly pre-dating railways on Piel Island; namely about Perkin Warbeck in 15th century.

Trains and formations of the LNER streamliners. John Macnab.
Memento mori of Silver Jubilee set which ended up on the Fife Coast Express

The Necropolis trains. Nicholas Daunt.
Motto of London Necrpolis Company translated from dead Latin (although applied by mordant Victorians): To the dead rest; to the living health (or salvation, KPJ)

Book Reviews. 382

Views of a changing railway: Edward Hopper, railwayman from 1925 to 1968. Maurice Hopper. Authors OnLine. GBS ***
Print-on-demand or e-book: very well received by Skelsey who notes the Foreword by Chris Green

Rhyl to Bangor. Viv Mitchell and Keith Smith. Middleton. AJR ***
Critical of the poor captions to photographs, but appreciative of maps and the introduction

Minerals on the Brymbo branch. M.H. Yardley. rear cover
57XX 0-6-0PT No. 9630 on mineral empties from Minera on 1 June 1966.

Number 7 (July)

Snowdon Mountain Railway 0-4-2T No. 5 Moel Siobod leaves Llanberis on 9 September 1977. David Idle. front cover

New tricks and old. Michael Blakemore. 387
Editorial

Yesterday at Yeovil. Michael Mensing. 388-90.
Colour photo-feature: Class 101 Metro-Cammell DMU calls at Pen Mill with 11.11 Weymouth to Swindon service on 6 April 1988; No. 50 006 Neptune in blue livery on 17.00 ex-Waterloo at Yeovil Junction on 11 June 1982; No. 50 029 Tiger in Network South East livery and most of train similarly adorned on 09.10 Waterloo to Exeter leaving Yeovil Junction on 27 May 1988; No. 50 035 Ark Royal (in Network South East livery with Naval emblem on side) restarting from Yeovil Junction with 16.42 Waterloo to Exeter on 4 September 1987; No. 37 139 (in blue livery) with coal train from South Wales to Exmouth Junction passing Pen Mill on 17 Februaty 1988; two High Speed Trains (one labelled InterCity 125) at Pen Mill on 3 April 1986 during diversion: trains were 13.46 Penzance to Paddington and 15.45 Paddington to Penzance; Class 117 Pressed Steel suburban DMU on 17.39 Westbury to Weymouth in Network South East livery on 4 August 1990: see also letter from Rory Wilson on p. 510 concerning signalling arrangements at Yeovil.

John Roake. Carrying the fishergirls over the Highland Line. 391-3.
Originally published in the Highland Railway Journal (journal of the Highland Railway Society). The women who gutted the herring did not travel on the fishing boats which worked their way round the British coast as this was considered unlucky and they travelled by train to places like Yarmouth and Lowestoft. Based mainly on LMS Working Timetables with some earlier material including that relating to the Great North of Scotland Railway. Considerable effort seems to have been made to maximize the mileage on the LMS. Illustrations: coloured postcard of fisherwomen working at Stornoway (issued by Highland Railway at Kyle of Lochalsh); LMS voucher for fishworkers ticket endorsed via Peterborough and Great Eastern Railway; Highland Railway fishworkers ticket from Avoch to Fraserburgh (GNS) via Mulben; LM&SR fishworkers' luggage via Carstairs, Carlisle (LNW), Rugby & Peterborough; LMS return ticket from Embo to Lowestoft via Hellifield, Saxby, Bourne, South Lynn & Stalham which cost £4 18s

R.A.S. Hennessey. The Vibration Committee: the case of the Bayswater tremors. 394-9.
Caused by the Central London Railway and investigated by a high-powered Committee chaired by Lord Rayleigh and instigated by Gerald Balfour, President of the Board of Trade. The CLR incorporated considerable American influence. The other Committee members were Sir Alfred Ewing and Sir John Wolfe Barry. The work was greatly assisted by the measurements made by A.H.R. Mallock, a brilliant instrument maker who was highly skilled in the measurement of vibrations. The problem was cured by the replacement of locomotives,  which may have been instigated by Horace Field Parshall (who introduced high tension electricity distribution to the line) by multiple units (using Sprague's technology, already evident in the lift design) and the elimination of the shallow bridge rails which exacerbated the problem. See also letter  on p. 510 from Kevin Jones on other methods of reducing vibration from underground railways..

Peter Tatlow ...and down into a ditch. 400-1
Photographs by S.C. Townroe (seen previously in Backtrack, 1, 20 and Steam World, 1997 (123) 8 — in latter Alan Earnshaw described operation accompanied by 13 photographs) of Lord Nelson No. 30854 Howard of Effingham which had gone off the rails at Shawford Junction on 20 July 1952. The recovery operation was recorded by Stephen Townroe and is also covered (from different angles) in two other publications: Bill Bishop's Off the rails (Kingfisher, 1984) and Lund Railway breakdown and re-railing equipment  J Instn Loco. Engrs., 1950, 40, Paper 493

Adrian Tester. Stationary locomotive testing. Part Two. 402-5.
The test plants at Swindon and Rugby receive most attention, especially the latter. The residents of Rugby called it the Odeon which is probably a reflection of the architect's tastes in the LMS Civil Engineering Department. The locomotives were detached from their tenders and fed from a firing platform from one of the six coal bunkers, each of which could store 12 tons. The control room was sound-proofed and contained the Amsler recording table. The water in the Froode dynamometers was cooled from a large tank on the roof. Illustrations: 4-4-2 No. 190 on test at Swindon; No. 5087 Tintern Abbey on test at Swindon in 1949; plan of Rugby test plant; view of the Odean frontage; section with Duchess on the rollers; D49 No. 62764 The Garth being tested on 10 May 1949 to assess Lentz infinitely variable rotary cam valve gear.

By LNER on the West Highland Line. 406-9
Black & white photo-feature: two D34 class with No. 9035 Glen Gloy leading taking water at Crianlarich with GNR/ECJS? clerestory vehicle (sleeper?) at front; D34 No, 9241 Glen Ogle with four Gresley coachs on horseshoe curve leaving Auch Viaduct; C15 No. 9155 at Spean Bridge with single coach train from Fort Augustus see letter from John Roake who corrects caption: closure to freight (weekly load of coal) did not take place until after WW2; K4 No. 3441 Loch Long  (in black livery} calling at Rannoch; K2 No. 4691 without side-window cab on freight passing snow fence south of Rannoch; J37 No. 9295 passing Sword Loch between Corrouur and rannoch on freight which included GWR corridor coach; two D34 Class (No. 9100 Glen Dochart leading) on southbound passenger train which included what looks like original West Highland vehicles; K2 No. 4691 with side-window cab but without name leaving Mallaig with passenger train which included four fish vans at front; K2 Nos. 1790 Loch Lomond and another without name south of Rannoch with up passenger train probably in 1946/7. 

Alan Bennett. On hoJiday with British Railways. 410-12
Holiday Guides published on an area basis (e.g. Wales and the North West): covers shown in colour give a "page 3" flavour to this article. Illustrations (all colour: all covers): Area 5 South & South East 1953 (pipe smoking, trilby hat, furled umbrella, wearing overcoat "dad" with slender waisted "mother" in stylish coat and stiletto shoes and "son" with school cap looking towards advertisement for Holiday Guides; Area 5 South & South East 1957 (bathing belle with beach ball); Area 2 Wales & North West England 1956 (two piece swim suit lolling across cover); Area 2 Wales & North West England 1954 (Miss World type swim suit; Area 4 South West 1957 (place like St Ives or Clovelly); Area 1 Scotland 1954 (leaping male, Spandex clad companion and mother and child with SNP leanings and steamer Duchess of Eden all in improbable sunshine) and  Area 1 Scotland 1955 (leaping female tartan clad dancer with steamer Duchess of Eden behind (one can almost hear steamer manager saying "don't forget our cruises")

The passing of the 'Blue Trains'. Paul Aitken. 413
Colour photo-feature: only first shown in restored blue livery: other two in orange and brown Taggart livery: restored blue liveried set at Maxwell Park with Class 90 just visible at an open day on 20 June 1993; unit approaching Hyndland on 23 November 2002 and two units at Helensburgh Central on 30 December 2002..

Banking on the Lickey Incline. 414-15.
Black & white photo-feature: 0-10-0 No. 58100 backing through Bromsgrove station; same locomotive as MR No. 2290 banking up freight near Blackwell; four 3F 0-6-0Ts Nos. 47303, 47502, 47313 and 47305 shove 08.35 Cardiff to Newcastle express which should have been powered by Jubilee No. 45573 on 31st 1955; Beyer Garratt 2-8-0+0-8-2 No. 69999 on Bromsgrove shed on 26 March 1949; 9F 2-10-0 No. 92079 at Blackwell banking freight on 11 July 1956; two 94XX Nos. 8401 and 8403 banking passenger train on 4 August 1962.

Up Snowdon and down again. David Idle and David Sutcliffe. 416-19.
Colour photo-feature: No. 4 Snowdon just below summit (DI); No. 6 Padarn leaving Llanberis (DI); No. 6 Padarn climbing from Clogwyn (DI); No. 3 Wyddfa on shed at Llanberis (DS); No. 7 Aylwin descending towards Llanberis; No. 4 Snowdon at summit station (DI); No. 5 Moel Siabod at Clogwyn (DI); No. 2 Enid leaving Llanberis crossing viaduct (DI).    

Michael B. Binks. The changing craft of the permanent way man. Part Two. 420-5.
The quest for greater productivity. The introduction of long length continuously welded rail, including its transport and off loading. Refers to earlier article by him on safety for ermanent way working (2006, 20, 172). There has been a greater quest for complete safety and this often means line closures. At the same time there are calls for higher productivity and this has been achieved by mobile gangs. Illustrations: No. 46229 Duchess of Hamilton (in red livery) at Dudswell passing crane working on up line involved in relaying in June 1961 (colour)

George Smith. Tsar trek: John Hackworth's Russian Odyssey. 426-9.
Son of Timothy Hackworth John Wesley Hackworth travelled to Russia in November 1836 to assist Tsar Nicholas I develop a passenger carrying railway: a Czech engineer, Franz von Gerstner was put in charge of the project. Cherepanov had already constructed a locomotive operated railway to convey minerals. The first locomotive was constructed at Shildon to a Robert Stephenson 2-2-2 Patentee design, tested on rollers prior to despatch for Russia from Stockton on the brig Barbara which sailed on 3 October 1836. Young Hackworth and his assistant George (Geordie) Thompson accompanied the engine. Pack ice precluded unloading at St. Petersburg and it had to be unloaded further south and taken by sledge to Tsarkoye Selo. A cylinder was damaged due to the low temperatures encountered during this process and Thompson had to travel on horseback to Moscow and back to a foundry capable of making this part. To get into Russia Hackworth was forced to change his middle name to William as the Greek Orthodox clergy feared that Methodism and democracy might be introduced. Correspondence (p. 573): Harro Zabehlicky from Austria gives further information on Gerstner and the correct form of  Tsarskoje Selo  rather than Tsarkoye. Martin Johnsn greatly amplifies the information on Matthew Murray and his locomotives. . Harry Jack critical of use of Clement Stretton reference.

Notts County return. P.J. Hughes. 430-1
Colour photo-feature (Colour-Rail): V2 No. 60828 at Markham on ECML with up express; O4/8 No. 63720 on caol train in 1962 at Markham  in 1962; O2/1 No. 63925 with train of sheeted mineral wagons at Markham in July 1962; B16 No. 61443 on Annesley shed in 1959; 9F No. 92042 leaving Askham Tunnel with Blue Circle cement wagons in July 1960.  

Ivor Lewis. The Great Western Railway 'Krugers' - Part Two: the 'Krugers' in detail. 432-7.
Makes extensive use of Churchward's Paper in Proc. Instn Mech. Engrs, 1906, 70 pp. 165 et seq and includes diagrams from it and tables based on these to make the material easier to read. The Swindon drawing register as examined for relevant material. Other papers cited include Stanier's Trans. Newcomen Society 1955, 30, 1-8 appreciation George Jackson Churchward, Chief Mechanical Engineer, Great Western Railway and K.J. Cook's J. Instn Loco. Engrs. 1950, 40, 131-71 Paper 492 G.J. Churchward's locomotive design on the Great Western Railway. The role of F.G. Wright in Swindon boiler design is considered. The Krugers were amongst the first British designs to use a wide firebox and the combustion chamber was a notable feature altough it is argued that this feature led to maintenance problems. The suspension arrangements were complex as leaf, volute and helical springs were employed, but the last were replaced by leaf spings on the second locomotive. Illuustrations: 4-6-0 No. 36; 4-6-0 No. 100 prior to receiving name; No. 3297 Earl Cawdor and Kruger boilers being used to supply steam at Swindon in 1960s.

Bob Williams and Richard Foster. The little-known story of Marston Gate. 438-41.
Marston Gate station was situated on the Cheddington to Aylesbury branch which opened on 10 June 1839 and is a claimant to be the first branch line which may explain how Marston Gate grew from being a road crossing (the Long Marston or Marstone to Wingrave Road) into a station without any form of official start date. Includes a table of the station's station masters with their dates of birth and career progress. There are several photographs of it in its post-closure slumbers, and a note that the buildings have become a desres in sleepy Bucks.The motive power was very varied and there are photographs of two of the more typical locomotives: 5ft 6in 2-4-2T No. 910 and Watford tank 0-6-2T No. 6912 (LMS). See also letter from David Hadley on p. 510 and on p. 573 from Richard D. Foster.

The London & North Western Railway Society celebrates its 40th Anniversary. 442,

Readers' Forum .. 443

The Line to Piel Pier. Barry Rigg.

'I remember Adlestrop'. Robin Leleux
The Northamptonshire County Council was actively promoting the construction of the A14 trunk lorry route and showed no interest in retaining its direct west to east railway link from Northampton to Peterborough and the associated link to Rugby. See also detailed response from Stephen Abbott (p. 573) to this letter concerning improved cross country jorneys

'I remember Adlestrop'. Keith Fenwick
1959 election manifestos: Labour called for re-nationalisation of long distance road haulage and an increased expenditure on roads; the Conservatives promised to double expenditure on roads

'I remember Adlestrop'. J. Lord
Political interference led to railway freight rates being held doewn to assist industry, but without any form of compensation to British Railways. Similarly passenger rail fares were pegged without any form of financial assistance for the railways. British Railways were forced to borrow and borrow to meet the interst charges. "Railway finance was insane"

'I remember Adlestrop'. Tony Reinhardt-Rutland.
The great differnce between Marples and Castle was that Castle paid some attention to road safety and in particular the problem of drink and driving.

Trains and formations of the LNER streamliners. Robert Carroll.
Formation of West Riding as operated by British Railways and use of streamliner stock in Master Cutler set

The Polmont Accident. Greg Morse
Mainly on the different rates of retardation provided by the brakes on the coaching stock and the locomotive.

'2251s' at work. 444-5.
Black & white photo-feature: No. 2240 at Winchester Chesil with 12.25 Newbury to Eastleigh on 19 September 1959 with Hampshire DEMU at northbound platform; No. 2280 approaching Dowlais Top with 11.15 Newport to Brecon on 5 September 1959; No. 2287 leaving Pontsticill Junction on 14.05 Brecon to Newport on 5 September 1959; No. 3207 on permanent way train passing No. 75005 on 09.45 Whitchurch to Aberystwyth at Buttington Junction on 5 March 1956; No. 3202 with GWR still on its tender at Minffordd on 9 October 1951; No. 2252 arriving Lambourne on 16.10 ex-Newbury on 19 September 1959.

Book Reviews. 446

In and around Swindon Works. Peter Timms. Amberley Publishing. 192pp. CPA *****
Reviewer notes the scale of the former enterprise: a works which produced 300 carriages and 8000 freight wagosn, and consumed 35,000 tons of steel ceased to exist in the 1980s. Also notes that several expatriate Germans helped to design the Warship diesel hydraulic locomotives and some were absorbed into the Swindon community.

King's Cross Station through time. John Christopher. Amberley Publishing. 96pp. GBS ****
Writing a precis is relatively difficult as two further volumes in this series await a review on KPJ's desk (and he has both arrived in the main line, and departed from the suburban platforms since its new offices have been opened). Presumably our Shavian reviewer is a frequent user of the new, and former station. He liked the book and thought it good value. He also liked Transforming King's Cross by Jay Merrick which as it is expensive is unlikely to be seen in Third Division Norfolk.

History's most dangerous job: navvies. Anthony Burton. History Press. AB ****
"Summative work encapsulating many years of writing and research"; "a valuable social document"

Riding through the glen. J.S. Gilks. rear cover
No. 27 034 at Glenfinnan station on private charter train from Glasgow Queen Street on 25 April 1981 (train returned via Oban)

Number 8 (August)

GWR '56XX' 0-6-2T No.5662 at Rhymney shed on 16th April 1960. C. Gammell. front cover
Painted in lined green: see also feature p. 466 et seq (Colour-Rail©)

Special circumstances. Michael Blakemore. 451.
Editorial on further unhappy experience with attempts to travel on the contemporary railway and the joyous experience of hiring a train on the East Lancashire Railway reached presumably via the M62?

