Backtrack Volume 30 (2016)

Published by Pendragon, Easingwold, YO61 3YS

It has been noted that the covers (including their inside pages) are included within pagination, and henceforth will be used

January (Number 297)

BR Class 3 2-6-2T No.82001, in full Western Region lined green, at Bailey Gate, on the Somerset & Dorset line, on 31 March 1962. Roy Patterson. 1
See also p. 35 lower

Oh, but it's cold outside... Michael Blakemore. 3.
Editorial comment on snow blockages of railway lines: cites Snowdrift at Bleath Gill a documentary film about Stainmore.

As it was at Manchester Victoria.  Tom Heavyside. 4-5.
Colour photo-feature: 14 May 1984 with Derby Class 108 DMU probably on service to Lancashire coast; Class  101 at Platform 11 and Class 25 on engine road; Railfreight No. 31 107 with 3 coaches on 08.26 fromm Southport and Pacer lurking in darkness on 5 September 1989; No.. 47 607 Royal Worcester with empty vans from Red Bank Sidings on 10 April 1986; Nos. 31 215 (Railfreight "livery")  and 37 416 (Inter-City) next West Junction signal box on 11 July 1991; and No. 25 251 acting as banker for ascent to Miles Platting on 14 May 1984.

Malcolm Timperley. The cold war. Part One. 6-11.
During the early part of WW2 there was extremely cold weather during January and February 1940. This was severe enough to cause docks to freeze. There was a major ice storm which brought down telephone wires and power lines and extremely heavy blizzards which blocked the LMS routes between England and Scotland. At the end of January 2000 passengers were marooned between Abington and Crawford on the WCML. Many were accommodated at a hotel in Crawford, but the village quickly ran out of food. Fairlie Tunnel was blocked and the station awning collapsed through the weight of snow. The Stalybridge to Standedge route was blocked for a week. The routes to Stranraer, Muirkirk and through the Lake District were blocked. Tragedy struck in St Andrews cutting between Keswick and Penrith on 321 January 1940 when a train involved in snow clearance ran into snow clearers: two guards and a soldier were killed and four others were seriously injured. Official censorship made the situation worse for those wishing to travel, but Germany was suiffering comparable weather, Illustrations: soldiers from the King's Own Royal Regiment at work between Lancaster and Preston attempting to clear cuttings, and at Brock where the frozen water troughs increased the problem; LMS staff working at Abington; buried freight train at Abington on 8 February 1940; passenger train hauled by Stanier Class 5 buried between Adlington and Blackrod; Millers Dale station in February 1940 including 4F No. 4000 at work with snowplough and troops digging snow at Peak Forest. Part 2 see page 90 and extra information from Author see page 189.

Peter Tatlow. Locomotives for the North West of Scotland. 12-18.
The problems of protracted severe gradients and sharp curvature prompted locomotive engineers to seek specific solutions. These included the Skye Bogie 4-4-0 which evolved from an Alexander Allan 2-4-0 into a 4-4-0 fitted with an Adams bogie. The Callander & Oban lled to several specific designs which are illustrated and included more than one 4-6-0 and was nearly the cause of a non-standard Standard 4-6-0, but improving the engineering structures on the line eliminated this need. Surprisingly the Holmes West Highland Bogie 4-4-0 is not illustrated, but two NBR designs (the K Class Intermdiates and the Glens are, and Gresley arranged for the Great Northern 2-6-0s to work most of the traffic and he designed the K4 specifically for it. Illustrations: Alexander Allan 4-4-0 (former 2-4-0) No. 7; 4-4-0 Skye Bogie No. 88 on the turntable at Dingwall; No. 14285  4-4-0 Skye Bogie in crimson lake livery at Dingwall; Brittain 2-4-2T No. 155 for Callander & Oban line; Brittain Oban Bogie 4-4-0 No. 181; K2 2-6-0 No. 4691 Loch Morar at Mallaig in 1936 (colour: H.N. James); CR 55 class 4-6-0 on climb from Oban to Glencruittin (colour:  F. Moore painting based on R.A. Chrystal photograph); 55 Class No. 14605 on Stirling shed; Pickersgill 191 Class No. 14619 in crimson lake livery; NBR K class Intermediate 4-4-0 No. 333 at Morar on 21 July 1914; Nos. 62476 Glen Loy and 62491 Glen Falloch at Ardlui on 9 May 1959n during filming of Railway Roundabout (colour); K4 2-6-0 No. 61996 Lord of the Isles on Eastfield shed on 2 August 1955 (A.G. Forsyth); V4 No. 61700 Bantam Cock at Keith on 29 June 1955 (R. Butterfield); K1/1 No. 61997 MacCailin Mor near Glenfinnan in April 1961 (colour: D.M.C. Hepburne-Scott).

Jeffrey Wells. Oswestry: railway town of the Welsh Borders. Part One. 19-24.
Oswestry was Beechinged off the map and is "served" by Gobowen. It had been the headquarters of the Cambrian Railways, but the first railway to reach that part of Shropshire wsa the Shrewsbury & Chester Railway which opened on 12 October 1848 and served the town with the still extant Gobowen and the extinct branch to the town which had opened on 2 January 1849.  The Llanidloes & Newtown Railway was incorporated on 4 Auugust 1853: the contractor was David Davies and the line opened on 31 August 1859 by which time Thomas Savin had become involved. The Oswestry & Newtown Railway was incorporated on 25 June 1855. Progress on construction was slow until Davis and Savin became involved. The line opened from Oswestry to Pool Quay on 1 May and to Welshpool on 14 August 1860. Much based on contemporary newspaper reports in the Oswestry Advertiser and Wrexham and Denbighshire Advertiser. Illustrations: No. 46509 at Oswestry station on 27 October 1962; No. 2929 St. Stephen at Gobowen on 1 September 1926; map; Cambrian Railways 2-4-0T (not 2-4-2T as per caption) as GWR No. 1192 in August 1926; Thomas Savin (portrait); No. 7306 at Oswestry during BR period; Cambrrian Railways Clasas 4-4-0 (not 2-4-0 as per caption) as GWR No. 1082 at Oswestry (H.C. Casserley); Oswestry GWR station (closed from7 July 1924 when service from Gobowen diverted into Cambrian Railways station; 0-6-0PT No. 5401 with push & pull in Gobowen bay at Oswestry on 30 June 1956 (H.C. Casserley); 2-4-0T No. 1197 with two four-wheel coaches on Tanat Valley service on 21 June 1938. Part 2 see page 168..

At Paddington: photographs at the Great Western Railway's London terminus. 25-7.
4-6-2 No. 111 The Great Bear at the country end in with 31XX 2-6-2T alongside in 1910; de Glehn compound 4-4-2 No. 102 La France also at country end; Achilles class 4-2-2 No. 3067 Duchess of Teck viewed from rear (and denied her beauty); 633 class 0-6-0T No. 634 with condensing apparatus shunting; 4-4-0 No. 3805 County Kerry departing on down slow; 61XX No. 6101 on empty carriage duties on 22 Sepetember 1962 (Roy Cole); Britannia No. 70026 Polar Star departing for South Wales under Rabelagh Bridge.

Philip Atkins. Spaced out. 28-31.
Coupled axle spacing as entrenched at Derby at eight feet and eight feet six inches for six-coupled locomotives since the days of Matthew Kirtley and was still evident in the Stanier Class 4 2-6-4Ts, Churchward at Swindon fixed the six-coupled wheelbase at 7ft + 7ft 9in. The Gre4sley Beyer Garratt 2-8-0+0-8-2 had coupled wheelbases of 6ft 6in + 5ft 8¼in + 5ft 8¼in on each engine unit. Illustrations: Great Northern Railway (Ireland) VS class three-cylinder simple with 10ft 8in coupled wheelbase No. 207 Boyne at Dublin Amiens Street on 11 June 1964 (T.J. Edgington); Bulleid Q1 class 0-6-0 with 8ft + 8ft 6in coupled wheelbase No. C26 at Hither Green depot on 4 September 1948 (T.J. Edgington); Great Eastern Railway 0-6-0 with 18ft 10in coupled wheelbase LNER J20 No. 64697 at March shed on 19 August 1950; Swindon standard 7ft + 7ft 9in six-coupled wheelbase repre4sented by No. 2927 Saint Patrick; Caledonian Railway 600 class 0-8-0 No. 600 with 22ft 4in coupled wheelbase; Great Central Railway 0-8-0 No. 159 at Doncaster on 13 August 1910 (coupled wheelbase 5ft 8½in + 5ft 5½in + 5ft 11in); Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway 0-8-0 as LMS No. 12824 (coupled wheelbase 5ft 11½in + 5ft 2¼in + 5ft 2¼in); and side elevation diagram of Bengal Nagpur Railway 2-8-0 built Robert Stephenson & Co. in 1902 (coupled wheelbase 5ft 7½in + 5ft 2¼in + 5ft 2¼in). See also letter from Alan C. Baker on page 189.

The BR Class 3 tanks. 32-6.
Colour photo-feature: No. 82019 (lined black) crossing Canute Road, Southampton, with freight for Docks on 9 June 1964; unlined green No. 82020 at Machynlleth shed; lined black No. 82026 at Penrith for train over Stainmore in June 1957 (T.B. Owen);  No. 82025 near Exmouth on edge of Exe Estuary on 13 October 1959 (R.C. Riley); lined green No. 82004 at Warmley with Bath Green Park to Bristol  c1960 (P. Esgate); No. 82040 at Cheddar; lined black No. 82019 at Sidmouth in 1959; No. 82020 with freight at Towyn on 5 July 1962; unlined green No. 82031 at Machynlleth with Pwllheli portion of Cambrian Coast Express letter from Len Dowson adds detail;  lined green No. 82001 at Bailey Gate on 31 March 1962 (see also front cover and David Preston explains strange behaviour of locomotive depicted); lined black No. 82013 arriving Sidmouth on 24 July 1959 (R.C. Riley); unlined green No. 82039 calls at Wells with a Witham to Yatton service in February 1962 (Buce Nathan) See letter from R. Lloyd-Jones who states that train is travelling in opposite direction i.e towards Witham; lined black No. 82018 at Exmouth Junction shed on 5 July 1957 (R.C. Riley).. The extensive correspondence includes one from Chris Proudfoot on progress towards a replica Class 3 tank engine 

To. Blackpool in 1967. Ron Mason. 37
Colour photo-feature: Class 5 No. 45019 at Blackpool North and Ivatt Class 4 No. 45029 at Blackpool South (Tebay on buffer beam).

E.A. Gibbins. The closure of the Potteries Loop Line. 38-45.
The Loop was opened between 1873 and 1875 and the North Staffordshire Railway was forced into opening it by the towns it was intended to serve. It is uncereain whether it enjoyed a heyday and traffic was adversely affected by steam, then electric trams and finally buses, all of which could give a more frequent and often faster service to nearer where potential travellers wished to journey. It is remarkable that closure did not take place until March 1964 and that the closure process was protracted. The line was difficult to work due to severe gradients, but services latterly were infrequent and finished early in the day (one of the protesters claimed that loss of the railway service would interfere with attendance at evening classes, but return would not have been possible!). Illustrations: 18 inch goods (cauliflower) 0-6-0 No. 58382 at Tunstall on 29 June 1953; Newchapel & Goldenhall station; Pitts Hill station in 1948; map; Tunstall station in 1958; Fairburn 2-6-4T entering Burslem station c1955; Cobridge station in 1952; Hanley station in August 1957; No. 58382 enetering Newfields branch; Etruria station in 1948; Horwuich Class 5 2-6-0 No. 42939 on Stephenson Locomotive Society railtour at Kidsgrove Liverpool Road on 31 May 1958.

Tony Robinson. A wheeltapper's lot. 46-9.
Tommy Jones started as an engine cleaner at Mold Junction, but invalided out from National Service and was re-employed as a carriage & wagon examiner in the Chester area. As well as wheel tapping (to ensure that the tyre was in place), the draw gear, buffers and axleboxes had to be examined: in the case othe last to ensure that they swere not hot. At that time grease axleboxes were still in service and these had to be topped up. The long shafted hammer was also used to check buffer heights and couplings. Live cattle were still being conveyed from Holyhead to an abattoir at Patricroft and the wagons conveying them had to be checked to ensure that the animals were secure. Latterly he worked at Chester Northgate mainly on passenger stock and work extended to changing the rubber sealing rings in the brake cylinders. Eventually he was Beechinged, but continued to serve on the Llangollen Railway. See also letter from David Carter on page 254 mainly on vacuum brakes. 

Bridging the gaps. John Spencer Gilks. 50-1.
Colour photo-feature:: Class 25 hauling freight towards Settle Junction over Wenning Viaduct in September 1969; B1 No. 61276 departing Ruswarp across River Esk with a Whitbly to York train on 4 May 1964 see letter from Len Dowson on page 189; Hook Norton No. 1 Viaduct (out of use) on 10 April 1960; and Arthington Viaduct in May 1072.

R.A.S. Hennessey. Southern Airways. Part One: Flying machines and aerodromes. 52-8.
The author suggests that the Southern Railway was probably aiming to become an integrated transport and travel combine ahnd cites the quiet acquisition of shares in Imperial Airways as part of this strategy. Some activity took place prior to the 1923 grouping, but Croydon, the main centre for early civil aviation was remote from a railway station. The Southern Railway perceived ferry travel to the Continent and to the Channel Islands as being vulnerable to air competition and was eager to meet this head-on, although in the case of the Channel Islands it was upstaged by the GWR. For some time flying boat services were perceived as being a tool to hold the British Empire together and the location for the British terminal was the source of much investigation. The Thames was considered and Port Victoria became an improbable terminal location. Portsmouth was also considered, but cost killed that and Southampton aided by the Southern Railway became the location. T9 powered Pullman services provided fast connections from Victoria where an art deco Air Terminal designed by Albert Lakeman had been established. After WW2 BOAC pulled out of flying boats with brutal haste and Aquila Airways took over (KPJ: the sight of flying boats taking off from Southampton Water viewed from Netley was a fantastic experience). During WW2 strategic flying boat services were maintained from Poole Harbour and Pullman services were provided from Victoria to connect. Lullingstone, near Eynsford, was selected as the site for a new airport and the Southern built a new station thereat, but WW2 intervened and Heathrow was selected for Postwar development. Sir Herbert Walker delegated much of the work on air travel to J. Leslie Harrington. Illustrations: aerial view of Tonbridge station wth name painted on the roof to assist aaerial navigation: Port Victoria with Q class domeless 0-4-4T c1910; logo Great Westeern & Souithern Air Lines; H15 No. 30487 with Pullman train at Southampton Docks Berth 108 for flying boat service on 13 August 1949;Stroudley 0-4-2T with sandwich push & pull sets near Shoreham aerodrome with aeroplane above; poster announcing opening of Tinsley Green (for Gatwick Airport) on 30 September 1935; Gatwick Airport Southern Region poster displaying Southern Railway style; Railway Air Services and Spartan Air Lines advertising Gatwick to Isle of Wight flights; passengers with Pullman cars behind at Southampton flying boat terminal. See also letter from Stephen Spark on Southern lack of enthusiasm for an airport at Chessington

Farewell to Allhallows. David Idle. 59
Colour photo-feature: of final day of service (2 December 1961: H class 0-4-4T No. 31324 at the terminus and near Middle Stoke Halt with two coach push & pull unit

Tiverton Junction. Steve Burdett. 60
Colour photo-feature: No. 46 033 passing on a Newcastle to Plymouth express; No. 50 018 Resolution passing on a Plymouth to Paddington express and 47 248 on Etruria to St. Blazey empty china clay working (all on 10 May 1980)

Readers' Forum.. 61

The West London Line. John Lunn
Writer was second man at Norwood Junction between July 1970 and September 1974. A night working to Willesden Junction began by booking on at Norwood Junction in time to catch the 20.25 to Redhill where they started a Crompton Class 33 and followed the last stopping service to Clapham Junction where he experieced the odd sensation of the freight vehicles pushing on the air-braked locomotive. Omce on the West London line they moved slowly in a line of freights which were worked in sight of each other. Hot boxes were a problem. Once he worked 92 hours within the working week. One of the drivers, Sid Rumbold, recounted how the cleaners at Tonbridge shed chased each other across the cab roofs of locomotives wearing hob-nailed boots 

The West London Line. David J. Hayes.
Further details of workings including a Willesden to Cardiff (later Swansea Daaygraig) Freightliner which ran round at Kensington Olympia. There was also a Garston to Sothampton Freightliner.The WLL routing of the Welbeck to Northfleet Cement Works stemmed from their arrival on the West Coast Main Line either at Northampton or at Bletchley. The 8O17 Western-hauled mixed freight was probably from Severtn Tunnel Junction to Norwood Yard.

Metropolitan memories John Aldridge.
Letter refers back to article by Michael J. Smith, but mainly to response to it from Andrew Kleisner who refers to method of sending starting signal to driver from guard by making contact between two electric wires suspended along platforms. Also notes that manual sliding doors were joined: opening one opened both. KPJ: the 313 stock when introduced on the Great Northern service from Moorgate had sliding doors which could be pulled apart whilst the train was in motion (and revived memories of the District Line).

Summertime and the living is easy. Eric Stuart
Unique working: sole train to divide at Ashhurst; sole passenger working by Q class into Tunbridge Wells.

Visiting Willesden shed. Ray Fisher.
Having grown up within walking distance of the shed, weiter much appreciated Geoff Rixon's 'Visiting Willesden Shed' photo feature (December) and offer a few observations. First, he doubted whether the depot had any role in suburban passenger duties, which were covered by Watford and Bletchley sheds. Willesden's stud of 2-6- 2T s (later replaced by 2-6-4Ts) were used on empty stock workings between Euston and Stonebridge while they could also be seen, for instance, pottering about with the odd guard's van or milk wagon on the West London line. Secondly, as a Leeds Holbeck locomotive, 'Royal Scot' No.46117 was indeed a rarity on the West Coast line (727 upper) but was equally so on the Midland, south of Leeds at least, where 'Jubilees' monopolised expresses. Were not Holbeck's 'Scots' confined to the Settle-Carlisle line? Incidently, while neither Mirfield nor Burton locomotives (p717 lower) were common at Willesden, on Sundays the roundhouse was always host to a Colwick WD. I would be interested to know the working. Thirdly, I was pleased to be reminded of the sign on the mission hall, visible from the main line as well as the road (p716 bottom caption). But you failed to quote the full text: "Prepare to meet thy God - perhaps to-day!" Just the message for the nervous passenger. Finally, may I draw readers' attention to the curious structure on top of the coaling tower (p716, top)? If it is a machine gun, it's pointing the wrong way to deter visitors, but perhaps somebody can offer an alternative explanation. See also letter from John Bushby on p. 253. 

Up the junction. Roger Whitehouse
Photograph p. 662 lower in Volume 29 not Dovey Junction, but Morfa Mawddach (Barmouth Junction)

Steam aupreme at King's Cross (the very last word). Michael J. Smith.
How to get from King's Cross to St. Pancras by a lost diesel multiple unit. There was a significant omission in my letter in the November issue! The errant train could not pass directly from the King's Cross goods yard down a connecting spur to the Midland. That spur took it up on to the North London line, then west to St. Pancras Junction and down a second connecting spur to the Midland. .

Book Reviews. 62

Digital railway photography – a practical guide. Jeremy de Souza. Fonthill Media. Reviewed by CH **
Highly critical of the book's falure to provide practical guidance, but likes the digital images taken by the author.

First Great Western: gateway to the West. John Balmforth. Fonthill Media. 96pp. Reviewed by GBS ***
Author is Managing Director of First Great Western. Many insights provided by Mark Hopwood. Reviewer's comment on the lunatic strucure of the railway industry" (imposed by the maniac of Pulham)

The North Eastern Railway in the First World War. Rob Langham. Fonthill Media.  208pp. Reviewed by DWM ****
Covered both chronologically and with a series of chapters on specific issues, notably the bombardment of coastal towns by the German Navy; the NER 0-8-0s which served at the Front and the manufacture of munitions at the company's works.

Cock o' the North – Gresley's bold experiment. Peter Tuffrey. Fonthill Media. 143pp. Reviewed by CPA *****
Notes the Lentz rotary cam poppet valve gear and the ACFI feedwater heater. Notes the excellent coverage of the Vitry tests. Regrets that the casting of the cylinders at Gorton had not been photographed and the ugly Thompson rebuild.

Folk tales on the Settle-Carlisle Railway. W.R. Mitchell. Fonthill Media. 94pp. Reviewed by MB ****

After snow had fallen on Hampshire. A.F. Hudson. 64 (rear cover)
S15 4-6-0 No. 30512 near Worting Junction with ffreight for Southampton on 13 January 1964.

February (Number 298)

GWR 4-6-0s No.6808 Beenham Grange and No.4093 Dunster Castle pound up the gradient near Doublebois, on the Cornish main line, with the 09.20 St. Ives-Paddington in September 1958. T.B. Owen. 65 (front cover)

Preserving our heritage for tomorrow . Bill Rogerson. 67
Guest editorial,. Being born into a railway family I have railways in the blood. My paternal grandfather was a driver at Carnforth, along with a couple of uncles. I also had other relatives who worked on the railway in the North West area of England ranging from Low Gill to Wigan. I was one of the original volunteers at Steamtown, Carnforth which, when the first locomotives arrived, was still an operational British Railways depot (10A). We had special permission from the British Railways Board to go and work on the locomotives on the shed. In early 1970 I became a full time employee there. Collectors' Corner set up a branch at Steamtown and from the relics there we were able to preserve a lot of railway history before it was otherwise destroyed.
However, in 1971 following the police side of my family (I had an aunt who was a senior officer in the Metropolitan Police) I had a change of direction and joined the British Transport Police, serving at a number of locations. I still work for them on a voluntary basis. In 2009 following a conversation with a colleague of mine I became a founder member of the British Transport Police History Group and I am the current secretary. The group was formed in the knowledge that railway policing, along with the docks, waterways and others once policed by BTP, has one of the earliest, richest and most diverse histories of any police force in the country. A couple of examples: we were on duty some three years before the Metropolitan Police were formed, then in 1908 we established the first Dog Section of any police force. Because much of this heritage has already sadly been lost for a variety of reasons, the aims of the group are simply to preserve and communicate this heritage to enable historians of the future to understand the past.
We publish History Lines, a monthly newsletter, and a hard copy Year Book. The website www.btphg.org.uk continues to grow and provides much information, allowing people to get in touch. We receive enquiries from all over the world.
I am currently co-writing a book with a colleague on the history of the British Transport Police Dog Section. Over the years the dogs of this unique national police force and their constituent forces have proved invaluable in their work of protecting the railways and docks. In November 1907, having heard about the successful implementation of police dogs in Belgium, Superintendent J. Dobie of the North Eastern Railway Police instructed an Inspector Dobson to set up a similar scheme. He decided to use Airedale Terriers as he considered them to be strong, hardy and with a keen sense of smell. They were trained to attack people who were not in uniform so even their handlers had to be careful when off duty. The dogs were trained at Hull.
The first four dogs, 'Jim', 'Vie', 'Mick' and 'Ben', began patrolling Hull Docks in 1908. The scheme was later extended to the Hartlepool, Middlesbrough and Tyne Docks, all of which were policed by the North Eastern Railway fprce.
Following the horrific terrorist attacks in Central London on 7 July 2015 the pet's charity the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals awarded British Transport Police Labradors 'Vinnie' and 'Billy' along with spaniel 'Jake', all explosives search dogs, the animal equivalent of the George Cross for their gallantry and devotion to duty in respect of their searches at the affected stations.
In 2012 the tables were turned when an officer of the Belgian Spoorwegpolitie came to the British Transport Police Dog Training establishment at Tadworth in Surrey to seek advice on dog training. It goes without saying that I have a great interest in the railways and their history and it is through the good offices of Backtrack, of which I have been an avid reader since the first edition, and other publications that I and others are able to learn and understand a lot more about the history of the railways and be truly thankful to the authors who month after month painstakingly compile such authoritative and interesting articles.
We must also be greatly indebted to the heritage railways, the National Railway Museum, 'Steam' at Swindon and the numerous other organisations which have been formed to preserve our heritage.

Birmingham South suburban. Michael Mensing. 68-9
Colour photo-feature:: No. 45 071 (bllue livery) on 08.28 Swansea to Manchester Piccadilly alongside Worcester & Birmingham Canal just north of work on new University station on 21 May 1977 ; No. 47 555 The Commonwealth Spirit (blue livery) on 07.55 Paddington to Birmingham New Street to Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington passing entrance to Redditch branch on 14 April 1979;  No. 47 166 on Ed inburgh to Plymouth train passing Bournville station on 19 August 1978; Class 101 DMU in all-blue livery at Longbridge on a Cross-City DMU service (10.02 ex-Lichfield City with Class 45 passing on express towards Birmingham on 19 August 1978; Class 116 in reversed Corporate Blue livery on 15.36 Four Oaks to Longbridge service at University on 23 September 1978.

Michael J. Smith. Coals to Kensington: steam-hauled freight on the District Line. 70-5.
Unlike the Metropolitan Railway which ran its own freight services, the Metropolitan District Railay never actually implemented such services although it had been intended to run such services on the Ealing & South Harrow Railway and works are still visible for a curve onto the Great Central Railway north of Sudbury Hill. Nevertheless, the Midland Railway, and its successors, worked coal traffic over District line tracks into Midland Railway coal depots at Kensington High Street which opened on 4 March 1878, and a much larger one at West Kensington which opened on 25 March 1878. This traffic was channeled from Brent yard near Cricklewood via Dudding Hill to Acton Wells Junction onto the North & South Western Junction Joint Railway to Acton South Junction thence onto the London & South Western Railway's line to Kensington Addison Road and finally over the District. Growing passenger traffic forced changes from 1932 when the former LSWR Kensington line was adapted to allow Piccadilly line trains to run fast from Hammersmith to Acton Town and arrangements had to be made to accommodate the coal traffic in between the slower District Line trains. The traffic ceased to High Streeet Kensington on 28 November 1963 and to West Kensington on 14 July 1965. The Midland briefly experimented with a St Pancras to Mansion House service via Dudding Hill and Earls Court. Illustrations: condensing gear fitted MR 0-6-0T No. 1925 passing through Clapham Junction with coal train on 7 April 1920 (H.C. Casserley); former MR 0-6-0T No. 47246 fitted with condensing gear on freight train passing in sight of Chiswick Park station; map; Jinty 0-6-0T No. 47436 appoaching Barons Court station with coal train on 13 November 1962 (J.C. Gillham); view from above of  West Kensington coal depot and London Transport Lillie Bridge engineering depot; 0-6-0T No. 47432 shunting coal wagons into High Street Kensington coal depot (three photogrphs); No. 47433 on coal empties west of Turnham Green on District Richmond branch approaching Acton Lane Junction; District Railway trains at LSWR Turnham Green station, one hauled by Beyer Peacock 4-4-0T No. 34. See also |Editorial confession page 189. See also Author's correction on page 253; and on same page letters from Nick Stanbury and Gervase Hamilton; also lengthy contribution in July Issue (page 445) from Nick Lera on final illustration. and from Michael J. Smith stating that location was Turnham Green

A.J. Mullay. By two routes to London: south and east through Portobello. 76-80
The reopening of part of the Waverley route in part motivated this article which noted that for a brief period  in the summer of 1901 the junction at Portobello acted as a point of conflict between traffic arriving from over vthe Midland route from London and thence the Waverley route with that concluding its journey via the East Coast route. The Flying Scotsman which departed King's Cross at 10.00 competed with the 09.30 from St. Pancras: sometimes The North Eastern attempted to arrive early, but there werer supicions that its departure from Berwick was deliberately delayed. The Caledonian Railway sometimes joined in the brief period of racing by bringing the 10.00 from Euston into Princes Street 35 minutes early. Illustrations: A3 No/ 60088 Book Law on a southbound express at Portobello East on 9 April 1958 (W.S. Sellar); A2/3 No. 60519 Honeyway on Waverley route stoppping train passing Niddrie North Junction on 17 October 1955 (W.S. Sellar);  looking north from Niddrie North October 1955 (W.S. Sellar); J37 No. 64538 heads a mineral train along spur from Niddrie North to Monktonhall Junction on 17 October 1955 (W.S. Sellar); Class 2 2-6-0 No. 46462 passing Portobello yard with Arthur's Seat in bacground an N15 in permanent way yard; J37 No. 64605 on local coal working between Niddrie North and Portobello West Junctions; No. 40 015 on 08.10 ex-Newcastle on 13 October 1981 at Portobello East Junction;; No. 25 064 on Leith (South) to Montrose freight carrying pipes past Freightliner cranes at Portobello. See also letter from Graham R. Russell Volume 31 pages 509-10

Tom Heavyside. Wheldale steam renaissance. 81-3.
The Hunslet Engine Co., and John F. Alcock, develooped and patented, the underfeed stoker/gas producer system for burning coal and in 1961 fitted Austerity 0-6-0ST WN 2876/1943 with the system. The system improved to enhance combustion and was coupled with the use of Kylpor exhaust. Eventually a substantial number of NCB locomotives were so fitted, but by 1981 steam was being phased out and the last in service WN 3168/1944 achieved celebrity status and was taken out of service from the Wheldale Colliery/Fryston Colliery group on 20 September 1982. It then moved to the Yorkshire Dales Railway which has since become the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Railway. Two of the photographs were taken on 10 December 1981 and three on 24 September 1982.