Polkemmet Colliery. Paul Strong and John Scholes. 452-3
Colour photo-feature: Andrew Barclay 0-6-0T (outside-cylinder side tank) No. 8 originally supplied to the Alloa Coal Co.'s Bannockburn Colliery in 1912 as seen in November 1977: remainder photographed in August 1976: Andrew Barclay 0-6-0ST (outside-cylinder saddle tank) No. 8 (WN 1175/1909) with No. 25 Andrew Barclay 0-6-0ST (outside-cylinder saddle tank WN 2358/1954) leaving colliery yard and arriving at exchange sidings; locomotive shed with previous pair plus No. 12 (Andrew Barclay 0-6-0ST (outside-cylinder saddle tank WN 1829/1924) and No. 17 (Hunslet Austerity WN 2358/1954).   

Rowan Patel. The closed stations of Wirral's passenger railways. 454
The Chester & Birkenhead Railway opened on 23 September 1840 with the aim of linking Chester and locations on the Wirral peninsular with Liverpool by ferry across the Mersey. Until the first tunnel under the estuary was opened by the Mersey Railway ferry terminals tended to dictate where the railway termini were located. The initial Act of Parliament proposed that the railway terminus should be located at a point equidistant from the three competing ferries. Thus a location in Grange Lane was selected, but the Bryan family who ran the Monks' Ferry and who had a financial stake in the railway pressed for an extension to Monks' Ferry which opened in 1844, but the Woodside Ferry Co. challenged this claiming ancient rights, and won which led to its takeover of the service. This in turn closed in 1878 when the railway was extended to Woodside, a substantial station with an overall roof which closed in 1967. Woodside had been the starting point for through services to Paddington and elesewhere. Prior to the opening of Rock Ferry in 1862 there had been stations at Lime Kiln Lane and Rock Lane opened in May 1846. The former became Tranmere in 1853, but closed in 1857: the latter closed in 1862. Birkenhead Town was opened in 1889, but was isolated by the works associated with the Queensway Tunnel opened in 1934 for road traffic and the station closed in 1945. Some of the intermediate stations also closed: Ledsham (originally Sutton) closed in 1959 and Mollington closed in 1960. The Hooton to West Kirby branch opened in 1866 and closed in 1954/6: much of the track became the Wirral Way

Alan Bennett. The Bodmin branch. 460-5.
Concentrates on the approach from Bodmin Road (Parkway) which was originally envisaged as a branch off the Cornwall Railway and was included within its Act, but lack of finance precluded any work. The standard gauge Bodmin & Wadebridge had opened in 1834, but remained isolated, although the LSWR had acquired it in 1847. Eventually the Great Western Railway obtained an Act on 10 August 1882 to build a branch and this was inspected by Colonel Rich on 26 May 1887 and opened three weeks later. The connection to the Bodmin & Wadebridge at Boscarne Junction opened in 1888.

The Great Western '56XX' tanks. 466-8.
Lined green No. 6622 on Aberdare shed on 14 October 1962 (W. Potter); No. 6690 crossing Crumlin Viaduct on Neath to Pontypool Road train on 14 October 1963 (W. Potter); No. 5633 at Treherbert on 27 August 1964; No. 6630 passing over Lapeworth water troughs bunker-first on northbound freight on 25 April 1957 (R.C. Riley); black No. 5644 with 57XX No. 7733 and 16XX No. 1620 on Abercynon shed in August 1959 (T.B. Owen); No. 6643 crossing Walnut Tre3e Viaduct with Rambling 56 tour (W. Potter); No. 6644 in lined green with copper safety valve and chimney top shining on Ebbw Vale shed in July 1959 (T.B. Owen).

Michael J. Smith. Changing times of the Chesham branch. 469-71.
Metropolitan & Great Central Joint Railway branch photographed on 11 September 1960; the last day of steam working, before being fully incorporated into the London Transport Metropolitan Line as part of the Amersham electrification. Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41284 was the locomotive with one of the Met push & pull sets, one of which is preserved on the Bluebell Railway. The signal box at Chesham was photographed. See also letter from Brian Hardy on p. 638.

Peter Tatlow. Was the LMS too big? 472-9
Counter-factual approach in which the London & North Western Railway and Midland Railway were not amalgamated, but were left to join with their Scottish partners: the Caledonian and Glasgow & South Western respectively. In this proposal the Midland was allowed to swallow up the Great Central, although its locomotives would have never been tolerated on its miserable permanent way. Tables list the key statistics of the Big Four as constituted, the same for the London North & Scottish, the Great Midland and London & North Eastern (the three of which would each still have been bigger than the Great Western, and those of the LMS constituent companies. See also response from Frederic Stansfield on p. 572 and further responses from Doug Landau and Terry McCarthy (on vexed question on possible inclusion of Rhymney Railway within LMS group)  (and again on p. 764) with reply from Peter Tatlow on pp. 701-2.

Meanwhile, back at Carlisle. 480-4
Colour photo-feature: all by Gavin Morrison unless noted otherwise: rebuilt Scot No. 46105 Cameron Highlander departing northwards in September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); No. 72009 Clan Stewart and red No. 46226 Duchess of Norfolk under Kingmoor coaling plant on 6 April 1963; A3 No. 60072 Sunstar on down Thames-Clyde Express crossing River Eden near Etterby on 22 May 1961; down Travelling Post Office (TPO) in Citadel station on 5 December 1994; green No. No 46242 City of Glasgow (green) not Lancaster as per caption (see also Backtrack, 2001, 15, 312 and Editor's apology on p. 572) comes face to face with 46247 City of Liverpool (red with red backed nameplate); K3 No. 61936 at Etterby Junction with fitted freight on 12 August 1960; Class 5 No. 44828 on up freight at Etterby Junction on 26 March 1964 (David Idle); Nos. 86 019 and 86 001 in rail blue livery on southbound train of vans on 17 May 1980; Jubilee No. 45738 Samson at Kingmoor on 8 September 1962 (Geoff Rixon); A4 No. 60031 Golden Plover on turntable at Kingmoor on 18 April 1964 during Scottish Rambler tour (David Idle); Loadhaul No. 37 698 with Arriva Mk III carriages for Leeds on 5 August 2004 and Freightliner No. 86 501 with empty southbound container wagons on 2 May 2002.  

Tony Robinson. An 'Oglo' at Helsby. 485-7.
Photographs taken by Norman Jones of an out-of-gauge load (123 ton  three phase electricity transformer enroute from Ferranti at Hollinwood to Trawsfynydd) on 12 February 1961. Illustrations: four photographs of transporter trolley with its load being eased through the junction (including one which shows motive power — Horwich 2-6-0 (crab)): two further photographs show Class 8F No. 48094 with train of petrol tank wagons with open barrier vehicles; and Class 5 No. 45424 being flag-signalled. See also letter from Nick Stanbury on p. 638 and last word ftom Chris Powell on p. 764.

Philip Atkins. Baltic mysteries. 488-93.
Robert Harben Whitelegg 4-6-4T locomotives built by Beyer Peacock for the London Tilbury & Southend Railway shortly before the line's absorption into the Midland Railway. Table shows growth in LTSR passenger traffic between 1880 and 1910. The superheater was removed from No. 2100 and reinstated in 1922. The Great Eastern Railway would not tolerate these engines in its Fenchurch Street terminus, but they were used for a short time on the District Railway's through trains from Ealing to Southend from Barking. The Midland used them on coal trains during WW1 when the class was based at Wellingborough. From 1919 they were used on outer suburban trains from St. Pancras to St Albans, Atkins questions the accounts by Bradley and Leech of the use of individual locomotives in tests on the South Eastern & Chatham Railway and on the Great Western Railway in the Bristol area. Illustrations (majority with MR/LMS numbers): No. 2104 in 1913) No. 2104 working bunker-first on train of Ealing corridor stock; Lawrie Ward drawing of 4-6-4T named Arthur Lewis Stride c1941 based on diagram shown to Kenneth Leech by Whitelrgg at Plaistow in 1910; diagram which appeared in Locomotive Mag, 1912, 18 (May); No. 2101 with archaic rolling stock "at speed" near Upminster; No. 2101 at Plaistow in 1921; No. 2104 at St Pancras with train for St Albans; No. 2107; No. 2108 repainted in crimson lake in 1928; No. 2100 near St Albans; scale model of LTSR No. 94 Arthur Lewis Stride in NRM (colour photograph) See also letter from David Burton on p. 638.

Jeffery Grayer. 'The juice' comes south. 494-6.
Portsmouth No. 2 electrification scheme of the Southern Railway. The Mid-Sussex Line connected Horsham with the Sussex coast via Arundel with branch lines to Littlehampton and Bognor Regis. There was a swing bridge acros the River Arun at Ford and this needed to be replaced. Elsewhere the proximity of the Arun demanded that the electricity sub-stations were raised on concrete piles (illustrated). Electricity was supplied by the Central Electrity Board. New carriage sheds were erected at Littlehampton (illustrated). Horsham station was completely rebuilt in the Odeon style. Colour light signalling was introduced together with some streamlined signal boxes as at Arundel (illustrated).

Seeing double (or more!). David Cable. 497
Colour photo-feature: EWS Class 66 Nos. 66 033 with container service from Marchwood to Didcot and 66 144 with Southampton to Ditton Intermodal near Cholsey in September 2004; GW Trains HST sets abreast at Lower Basildon in May 1999;  and at Ruscombe in August 2005 Freightliner Class 66 No. 66 560 on diverted Binliner from Cricklewood to Calvert, Class 166 No. 166 206 on Bedwyn to Paddington service and HST on diown fast line.

Jeffrey Wells. Progress and problems on the North British Railway 1845-6. 498-503.
Based mainly on contemporary newspaper reports, some suprisingly distant from the railway (a Preston newspaper noted the collapse of a viaduct over the River Eye and the Derby Mercury reported George Hudson's activities). There were reports on the disturbance caused by navvies and to the environment during construction: the people of Berwick were concerned about the destruction of the castle and both prior to, and following opening, heavy rainfall created havoc in key locations. Illustrations (mostly by H.C. Casserley): V1 2-6-2T No. 67666 on local train in Platform 7 Edinburgh Waverley for eastbound departure on 6 September 1955; A1 No. 60159 Bonnie Dundee on northbound express passing Longniddry on 11 June 1960; Drem station on 7 July 1957; J39/3 No. 64843 at Burnmouth station with train from Eyemouth which consisted of a single coach and two fish vans; Reston station on 6 September 1955; B1 No. E1292 in Platform 11 Edinburgh Waverley on express for Glasgow Queen Street on 24 April 1948; A3 No. 60096 Papyrus at Berwick on Glasgow to Leeds express on 6 September 1955; NER Q class 4-4-0 No. 1876 at Dunbar c1905. See also critical letter from A.J. Mullay on p. 572..

Grime time at New Street. J.T. Bassingdale. 504-5.
Colour? photo-feature based on photographs taken in July 1955 when sufficient light penetrated the depths of Birmingham: Patriot No. 45507 Royal Tank Corps with leading coach painted carmine & cream on a relief for to be late running express for Edinburgh and Glasgow; 4P compound No. 41162 arriving on local from Rugby; Jubilee No. 45647 Sturdee with leading coach painted carmine & cream on relief for Euston and another shot of 45507 with Class 3 2-6-2T No. 40085 and Class 4 2-6-4T. There is slight evidence that the 6P 4-6-0s were painted Brunswick green.

Cheshire Lines 506-9
Black & white photo-feature: D11/1 Director class No. 62663 Prince Albert on class H freight passing Padgate station on 17 October 11953 (Eric Bruton); Chester Northgate station on 11 April 1914; GCR Class 13 4-2-2 No. 970 passes Hunts Cross on Manchester to Liverpool express; Liverpool Central station Ranelagh Street frontage in 1888 with Lewis's emporium above; CLC Sentinel steam railcar at Cheadle on Stockport Tiviot Dale to Skelton Junction service; Warrington Central station looking west in 1930s;  Winsford & Over station (closed 1931) with RCTS tour on 17 October 1953 (T.J. Edgington); Brunswick goods depot in Liverpool on 10 September 1950; Manchester Central station with K3 No. 61865 on express and Fowler Class 4 2-6-4T No. 42371 waiting to depart on 20 June 1959; view from train approaching Glazebrook East Junction with CLC semaphores converted to upper quadrants; Northwich station wih 15.28 Chester to Oxford Road DMU arriving on 18 October 1986

Readers' Forum 510

Yesterday at Yeovil. Rory Wilson
A clarification to the caption to the lower photo on p390 of the July edition. The two instruments visible are for the key token from Pen Mill to Yeovil Junction signal box and for the 'No Signalman' key token to Maiden Newton, the latter signal box having closed in May 1988. The line between Yeovil Pen Mill and Castle Cary had been worked by track circuit block controlled by Westbury panel since the closure of Castle Cary signal box on the evening of 1 February 1985. Singling of the line between Castle Cary and Dorchester West took place in three stages in May and June 1968.

The little-known story of Marston Gate. D. Hadley 
Marston Gate (July issue) did have at least one (rather unfortunate) passenger early in the twentieth century. G.A. Sekon, the founder and first editor of the Railway Magazine, who had a penchant for rooting out legal cases relating to railways, told the story of a gentleman who thought he would save a small sum by purchasing a cheap ticket to Aylesbury but alight at Marston Gate. His ticket was not accepted and he was asked to pay the correct fare. His subsequent appeal was rejected because the conditions for the cheap ticket stated that passengers were not permitted to break their journey at an intermediate station. I did not at the time of reading make a note of the exact date on which this occurred.

The LMS Class 4 tanks. R.L. Vickers
Writer compiling, very slowly, the Railway Correspondence & Travel Society volume on 'LMS Passenger Tanks', so had great pleasure looking at the section on LMS 2-6- 4Ts in June issue. However, the piece mentioned that the 3P 2-6-2Ts were not so successful – to be polite. Those enginemen who worked on the 3Ps are still trying to forget the experience. Now in his researches he has discovered that when very new the 3Ps were warmly welcomed. The 'Locomotive Practice and Performance' section of the Railway Magazine for May and June 1931 had a discussion by Cecil J. Allen of details sent to him from a correspondent in the West Midlands.
The 3Ps were noted for their comfortable cabs, power and silent running. They had a 'soft blast' and were liable, even when brand-new, to blocked tubes and other problems. Mr. Allen and his correspondent wrote that such problems were common on the new "thermally efficient" locomotives, especially those with "long lap long travel valves" – which were not fitted on the Fowler 3Ps. The later Stanier locomotives did have them and were no great improvement on the Fowler tanks. In 1941 tests were made on Stanier 3Ps in runs on the Derby-Darley Dale route. The test locomotives were fitted with various blast modifications. The final report in April 1942 recommended the fitting of annular (ring within a ring) orifices in the blastpipe. This was later done on many engines, to Order 665.

On the Birkenhead Joint Line. Chris Magner 
With regard to the May issue, No.42727 was the engine used on special workings in March and April 1966 at Birkenhead. The local unofficial steam cleaning gang (of which I was a member) cleaned it for several special workings and did the embelishments. No.42942 then replaced it for special turns, excursions and rail tours till its final working on passenger trains, being the afternoon Birkenhead Woodside to Paddington on 31 December 1966. This was specially organised and did not happen by chance. One rail enthusiast returning to London after the Christmas break was amazed to find No.42942 on his train. Re No.42859, the last two 'Crabs' survived to January 1967 and were not as stated withdrawn a "few days later" than August 1966 Letter re-published on p. 572..

The GWR 'Krugers'. Adrian Tester
Although George Churchward is accredited with obtaining improved circulation in his boilers, in truth the improvement he obtained, although welcome, was very limited. The problem was that all 'tank' type boilers, of which the locomotive boiler is but an example, suffer from poor circulation to a greater or lesser extent, the locomotive boiler suffering less because the fire was at the bottom of the firebox walls. When the fire was halfway up in a circular furnace as in the Scotch boiler or in the stayless ones designed by Hoy on the Lancashire & Yorkshire, it is possible, if steam is raised too quickly, to have steam in the upper half of the boiler while you can place a bare hand on the boiler shell below the level of the fire. The resulting differential expansion from such treatment, particularly longitudinally, strained the tube and rivet joints promoting leaks – this was why the 0-8-0s took so long to raise steam.
During the early years of the twentieth century, engineers experiencing increased stay problems, tubeplate leakage and overheating of the inner firebox plates suspected poor circulation was a cause. While Churchward's experiments determining the direction of the water circulation were of interest, demonstrating for example the direction changed if the firing technique altered, his was a qualitative exercise rather than a quantitative one. Engineers in America had already found that at times the water side of the firebox water legs could become covered by a thin continuous layer of steam which, acting as an insulator, raised the temperature of the plates. Although they were unable to explain why it occurred (no-one could for many years), they appreciated the cure was improve the water movement if at all possible.
As part of the Coatesville Tests conducted in 1912, George Fowler was able to measure the water flow in the water legs around the firebox. He established it was only sufficient to make good the evaporation – thus there was no circulation as such. Whatever mass of steam was generated, exactly the same weight of water flowed in to take its place. At the front of the side water leg there would of course be a slight excess of water, but at the centre of the plate just above the fire, the zone where most of the trouble was experienced, there was effectively no flow.
This situation is in direct contrast to the water-tube boiler wherein it was arranged such that in the equivalent zone as the firebox water legs a mixture of steam and water was always present within the tubes. This mixture rose naturally into the steam drum where the two fluids separated – the steam to be taken off and the water to enter a downcomer before repeating the circulation path. It was the presence of a minimum (calculated) amount of water at all times in the steam-water mixture that prevented the overheating. In an attempt to replicate this effect some locomotive boilers were provided with external pipes that ran from the underside of the barrel just behind the smokebox to terminate either on the front or the sides of the firebox. Their presence was accredited with improving firebox performance although the circulation would still have been very limited due to the restricted head available. H.A. Ivatt fitted a version on Great Northern 8ft Single No.221 to overcome his ridiculously narrow 1¾in water legs, while George Churchward mentioned in his paper thinking about trying it but imagining the effect of a pipe bursting meant his courage failed him. In the USA they took a more robust attitude and several versions were developed of which the Martin circulater was possibly the best known.

The GWR 'Krugers'. L.F.E. Coombs
Reference to 'serve' tubes should have been Serve (capital 'S'), the name of a type used in France — a Serve tube was not corrugated but had longitudinal internal ribs. H. Holcroft mentions the use of them in the 'Badmintons' and the fact that their rigidity, as in the 'Krugers', imposed greater expansion strain on the firebox so that they were eventually abandoned.
H. Holcroft, Outline of Great Western Locomotive Practice p68, Locomotive Publishing Co., 1971
Sauvage and Chapelon, La Machine Locomotive 10th edition pp18 and 99, Paris , London

The Vibration Committee. Kevin P. Jones,  
Roger Hennessey produced a highly interesting article on the transmission of vibration from underground railways. Writer remembered pondering upon this subject during an international rubber conference held at the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool and wondering whether the Loop underneath had featured any form of seismic protection every time a train passed underneath. The Heathrow extension of the Piccadilly Line, where it passes alongside domestic property on the Great West Road, was isolated by mounting the track on 5,000 pads supplied by Avon Rubber. A similar system was used in the Barbican development where the four tracks between Barbican and Moorgate stations were moved to a new alignment and the permanent way was mounted on slabs supported by rubber/metal bearings, broadly similar to those later developed to protect structures from earthquakes.
It is also possible to isolate individual buildings from track-borne vibrations by mounting them on rubber bearings. An early example of this was Albany Court built above St. Jarnes's Park Station (London). Many such buildings have since been constructed in London and elsewhere.
The pneumatic-tyred Paris Metro systems were initially devised to curb the noise problem associated with the open-air stretches constructed on steel viaducts. In spite of knowing about the Michelin system it came as a shock to detect that distinctive rubber odour as he switched from a steel-wheel line to a rubber-tyred line underground for the first time. None of these solutions was available to the Vibration Committee where the tightness of the tubes was a key element in the problem.

Railway participation in the Royal Agricultural Shows. Peter Thirlwell
During the 1950s and early '60s writer was chief clerk at Windsor and Eton Riverside station. Some time during that period (he cannot remember the exact year) the Royal Agricultural Society held one of its annual shows at Windsor, at a site in Windsor Great Park, several miles from the town centre.
British Railways must have had a contract with the Society because we were advised that the Southern Region would handle the infrastructure, whilst the Western Region would deal with the show traffic – eg cattle, farm machinery – and both Regions would deal with the smaller show items, such as poultry, rabbits etc received by passenger/parcels services. Riverside station had an adequate goods yard to deal with this traffic and was served by a twice daily freight from Feltham. To deal with this traffic, the Woking Division had what we called 'The Heavy Gang', a mobile unit of men and the necessary equipment such as mobile crane, lifting gear, lorries etc, along with a clerk to deal with paperwork. Writer believed the inwards traffic came from the previous show site at Wollaton Park, Nottingham, and afterwards was sent to the next showground site in Blackpool.
The mobile unit was in residence at Windsor on and off (depending on the flow of traffic) for about eighteen months or more. Because of poor weather at the time and the showground site getting bogged down, many more wagons of railway sleepers arrived and were delivered to the site. On the final evening of the show, writer and several colleagues were employed at the ground to book and forward on to Southern Region destinations the return of small items of show traffic.
As far as passengers were concerned, Riverside station had an adequate half hour service to and from Waterloo. However, during the summer months many excursion trains were dealt with from all parts of the country (often steam-hauled – the locomotives being serviced at Feltham) but he cannot specifically remembered if these were for the Agricultural Show. Writer wondered if BR made a profit from this operation or whether it was a prestige service. It must have been a very costly and labour-intensive operation for the Society and he could understand its need for a permanent site.

Cumbrian Coast local. Tommy Tomalin. rear cover
10.40 Carlisle to Barrow-in-Furness crosses Duddon estuary on 4 May 1983

Number 9 (September)

Uneasy lies the crown. Michael Blakemore, 515
Editorial comment on London termini: Royal Commission restricted locations; their great number.

Southern shed scenes. 516-18.
Colour photo-feature: Brighton in April 1958 with H2 Atlantic No, 32424 Beachy Head; Terrier No, 82 Boxhill in Stroudley yellow; T9 No. 563 in LSWR light green livery and several LBSCR classes representeed including E6, C2X, possibly K class, and LSWR M7 (taken in evening light from road above shed by W. Boot); Three Bridges shed with M7 No. 31005; Ashford MPD with USA 0-6-0T No. DS 238 Wainwright in malachite green on 28 October 1967 (David Idle); Brighton shed with N class No. 31866 having arrived with Locomotive Club of Great Britain tour on 5 December 1965 (Roy Hobbs); K class 2-6-0 No. 32338 on Eastbourne shed on 24 June 1962 (David Idle); BR Class 4 2-6-0 No. 76067 in Fratton shed on 24 June 1966 (Roy Hobbs); Schools class No. 30926 Repton with single chimmney and green livery at Ashford shed on 25 February 1962. (Roy Hobbs).

Jeffrey Wells. Churton's railway observations – 1851. 519-24
The railroad of England – historical, topographical, picturesque. Ottley 7919. Published in 1851, but delayed in publication and second volume mentioned in this "Volume 1" failed to appear: thus the descriptions are limited to the London & Birmingham (the London & North Western is not mentioned), tthe incomplete Great Northern and the Great Western. Illustrations: Great Hall Euston (from Churton); Gallery Booking Office at Euston; Birmingham station (caption implies Curzon Street: Criticism of the caption to this illustration from  Robert Darlaston on p. 701); Welwyn or Digswell Viaduct with opening train; Peterborough, Great Northern Railway Nene Viaduct with London & Birmingham Railway train passing underneath; Huntingdon station with inaugural train obn 5 August 1850; Stevenage station on 11 September 1938 with preserved Stirling 4-2-2 No. 1; Box Tunnel; Bristol station (both J.C. Bourne); Swindon station on 4 April 1946 (H.C. Casserley). Letter from D. Hadley (who owns a copy of the enlarged edition) notes an appendix giving details of railways in Wales and Scotland

Neil T. Sinclair. A Highland centenary journey. 525-31.
On 9 September 1963 the author and his father travelled from Edinburgh Waverley to Inverness via Forres. All trains were diesel hauled. No. D5314 hauled the Edinburgh to Perth  07.50 steam-heated train via the M90 route (a motorway ripe for Beeching-type closure?); a DMU formed the train onward to Ballinluig where D5123 powered the single coach train to Aberfeldy. D5126 powered the onward journey to Aviemore during which lunch was taken in the restaurant car where they were the solitary customers (as happened to the St. John Thomas father and son (Double headed). At Aviemore H.A. Vallance was observed descending from the locomotive. Onwards to Inverness was via Dava and Forres. Illustrations: 0-6-0PT No. 1669 stored at Perth shed in 1963; D5335 at Aberfeldy on 1 March 1965; D5123 at Grandtully pn 3 April 1965 with LNER non-corridor coach No. SC80417E now preserved; D5124 at Ballinluig on 12.17 Perth to Inverness on 3 April 1965; D5114 entering Aviemore on 15,20 Inverness to Glasgow on 24 September 1962; Brisol/Eastern Coachworks railbus SC79958 at Aviemore on 24 Se[ptember 1862; Inverness station on 26 August 1963; Independent Snowplough No. 1 at Inverness on 12 September 1963; Inspection saloon No. SC320577 at Inverness (NBR invalid saloon of 1919) on 12 Septemberv 1963; . See also letter on p. 701 from T. Alistair Barrie (mainly on operations at Forres).

Geoffrey Skelsey. All lines lead to King's Cross. Part 1. Inertia and revival on the Great Northern lines. 532-41.
The Great Northern Railway was conceived as a relatively coherent whole, unlike most of the second generation railways, but was opened in stages. This included the "easy" route northwards via Boston and Lincoln, supplanted by the route via Grantham and Newark. Similarly, a temporary terminus was used at Maiden Lane until King's Cross was available: opened 14 October 1852. E.M. Forster's Howards End recorded that "the two great arches... shouldering between them an unlovely clock". Forster, like Skelsey clearly knew the stark grandure of the station and the muddle which was allowed to grow in front of it which at its worst was a very inferior shanty town, which included a Piccadilly Line tube station. The suburban incubus was created by branch lines to Edgware in 1867, Enfield in 1871, High Barnet in 1872 and Alexandra Palace in 1873. Ny 1895 there4 were 25 million suburban journeys. Flyovers were installed at Finsbury Park and Wood Green and extra tunnels were constructed on the approaches. Where to Live encouraged further expansion on the Northern Heights. The Great Northern became remotely involved in two tube schemes: the Great Northern & Strand and the Great Northern & City and considered electrification in 1903 and 1913. Illustrations: King's Cross viewed from east in 1870s; diagram of approach railways at maximum extentl A4 No. 4407 Golden Plover on down Coronation and W1 on 16.00 for Leeds leaving for Gasworks Tunnels; A1 No. 2557 Blink Bonny ready to depart for Leeds in 1937 (colour: H.M. Lane); frontage 1973 (colour); frontage in 1925? with assorted buildings and huts (African village); L1 No. 67797 running bunker-first with two quad-arts on up train near Hornsey in January 1957 (colour: T.B. Owen); suburban station (Platforms 12-15) with link from Widened Linesw and island platform constructed by LNER; Drayton Park with tube train (red livery) of 1938 stock in 1971; A4 No. 4491 Commonwealth of Australia on inaugural down Coronation awaiting departure on 4 July 1937; Baby Deltic with twt quad arts on Digswell Viaduct with down train (colour);  frontage in 1935 with art deco shops; WDE 2-8-0 HNo. 90703 on up freight (coal train) passing Hatfield (colour); GNR N1 No. 1604 in King's Cross station; map of LPTB planned electrification; Alexandra Palace in 1951. Concliuded p. 598 et seq

Class 31s in North Wales. Tom Heavyside. 542-3.
Colour photo-feature: No. 31 432 (Rail Blue livery) with matching train on 13.50 Manchester Victoria to Llandudno train near Flint on 17 July 1993; No. 31 158 (Railfreight grey) near Penmaenmawr adjacent A55 Expressway with eastbound load of ballast on 25 July 1990; No. 31 463 (Rail Blue with three Network SouthEast coaches) on 09.44 Manchester to Llandudno train at Rhyl on 25 July 1990; Nos. 31 455 (Regional Railways livery) and 31 154 (Railfreight grey) on up ballast train passing Colwyn Bay on 13 August 1996; and No. 31 142 (Railfreight grey) with Regional Railways livery train on 16.24 Crewe to Bangor at Llandudno Junction on 28 June 1995.

Glasgow again. 544-6.
Colour photo-feature: BR standard Class 5 No. 73099 leaving Glasgow Central with express formed of non-corridor stock for Gourock on 25 August 1965; Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42196 leaving St. Enoch light engine on30 March 1964 (David Idle); electric multiple unit Blue Train leaving Central on Neilston service in October 1964 (P. Joyce); J37 0-6-0 No. 64623 on enthusists' brake van tour to Ruchill 0n 27 March 1964 (David Idle); Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42195 arriving Central with service from Wemyss Bay on 19 April 1965 (David Idle); St. Rollox (Ballornock) shed in June 1962 with class 5 (Stanier and BR) and 4F 0-6-0s (T.B. Owen); N15 No. 69191 (fully lined with BR emblem facing in wrong direction on Eastfield mpd (Cowlairs banker: S.B. Lee)

Ivor Lewis. The Great Western Railway 'Krugers'. Part 3. The 'Krugers' in detail. 547-9.
Series began on page 272. W.H. Pearce was the key draughtsman in the design of the motion and piston valves.

Colm Flanagan. The multi-engined diesel railcars of the UTA. 550-5.
Diesel multiple units (DMU) was the term used elsewhere in mainland Britain. Their main sphere of operation was between Belfast and Bangor. Originally it had been hoped to re-open services to Comber, but this failed to find political backing. Units used Leyland engines and a form of transmission via torque converters and secondary gearbox invented by James Courtenay engineer to the the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA). They were manufactured at minimum cost using the frames and in some cases, especially the trailers, the bodies of Northern Counties steam rolling stock. They were formed into three car sets with two power cars. They originally included some first class seating, but eventually became all second: bus type seating was used. They were fitted with Westinghouse straight air brakes. In the early 1960s some four-car sets were introduced and there was a period when a few two-car sets operated. In 1966 the transmission system was replaced with equipment supplied by Self Changing Gears Ltd with Wilson four-speed epicyclic gearboxes. Illustrations: No. 16 in green and cream livery at Belfast Queen's Quay on 18 February 1967; Nos. 9 and 8 in red and cream livery at York Road on 26 August 1967; No. 33 leaving Holywood on 28 February 1970; Nos. 10 and 23 in red and cream livery at Antrim on 30 June 1975; Nos. 21 and 20 in dark green livery? at Jordanstown on 24 July 1963 (all colour by Richard Whitford): remainder black & white: six-car set at Adelaide (in single tone livery) on Windsor Park football special from Bangor on 3 October 1964 (Derek Young); cars under construction at Duncrue Street Works in 1953 (two-tone livery with red hand UTA device on front of cars (Charles F. Friel) and three car set, No. 18 leading in same livery as previous picture at Sydenham station in 1953 (Derek Young).

Edward Gibbins. Beyond Beeching. 556-62.
Contains 64 citations, so is clearly a drastic condensation of a lengthier study. Amongst topics covered are pre-Beeching closures (as many commentators incorrectly ascribe all railway closures as being the work of Beeching): many took place in the 1930s and the Beeching Report delayed many already under consideration. Stedeford's strictures on electrification are condemned. The activities of the Railway Conversion League are examined which leads to consideration of track costs and the failure of the trucking industry to make any adequate contribution. He is highly critical of a BBC programme which assumed thta the former Great Central route could have been used by HS2. Considers that the Stedeford deletion of the Colwich flyover led to the severe accident there when two electrically hauled express trains collided; also the failure to realise that electric traction for freight obviated the need for brake tenders as regeneration was an effective braking system. Refers to the Geddes Committee of 1964 for Beeching's contribution on comparitive road and freight haulage costs: Beeching was very forceful on the failure of road freight to contribute to its track costs arguing thet even a newly built railway was cheaper than road for heavy haulage [note this is pre Energy Crisis]. Illustrations: former L&YR 2-4-2T No. 50651 on Holcombe Brook service in 1952 (Gordon Coltas); Ivatt Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41211 at Warrington Bank Quay Low Level on 16.18 to Manchester on 8 September 1962 (T.J. Edgington); Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0 No. 43150 at Melton Constable on 6 May 1955 (T.J. Edgington); new electri locomotives at Longsight depot Manchester (Gordon Coltas); Class 5 4-6-0 No. 44788 arriving at Dingwall with 09.00 from Wick on 14 July 1955 ("remarkably they [Far North and Kyle line] still survive" (T.J. Edgington);

Alistair F. Nisbet. How to upset your passengers without really trying. 563-7.
St. Andrerws is about five miles from Leuchars aand a railway was opened between the two in July 1852: it closed on 6 January 1969: one of the Beeching follies which has never been rectified. The closure perhaps reflected the city's unhappy relationship with its railway which neither provided a good service to Dundee nor good connections at Leuchars. The Dundee Courier & Argus of 29 June 1901 published timetable changes which did not please the Town Council in St, Andrews as it led to earlier last trains to Edinburgh and Glasgow. Passengers for London were charged extra for travel via Dundee and still had to endure a protracted wait in Dundee (sounds like 21st century no-connect Norwich) In July 1920 the Corporation of Glasgow complained about the protracted transits from St Andrews to Glasgow with protracted waits at Leuchars, Ladybank and Thornton and a journey time of nearly four hours (the aptly named Stagecoach now takes three: better to take bus to Dundee and then a fast train). Illustrations: C16 4-4-2T at Arbroath with departure for Dundee East (how not to begin a journey to St. Andrews!); J37 No. 64576 passing through Dundee Tay Bridge station (presumably incensing passengers for St Andrews); V2 No. 60802 on express fish train taking water at Dundee Tay Bridge station and adding to general distinctive odour; Leuchars Junction with tender-first B1 and Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80123 on St andrews trains prior to introduction of DMUs 

The Teesdale branch. John Spencer Gilks. 568-9.
Colour photo-feature: Middleton-in-Teesdale station, Broomielaw station and Romaldkirk station photographed on 27 November 1964, and station garden at Middleton-in-Teesdale station being tended by station master's wife on 4 June 1960.