Miles Macnair. It seemed like a good idea at the time — Part Four. Compressed air locomotives: 20th century. 84-9.
Diesel engines lack sufficient torque to be able to be used in direct drives for locomotives. Compressed air appeared to offer a solution using it in turn to drive cylinders as in a steam locomotive. The Klose-Sulzer-Borsig 4-4-4 of 1912 was constructed for Thermic Locomotives Ltd., but encountered two problems: the cooling effect of compressed air which limited its capacity for propulsion and the breakage of its crankshaft due to the rigidity of the drive: the latter may have led to Dr. Diesel's suicide. Charles Dunlop [was he James Dunlop? See Rutherford. Backtrack, 1995, 9, 657]. of Glasgow who formed the Closed Circuit Air Transmission Co. which sought to use the waste heat from the engine to pre-heat the incoming air in a heat excahnger and divert some of this superheated air to power cylinders. It all sounded like a perpetual motion machine and funds could not be raised. Professor Rankine of Glasgow University became involved in the project now known as the Aero-Steam system.. Fausto Zarlatti developed compressed air transmission for the Italian State Railways, A 2-6-2WT was converted to his system using a six-cylinder two-stroke diesel engine and a rotary compressor. The system was commended by James Small and by Dalby in 1931. Maschinenfabrik Essliingen became involved in developing compressed air transmission locomotives for the German State Railways using a MAN six-cylinder engine originally developed to power submarines. The firm also worked in association with Yuri Lomonosov (a name which taxes transliteration beyond its limits). In 1932 the Doncaster drawing office under Gresley drew up plans to convert an R1 0-8-2T to this system, but nothing came of this: Robin Barnes includes a painting in his "what might have beens" The Cristiani/Sacerdole was invented in Italy and promoted in Btitain by Durtnall. TheWilliam Boyettte compressed ait/electric hydrid railcar chassis achieved 125 mile/h on the railway between Atlanta and Jacksonville in Florida. (illustrated). Other illustrations: two diagrams of unfulfiiled Charls Dunlop locomotives; Peckett No. 1477 serving as heat exchanger coupled to hybrid Still diesel engine on North British Locomotive Co. test rig; diagram  of proposed Maschinenfabrik Essliingen diesel locomotive which remained unbuilt; Maschinenfabrik Essliingen No. 32.01 under construction in 1928 and as running on a test train; diagram of Lomonosov proposed diesel pneumatic locomotive; diagram for Gresley convertion of an R1 0-8-2T to diesel pneumatic; Hawthorn Leslie/Durtnall Paragon diesel pneumatic; Ansaldo diesel pneumatic; Deutz 2B2 diesel pneumatic locomotive (colour drawing).. See also letterr from Gottfried Wild on page 189 on Lomonosov locomotive and from John Jesson on p. 317.

Malcolm Timperley. The cold war. Part two. 90-5.
Part 1 see page 6. LNER (especially severe at Stainmore) and on Woodhead route; London Transport and the Southern Railway where ice storm at the end of January was especially disruptive to electric traction. Illustrations: snow engulfed former GCR C13 4-4-2T No. 6060 and train between Rose Hill and High Lane on train for Macclesfield (3 pictures); Hadfield East signal box; Army digging away at Hadfield beneath electrificcation massts; snowplough and locomotive buried at Crowden; ice storm on Southern Railway; poster issued by railways. Long list of citations. extra information from Author see page 189.

The Great Western 'Granges'. 96-9
Colour photo-feature:  No. 6800 Arlington Grange (fully lined green) on 13.55 Penzance to Newton Abbot at Gwinear Road on 15 October 1960 (Roy Patterson); No. 6824 Ashley Grange (fully lined black) on Penzance shed on 20 September 1960 (R.C. Riley); No. 6828 Trellech Grange on westbound freight at Liskeard on 9 July 1961 (R.C. Riley); No. 6811 Cranbourne Grange on empty stock going east at Teignmouth on 24 July 1958 (R.C. Riley); No. 6829 Burmington Grange  arriving at Hereford on a south west to north west express in August 1963 (J.L. Champion);  No. 6847 Tidmarsh Grange at Swansea High Street on 11 May 1063 (E. Oakley); No. 6851 Hurst Grange on Goring troughs probably with a South Coast to Midlands express formed mainly of green liveried stock on 25 July 1964 (N. Beckett); No. 6841 Marlas Grange on semi-fast formed of non-corridor stock near Twyford in December 1959 (Trevor Owen);  No. 6829 Burmington Grange  on Paignton to Wolverhampton express in carmine & cream livery at Stoke Canon on 6 July 1957; No. 6856 Stowe Grange at Great Malvern with Hereford portion of 09.15 ex-Paddington on 16 November 1963 (Roy Patterson).

Glen Kilday. A Wansbeck wander. 100-4.
The North British Railway in Northumberland: Wansbeck Railway with a junction at Scots Gap (Scotsgap) for the Rothbury branch. The railway formed part of an attempt by the North British to enter Newcastle, but the North Eastern Railway responded by giving the NBR running powers from Hexham into Newcastle in return for it acquiring the right to work Ango-Scottish services into Edinburgh. Passenger services into Rothbury ceased on 15 September 1952. All traffic ceased on the Border Counties line on 7 September 1958. Thereafter freight traffic was worked by locomotives from Blyth as far as Reedsmouth.and Bellingham until 1963/4. The writer and his friends used to cycle (or catch the Edinbugh bus) from Newcastle in the hope of travelling on the residual freight services and the photographs (all black & white) werer taken by the author at Woodburn in January 1964 (locomotove J27 No. 65860) at Meldon (crossing gates being opened); at Scotsgap; and at Woodburn in January 1965 when the track was being lifted. Words missing from end of article see page 189 Letters adding information on page 253 from Richard Bull, Roger Merry-Price and Roger Jermy; and on page 317 from Charles Allenby .

Out and about in the North West. Brian Magilton. 105-7'
Colour photo-feature: 8F No. 48324 at Chinley with a train of cement from Earle's Sidings in April 1966; No. 72006 Clan Mackenzie on up express freight at Winwick Junction in August 1964; Class 5 No. 45440 near Hindley Green on a Manchester Exchange to Wigan North Western service in October 1964; red No. 48254 City of Stoke-on-Trent departing Crewe on 09.25 for Perth in June 1964; Guide Bridge under 1500 v DC wires with Type 4 diesel electric No. D370 (green livery), Class 108 (all-blue livery) on Rose Hill (Marple) to Manchester Piccadilly sevice and Class 08 diesel shunter on 24 June 1969; Jubilee No. 45666 Cornwallis on Euston to Blackpool relief express at Winwick Junction on 24 June 1969; Peakn class No. 68 Royal Fusilier (blue livery) on Maanchester Piccadilly to St Pancras express at Chinley; Class 5 No. 44733 on 11.45 Euston to Windermere at Wigan North Western on 19 June 1965 with gas works and LMS power signal box.

Alistair F. Nisbet. Vandalism on the railways 108-15.
At the Suffolk Summer Assizes in August 1866 Frederick Sibbons, aged ten, was sentenced to three weeks imprisonment with hard labour for placing an obstruction on the Hadleigh branch of the Great Eastern Railway.Henry Clyde and Henry Butler each received six strokes of the birch for placing an obstruction on the railway at Redheugh near Gateshead in 1898. Most of the cases mentioned were of trespass, sometimes in association with leaving objects on the rails. Many involved children, although sometimes workmen found it difficult to access their employment as at Redcar. Illustrations (photographs taken remote in time from incidents in text): trespass notice; Class 4 2-6-4T No. 42104 passing South Croydon station (Norman Simmons); Bensham station (presumably where bad boys behaviour led to birching); No. 6849 Walton Grange at Pershore station with train for Worcester (David Lawrence); Thurso station in early LMS period; Claypole station; Heaton Chapel station; Mitcham station with C class 0-6-0 on freight and 2-EPB; Shilldon station in NER period; Class 2P 4-4-0 at Saltcoats station on passenger train on 25 August 1955; J38 No. 65932 with works train at Magdalen Green, Dundee; Baby Grand Liverpool tramcar No. 274; Granton Road stationin April 1961.

Michael S. Elton. The Southampton & Dorchester Railway. 116-22.
Promoted bt Charles Castleman, a Wimbourne solicitor, and assisted into existence by the London & South Western Railway under William Chaplin the line attempted to put Dorchester on the railway map. The ambitions of the Great Western Railway, the need to avoid the coast for fear of a French invasion and the Royal New Forest were other factors. William Pare advised on potential traffic. It was authorised on 21 July 1845 and opened eventually in 1847: the tunnel at Southampton failed immmediately prior to the "official opening date" and had to be reinspected by Captain Coddington; the trouble was its proximity to a former canal tunnel. Captain William S. Moorsam [sic] Moorsom was the engineer. It closed on 4 May 1964 Illustrations: T9 4-4-0 at Brockenhurst with service via Ringwood in Augustv 1959 (colour: G.W. Potter); map; BR class 4 2-6-0 No. 76063 arriving at West Moors on 17.15 Southampton to Bournemouth (colour); M7 0-4-4T No. 30057 at Ringwood with train for Brockenhurst on 23 April 1960 (James Harrold); view from train of Holmsley station on 23 April 1960 (James Harrold); Dorchester engine shed with T6 4-4-0 No. 686 on 28 May 1929 (H.C. Casserley); BR class 4 2-6-0 No. 76025 at Wimbourne on 24 April 1964;  M7 No. 30086 at Brockenhurst with 12.08 for Bournemouth via Ringwood in August 1963 (colour: Michael Covey-Crump)

Llandudno Junction. 123-5.
Black & white photo-feature: station platforms looking west in 1914; Class 5 No. 45074 arriving with a Stoke to Llandudno excursion on 7 August 1963 (Alan Tyson and subsequent photographs); No. 46243 City of Lancaster on 10.05 Chester to Holyhead on 23 August 1961; Royal Scot No. 46152 The King's Dragoon Guardsman, Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41244 and 0-6-0T No. 47669 on shed on 12 April 1963; No. 46200 The Princess Royal on shed on 22 July 1962; Stanier Class 3 2-6-2T No. 40083 at Deganwy withb shuttrle service from Junction to resort; K4 No. 3442 The Great Marquess arriving Llandudno on special from Leeds on 10 May 1964; Class 5 No. 45191 on return excursion to Stoke waiting departure from Llandudno on 6 August 1963.  

Readers' Forum 126

Napsbury. Neil Woodland
The article on Napsbury reminded me of my commuting journeys from Harpenden to London in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Whenever possible, I returned home on the 17.54 St. Pancras-8edford, stopping only at Harpenden and Leagrave. This ran on the down fast line to Napsbury and, unusually for a commuter train, transferred to the down slow line there via the crossover controlled by the signal depicted on p758 (upper photograph).
For a few years, this was a locomotive-hauled service, normally a Class 45 and nine late-built Mkls - a distinct improvement on the DMUs which provided the backbone of the service. After speeds of 90mph, heavy braking after Radlett reduced speed to 15mph for the crossover (always strictly observed) followed by more modest progress on the slow line to Harpenden, due at 18.22. Sometimes we had a Class 47 instead, but (despite nominally being more powerful) they never quite seemed to match the performance of the Class 45s.
I also recall the number of commuters in not particularly well-paid jobs who travelled daily to and from London in those days - uniformed office messengers, security guards, clerical workers, typists etc; as someone new to London commuting, it was a source of surprise to me that people with relatively modest incomes would travel so far, every day. Like the signal box, crossover, Class 45s and Class 47s, these roles are now largely history; by the time I moved away in 1989, even the Class 317s had come and gone but the growth in commuter numbers ensured that seats were at a premium. os.

25 years of the Windsor Link. John P. Hitchenx
The article brought back many memories of tedious journeys across Manchester, especially when the bus service was not running in the evenings and at weekends. It really was a major disincentive to rail travel to anywhere south of Manchester for myself and the millions who lived in northern Greater Manchester. What made it worse is that there was a rail connection from Manchester Victoria to Stockport via Ashton Moss regularly used by diversions and excursions. If a service from Stockport to Stalybridge was justified, why not a service from Bolton to Stockport? Also there was a direct connection between Victoria and London Road via the Ancoats Junction-Ardwick line until it was closed in 1964. It was a roundabout route but extending trains from the Bolton line to London Road would have been very helpful to the travelling public until the Windsor Link was built. Did this link ever carry passenger trains, I wonder? Thankfully we now have the very successful Metrolink trams as well as the Windsor Link and we will soon have the Ordsall Chord. It makes you wonder why railway management in the past was so reluctant to encourage rail travel across Manchester, there was clearly great potential. By the way, the photograph on p711 shows a train from Blackpool North to Manchester and the mention of Fiddlers Ferry power station on p743 cannot be right as it has only ever received coal in MGR wagons.

December Editorial. Tony Huckin
Your December editorial mentioned the Indian railways,how it is a mixture of ancient and modern, and the part it plays in Indian society. Comparisons were also drawn with our own system, some of which should be a cause of embarrassment to our politicians and managers. There is a bigger story here as it may not be generally appreciated just how modern the Indian railways have become. From the passenger's point of view using the trains for journeys between major towns and cities, as distinct from commuting, has the benefit of many facilities which have long since disappeared from British railways. Ticketing is fully computerised and very straightforward. You first have to decide which class you wish to use. There are several from which to choose ranging from basic non-reservable (wooden benches) to first class air conditioned and several degrees of comfort in between as well as many overnight sleepers. Having made this choice the ticket price is clear - none of this business of wildly different prices at different times of day for the same journey and even for the same train. Of course the passenger is very heavily subsidised by the income generated by the truly staggering volume of freight carried and the government has long accepted that the system is best operated in this way providing a social service. Proper food is available on all main line trains and served at your seat, something which we have only ever had on a handful of trains, and this on trains which invariably are between twenty and 24 coaches long. Information is another aspect of Indian railways which should leave our managers with very red faces. At any time prior to your train arriving you can enter your ticket number into a computer terminal, many of which are available at stations as well as travel agents, and find out exactly where your train is; whether it is on time or how late it was at its last port of call. My own worst experience was waiting for a train nine hours behind time but at least I knew what to expect and could make arrangements accordingly. The railways are run as a single entity. Traffic, engineering, maintenance and supply of materials, including home-produced locomotives and stock, are totally integrated. Track is modern continuously welded rail on concrete sleepers and fully up to our current standards with mechanised maintenance on all main lines. Speeds are modest but Indian society seems less concerned about saving a few minutes on a journey of a couple of hours.
All in all, travelling in India by train is a very different experience to that here but so many of the basic necessities which should be available to the traveller are so much better provided in the sub- continent than they are here.

Wiltshire's railways. John Pearse
Whilst the Devon Belle skipped Salisbury to change engines at Wilton, the ACE generally did stop at Salisbury both ways. Secondly, Trowbridge may have lost its Brunel-era building in the 1980s, but one can hardly call the 1988 replacement as a 'bus-stop'. The hip-roofed ticket office, waiting room etc was designed by an architect (actually called Wren) and extended recently in matching style. Bradford-on-Avon still retains its stone buildings, actually erected several years before the line was extended from Bradford South Junction in 1857 (not from Holt Junction as implied in the text). The Brunel design has been the subject of a recent 00- gauge card kit. History does not stand still and the county's remaining north-south route hosts a frequent range of services, from Cardiff, Worcestershire and Bristol to Weymouth, Portsmouth, Brighton, and London Waterloo. The Waterloo trains (three either way) give Westbury trains to London departing in boths directions, like Exeter (and earlier Trent or Chester). There is also one commuter train both way from Bradford-on-Avon and Trowbridge to Paddington via Pewsey, an HST.

Golf and the railways. Bill Tollan
During WW2 Turnberry became an RAF training station for Beaufort Torpedo Bomber crews. A runway extended across the Girvan-Ayr coastal road so that section of the road could not be used when flying was taking place. Turnberry was an appalling place for learner pilots. The winds there can be wild, boisterous and extremely erratic and far too many, trying to serve their country, lost their lives there. Today a pleasant round-tower memorial to them stands in middle of the course. [KPJ: there seems to be some confusion between the golf courses at Garmouth on the Moray Firth and the former location of a railway bridge over the Spey and Cruden Bay on the North Sea, south of Peterhead]
In our early teaching years we would take primary seven girls and boys for a few weeks of summer country holidays to show them there was a more pleasant world than that of a Glasgow housing scheme.
One July we were at Garmouth on the Moray coast and as I had found when stationed at RAF Kinloss, the Moray people were kind and friendly, and they could not do enough to assist our party. Our pupils were puzzled as to why they were so well-treated. We teachers were given free access to play on the local nine-hole golf course. One day the locals suggested we should try our efforts on the mighty Cruden Bay course and they would further look after our party while we were away. But did we not have to walk across the magnificent long railway bridge over the Spey to get there. After the desolate impressive course had thwarted our puny skills we were howfmg it back to the railway when in the distance we saw the Elgin train steaming across the fine countryside. We hurried as best we could to the station but were just in time to see the train start out across the magnificent railway bridge over the Spey. The station mistress came out to see what our commotion was about and asked us had we wanted to catch the train. When we admitted we had so intended, she dived back into her office and came out waving a large red flag and blowing an ear-piercing whistle. To our astonishment the train driver stopped his train on the bridge and reversed back into the station. A friendly guard helped us into his compartment and off we went across ,the lengthy bridge again, by train this time. And do you know, not one of us had a train ticket.
The abandoned two Cruden Bay hotel single decker trams were found and restored into one tram which was irf the Alford Transport Museum last time we went there. That fine Transport Museum, complete with outdoor railway, was well worth the visit.

Golf and the railways. Stuart Malthouse
In common with most people with an interest in railway history, I was well aware of the golf club halts, the railway-owned golf hotels and the railway posters featuring golf, but the article emphasised how there were far wider connections between golf and the railways. Part One indicated how there were many common features in their historical development, the types of people involved and the nature of the passions for them which are aroused. From the later part of the nineteenth century to at least the Second World War there was an almost symbiotic relationship between them as the golf clubs depended on the railways for their activities and the railways in turn received much custom from the development of the game and its promotion. Part Two, after discussing that promotion and the associated hotels further, concluded by showing how there has been a parting of the ways in any kind of mutual dependency in the last half century. One further aspect of a parting emphasises how very different they are today in terms of how the interest in them and those passions aroused are viewed. Present yourself at interview for a job, not only at management but at many other levels, and make known you are a golfer. In many cases you are halfway to the job already, irrespective of your education, qualifications, experience, abilities and genuine suitability for the job. Golf is regarded as being the ideal associated pursuit, a fundamental activity. In this way the golf club is surely second only to the masonic lodge as a sty of corruption and a way of determining preferment.
Now turn up for that job interview and indicate you are interested in railways. This time you are halfway to being rejected for the job. Unless you are fortunate enough to have a particularly enlightened interviewer, you are at once seen as a 'trainspotter', an 'anorak', a 'nerd' and possessing all the stereotypical negative characteristics of people labelled with these largely ridiculous expressions. It is an uphill struggle to talk of serious railway history and all the other positive aspects of a railway interest which it is hardly necessary to spell out to readers of this journal.
Such a contrast in attitude is hardly confined to the job interview but is found in many other social situations, in the media and so on. Beverley Cole is correct in stating that both golf and railways arouse passion but surely the character of those passions are very different. Today they seem to come from very different outlooks and standpoints. Persogally I find them largely incompatible. For me, railways have been a life long passion, but I have been very uneasy on the few occasions I have had to enter a golf club.

Visiting Willesden shed. David Carter
Regarding the back cover photograph (December), the rugby league supporters would turn out to see the finalists play at Wembley irrespective of who was playing. When I was a schoolboy, the school had the Friday off for a school trip. Later, working at Wakefleld shed, it was the same, a pre-planed trip, organised long before the teams were known. In the case of the Wakefleld fitters and boilersmiths, it was a Friday to Monday epic, with cash being put into a saving fund for the trip! My first visit to London was the year before, to Wembley to watch Wakefield play Huddersfield. Wakefleld won. The trip cost 21s 6d (H07Y,), hauled by a Wakefleld 'Crab', No.42863, via the Midland route to St. Pancras.

The Brightlingsea branch closure. Chris Mills
In his teenage years writer was a regular traveller on the line and has enduring memory of the frustration felt as the return train sat in St. Botolphs whilst the London train proceeded on the main line into Colchester, leaving before the branch set arrived. Clearly there was no serious attempt to encourage passengers to use the branch.
There are two points in Rabbi Rothschild's letter (December) to clarify. Firstly, there was no insurance. Britsh Railways, along with selected other Government organisations, was deemed to self insure. It was considered large enough to cope with any catastrophe from out of its own pockets, the logic being that even the greatest disaster would be of minimal cost compared with the overall turnover. Insurance, of course, is simply an aggregation of risks, such that the overall size of the cover insured dwarfs the likely size of any single payout.
With regard to the singling of a road route due to lack of use, the continued conversion of the Al to motorway has thrown up numerous examples. Principally these are on sections where the old road has been kept to provide a non- motorway traffic route, largely but very sparsely populated by learner drivers, cyclists, horses and the occasional tractor. On these sections one carriageway has generally been given a quick makeover shortly after the motorway section opened, the other carriageway removed and any junctions simplified to T or 'X' roads. They then appear to be left to their own devices, presumably never to see any further attention within current human lifetimes. They were, after all, designed to carry hundreds of vehicles an hour - a few vehicles on market day are unlikely to cause great wear and tear.

Metropolitan memories. N.C. Friswell
In the November 'Readers' Forum', L.F.E .Coornbes asks about accidents from manually operated sliding doors on the Inner Circle. My mother was a student at St. Martin's School of Art in London in the 1920s when one of the more absent-minded professors was said to have opened the door on the wrong side of the train and was killed when he fell on to the live rails.

Wight winter. Paul Strong. 128 (rear cover)
W29 Alverstone departs Newport for Cowes with 16.18 Ryde Pier Head to Cowes on 2 March 1963

March 2016 (Number 299)

Conversation piece at Alton — the crew of London & South Western Railway S15 4-6-0 No.30512 discuss matters arising with station staff on 3rd November 1963. front cover
See also page 160

Who'd have thought of it? Michael Blakemore. 131
Editorial

Birkenhead Joint. 132-3
Colour photo-feature:: Derby lightweight DMU (in green livery) leaving Upton-by-Chester on 17.56 Birkenhead to Chester service on 20 August 1966 (Tommy Tomalin); Standard Class 5 No. 73035 on 16.00 Manchester Exchange to Llandudno express passing Mickle Trafford signal cabin in July 1966 (Tommy Tomalin); Stanier Class 4 2-6-4T No. 42613 passing Mollington station with through coaches for Paddington on 20 August 1966 (Tommy Tomalin); Class 40 No. 40 029 crossing Frodsham Viaduct with Manchester to North Wales express on 21 August 1982 with M56 in background (Gavin Morrison); Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42633 with 9F 2-10-0s Nos. 92065 and 92108 passing Ledsham en route to Birkenhead depot on 5 March 1967 (Brian Magilton) 

Michael Waterfield. Wagonways and the law. 134-7
The oldest "railway" case (1729) appears to be that between Pitt who mined coal on Tanfield Moor in County Durham and Lady Claverinth (or Clavering) and her business parner, George Bowes, who built a wooden wagonway. The Lord Chancellor, Lord King and the Chief Baron (judge) Sir Thomas Pengelley adjudicated on this dipute, but really had no idea of what was being adjudicated upon. The Earl of Cardigan versus James Armitage (1823) concerned wayleaves to access a mine near Farnley. See also letter from Richard Woolacott on p. 317

Michael B. Binks. Past and present track formation. Part One. 138-42
Problems of diificult soil conditions for the foundation of the permanent way and associated embankments, cuttings, bridges and tunnels, and of vegetation, especially trees and their leaves limiting adhesion when they fall upon the rails. Hazards mentioned natural gas, methane and radon gas; suphates in the ground (very damaging to concrete sleepers; peat; coastal erosion. Trees could affect signal sighting. Notable deep cuttings on the London & Boirmingham Railway at Tring and at Blisworth. Ballast. Illustrations: cant provided on curve (David Monk-Steel); high embankment near Perry Street Fork Junction, Slade Green in 1960 (Dennis Cullum) caption refers to concrete ducting see letter from Peter Clark); Grove Tunnel at Denmark Hill (Dennis Cullum); curving tracks near New Cross in 1967 (Dennis Cullum) see letter from Claude R. Hart (nearer to St. Johns); overbridge near Ferryhill with BEWARE PEDESTRIANS sign (David Monk-Steel); tunnel portal at Chatham station in 1965 (Dennis Cullum); Kilsby Tunnel shaft; East Coast Main Line near Northallerton in 2001 (David Monk-Steel). Part 2 see page 266. See also letter from Peter Clark and from Robert Leleux on page 381 (latter mainly on cutting at Roade).

C. Stephenson-Mole. The spray train. 143,
Weedkilling train operated by the Eastern Region formed from three water tank wagons anad a four coach former electric multiple unit? sandwiched between two type 20 locomotives. the coaches provided storage for the weedkiller chemicals, the spraying equipment and a mess coach in which the staff slept and ate. Long hours were worked and main lines were sprayed at night. Illustration: Gavin Morrison colour photograph of trsain powered by Nos. 20 902 and 20 903 near Mirfield on 18 June 1991.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'The Nearest Run Thing':- Marylebone Station and its suburban services. 144-52
A rather oblique examination of the station including a full quotation of what Msr Ronald Knox (scholar, translator of the Bible and railway enthusiast) had to say about it. The vast amount of land acquired for freight handling and possible station extension is mentioned. Shortage of capital forced the Great Central Railway to float its grand terminus hotel by a separate company. This building was used by the newly formed LNER as its registered office and was later used as the headquartetrs of the Railway Executive. The LNER found itself railroaded into operating steam trains to Watford on its joint venture with the Metropolitan: it exited from that following the General Strike. Traffic to the Empire Exhibition was aided by the Wembley Stadium Loop over which a highly intensive service could be operated. The Loop survived for major sporting events at the Wembley Stadium until after the end of steam. Notes that a Great Western streamlined railcar was tried on the Chesham branch in 1936 and that the LPTB started to design their own diesel railcar for the line, but work was interupted by WW2. The ACV units were also tried.. The LNER introduced the Gresley Pacifics and V2 class after 70ft turntables had been installed at Marylebone and Leicester in 1937. Two named trains were introduced after WW2: the Master Cutler and the South Yorkshireman. Push & pull services were operated to West Ruislip between 1949 and 1951. The express train services ended in 1960. The Class 115 diesel multiple units brought 1st class accommodation and improvements in timings, helped by the introduction of A class stock on the Metropolitan. The improved track layout between Harrow-on-the-Hill and Moor Park also assisted. Part 2 see page 216. Illustrations: GCR Atlantic No. 362 heading north on express near Gerrards Cross c1912 (coloured: F. Moore); map;  Marylebone Station exterior on 11 November 1967 (colour); plan; entrance to Underground pre-escalator; Great Central (Bakerloo line tiled sign at Marylebone Underground platform: colour); Wembley Stadium station in 1969; handbill for non-stop trains to Wembley Stadium for 1966 Cup Final (colour); A5 on suburban train at Sudbury & Harrow Road c1934; A3 No. 60108 Gay Crusader on South Yorkshireman at Marylebone in 1969;  T class multiple unit at Watford Metropolitan line in 1961 (colour); Watford's New Railway press advertisement with more than a hint of Greley Pacific racing a Metropoltan Railway electric locomotive; Class 115 DMU in corporate British Rail livery having arrived at Marylebone in April 1987 (huge retaining wall behind); Class 115 DMU in original dark green livery with whiskers passing Wembley Hill station outward for High Wycombe. See also letters from John Hicks on routing of down Master Cutler and from Gerald Goodall on train service from Aylesbury to London from 1962 and on page  381 from Neil Wodland and from Robert Barker..

George May. Freight trains in the 1920s — some insights and reflections. 153-7.
Based on Great Western Railway's freright traffic within the approximate triangle based on London extending to the Midlands and North West and to the South West. Much is made of the difficulties of matching motive power to train load (no citations are made although this was a known issue at that time) and little is stated about the primitive brakes and couplings (as compared with India, for instance). The emerging road transport industry is noted, however, but coastal shipping is not mentioned. There is a failure to note that carrying outsize loads was a key issue at that period. Illustrations: Dean Goods 0-6-0 No. 2575 leaving Southam Road & Harbury on pick up freight c1932 (P.W. Robinson); Aberdare 2-6-0 No. 2680 passing Chester engine shed with up freight from Birkenhead on 4 September 1937 (T.G. Hepburn); ROD No. 3004 (with Westinghouse pump) on sea wall at Dawlish with down freight c1920 (page 155 upper); No. 4932 Hatherton Hall climbing Rattery with freight banked by 2-6-2T on 22 June 1939 (H.C. Harman); No. 4377 climbing towards Patchway New Tunnel with freigh in mid-1930s see letter from R. Lloyd Jones on p. 317 which gives a more precise location for this photograph; 0-6-0PT No. 5796  with coal wagons at West Bromwich in February 1938.

Trevor Owen on the West Coast Main line. 158-9
Colour photo-feature:: 8F No. 48325 with up Class D freight on Bushey water troughs on 30 April 1960; Royal Scot No. 46140 The King's Royal Rifle Corps in Tring Cutting with up Cup Final Special on 25 May 1963 (electrification work in progress); rebuilt Patriot No. 45540 Sir Robert Turnbull on Bushey water troughs on up Cup Final Special on 7 May 1960; No. 46235 City of Birmingham (green) on up football special near Berkhamsted on 11 May 1963; Britannia 4-6-23 No. 70051 Firth of Forth up Cup Final Special on 25 May 1964 in Tring cutting (electrification work in progress). See also extremely lengthy letter from Leonard Rogers on pages 317-18 which notes that Rugby League was also involved.  

The S15 Class 4-6-0s on the Southern. 160-3.
Colour photo-feature:: No. 30824 at Feltham motive power depot in March 1964 with 707 flying above; No. 30824 at Broad Clyst with up freight on 6 July 1961 (R.C. Riley); No. 30839 at DeerLeap on Guildford to Redhill route on 9 April 1964 (David Clark); Nos. 30840 and 30842 on Feltham motive power depot on 26 July 1963 (A.F. Hudson); Urie type No. 30501 on 17,54 Waterloo to Basingstoke in Clapham cutting n 20 June 1959 (R.C. Riley); No., 305021 on freight at Virginia Water in June 1957 (Trevor Owern); No. 30839 on 12.39 Waterloo to Southampton Terminus passing Surbiton on 12 September 1964 (G.F. Bloxham): No. 30833 on freight at Andover Junction on 23 August 1964 (G.F. Bloxham): Urie S15 No. 30506 on Brighton shed in June 1964 (K.W. Wightman); No. 30833 with six-wheel tender on 23 January 1965. See also front cover

The 'Royal Scots' as they used to be. 164-7
Black & white photo-feature: No. 6110 Grenadier Guardsman on Camden shed in 1927; No. 6114 Coldstream Guardsman on Camden turntable c1934; No. 6127 Novelty on Glasgow to Manchester express on Dillicar troughs c1934; No. 6162 Queen's Westminster Rifles with Stanier tender leaving Preston with up ordinary passenger train (Eric Treacy);  No. 6152 The King's Dragoon Guardsman on down Birmingham express passing Wolverton on 1 June 1946; No. 46142 The York & Lancaster Regiment in plain black leaving Oxenholme for Carlisle (Eric Bruton); No. 46156 The South Wales Borderer in British Railways lined black (tendeer lettered BRITISH RAILWAYS) on 16.30 Euston to Liverpool Lime Street on 20 July 1950 and No. 46137 The Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire) (probably in BR green) climbing Beattock at Harthorpe (Eric Treacy),  

Jeffrey Wells. Oswestry: railway town of the Welsh Borders. Part Two. 168-74.
Part 1 see page 19. The Royal Assent for a railway to link Whitchurch with Oswestry via Ellemere was received on 1 August 1861 with a stipulation that work began on the Whitchurch to Ellesmere section first and  that the LNWR was granted running powers. This section included the crossing of Wickmere Moss where techniques similar to crossing Chat Moss wer employed. The Cambrian Railways were formed by amalgamation on 25 July 1864. The new railway located its works in Oswestry. The output included a luxury saloon for the Chairman, Earl Vale. It is difficult to believe that a town of over 17,000 people which was once the headquarters of a railway lacks a railway station and is dependent upon second rate slow bus services. cf neglected Hawick. A Royal Commission on tramsport is urgently needed. Illustrations: Class 2 2-6-0 No. 46508 at Oswestry station on 15 August 1957 (T.J. Edgington); map; Oswestry station main entrance in May 1960 (Garth Watkin); Duke class No. 3280 Tregenna outside engine shed  on 28 August 1926 (H.C. Casserley); 2265 0-6-0 No. 3213 on 11.48 to Whitchurch and 14XX No. 1432 on 11.55 to Wrexham at Oswestry on 25 February 1961 (Alan Tyson); Cambrian Railways 73 Class 0-6-0 No. 879 at Oswwestry on 23 May 1931; plan; engine shed on 4 June 1960 (T.J. Edgington); Metro tank 2-4-0T No. 617 and Alexandra Docks & Railway 0-4-0ST No. 680 at Oswestry on 31 May 1932 (H.C. Casserley). See also letter from Chris Goodwin on p. 317 on closure dates and on same topic from Bob Yate on p. 381.

R.A.S. Hennessey. Southern Airways. Part Two: War and Peace. 175-81.
The Isle of Sheppey was the site for early aviation including the Gordon Bennett Air Race and this was served by the Eastchurch station on the Sheppey Light Railway. This was also the location for the Royal Navy Air Station and its Aviation School. On the nearby Isle of Grain the Royal Navy had a major airship station at Kingsnorth. Manston Aerodrome served to intercept Zeppelin and Gotha bombers on their way to bomb London and to source bomber raids against the enemy. The Norman Report was produced by Henry Norman and Alan Muntz. See also letter from Andrew Kleissner (p. 253) on various de Haviland aircarft including DH 86 Express. Illustrations: Great Western & Southern Airline de Haviland D89 Dragon Rapide; advertisement: Southern Railway Spartan Airline London Isle of Wight flights; Kingsnorth in early 1930s viewed from air showing Royal Navy airship station; Terrier plus four coaches and a van on Langstone bridge with train from Hayling Island (Langstone Harbour was considered as location for flying boat and land-based aerodrome); Spartan Cruiser G-ADEL on Isle of Wight service; Q class 0-4-4T No. 135 in SECR grey livery; de Haviland DH84 Dragon owned Jersey Airways St Aubyns Bay; Eastchurch Aerodrome Royal Navy Air Service and Class 442 Gatwick Express (colour).

Alistair F. Nisbet. The demise of Sir Francis Goldsmid MP... and others. 182-5.
Goldsmid fell whillst alighting from train at Waterloo on 2 May 1878 and was crushed by the wheels  and died later. He was the first Jewish MP and Colonel Yolland held an inquiry for the Board of Trade. There were further accidents of this type, either by passengers attempting to alight too early or attempting to board moving trains, and such accidents continue where passnger's clothing gets trapped in sliding doors as happened on Merseyrail where a train was despatched without ensuring that a paaenger was clear of the door. The illustrations only give the location of far off accidents: Putney East station in BR period, Lockerbie station in Caledonian Railway period (where a ship's captain seriously injured in a boarding accident successfuly sued the Caledonian Railway in a case dated 18 January 1887); Dunfermline Lower with J36 0-6-0 leaving with passenger train in LNER period (where abizarre accident took place on 5 July 1930 when a couple were involved in a boarding accident: he got clear but she fell off but did not go under train and they were both able to rejoin train as someone had pulled the communication cord); Leighton Buzzard station on 11 March 1950 (where in 1883 a lady lost her life by falling between platform and excursion train); Towcester station where in April 1886 a spectator returning from the Grafton Races was killed in the crush as a train arrived); and Dundee West where a lady was pushed onto the track during a scrummage to join an excursion train in July 1891. See also letter from J. Whiteing who disputes the date of the accident at Towcester station in April 1886

Signalling spotlight. Kirton Lime Siding signal box: Great Central Railway. Richard Foster. 186
On line between Barnetby and Gainsborough: six colour photographs show signal box before and after restoration in 2011. Includes interior with RSC lever frame and block instruments.

St. J.A. Turner. Going horseracing. 188.
Joined the LNER as a relief clerk and amongst his duties was that of assisting in the booking of racehorses from the Leyburn and Middleham Stables into road horseboxes as the Labour Government had forbidden the stables to use petrol for their own vehicles and British Railways used acumen to convey horses to the Grand National: one trainer gave a betting tip which led to many winnings on the Hawes branch! Illustrations: LNER road horsebox in British Railways livery and road and rail horseboxes at Leyburn station when Armstrong's stable was being moved from Middleham to Newmarket on 19 March 1946.

Readers' Forum 189

Gremlinia. Editor
On p70 of the February issue ('Coals to Kensington') the 0-6-0T No.47246 is clearly in British Railways days (late 1950s), not LM5 as stated. On p89 ('Compressed Air Locomotives: 20th Century') the final word - 'that' - of the article disappeared somewhere - " ... just that". On p100 ('A Wansbeck Wander') the photographs show the station and level crossing gates at Angerton.

The Cold War. Malcolm Timperley
In my article on the problems caused by the severe weather I mentioned that the full picture of what happened back then only emerged very slowly, piece by piece. In fact it seems to be still emerging. Since I wrote, the story of John Murray, the station master at Beattock, has surfaced, relating how he and his colleagues tried to make some sense of the chaotic situation on the snowbound West Coast Main Line. With extra notes by William Watson, it can be read in The True Line (The Journal of the Caledonian Railway Association) in the October 2015 issue - No.130, pp14-18.

Golf and the railways. Robin Leleux 
Wearing his hat as Chairman of the Adjudicators for the National Railway Heritage Awards he notes that, although opened by the LMS in 1924, the Gleneagles Hotel (illustrated on Norman Wilkinson's c1928 poster, p720) and adjoining championship golf courses were planned by Donald Matheson, general manager of the Caledonian Railway. To cater for the anticipated traffic from these facilities, the CR planned to rebuild the adjoining station, a scheme completed after WW1 in 1919. Nearly a century later the station, by now unstaffed, was very run down so, with the Ryder Cup international golf tournament scheduled to take place at Gleneagles in 2014, the station was thoroughly refurbished in a jointly funded exercise, to the extent that lifts, anticipated in the 1913 plans but never installed, were incorporated into suitably extended footbridge towers. The completed project looks magnificent and, at the National Railway Heritage Awards presentation ceremony in December 2015) won the Taylar Woodrow Partnership Award. Railways and golf still tee off together in places.

Spaced out. Allan C. Baker 
Re Phil Atkins's views on locomotive wheelbases First, I do not think there was any joke, as the author puts it, in the Derby drawing office regarding the frequent use of the 8ft + 8ft coupled wheelbase dimensions. This stems from much more recent enthusiast circles. Although I did not spend a great deal of my 50 years' professional involvement with locomotives in a drawing office, one of the first lessons was not to try and invent the proverbial wheel again, but to always look at what had been done before — why make work! Secondly, I am intrigued to know on what basis the author concludes that the wheel bases of the Stanier 2-6-2 and 2-6-4 tank engines and the 3F 0-6-0, were unnecessarily long, unless he knows what the design parameters were? In the case of the 3F, then anybody who has had experience of riding on a six-coupled locomotive without carrying axles at any speed, will vouch for the benefit of a long wheelbase. Worth a mention too, is that the 3F was designed for branch line passenger work as well as shunting and in any event, the main line railways tended to lay even marshalling yards with far more conservative track geometry than industrial concerns. Wheelbase dimensions are often influenced by the designer wanting a long connecting rod, bearing in mind that due to the angularity of the rod the distance travelled by the piston is not the same on the front and back crank quarters. As this angularity has an effect on establishing ideal valve events, the longer the rod centres the less effect the angularity has. Lastly, there is no magic in locomotives having dimensions with fractions of an inch. Engineers work to very tight parameters and contrary to what in my experience a lot of people think, the steam locomotive is a machine of precision! If a designer started his work with an exact wheelbase spacing in mind, then he might establish dimensions without fractions of an inch. However, if he only had a wheelbase spacing in mind give or take an inch or so and started with the location of the cylinders and the geometry of the valve gear, then he might, having established for example, the length of the connecting rod centres, find that his wheelbase dimensions were such that fractions of an inch were required — he might otherwise have to relocate his cylinders to chip a quarter inch from the connecting rods bearing centres — why would he?

BR Standard Class 3 tanks. David Preston
Explanation for the "now you see them, now you don't" headlamps on the photos of No.82001 at Bailey Gate. For a good many years there was an afternoon passenger working from Templecombe to Bailey Gate, arriving there at about 16.15. This returned about twenty or so minutes later to Templecombe as an unadvertised milk working. The photographs would imply that in the one without headlamps, the locomotive had run round and was coupling up; in the second it is ready to leave. The slightly lengthening shadows bear this out.

BR Standard Class 3 tanks. Len Dowson.
The caption for the top photo p35 states No.82031 is impatient to be off. The member of staff [possibly the train guard] squatting in the six-foot, between the first and second coach, suggests that shunting is taking place, with the maroon coach being added to the formation. The guard is crouching down to observe whether or not the pin drops as the buckeyes engage.

BR Standard Class 3 tanks. R. Lloyd-Jones.
The middle illustration on p36 depicts a Class 3 at Wells Tucker Street station in February 1962. The locomotive is catching the winter sunshine and underneath the water column can be seen evidence ofthe city of Wells (and possibly the cathedral). The inference to be drawn is that the train is en route from Yatton to Witham rather than vice versa. [KPJ: this letter makes no sense: photo cited is obviously Southern Region and one above is as stated Cheddar in summer, not February as per Colour Rail catalogue]

BR Standard Class 3 tanks. Chris Proudfoot.
The 82045 Steam Locomotive Trust is well under way with the construction of a new 3MT tank at Bridgnorth. The cab and smokebox are nearing completion; the side tanks are on order; the coupled wheel sets are complete; work is proceeding on the pony trucks; the boiler barrel awaits assembly at the SVR's works; and the components for the inner and outer firebox, as well as the two tubeplates, are under construction at the South Devon Railway.
We are hopeful that No.82045 will steam in 2018 and it would be the summit of our ambition if it were to prove the prototype for series building of this most ideal type for working on heritage lines. The Trust is based on the Severn Valley Railway but is entirely self-financing and we estimate that we need to raise about another £100,000 over and above what established income streams will provide over the next two to three years. The 82045 Steam Locomotive Trust, Woodford, School Bank, Norley, Frodsham, Cheshire.

Eric Bruton's A4 Pacifics. P.J. Coster 
Your selection of shots by Eric Bruton (November issue) is a reminder of how good he was — gems indeed. However, the upper caption on p655 is wrong. Wild Swan never was a Gateshead loco, and indeed it never left the Southern Area of the LNER. The three preceding BR-numbered A4s were Gateshead locomotives. The lower shot of Quicksilver is supposed to be the 15.00 Norseman, but I would query that. It is a long while ago, but I cannot recall a Sunday Norseman. The Eastern Region was rather casual about headboards for some of the lesser named trains. I would suggest that it was just the Sunday afternoon Newcastle conveying Bergen Line coaches. The A4 worked to Newcastle and returned with the Monday Tees-Tyne Pullman.

Bridging the gaps. Len Dowson 
The caption on p50 implies the Whitby-Ruswarp-Sleights section of the Esk Valley Line was singled in or just after 1965. Double track continued in use from Whitby through Ruswarp, over the bridge illustrated, and to Sleights until 1984. When this section was singled in 1984, Ruswarp's up platform and signal box were demolished. However, at Sleights both the disused down platform and signal box are still in existence, though the wooden station buildings on the former down platform were dismantled and moved to the NYMR's extended Grosmont Platform 2, where they now perform their original function.

Southern Airways. Stephen Spark
R A.S. Hennessey hints at the Southern's ambivalent attitude towards the new transport mode. In the mid-1930s there was certainly no enthusiasm for an airport at Chessington. In March 1935 Sir Herbert Walker learned that Kingston and Surbiton Councils planned to build an aerodrome at Byhurst Farm, near Maiden Rushett, right on the route of the planned Motspur Park to Leatherhead branch. You might think the SR would have been excited by the traffic potential of a new airport, but it clearly preferred the certainty and volume promised by season ticket holders and Walker was furious that the proposed airport would "sterilise" the area for housing. He told Kingston's Town Clerk: "The existence of an Aerodrome has an extremely detrimental effect upon the amenities of the surrounding property and most seriously affects the development of the neighbourhood."  Walker warned the Council that the SR might have to cancel the line if the area could not be developed for housing. The aerodrome was dropped and the outbreak of war, the reluctance of developers to pay for upgrades to local sewers and the imposition post-war of Green Belt controls meant that the mock Tudor semis were never built either. The railway ended a mile away at Chessington South and Byhurst Farm remains surrounded by fields just as it was 80 years ago.

The Somerset & Dorset's Exmouth-Cleethorpes holiday train. Bob Yate 
Re Jonathan Edwards's he claimed on p741 that the southbound 7.00am from Cleethorpes "spent just under an hour at Birmingham New Street (1l.36am to 12.34pm)". It immediately struck me as to the chaos that would result if a single train spent this long at New Street on a summer Saturday. Reference to the Working Timetable for 1961 and 1962 shows that in fact this train arrived at New Street at 11.30am and departed at 11.36am.

Early Railways Conference. Grahame Boyes
The Sixth International Early Railways Conference will be held at Newcastle upon Tyne on 16-19 June 2016. Details, together with a booking form, can be found on the website www.earlyrailways.org.uk.

Compressed air locomotives. Gottfried Wild 
Re large diesel locomotive as designed by Professor Yuri Lomonosov in 1923. Macnair states the version was based on a 4-4-4-4 chassis. This is not quite correct; the locomotive should have run on a 4-8-4 chassis: the four sets of drivers were throughout connected together as usual for steam locomotives by coupling rods. Further the locomotive should have been equipped with two simple cylinders – not four – at a diameter of 1,000mm each and placed at the extremities of the locomotive, over the leading trucks. Both inside cylinders filled the space between the locomotive frames and acted on the next pair of drivers. Here we find the controversial aspect of this project. Two engines being linked together over quite a long train of coupling rods would have produced dangerous vibrations with increasing wear in the articulations. Nevertheless this should have been an interesting and powerful locomotive for heavy express train operation incorporating Russian-Prussian know-how. The external outlining was adapted to Russian loading gauge but the driving wheel diameter was 1,750mm following Prussian standards back into Imperial days and finally the general working principle based on Swabian know-how from Esslingen in southern Germany.

Book Reviews 190

Festiniog fireman 1960s. Christopher Tanous. ShrewDale Publishing. 96pp. RHG **
I wasn't sure quite whom this book was intended to please. The author has of his own admission gained access to the footplates of many hundreds of steam locomotives. His quote" I spent eight years learning the ropes on hundreds of BR locomotives completely unofficially" leaves me feeling somehow uneasy. The book is lavishly illustrated with over 70 high quality photographs, many of which are by the author and other named sources. I enjoyed these images because they were often taken from privileged viewpoints with good camera equipment.
The author describes his experiences on the FR as an "accepted volunteer fireman", but yet sometimes seems to denigrate some of the early preservation personalities by whose permissib/l he was able to get such valuable experiences. Strangely several of the anecdotes are from after the 1960s and step outside the scope of the title.
Later chapters seek to describe how FR firemen can perform their duties rather in the manner of an FR man0al on how their steam locomotives work, as well as describing some of the personalities the author was paired with as footplate crew.
The author tells us that he used to work for publishers lan Allan and hints darkly that lan Allan "nearly published this book". I don't know why he says that.
I am left with an unsatisfactory feeling of how easily the author boasts of having gained access to the hundreds of footplates (he lists his conquests as an appendix). In fact I find myself in some sympathy with the Ffestiniog driver/engineer who, without warning, turfed the author out of his special chair at Boston Lodge loco crew mess room when he occupied it without asking first. A good read perhaps for those who love the Ffestiniog Railway in the early days of its renaissance.

A detailed history of the Stanier Class Five 4-6-0s. Volume 2 on 45472-45499, 44658-44999. John Jennison. Railway Correspondence and Travel Society in the 'locomotives of the LMS' Series. Hardback, 256pp. MB *****
The first volume of this work was published in 2013; this second one completes the history of the LMSR's celebrated mixed traffic class. No.5472 was the first of the resumed wartime production in 1943 and continued until the LMS ran out of available numbers at 5499. Subsequent batches took series of numbers preceeding the nominal first one No.5000 until the final one, by then in the '46XX' series, entered service in 1951.
Included within the second volume, therefore, are the 'unusual' Class 5s — Caprotti valve gear, Stephenson valve gear, double chimneys, roller bearings, experimental combinations of them, the Caprotti versions producing an uncharacteristically ungainly machine.
The book follows a well-established RCTS formula: chapters on design, boilers, tenders, (inc. coal-weighing and corridor), livery details, testing, allocations and duties, etc. Bringing up the rear are some particularly interesting appendices of 'Black Five' working duties at such depots as Newton Heath, Crewe, Bank Hall, Agecroft and Blackpool. I can add no more to my review of Vol. 1 in commending the depth of research and resultant detail which makes these book definitive works.
The book is amply illustrated — but, it has to be said, not well by usual RCTS standards. The colour is disappointingly dark, one or two b/ws have been 'stretched' to give slightly elliptical smoke boxes and buffers. That might have led to knocking off a star rating but these are first and foremost information books not picture albums, so that would be churlish. Passing years and grim reaping amongst compilers have led the RCTS to indicate that the 'Locomotives of the LMS' series probably won't reach completion — but at least we have the history of the great Class 5s and for that praise be to all concerned.

The functions & organisation of the Midland Railway Engineer's Department. A.E. Overton and R.F. Burrows. Midland Railway Society, softback, 88pp. PT *****
If they did not know it before, the early railway companies found soon after opening to traffic that the on-going maintenance of their infrastructure required substantial resources, particularly the permanent way, and hence a considerable expense to be offset against income. Other than brief snatches in biographies, which usually only hint at internal organisational affairs, up until now no serious study of the management of railways appears to have been published. The Midland Railway Society is to be congratulated therefore in producing this profusely illustrated 88pp A4-sized book in limp covers. Building on the availability of a wealth of material in the Roy F. Burrows Midland Collection Trust held at the Midland Railway Study Centre at Derby, the authors have undertaken much original research at the usual archives and delved into some genealogy. This has enabled them to relate the changes in the management structure within the Engineer's Department to meet the demands of one of our great pre-grouping railways, the ever expanding Midland. The text is supported by 'time flow' charts to demonstrate the developments in the organisation, together with an interesting selection of photographs and drawings. In this way, under the watchful eye of the Way and Works Committee of the Board, the evolution of the Engineer's Department to meet its responsibilities is described, together with the spawning of specialist sections to handle telegraphy, signalling and estates. Thoroughly recommended to those who wish to know more about how the railway really worked.

The Railways: Nation, Network and People. Simon Bradley. Profile Books Ltd., 64Spp, hardback. Also available as an e-book, Geoffrey Skelsey. *****
Half a century ago your reviewer's tentative proposal for postgraduate research was sharply rejected as 'lacking in scholarly rigour'. The topic was the political dimension of British railway policy after 1918 and whilst in this case such a judgement may have been justified, the decision came with a sense that railway history was thought by the masters of the profession to be essentially trivial and unworthy of serious study. That this is largely (if not entirely) past is a consequence of a broader approach to research and writing of which Simon Bradley's magnificent book is the latest and best example. As the author of the acclaimed history of St. Pancras station he will be familiar to readers, but with this ambitious general history he scales new heights.
Bradley follows a laudable trend, as narrative, technical, and descriptive accounts of railway history are now supplemented by more broadly analytical and cultural studies. Works by Kellett, Simmons, Schivelbusch, Thomas and recently Hylton (as well as in Backtrack) have remade the weather. Bradley's is an intensely personal approach, beginning (and who would once have dared to admit this?) with teenage trainspotting but evolving into an awesomely comprehensive study of literature, physical remains and personal impressions. This is so rich a book that summary is impossible in any reasonable span, but it covers thoughtfully and often wittily topics such as stations, civil engineering, traction, and the practicalities and ancillaries of travel. We not only bask in an almost overwhelming range of reference and allusion -literary, historical, architectural- but also gain an impression of how railways smelt, tasted, appeared and sounded. If this appears to be riskily inchoate, a strongly-directed thematic approach puts it all into context. The book's subtitle ('Nation, Network, and People') deftly sums it up: seventeen chapters are divided between the passengers' experience of travel over 150 years ('In the Carriage') and the evolving technology of tracks, trains, stations, signals, and operation ('Down the Line'). The result is probably the most wide-ranging narrative conspectus of British railway history ever published. The often-neglected influence of trains on all aspects of our national life is impressively detailed: from familiar topics such as the imposition of universal time to the evolution of diet (including the popularisation of fish and chips), through the mass production of scotch whisky, the perfection of gas lighting, the development of upholstery and lavatories and the concentration of printing on major regional centres this is really a hymn to the emergence of modern Britain. Other activities profoundly influenced by railways have included national newspapers and the agencies which distributed and sold them, football, racing, summer holidays, political parties, fishing and brewing: in almost every field the trains changed life totally. Such consequences as the spread of Oxford ragwort and of the buddleia which ill-advisedly festoons railway structures today are instructive diversions.
Amongst many other studies, there is a sensible analysis of the Beeching era, "the enthusiasts' equivalent of the Dissolution of the Monasteries (missing only the martyrdoms)". Here Bradley notes the curiously ambivalent attitude of the Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, who combined a sentimental affection for railways, and especially the GWR of which he had been a director, with a ruthless and casually ill-informed Willingness to sanction butchery, though one of Bradley's few lapses is to repeat the discredited old canard that Ernest Marples's company "built much of the M1. Some of a vast range of anecdotes are familiar, although the story of Dickens's near· death experience at Staplehurst has never been better told, and there are many, many more. He is a master of the memorable phrase: has the ambiance of the old-time railway ever been better captured, " ... the sour smell of wet tobacco ash smeared thinly in solution ... on a rainy winter's day", or " ... the sooty brick and brownish, magnetized dust from cast· iron brake blocks that clung to every metal surface .. ."? And casting the mind back, which observant railway passenger of a certain age does not recall that strange sense of visual and conceptual dislocation which came from the moving kaleidoscope of slanting sunlight and reflections in a train corridor? This was, uniquely, a closed world, fenced, controlled, regulated, with a language and ethos all of its own which Bradley lovingly chronicles.
Especially perhaps in its description of the changing but unchanged nature of the railway estate, and the skills and devotion of those who serve it, the book excels, bringing us down to a restrained account of the privatised era and today's trains, "duller and more predictable", where "the present is confronted and enriched by the past". This could be the motto of a superb history, as accessible to the general reader as it is illuminating to the best· informed expert.
There is a range of relevant and sometimes amusing line drawings in the text and a short but interesting picture section, as well as exhaustive source notes and a full index. This is a huge venture, both physically and conceptually, and it must surely be the birthday book of the year.