Take a Western railcar. 570-1.
Black & white photo-feature: W8 in GWR chocolate & cream livery at Birmingham Snow Hill on Dudley service on 7 August 1948 (T.J. Edgington); W14W in carmine & cream livery at Dudley in mid-1950s; W19W (angular type)  at Arley on Kidderminster service on 16 April 1952 (T.J. Edgington); W17W parcels car at Birmingham Snow Hill on 24 September 1955 (T.J. Edgington); W21W (angular type) at Colnbrook on West Drayton to Staines service in April 1952.

Readers' letters. 572-3

Meanwhile, back at Carlisle. Editor
Mea culpa, alas - LMS Pacific No.46242 (the green one on p. 481 of the August issue) was, of course, City of Glasgow.

The last of the Hastings Units. Tony Reinhardt-Rutland 
A mechanically similar set still maintains a presence on Northern Ireland Railways: Class 80 DEMU stock (69, 74, 97 and 752) with BR MkII bodies which has been retained for Sandite duties. It is the last active set of a total of 22 built in the 1970s. On 10 July the set was on the Larne line, presumably on a warm- storage turn. Unfortunately, they disgraced themselves by causing a minor trackside fire at Jordanstown! Four days later I observed the set safely parked outside NIR's York Road works.

On the Birkenhead Joint Line. Chris Magner  [letter published twice]

Was the LMS too big? Frederic Stansfield
Application of management theory is a better way than 'What ifs' to assess the organisational effectiveness of the London Midland & Scottish railway. Tatlow rightly points out that the LMS adopted a hierarchical, financially driven, management structure that differed from the other Grouping companies, which were based on more technical, engineering focussed, orientations with devolved management. He observes that wartime experience on the LNER indicates that the LMS was too big for the management techniques of the other railway companies. But the LMS was driven in this direction by inherited Midland Railway practices. The LMS reaped some benefits from its management style, notably through the standardisation of locomotive types like the Black Fives, but the company did not achieve the economies of scale one might have expected. There was little rationalisation of routes or of facilities such as engineering works, leaving notorious tensions between Derby and Crewe. The practicability of a railway the size of the LMS is demonstrated by the development of national railways elsewhere in Europe, including specifically Germany, during the inter-war years. Similarly, the LMS's even larger successor, British Railways, can in retrospect be seen as having been better, if not perfectly, managed. The London Midland & Scottish was not essentially too big, but it wasn't managed as well as it should have been.

Progress and problems on the NBR. A.J. Mullay
Response based on research for book Rails across the Border. In quoting from the Berwick Warder newspaper, Wells seems to be reassuring the reader that the twelfth century Berwick Castle was treated as inviolable by the railway builders. This was far from so, the destruction of this edifice representing one of the worst acts of corporate vandalism in mid-nineteenth century Britain. The NBR company files in the National Archives of Scotland include a July 1844 letter from the Misses Askew, two Berwick residents justifiably concerned about the fate of the famous castle. The NBR appears to have ignored this concern in brutally replacing the historic fortress with a railway station and even added insult to injury by seeking to buy the ladies' garden from that point down to the River Tweed. Let us hope they acquainted the NBR with the concept of the 'ransom strip'. On another point, the caption of Reston Junction on p500 suggests that the branch line from there ran only as far as Duns: it later linked with the Waverley Route at St. Boswells, after crossing the impressive Leaderfoot Viaduct. This structure still stands, which is more than can be said, unfortunately, for Berwick Castle,

Take the 'Port Road' Tony Reinhardt-Rutland
The demise of the Dumfries-Stranraer line i represented the beginning of the major contraction of rail-and-boat travel between Northern Ireland and Britain.
Initially, the closure entailed increased distance (by way of Ayr) for trains travelling to Carlisle and on through England. At the curtailment of the sleeper service in the early 1990s the detour had expanded: Class-47-hauled carriages travelled to Glasgow Central to be attached to other overnight stock from Scotland. Meanwhile, daytime services came into the hands of Class 156 DMUs which terminated at Newcastle; most travellers therefore had to change at Carlisle. Travel also suffered from the privatisation of Sealink ferry services in 1986: the new operator – Stena Line – did not feel much compulsion to await late trains. The most destructive issue concerned the ports employed by Stena Line. Larne gave way to new berths several miles from Belfast, initially at Dargan and later at Fortwilliam: the convenient boat trains from Belfast York Road were replaced by awkward travel arrangements for most foot passengers within Northern Ireland. Larne became restricted to P&O ferries which made no pretence at connecting with Stranraer's rail service; they dock at Cairnryan – several miles from Stranraer. At the beginning of the new century, Stena inadvisedly invested in so-called high-speed ships (HSS): the turbulence they created in Belfast Lough and Loch Ryan led to official curbing of speeds in those areas of sea. By 2011 the cost in terms of fuel-use had precipitated the withdrawal of the HSS vessels. Their replacements are substantially larger and in Scotland new berths have had to be built close to Cairnryan – but even further from Stranraer than P&O's berths. Stena does offer a Glasgow service  – but it entails ship to Cairnryan, then road from Cairnryan to Ayr, then train from Ayr to Glasgow Central, not very enticing if you have heavy luggage. There's no mention of Stranraer – and that must cast doubt on the long-term future of the Girvan-Stranraer line. Thus rail-boat travel is now hardly an option between Northern Ireland and Britain via the historically most important route: travel is restricted to road-and-boat or road-and-flight. I find it depressing that the governments in Northern Ireland and Scotland have apparently made no efforts to prevent this outcome. Scotland has become well-known for its promotion of rail travel – witness, for example, the reopenings of the Waverley and Bathgate routes. However, a rebuilt 'Port Road' does not seem to be on the agenda.
Northern Ireland has also invested much in its railways – admittedly from a very low state; most of the permanent way and signalling has been rebuilt, including most recently Coleraine to Derry (although signalling remains to be modernised) just in time for Derry/Londonderry's role as 2013 UK City of Culture. Two attractive fleets of CAF-built DMUs have been introduced. However, to add insult to injury regarding rail-and-boat travel, two major roads between Belfast and Larne are currently under reconstruction: echoes of that one-time transport baddy, the Ulster Transport Authority (UT A). Indeed, one of the reconstructions has entailed the apparently needless demolition of one of the few remaining structures of the long-defunct Larne-Ballymena narrow gauge line: Headwood station.

The changing craft of the permanent way man. P.D. Dunn
The photograph of the vast, complex Cannon Street installation: this layout was constructed by writer's old firm, Taylor Bros. Ltd. (Sandiacre) for the Southern Railway. Taylor's pioneered a method of manufacture and building complete layouts in their yard. The various components were then carefully marked out; white lines were painted on the four foot of the sleepers so that they could be rapidly repositioned on site using string lines. The chaired sleepers were carefully numbered and spacings recorded by wooden laths nailed to their ends. The layout was then dismantled and loaded on to wagons, the contents being recorded so that unloading could be made at the required position on site. Similar arrangements were made for the steelwork. Taylor's also had a large stock of two-level chair patterns which enabled two level (canted) junctions to be constructed. He observed early work on new flat bottom rail P&C items for the LNER; work commissioned by C.J. Allen (although best known for his locomotive performance records and many locomotive books and articles, he was in fact by profession a PW materials man, very well informed on iron and steel manufacture.
The period just after WW2 was a time of shortages when he was employed by the LMSR. He tested the new pre-stressed concrete sleepers — particularly welcome because of shortages of suitable timber and creosote. As an alternative to creosote the company tried out a chemical treatment. Soon there were complaints from the signal people claiming that track circuit shorts were occurring. He had the job of measuring the electrical resistance between chairs. (We removed the rails first, of course.) These results showed quite low electrical resistance values and the chemical method was discontinued. One photograph in the article refers to 'gangers'. On the LMS the chaps were always called 'platelayers'. This was in spite of the fact that plates had not been used for almost a hundred years; tradition died hard on the railways. The 'ganger' was an under-foreman or chargehand. The overall supervision was by the 'inspector' distinguished by his bowler hat.

Ten-coupled over the Mendips. Cedric Catt 
Page 329, Table 1: No.92006 (one of four 9Fs allocated to Bath Green Park between June and September 1961), should be included. In BR Standard Steam Locomotives, Volume 5, p. 47 (RCTS), there is a photograph of No.92006 at Chikompton on 12 August 1961. Page 329, last paragraph: On the South Western Rambler special on 8 March 1964 the locomotive was No.92209. A photograph of that locomotive at Broadstone is in The S&D Railway 1935-1966 by Mike Arlett and David Lockett, Lightmoor Press, p 179. Also the evening 18.27 freight from Bath (Midland Bridge Road) went to Westerleigh Yard, which was closed in February 1965. Writer photographed this train worked by No.92226 at Mangotsfield North Junction on Saturday 13 June 1964. Page 330, Table 2: Date 2.9.61 locomotive No.92112 Bradford- Bournemouth. The locomotive was more probablyNo.92212 which also appeared on 18/6/61 as mentioned.

Marston Gate. Richard D. Foster 
Had recheck through the notes and a transcription/typing error occurred somewhere along the line. R.K.F. Kerk's date of entering LNWR service was 16-2-1882 not 1872; otherwise he'd have started at the age of seven!

'I remember Adlestrop' Stephen G. Abbott
Closing small stations on those cross-country routes which survived has helped them serve the modern travel market. Pre-Beeching examples include York-Scarborough in 1930 and Chester-Newport in 1958. The Leicester-Peterborough route at one time had up to eighteen stops in 52 miles, including Humberstone Road and Syston on the Midland main line. The surviving stations in Melton Mowbray, Oaskham and Stamford are quite well-placed, but most of the rest served communities some distance from the line, on main roads and better served by bus. Eight stations had closed by the early 1960s, but the six trains each way still took 100-120 minutes and all were local to the route. The Beeching Report scheduled the service for complete withdrawal, but it was reprieved and rationalised, and the alternative Oxford-Cambridge route closed (sadly) instead. From the closure of all but the three town stations in June 1966 there were still six trains but nearly all became through from Birmingham to East Anglia, taking 75 minutes Leicester-Peterborough. The number of trains increased over the years and in 1988 with the introduction of Sprinter DMUs came an hourly clock-face timetable; there are now seventeen trains per day, all from Birmingham to Cambridge or Stansted Airport. Leicester-Peterborough with three stops is only 58 minutes. In 1963 the line was fulfilling a diminished local role, an inter-urban role badly and an inter-regional role hardly at all. In 2013 it has no local role, but very usefully serves the inter-urban and inter-regional markets. Census figures circulated during the 1965 closure proceedings showed that on average 217 passengers left Leicester daily spread over the six trains, to which should perhaps be added the 150 leaving Rugby on the parallel route to Peterborough which closed completely in June 1966. The present service carries about 2,000 passengers daily eastwards from Leicester, so growth is fivefold in 50 years, helped by demographic, education and employment trends which have encouraged travel over longer distances. Another useful rationalisation took place on the Cambrian system. Looking at an old notebook, I travelled from Welshpool to Aberystwyth in 1964, schedule 2hr 50min for 62 miles – with eighteen station stops, plus a further stop at closed Moat Lane Junction for the Standard Class 4 Tank to take water! Now it takes just over 90 minutes with five stops. If only other routes (Somerset & Dorset perhaps?) had received similar treatment!

Diesel locomotive brakes.  Dave Carter.
Following correspondence from Morse and Baker,(p. 317): a light locomotive is not allowed to run at its normal maximum speed. It has not the train brakes to assist in stopping from speed. In normal brake applications the coaching stock is making a greater retardation than the locomotive. This is better than having the train bunching up behind the locomotive. Writer used to be on a breakdown gang and it was quite clear in the riding van if the driver was using the train brake or just the straight air brake on the locomotive only, as they were used to on unfitted coal trains. The locomotive distributors admit or release air to the brake cylinders, in relation to the brake pipe pressure falling or rising. When the Class 50s on the Waterloo-Exeter service were replaced replaced by Class 47s, brake blocks on the 47 were not lasting very long. This was rectified at Doncaster by modifying the distributors to reduce the locomotives proportion of braking effort and prolong the brake block life.
Another aspect was the type of work the locomotive was doing, goods or passenger. Classes 37, 50 and 55 were all on similar bogies and, unlike the 47s which have automatic slack adjusters, they had manual brake adjusters on each wheel. These required a fitter down in a pit to take up break block wear. Writer worked at a West Riding depot which in the 1970s still had a high proportion of unfitted coal trains. These relied on the locomotive and brake van to control the train. Healey Mills drivers were keen to see the brakes adjusted up so only 1¼in of the piston was protruding from the cylinder. On the Deltics it was common to see brake pistons sticking out 6in! On passenger work, the train was doing most of the braking effort.
One of our 37s brought a vacuum-fitted train back to Healey Mills from the Manchester area; however, by mistake they had not coupled the vacuwn pipe between locomotive and train! (Not too sure how they did a brake test!) In the 25 miles between the summit and Healey Mills yard, the locomotive wore the blocks away and the block hangers were on to the wheels! It must have been worrying for the driver, though fortunately the train managed to stop OK in the end.

By LNER on the West Highland Line. John Roake
Caption to photograph of C15 at Spean Bridge states that the lnvergarry & Fort Augustus branch closed in December 1933: this was the first day of that month that passenger traffic ceased, but freight traffic lumbered on until the onset of World War II in the form of a weekly Saturday coal train. The upsurge in freight traffic that occured during the war did not last long after hostilities ceased, the branch closing in its entirety on 1 January 1947.

Tsar Trek Martin Johnson
The first locomotive shown was designed and constructed in 1811 by Matthew Murray in his Leeds factory for John Blenkinsop who worked for the Middleton Railway, tasked to deliver coal to the colliery customers. Togerther they laid a track (4ft 2gin gauge) from the Middleton Colliery to Leeds, about ten miles. The rails were wooden at the start but as the rolling of wrought iron rails improved, these were substituted. Initially the locomotive used the rack, as shown, but when they discovered that wheel to rail friction was sufficient the locomotive was modified to drive the wheel axles directly. It could haul 94 tons of coal at about 3mph to Leeds and return the empty cauldrons to the colliery at about 10 mph. Murray manufactured three for the Middleton Colliery and as Blenkinsop sold the concept to other collieries, ten locomotives in total. Needless to say, these actions attracted the attention of others. Stephenson worked for an adjacent colliery and was using horse-drawn carts, on rails, to Leeds, standard gauge spacing. He spied on Murray's efforts. James Watt (Boulton and Watt) went further by installing one of his foundry men into the Murray workshops for a year. Murray seems to have lost interest in steam locomotives at this stage so Stephenson took over to front further development and the others joined the bandwagon.

Tsar trek. Harro Zabehlicky (Klosterneuburg, Austria)
Gerstner's full name was 'Franz Anton Ritter von Gerstner', the members of the family were allowed to bear the title 'Ritter', the equivalent of this might possibly be 'knight', since 18\0. He built, after visiting English railways (never been able to find out which), the first mountain railway from Budweis, 315.5m above sea level (nowadays Budejovice in the Czech Republic, then a part of the Austrian empire) via Kerschbaum (713.4m) to Linz-Urfahr (262.6m) in Upper- Austria, begun in 1824! The first railway, albeit by the use of horses, in the continent, was primarily thought for the transport of salt, which could not be found in the granite massive of the Bohrnerwald. That Gerstner had been a Czech nationalist seems to be very unlikely, because he, at the early age of 21, was professor for geometry in the institute, which later became the technical college of Vienna. I think it might well be supposed that he understood and spoke German very well. His father had already had the idea to link those two cities firstly by a canal, then, seeing the troubles involved, altered his plan for a railway, which his son realised. All sources which I could access give the name of the terminal station in Russia, which has rightly been attributed to Gerstner, as Tsarskoje Selo and not as often has been quoted in the article as Tsarkoje Selo.

Tsar trek. Harry Jack
Among the sources listed at the end of George Smith's article about John Hackworth (July) I was sorry to see the inclusion of a book by C. E. Stretton. George Ottley in his Bibliography of British Railway History said Stretton was "unreliable" - but that was putting it far too mildly.
Clement Edwin Stretton (1850- 1915) wrote books, dozens of booklets and countless articles about railway history, but they contain a lot of fiction, inaccurate illustrations and downright lies. He had a talent for writing a vivid story, so anything he didn't know about, he simply made up. He published 'complete' works lists of various locomotive manufacturers which contain guesswork: all very plausible, but including lots of quite imaginary locomotives.
I am not in favour of banning books, but Stretton's vast output should be completely ignored by anyone with a serious interest in railway history.

Book reviews. 574

Derby days – memories of a Midland railwayman. John Weston. Oakwood Press. 208pp. DWM ***
As a former devotee of Platform 6 at Derby Midland in the early '60s your reviewer approached this book with considerable interest - and yet he arrived at the last chapters somewhat disappointed. The book is well produced and splendidly illustrated in the true 'Oakwood style', but is certainly not a volume for the grammatically timid! The author gives a fascinating account of his upbringing in rural North Leicestershire and work, both at the local 'big house' and, after a false start on the railway in 1937, as part of a threshing machineteam' before eventually entering the footplate grades at Derby just before the outbreak of war in 1939. He then enters on a breathless outline of his railway career through the links at Derby until his transfer off the footplate in 1967. These memories are unusual in that accounts of 'derring-do' on the footplate are few and far between, as are detailed comments on locomotive types. The usual footplate 'characters' surface at regular intervals and they are treated on their merits - or lack of - but the strength of this book lies in the fact that the author examines a good number of topics which are not usually found in footplate memoirs. Thus the reader gets a detailed insight into activities such as shunting at Chaddesden, the working of the Shirland colliery branch, the delights of lodging turns and lodging conditions, promotion through the links at No.4 shed, the ASLEF strike of 1955 and the work of the railway trade unions, in which the author played an active part. There are comments on trainspotters, the 'Beeching Axe' and Midland Compounds - all expressed in the author's forthright and distinctive style - and including such insights as "the railway system was not in very good shape in 1945 (even though it was a lot better than it is now)!" and "travel in the 21st century should not mean standing up all the way, or very late arrival at your destination. It is simply a matter of having the resources required"! (reviewer's exclamations). It must be conceded that this is a fascinating story, enthusiastically told - but oh, for a rigorous sub-editor!

A defence of the Midland/ LMS Class 4 0-6-0. Adrian Tester. Crimson Lake (Aberystwyth). 274pp. CPA. ****
Following two prototypes built at Derby in 1911, which simply amounted to being superheated Belpaire developments of wet steam round-topped Iohnson Midland Railway Class 2 and 3 inside cylinder 0-6-0s built between 1875 and 1908, no fewer than 770 Class 4 0-6-0s were all built to the same drawings, incorporating only minimal modifications, for the Midland and LMS Railways between 1917 and 1941. Castigated by E.S. Cox and dubbed 'masterpieces of mediocrity' by Michael Rutherford in these columns (June 1999), their alleged deficiencies were a propensity to cracked frames, inadequate axleboxes and fickle steaming. In what virtually amounts to a PhD dissertation the author addresses each of these claims in scholarly engineering detail and makes the case for these once ubiquitous locomotives, several of which survive in preservation. Class 4 0-6-0s were built in four different railway workshops and by four different commercial locomotive manufacturers. Apparently the 25 built in Kilmarnock by Andrew Barclay & Co. were early noted to be particularly prone to frame cracks which, other things being equal, suggested that this was most likely down to the steel employed in this batch. No fewer than 82 pages alone are devoted to the question of axle box design and performance, with erudite discussion of lubrication techniques.
The Class 4s as built were all provided with a simple parallel chimney liner, with no bell mouth, which was cast integral with the chimney. This would appear to have given satisfactory results in its original form, but when shorter chimneys were specified by the LMS in order to confer wider route availability, particularly in Scotland, steaming then became more problematic. When it had became almost too late to really matter, in 1954 (when the first MR-built locomotives began to be withdrawn) experimental revisions to the smokebox draughting arrangements by British Railways produced a dramatic 60% in boiler maximum evaporation rate, from 12,000 to 19,000lb/hr, which also represented an exceptional rate per square foot of grate area by usual British standards.
The author is particularly good at setting the Class 4 in context with other large British 0-6-0s, including the even more ponderous and shorter-lived Gresley LNER Class J39, but he also makes reference to overseas designs. He also discusses the numerous attempts by the LMS over many years to produce a replacement/successor, several of which remained 0-6-0s and still with inside cylinders, but equipped with taper boilers. At literally the eleventh hour, in 1947, it brought forth H.G. Ivatt's ugly Class 4 outside cylinder 2-6-0, which the author does not rate unduly highly by comparison. By its own terms of reference this book is not a definitive history of its subject, nor is it for the faint hearted, but it gives considerable food for thought.

Waverley Route: the life, death and rebirth of the Borders Railway. David Spaven. Argyll Publishing. AJM. ****
The loss of the Waverley Route, running through the Scottish Borders between Edinburgh and Carlisle, has been mourned by enthusiasts and residents since January 1969. This was the biggest rail closure in British history at the time and, unlike the dismantling of the Great Central, did not remove a duplicatory system; indeed this withdrawal has left the town of Hawick some 50 miles from a railhead. David Spaven is a rail consultant and journalist, the son of a senior civil servant who, as it happens, was instrumental in preventing Scotland's rail network from being butchered even more than it was in Beeching days. The son has carried on the father's good work and in writing this book combines a mastery of primary research sources with a clear and readable writing style. In his book David Spaven sets out to document the tortuous process which led to the closure decision and analyses the political ramifications expertly, with some surprising conclusions emerging. This reviewer had always assumed that the Borderers' election of Mr. David Steel in 1965 was a 'kiss of death' for the railway by giving the Labour government of the time a rod with which to beat the ungrateful voters. But in this book Spaven names Willie Ross, Labour's Secretary of State, as a fierce supporter of keeping the line open and any student of political history will find this a fascinating read. The second half of the book concerns efforts to reopen the line and this part of the book is less successful. One section is even headed 'Why did it take so long to deliver the Borders Railway?' and the reader can only hope that this is not a false dawn. More on the nature of the line itself would have been preferable. There is a potted history of the route, but this is rather too 'potted', and with two major misconceptions about the Waverley Route published in a recent book on Angle- Scottish railways (which routed the line through Langholm), an opportunity is lost to inform rail enthusiasts from farther afield. The choice of photographs - marshalled and edited by Bill Jarnieson - is excellent and disappointing only in that they are too small - a larger format would have been worthwhile. The most interesting picture is one of Rae Montgomery's showing an A3 and an Ivatt Mogul approaching Falahill Summit with a train of 'Mr. Whippy' ice cream vans! The index is weak, with few place name or technical search terms, but this reviewer's main gripe - and it is no reflection on the author - is that the book is published simultaneously in hardback and paperback editions. No problem you might think, but the hardback is described as a 'Collector's Edition' with an extra 32 pages, including a fascinating official report on the final express train being held up by enraged citizens at Newcastleton. Apart from depriving unsuspecting paperback purchasers of the whole story, this also means that the hardback has its index buried among text, some distance from the end of the book. With this reservation, this unique book is recommended, but only in its hardback version.

Victorian Preston and the Whittingham Hospital Railway. David Hindle. Amberley Publishing. 128pp, RH. ****
In spite of its rather prolix title, this unusual railway history is three-quarters about the Whittingham Hospital Railway rather than Preston as was. Its treatment benefits from the three ideal historical sources once listed by David Lowenthal (The Past is a Foreign Country, 1985) - what the past has left behind, the accumulation of secondary sources, and memory. Much of human history is beyond the reach of memory, although railway history has benefited from it more than many other fields. The author worked at Whittingham, admittedly after its railway had shut down (it lasted 1889-1957) but he had plenty of experience of it, including a footplate ride on a Stroudley 0-4-2T and he has drawn the vivid memories of others. The facts of the Whittingham Hospital Railway (actually its rolling stock bore the titles and abbreviations for the 'County Mental Hospital Railway') - can be briefly summarised. It ran from Grimsargh station on the Preston- Longbridge branch line, via Whitingham Junction, on to the hospital, nearly two miles. Between the wars it served the needs of over 3,500 patients, together with medical and maintenance staff. This lifeline also brought fuel and supplies to the vast complex. By the end of the Great War, when parts of the hospital served the military also, it carried 12,000 tons of freight each year and 3,000 passengers per week. To keep this traffic on the move the CMHR had at one time or another, two Barclay tank engines, a former LBSCR D1 0-4-2T and a snappy, geared Sentinel. The melange of rolling stock included former North London and LYR four-wheelers and, latterly, converted guard's vans; the author gives full details of all this stock. The Grimsargh station (apparently a favoured location for courting and other couples) was a plain affair, but the hospital station had a glass-covered roof and a through platform since goods trains worked forward to a distant boiler house. The text describing these things is abundantly supplied with good photographs and it is buttressed by a thorough bibliography, one that suggests much spadework has been done in the National and Lancashire Archives. The flavour of the book is enhanced not only by personal and shared memories, but also the reminiscences of an author with a sharp eye and ear for the line's natural surroundings. Unusually for railway history, owls, lapwings, curlews and even roses and kine are part of the story although, alas, no longer the yellowhammer, now as absent from the scene as the trains it once serenaded. The hospital too is long gone. But once upon a time a Brighton tank shimmered past the ornamental lake and carefully tended lawns and woods of the complex before 'Care in the Community' replaced this other kind of community, a veritable small town with its own railway system. The jury is out on the new arrangements; the Victorian ones were nevertheless a long stride ahead in the evolution of treatment for perceived mental ill-health.

A Wiltshire crossing. Paul Strong. rear cover
No. 6951 Impney Hall at Langley Crossing east of Chippenham on 17.24 Swindon to Bristol running-in turn in June 1962

Number 10 (October)

J27 0-6-0 No. 65855 on coal train from Hilton Colliery to South Dock Sunderland at Monkwearmouth on 20 July 1967. David Idle. front cover

A view from the front. Michael Blakemore, 579.
Editorial on British Railways diesel multiple units: remembered the spectacular run from Scarborough to Whitby. KPJ remembers rail tour of 1965? when one felt the need for an extra low gear which was not there as we crawled up to Ravenscar in typical North Sea drizzle on an excursion from Wakefield to Whitby and back, outwards via Pickering and back via Scarborough. Eldest daughter walked this lines in summer and thought that should still be part of the network.

Class 37s on the china clay. David Cable. 580-1.
Colour photo-feature: No. 36 672 Freight Transport Association on causeway at Golant on way to Carne Point in August 1988; No. 37 675 William Cookworthy coming off Parkandilloch branch at Buirngullow in July 1991; No. 37 673 climbing to Treverrin Tunnel; and same train at Golant; No. 37 411 leaving Burngullow for Parkandilloch branch passing Blackpool dries in November 1990.

A.J. Mullay "Heavier than expected". BR's early lightweight diesel multiple units, 582-5.
The author ranges rather further than the title might suggest and in places this leads to mild confusion: thus, all references to multiple units on the Southern Region should be to diesel electric multiple units which shared much in common with the electric multiple units on that Region. Not until the end of the article is the influence of railways in Ireland noted in advancing this form of traction. Amongst the initial applications were the Leeds-Harrogate-Bradford services which achieved a 400% increase in traffic turnover due to the modernity of the new units and the introducvtion of improved timetables. The North Eastern Region continued with this policy and became the most profitable part of British Railways. Their introduction in the Bristol Area was far less successful. Single manning was a delicate issue and management had to be cautious in its statements on manpower savings. Inadequate terminal fascilities at Paddington and King's Cross hindered gaining the full operating savings. Illustrations: two car Derby lightweight unit at Hellifield levaing for Skipton on 25 June 1966 (colour: Gavin Morrison: see also letter from Leonard Rogers who questions whether this was a routine working or substituion, from Carlisle, for failed steam workin); two car Derby lightweight unit at Basswenthwaite Lake on 15 August 1964 (J.S. Gilks); two car Derby lightweight unit posed? at Britannia Bridge between the two sculptured lions; two car Derby lightweight unit leaving Leeds Central for Bradford passing A1 Pacific No. 60123 H.A. Ivatt (E. Treacy); Class 103 at Watford Junction on St Albans branch working (T.J. Edgington) and Cravens Class 105 units at King's Cross suburban platforms on 4 May 1960 (T.J. Edgington). See also letters from Leonard Rogers (although has relatively little to comment on DMUs as such) and from Chris Foren on p. 702, and from Stephen G. Abbott on page 764: KPJ would reinforce Foren and Abbott's observations on the unsuitability of the Craven units for the Great Northern suburban services; which were an unbelievable mess until electrification.

David Pearson. Some thoughts on the LMS 'Claughtons' and 'Patriots'. 586-8.
Influence of Inland Revenue rules on taxation on the rebuilding or replacement of locomotives: notably tax allowances made by the Inland Revenue in respect of capital expenditure. The first two Patriot class retained the bogies and coupled wheels of the LNWR Claughtons. The next twelve retained the bogies and a few other fittings. The next three had new, longer bogies and the remainder were new locomotives. All had Crewe style whistles.  Illustrations; large boiler Claughton No. 5953 Buckingham (in crimson lake — coloured postcard); large boiler Claughton No. 5970 Patience with original boiler Claughton No. 5930 G.R. Jebb leaving Crewe on up express on 26 May 1928; large boiler Claughton No. 5910 J.A. Bright; Patriot No. 5971 without name or smoke deflectors on turntable at Nottingham in 1930; Patriot No. 5902 Sir Frank Ree (with early smole deflectors at Nottingham Midland; and No. 45543 Home Guard leaving Preston with up express.

Jeremy Clarke. The Brighton heads East. 589-95.
Brighton to Lewes, Eastbourne an Hastings. The Royal Asswent was given for the Brighton, Lewes & Hastings Railway on 29 July 1844. The Company sought powers to extend to Ashford, but the South Eastern Railway was given preference and the Brighton Company was not permitted to extend beyond St. Leonards and had to seek running powers over the SER. Illustrations: 4-VEP electric multiple units at Brighton station on 8 July 1979; J2 4-6-2T No. 2326 climbing to Falmer with northbound Sunny South Express in 1936 (C.C.B. Herbert); 4-VEP No. 7756 in Falmer station on 3 April 1978 (Les Bertram); H2 Atlantic No. 3425 Trevose Head passing through Lewes station with down Newhaven boat train on 25 June 1948 (C.C.B. Herbert); 4-CIG No. 7334 and 7331 in Lewes station  on 17 September 1978 (Les Bertram);  Letter p. 701 (erratum) relating to map.

From the platform end at Paddington. J.D. Bassingdale Collection. 596-7.
Colour photo-feature: No. 6006 Kimg George I with double chimney backing out to Westbourne Park locomotive yard in July 1959; No. 6169 (fully lined green livery) leaving bunker-first with suburban train in June 1957; red London Transport Metadyne unit leaving for Hammersmith in July 1959; Caastle class No. 7007 Great Western backing out to Westbourne Park locomotive yard in July 1956; condensing gear fitted 57XX 0-6-0PT No. 9707 on freight for Smithfield in July 1958.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'All lines lead to King's Cross'. Part 2. Inertia and revival on the Great Northern lines. 598-605.
Part 1 see pp.532-41. Illustrations: Brush Type 31 at York Road en route to Moorgate with empty stock on 10 September 1976; western porte cochere with remains of Greta Northern Hotel garden in 1976; Suburban station entrance in 1976 (memories of train will now depart from Platform 7); Named trains on the East Coast Main Line cover (published in 1957); A2/3 No. 60523 Sun Castle on down Peterborough local in June 1963 leaving Potters Bar Tunnel (colour: M. Smith); Deltic No. D9003 Meld on down Yorkshire Pullman at Holloway in 1962 (colour: M. Smith); Baby Deltic on up local near Knebworth in April 1969; cover of brochure announcing station throat works; plan of station approach berfore and after remodelling; artist's impression of new western concourse minus Great Northern Hotel and colour photographs of vastly improved western concourse and enlightened station interior.