Springtime at Waverley. (Godfrey Platt). rear cover
A2 Pacific No. 60536 Trimbush with V2 behind on midday departures for west or north (tenders of both locomotives over-filled with coal (KPJ suspects early summer). See Editorial confessions on caption being wrong-ended

April 2016 (Number 300)

Great North of Scotland Railway 4-4-0 No.49 Gordon Highlander at Carstairs during the 'Scottish Rambler' tour on 19th April 1965. (David Idle). front cover

Reform and rehabilitation. Michael Blakemore. 195
Editorial on former decrepid Marylebone station encountered when working NRM steam locomotive excursions in the mid-1980s and the "new" John Lewis basement in Birmingham namely New Street station.

Scottish Rambling. David Idle. 196-7
Colour photo-feature of Scottish Rambler railtour organized by the Stephenson Locomotive Society in April 1965: yellow liveried Jones Goods No. 103 at Paisley St. James station on 17 April 1965;  Great North of Scotland Railway No. 49 Gordon Highlander at Glasgow Central on 15 April 1965 backing onto train for journey to Leith Central (see also front cover); J37 No. 64623 with brake vans at Partickhill goods depot on Branch Line Society railtour on 27 March 1964; Horwich Class 5 2-6-0 No. 42737 at Broughton on Scottish Rambler No. 3 railtour on 29 March 1964; A4 No. 60031 Golden Plover at Carlisle Citadel about to depart for Glasgow Central on 18 April  1965.

David Joy. Rails to Morecambe. 198-207.
The village of Poulton formed the nucleus of the town which became known as Morecambe on the shore of Morecambe Bay near the city of Lancaster. Mention is made both of the traditional crossings of the sands to Ulverston and the loss of life which accompanied it and George Stephenson's ideaa of building a railway on an embankment across it and reclaiming the land for agriculture. But the route selected for the West Coast route was via Hest Bank, Carnforth, Oxenholmde for Kendal, Shap and Penrith to Carlisle which was built quickly. Consideration was given to building a ship canal from Lancaster to Poulton, but a railway was built instead and this formed the basis for the Little North Western route from Skipton to Lancaster Green Ayre and the eventual entry of the Midland Railway which was both to encourage the devlopment of Morecambe as a resort and Heysham as a port for sailings to the north of Ireland and the Isle of Man. As a by product of this capital expenditure the railway from Heysham to Lancaster was electrified. The LNWR opened its own branch from Hest Bank (and this is the only approach to have survived). The LMS built a remarkable Art Deco hotel and this unlike most of the railway infrastructure it has survived. Illustrations: 6,600V ac multiple unit departing Morecambe Promenade on 7 August 1964 (David Idle colour) see Editor's correction on page 381; EMU at Lancaster Carlisle on 9 October 1965 (Gavin Morrison: colour); Class 5 No. 45193 passing Scale Hall station with express for Morecambe on 9 October 1965 (Gavin Morrison: colour); map; original station of 1851 photographed in 1936; Class No. 45231 at Hest Bank wit h train of oil tank wagons for Heysham in 1967 (Derek Cross); Class 5 No. 44874 at Bare Lane with breakdown train for Carnforth on 1 August 1968 (Derek Cross); St Stephen's Young Men's Sunday School advertisement for excursion to Morcambe on 5 July 1875; Morecambe Town station with train arriving; Morecambe Euston Road in LNWR period; frontage of Euston Road station during LMS period; Heysham station with steam railmotor (railcar); Lancaster Green Ayre with EMU on 9 October 1965 (colour: Gavinn Morrison); Morecambe Promenade station concourse in July 1966 (colour: Tommy Tomalin); aeriel view of Morecambe showing ships being broken up by T.W. Ward. North Western Hotel and Morecambe Promenade station in October 1922 (ships and other features identified in letter from Frank Walmsley: Aerofilms Ltd); Lemon 0-4-4T No. 41903 arriving Lancaster Castle with train from Morecambe on 8 August 1953 (T.J. Edgington); Midland Hotel post 2008 (colour: Lynn Patrick); Class 5 No. 44897 on ballast train and EE Type 4 No, 216 on pigeon special for Ludlow at Heysham Harbour station on 24 May 1968 (Derek Cross); bleak platform at Morecambe in January 1955 (Gavin Morrison). See also letters on page 381 from Editor and from Frank Walmsley with extra information;  

Jeffrey Wells. The upgrading of God's Wonderful Railway. 208-13.
The Great Western Railway had a longer route to Exeter and Plymouth than the London & South Western. Furthermore there was congestion at Bristol. In part this was a consequence of the former broad gauge. At its Board meeting on 14 February 1895 it was agreed to seek Parliamentary powers for a new route from Hungerford to Langport, part of which would make use of existing lines. An early improvement was a 14¼ mile shorter route to Weymouth. A further new Act of 1899 set out the route from Frome to Athelney and Cogload. The contractor was C.J. Wills. Special measures were taken to ensure flood protection from the River Parrett. There was a major tunnel at Somerton and a viaduct on King's Sedgemoor which required deep foundations. Reproduces an account by Rous-Marten of an initial express run over the new route published in The Engineer of 6 July 1904 when the down journey was behind Saint class 4-6-0 No. 2902 Lady of the Lake and the return was behind French compound 4-4-2 No. 104. Illustrations: Newbury station c1919; Westbury station with 2-4-0T on local train  c1920; Hungerford station c1919; map showing dates of openings; Frome station with 0-6-0PT; Castle Cary Junction and station c1922; Langport station; Athelney station.

Southern six-coupled tanks. 214-15.
Black & white photo-feature: Terrier class (A1X) No. 2671 on Hayling Island train leaving Havant in 1937; J1 4-6-1T in Southern machite green livery at Ashurst in 1950; P class 0-6-0T No.31556 at Brighton on 20 March 1960 (Alan Tyson); LSWR class H16 4-6-2T at Southampton West with passenger train from Bournemouth in 1922; J class 0-6-4T No. 1595 on Ashford shed in mid-1930s.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'The Nearest Run Thing' - Marylebone Station and its suburban services - Part Two. 216-23.
Determined effort by ""Conservative" regime aided by Alfred Sherman to close Marylebone station thwarted by Sir Peter Parker who called uppon Coopers & Lybrand to exaamine the viability of turning railways into dedicated bus routes. They found that the railway track width was insufficient for road traffic especially for the tunnels on the approch to Marylebone. The Kew Bridge to Barnes route (also examined) had impossible problems due to its many level crossings. The National Bus Company was looking for a new easier to access terminal in London, but the commuters from Aylesbury took a blue view of their worsened train journeys (diversion into Paddington or shuttle to Amersham). Resurgence came with Chiltern Railways which showed enterprise in one of the few private enterprise franchises which has sought to expand the market on its routes (unlike the shambling beggers in East Anglia).  Marylebone now provides an alternative service to Birmingham and is in the process of offering an alternative route to Oxford and has gone out of its way to attract motorists out of their cars. Illustrations: faded maroon livery Bo-Bo No. 11 George Romney at Moor Park with train of compartment stock oin March 1961 (colour); Stanier 2-6-4T on train of Drednought coaches; Jubilee No. 45567 South Australia on 12.28 down for Nottingham near Amersham in 1963 (colour); Marylebone station seen from Rossmore Road in 1966; Class 115 depot at Marylebone; concourse in 1962; two green Class 115 form last 12.30 frpm Nottingham approaching Aylesbury on 3 September 1966 (this and all remainder colour); Warship No. D850 Swift on a Birmingham train in November 1967; four car A stock at Chesham with branch shuttle in June 1978; Network South East livery Class 105 DMU at Aylesbury in June 1989;  Network South East livery Class 115 DMU at Marylebone in July 1991;  Chiltern Class 168 at Birmingham Moor Street on 11 Decermber 2010; Wrexham & Shropshire Class 67 No. 67 012 A Shropshire Lad at Banbury with up Marylebone train on 17 December 2008 (Robert Darlaston). 

Signalled through Barnetby and Wrawby Junction. Keith Dungate. 224-5
Colour photo-feature of former LNER pattern semaphore signallling which survived until 2015: Class 185 dmu on Cleethorpes to Manchester Airport service passing Wrawby Junction signalled for Scunthorpe route on 5 August 2015; Class 66 No. 66 148 (EWS livery) on 12.45 Immingham to Drax power station coal train passing Barnetby East signal box on 9 December 2015; DB Schenker Class 60 No. 60 100 on train of empty tank wagons coming off Lincoln line with 10.39 Kingsbury to Humber Oil Refinery on 17 September 2015; EWS No. 66 198 on 07.26 Immingham to Drax coal wagons; No. 60 092 approaches Barnetby station with 13.16 iron ore empties from Scunthorpe Santon Foreign Ore Terminal to Immingham iron ore empties  on 9 December 2015.

Bill Taylor. The railway in Court: mind the gap. 226-30.
The gap between the carriage and the platform could lead to accidents especially when the train overshot the platform or at night especially if illumination was provided. The footboards fitted to carriages could also cause problems if a passenger stumbled. Several actual cases are considered. Mrs Wharton verus the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway: in 1888 she had boarded a train at Cleckheaton to travel to Heckmondwike and stumbled on leaving the carriage damaging her kneecap on hitting the platform and wonb compensation; Mrs  Manning, a hospital nurse was alighting in darkness in February 1907 at Bramhall station having travelled from Manchester London Road: she lost her case against the London & North Western Railway for injuries incurred during stumbling (claimant lost); Mrs Hellawell at Huddersfield in 1872 (claimant won due to negligence of LNWR porter; Harrold versus Great Western Railway: claimant injured himself by needlessly leaving train which had stopped at Limpley Stoke, but Harrold was journeying to Bath (claimant lost); Mrs Rose at Washington on North Eastern Railway in 1876 when the train overshot the platform and the claimant attempted to alight but fell (the railway contested the damages awarded and the Chief Justice became involved, but it is not clear whether Mrs Rose won her award, although the Chief Justice was sympathetic); Mrs Glasscock versus the Londom, Tilbury & Southend Railway in 1903: the train overshot the platform at Shoeburyness and Mrs Glasscock was injured during her attempt to alight. A jury awarded £200 but the railway contested the claim al the way to the House of Lords, but lost.  Mrs Cockle versus South Eastern Railway: in 1872 she alighted at Deptford during the night from a carriage which had failed to reach the platform and she was injured: the railway failed in its attempt to deny the claim. A potentially complex claim came from Mr Foulkes in 1880 who sustained injuries caused by a minor accident at Richmond on the London & South Western Railway whilst he was travelling on a Metropolitan District train. He was travelling on a LSWR ticket and that company tried to shift the claim onto the District, but without success . In 1913 Mrs Annie Paterson fell off the platform at Upton Park (LTSR) in thick fog and was injured: the railway was judged to have failed sufficient illumination. Illustrations: Eydon Road Halt (included to show primitive platform and lack of illumination); Heckmondwike station showing low platform; Bramhall station in 1977 with rauised platform and lighting); Beighton station in 1950 where colliery subsiidence had lowered platform and remedial work in evidence; Dinting station in 1954 with steam train (showing sharp curvature); Mablethorpe station with crowds; Richmond station; Fenchurch Street to Southend special hauled by MR 4-4-2T No. 2138 hauling eighteen four wheelers at Cranham in 1913; Stanier 3-cylinder 2-6-4T No. 2508 at Shoeburyness on 27 June 1936.

Cheltenham and Gloucester. 231
Colour photo-feature: 2251 class 0-6-0 No. 2253 leaving Cheltenham Malvern Road with local train for Gloucester Central (John Spencer Gilks); 51XX No. 4100 (in clean plain green) at Gloucester Central with train for Hereford in April 1962 (C.R. Gordon Stuart)

Chris Booth. The Smithy Wood Branch. 232-6.
This is a closely detailed study of a former passenger carrying railway, reduced to a freight branch line in a scenery dominated by theTinsley motorway viaduct, the Meadow Hall out-of-town shopping centre served by Sheffield's Supertrams. The Author incorporates  the memories of former Tinsley locomotive driver Roger Wainwright who worked the trains which served the former coal mines and coking ovens. The South Yorkshire Railway & River Dun Navigation was incorporated on 19 April 1850 and was eventually leased to the Manchester Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway; thus forming part of the Great Central Railway route from Sheffield to Barnsley.Passenger traffic on this route ceased in 1953, but freight traffic remained  from the Smithy Wood Coking Plant which retained steam traction after British Railways had replaced it by diesel locomotives. Illustrations (all by Roger Wainwright unless stated otherwise): Tinsley West signal box, level crossing and Tinsley motorway viaduct; Meadow Hall GCR tappet frame; Meadow Hall signal box diagram; Meadow Hall & Wincobank station remains with train approaching (colour); map; Grange Lane staion, signal box and level crossing; Type 31 No. 31 297 adjacent Ecclesfield signal box in late 1970s; Ecclesfield East signal box diagram; Hunslet 0-6-0ST Austerity WN 3888 at Smithy Wood Coking Plant (colour); Type v20 class Nos. 20 144 and 20 145 dee3p into Smithy Wood; Sheffield Supertram beneath aged looking Tinsley motorway viaduct (Chris Booth: colour)

David Stirling. Banavie. 237-40.
The branch opened in 1895 from Fort William to Banavie and its main purpose was to serve shipping on the Caledonian Canal which included passenger vessels operated by MacBrayne to Inverness. When the Mallaig extension was opened a swing bridge had to be constructed across the Canal and a new station was provided at Banavie. The branch ceased carrying passenger traffic at the outbreak of WW2, but continued to convey freight until 1951. Illustrations: PS Gondolier at Banavie with Ben Nevis behind (Tuck coloured postcar); maps; Banavie Pier station whilst still open for passenger traffic; Banavia Pier station after closure; K class Intermediate 4-4-0 No. 333 passing Nevis Distillery on way to Fort William station; B1 class 4-6-0 No. 61342 at Banavie with a Mallaig train; Banavie canal bridge; and Banavie station and signalling centre in August 1986.

To Crewe for repairs. Godfrey Platt. 241
Colour photo-feature: No. 46105 Cameron Highlander inside Works in 1959; Patriot class No. 45515 Carenarvon outsie Works in 1959  

George Smith. A different class - the LNER B17s. 242-7.
Concentrates on the Footballers series of what is often known as the Sandringham class, and although the initial tranch was built in Glasgow the class was restricted in routine operation to the Great Eastern section, briefly on the Great Central section to Marylebone, and on the North Country Continental to Manchester and into King's Cross on trains from Cambridge. The football clubs selected are linked to locations which the LNER served. Notts County is a weird omission considering the historic nature of the club. The plan to construct a Spirit of Sandringham which may include parts from extant remnants of Gresley locomotives is mentioned. Illustrations: No. 61662 Manchester United outside Liverpool Street station on 9 April 1957 (colour: R.C. Riley); naming ceremony for No. 2854 Sunderland in 1936 (none of those present are identified); streamlined No. 2859 East Anglian outside Doncaster Works in April 1939 (Colling Turner); streamlined No. 2870 City of London on Ipswich water troughs with up express in 1938 (George R. Grigs); No. 2866 Nottingham Forest in Nottingham Victoria station; No. 2857 Doncaster Rovers at Neasden shed (William Clark); No. 61656 Leeds United at Doncaster in June 1951; West Ham United nameplate in situ at club; Norwich City nameplate at Carrow Road on 31 August 2015 (colour). Comment on naming in general and what might appeal to "working class" from David Burton on p. 445.

Tom McCarthy. Tales from a South Wales footplate. 248-52.
Trapped foot on footplate of a tender engine led to a tender foot; night of sleep on 42XX at Rogerstone when services not required (and fire nearly went out); snow had fallen during night and led to quietness; another night asleep during track relaying in Herefordshire; and strange tale of taking over a Bristol to Cardiff train at Newport with very little fuel in the bunker of a 51XX; working it to Cardiff and returning on another train having shovelled the last of the fuel into the firebox aa they left Cardiff, and making it back to the shed in Newport, Illustrations:

Readers' Forum. 253-4

Back cover - March issue. Editor
East is East - but it is, of course, the west end of Edinburgh Waverley station in the photograph.

A Wansbeck wander. Richard Bull 
Why did BR (ER) maintain full signalling on parts of these branches used by only one or two trains a day, and sometimes,none, for so long? Glen relates that, at Reedsmouth junction, the signal box log for 1962 "clearly showed days when signalman logged on, no traffic was recorded and some hours later, he logged off!". I was surprised on a special passenger working on the Wensleydale line in the early 1970s to see that at least two boxes were still manned. Rationalisation had well set in by then on the Cambrian main line, creating long single line sections resulting in further delays to out-of-course passenger trains as a result. Do any readers know why ER policy appears so relaxed about reducing signalling costs on minor goods lines, for surely ER was at the forefront of the concept of the Basic (passenger) Railway and Pay (on board) Trains?

A Wansbeck wander. Roger Merry-Price 
Reminded him of his own trip to the line in September 1966 (a month before final closure) when the motive power was No.65861. By then the Woodburn freight was Thursdays only. Any reader interested in the Northumberland lines could do no better than try to get hold of a copy of the book by G.W.M. Sewell entitled The North British Railway in Northumberland (Merlin Books. 1991). An excellent detailed history of not oonly the Wansbeck Railway but its two neighbours, the Border Counties Railway and the Northumberland Central Railway.

A Wansbeck wander. Roger Jermy 
Re loop siding at Knowesgate station: this was a loading point for stone transported, in the early years of the twentieth century, via a 3ft gauge steam·worked narrow gauge railway which served Blaxter Quarry lying to the north west towards Otterburn. Stone was also led down from Whitehill Quarry, to the south of the Wansbeck line, this being loaded into standard gauge wagons at the Northumberland County Council sidings to the east of the Blaxter loading point. Further stone from a nearby quarry was brought down by a tramway to the LNER line at Marycastle sidings, a short distance to the east of Knowesgate. A description of the Blaxter Quarry line appears in Volume 3 of writer's series of books entitled Northern Northumberland's Minor Railways: Sandstone, Whinstone and Gravel Lines (published in 2011 by The Oakwood Press): reviewed in Archive No. 79 page 31.
Re platform for Armstrong Whitworth and the nearby Broomhope Branch. He suggests that there is no information about its purpose. The original purpose of the branch was to service the nearby limestone quarries which supplied the Elswick works of Sir W.G. Armstrong on Tyneside, the lime being transported from Broomhope via the then newly opened Wansbeck line thence to complete its journey via the North Eastern Railway. These limestone workings (and associated kilns) closed in 1879 but Armstrong's retained the Broomhope site as a testing ground for heavy armaments, including small to medium field guns and also large naval guns. The last of these required purpose·built heavy wagons for transport to Broomhope and the trains often required double heading! The Broomhope platform thus served the Armstrong complex in the Broomhope Valley.
He also refers to the Catcleugh Railway which linked Woodburn station with the site of construction of the Catcleugh reservoir. This was another 3ft gauge steam-worked line which transported both construction materials and the work force in 'paddy trains'. The full story of this line, with maps and photographs, has been described by the late Harold D. Bowtell in his detailed work Dam Builders' Railways from Durham's Dales to the Border published by the Plateway Press in 1994: reviewed in Backtrack, 9, page 342 and Archive No. 5 page 44.
There were, of course, other 'feeders' to the Wansbeck line including a tramway to the loop siding at Hindhaugh, another tramway which led to Craig Quarry Siding, the tramway from Stiddlehill Colliery (which supplied coal to Armstrong's limeworks at Broomhope) and the limeworks at Rugley Walls near Cambo (using limestone brought by tramway from the nearby Elf Hills Quarries), though all these lines were long-gone by the time Mr. Kilday visited the line! The Rothbury branch similarly had several feeder lines, described in the books of Mr. Sewell and myself. The last of these included the lines serving the Ewesley Quarries and the colliery and quarry at Forestburngate, both lines being standard gauge steam-worked lines, which ceased working in the 1920s.

Coals to Kensington. Michael J. Smith
At the top of the third column on p74 the sentence should read: "An new eastbound platform had to be provided at Stamford Brook."

Coals to Kensington. Nick Stanbury
Writer was at school in Hammersmith and regularly observed this traffic from 1960, courtesy of his daily District journeys between Richmond and Ravenscourt Park. If one was at the latter station just after 16.00, one could see a 'Jinty'-hauled westbound train on the steep rise from Hammersmith and dashing through the platform with steam still full on. Such was the steepness of the bank that 5mph speed limit boards applicable only to 'Steam Trains' were conspicuous by the eastbound District track.
For the sake of completeness and historical accuracy, I trust the author will accept the following comments and minor corrections, in approximately the order of appearance:
1. The later BR emblem on the 'jinty' in the lower photo on p71 shows that this was taken post-1956 and not as stated in LMS days. The inclusion of vans indicates that the train is bound for West Kensington, as High Street only dealt with coal.
2. The necessarily simplified map omits some of the lines used by the goods trains between Acton Lane and Turnham Green, although these are described and illustrated in the article. Also, the line shown as being the 'West London [Railway]' was in fact the West London Extension Railway (GW, LNW, LSW &LBSC joint) where it crossed the District from the south and continued for some 400 yards to an end-on junction with the WL. A trailing connection (not shown) just north of this junction allowed District and other trains from Earl's Court or beyond to reach Addison Road. District trains still run to Olympia although the physical connection to the WL is no more.
3. The Midland also obtained powers for another District-connected yard at South Kensington, but this was never built.
4. The Metropolitan (in addition to the GW) ran a steam passenger service to Richmond (via the Grove Road connection) prior to electrification of the H&C in 1906 but its powers to run a comparable electric service were never exercised. The GW service ceased in 1910 and the connection was removed in 1914 (although the remains of the signal box controlling the erstwhile junction were still extant in 1960).
5. The 'crossover lay-by' between Turnham Green and Stamford Brook, used by eastbound goods trains to transfer from Piccadilly to District metals, was electrified (at least in its later years) and occasionally used by LT passenger trains. One such occasion I know of was c1964, when extreme summer heat caused buckling of the eastbound Piccadilly track west of Ravenscourt Park and Piccadilly services by-passed this by using District metals until east of Hammersmith.
6. The section of the erstwhile LSW / Southern transferred to LT ownership in 1950 was that between Acton Lane East junction (not Gunnersbury) and Stud land Road junction. The signal box at Acton Lane remained a Southern outpost - but handling no Southern traffic - until it was abolished following withdrawal of the Kensington goods trains and removal of the redundant connections. (Despite the transfer, Southern Railway cast iron notices were still clearly displayed outside both Turnham Green and Ravenscourt
Park stations until at least the late 1960s.)
7. The LNW (as well as the GW) had a goods depot at Warwick Road and, close to the point at which these depot lines joined the WLE Gust south of the District underbridge), the WLE had its own Lillie Bridge depot — more competition for the Midland.

Coals to Kensington. Gervase Hamilton
After WW2 writer's parents moved to a flat on Kensington High Street, five minutes' walk from the Underground station and the associated coal depot, so he became familiar with the workings of this odd outstation of steam in a world of electric Underground trains. To avoid causing delays to London Transport's busy District and Piccadilly Lines, the coal trains from Brent (Midland Yard to Kensington were scheduled to run in the early hours of weekday mornings or alternatively mid-morning and scheduled to return late morning or early afternoon. Running times from Brent were approximately 50 minutes to West Kensington and an hour to the High Street. In the early  1950s the first train for West Kensington left Brent at 05.00 and for Kensington High Street at 05.10. Additional trains ran to West Kensington.at 10.45 and, if the traffic warranted it, an hour later. Return trips were made from West Kensington at 10.29, 12.13 and 16.13. The only train from High Street returned to Brent at 11.10. Though a second train could be scheduled to the High Street, he can never recall this happening. As the traffic fell off in later years one early morning train to each depot sufficed and in the final phase trains to High Street ran on only three days a week. The coal trains were invariably worked by a Cricklewood-based 3F 'jinty'. Because of the steep ramp and the awkward access the High Street depot, trains there were loaded to a maximum of eighteen l0-ton loaded mineral wagons plus a 20-ton brake. Trains to the larger yard at West Kensington could load to 26 loaded mineral wagons plus some additional wagons of general merchandise averaging about 35 wagons in all, though the limit was 50.
As mentioned in the article, on arrival at the High Street around 06.00 local residents were awoken as the train shunted noisily up the ramp and then back into a headshunt for the locmotive to propel the wagons into the coal staithes where they could be unloaded by local coal merchants. Full wagons of fuel for the boilers of the adjacent St. Mary Abbot's Hospital were often left on one of the headshunts. An extension of one of the sidings ran into the basement to supply the boilers of two of the department stores on Kensington High Street. Some of the coal staithes were connected to one another by wagon turntables but these fell into disuse as traffic traffic declined and latterly the whole depot became run down and dilapidated and there was little sorting work for the locomotive to do. After closure both depots remained derelict for some time. The site of the High Street depot was eventually occupied by an hotel and housing covered the West Kensington yards.

Visiting Willesden shed. John Bushby
It is possible that the Colwick-based WD regularly seen at Willesden on Sundays would have arrived on a Colwick-Willesden coal working via the former Great Northern & London & North Western joint line and Northampton. The coal trains were a continuation of the former LNWR, later LMS, services over the same route, albeit that their 'North Western' characteristics became progressively diluted after nationalisation prior to the closure of the former joint line in the 1960s.

Southern Airways. Andrew Kleissner  
Error on p179 of article in that two types of aircraft used by Railway Air Services are conflated. The D.H.84 'Dragon' was succeeded by the very successful D.H. 89 'Dragon Rapide', some examples of which are still flying. This, however, still had two engines; it was the larger D.H.86 'Express', also used by RAS, which had four. This aircraft pushed the traditional 'canvas and plywood' construction to its limits and was unsuccessful, even dangerous. In any case it was obsolete in comparison to contemporary metal-bodied American airliners.

'The Nearest Run Thing'. Gerald Goodall 
The initial off-peak service on the Arnersharn/ Aylesbury line after electrification of the 'Met' and dieselisation of the Marylebone service in 1962: At first there was indeed one train per hour off-peak from Aylesbury to Marylebone, which called at all stations up to Chorleywood and then only at Harrow-on-the-Hill, but there was also a half-hourly fast Metropolitan service from Amersham to Baker Street, calling at all stations to Moor Park and then at Harrow-on-the-Hill and Finchley Road. One of these trains left Amersham just four minutes after the Aylesbury train, giving an excellent connection up the line. The service in the down direction corresponded to this. This provision was perhaps a bit generous by the standards of the time, but a big problem was that the 'Met', like the rest of the Underground, was becoming increasingly afflicted by staff shortage, leading to many cancellations on a random basis from day to day. The Amersham service was soon reduced to hourly, which helped alleviate the staff shortage. But, to maintain the connection up the line, the train that continued to run each hour was the one immediately after the train from Aylesbury. Thus Amersham, Chalfont & Latimer and Chorleywood had two trains within four minutes and then nothing for the rest of the hour. After about a year, common sense prevailed: the Aylesbury train made additional stops at Rickmansworth and Moor Park (where connection to an up Watford train could be made, so that all other Metropolitan stations could be reached), and the hourly 'Met' train from Amersham was changed to the other interval time in each hour, thus giving a combined service within a few minutes of being every half-hour. This arrangement worked well and continued for several years.

'The Nearest Run Thing'. John Hicks. 254.
Re Master Cutler with an 18.15 or thereabouts departure had no real option but to run via High Wycombe, as it would not have been able to be accommodated among est the Met Line rush hour services. The up service arriving at 11.23, however, was scheduled to run via Aylesbury. The first stop being Rugby, of course, it did not matter which route was used.

Past and present track formations. Claude R. Hart 
Caption purports to show the tracks near New Cross, but having travelled these rails for 40 years, either from the Bexleyheath line or from Sevenoaks, he suggests scene is much closer to St. Johns station than New Cross. One of the features of this length of line were the allotments that were allowed to spring up on the slopes of the cutting, presumably due to wartime exigencies. One such allotment sported a mass display of purple irises in the season but gradually all this area became a dumping ground for assorted household rubbish, old tyres, scrap metal, ete. The whole track pattern was altered some years ago, with the tracks being widened with a 'fly down' (Tanners Hill Flydown, 1976) from the Lewisham/Nunhead line. The 'flydown' bypasses St. Johns and is scheduled to be doubled in 2018.

A wheeltapper's lot. David Carter
Re p.48 the Direct Admission Valve: this was fitted to speed up brake rate propagation, especially on a long train. In the running position, there is 21in of vacuum on both the top or chamber side and under the brake cylinder piston in the train pipe. In this state, the brakes are off. When the brakes are applied, air is admitted into the train pipe and the brake piston is pushed up by atmospheric pressure acting against a vacuum, pulling the brake blocks on to the wheels. The brakes remain on because a vacuum is still present in the chamber or top side of the piston. During a brake application, air is prevented from entering the vacuum chamber by means of a non-return valve. When the cord by the sole bar white star is pulled, the non-return valve is lifted off its seat, admitting air into the vacuum chamber, destroying the vacuum, the brake piston drops and the brakes release. A perfect vacuum is 30in of mercury. The LMS, LNE and Southern used 21in in the train pipe, the GWR, in its eternal quest to be different to everyone else, used 25in in the vacuum train pipe. At stations like Bristol or Oxford where a change from GW to other companies took place, the C&W Examiner would have to walk along the whole train, pulling the cords on each coach. If this wasn't done, there would be a partial brake application the locomotive could not overcome, known as dragging brakes.

Book reviews. 254

The Axminster & Lyme Regis Light Railway. Peter Paye. Oakwood Press. 144pp, JC. *****
The picturesque coastal town of Lyme Regis had a long history as a trading port, going through cycles of prosperity and decline from the thirteenth century, not least due to various happenings across the Channel. But from the latter part of the eighteenth century it became a highly fashionable resort until rail travel to other parts of the South West put it at a disadvantage. For almost 50 years, since the GWR's failed Devon & Dorset Railway Bill of 1853 for a line between Dorchester and Exeter, various abortive schemes had been put forward to make a railway into Lyme before the Light Railways Act of 1896 came to its rescue.
This book covers the background leading up to the subsequent authorisation in June 1899 of the Axminster & Lyme Regis Light Railway Bill under that Act. Construction through the challenging topography of the Devon/Dorset border began a year later, the difficulties faced by the contractor, particularly in relation to Cannington viaduct, being responsible for excesses of both estimated cost and timescale.
Fully up to the standard one expects from The Oakwood Press, the work describes these events and the subsequent developments in detail, from opening in August 1903 to closure on 29th November 1965. It is evident from the Acknowledgements and Bibliography that Mr. Paye has gone back to much original source material in the course of his research. This shows in chapters providing comprehensive coverage of signalling, staff, timetables and traffic, and locos and rolling stock. An equally comprehensive, and perhaps rather unusual Appendix covers the line's bridges and level crossings in detail.
One tends to think of the venerable Class '415' 4-4-2T engines as synonymous with the line and it may be surprising to those not very familiar with it to find that from January 1961, following some necessary track improvements, LMR 2-6-2 tanks served as motive power for almost three years until diesel railcars succeeded them. Incidentally, the two longest-serving '415s', Nos 3125/30582 and 3520/30584, both racked up more than two million miles before withdrawal. The motive power chapter also reminded the reviewer of the trials carried out by the Western Region in late-1958 to find a successor to the old '41's'. The '14XX' Class 0-4-2T failed miserably — just as, ironically perhaps, its ex-LBSCR Class D1 equivalent had 30 years earlier — defeated by the line's sharp gradients and sinuous curvature.
The book is profusely illustrated, many pictures coming from the author's own collection, with very informative captions. These are backed up by diagrams of changing station and signalling layouts through the years as well as a gradient and curvature chart produced after the LSWR took the line over. Mr. Paye's work would make an excellent addition to the library of a Southern enthusiast or a lover of those unusual and characterful branch lines that have, regrettably, been lost for ever. It is highly recommended.

The Victorian steam locomotive — its design & development 1804-1879. G.D. Dempsey and D. Kinnear Clark. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Transport, hardback. OA ***
The title on the cover of this reprinted book is somewhat misleading, the more so in that on the title page 1879 is erroneously rendered as 1897! Even given 1879 the main author, George Drysdale Dempsey, had died some twenty-odd years earlier and his contribution was subsequently abridged and extended by D. K. Clark in Section 2 entitled 'The Modern Locomotive'. Nevertheless, the most recent types illustrated by skeletal outline diagrams in the original work were Patrick Stirling's GNR 8ft 4-2-2 (1870) and S.W. Johnson's first 4-4-0 for the Midland Railway (1876). However, as an example of such he gives extensive coverage to the elegant Beyer, Peacock & Co. inside cylinder 2-2-2 D. Luiz, which had been exhibited at The London Exhibition way back in 1862, prior to despatch to Portugal where happily it still survives. The several accompanying sectional drawings for this clearly illustrate the design advantages provided by the extra 9½ inches afforded by the Iberian 5ft 6in rail gauge and indeed Iohnson once remarked that the 5ft 3in gauge (the 'standard' in Ireland) would have been the ideal gauge from the locomotive engineering point of view.
Mention is made of an unnamed Ramsbottom LNWR 'Lady of the Lake' 2-2-2 running the 264 miles from Holyhead to Euston non stop, made possible by Ramsbottom's recently devised water troughs and pick-up equipment in the tender. Actually (on 7 January 1862) No.229 Watt had run thus only the 144 miles as far as Stafford, which was still highly commendable by the standards of the time. There it was exchanged for a 'Bloomer', for the remainder of a crucial journey that greatly assisted in defusing a very serious diplomatic confrontation with the Americans, following the so-called 'Trent Incident'. One is struck by how rapidly the steam locomotive became refined to its basic and long-lasting format. Although not mentioned, it is interesting to reflect that superheating, piston valves and Walschaerts valve gear, which became well nigh universal after, say, 1910, had already each been envisaged, if not successfully put into practice, within the early compass of this book.
Compared to the original publication this reprint is enhanced by the addition of a miscellany of photographs of nineteenth century locomotives, which range from primitive Agenoria and Invicta, both built in 1829, to the elegant Stroudley 0-4-2 Pevensey dating from 1890. This book is perhaps a little overpriced.

The railway conquest of the world. Frederick A. Talbot. Softback, 254pp, a few b&w illustrations. Amberley Press. RH ***
The publishers are to be congratulated on producing, or rather reproducing, this work that was first published in 1911. It is now a useful primary source in its own right, the authentic voice of pre-1914 railway boosting and enthusiasm. Although Talbot was a spokesman for high imperialism, not untouched by a mildly patronising racism, he was typical of his times; typical also in his ecological innocence in which railways and industrialism 'conquered' or 'overcame' this or that, tapping seemingly limitless resources. We now know better, but might still beware of reading history backwards and passing facile judgements: it was the way it was. Unlike many late-Edwardian writers, Talbot could express his opinions in a fairly taut, readable prose, unlike (say) Rous- Marten whose verbosity has become almost legendary. Talbot describes many of the great works of his times, or immediately before them: the construction of the great transcontinentals (CPR, Trans-Siberian), mountain scaling in the Andes or Rockies, the Bergen line, the proposed Cape-Cairo railway. The text concentrates largely on civil engineering; motive power, signalling, operations, station architecture etc get barely walk-on parts. Nor do the subsequent effects of railway building receive much attention - railways are simply assumed to be a good in their own right. The tendency to hyperbole can start to drum, hence it is probably wise to read the book with pauses to catch breath and return to Earth. Nevertheless, even after a century or more, the almost boyish enthusiasm is palpable, as are the descriptions of the work of surveyors, contractors and construction toilers in general. The book is well priced but, possibly because of that, it has flaws. There is no obvious reason why a reprint could not have included some helpful maps, an index and far better illustrations. The ones on offer are a scratch lot, none too well produced and in some cases almost irrelevant. Having extolled the splendour of crossing the Cascade Mountains in the text we find not a Northern Pacific or Great Northern train working against the collar upgrade, but a small logging line in the backwoods, its locomotive adorned by a lad and two ladies: hardly representative of Talbot's themes.
The publishers make a fair amount of the Introduction to the book by Christian Wolmar, popular and knowledgeable railway sage of our times but, unfortunately, not on his top form here. The Introduction is two and a half pages only, a touch repetitive and none too accurate. Wolmar notes that, apart from the Florida East Coast line, over the sea to Key West, all of Talbot's 'conquests' are extant. Not so: the Hedjaz and Transandine lines have been discontinuous for years; the 'Milwaukee Road' lines in the western USA were abandoned en bloc, the Marshall Pass line no longer exists. Even conquerors make tactical withdrawals.
A rewarding read in spite of certain limitations, but a text of the old order that has to be read the hard way; there were few coffee-table tomes to flip through in 1911.

Signalling sunset. Keith Dungate. rear cover
18.26 Cleethorpes to Manchester Airport Class 185 [passingg LNER upper quadrant semaphores at Barnetby East signal box on 29 March 2015

May 2016 (Number 301)

Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway 7F 2-8-0 No.53807 heads away from Wellow station with a freight for Bath in 1961. D.R. King. front cover

Lost and found. Michael Blakemore. 259
Comment on the article by Gribbins beginning on page 304 on the disposability of the Somerset & Dorset Railway which unlike its East Anglian associate has disappeared from the transport scene [KPJ West Runton remains on the National Network and most of the best bits of road in North Norfolk are based on bits of it]. Also comments on his first journey by tram over the Oldham Loop [sadly trams are lacking from the local "City" where it may take an hour to reach the regional hospital and "university" from the station which must endure the worst services in Britain where "connect" is an incomprehensible concept].

Observations at Bentley Heath. Michael Mensing. 260-1
Colour photo-feature of Great Western Railway's approach to Birmingham (most taken from footbridge adjacent level crossing): No. 6008 King James II on 07.25 Wolverhampton to Paddington on 15 June 1961; down short freight hauled by Class 5 No. 44920 on 23 July 1962; down blue Midland Pullman (16.50 ex-Paddington) on 25 June 1963; Standard Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80072 on 17.38 Snow Hill to Lapworth being overtaken by 14.35 Birkenhead to Paddington hauled by D1683 on 27 May 1964; green livery D1002 Western Explorer on blue Midland Pullman replacemt service hauling classic umber & cream cars on 6 June 1963

John L. Flann. The Railway Regulation Act 1844. 262-5
Instigated during period when William Ewart Gladstone was at the Board of Trade. Until then railways had operated in a largely unregulated manner (other than requiring Acts for their establishment). The new Act controlled the way railways operated {(notably minimum standards for the carriage of third class passengers (Parliamentary Trains) and the control of profits and accounts and sanctions even even the possibility of nationalisation}. Illustrations: portrait of Gladstone. Canterbury station in 1846; Birmingham & Gloucester Railway second class carriage; opening of North Devon Railway at Barnstaple on 12 July 1854; Curzon Street station in Birmingham; London & South Western Railway Parliamentary Carriage and Windermere station in 1847 (only first is a photograph, remainder are drawings, etc). See also letter from John C. Hughes on p. 445

Michael B. Binks. Past and present track formation. Part Two. 266-71
Part 1 see page 138. Routine maintenance to track and ballast. On curves the cant needs to be maintained and drainage is very important especially in cuttings.The slip problem occurs in both cuttings and on embankments and water percolation acts as a lubricant. The author was involved in remedial works at a slip on an embankment near Purley Oaks where an older embankment had been widened for extra tracks: slip occurred on the slip plane between the old and new slopes. The major diversionary work required at Harecastle in connection with the West Coast Main Line electrification were described in Backtrack, 2009, 23, 454. See also letter from David Daines (page 445) which corrects several errors in the section on Harecastle tunnels. Subsidence association with coal mining or salt extraction could cause major problems aznd required negotiations with the extractors as well as remedial work. On 15 December 1915 there was a major slip in the Shakespeare Cliff section of the Folkestone Warren which trapped a train and was a major hindrance to serving the Army on the Western Front during WW1. Blanketing was frequwently involved prior to opertating high speed trainsw.Illustrations (mainly by David Monk Steel): approach to Victoria station from Grosvenor Bridge viewed from above in 1960; Brixton station showing railway overbridge and bridge over road beneath both on 29 July 1963 (notes high level of maintenance required); Newington — cutting slip showing rmedial work on 18 December 1960; Metropolitan Junction on 12 Sepember 1979 (requires constant monitoring); bridge in Lincolnshire under repait in 2002;Newcastle East diamond crossings; Folkestone Warren landslip of 1915 and No. 4012 Knight of the Thistle with freight train at Dawlish c1927 where the tide took its toll in 2014

Alan Bennett. Holiday literature for Scotland: LMSR and LNER. 272-6.
The LNER commissioned J. Saxon Mills to write Clyde, Trossachs, Western Highlands: a 48? page brochure. The covers of all the titles mentioned are reproduced (folded open) in colour. The cover of the one writtem by Saxon Mills was by F. Lingstrom. Scotland For Holidays – Ayrshire: The Land of Burns: (LMSR, 1928) had a cover by Norman Wilkinson (depicting part of the Turnberry golf course, lighthouse and Ailsa Craig) and a companion From the Grampians to the North Sea shores showing Arbroath Abbey (an unlikely, but arresting subject for Wilkinson). The text is more prosaic than that of Saxon Mills. The Romance of Scotland produced by the LMS in 1933 with text by MacGregor Scott is more radical in approach according to Bennett.

Class 47s Stratford style. John D. Mann. 277
Colour photo-feature; no. 47 163 in full Silver Jubilee (Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth) regalia (with Union Flag on side and headboard) on 15.48 Norwich to Liverpool Street on 22 June 1972; No. 47 583 County of Hertfordshire in special livery for Royal Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer at Colchester on up "express"on 29 July 1981; No. 47 167 County of Essex at Witham in Maldon bay with management saloon for naming ceremony on 2 August 1979.

Alistair F. Nisbet. Bullion thefts from the railways. 278-82.
Gold dust from the Californian Gold Rush worth £10,000 was landed at Southampton from the SS Great Western and loaded onto a goods train for Nine Elms, but it did not arrive. William Plampin was apprehended at Winchester and committed for trial there under Mr Justice Coleridge (poetic justice?), found guilty and sentence to transsportation, but this was later commuted to two years in prison as the true perpetrators (John Seward and Charles Whitcher) had been found through the effort of Detective Inspector Charles Field. On 18 May 1855 the South Eastern Railway suffered the theft of £12,000 of gold in transit from London to Boulogne via Folkestone. Eventually a grocer, William Pierce and two S.E.R. staff James Burgess, a guard, and George Tester, a clerk, were charged with the crime on the evidence of Edward Agar who had turned Queen's Evidence.  

Roger Smith. Following in the footsteps of Flight Lieutenant Aidan Fuller. 283-5.
The British locomotive shed directory was compiled by Flight Lieutenant Aidan Fuller who was a committee member of the Birmingham Locomotive Society and eventually chaired the Industrial Locomotive Society, It included maps and fairly detailed descriptions of how to reach individual motive power depots and even minor sun-sheds and stabling points. Itineries were suggested for larger towns and cities. Illustrations (all from T.J. Edgington except first): cover of 8th edition (colour); map showing location of Cardiff East Dock engine shed from the Directory; Cardiff East Dock shed on 13 May 1954; NLR 0-6-0T No. 58860 outside Middleton top shed on 5 June 1950; St. Rollox shed on 5 October 1961 with A3 No. 60527 Sun Chariot and Class 5 No. 44922 on view.

In the west of Wales. 286-7.
Black & white photo-feature: 43XX 2-6-0 No. 7344 at Carmarthen on 24 June 1961; 0-6-0PT No. 1669 at Whitland with a train for Cardigan on 19 June 1961; 57XX 0-6-0PT No. 3637 at Fishguard & Goodwick on 16.25 to Clarbiston Road on 12 August 1960 (alkl previous Alan Tyson); Class 2251 0-6-0 No. 2200 at Pencader with an Aberystwyth to Carmarthen train on 10 May 1958 (T.J. Edgington); 57XX No. 7444 at Aberayron with freight on branch line from Lampeter on 10 May 1958 (T.J. Edgington) see also letter from James Milne on page 445; 2-6-2T No. 4550 at Llanglydwen on 17.05 Whitland to Cardigan train (Alan Tyson).  

Visiting Camden Shed. Geoff Rixon. 288-9
Colour photo-feature: No. 46238 City of Carlisle (red livery) on turntable on 4 August 1962; No. 46239 City of Chester (green livery) inside shed with gas lighting in April 1962; rebuilt Royal Scot No. 46156 The South Wales Borderer in snow on 2 February 1963; No. 46220 Coronation (green livery) leaving shed on 2 March 1963; rrebuilt Patriot No. 45527 Southport ready to leave in June 1962.

Stephen Roberts. Swindon Railway Works. 290-5.
Established at the approximate mid-point between Bristol and London by Daniel Gooch in 1841 for locomotives. It was where the railway crossed the Wilts & Berks Canal which brought in coal from the Somerset Coalfield.. The Works were reached via a tunnel under the running lines. From 1874/5 women were employed in the upholstery department. Cholera and typhoid afflicted the workforce and the company was led into providing housing and medical facilities. Accidents were frequent and the company manufactured artificial limbs for the afflicted. St. Mark's Church was funded by the Company and a steam hooter sounded over a wide area. In 1846 the first locomotive, Great Western, was built. In 1855 the works began to handle standard gauge locomotives and rolling stock. There ws an existing town at Swindon on a hill above the railway junction and works and a new Swindon with its church and Mechanics Institute grew up. There was a Royal Visit by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra on 7 March 1902 and a later one by Princess Margaret on 15 November 1950. An alternative view of the works is given in Alfred Williams Life in a railway factory. Asbestosis was an industrial hazard. Illustrations: 0-6-0ST and turnatble and @A@ erecting shop viewed from above in 1908; employees leaving Works via Rodbourne Road entrance c1910; broad gauge locomotive dump 1892; AV boiler shop with boiler held vertically by crane in 1920s; testing support fixings for 250lb bomb in November 1940; A shop with work on diesel hydraulic locomotives in 1966; No. 4074 Caldicot Castle under repair c1958 (colour: Trevor Owen). See also letters from Andrew Nock and Linda Death on page 465    

Malcolm Timperley. "Through a glass, darkly...": Britain's railways and the Wartime blackout. 296-303.
Lighting in a railway marshalling yard could be detected from the air for many miles away. Firing a steam locomotive and train lighting were obvious problems and the former was tackled by fixing anti-glare sheets over the cab which made it hot and humid for the crew and even more difficult to see signals and receive instructions from guards, shunters and platform staff. Shunting was especially dangerous. Many staff were drowned by falling off quays in railway-owned ports as at Grimsby and Immingham. Passengers were liable to fall off plaforms, or bump into the many hazards invisible in the darkness. They also stepped out of trains, either on the wrong side or prior to reaching the unlit platform. Compartments were fitted with blinds (liable to theft) and dim blue lamps. Tube trains were fitted with normal lighting for use in the tunnnels and special shielded lights forv use on the open sections. A serious accident occurred at Bletchley on 133 October 1939 when a double-headed express ran into an 0-8-0 pperforming shunting operations, Another attributable to the blackout was the Norton Fitzwarren accident, but this was mainly due to the Blitz suffered by the driver who forgot where he was and over-ran signals. Illustrations: Norbury station with reduced lighting and white paint on 7 December 1940; Esher West signal box with nameboards being rermoved; L class No. 1763 damaged fater enemy action at Victoria station c1940; Euston departure platform darkened by blackout measures; Brighton locomotive shed in 1945. Also reproductions of propoganda material warning the public: including (page 297 Billy Brown of London Town poster: see also letter from Rory Wilson on page 445 and from Arnold Tortorella on mishaps in Scotland on the LMS (p. 573)

Edward Gibbins. The closure of the Somerset & Dorset Joint Line. Part One. 304-10
A very strong case existed for closure as almost all the traffic could be diverted to other routes and in many cases the cases against closure wdere poorly developed. The Branch Line Invigouration Society proposed reductions in staffing and infrastrucure, but these were not costed. Illustrations: 7F 2-8-0 No. 53810 on afreight climing Devonshire Bank (1 in 50) with banker at rear on 7 September 1962 (colour: Barry Gant); Ivatt class 2 2-6-2T at Glastonbury & Street with a train from Evercreech Junction in January 1966 (colour: Trevor Owen);; BR Standard class 5 No. 73049 (green livery) at Bailey Gate with a parcels train with United Dairies building behind in March 1964 (colour); 2P 4-4-0 No, 40634 and Standard class No. 73051 at Lyncombe Vale with relief to Pines Express on 3 June 1954 (Hugh Ballantyne); 7F 2-8-0 No. 53807 taking water at Evercreech Junction on 07.35 Nottingham Midland to Bournemouth West on 21 July 1962 (T.J. Edgington); 3F 0-6-0 No. 43248 at Highbridge & Burnham-on-Sea on 16-15 to Evercreech Junction on 1 August 1955 (T.J. Edgington); Class 4 4-6-0 No. 75027 and West Country No. 34041 Wilton near Midford Viaduct on southbound Pines Express in August 1962 (colour: Barry Gant); Ivatt class 2 2-6-2T No. 41296 at Wincanton with a train for Templecombe on 19 April 1965; Ivatt class 2 2-6-2T No. 41296 at Cole with 16.05 fromn Templecombe in August 1962 9with Ivo Peters possibly on platform (colour: JU.P. Mullett); 7F 2-8-0 No. 53809 taking water at Evercreech Junction in September 1962 (colour); West Country No. 34042 Dorchester and Standard Class 5 No. 73051 on northbound Pines Express approaching Combe Down Tunnel on 3 June 1954 (Hugh Bannantyne). Part 2 see page 332 (and responses to)

The slate quarry engines. Geoffrey Smith. 311-13.
Black & white photo-feature (photographs taken in April 1961): 1ft 10¾in gauge Hunslet (1886) 0-4-0ST Velinheli on Dinorwic system; Avonside Engine Co. (1933 for Burnhope Reservoir) 0-4-0T Marchlyn at Penrhyn; Andrew Barclay (1931 for Burnhope Reservoir) 0-4-0T Glyder  at Penrhyn; 4ft gauge Hunslet (1882) 0-6-0T Dinorwic at Gilfach Ddu on Padarn Railway; Hunslet (1899) 0-4-0ST Nesta in Penrhyn Quarry; Andrew Barclay (1931 for Burnhope Reservoir) 0-4-0T Cegin at Bethesda; Avonside Engine Co. (1933 for Burnhope Reservoir) 0-4-0T Ogwen at Penrhyn and Hunslet 0-4-0ST Linda on Penrhyn Railway.  

B1 experiences. 314-15.
Colour photo-feature: No. 61299 at Sutton-on-Sea with holiday express for Mablethorpe in 1964 (fireman leaning out with single line token)(Ron Mason); No. 61004 Oryx on vacuum-power turntable at Buxton (Derbyshire) on railtour on 11 May 1963 (David Idle); No. 61132 with up freight on Welwyn (Digswell) Viaduct on 18 May 1963 (David Idle); No. 61132 on minimal freight passing Anstruther signal box on 6 June 1966 (Roy Hobbs); No. 61035 Pronghorn on last legs (Ron Mason).

Geoffrey Skelsey. Wings over Cambridge. 316
Aerial photograph submitted by Alan Perry with highly detailed analysis by Skelsey. Photograph probably taken on Sunday 2 July 1922 and shows Royal Show ready for opening. The railway approaches of the Great Eastern from the south and the London & North Western from the west are clealy identifiable, but the Great Northern and Midland were also still providing services. Long Road and Hills Road (now better known for their sixth form colleges) are visible: the latter had existed as Via Devana. There have been vast changes since then including the arrival of a new "train" platform complex on the eastern side and the semi-submerged bus-way (which must have been good for natural rubber consumption).

Readers' Forum. 317

It seemed a good idea at the time. John Jesson 
On p88 Macnair remarks in the caption to the sketch of the Deutz 2B2 that there is no known photograph of the locomotive. In fact, there are at least two, both being printed in the August/September 2015 issue of Eisenbahn Geschichte. Both are of the same side of the locomotive, but taken ¾-view from opposite ends. One, taken from the long hood end, and well-lit was taken in 1937 during a testing programme. The other, taken from the short hood (cylinders) end, depicts the locomotive on a test train of Prussian coaching stock at Geldern, between Krefeld and Kleve, close to the Dutch border. Unfortunately, although the end of the locomotive is well lit by the sun, the side is in shadow. This picture is undated. Both are credited to Deutz, from the collection of F. Loraing.

A Wansbeck wander. Charles Allenby
As a devotee of the Wansbeck Railway, I enjoyed reading Glen Kilday's most interesting article and his excellent photographs in the February issue, and perhaps I may be permitted to add a few comments.
Following the closures of the sections of line, Woodburn-Bellingham (5 miles 1,003 yards) and Scotsgap-Rothbury (12 miles 1,673 yards), from 11th November 1963, it would seem realistic for British Railways to have closed Scotsgap and Woodburn signal boxes and convert the remaining 21 miles 538 yards single line section from Morpeth to (the then) 'One Engine in Steam' method of operation for the three freight trains a week out and back [Tue., Thur., Fri.), reduced to two (Tue., Thur.) from 2 March 1965, and finally just Thursdays only from 21 April 1966. The reason for not doing so was the occasional movements of military personnel to/from the Otterburn Training Camp, located some five miles north of Woodburn station which was used as a railhead, often requiring at least two trains on the branch at anyone time.
These trains tended to run either at weekends or overnight on weeknights, thus providing the two signalmen with, one assumes, much-needed overtime. I have the Scotsgap Train Register book from 15 September 1963 until final closure and it provides much of interest. Two days in particular stand out. The first was on Sunday 16 May 1965 when no fewer than three Class 1 passenger trains conveying troops descended on Wood burn in succession. Unfortunately the type of loco traction isn't recorded. See letter from Leonard Rogers on page 381.
Morpeth dep.
Train No.1 20.12
Train No.2 20.44 (a)
Train No. 3 21.28 (a)
(a) = waiting clearance of the single line section.
The return Class 5 empty stock actual timings ran early on the Monday morning. A fortnight later, early Sunday morning 30 May 1965, the same three successive train movements to Wood burn to collect the troops from their camp took place. Empty stock in, loaded passengers out.
One of Mr. Kilday's photographs shows the bracket lower quadrant signals at the west end of the Scotsgap platform, one reading towards Rothbury, the other to Wood burn. Once the track was removed from the Rothbury branch they became surplus to requirements, and, together with the facing points and associated lock bar, were removed on 5 April 1965, leaving Scotsgap with just the basic signalling facilities for the last eighteen months of its existence.
I am able to confirm that at least for the last seven Fridays before the Rothbury branch closed, separate freight trains ran to certainly Wood burn (whether they always continued on to Reedsmouth and Bellingham is not known) and Rothbury.
As to clearing the remaining rolling stock after closure, this would appear to have taken place in respect of Reedsmouth and Bellingham on Tuesday 12 November, judging by the fact the pick-up was at Wood burn for an hour and a half. Three days later the Scots Gap Train Register Book records "Bell pick up proceeding R'bury to clear yard 12.20 Returned 15JO". Right up until final closure of the Wansbeck line from 3 October 1966 the pick-up freight was always described by the Scotsgap signalman as the "Bell Gds".

Freight trains in the 1920s. R. Lloyd Jones 
The caption to the upper picture on p157 refers to a Churchward Mogul climbing towards Patchway New Tunnel with an up goods for Bristol. The train has in fact left that tunnel and is proceeding towards Patchway station. The six-arched bridge carried the A38 over the line which is mostly at two levels between Pilning and Patchway stations; beyond the arches there appears to be steam emerging from the single bore of Patchway New Tunnel.

Oswestry. Chris Goodwin 
Re Oswestry - Railway Town of the Welsh Borders the closure date of the Whitchurch- Oswestry-Welshpool line was stated as 23 November 1964. The actual date of closure was 18 January 1965 at the same time as the Llanfyllin branch. Daniels and Dench confirm this in their book Passengers No More second edition published in 1973 by lan Allan Ltd. and the fact that I have photographs taken at Whitchurch and Oswestry on the 2 January 1965 since I travelled on the 09.45.train from Whitchurch to Oswestry on this date. I also travelled on the Ruabon-Morfa Mawddach line on the last day of service which was also the 18 January 1965 although the stretch between Llangollen and Bala Junction had been closed prematurely by flood damage on 14 December 1964.