All gas and turbines. 606-7.
Black & white photo-feature bsased on photographs supplied by David Cole of Avon Valley Railway (No. 18000 was supplied by Brown Boveri and No. 18100 by Metropolitan Vickers: No. 18000 at Harwich, having arrived by train ferry, on 6 February 1950; No. 18000 on test run from Swindon; No. 18100 at Trafford Park ready to be hauled to Swindon, cab (right hand drive) and controls, and in service on West of England main line (note oil headlamps)

Steam in the North East. David Idle. 608-11.
Colour photo-feature: J27 No. 65879 at Ryhope Grange on 18 July 1967; V2 No. 60939 on down freight near Benton on 28 August 1964; Q6 0-8-0 No. 63395 at Londonderry (Co. Durham) on 22 July 1967; WD 2-8-0 No. 90009 running tender-first with coal empties on Durham Coast near Ryhope on 20 July 1967; inside South Dock shed, Sunderland with J27 Nos. 65855, 65879, 65894 and 65882 on 22 July 1967;  J27 No. 65894 with brake van at Grangetown crossing, Sunderland on 22 July 1967; Q6 No. 63406 and 63448 on Consett shed on 27 October 1962; Jubilee No. 45662 Alberta at Ferryhill on 10 June 1967 on return journey to Huddersfield from Ashington; No. 35026 Lamport & Hult Line at Newcastle Central on 22 October 1966.

Adrian Tester. Stationary locomotive testing. Part 3. 612-19.
Braking systems and dynamometers. G. Alden of Worcester Polytecnic (USA) and Goss at Purdue University found that the changes in oil viscoity with temperature affected thier measurements. The Emery dynamometer at the University of Illinois in Urbana consisterd of a weighing head carried on a pedestal plus a measuring and recording scale. The Swindon plant was unusual in converting the energy generated into something useful: in this case belts drove compressors which supplied compressed air within the Factory. The Swindon plant was similar to that installed by the Chicago & North Western Railroad. The Vitry-sur-Seine and Rugby plants employed hydrodynamic braking using Froude dynamometers where vanes supplied the torque. A Selsyn (self-synchonizing) synchro formed a key feature in the measuring devices at Rugby. Yaw was an inherent problem in steam locomotive tests due to the reciprocating forces and balancing was essential. Illustrations:Alden friction brake (diagram); performance envelopes for Froude brakes used at Vitry and Rugby (diagram); Swindon braking system (diagram); 4-4-2 on rollers at Swindon (also showing flat belt taking up energy from locomotive on test); Ivatt Class 2 No. 46413 on Swindon Test Plant;staror and rotor removed from Froude dynamometer at Vitry; Amsler hydraulic dynamometer and anchorage at Rugby; control room at Rugby and Class 5 No. 44765 on test at Rugby in 1950. See also letter from John Knowles p. 764.

The main line stations of Manchester. 620-3.
Black & white photo-feature: London Road viewed from Mayfield on 11 March 1954 with 4F No. 44280 coming off MSJA line with a freight and double chimney Caprotti Class 5 No. 44686 on 12.45 departure for Birmingham New Street; Manchester Centyral with Class 5 No. 44861 arriving with Nottingham to Liverpool Central train alongside 4F No. 44232 on 31 May 1958 (T.J. Edgington); Manchester Victoria wih Jubilee No. 45580 Burma on 17.45 to Blackpool Central on 4 August 1961 (Alan Tyson); Patriot No. 45515 Caaernarvon passing new Victoria East Junction signal box with an express for Leeds on 23 September 1961 (Alan Tyson); L&YR Aspinall 4-4-0 passing Manchester Exchange on Blackpool express; LNWR Bowen Cooke 4-6-2T No. 6970 in LMS crimson livery taking on water from parachute water tank alongide hooded colour light signal in Exchange in 1935; Class 5 No. 45279 on 16.30 Llandudno express in Exchange Platform No. 3 on 3 March 1966 (during late 1940s/50s this train left from Platform No. 1 behind a Caprotti-fitted Class 5 KPJ); Oxford Road station in 1934 with George V in through platform (now used by East Midland Trains Norwich to Liverpool service where the 15.52 ex-Norwich calls at Eccles Road making it possible to reach Eccles with minimal changes); No. 84001 terminating at Oxford Road with 12.05 ex-Liverpool Lime Street via Warrington Bank Quay Low Level? on 21 April 1962 with lady in raincoat and umbrella (to show that it's Manchester); Liverpool Road station and Mayfield exterior on 1 August 1998 (last three T.J. Edgington)

Paul Joyce. Dover Marine Station: Britain's gateway to the Continent. 624-5.
Opened for military traffic during WW1 on 2 February 1915 and closed due to Channel Tunnel on 25 September 1994. Listed building still extant. Photographs taken during Network SouthEast era.

Take a drop of water with it. Trevor Owen
Colour photo-feature of locomotives picking up water at water troughs: Class 5 No. 45439 on Cup Final special conveying Wolverhampton Wanderers supporters to London on 7 May 1960 picking up water at Bushey troughs; rebuilt Scot No. 46136 The Border Regiment conveying the less fortunate Blackburn Rovers supporters at same location as previous and rebuilt Scot No. 46135 East Lancashire Regiment on up Emerald Isle Express picking up water from Castlethorpe troughs in August 1958.

Jeffrey Wells. The Humber ferries, Grimsby and associated railways. 627-34.
A.J. Ludlam's Railways to New Holland and the Humber ferries (Locomotion Papers No. 198) is one of the sources cited. The other is the Sheffield & Rotherham Independent. The Great Grimsby & Sheffield Junction Railway was incvorporated on 30 June 1845 and was closely associated with the Grimsby Docks Company and shared its Chairman the Earl of Yarborough. The goal was to connect Grimsby with Gainsborough where what became the Manchester Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway was operational. At about the same time George Hudson was hoping to extend from Gainsborough to New Holland to capture the cross Humber traffic, but the GGSJR sought to acquire the ferries and construct a branch line to New Holland. The dock company amalgamated with the railway and powers were sought for further branches to Barton and to Cleethorpes. The engineer for the railway works was John Stevenson. On 17 April Prince Albert travelled from Windsor to Brocklesby to stay at the Old Hall, home of the Yarborough family. En rouite he had visited Lincoln Cathedral and on the following day, 18 April, he opened the docks at Grimsby and then returned to London via Boston and Peterborough.Illustrations: MSLR 2-4-0 No. 314 at New Holland Pier c1899; N5 No. 69305 about to leave New Holland Town station on 14.05 for Barton-on-Humber on 28 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); Dock works at Great Grimsby iin 1848 (Illustrated London News?) New Holland Ferry & Pier in 1849 (lithograph); N5 No. 69305 at Barton waiting to depart on 13.25 to New Holland on 28 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); B1 No. 61142 at New Holland Pier on 09.58 for Cleethorpes on 28 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); first train into Great Grimsby on Leap Year Day 1848: see letter from John Abrams on p. 190 of Volume 28; Ulceby station seen from train on 28 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); laying the first stone at Great Grimsby Docks on 18 April 1849; Grimsby Town station on 28 April 1954 (H.C. Casserley); Goxhill station; Grimsby Docks station on 19 April 1947 (H.C. Casserley); PS Wingfield Castle at Hull on 11 October 1964.

J.D. Bennett, The London railway horse. 635-7.
There were estimated to be 6000 railway horses in London in 1891. Bibliography. Illustrations: GWR horse and van (lithograph); shunting horse (lithograph);inspectors, foremen and staff at Great Eastern Railway stables in Hare Street; goods manager, veterinary surgeons and horse superintendent at Great Eastern Railway stables in Hare Street; and diagram of Didcot provender store built by Great Western Railway,

Readers' Forum. 638.

Baltic mysteries. David Burton.
Questions why Midland Railway did not rebuild the Whitelegg 4-6-4Ts as 4-6-0s like the Maunsel N15X conversions of the Billington Baltics of the LBSCR: such rebuilds would have been lighter than the tank engines. Also questions the relative success of the 4-6-2T in relation to the 4-6-4T.

An 'Oglo' at Helsby. Nick Stanbury.
Refers to British Transport Commission Measured for Transport (available as DVD) in which the load is shown on the Blaenau Ffestiniog branch and suggests date was autumn 1961

Changing times on the Chesham branch. Brian Hardy
The signal box at Chesham did not close until 29 November 1970.

Book reviews. 638.

The Aldeburgh branch. Peter Paye. Oakwood. AFN ****
Notes failure to proof-read and repitition

Robert Warren. The Kendal & Windermere Railway. Oakwood. DJ. ***
Excessively long

Sun arise. Paul Strong. rear cover
No. 40 094 on 03.454 Healey Mills to Carlisle freight leaving Ribblehead Viaduct on 2 September 1982.

Number 11 (November 2013)

Under clear signals LMS Coronation Pacific No.46247 City of Liverpool heads under the impressive gantry at Carstairs on the last stage of the run to Glasgow with a down express in the late 1950s. Gavin Wilson. front cover

The long and the short of it. David Bonnett. 643 
Guest editorial: shrinkage of the train and its comfort for long distance travel on the contemporary railway.

Give a 'Black Five' a good name. 644-5.
Colour photo-feature: No. 46154 Lanarkshire Yeomanry at Aintree on RCTS tour on 24 September 1966; No. 46156 Ayrshire Yeomanry at Lancaster in 1965 (M. Chapman); No. 46158 Glasgow Yeomanry at St. Rollox in October 1963;  No. 46158 Glasgow Highlander on freight near Carluke in June 1963; and No. 46156 Ayrshire Yeomanry at Patricroft in 1968.

Michael J. Smith. The 1904 Aylesbury Disaster. 646-50
Took place in early morning of 23 December 1904 when 02.45 from Marylebone travelling at excessive speed derailed in Aylesbury station killing its driver Joseph Barnshaw and George Masters the fireman. Two further Great Central Railway staff were killed whilst travelling as passengers on the train. Colonel Yorke reported on the accident and criticised the severe curvature at the approach to the junction which was largely due to the difficult relationship between the Great Western, Metropolitan and Great Central Railways. Robinson 11B class 4-4-0 No. 1040 did not survive the accident which was due to the driver's lack of experience of the new route: both men on the footplate came from Manchester.

Bob Yate. Georgian railway enthusiasts. 651-5.
Based on an account of a day trip made by three friends (J. Partridge, P. Moseley and J. Kite) from Birmingham to London on 13 June 1914. The first two travelled on the 07.30 from Snow Hill joining the train at Knowle. Kite travelled on a later half-day excursion: whilst waiting for him Partridge took photographs at Paddington. The friends took a photograph from London Bridge of the Pool of London and then reached Waterloo station where photographs were taken. They all returned on the 19.30 from Paddington to the Midlands which used the Oxford route. Details from the 1911 Census show that John Walter Partridge was a laboratory assistant living in Yardley, Percy Vernon Moseley was a draughtsman living in Aston and John Clarence Kite was a pupil teacher. Partridge survived WW1. They werer all in their early twenties at the time of the trip. Illustrations (all taken on day): Saint (29XX) class No. 2929 Croome Court reversing out of Paddington (it had hauled the 07.30 on which two of them had travelled); No. 2938 Corsham Court reversing out of Paddington; Dean 3232 class 2-4-0 and Duke Class 4-4-0 No. 3284 Isle of Jersey on approaches to Paddington; Star class No. 4053 Princess Alexandra backing out of Paddington; No. 2942 Fawley Court arriving on 09.05 ex Birkenhead with thirrd member of party's train; 2221 class County Tank 4-4-2T No. 2234; 3232 class 2-4-0 No, 3233 with No. 2972 The Abbot; Drummond LSWR D15 4-4-0 No. 465 waiting departure from Waterloo; Urie H15 class No. 482 arriving with 14.00 express from Bournemouth; and view fron London Bridge looking towards Tower Bridge with ships and tugs and lighters and cranes and sailing barges.  

Mike G. Fell and R.A.S. Hennessey. Buxton: what might have been. 657-61.
Examinesn the non-arrival of the Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway; an extension of the Leek & Manifold Railway from Hulme End; the High Peak District electric tramway and electric traction on the Manchester to Derby route. Includes a Robin Barnes painting (in colour) of a Midland electric at Miller's Dale hauled by rod-drive and axle hung electric locomotives with electricity pick up by Siemens lyre and Westinghouse diamond pantograph and the involvement of Dalziel.

In Kent again. Ken Wightman. 662-3
Colour photo-feature: E1 class 4-4-0 No. 31507 at Shortlands Junction with parcels train from Ramsgate in June 1959; unrebuilt West Country No. 34101 Hartland passing Ravensbourne station with Victoria to Dover boat train in summer 1955;p N class 2-6-0 No. 31865 at Tonbridge with ballast hopper wagons from Meldon Quarry en route to Ashford in October 1957; D1 4-4-0 No. 31473 and No. 34073 249 Squadron on up Night Ferry passing Shortands Junction on 9 November 1957; and H class 0-4-4T No. 31530 leaving Allhallows-on-Sea for Gravesend on 2 December 1961 (last day of service);  

Brighton Line moments. 664-7
Black & white photo-feature: Victoria station frontage (Brighton side — Edwardian period) with Grosvenor Hotel; A1 class (Terrier) No. 655 Stepney inside Victoria station (Edwardian period?); Stroudley 2-2-2 No. 341 Parkhurst at Portsmouth Harbour c1901; Billinton 0-6-2T No. 591 Tillington running as 2-4-2T by removal of leading connecting rod in 1908; A1 class (Terrier) No. 81 running as 2-4-0T with "balloon" push & pull coach at Kemp Town in 1905; Dick, Kerr & Co. petrol railcar at Kemp Town c1906; Marsh I1 4-4-2T No. 1 at East Croydon in 1908; Billinton D3 class 0-4-4T No. 2386 (SR number) at Lewes in 1935; and B4X 4-4-0 running under former overhead electrification strucures at Clapham Junction in May 1930.

LMS Pacifies in Scotland. 668-9
Colour photo-feature (all crimson lake livery except in one specified): No. 46247 City of Liverpool (with red backing on nameplate) at Larbert in August 1962 (M. Smith); No. 46238 City of Carlisle descending from Beattock Summit on 13.45 Glsgow to Liverpool on 29 July 1961 (Don Rowland); No. 46227 Duchess of Devonshire (green) climbs to Beattock with Crewe to Perth train c1959 (Gavin Wilson); No. 46244 King Gerge VI departing Carstairs for Glasgow oin October 1962; and No. 46247 City of Liverpool (with black backing on nameplate) under Perth coaling tower (Gavin Wilson). See also front cover and steamindex website! 

Going South with the 'Cromptons'. Michael Mensing. 670-2.
Colour photo-feature (all Rail Blue livery): No. 33 106 on Weymouth Quay with Channel Islands boat train on 28 August 1982; No. 33 118 with ballast train from Meldon Quarry in Grampus wagons near Yeoford on 25 September 1987; No. 33 101 propelling two 4-TC units out of Weymouth on 28 August 1982; No, 33 106 hauling 4-TC arriving at Wareham on 24 August 1985; No. 33 101 approaching Castle Cary on 10.20 Weymouth to Cardiff on 23 June 1984; and No. 33 101 crossing Wallington Viaduct at Fareham with empty ballast wagons from Horsham to Taunton. 

Manchester's lost electrics. John Spencer Gilks. 673
Colour photo-feature (title is liable to misinterpretation as it might imply "lost railway service" or" lost electric traction", but both routes are still open and first forms part of Metrolink modern tramway system and latter is currently part of 25kV network): Class 504 two-car unit (1200V dc; orange and brown livery) Bury electric approaching Crumpsall station in June 1991 and Class 506 (1500V dc; corporate British Rail livery) approaching Dinting Viaduct in July 1984 with a Hadfield-Glossop-Manchester service.

Alistair F. Nisbet. The Montrose & Bervie Railway. 674-80.
The Montrose & Bervie Railway was incorporated on 3 July 1860, the line was inspected by Colonel Rich  twice and opened in November 1865. At first it was worked by the Scottish North Eastern Railway, but working was taken over by the North British Railway on 8 September 1881. Passenger services ceased in 1951; freight lasted into the 1960s.,

Edward Gibbins. The 'Square Deal' Campaign. 681-6.
Campaign run jointly by the Big Four main line railways in a attempt to persuade Government to make it easier to compete with the growth of the freight road haulage industry. Mentions the Railway Rates Tribunal and the General Classification of Merchandise. Illustrations; K3 No. 2447 arriving Cambridge with coal train in May 1942 (timer-bodied private owner wagons still display original distinctive liveries: C.S. Perrier Collection see Editor in next volume page 125); 8F No. 8086 on freight near owerby Bridge (Gordon Coltas); V2 No. 4785 leaving Harringay with Scotch Goods; LNWR 0-8-0 as LMS No. 9134 on coalm train near Worsley (W.D. Cooper); Interior Hockley Goods Depot, GWR, 1930s; No. 2880 climbs through Patchway station with an up freight; 7F 0-8-0 No. 9564 at Dove Holes in 1937; Square Deal advertisement of November 1938.