Wagonways and the law. Richard Woolacott 
I believe that the law suit that gave us the words 'wagon', 'wagon way' and 'wayleave' is Clifford v His Tenants 1605. Some of them sued him to obtain payment for a wgonway Clifford opened over his own land. The outcome is not recorded. Railways had emerged from underground about ten years before and 'wagon' had been coined from the word 'wayne' to indicate it had a flanged wheel and was unsuitable for roads ... The Weaver Navigation had opposition from the brine industry and to get is Act of Incorporation in 1721 compromised to allow others to use the canal with wharves and barges of their own. Subsequent canal Acts had this written in. When wagonways owned by canals come along for cost or geological reasons – the first was the Botany Bay of 1761 owned by the Bridgewater canal – it was enacted that railways owned by canals were like industrial railways, that is exclusive not common user. As Mr. Weaver mentioned, the most important piece of legislation was the allowing of compulsory purchase powers. The first was the 1758 retrospective Act of Incorporation of the Middleton Colliery Railway, very similar to contemporary canal Acts. Before that the landowners had the whip hand and were holding back railway development. After, the railway promoters held it.

The demise of Sir Francis Goldsmid and others. J. Whiteing 
Re cited incident at Towcester which occurred on Easter Monday 27th April 1886. This could not be the case as Easter Sunday was 25th April (Whitaker's Almanac 1964). Indeed, as Easter Sunday that year occurred on its latest possible date, Easter Monday can never be on 27th April. May I suggest that as the day in question was a Bank Holiday, the initial press reports of the incident appeared the following day (Tuesday) and that this has confused your contributor.

Rugby and soccer excursions to Wembley. Leonard Rogers 
Re colour pictures by late Trevor Owen on pp158/9 showing the southern end of the WCML in 1960 and 1963. A tentative correction to the caption for the middle photo on p159: the train depicted may have been a 'football special', but on that date (11 May 1963) it is more likely to have been a rugby league special as that year's Rugby League Challenge Cup Final was being played at Wembley when Wakefield Trinity beat Wigan. Without hard evidence it is impossible to be certain: this excursion, which is identified by its 1Z-- headcode as being an LMR intra-Regional working, may not have been for a sporting fixture at all. (An inter-Regional working would have carried a 1X-- head code, nowadays only used for Royal trains and out-of-gauge loads I believe, in the 1960s.) Nevertheless, there's a fair chance that it may have carried Wigan supporters up the WCML to Wembley Central. See further the illustration on the rear cover of the December 2015 issue and the subsequent correspondence in the February issue, As far as head codes go, the two photographs at the foot of pp158 and 159 provide an interesting contrast. They are both identified as being excursions for Manchester United supporters, an identification which I have no reason to doubt. However, one carries a Z as its second character (p159) while the other has a T. On other Regions, Z seems to have been used consistently to indicate an intra-Regional extra working, as mentioned above. The LMR, on the other hand, appeared to use both Z and T. My suggestion, for what it is worth, is that one was for a charter train while the other was for an advertised excursion. Perhaps some reader can confirm or deny this.
In addition to City of Birmingham's train, assuming that it was indeed a Challenge Cup excursion, there were other trains up the WCML, such as that shown on the rear of the December 2015 issue. There were also at least three trains for Wakefield supporters, hauled by West Riding 'Jubilees', that ran up the GC London Extension. Moreover, at least one Wigan excursion ran via Woodhead and the London Extension ½ it is depicted in Modern Railways, July 1963 p58, arriving at Wembley Hill behind Sheffield Darnall's No.D6811. Coincidentally, the March issue also contains yet another of Geoffrey Skelsey's always-fascinating articles, this time about Marylebone suburban services. In it he mentions services to Wembley for major sporting occasions, instancing both WCML services calling at Wembley Central and Marylebone services to the stadium loop, as well as GC line services to Wembley Hill. During the early 1960s all three of these seem to have seen their fair share of usage. Although Wembley Central would have seemed the natural destination for any excursions from the West Midlands and the North West travelling via the WCML, it must be remembered that the southern end of this was subject to much disruption during the period 1960 to 1966 because of the electrification works. Thus traffic was routed up the London Extension often, as noted above, and in other instances it did use the WCML as far south as Bletchley but then switched to the GC by taking the Bicester route as far as the WW2 spur at Claydon.
A further permutation of routeing arose with those trains running up the GC, given the availability of two routes south of Grendon Underwood Junction, the one via Princes Risborough and High Wycombe and the other via Aylesbury and Amersham. It would have seemed natural to use the former route as it allowed trains to stop and decant their passengers at Wembley Hill. However, numbers of trains are known to have run via Aylesbury straight to Marylebone. Presumably passengers were expected to then make their own way to the stadium, eg on the shuttle described in Geoffrey Skelsey's article. Moreover, it appears that while some excursions, eg those from Wakefield on 11th May 1963, deposited their passengers at Wembley Hill on the southbound journey, they started from Marylebone and ran via Aylesbury on the return northwards. An illustration of the variety of routes followed by Wembley-bound specials is provided by the excursions to the FA Cup final of 25th May 1963, two of which are illustrated by Trevor Owen. On this day, at least four trains ran from Leicester to Wembley Hill, all steam-hauled, one with a Leicester 'Black 5' and the other three using 'Jubilees' borrowed from Burton and polished to perfection. A further train ran from Loughborough hauled by a 'Black 5' borrowed from Annesley. All these ran up the GC line. In addition to these, four trains ran from Manchester, electrically-hauled over Woodhead to Sheffield and then taken on from there to Wembley Hill by then-still-quite-new English Electric Type 3 diesels (later Class 37) from Darnall depot. Trevor Owen's photographs illustrate at least two Manchester-origin trains running up the WCML and there is photographic evidence of what might be a train from Manchester running up the GWR Birmingham main line at Hatton.
These and other such excursions (see below) provided the sight of otherwise-rare diesel types at Neasden and Marylebone. For example, the 1964 RL Challenge Cup final at Wembley on 9th May 1964 brought four of Dairycoates' EE Type 3s plus a York EE Type 4 (aka Class 40) to Marylebone, running via Amersham incidentally, on specials from Hull. Hull's opponents that year were Widnes and most of the excursions from that town ran up the WCML, although one ran to St. Pancras. Remember that the remnant longer-distance services out of Marylebone were predominantly steam- hauled right up until the end in September 1966. Although the Darnall Type 3s had been running to Woodford and Banbury daily since September 1962 with the York-Bournemouth and return workings, they were not normally seen at Marylebone.
There were three fixtures at Wembley on successive Saturdays which often had capacity crowds and regularly attracted excursions from different parts of the country in the early 196's. These were the FA Cup Final on the first Saturday in May and the Challenge Cup Final on the second Saturday, as already mentioned. The third event was what was called the soccer 'schoolboy international'. It was held on the last Saturday in April and was an under-15 fixture between England and an opponent, most often one of the 'home countries' (Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) but sometimes another European nation or even visitors from South America occasionally. Most of the England 1966 World Cup-winning side had played in this game in previous years as in later years did Michael Owen and Ryan Giggs amongst others.
At that time only northern teams played in the Rugby League, so Challenge Cup excursions inevitably originated in the North. Those for the FA Cup had a greater variety of originating points but it was the schoolboy internationals which used to draw in the greatest variety of motive power on a regular basis. It seems that people were attracted from all over the country to these matches and that the railway organised excursions to bring them to Wembley.

Book reviews, 318

The New Railway - The earliest years of the West Highland line. John McGregor. Amberley Publishing, softback, 128pp, 56 illustrations. Reviewer not stated. ****
A fresh look at the last of three routes to reach the west coast of Scotland north of the Firth of Clyde has been undertaken by John McGregor, in succession to his two previous pictorial books on the West Highland line to Fort William and its extension to Mallaig, all published by Amberley. The present book, however, is devoted largely to describing the development and construction of the line during the closing stages of the nineteenth century, culminating in the completion of the extension to Mallaig and ill-fated branch to Fort Augustus early in the twentieth. As usual railway politics and vested interests of the major landowners etc had a significant influence on the alignment and timing of the construction eventually implemented. In 1882 the Glasgow & North Western Railway, a 160- mile speculative scheme, had been promoted to build a competing and shorter route to the Highland Railway's established if somewhat circuitous line to Inverness, but this failed. Instead at the end of the decade a start was made to reach Fort William from Helensburgh on the Firth of Clyde passing through 100 miles of rugged mountainous terrain. In doing so, it ran parallel to Gare Loch, Loch Long and Loch Lomond, crossed the existing line from Callander to Oban, traversed Rannoch Moor, before reaching the Caledonian Canal in the Great Glen and passed north of Ben Nevis.
Initially thwarted from accessing the west coast at Roshven, the sensibilities of both the Caledonian and Highland railways were in due course allayed and funding obtained to permit the 40-mile extension of the line to Mallaig in 1901. Despite agreements between the three major railways in the district, others promoted and subsequently built a branch up the Great Glen pointing directly at the Highland Railway's stronghold in Inverness, but this only reached halfway at Fort Augustus. Abortive schemes challenging the promoters, together with getting the line up and running and early operational problems, such as snow, are considered; but beyond that the ongoing story is left for another occasion.
Well researched and written, despite the disappointing reproduction of some photographs, this book is thoroughly recommended to those eager to know more about these interesting remote railways. See also Editor's comment on page 381..

The British Transport Police - an illustrated history. Richard Stacpoole-Ryding. Amberley Publishing. 96pp. Reviewed by CH. ****
Richard Stacpoole-Ryding begins his story with the first ever railway police force formed in 1826 when the Stockton & Darlington Railway Company employed a superintendent and four officers to police its tracks. It seems that in order to cut costs a number of the early railway companies relied upon local magistrates to appoint special constables to maintain the peace on railway construction sites. This changed in 1838 when an enactment rendered the companies liable for policing their own land and assets, which also included company-owned canals docks and ports. The story continues with the 1921 Railways Act, which amalgamated what had been more than 240 separate police forces into the 'Big Four' railway companies. Mr. Stacpoole-Ryding takes the reader through the formation of the British Transport Commission and the creation of Britain's first ever national police force. It continues into the present day where the British Transport Police (BTP) is now responsible for maintaining the peace on Network Rail, London Transport, the Docklands Light Railway, Midland Metro tram system, Croydon Tramlink, Tyne and Wear Metro, Glasgow Subway and the Emirates Airline cable car.
This generously illustrated book is an ideal introduction to an organisation, which was the first to use dogs, employ women uniformed officers and use technology to arrest a murder suspect. Set out in chapters that include Railways, Docks, Harbours and Canals, London Transport, Police Women and Training and Uniform, the writing is straightforward, informative and detail is plentiful without contusing the reader. The illustrations, 180 in all, are a mixture of sepia, black and white and colour, ranging from the very early years until the present day. These are accompanied by simple effective captions. The author also includes a useful chronology as part of the final chapter when describing the BTP today. My only surprise is that the author steers clear of the political fallout from SNP Scottish Government's controversial decision to amalgamate the BTP's Scottish Division into its own Police Scotland from 2016 which could, according to many commentators, lead to the demise of this unique and specialist force working to keep the travelling public safe.

The nonagenarians - a celebration of the first 90 years of Green Goddess and Northern Chief (1925- 2015) Andy Nash on behalf of the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway Association Heritage Group, 54pp.(Available through the RH&DR Association Heritage Group, heritage.group@rhdra.org). DWM ****
For those Backtrack readers with an interest in the 15inch gauge, this is a fascinating book which is, in effect, the biography of the first two Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway Pacifies, Green Goddess and Northern Chief. These third-scale Flying Scotsmen were delivered in the 1920s from Davey Paxman of Colchester – whose diesel engines, in the 1970s, powered British Railways InterCity 125 revolution and are still going strong.
Produced in an attractive, homespun, style, the book is written with authority and not a little humour; it is splendidly illustrated throughout and provides a comprehensive study of the two locomotives. Engineering matters such as the evolution of the design, the eventual adoption of superheating to suit Romney conditions and enough details of changes of whistles, tenders and overhauls to delight the most ardent 'rivet-counter' are considered but the locomotives are also placed in their context within the minimum gauge world.
The book cannot help but give a nod to the general development of the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch over the years. Personalities too, on or about the railway, abound, Captain Howey and Count Zborowski, the progenitors of both line and locomotives, Henry Greenly, the designer of so much 15inch gauge equipment, Mr. Gresley and the Duke of York (later King George VI), present at the opening day are all there.
More recently –- and rightly considered in some detail – is George Barlow, who was effectively 'the face of the Romney' and the driver of Green Goddess for much of his long service to the railway.
In a pleasant nod to contemporary Romney, and times just around the corner of memory, many of the people seen in more recent photographs are named and there are a number of references to the 'other' fifteen inch gauge railway, the Ravenglass & Eskdale. Green Goddess actually undertook running-in trials in the fells before its own railway was completed and in 1971 Northern Chief visited Ravenglass to undertake evaluation leading to the building of the R&ER's own Northern Rock.
This is a splendid little book which should appeal to all those BT readers who still delight in the sight and sound of steam locomotives doing the job they were built to do - even at the ripe old age of 90!

The Great North of Scotland Railway: a new history. David Ross. Stenlake Publishing. Hardback, 221pp, 158 illustrations, Reviewed by NS ****
The Great North of Scotland Railway has been the subject of two previous histories. That by Sir Malcolm Barclay Harvey was published in 1940. It was followed by H. A. Valiance's book of 1965. The latter was a fuller history of the GNSR, but lacked some of the insight that Barclay Harvey probably gained from being the son of a landowner on Deeside during Great North days. 'Vallance' did have some useful appendices, particularly those added by the GNSR Association in the second edition of 1989.
David Ross's New History is a far more comprehensive study of the Great North than its predecessors and is particularly good in looking at the personalities involved in the Railway and the company's financial situation throughout its life. The book benefits from making use of local newspaper reports as well as the GNSR records and shows that the company was very much a railway rooted in its region, all but one of its chairmen coming from Aberdeenshire.
The first part of the book deals with the history of the Aberdeen Railway, which ran south of the city, as well that of the GNSR, as they were closely linked and it had been intended that they should amalgamate. Whereas the Aberdeen Railway soon started on the construction of its line, the GNSR was only able to begin work six years after its Act. This delay prevented the company from achieving its aim of completing its planned line through to Inverness as the railways which were later to form the Highland Railway took over and built the western part of the route from Keith.
The Great North was, however, able to extend to the west of Aberdeen by taking over the Deeside Railway, rather than the Scottish North Eastern Railway (the successor to the Aberdeen Railway), although the Deeside line was only reached over the Scottish North Eastern's (later the Caledonian's) tracks.
In spite of several attempts to reach Inverness, the GNSR remained largely confined to Aberdeenshire, Banffshire and the eastern part of Moray. It developed a significant number of branches from its main line, mainly built by subsidiary companies. Their development is fully described by the author.
The GNSR has acquired a bad reputation for its earlier years. E. L. Ahrons called it "a really very shocking railway" with "glacial expresses". David Ross successfully challenges this impression, pointing out that complaints about its services during its first 30 years were no greater than those for the other Scottish railways. The perception of the line as 'Little and Good' in its later years is, however, born out. The Great North was, for instance, quick to adopt motor transport to provide feeder services to its system and was indeed second jointly with the North Eastern) to the Great Western in the size of its road motor and steam lorry fleet.
The book is well illustrated, but the placing of some of the photographs in the earlier chapters seems rather random. There are maps of both the Great North and the Aberdeen Railway systems.
This volume is essential reading for those interested in railways in the North of Scotland. With its publication David Ross has now written the definitive histories of all five Scottish companies within a period of ten years. It is an achievement which has added much to our knowledge ohailways north of the Border, somethingfor which he and his publisher deserve our thanks.

Fast run from Llandudno. M.H. Yardley. rear cover
Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45647 Sturdee waiting to depart on 13.15 to Manchester Exchange on 29 August 1966. See long letter from Ted Buckley on page 466.

June 2016 (Number 302)

Isle of Man Railway 2-4-0T No.11 Maitland assembles a train alongside Douglas station in July 1961. front cover
Guard with polished buttons checks that all is ready.

Halt — who goes there?. Michael Blakemore. 323
Editorial on halts. See also feature by Jeffrey Wells which begins at Measurements, passes Perranporth Beach Halt, but fails to reach West Runton! See also letter from Garry Thorp on the upgrading of Emerson Park Halt by Transport for London.

Caledonian mixture. Roy Hobbs.324-5
Colour photo-feature: Pickersgill 4-4-0 No. 54465 at Forfar shed on 23 April 1962; Class 5 No. 44794 at Gleneagles on Aberdeen to Glasgow express on 28 May 1966; No. 54465 at Rosmount on Blairgowrie branch on Easter Ramber railtour on 23 April 1962; BR Class 4 2-6-4T No.80092 on Killin branch approaching Killin Junction with single coach on 5 July 1965; Drummond 2F 0-6-0 No. 57345 shunting at Forfar on 16 September 1961,

Richard Smith as told to Paul Joyce. Never a dull moment. 326-31.
Brief history of Reading GWR/Western Region shed then experiences of Richard Smith who worked at Reading motive power depot (engine shed) as a cleaner and eventually as a fireman. Fire-boxing was the worst task, but was rewarded by higher wages: it entaied working inside the hot, dirty firebox whilst the boiler was washed out. Collecting the shed's wages off a morning express from Paddington was an interesting task. An early firing turn on Castle on an up milk train fromn Westbury had been preceded by consumption of beer at the Staff Association where he had to be rescued by the driver sorting the fire with the pricker on the climb towards Savernake. Illustrations: Hall class passing Reading West Main Box with train for Basingstoke; No. 5959 Mawley Hall  with fireman George Broadhurst; No. 6104 leaving Reading with two vans; WD 2-8-0 No. 90356 on freight; Modified Hall No. 7917 North Aston Hall on Reading shed in June 1964; BR Class 5 4-6-0 No. 75053 in Reading shed in June 1964; Britannia No. 70025 Western Star at Reading General; 57XX No. 7788 still letered GWR on 25 April 1954 at Reading.Further memories see page 756 et seq

Edward Gibbins. The closure of the Somerset & Dorset Joint Line. Part Two. 332-9
The County Councils were unrealistic in their responses to the closure proposals. The bus companies did not view the railway closure as a source of new business. The line closed on 7 March 1966. Illustrations: 7F 2-8-0 No. 53808 on express at Broadstone on 1 August 1959 (colour); BR Standard 4-6-0 Class 4 No. 75072 and Class 5 No. 73047 on a Bournemouth West to Bradford Forster Square express between Wellow and Midford on 28 July 1962; 7F 2-8-0 No. 53803 on freight in Wellow Valley in March 1961; Fowler Class 4F 0-6-0 No, 44424 and West Country No. 34102 Lapford (minus nameplate) passing Midford with southbound Pies Express on 15 August 1959 (Hugh Ballantyne); 9F 2-10-0 No. 92001 at Midsomer Norton South on 09.53 Bath to Bournemouth in August 1962 (colour: J.G. Dewing); No. 92210 arriving Bath Green Park with 09.25 Bournemouth to Manchester and Liverpool on 21 July 1962 (T.J. Edgington); Class 4 4-6-0 No. 75027 and rebuilt West Country No. 34040 Crewkerne on 10.03 Manchester to Bournemouth West on Midford viaduct in August 1962 (colour: Barry Gant); Class 4 4-6-0 No. 75073 approaching Radstock from Bath on 26 June 1965 (colour: Roy Patterson); Class 4 2-6-4T No, 80039 at Stalbridge with 12.30 ex-Templecombe on 28 December 1965; Class 4 2-6-0 No. 76011 approaching Henstridge with 12.30 ex-Templecombe on 5 March 1966; Bath Green Park station facade in August 1964. See also John Macnab letter (p. 445) on comparable closures in Scotland. See also letter from Christopher Ralls on page 509.  

Jeremy Clarke. New lines for the Southern. 340-8.
The ones selected are the new line and major station at Ramsgate leading to Margate (and the closure of duplicate stations and line in both Ramsgate and Margate); the Allhallows-on-Sea branch; and the Wimbledon to Sutton line (built to keep the Underground group out of further Southern Railway territory). The first stemmed from the former unmitigated competition between the South Eastern Railway and the London Chatham & Dover Railway which had led to separate lines to both Ramsgate and to Margate. The solution was a new connecting line in Ramsgate which included a new station and fascilities for servicing locomotives and rolling stock. The station at Margate was also rebuilt and both were the work of Maxwell Fry. The Allhallows venture was a branch line off another one, namely that to Port Victoria and was encouraged by the Hoo Estate which hoped that development would follow on the Kent shore comparable to that in Essex on the opposite bank of the Thames Estuary. A Light Railway Order was obtained and the line opened on 16 May 1932. Excursion traffic from South East London led to it being doubled for a time, but it closed on 3 December 1961. The Metropolitan District Railway had obtained powers to extend fromn Wimbledon to Sutton, but failed to exploit them and when the City & South London Railway sought powers for its extension to Morden and the Southern Railway fought to stave off this intrusion a sort of quid pro quo emerged whereby the Southern built the line to Sutton replete with gradients only suitable for electric traction. The two surviving lines have modern train services: Margate and Ramsgate have express services to St Pancras via HS1, and the Wimbledon to Sutton line also has services to St. Pancras via Thameslink. Illustrations: D class 4-4-0 No. 1574 leaving Ramsgate for Margate in June 1948 (J.C. Flemons); N15 King Arthur class No. 776 Sir Galagars leaving Margate for Ramsgate in June 1948 (J.C. Flemons); Ramsgate Town station forecourt c1910; Great Northern Railway E1 class 2-4-0 No. 1067 at Margate Sands station c1913; Schools class 4-4-0 No. 30908 Westminster at Dumpton Park with train for Victoria on 3 September 1958 (P. Hay); H class 0-4-4T No. 31517 at Allhallows-on-Sea on 13 August 1959 (A.E. Bennett); map of Thanet lines; Stoke Junction Halt with H class 0-4-4T No. 31324 approaching with train for Gravesend on 25 November 1961 (A.E. Bennett); H class 0-4-4T No. 31551 with train from Allhallows near Middl Stoke Haltn on 7 January 1961 (colour: J.S. Gilks); H class 0-4-4T No. 31324 taking on water at Allhallows-on-Sea on 2 December 1961 (public house in background) (A.E. Bennett); Sutton station forecourt in mid-1930s; map of Allhallows branch; steam cranes at work constructing Sutton branch in 1928; South Merton station; map of Sutton branch; Wimbledon Chase station; C2X 0-6-0 No. 32445 with milk empties from Morden passing Sutton; St. Helier station entrance (all Sutton images are from Lens of Sutton)         

Peter Hay. Rope-worked inclines. 349-51.
Very little text: mainly black & white photographs with excellent captions: Cromford & High Peak looking up Sheep Pasture Incline from High Peak Junction; photograph taken from ascending train in 1953 of descending train whivh included four-wheel ex-Furness Railway tender used for conveying water up incline to dry limestone territory at top (KPJ suspects that riding trains was strictly forbidden on this incline!); N10 0-6-2T No. 69093 descending Waldridge Incline in 1956; rake of wagons with banksman perched on wagon to draw chain off coupling with his footl; same rake as previous reaching sidings at foot of incline; Blackhams Hill West Incline on Bowes Railway in 1968, and incline at Dorking Greystone Limeworks with locomotive William Finlay providing haaulage power. See also letter from Anthony Broome on pp. 509-10 which corrects some of  the etxt and several of the captions,

Manx sunshine. 352-6
Colour photo-feature (all locomotives in Indian red livery unless noted otherwise): No. 14 Thornhill leaving Douglas with 15.45 to Ramsey on 20 April 1957; Douglas shed on 21 August 1959 with No. 12 Hutchinson, No. 10 G.H. Wood, No. 13 Kissack, No. 6 Peverill, No. 1 Sutherland and No. 5 Mona; No. 3 Pender at St. John's on 20 April 1957; No. 10 G.H. Wood at Port Soderick on 4 August 1964; No. 13 Kissack with No. 16 Mannin leaving Douglas for Port Erin with No. 10 G.H. Wood in background in August 1960; No. 5 Mona at St. John's with train for Douglas; No. 14 Thornhill at St. Germains; No. 6 Peverill at Castletown with company lorry 0n 4 August 1957; No. 10 G.H. Wood at Ballasalla with train for Port Erin on 20 April 1957; No. 11 Maitland (green livery) at Douglas shed on 4 July 1970 (Alan Tyson); No. 10 G.H. Wood  (green livery) on viaduct at Glen Wyllin on 3 June 1968; No. 10 G.H. Wood  at Peel on 1 June 1968. See letter from Barry C. Lane on page 510 who notes that as well as the Beyer Peacock 2-4-0Ts there had been Sharp Stewart 2-4-0Ts on the Manx Northern Railway. Clive Lovelock corrects some of the captions. .

Glen Kilday. Rules, helping hands and short straws: a dip into railway staff instructions. 357-61.
London & North Easter Railway General Appendix to the Rules and Regulations and Working Timetables with Sectional Appendix for North Eastern Region [sic] (KPJ should it be Area) dated 1 November 1947. Author dips into the 332 page document and notes the maximum distance a mixed train could travel and the maximum number of wagosn which could be conveyed and the maximum speed. Although circuses were considered as mixed trains some of the limits were relaxed. There were precise instructions for tethering horses in horse boxes anda caution not to handle viscious animals but to leave that to the owner or consignor. There were 74 whistle codes rellating to 26 locations on the stretch of ECML between York and Berwick. The edicts applying to working to Weatherhill were worthy of those for an Everest expedition.. Illustrations: Buckeye couplers; charges to be imposed on passengers who broke anything; map of base camp for Weatherhill expeditions and advance camp at Waskerley; diesel multiple unit at Waskerley on 10 April 1965; tombstone milepost erected by Stockton & Darlington Railwaay between Waskerley and Weatherhil; gauge limits; Weatherhill line; Hownes Gill Viaduct. 

John Jarvis. The Calvert Spur. 362-7.
During WW2 several new spurs were opened to connect lines with the aim of providing strategic diversionary routes around London: these included one near Calvert in Buckinghamshire to link the LMS Oxford to Bletchley line to the Great Central line north of Aylesbury. Associated works were brought in at Sandy and at Staines. The Calvert link opened in July 1940. One consequence of the new link was the eventual demise of the line between Aylesbury and Verney Junction. The new spur attracted new traffic such as football excursions to Wembley Stadium and shoppers expeditions from Aylesbury to Milton Keynes. Brick traffic from Calvert was followed by waste disposal traffic to the former clay pits. Illustrations: Class 47 in original livery No. D1631 with Aylebury coal train in September 1968; blue Class 35 Hymek No. 7074 with empty open wwagons for brickworks; two Class 25 on engineers train loaded with track panels; Hymek reversing at Claydon; track diagrams; Class 40 at Verney Junction in September 1967; Class 35 about to depart with trainload of bricks; Class 59 No. 59 205 at binliner terminal on 21 May 2013. See also letter from Tim Edmonds on p. 445  on dates for Aylebury to Bletchley DMU workings.

In their Liverpool home. 368-71.
Black & white photo-feature: Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45600 Bermuda at buffer stops in Liverpool Lime Street in mid-1950s; No. 45708 Resolution on express for Leeds and North East climbing away from Lime Street (Eric Treacy); Liverpool Central forecourt c1910; Liverpool Central with North Country Continental for Harwich waiting departure in 1950; two LNWR Special Tanks (0-6-0ST) at Liverpool Riverside with LNWR express; Liverpool Exchange station concourse with Midland Railway office in foreground; Up The Merseyside Express passing Edge Hill behind Princess Royal No. 46207 Princess Arthur of Connaught (Eric Treacy); Coronation class Pacific No. 6234 Duchess of Abercorn on up express for London passimg No. 5703 Thunderer in 1938 (Eric Treacy); Liverpol Overhead Railway with motor car No.m 29 at Pier Head on 26 October 1956 (T.J. Edgington).

J.D. Bennett. Putting railways on the map. 372-3
Two parts of maps reproduced: sectional map from Coghlan's Iron Road Book (1838) and Syston & Peterborough branch of the Midland Railway.The former shows Birmingham/Sutton Coldfield area, but is difficult to reconcile with the area as perceived from contemporary railway or motorway; the latter show the stretch from Stamford to Oakham and although the railway has only been traversed once in each direction by train it still gives an accurate impression. Many atlases and maps are mentioned in the text and the Ordnance Survey is mentioned.