Bill Taylor. Green All the Way. 687-9.
In 1968 the BBC produced a long playing record entitled Green All the Way with singer Brett Stevens and guitar player Dave Goulder. The latter was a fireman at Kirkby-in-Ashfield.

Miles Macnair. Just add more cylinders — simple. Part Three. Power and prestige: the British four-cylinder simple locomotive during the Grouping years. 690-7.
Part 2 began on p. 118., LNER: Gresley  proposal to construct a D49 class 4-4-0 with six Uniflow cylinders (Robin Barnes painting thereof); the GWR contributed the Castles and Kings (it is noted that only No. 6000 achieved the 40,000 lbf tractive effort achieved by boring out the cylinders by quarter inch; the Southern Lord Nelson class with its many variants which attempted to improve performance; the Hughes and Fowler proposed four-cylinder Pacifics and how Hughes 4-6-0 No. 10456 was converted to being a four-cylinder compound (outwith the original terms of reference for which Gresley's W1 was precluded!) and Stanier's Pacifics and proposed 4-6-4.

Llandovery. Roy Hobbs. 698-9
Colour photo-feature (photographed in August 1972): gas lamp with BR totem; LMS Railway signage claiming ownership of road and/or footpath; station platforms and l.evel crossing with signal box with Western Region lower quadrant signals :

Book Reviews. 700

Discovering Britain's first railways – a guide to horse-drawn tramroads and waggonways. Mark Jones. History Press. 144pp. GTS ***
Arguably the two most important considerations in any guidebook are a clear understanding of the subject and a clear appreciation of the needs of the target audience. So how does Mark Jones's book measure against these criteria? The answer is not bad on the former and not so good on the latter. The book is divided into two unequal parts. Chapters 1 to 6 describe the history of horse-drawn tramways, which includes a short guide to their identification in the landscape today and Chapter 7, by far the greater section, is devoted to a region by region account of some disused tramroads still available for exploration. On the basis of the greater percentage of book allocated to suggested walks, the target audience is assumed to be the railway rambler. Nevertheless the history section is sufficiently interesting in its own right for one to wish for more. If one accepts that the author has had to narrow his subject field drastically to fit the space available the inevitable outcome is that other horse-drawn railways are excluded in a way most readers would find difficult to understand. The terminology is confusing. Tramroads is the word mostly used by the author as the subject of the book, but tramways, waggonways and railways are all mentioned and the difference between them, if any, along with other related terms such as plate-ways and railways is never really explained. The term 'tramways' is an especial grey area in the nineteenth century, when numerous rural railways called themselves tramways to avoid the vigorous regulation associated with conventional railways. Only limitations of space seem to have determined the scope of the 'tramroads' discussed here with, ironically, the principal exclusion, the tramways, or tramroads, most familiar to today's reader — ie those urban tramways that graced (and still grace) the centres of population. Horse drawn tramways of this ilk were once a common feature of large towns and cities.
Another notable omission involves the railways that once employed horses, alongside steam locomotives, in effect, most of them up until the 1840s. The author states that many horse and steam locomotive-hauled tramways, such as the Wylam Waggonway, included in the book, later became conventional railways and are now footpaths. There seems little obvious difference therefore between the tramroad at Wylam and, say, the colliery railway that once connected Haswell and Hartlepool which also used a combination of horse and steam power and is now a public footpath. The decision the author took is understandable, given the length of the book, but is a distinction which may be confusing to the reader. It would have been helpful, particularly to the non-railway buff, if the occasional technical terms were better defined, the use of words such as 'chairs' in the railway context being just one example. Cross-sectional drawings or pictures would also have helped to explain the difference between, for example, iron plate-ways and edge rails.
If considered solely as a history book about horse-drawn tramroads it would be a short but useful addition to a limited library. If meant as a walkers' guide, however, it is of limited value since it contains no maps and only rudimentary advice on the likely hazards the casual rambler might encounter. Such limitations become dangerously obvious if the book is employed as the sole means of tackling the unpredictable margins of a disused quarry or, worse still, the wild open moorland of the Waskerley Way near Stanhope in County Durham. The book certainly looks, to the casual browser, like a walkers' guide of the 'doesn't quite fit in the pocket' type of pocket book, produced by the same publisher, which may be why the author directs the reader to Jeff Vinter's similar-looking, but more comprehensive, walking guides. One assumes the walks described are only meant as appetisers to encourage the reader to carry out his own research before donning his boots. Both the title and introduction suggest that the second part of the book is more a 'what to look for' assist than a step by step guide to exploring abandoned tramroads but to the casual rambler, browsing through the guidebooks in heritage centre gift shops, the qualification may not be immediately obvious.
With such a large number of tramroads distributed across the UK it is unsurprising that only a small number has been selected for inclusion; nevertheless it would additionally have been useful if the rationale used for the regional choices made was better explained. On the positive side each walk which does appear comes with a decent potted history of the former tramroad, including pictures and anecdotes, which will add value to the experience, provided of course the rambler is suitably equipped with map, compass and wet weather gear.
In summary, Mark Jones's book is a decent enough effort on a little-explored subject. Given the number of excellent illustrations, both black and white and colour, the book is also reasonably priced at £9.99. The only complaint is that it might have worked better as two books, one detailing the fascinating history and the other a guide to those tramroads still open for access to the railway rambler.

Cambridge main line through time Part 1: Cheshunt to Audley End. Andy T. Wallis. Amberley Publishing. 96pp, RC. ***
Use of the 'then and now' format of old postcards and recent colour photographs, portrays how the railway has transformed from an early 1840s main line railway bringing fresh food and fuel from near and far through north London's 'back door' to that of an electrified commuter line to the City of London. Following the Rivers Lea, Stort and Cam, the 170 year-old main line to Cambridge spawned five branch lines, the most recent to Stansted Airport. Guided by a clear map, the reader journeys northwards to each location, the pictorial accent strong on station architecture and signal boxes, less so on traction. It is a line of double-barrelled station names; Broxbourne & Hoddesdon, Harlow Town (Burnt Mill), Bishop's Stortford, Stansted Mountfitchet and Audley End. The pages show that there are still 'bricks and mortar' to enjoy. Audley End, in particular, is a happy blend of traditional and new, despite electrification, while 1960s Harlow Town met the full brutalist force of the BR Eastern Region's architects' department. The 'un gimmicky' station is now Grade II listed, a fact not included in the relevant caption. This is a nicely produced book, one of a series. Reviewer's only criticism is lack of consistency in caption writing.

Millom: a Cumbrian iron town and its railways. Alan Atkinson. Cumbrian Railways Association. 112 pp. GBS *****
Excellent book deftly draws together the improbable industrial development of the area, its surprisingly complex railway history, and the brief and ultimately poignant story of a proud and resilient community. The present West Coast Main Line, passing with difficulty through high ground far to the east, was not the initial choice for an Anglo-Scottish railway route and as early as 1837 George Stephenson was commissioned to examine an easier — and level — coastal route between Lancaster and Carlisle, a project which would have put the future site of Millom town on a trunk line, albeit a long and indirect one. This was not to be and rail connections in the area emerged instead from local lines and controversies a decade later, linking to Ravenglass in the north and thence the existing route to Whitehaven, Maryport and Carlisle; and southwards to Foxfield where it joined the older line from Broughton to Barrow.
Millom itself didn't exist at all when the railway opened on 1 November 1850 and the first simple station (on the present site) was named after Holborn Hill, a nearby hamlet. At the ensuing census the district had a population of barely 200, which multiplied twentyfold over the next two decades (and to about 11,000 at its peak, somewhat reduced today). Quite quickly all the appurtenances of a modest industrial town came into being reminiscent of the Black Country or industrial Lancashire, a startling change from the windswept lands beside the River Duddon which they supplanted. It was all akin to contemporary developments in North America and the growing settlement had a distinctly Wild West character at times. It was not the railway itself which brought about this transformation, but the presence of vast, rich deposits of haematite ore. Over the lifetime of the pits over 25 million tons of ore were extracted. Given such riches, and the location of supplies of coal and limestone not far away, it made sense to establish furnaces nearby and so this remote seaside spot acquired from 1866 the sounds, smells, and laborious tasks of the greater iron towns far away, whilst a network of private industrial lines grew up to serve them. Town-building followed the job opportunities and by the early 1870s families had been drawn in, many from the West Country where mining in Devon and Cornwall was in terminal decline. It is intriguing to note, though, how high aspirations for a model community were watered down by haste and harsh reality. It all lasted barely a century, with mining and the ironmaking ending in 1968, destroyed by high costs, diminishing demand and dwindling materials. Today the complex of main line and industrial railways has all gone, but the handsome station buildings survive as a local museum and the station is still busy. The deeply-incised estuaries of the Rivers Duddon and Leven, as well as the need to serve Barrow far down its protruding promontory, result in indirect routeing and slow journeys. Equally indirect road routes mean that this is one area in which rail transport is literally 'vital' and The Cumbrian Railway Association has established a unique reputation as publisher of a growing range of local histories combining the stories of urban developments in their area with the rise and fall of the railways which served them.
The illustrations and plans are superb and excellent use is made of colour both in illustrations and in numerous high-quality maps and plans. The Cumbrian Coast line is an unjustly neglected scenic rail route and it is much to be hoped that this admirable book, most reasonably priced for so thorough a work, will encourage visitors to break their journeys, to inspect the local history displays housed in the station, and to stroll through the town itself, better informed by this history.

Readers' Forum 701-2.

A Highland centenary journey. T. Alistair Barrie.
Formation of the up Royal Highlander via Forres and details of footplate crew's lodging in Perth and then working 12.17 down. Use of Barclay diesel shunter on main line work damaged the track and was replaced by D3896. The shunter worked to Alves and to Burghead and may have worked to Kinloss with RAF traffic.

The Brighton goes east. Jeremy Clarke.
Map should have clearly indicated that railway east of Bo-Peep junction was property of SECR not LBSCR

'Take the Port Road'. S.C. Somerville
The move of the ferry service from Stranraer to Cairnryan makes the train servie from Girvan to Stranraer less viable and further lessens the likelihood of reopening the Port Road. Further the Stormont administration does not seem to be interested in railways or its former ties with Scotland. Cites Graham Walker's A historyb of the Ulsster Unionist Party (2004).

Churton's railway observations. Robert Darlaston
Caption on p. 519 states Curzon Street and by J.C. Bourne: argued that both assertions are incorrect: more probably New Street: Curzion Street train sheds demolished in corporate act of vandalism, but station building survives, but not cherished

Churton's railway observations. D. Hadley.
Churton did not publish a Volume 2, but only an enlarged edition as per Ottley

Was the LMS too big.? Doug Landau 701-2
Argues that LMS was not too big, although does observe that the Southern was probably the most progressive of the post-grouping railways with its dynamic electrification programme. The then financial climate was inappropriate for main line electrification. He commends the diesel electric venture (Nos. 10000 and 10000) and contrasts the "modern" Ivatt steam designs contrasting the Class 2 2-6-2T with the GWR 94XX [KPJ: surely neither was appropriate for a vastly changed Post War world?]. Response from Frederic Stansfield on page 125 of next Volume.

Was the LMS too big.? Terry McCarthy
Critical of Tatlow's suggestion that Rhymney Railway wished to join the LMS group [KPJ "seems to remember" a suggestion that the GWR had insisted on taking over all Welsh lines] and letter writer suggests that Brecon & Merthyr, Neath & Brecon and possibly Cambrian might have been more appropriate additions to the LMS group. Returns to this theme on p. 764 noting D.S.M Barrie as source. And another source is quoted by Martin Tester.

Was the LMS too big? Peter Tatlow
Suggestion that Rhymney Railway wished to join the LMS group. Returns to this topic on p. 764 noting D.S.M Barrie as source.

LMS 2-6-4 tanks. W.T. Scott
On the Ulster derivatives: 2-6-0 W class and the Post-WW2 2-6-6T WT class of which preserved No. 4 is extant, but the failure to preserve a Mogul is greatly regretted as these machines with 6ft driving wheels were associated with 80 mile/h running.

'Heavier than expected', Leonard Rogers
Comment mainly upon motive power employed on the Settle & Carlisle route in the early 1960s [when KPJ snd his family used the through trains to and from Kilmarnock fairly regularly and there was a changeover from rebuilt Scots to A3 Pacifics to Peak class diesel electrics and a general improvement in speed: one off-its-peak performance by a Peak was memorable for its crawl up to the summit from Settle followed by a mad dash down the hill]. Rogers is concerned with the spartan local service between Carlisle and Hellifield mainly powered with what was available at Kingmoor,

'Heavier than expected'. Chris Foren
In error to suggest that lightweight units were employed at Bristol (they were suburban and cross-country units). Also the unsuitability of the Craven's units for Great Northern services and suggests had been intended for Midland & Great Northern services which were withdrawn before their delivery. See also Stephen G. Abbott on p. 764.

Out of Shugborough Tunnel. Edward Talbot. rear cover
Class 304 EMU on July evening in 1979

Number 12 (December 2013)

BR Britannia 4-6-2 No.70013 Oliver Cromwell heads a special near Walsden, on the Calder Valley main line, on 28th April 1968. David Idle. front cover

One of each. 708-9.
Colour photo-feature illustrating LMS, LNER, GWR and SR locomotives: Class 5 No. 5014 at Slochd sigmal box with freight for Inverness in August 1938; garter blue A4 No. 4463 Sparrow Hawk approaching New Barnet station with up 10.15 ex-Edinburgh Waverley in 1938 (Sydney Perrier); 42XX 2-8-0T No. 4281 in plain GWR green with GWR monogram outside Swindon Works in November 1937 (J.P. Mullett); Southern Railway U class in Maunsell green Mo. 1611 at Guildford on Margate to Birkenhead through train in autumn 1938 (Sydney Perrier).

George May. Restaurant cars and their development. 710-16.
The history of the rise of formal eating on trains mainly during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and its rapid decline, not only on railways, but also on motorways and short-haul aircraft. The earliest provision was at meal stops: coach travel on motorways gives some indication of how dreadful these must have been where food had to be consumed by a large number of people at the same time and there is a shortage of toilets (the Victorians were spared the gaming machines, the sale of shoddy goods and the trading of people). The refreshment rooms at Swindon became notorious and Trollope recorded the whited sepulchre of the railway sandwich. A six-course meal was available at Normanton provided one could stomach such in the limited time available (Wetherby services on the A1/M1 appears to be modelled on the now demolished Normanton). The Great Northern introduced restaurant cars in 1879 on services to Leeds. The Midland introduced Pullman cars, but there is some loose writing about such cars: those on the Metropolian Railway were introduced in 1910 and were withdrawn in 1939; the Queen of Scots did not use the Borders route, but exited Scotland near Lamberton Toll (its diversion off the East Coast main line was to serve Harrogate and Leeds). The construction of kitchens is considered: frames needed to be strengthened; water needed to be stored and cooking was initially on coke-fired ranges, but later with oil gas. The LNER used electricity and provided ground mains at major stations like King's Cross. British Railways used anthracite stoves on some cars and later propane gas. Some cars were detached or attached for part of the journey as on services north of Inverness. Alcohol licensing laws caused problems until the Act was changed: in theory alcohol could not be served within stations. On Grand National Day in 1911 the LNWR served 3500 meals on six special trains. Illustrations: Pullman car Lady Dalziel at Victoria station on Golden Arrow service in 1947; LNWR twelve-wheel dining saloon No. 309 built for American Special stock in 1908; Midland Railweay first class dining car No. 2509 of 1906; interior of LNWR clerestory diner with single seats either side of central gangway; North Eastern Railway 1st/3rd kitchen car (elevation and plan diagram); Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Chapel Street station dining room of 1919; LNER buffet car No. 648 of 1935; GWR restaurant car No. 9637 Centenary stock for Cornish Riviera; GWR interior of buffet car with high stools 1938; Great Eastern Railway interior of kitchen car 1912; LNER interior of buffet car; British Railways interior of 3rd class dining car with soup being served in 1951. See also letter from John Macnab on p. 125 of next volume on refreshment cars in Scotland and on page 189 from Allan Allardyce on Kingussie baskets and from Michael J. Smith on Metropolitan Railway Pullman services..

David Cullen. Remembering Remembrance. 717-19.
LBSCR Lawson Billinton Baltic 4-6-4T L class which included No. 333 named Remembrance.  Rebuilt as 4-6-0 following electrificationn of main line to Brighton. Illustrations: No. 330 at Brighton in umber livery in 1922; No. 327 Charles C. Macrae with down Southern Belle mear Coulsdon c1923; No. B333 Remembrance at Redhill in 1924: rebuilt as 4-6-0: No. 2333 Remembrance with cast nameplate outside Waterloo station; No. 32327 Trevithck leaving Basingstoke

Catching the Post. Paul Aitken. 720-1
Colour photo-feature: Royal Mail Travelling Post Office trains: No. 47 785 in Royal Mail red livery at Church Stretton with Crewe to Cardiff Mail train on 19 June 1996; 19.15 TPO departure at Glasgow Central on 12 July 1993 (note late posting box); loading mail at Glasgow Central on 4 October 1994; interior of mail sorting van; exterior of van at Carlise Upperby on 2 April 1994.