Jeffrey Wells. The opening of railway halts 1930-35. 374-9.
See also Editorial. Most of information came from Railway Gazette (although the same facts emerge from the Locomotive Magazine during period covered). The definition comes from Gordon Biddle in the Oxford Companion to British Railway History (page 474 bottom of column 2). Text p. 376 mentions Pencarreg Halt near Llanbyther which opened on 9 June 1930: Tim Edmunds (letter p. 445 notes that text fails to note was on former Manchester & Milford Haven Railway which had since become part of GWR). Text page 377 mentiions Hawthorns Halt (for West Bromwich Football Ground (letter from Michael Jee amplifies this in letter on p. 445 and (further by Robert Darlaston on page 509). Illustrations: Measurements Halt with Fowler Class 3 2-6-2T No. 40012 on Delph Donkey push & pull in early 1950s (J. Davenport); Perranporth Beach Halt (caption states closed 4 July 1957, but probably later), Tackley Halt; Osmondthorpe Hall with D17/1 No. 1637 arriving with train for Leeds; Chassen Bridge Halt with Stanier class 4 2-6-4T No. 42465 calling with Manchester Central to Wigan Central train on 24 October 1964 (colour: Alan Tyson); Dolserau Halt (2 miles east of Dolgellau) caption states lit by gas but device for lighting would hold an oil lamp after dark Andrew Kleisner supports thgis view and adds note on lamping; Ruislip Gardens (probably early post-WW2); Bower's Halt. See also letter from Garry Thorp on Emerson Park Halt. Mike Whitley documents Chestfield and Swalecliffe Halt mentioned but briefly herein.

A trip to Oxford. 380
Handbill (reproduced) promoting an excursion to Oxford on 4 September 1935 organized by Glover's of Ripon and Harrogate. Glover's was a car dealer and the main aim of the excursiion was to visit the Morris factory, but note is also taken of the Colleges and the Thames. The  other illustration shows D49 No. 62773 The South Durham and a B1 on bridge in Ripon with a sign advertsing Glover's. The excursion must have been routed over the Great Central to Banbury. Picture from David V. Beeken Collection

Readers' Forum 381

Book reviews. Editor
The house gremlin intervened in the May issue on the 'Book Reviews' page to spirit away the reviewer's star rating for The New Railway — The earliest years of the West Highland line by John McGregor. Mr. Gregor deserves to know that the reviewer awarded his book four stars.

Rails to Morecambe. Editor
The photograph of the Morecambe-Lancaster electric train on p. 198 of the April issue should have been dated 1964 rather than 1966 by which time, of course, they had been withdrawn and the line closed.

Rails to Morecambe. Frank Walmsley
The account of the rise and decline of the Morecambe railway network made interesting reading, supported by some well chosen photographs.
The 1921 view of the harbour and Ward's shipbreaking yard was taken during a flight by Aerofilms Ltd. which deserves the credit rather than Cumbrian Railways Association. Ward's dismantled 44 ships at Morecambe including several Great War veterans, both British and German. The most famous of those was HMS Glasgow which saw action at both Coronel then the Falklands in late 1914. The White Star liner Majestic of 1899 met its end there. The yard became a tourist attraction, admitting visitors for 6d.
The ships in the photograph are, from right to left, HMS Diadem, MS Albion with UC101 alongside, then MS Mersey, HMS Adventure, with HMS Kempenfelt and HMS Peyton moored at the wooden jetty. The building at the top left is The Winter Gardens, now being slowly restored.
Morecambe's importance during both world wars is often overlooked as records are limited. Following the shell shortage crisis of 1915 and resignation of the Government the coalition set up the Ministry of Munitions under David Lloyd George. The development of publicly owned arms factories began. A National Projectile Factory was set up on Caton Road in Lancaster adjacent to the Midland rail line. National Filling Factory No.13 followed in Morecambe on 250 acres of reclaimed mossland in the area known as White Lund. It lay south of the electrified Lancaster-Morecambe railway, which provided rail access.
At its peak the factory employed 4,621, chiefly young women known as munitionettes. Their work was dirty and dangerous, involving filling shell cases from the Lancaster factory with a mixture of 80% ammonium nitrate and 20% trinitrotoluene. At 22.30 on 1st October 1917 a massive explosion took place in the melt shop, which triggered further explosions and fires, continuing until 04.00 on the 3rd. Fortunately most of the night shift had gone to the canteens for the tea break. Damage was widespread with shop windows shattered in Lancaster and fires were visible in Barrow. Fire brigades came from other parts of Lancashire. Ten fatalities were recorded, four of them firemen.
54 railway wagons loaded with live shells, some of which were on fire, lay in the sidings awaiting dispatch. Thomas Kew, an engine driver, and Abraham Clarke Graham, a shunter, were recalled and worked for three hours to uncouple the wagons, moving 49 to a safe place. The factory was almost totally destroyed. On 7th May 1918 King George V presented medals (Edward Medals, OBEs and King's Police Medals) to these men and representatives of the police and fire services. A second explosion on 14th January 1920 killed nine more during clearance of the site, which is now an industrial estate.
During the 1939-45 war the oil refinery making most of the high octane aviation fuel was built on land to the south of Heysham Harbour. Ocean Jetty carrying pipelines was built out to a deep water berth at the head of Heysham Lake. That became operational in 1941 serving tankers of up to 30,000 tons loaded with oil from the Gulf and Caribbean and running the gauntlet of the Atlantic wolf packs. On occasion my father, who was a fireman, returned home with a prized bottle of ketchup or a few packets of chewing gum. No questions were asked. In constructing Heysham Harbour the Midland Railway enclosed an area of 150 acres. 70 acres were set aside for future construction of wet sand graving docks. Apart from a lock pit at the end of the South Quay they were never built, but later the Heysham nuclear power station made use of the reclaimed land. In Morecambe the Midland Hotel was requisitioned at two days' notice by the Office of Works, then handed over to the RAF as a burns unit. Black paint covered the exterior, which was surrounded by barbed wire and Nissen huts. Derequisition came in February 1946, when the hotel was returned to the LMSR until the British Railways Board sold it into private ownership in 1952.

Oswestry . Bob Yate
Re Jeffrey Wells article: his Epilogue was not quite complete. He states that the line from Oswestry to Whitchurch closed as from 23 November 1964, but while that was the intention, this closure notice had to be delayed as there was insufficient time to introduce a replacement road bus service. Consequently, passenger services were finally withdrawn with effect from Monday 18 January 1965. Goods facilities had already been withdrawn from intermediate stations except Ellesmere as from 4 March 1964, but goods workings (mainly milk) continued between Ellesmere and Whitchurch until Saturday 27 March 1965. Track was removed over the entire line in 1966. Incidentally, the locomotive Hero operating the initial trial runs in 1863 was an LNWR Ramsbotttom DX 0-6-0 goods engine No 192 which had been completed at Crewe in August 1860. Also mentioned as being used was Thomas Savin's Sharp Stewart 0-4-2 Montgomery (No.1147 of 1859) which was being used by this contractor during the construction of the line.

'The Nearest Run Thing'. Neil Woodland 
A few more comments on Geoffrey Skelsey's absorbing article. In my view the run-down and eventual closure of the GCR main line resulted primarily from the LMR take-over in 1958; it saw it as a competitor to its services from St. Pancras long before Dr. Beeching joined BR. Colin Walker provides a passionate if somewhat partisan description of the 1958-66 period in his books Great Central Twilight and Great Central Twilight Finale.
A portent for the future arose in 1961 when an 18.17 Marylebone-Bicester service was introduced; it only lasted until 1964 and it was not until 1973 that Bicester (and Banbury) were served from Marylebone rather than Paddington, using non-corridor Class 115 DMUs. By the late 1980s these were on their last legs and closure or modernisation were the only options.
He is right to praise the efforts of Messrs. Parker and Green, but without Adrian Shooter's vision and clear strategy it would probably have remained as a London-based operating unit, serving High Wycombe and Aylesbury with a 40-mile single track branch to Banbury. He saw its potential as an Inter-City route competing with Virgin Trains for Birmingham passengers and the progress over the last twenty years is testament to the success of him and his team.
To bring the narrative up to date, the service to the new stations of Bicester Village and Oxford Parkway commenced on 25th October 2015 and is due to extend to Oxford in December 2016 despite the best efforts of a small but influential group of 'NIMBYs', supported by Oxford City Council, who have opposed the scheme from the outset. An extension to Cowley is expected in a few years' time as weli as a service from Aylesbury Parkway to Milton Keynes. The two remaining mechanical signal boxes at Banbury are due to close in July 2016 with control passing to the West Midlands signalling centre in Birmingham from August.
Chiltern Railways is constructing a maintenance and train crew depot at Banbury which will open later this year or early 2017. With at least ten trains per hour from Marylebone (eight via the Joint line) the future of the route appears assured — so unlike the position in the 1980s.

'The Nearest Run Thing'. Robert Barker 
The earliest literary reference to Marylebone station is probably in John Buchan's Mr. Standfast, a sequel to The Thirty-Nine Steps, published in May 1919 and set two years earlier. Ridiculing "arty" people who affected to appreciate gloomy Russian literature, Buchan said they "admired greatly the sombre effect of a train going into Marylebone station on a rainy day". Marylebone was still an intrusion upon London NW. and had not yet become the butt of gentle humour.
In the second part of the article, the Metropolitan livery was not best represented by No. 11 George Romney which, by the time the photograph was taken, was long overdue for repainting, The colour reproduction is accurate.

Past and present track formation. Peter Clark
With regard to your caption for the lower photograph on p138, the concrete troughing probably was carrying signalling and telephone cables. Many miles were laid, principally in connection with the Kent Coast electrification, around the late 1950s/early 1960s. It was not drainage (drains are sub-surface and more waterproof) whilst traction current continuity is via the third rail, fed at regular intervals by alternate sub-stations and track paralleling huts (TP huts). Although the North Kent lines retained semaphore signalling for many years afterwards, the troughing could well have been in anticipation of future resignalling (note that no pole route carrying telegraph wires is visible). When newly installed, it provided a reliable surface for walking along the lineside but later became overgrown and the lids broken or otherwise displaced. In the late twentieth century when standards seemed to be totally neglected, materials and cables could often be seen strewn all over the place. However, matters have improved and cables now tend to be carried in elevated trunking which looks much tidier and no doubt offers better access and protection.

Past and present track formation. Robin Leleux
Re Michael Binks's references to widening Roade Cutting: The LNWR, as successor to the London & Birmingham Railway which dug the original deep cutting between Roade and Blisworth, did indeed have to widen the cutting and at a descending level, when it built the Northampton Loop in 1875-82. The retaining walls were lengthened but heavy rain in November 1891 saw a bad slip by the limestone on top of the slippery clay. While 2,000 navvies were busy clearing this, another 2,000 tons fell in during the following January. The spoil was dumped in a field at nearby Milton Malsor, the mounds still being visible if one knows where to look. The LNWR then installed a series of girders across the lower Northampton lines, but with typical parsimony placed them just above chimney height, so when electrification came 70-odd years later the engineers had to raise each one by a few inches — there are over a hundred!

A Wansbeck wander. Leonard Rogers 
Re correspondent Charles Allenby who mentions troop specials to Woodburn in May 1965 and states that their motive power was unknown. These specials originated at Stranraer, whither they returned on 30 May, and conveyed Territorials from Northern Ireland. They would have reversed at Morpeth and I suspect that they would have been re-engined there. My guess, for what it's worth, is that Blyth may have provided a pair of its Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0s for the journey over the Wansbeck line, as it did for the last passenger special over the route, the Wansbeck Piper on 2 October 1966. The motive power from Stranraer to Morpeth on 16 May 1965 is also unknown, although I suspect that it may have been the same as that for the return trips on the 30. What can be said with some certainty is that these latter trains were worked over the 'Port Road' to Stranraer by three of Carlisle Kingmoor's remnant 'Clan' Pacifics. Each of the three trains was depicted crossing the Galloway moors on that second Sunday by Derek Cross in his books Steam in Scotland, Vol. 1 and Roaming the Scottish Rails. He remarks that "The Stranraer-Dumfries line saw most of its activity during the hours of darkness and long passenger trains in daylight were rare. A few weeks before the line closed, however, the Sunday peace of rural Galloway was rudely shattered by convoys of ten-coach troop trains over the line."

Willesden shed. Les Greer
I was a fireman at Willesden in the early 1960s and whilst the majority of local passenger work was covered by Watford and Bletchley sheds. lA had several locals morning and evening and also covered the Broad Street-Tring services. The working of the Colwick WD was probably a Toton-London coal train via Northampton. At one time this traffic was worked by Willesden men as a lodging turn but they lost the work in the early sixties. The machine gun at the top of the coaling tower was actually a crane used for maintenance of the Hopper lifting gear.
I am the archivist for the lA Enginemen's Club. We meet regularly and I collect photographs of railway people and places associated with Willesden. I would greatly appreciate anyone who could supply any photographs for this archive. If anyone would like to contact me regarding the photograph request they can do so on 01664 813406.

Book reviews. 382

Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers in Great Britain an Ireland. Volume 3: 1890-1920. Mike Chrimes and others. Institution of Civil Engineers, . xxxii, 743pp. £200. Reviewed by KPJ. *****.
This is what is intended to be the final volume of a work which was begun in 2001 by covering the period 1500 to 1830. This was followed by a volume which covered 1830 to 1890 (published in 2008). The first volume was produced under the Chairmanship of Sir Alec Skempton and the Secretaryship of Mike Chrimes, but Sir Alec died prior to the publication of the first volume. Even the most superficial examination shows that the Secretary has performed an immense amount of work.
Sometimes biographies may occupy more than one page, but some may be sufficiently brief for two to fit on a page. All biographies are signed; the majority contain a portrait of the subject. Many list the principal structures associated with the biographee: dams, bridges, railway lines, canals, roads, etc. Publications are also listed: in the case of the eminent engineers, such as Sir Benjamin Baker, the list of works associated with him exceeds the length of the typical biography of lesser workers. There is a short introduction to the nature of the profession within the defined time limits. A photograph of the ant-like toilers on the Aswan Dam in 1901 serves to show how engineering has changed since then. There are also indexes of people and of places, but no subject index as such, although the last named is sufficiently detailed to partially redeem the lack. With a few notable exceptions (there are excellent biographies of Sir John Aspinall and Francis Webb) mechanical engineers are not covered, although in a few cases their tormentors, like Trench in the case of George Hughes, are identified. In many entries the subject's humanity emerges. Thus Sir John Milne's love of Japan extended to his wife Tone Horikawa as well as his contributions to seismology, including the mini earthquakes induced by trains. Viewed from North Norfolk, William Marriott, the engineer and general factotum of the M&GNJR, is a significant omission, especially when Colonel Holman Stephens is included. This work should be available in all libraries in cities claiming to be major regional centres..

Corris nostalgia. Gwyn Briwnant Jones. Gomer Press, 68pp, Reviewed by DWM ****
Whilst not perhaps on the scale of the Welsh Highland the arousal of the Corris Railway from its slumbers is, yet another, magnificent achievement for railway preservationists in the west of Wales. This whimsical little volume was first published in 2009 and was intended as the author's final account of the life and times of the Corris Railway. However, never in railway preservation at least, say 'final' and in recent years more photographs and artefacts have appeared - and Corris Nostalgia is the result.
Stylishly produced and delightfully illustrated, the resultant book is in four parts, personal memories in the decade to 1948, a review of the Corris company's bus services (who'd have thought it?), past and present at the L1wyn-Gwern quarry and 'final fragments', in effect a trawl of what might have been left out including references to horse traction, photographs ancient and modern and an acknowledgement of contemporary developments. Assured of appealing to 'Corrisites' this delightful little volume has plenty to say to Backtrack readers with an interest in the narrow gauge - then and now!

York and its Railways 1839-1950 . Paul Chrystal, Stenlake Publishing Ltd., 96pp. Reviewed by DWM *
With 30 years' experience in York's 'railway tourism' (author's nomenclature) your reviewer approached this book with some relish — but after closer examination came away very disappointed!
Some of the chapters within the book, 'York's Industrial Railways' and 'The York Railway Institute' for example, provide an interesting slant on some aspects of York's railway history. 'A York Railway Miscellany' provides some fairly tenuous links to the wider railway world although perhaps its highlight is a photograph of one of the National Railway Museum's former 'object cleaners' diligently polishing a wax figure of Queen Victoria inside that monarch's own saloon!
On the whole, however, there is very little original material and the text in general suffers from a very dense and 'hurried' style. This rather erratic style persists in the pictorial material, some pictures are mis-captioned, some unfathomable: for example on page 53, 'Sparrowhawk pulling out of York' in fact shows no more than a crowded 'up main' platform, and some are just wrong. On page 13 the picture of 'two more NER locomotives at York' is wildly uninformative, particularly as the image in question is of the NE bay at Carlisle and the picture on page 14 of Lord Nelson crossing the Scarborough Bridge is a latter-day Scarborough Spa Express rather than, as stated, 'in the 1910s'!
The author has been very precise with the closing date — 1950 — for his commentary. This then really begs the question why at least four pages of the book are devoted to the National Railway Museum, an entity which did not feature in the story of York's railways until 1975? Your reviewer feels almost apologetic for the above curmudgeonly words but surely if the author is hoping to appeal, at least in some part, to a specialist audience then it is essential to add something new to the store of railway knowledge and to make sure that what is presented pictorially is accurate and relevant.
Your reviewer would find great difficulty in recommending this book to Backtrack readers.

Liverpool's railways through time, Hugh Hollinghurst, 96pp. Amberley Publishing, Also available in Kindle, Kobo and iBook formats. JH **
This is a book of photographs, many of them recent colour views — there are a few lithographs as well. It is one of a series of such works, mostly devoted to general surveys of places such as Bootle and Crosby & Blundellsands, both of which are by Hollinghurst. His evident interest in the north end of Liverpool may explain why this collection conspicuously omits the south end of the city. Speke and Garston do not get a look in. '
The choice of illustrations is generally good. There are plenty of views of goods stations and obscure corners and the number of old favourites is not excessive. Unfortunately, the quality of reproduction is variable — from good to fuzzy or dull. Another irritating feature is that a Significant minority of photographs have smaller ones inset, which often obstruct useful detail of the larger picture — and the inset pictures are too small to be of much use.
One of the quirkier an more interesting illustrations is a page from Woodvale signal box register of down trains on 25 April 1914 — on the Cheshire Lines Extension and a bit north of Liverpool. The text generally tries to be informative and in this case notes that steam-hauled trains "were interspersed with motor car services run by the L &YR" — indicated by 'MC'. In fact there are some trains noted as 'X MC', which turn out to be trains from Manchester, and some noted as 'L& Y M'. The latter might be LY (steam) railmotors, but what were they doing running to Southport Lord Street? Ian Travers's comprehensive article on the railmotors in Backtrack 2015, 29, 142 offers no clues. My best guess after consulting a 1910 timetable is that the register is from Altcar signal box, not Woodvale. The point to take away from this is that this book has evidently been put together by a local history enthusiast, not a railway specialist, for people with similar interests. The bibliography lists five books, including three of John Gahan's popular railway histories, so no deep research has been done. Anyone with a special interest in Liverpool's railways should certainly check it out, but not all the information provided is reliable. The stars are for some interesting pictures.

Irish railway rambler – the railway photographs of Michael McMahon. Michael McMahon. Colourpoint, 176pp, Reviewed by DWM *****
As to the content of this photographic odyssey your reviewer can do no better than quote the back cover of the book which states that "this is a personal... memoir drawn from three decades of observation, starting in 1975, during what are now regarded as the 'museum years' of post-steam Irish Railways". For those Bocktrack readers who were fortunate enough to travel on the renowned Railway Preservation Society of Ireland Railtours during the 1980s and '90s this volume is, indeed, and with acknowledgement to the splendid Ken Bruce of Radio 2, 'the tracks of their years'.
In full colour and produced in the usual top quality Colourpoint style the book gives a comprehensive tour of the diesel-hauled railways of Ireland in the days before the bulk of locomotive-hauled trains were displaced by the arrival of the ubiquitous multiple unit. There are multiple units to be found of course, as the Ulster Transport Authority was a pioneer of their use and Northern Ireland Railways carried on this policy. It is interesting to see, the photographs of NIR units far from home operating the Cork-Cobh branch and also to read the author's forthright comments on this displacement of loco-hauled trains by some of the newer units!
But the locomotive classes of Irish Rail dominate the pictures: from the 'old original' — and much rebuilt — A Class to the mighty General Motors 201s of more recent years. Southern black and amber and Northern blue are to the fore but coaching stock, railway works and stations are also featured and, by its very nature, the book gives a marvellous impression of railways of the time in the landscape of Ireland. The photographs are consistently fascinating, well-chosen and well- reproduced. The captions and 'chapter introductions' are detailed, informative and, where appropriate, enhanced by personal reflection.
This book may 'only' be a photographic record, but it is a magnificent photographic record of a particular phase in the history of the railways of Ireland. It may well serve as a 'standard' reference of this period for future years and comes highly recommended.

Sir John Hawkshaw – the life and work of an eminent Victorian engineer, Martin Beaumont. Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Society, hardback, 160pp., 167 illustrations. Reviewed by PT *****
The L&YR Society is to be congratulated for taking on the publication of this biography of John Hawkshaw. Not only was he the Engineer and Manager of the fledgling expanding railway, but went on to be a well respected consulting engineer with a world-wide reputation. He practiced his profession in the field of not just railway construction but also turned to design and supervise the construction of large bridges, tunnels, docks and harbours, canals etc. In a well arranged book the author Martin Beaumont relates the story of this gifted man of humble origin, his upbringing,. his start on a career in construction and rise in responsibility as his obvious talents were recognised. After serving the L&YR and its predecessors well during the early part of his career, he went on to establish a consulting practice in London, where his hard work, appointment of competent assistants, common sense and sound judgement in both engineering matters and commercial realities brought him increasing recognition. This resulted in appointments on British and foreign commissions, advising on many matters including serving on the Gauge Commission, commenting on the feasibility of the Suez and Panama Canals etc. Hawkshaw was one of a number of illustrious engineers of the early Victorian period who were at the cutting edge of their immerging profession and had a hand in setting up the Institution of Civil Engineers. His long life culminated in his receiving many honours. Printed on high quality art paper, the readable text does not give the appearance of being overtly academic, yet is fully referenced with notes, chronology, appendices and index. This sets a standard others may struggle to match.

Taking the 'Terrier' for a run. J.S. Gilks. rear cover
No. 32640 leaving Havant for Hayling Island on 9 August 1963

July 2016 (Number 303)

BR Class 4 4-6-0 No.75047 passes Sandhills heading towards Liverpool Exchange on the Lancashire & Yorkshire route into the city on 17th July 1965. (Trevor Owen). front cover

Lines of enquiry. Malcolm Timperley. 387.
Guest editorial about the Inreach service operated by the National Railway Musuem Search Engine (library/documentation centre). Information searches have included the origin of Brown Windsor Soup (an Alec Guinness joke rather than a railway dining car) anhd the possible route of Wallace Hartley's final railway journey to Southampton to join the RMS Titanic: Hartley was the leader of the ship's orchestra. Also notes that many former railway staff diesd from asbestosis (Dr Timperley is a medical man). Richard Ardern claims to have cosumed Brown Windsor soup on the up Mancunian in 1959: page 573.

East Lancashire lines David Rodgers. 388-92
Colour photo-feature recording the demmise of steam traction in 1968: Class 5 No. 45407 at Pleasington with 10.50 Preston to Blackburn parcels train on 4 May; Class 5 No. 44713 on shed at Lostock Hall on 12 April; 8F 2-8-0 No. 48257 at Huncoat on 13.25 Colne to Red Hall empty newspaper vans on 1 June; Britannia No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell leaving Wilpshire Tunnel whilst working a special from Hellifield to Stockport on 13 April; No. 45350 passing Rishton station with 13.25 Colne to Red Hall empty newspaper vans on 15 June; 8F 2-8-0 No 48124 at Pleasington with Wyre Dock to Healey Mills coal empties on 10 May  

R.A.S. Hennessey. Murphy's Law: Class 84. 393-7.
British Railways sought designs for AC electric locomotives from several British suppliers: originally classes 1 to 4, and a fifth (AL5) from Doncaster Works. This article concentrates on the AL4 type supplied by the North British Locomotive Company. Readers are directed to B. Webb and J. Duncan's AC locomotives of British Rail. Other documents cited include The modernisation and re-equipment of British Railways (1954), The system of electrification for British Railways (1956) and the British Railways Electrification Conference held at Battersea in 1960. The AL4 incorporated the COM-PAC mercury arc rectifier which worked on the split-phase principle. The body was based on a Vierendeel truss usually associated with bridges and the transmission used the Brown Boveri quill drive. KPJ surprised that mercury arc rectifier problems on Glasgow Blue Trains not mentioned. Illustrations: AL4 No. 3037 passing Jodrell Bank radio telescope in unusual position (upside down); AL4 No. 3037 with W.D. Warder, R.N. Miller (Managing Director of GEC; Sir Leslie Gamage (Chairman of GEC) and E.A. Manley (Manager, GEC Traction); AL4 No. 3036 on test on Styal line; diagram (elevation and plan); AL4 No. 3037 at Longsight on 17 September 1960; No. 84 003 in Birmingham New Street on 25 August 1980 (colour: Gavin Morrison) .

Alistair F. Nisbet. By road and rail across the Forth. 398-405
Written partly to note the construction of the new road bridge to replace or augment the existing road bridge which is failing due to corrosion of its suspension cables and to consider how the railway bridge might have been modified to accommodate road traffic. The crossing point is known as Queen's Ferry or Queensfaerry and was where Mediaeval pilgrims going to Dunfermline Abbey were ferried over the firth: the lowest bridge was upstream at Stirling. As early as 1806 a tunnel was being proposed (Caledonian Mercury 17 September 1806); and in 1818 James Anderson proposed a suspension bridge (Caledonian Mercury 8 August 1818). The initial railway approach was by two railways: the Edinburgh, Leith & Granton and the Edinburgh & Northern with a ferry connecting Granton with Burntisland. These became the Edinburgh, Perth & Dundee. Train ferries carrying wagons were introduced by Thomas Bouch (see Backtrack, 2001, 15, 40). Bouch had intended to build a suspension bridge at Queensferry, but work was halted after the Tay Bridge disaster. A Forth Bridge Company was formed in 1873 with the Midland Railway holding 32½%; the NBR 30% and the GNR and NER each holding 18¾%.. Financial guarantees having been established a Bill to build the bridge was obtained in 1882. Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker were appointed engineers and Sir William Arrol & Co. was the main contractor. The cantilever form was adopted. Heavier loads led to strengthening beginning on 10 August 1909: this was supervised by James Bell of the NBR and by Hurtzig  The press questionned the safety of the bridge: John Bull 21 December 1912 and People's Journal 20 December 1912. The work was completed in 1920. A separate road bridge was broached in 1924, but funding was not available. Sir Bruce White of Wolfe Barry & Partners on 4 November 1948 proposed adapting the railway bridge to accept road traffic by installing an aluminium alloy deck above the railway. It was to be paved with composition blocks, but later rubberized bitumen was suggested. The wind loadings were reduced and bridge police were to be employed. A panel consisting of Professor J.F. Baker, Gilbert Roberts and H. Shirley Smith reported to the Ministry of Transport in March 1954. It was critical of the sub-standard width; the increased stress on the overall structure; corrosion of the aluminium due to its electrochemistry with the steel. Brigadier Langley was nnot impressed with the proposal due to its adverse affect upon the railway crossing. In 1964 work started on the road suspension bridge: this is now threatened by corrosion of its cables. Illustrations: Forth Bridge (colour: Lynn Patrick); D30/2 No. 9422 Kenilworth on Fife Coast to Glasgow Queen Street express in June 1929 (G.R. Griggs); J38 No. 65929 leaving bridge at North Queensferry with a Niddrie to Perth  freight with ferry in background on 8 June 1951 (Eric Bruton); J39 on northbound freight showing central cantilever taken from Mary Queen of Scots ferry on 8 June 1951 (Eric Bruton); permanent way work showing waybeam construction, baulk sleepers and special rails; Class 170 DMU on link span; Scott class No. 62429 The Abbot arriving North Queensferry station on 15.45 Edinburgh to Ladybank train on 8 June 1951 (Eric Bruton); northbound freight crossing Forth Bridge viewed from South Queensferry on 8 June 1951 (Eric Bruton) and road and rail bridgesc viewed from South Queensferry on 18 April 1992.