Philip Atkins. Before they were famous. 722-7.
Most of the railway company drawing officer registers are stored at the National Railway: the ones from Doncaster are extremely frail; the ones from Stratford are on cards, and the ones from Horwich were not signed. The ones from Swindon include the initials of JGC (Churchward) when he was a draughtsman and responsible for drawing parts of SS Milford, a paddle steamer and the 1813 class 0-6-0T; Collett's name is absent, but Stanier's name appears on the drawings for the highly unsuccessful Kruger class and on the combined name and number plates used on some of the Camel class. Hawksworth's name appears inb several places: several variants of the 48XX 2-8-0T; the 43XX 2-6-0 (also claimed by Holcroft); the light 4-4-2T No. 4600; and the Number 7 boiler intended for the 47XX 2-8-0 and originally for more widespread use and for the 250 psi boiler fitted to the King class, but again considered for greater use. Ernie Nutty drew up the County class 4-6-0 design. Cox had an aversion to inside cylinders and may be regarded as the designer of both the Horwich (or Hughes) 2-6-0 and the Stanier version. Quotes the Langridge Archive at the NRM to show that the "Ivatt" Class 4 2-6-0 originated in a Memo from Coleman to Langridge.  William Hooley designed the N class 2-6-0 on the SECR and most of the other Maunsell designs could be attributed to him. Harry Broughton at Doncaster Works signed the drawings for Gresley's K3 class 2-6-0 and was probsbly also responsible for the A1. Frank Carrier was responsible both for the appearance of the Riddles Standard classes and for the design of the ashpan for the 9F 2-10-0. Carl Schobelt at Beyer Peacock was the source of the "Robinson appearance" of the Great Central Atlantics and the design of the Wath shunter 0-8-4T. The Gresley B17 design was mainly the work of the North British Locomotive Co. Ltd.
Illustrations: 1813 class 0-6-0PT No. 1850; Bulldog 4-4-0 No. 3352 Camel;  42XX 2-8-0T No. 4206 passing St Blazey with china clay emptiesw on 8 September 1955 (Peter W. Gray); 42XX 2-8-0T on two coach passenger train near Narroways Hill Junction, Bristol in 1930s; 43XX 2-6-0 No. 4302; No. 4377 climbing from Patchway New Tunnel in 1930s; proposed light 4-4-2T (drawing/diagram by Hawksworth 1913); 47XX 2-8-0 No. 4705 at Old Oak Common in 1936; No. 4704 on Royal Duchy at Exeter St Davids on 9 August 1958 (Peter W. Gray); Frank Carrier diagram for 9F 2-10-0 ashpan.
See also letter from Roger Hennessey on page 125 of Volume 28..and from L.A. Summers in Volume 28 p. 189 and response from Phil Atkins following

Alistair F. Nisbet. Dear Editor, 728-34.
Letters to the Editor of The Times and other newspapers complaining about delays, fellow passengers, the company's servants and lack of courteous, speedy responses from the companies. Class differences were the cause of many complaints, especially when work stained labourers were forced into contact with the gentry in the same carriage (most of Punch cartoons reflect this aspect). Cold conditions, notably snow on the floor led to complaints. Illustrations: broad gauge GWR train; Punch cartoon (class); interior Bristol Temple Meads (broad gauge); Punch cartoon (drunken passenger); Gloucester Central station with GWR Bulldog class 4-4-0; Punch cartoon (Muller's lights: see letter from John C. Hughes in Volume 28 p. 125); Woolwich Arsenal station in 1956; 2 Punch cartoons; Chester station; Ashchurch station; Punch cartoon: booking office scene.

Late summer at Ribblehead. Paul Strong. 735
Colour photo-feature: Rail blue liveried Class 40 locomotives: eith a train of ballast waiting to leave quarry sidings to head north past closed Ribblehead station; No. 40 094 on 03.45 Healey Mills to Carlisle freight crossing Ribblehead Viaduct, and anoth Type 40 passing Blea Moor signal box with 05.57 Carlisle to Severn Tunnel Junction freight.

All points North West. 736-9
Colour photo-feature: photographed by Briam Magilton unless stated otherwise: Britannia No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell on endb of steam farewell tour on Calder Valley main line at Walsden on 28 April 1968; Class 5 No. 45046 at Stockport Edgeley on 23 April 1968 (both David Idle); Type 40 English Electric diesel electric locomotive No. D226 in drab green livery passing Newton-le-Willows on diverted Perth to Euston "express" in June 1960; No. 46254 City of Stoke-on-Trent in jaded red leaving Crewe on 09.25 to Aberdeen in June 1964; Class 37 Nos. 37 167 and 37 122 passing Guide Bridge with coal train with Class 506 still using catenary;

Ian Travers. The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway North Liverpool electrification: a review of context, approach and development. 740-7.
The General Manager, John Aspinall, visited the USA to investigate railway electrification for the 18½ mile Liverpool Exchange to Southport line: part of the reason was to increase productiity at Liverpool Exchange and avoid heavy civil engineering on its approaches. Dick Kerr of Preston was already involved in electrifying the tramways in the City and the firm was the main supplier. Some electric trains began running on 22 March 1904, and a full service began on 21 May 1904. Henry O'Brien was the electrical engineer. Electricity was generated at Altcar and substations were provided at Birkdale, Altcar (within the power station), Seaforth and Bank Hall  which housed manually operated rotary converters. The voltage was 650Vdc. Unacceptable voltage drop led to battery substations being provided at St. Lukes, Freshfield, Hall Road and Great Harwood Street. High voltage overhead electrification was considered for the Manchester to Bury, and Oldham and Rochdale lines as it is safer. Subsidence of the concrete raft under the Altcar power station was due to peat. The LMS replaced this by exploiting the National Grid in 1947. The initial rolling stock employed wooden frames and bodies with drum rheostats and this led to several fires. Later stock employed Sprague multiple unit control and metal frames and bodies. Open saloons with swing-back seats were provided. Baggage cars catered for parcels traffic. A clock face timetable was introduced with express services to Southport. Accidents occurred on 15 July 1903 when a steam-hauled express derailed at Waterloo due to excessive speed. The 2-4-2T may have suffered a fractured trailing radial axle. At Hall Road the 18.20 EMU express on 27 July 1904 ran into the reversing siding and caught fire. The scheme stimulated development at Blundellsands and Ainsdale. The line to Ormskirk was electrified in stages and did not reach there until July 1913. The service was to there was not very intensive until the LMS improved the electricity supply. There is a bibliography. See also letter from Roger Hennessey on page 125 of Volume 28. and from John C. Hughes on accident at Waterloo in 1903; with response from Author and from Geoff Green on errors in map.

The Stratford scene. 748-52.
Colour photo-feature: photographed by R.C. Riley unless stated otherwise: N7 No. 69607 next to D16/3 No. 62522 rebuilt Claud Hamilton 4-4-0 on 10 August 1958; B1 No. 61135 ex-works with all BR lining clearly visible and later BR emblem on tender adjacent to a very dirty B1 on same date as previous; J15 No. 65440 with short chimney in August 1959 (Colour-Rail); D16/3 withdrawn No. 62572 rebuilt Claud Hamilton 4-4-0 on 10 August 1958; J19 0-6-0 No. 64671 newly outshopped on 6 March 1958; F6 2-4-2T No. 67231 in March 1958 (T.B. Owen); K1 No. 62040 on 7 May 1961; Y4 0-4-0T No. 68125 in November 1954 (T.B. Owen); K5 No. 61863 in 1955 (Bruce Chapman); B12/3 No. 61553 on 10 August 1958; and J69 No. 68612 on 7 May 1961. 

Robert Emblin and Bryan Longbone. The hands that rocked the cradle: women on the UK railways during the Great War. 753-5.
Female employment on the railways grew by 50% during WW1, although the male dominated trade unions attempted to restrict such activity. J.A.B. Hamilton's history of railways during WW1 is inaccurate in claiming that women were not employed as guards on trains as there are photographs of female guards working on the Metropolitan Railway. The L&YR had a lady station master at Irlams o' th' Height. This is a brief prelude to the key role played by women, mainly as volunteers, in feeding troops on their long journeys by rail. An early effort was made at Perth with the assistance of the Caledonian Railway and eventually 200 were employed in shifts. The Banbury Red Cross and Leicester VADs were also early in providing such services. Exeter opened in 1915. The North Eastern Railway provided two static coaches at York station to accomodate refreshments for troops. Six million free meals were supplied from Euston and there were similar fascilities at Victoria, Liverpool Steet and Paddington. Illustrations: female ticket cvollector talking to driver at Marylebone station;' lady lathe operators at Horwich; very posed wagon painters at Doncaster c1916; posed carriage cleaners at LSWR electric multiple unit depot; Soldfier's and Sailor's free buffet at Paddington; lady clerks at Horwich Works; female porters at Leicester Central, and Red Cross nurses passing refreshments to troops in transit. See also letter from Martin Bloxsom on p. 125 of Volume 28 which provides extra information. and response to it from Robert Emblin on p. 190

Bristol fashion. 756-9.
Black & white photo-feature: Badminton class 4-4-0 No. `3303 Marlborogh at south end of Temple Meads; No. 5067 St. Fagans Castle with tender lettered BRITISH RAILWAYS in GWR style lettering (T.J. Edgington); No. 44466 acting as station pilot on 9 August 1961 (Gordon Coltas); Castle class on The Red Dragon passing Patchway behind Catle class on 15 August 1951; No. 2913 St. Andrew passing Fox's Wood water troughs with train of mixed GWR and SR stock; exterior of Temple Meads station in April 1958 (T.J. Edgington); Class 5 No. 5043 on Birmingham express in 1935; moderne semi-streamlined No. 5005 Manorbier Castle in Temple Meads (L.A. Summers objected to caption see letter in Vo. 28 p. 189: he, like KPJ would probably have been excited by something so yup-to-date at the time) and No. 4082 Windsor Castle with B set at Stapleford Road with no sign of ownership on tender.

Malcolm Timperley. The rise and fall of the railway spine. 760-3.
An industry has grown up following road traffic accidents, many of the injuries from which are dubious. The Victorians were up to the same game probably influenced by the trauma which Charles Dickens experienced in the Staplehurst accident on 9 June 1865 exacerbated by being accompanied by his mistress Ellen Ternan. Sir John Eric Erichsen was Professor of Surgery at University College, London and devoted himself to railway injuries instigating "railway spine" and "railway brain": injuries which were refuted by another surgeon: Herbert William Page. There is a modest list of references including two books listed by Ottley; portraits of the two surgeons, of Dickens tending the injured at Staplehurst and of the accident. Consideration is also givenb to the literature written by Dickens following the trauma. See also further examples in letter from Tom Wray in next Volume p. 190..

Readers' forum. 764

Was the LMS too big? Terry McCarthy.
D.S.M. Barrie's Regional history of the railways of Great Britain. Volume 12, South Wales (not in ruritanian Norwich "library") is source for possible incorporation of Rhymney Railway into LMS.

Was the LMS too big? Martin Tester
Terry McCarthy questions Peter Tallow's contention that in the lead-up to the grouping the Rhymney Railway considered trying to join the North West Group rather than the Western one. In his response Peter Tatlow admits to having lost the email to him that supported this suggestion. I too know of this contention but luckily I can remember the source! From Felix Pole's autobiography Felix Pole His Book, originally published privately in 1954 and subsequently republished in 1968, there is the following paragraph (p50):
"When the Bill was under discussion, particularly in the committee stage, there was the usual intrigue and effort to effect changes. So far as the Great Western was concerned, the most serious was an attempt by the London & North Western Company to secure the transfer of the Rhymney Railway from the Great Western to the LM&SR. Mr. Prosser, the General Manager of the Rhymney Railway told me that Sir Arthur Watson, the General Manager of the L&NWR, had offered to give him twice as good personal terms as he would get from the Great Western. Whether this was true or not, it certainly was the case that the L&NWR wished to retain an interest in South Wales via the Rhymney Railway."
I don't suppose Pole was amused by this plotting against the Great Western and as he was writing only 30 years after the grouping I think there is no reason to doubt his recall of his conversation with Prosser. Terry McCarthy asserts that: " ... but to Captain Mark Huish's chagrin, the Rhymney Railway repaid its debt lie to the LNWRj and kept at bay any LNWR takeover ambitions." o

An 'Oglo' at Helsby. Chris Powell
Claims that transformer enroute to Ffestiniog pump-storage power station (the one that flooded the track of the Festiniog Railway)

'Heavier than expected'. Stephen G. Abbott.
Notes the Class 120 Swindon Cross-Country units which migrated to the Birmingham to Norwich service (since lost without trace) and Lincoln to Crewe services; the failure of suburban services in Bristol due to the location of Temple Meads, tail traffic (horsebox on Brynmawr service), the general success of the type, but the unsuitability of the Craven's units for Great Northern services (waste of space due to cabs, guard's accommodation and inadequate boarding arrangemeents). KPJ would add smell from Valour stove heating and lack of acceleration). Suggests had been intended for Midland & Great Northern services: see also Chris Foren.See also letter from Leonard Rogers on p. 125 of Volume 28.

Stationary locomotive testing. John Knowles.
In Part Three of his series, October 2013, Adrian Tester discusses, on p. 614 et seq the problem of measuring the dynamometer pull, mentioning the mediating and damping arrangements, saying that drawbar pull was exaggerated while oil was present in the damping dashpot at Rugby,
In his various writings on the Rugby plant, its long term director, D.R. Carling, claimed that the problem of distorted readings was eventually solved, without saying how that was achieved and how it was known that it had been,
The following remarks apply to the tests at Rugby after the problem with leaking elements on the Farnborough indicator had been solved, If the data are satisfactory, it should be possible to fit an equation of the factors which determine locomotive Machinery Resistance (MR) to them, For all tests of a particular locomotive, fitting an equation to the Willans lines to the indicated tractive effort data gives excellent results, with sound statistical characteristics, showing them to be highly consistent if not necessarily completely accurate, When it is attempted to fit an equation for MR, however, it is found that at best, satisfactory coefficients are found for the determining variables (sensible values with good statistical characteristics) except that instead of a modest positive constant, a large negative constant is obtained, This demonstrates that the pull on the dynamometer continued to be exaggerated upwards by 500 to 700lbsf, even after the oil from the damping dashpot had been removed, so that the MR is too low to that extent. At worst, for about half the locomotives tested after the elements had been made satisfactory, no relationship is present, showing that the pull was distorted in ways which prevented the expected relationship being demonstrated at all (there were also questions of the accuracy of the measurement).
The indicated tractive effort and dynamometer pull of the hundreds of tests carried out at Rugby are available at the NRM, To fit the MR equations, the difference between those two measures was further reduced by the resistance of the bearings of the coupled wheels, This was calculated with reference to the weights on the bearings, their dimensions, the coefficients of friction found in various resistance experiments on railway rolling stock and the diameters of journals and coupled wheels, The reduced value is the apparent MR of the locomotive.
From first principles, the MR should vary with the piston thrusts reduced to the wheel rims, and the rpm', and there should be a modest constant. The first (PTWR) represents the pressures of steam doing work and in exhaust back pressure and compression, The thrust pressures come from the indicator diagram, but are higher than the mep, from just above to over double at short cut offs and high rpms, The rpm' term allows for dynamic forces of the rods on the pins, There is also a mean pressure on piston rings, but its variation is close to that of the thrust pressure, so it was not differentiated in the equations fitted, The constant covers the pressure on the valve rings at their minimum travel, ie the shortest cut off used, and the very low resistance of the motion,
Finding data which shows the value of MR is difficult, especially when that from stationary plants is unsatisfactory, Most of the data from the BR Test Bulletins is also unsuitable, Most depended on ITE measured on a stationary plant and drawbar data measured on the road, It was believed that a given blastpipe pressure indicated a constant steam rate at all speeds, That was eventually found not to have been correct. There are nevertheless sufficient sets of road test data which give satisfactory coefficients for the determining variables, These show, not surprisingly, that at any speed, after the rpm' term, the MR is mostly dependent on the PTWR, ie it is mostly effort related, My paper on the subject is online under "Steam Locomotive Resistance". See also letter from Doug Landau on pp. 253-4 in April Issue,

Index to Volume 27 766

Stopping at Skipton. M.H. Yardley. rear cover
Jubilee class No. 45562 Alberta on 06.40 SO Birmingham to Glasgow service via Leeds on 12 August 1967