Jeffrey Wells. The Severn Tunnel – Part One. 406-11.
Ferry operations on the Severn Estuary were limited by the great tidal range (50 feet) and strong winds. There were two crossings: the Old Passage from Beachley to Aust and the New Passage to Portskewett. Thomas Andrew Walker's The Severn Tunnel: its construction and difficulties, 1872-1887  published in 1887 and with further editions (Ottley 2564) and subsequent reprints is frequently cited as well as reports in Berrow's Worcester Journal, the Western Mail. the Standard, the Hampshire Advertiser, the Bradford Observer, the Morning Post, the Bristol Mercury, and the Hampshire Telegraph. The South Wales Junction Railway proposed a tunnel with two air shafts in mid-channel, but this was opposed by navigation interests. Bridge crossings were rejected by the naviagation lobby and Charles Richardson was appointed engineer for a tunnel; work on which began in 1873 with the sinking of a shaft at Portskewett. The contrcators were William Dennis and Benjamin Dennis of Bristol. On 18 October 1879 water burst into the workings and the Great Western was forced to step in, called upon Sir John Hawkshaw and appointed T.A. Walker as contractor. The bravery of the diver, Andrew Lambert of Siebe, Gorman & Co. enabled the doors on the tunnelling shield to be closed.  Illustrations: Monmouthshire portal c1920; Sudbury Pumping Station c1905; Severn Tunnel Junction station c1910; map; Pilning station with King-class hauled down South Wales Pullman passing; Henry C. Casserley's car on truck leaving Severn Tunnel on English side photographed from coach on 14 July 1958; Severn Bridge c1910 (coloured postcard photograph) see letter page 638 from John Miles correcting caption; and de Glehn compound 4-4-2 No. 104 Alliance leaving Western portal c1907. Part 2 see page 484.  

Michael R. Bailey. Eric Lomax – The Railwayman of War and Peace. 412-15.
Based on the Stephenson Locomotive Society's Memorial Lecture presented at the National Museum of Scotland on 14 March 2016. Lomax was a very long term member of the Society and was a keen railway photographer. He was born in Joppa, Edinburgh on 30 May 1919. Died in Berwick-upon-Tweed on 8 October 2012. He was educated at the Royal High School in Edinburgh and joined the General Post Office on leaving school. He was a keen cyclist, open-water swimmer and railway photographer. He was a member of the Stephenson Locomotive Society from 1937. He is most notable for his book, The Railway Man, about his experiences before, during, and after World War II, which won the 1996 NCR Book Award and the PEN/Ackerley Prize; and has since been made into a film (motion picture). This describes his experiences as a Japanese prisoner-of-war working on the Burma Railway, being tortured, and his subsequent suffering due to inadequate post-traumatic care by the British Army and the care given to him by his wife Patti. Illustrations: Jubilee No. 5707 Conqueror at Bolton Trinity Street on express for Manchester Victoria on 19 June 1936; Peckett 0-4-0ST owned by Singer Manufacturing Co. at Clydebank on 5 March 1937; Y9 with tender No. 10098 at Preston Links Colliery on 7 August 1936; Coronation Pacific (blue livery) No. 6221 Queen Elizabeth at Glasgow Central on 25 June 1937; GNSR G10 0-4-4T No. 6889 shunting at Kircaldy on 28 August 1937; Dean Goods 0-6-0 No. 8327 at Oswestry on 4 July 1938; former J15 (GER) 0-6-0 No. 7690 as owned bgy Baird & Co. at Gartsherrie Ironworks on 1 August 1938; former Foden steam lorry as adapted to work as a railway locomotive at Aycliffe Quaryy, Durham on 8 May 1939; North Western Railway (India) 4-6-2 No. 2696 with 0-6-0 on Frontier Mail at Jhelum in 1941. See corrections on page 509; notably that from Robin Barnes who notes the improbability of a Peckett locomotive at the Singer Works (illustration) and adds that it was a standard Neilson product

Trevor Owen's World of Steam. 416-20.
Colour photo-feature as trailer for One man and his camera: the railway photography of Trevor Owen published by Pendragon: No. 7000 Viscount Portal on Cheltenham Spa Express formed of chocolate & cream liveried coaches pasing Twyford on 30 April 1960; rebuilt Merchant Navy No, 35011 General Steam Navigation on Bournemouth Belle near Pirbright Junction on 21 October 1965; 4575 2-6-2T No. 5552 at Trewerry Halt o0n Chacewater to Newquay branch on 14 May 1958; Class 4 4-6-0 No. 75027 at Aberystwyth on 24 December 1962; Standard Class 5 4-6-0 No. 73091 at Builth Road High Level with train for Swansea; 14XX 0-4-2T No. 1444 at Ham Hill Halt on Chalford auto train on 23 March 1964; 61XX 2-6-2T No. 6109 passing Goring troughs with an up parcels train on 4 November 1961; inside Tyseley shed on 28 July 1962; N class 2-6-0 No. 31821 at Groombridge on 31 May 1963; Class 5 with eleven coach train near Shap Wells on climb to Shap (photographed from A6? with Jowett Javelin or Bradford van nearby?).

Focus on Newcastle. 421-3.
Black & white photo-feature: A3 No. 60037 Hyperion at Newcastle Central; D20 backing out towards King Edward Bridge under semaphore signal gantry (C. McFall); B16/2 No. 2364 on express (C. McFall); A4 No. 4499 Pochard on Gateshead shed with cod's mouth open (C. McFall); Metro-Cam dmu in reverse standard livery on South Shields working on 27 September 1980 (T.J. Edgington); High Level Bridge with local train c1900; A4 No. 60027 Merlin on Flying Scotsman.

Steve Leyland. A Bolton exodus [traffic survey based on trades' holiday or Wakes Week in 1962]. 424-30.
There were two main categories of special train: those taking passengers away for a week or two at resorts as far away as the south west and east coasts and those catering for day trips. The first category included trains which ran throughout the summer timetable mainly from Manchester which were started back at Bolton. Illustrations: Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0 No. 43040 arriving at Bolton Trinity Street with a Wakes Week Special on 23 June 1961 (Tom Heaviside); Bolton shed on 23 June 1962 with Jubilee No. 45710 Irresistible; Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42435; Jubilee class Nos. 45558 Manitoba and 45663 Jervis; 8F 2-8-0 with express headcode approaching Westhoughton with train for Southport or Liverpool (Paul Claxton); No. 73014 arriving  Bolton Trinity Street with stock to form 08.25 Manchester Victoria to Scarborough on 24June 1967 (SA. Leyland); advertisement from Bolton Evening News 1964 listing special trains; No. 73014 at Wakefield Kirkgate with train ex-Bolton Trinity Street exchanging with diesel No. D6871 for onward journey to Scarborough on 24 June 1967 (SA. Leyland); return working of No. 73014 on 10.48 Filey Holidsay Camp to Manchester passing site of Mirfield engine shed (Barry Mounsey); Class 5 Nos. 44915 and 45225 nearing Bolton having worked from Stockport on extended Paignton to Manchester Victoria train on 2 July 1966 (Martin Leyland).

Andrew James. '75000s' on the Southern Region: a case study. 431-5.
The Standard Class 4 4-6-0s allocated to the Southern Region were fitted with double chimneys during 1961. Examination of the records held by the Railway Performance Society fail to show any marked difference in the performance between the modified and unmodified locomotives. Illustrations: (all double chimney unless stated otherwise): single chimney No. 75077 on 13.54 Waterloo to Basingstoke near Clapham Junction on 22 March 1957 (T.J. Edgington); No. 75076 at Bournemouth Central on 23 July 1966 (colour: Gavin Morrison); single chimney No. 75071 at Templecombe in March 1961; No. 75074 at Brighton shed c1963 (Roy Cole); single chimney No. 75079 approaching Eastleigh with semi-fast for Waterloo on 18 August 1961 (colour: Gavin Morrison); No. 75076 alongside rebuilt West Country No. 34040 Crewkerne on Eastleigh shed on 24 September 1966 (colour: Gavin Morrison) notb Eastleigh, but Basingstoke shed: Nigel Whitwell Letter on p. 573)..

In the water [railway company owned ships and boats]. Dick Riley. 436-7
Colour photo-feature: paddle steamer PS Freshwater at Lymington on 18 July 1955; MV Mudsucker (dredger) in Lowestoft Harbour on 22 May 1957; MV Humphrey Gilbert approaching Dartmouth on 2 September 1963; TSMV Brading leaving Ryde on 23 June 1957; TSS Maid of Kent at Weymouth on 6 April 1974.

Brian Ringer. The 'Didcot Fly'. 438-9
Class 31 No. 31 102 shown working Wallingford branch on 17 April 1979 when the maltings owned by Associated British Maltsers (ABM) with grain hoppers abnd Vanfits. Destinations included the Guinness Park Royal brewery: author worked as Assistant Yard Manager at Acton marshalling yard at that time.

Miles Macnair. Emile Bachelet and the dawn of 'Maglev'. Part One. 440-4.
Describes a journey on the Pudong International Airport to Shanghai line where trains reach 270 mile/h then shows how Emile Bachelet developed the use of Foucault eddy currents to ease arthritis, then in vaudeville shows and finally as a source of propulsion probably to launch aircraft from ships.Winston Churchill was interested in its naval potential. Illustrations: Shanhai MAGLEV; Bachelet's Mount Vernon laboratory with levitating goldfish; Bachelet with Pumphrey and Miles Bracewell; drawings from patent; flying train demonstration in Holborn in 1914; Robin Barnes colour painting of Metropolian electric locomotive and train, Great Central express and Bachelet levitating MAGLEV deonstration at Neasden; Churchill with Admiralty officials visiting Bachelet laboratory in 1914. Part 2 see page 594.  

Readers' Forum 445

A different class – the LNER B17s. David Burton
George Smith took a constricted view of what locomotive names were likely to appeal to the working class at the time they were bestowed. Only two of the writer's family (all 'working class'), had more than a passing interest in football: one supported West Bromwich Albion and the other supported Walsall. Most of the other members of that generation had far more interest in horseracing than in football, an interest divided about 50:50 between a passion for gambling and a liking for animals. Both his grandmothers were keen gardeners and were interested in wild birds, so both of them, having been born towards the end of Victoria's reign, could probably have seen and appreciated the names on the Dean/Churchward 'Bird' and 'Flower' Classes, although these didn't last long enough to be included in the Ian Allan Combined Volume from which George Smith drew his research. Neither did most of the eclectic selection of LNWR passenger class names, which could probably provide material for an article on their own.

The Calvert Spur. Tim Edmonds
Mention is made of the use of this route during the 1980s by DMUs working the lines out of Marylebone but maintained at Bletchley: these began before this. During a visit made to see what was left of Verney Junction in August 1976 an empty DMU passed heading west; my next stop was Quainton Road, where the same unit  was seen heading south towards Aylesbury.

Coals to Kensington. Nick Lera
Photograph at foot of p75 does not show Turnham Green, but is Mill Hill Park, renamed Acton Town before electrification in 1905. The reasons are as follows: 1. Turnham Green at the time had one island platform (an extra one being added after the 1911 quadrupling). 2. Neither the platform made of wooden planking nor the style of the semaphore signals nor the very short cross-members on the telegraph pole are in keeping with LSWR practice. 3. The 'gingerbread' awnings characteristic of all stations before the Studland Road Junction are nowhere to be seen. 4. The bushes in the background are inconsistent with the adjoining land at Turnham Green being about 20ft below rail level. They would have to be tall trees. 5. The signal is 'off' for the Ealing branch, the arm at danger being the Hounslow line: see response from Michael J. Smith on page 573.
Regarding the 'Jinty' locomotives retained at Cricklewood for LT line working, they may not have needed to be condensers but they were specially fitted with LT tripcocks as a precaution against what we now call SPADs. Apart from GW panniers on the Smithfield run, few other BR locomotives were so fitted, a Neasden-based BR Standard 4-6-0 Lera saw on a freight at Hillingdon in 1960 being a possible candidate (see response from Robin Barnes on p. 509). [KPJ: LT tripcocks fitted to many locomotives on Great Northern and Great Eastern Sections]
The dating of the 'Jinty' freight photographs can be narrowed down. The views on pp.72/3/5 all show trains with coal only. These must have been taken after about 1960 when from my own observations single wagonloads of general merchandise no longer appeared in the trains, which were appreciably shorter as a result. The photographs on p70 with at least three covered vans in the consist is probably late 1950s. It was a pleasure to see the set of photographs at High Street Kensington from the R.S. Carpenter Collection: a remarkable documentation of an unusual central London operation rarely recorded by anyone else.

'Through a Glass Darkly'. Rory Wilson.
Billy Brown of London Town: letter writer's late father used to say that it was common to find that the following had been added at the bottom of Billy Brown's piece of doggerel:
I thank you for your information
But I can't see the bloody station.
No doubt there were many variants.

Never a dull moment. Paul Joyce
Caption correction: should read: " .. .The lines veering to the left form the ... wartime double track connection down to the Southern Railway. Opened on May 25th 1941, this was the third means of access for traffic between the two systems. During the retreat from Dunkirk. .. "

The Closure of the Somerset & Dorset Joint Line. John Macnab
The article  encapsulates the procedures of the Transport Users' Consultative Committees, the responses received and how they were dealt with. The remarks and comments could apply almost equally to every other closure proposal put forward throughout the UK at this time. Although many objectors had genuine concerns as regards personal or collective hardship there was an air of naivety that was matched by those individuals and bodies in the TUCCs to give any cogent responses. During 1968/9 writer was employed in a section of the Scottish Region HQ in Glasgow dealing with the last of the outstanding closure proposals for Scotland. The, by then, well oiled procedures were put in motion in the same manner enumerated for the S&D with facts and figures bandied about which would include bus services to appear as a veritable rash on roads and country by-ways in substitution for the oft derisory timetabled train services. It was all merely a smokescreen to reach, in the majority of individual cases, the inevitable conclusion. A great deal over the ensuing decades has been written and commented on by a host of writers on the 'Beeching Plan' and the resultant outcomes. As far as the article in question is concerned, the final two paragraphs (p339) sum it up for the majority of cases (namely lack of custom).

The opening of railway halts. Tim Edmonds 
Pencarreg Halt, mentioned on p376 was not on the Cambrian Coast but on the former Manchester & Milford Railway line between Llanybyther and Lampeter.

The opening of railway halts. Michael Jee
Not correct when stated that The Hawthornes Halt is not shown on OS maps, though it admittedly is not on the  1in or 6in to the mile maps. However, the 1937 1:2500 map (which can be viewed at httpsv/www.old-rnaps.co.uk/ index.html# /Map/ 40 2547/289864/12/100734 marks a halt and the 1956-58 1:1250 map (https:j/www.old-maps.co.uk/index.html#/ Map/402965/289550/12/100954 ) shows platforms at the site, though does not name it as a halt. These dates incidentally are publication dates and the survey is likely to be a couple of years before.

In the West of Wales. James Milne
Re caption at the top of p287 which states that photograph was taken in 1958, but the branch from Newcastle Emlyn closed to passengers in 1952, some six years earlier. Yet look at the state of the track, the formation and the cess on that branch (KPJ not visible in my copy! only the goods  shed newly painted) - nothing short of immaculate, with new ballast to boot! The line was still open for freight traffic in 1958.

Past and present track formations. David Daines
Re the tunnels under Harecastle hill near Kidsgrove. The canal tunnel built by Telford was provided to bypass the original Brindley tunnel which was becoming subject to restriction caused by subsidence. 'Barges' never threaded their way through any tunnel at Harecastle, which is on the Trent and Mersey or 'Grand Trunk' canal, a narrow canal having locks of just 7ft width and therefore too narrow for 'barges', always wider than 7ft in beam to navigate. Narrow boats were, and are, exclusively able to thread through the hill at Harecastle. Moreover, neither tunnel was ever "drained and converted for steam-hauled rail traffic" as stated. Indeed the north and south entrances to the original Brindley tunnel are still visible and in water, just alongside those of the later Telford tunnel, which writer has navigated many times on his eighty-year- old 'Narrow Boat'. Whilst the railway tunnel is indeed unused, it is completely erroneous to claim that "The three existing tunnels were abandoned" as the Telford one is very much 'In use' by canal narrow boats on a daily basis.

The Railway Regulation Act 1844. John C. Hughes
John Flann  gave a good summary of the case against railway management, but whilst much is made of the 'railway interest' in Parliament, we do not hear so much about the 'anti-railway interest'. This was made up of even more MPs, which is why the railways were not able to prevent the passage of Acts they objected to strongly. The railway's critics were not, for the most part, disinterested observers. They were people with their own commercial interests and at least as greedy and selfish as railway shareholders and directors are accused of being. The evidence they produced was highly selective and sometimes completely dishonest. Their real cause for dissatisfaction was often that railways had reduced the cost of inland transport with embarrassing results for their own monopolies through the encouragement of competition where it had not existed before.

Swindon Railway Works. Andrew Nock
Re exhibition at the Works to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Great Western Railway: it never took place; the workforce reacted to the closure announcement in spring 1985 by refusing all cooperation with the 'GWI50' organised by the Western Region. Not only was the exhibition aborted, but also the locomotives hauling the steam specials between Swindon and Gloucester were denied access to the Works turntable, rendering the operation of these trains more difficult. Sidney Newey, then General Manager of the Western, commissioned a painting of what might have been - perhaps Mr. Roberts has seen it and drawn the wrong conclusion. There was eventually an exhibition in the Works, however; the 'National Railway Museum on Tour' took place there in 1990, when remedial work on the structure of the York museum was under way.
Finally, Roberts attributes the timing of the closure announcement to "ineptitude", but there may be another interpretation. It is hard to imagine that the BR Board would not have been fully aware of the workforce's likely reaction to the closure announcement and the implications for GW150, but quite possibly they were not over-concerned. Not everyone was a GW fan. A friend who worked 'Inside' told him with surprise before the closure announcement that nothing had been done to clear the exhibition area, so perhaps at a senior level people already knew. One could also argue that, once the decision had been made, delaying the announcement until after the exhibition would in the long run have been seen as cynical and callous.

Swindon Railway Works. Linda Death
Author mentions Alfred Williams' book Life in a Railway Factory and says reprints of the book are still available. As it is out of copyright, the book is also available as a free down load from Project Gutenberg. www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/40975

Fast run from Llandudno. Ted Buckley. 466.
Re photograph of No.45647 Sturdee: personal memories of the summer Saturday extras which brought Farnley Junction Jubilees to the North Wales Coast. The Leeds-Llandudno bore the headcode lM48, with the return working lN86. Contrary to what readers might expect, in the 1960s these summer Saturday extras did not take a direct route through Manchester Victoria, but ran via (by then) freight-only lines to the south of Manchester. The Leeds train (and others) ran via Stockport and on to the CLC line towards Glazebrook Junction/ Warrington Central. as far as Skelton Junction (Timperley) where it took the connection to the LNW line through Broadheath and Lymm to Warrington Arpley; then the train skirted the WCML and took the line to Chester via Frodsham.
In late 1964 wrier moved to the village of Dunham Massey, just west of Broadheath, where his back garden was adjacent to the 'Lymm Line', so he spent many happy dayswatching the procession of freights (the local passenger service had ended in September 1962), enriched on a Saturday by these summer Saturday extras. lM48 ran each Saturday in 1966 for the ten weeks 25 June to 27 August, with the return lN86 running for ten weeks, starting and finishing a week later. He observed eight of the ten weeks, with Sturdee working on four occasions, No. 45562 Alberta twice and No.45581 Bihar & Orissa once, 2 July 1966. On 30 July 1966, heading the train was Carlisie-based Britannia No.70009 Alfred The Great. Contrary to the impression which may have been given by the caption, the locomotive off lM48 did not return on the following week's lN86. In my many observations from 1963 onwards, the first two years at the aforementioned Skelton Junction, he never witnessed this. However, in 1965 a pattern was set for it to return eastwards on the following week's lN82 Llandudno to Newcastle. The westbound working from Newcastle was not routed this way. This practice was not repeated in 1966, although on 30 July 1966, Sturdee did turn up on this service; I missed the westbound service the previous week. The usual fare for lN86 had been a 'Black Five', although in 1967 Patricroft- based Caprotti Standard 5s were also regular performers.
In 1967 the service was dieselised and became the preserve of English Electric Type 4 (later Class 40) machines, which worked out and back on the same day. The Newcastle-bound train was taken over by the first series of BR Sulzer Type 2s, later Class 24. The Leeds- Llandudno and Llandudno-Newcastle were re-routed away in 1969, but we still had the Llandudno-Leeds, with its diet of Class 40s. plus one Class 47.
The line itself closed to all traffic on 7 July 1985 at little more than a week's notice to all the signallers, owing to the discovery of the need for expensive repairs to the viaduct over the Manchester Ship Canal at Latchford.

Book reviews. 446

Railways through the Vale of the White Horse. Adrian Vaughan, Crowood Press, 2015, paperback, 160pp,  DMA *****
Why do people protest against the building of a new railway? Why do they protest against the closure of a railway? The answer lies in our fear of growing old. Seeing childhood friends and places allows us to feel young, but when some familiar thing from our youth is knocked down we feel the weight of time passing. likewise when something new is built across long· remembered fields. Imagine the uproar if the Great Western main line through the Vale of the White Horse was to be shut down, allowing weather, excavators and rain to undo it again. Imagine the outcry if a railway were projected across the Vale for the first time. It would only proceed if forced from sight, behind plantations of trees and in tunnels rather than being allowed to become part of the landscape. Luckily for us the railway was built, running proud across the fields of Berkshire and Wiltshire that King Alfred knew. From the Ridgeway trains can be seen, like threads being pulled across the patchwork quilt of the Vale. From those trains the line of hills can be seen, sometimes through a veil of grey drizzle, sometimes bright and sharp when the rain has cleaned the air and the sun comes out. And on those hills runs the White Horse as it has done since before Alfred first sounded the Blowing Stone.
Adrian Vaughan's book describes in loving detail the line through the Vale from Steventon to Wootton Bassett along with the branches to Uffington and Highworth. A line where the industrial world of steel and coal met the countryside of hay and horse:; two worlds in contact along a line. The books starts with BruneI's survey, a line on a map skirting the Downs, ignoring the local towns as it ran from London to Bristol, avoiding· all curves and steep gradients. Designed for express trains to run from city to city, the Great Western Railway originally intended to have only three stations between Didcot and Swindon: at Steventon, Faringdon Road (later Challow) and Shrivenham. Wantage Road and Uffington were added later. Vaughan's book runs like a stopping train, calling at each station, sharing old photographs, telling stories from the time of Brunel to the time of Betjeman. Stories of the heroic early days, of long hours and fatal accidents. Stories from the sixties when the poet's wife would request 'Peddington', before the world of steam and country stations came abruptly to an end. For 125 years the old rituals and routines had been kept, the life of railwaymen hardly changing from father to son. It must have felt eternal, inconceivable that it should suddenly stop.
Vaughan tells of the Victorian Sunday routine on the Faringdon branch. No day of rest here. A main line goods train arrives in Uffington and is shunted into a siding. Meanwhile the Faringdon porter walks down the branch line, three and a half miles, taking the train staff to Uffington. In rain, snow or in sun with skylarks singing. The wooden staff allows the engine and brake van to go up to Faringdon to fetch milk, cattle and freight. The porter gets a ride home. Back at Uffington the wagons of country produce are added to the goods train and it resumes its journey down the main line. In the afternoon another train stops at Uffington and a second journey is made to Faringdon and back. Finally an Uffington porter plods his weary way to Faringdon returning the staff ready for the first train on Monday morning, before walking back home.
The book passes through Swindon, after a brief diversion to Highworth. Vaughan tells of the first days of the Great Western in this country railway town including the infamous refreshment rooms. Having arrived in Wootton Bassett the book returns to Steventon and repeats the journey, this time pausing at each signal box. The author was, of course, a signalman in Challow and Uffington and gives an eyewitness account of the life and work of these country signal boxes. This narrative is illustrated with track diagrams. The railway through the Vale was a piece of the modern world in the countryside and a piece of country life intruding upon the modern world. Railwaymen lived amongst their countrymen, sharing the slow pace of life, sleeping in old cottages and walking along quiet lanes to work. But once at work they were part of a complex organisation, strictly regimented to timetable and clock. They got the road and pulled the levers for the fastest trains in the world, seeing them run through at 90 on their way to London. Then walked home to dig the light chalky soil in their gardens as their fathers had done before the railway had ever been built.

Rails along the Fathew. lan Drummond. Holne Publishing. 224pp. 504 il1ustrations. RG *****
This is a lovely, fascinating, well-produced, well researched and valuable book which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The author must be commended for producing such a fascinating volume and I recommend it strongly to the readers of Backtrack. My father was a member of the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society and I suppose as a young man I thought I was an amateur expert on the railway because I had read all the newsletters avidly as well as L.T.C Roll's Railway Adventure and other literature concerning the preservation era. like the author, I too had volunteered on the Railway in the 1970s. However, this book goes right back to the beginning and traces the tenuous early years of the railway with its dependence on the Bryneglwys slate quarry. I realised that what I knew about the TR was almost irrelevant without the edge-of-the-seat stories relating to the McConnel era and the Haydyn Jones era before the Talyllyn Railway became the World's First Preserved Railway and had to forge its way in the strange new world of tourist railways carrying passengers instead of slate.
The introduction explains how the author was almost bounced into writing this volume to mark the TR's 150th anniversary, after he had produced a similar volume for the Isle of Wight. The book itself starts by tracing the history of the railway's three distinct phases of ownership and the story is brought right up to date with the latest developments including the recent downturn in traffic following the recession.
The route from Tywyn Wharf to Nant Gwernol is described in detail with many period photographs which tell a really fascinating tale of the struggles that the railway has been through.
Separate chapters on passenger operations, goods operations, locomotives, passenger stock, goods stock, signalling and permanent way, people, the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum all enhance the overall story and lead to the final section covering the 150th anniversary celebrations in July 2015, bringing the story right up to date. The photographs are attractively displayed within the text using a shadow technique in their framing which although it sounds weird, enhances the idea that this is a magic story enhanced by dozens of different people's pictures.
If anyone is looking for a one-stop-shop to tell the remarkable story of the survival of the wonderful Talyllyn Railway from 1865 to 2015 than this is it! Thank you.Ian Drummond, for a real treat!

Sussex Steam. Michael Welch. Rails Publishing, 112pp,  JC *****
This is an unashamedly nostalgic book of photographs covering the last fifteen years of so of steam in the county. It is laid out in sections travelling from west to east and naturally includes the secondary lines and byways regrettably lost under Beeching. The electrified main lines themselves are not forgotten: steam still reigned supreme on freight work and inter-Regional and 'special' trains could be seen too.
As well as a map the book begins with an introduction tracing the rundown of steam traction and noting that many different photographers answered the compiler's call for pictures to provide as wide a selection of locations and traffic as possible in that period. All the photographs, the majority in colour. have full, interesting and very informative captions, some real gems appearing among them. Hardham junction signal box for example, the last surviving original LBSCR box on 'stilts', whose corner posts would originally have projected high above the box with signals mounted on them, is pictured on the same page as the neat and delightful early twentieth century box just down the line at Burpham. Steam 'specials' organised in later years, often featuring unusual and visiting motive power, add spice. In that vein is a photograph of the GNR 0-6-0ST No.1247, interesting in itself but made the more Viaduct. It is not just trains, for tickets, timetables and especially infrastructure are illustrated too, among the latter the peculiar and acute-angle level crossing at Rowfant and the magnificent station building at Lavant, typical of those on the Chichester-Midhurst branch. The Hellingly Hospital Railway pops up as do the Bluebell and the K&ESR in both national and infant preservation guises.
One picture is of particular interest to the reviewer who, at the time, lived in the London suburbs close to the Brighton line. Inconsistent timekeeping by the 'Terrible 6.10' Victoria-Uckfield service behind Fairburn or Standard 2-6-4 tanks - a train loading up to ten coaches incidentally - at last induced the authorities to provide something rather more powerful. The engine came up from Brighton hauling the modest 1.55pm to Victoria via Uckfield, illustrated here setting off from Brighton behind Bulleid Pacific No.34055 Fighter Pilot. Some 4¾ hours later this rarely-seen motive power would be spotted with great delight anywhere between Thornton Heath and South Croydon.
The photographs are finely produced on very good quality paper bound in hard covers which themselves carry excellent photographs not reproduced elsewhere in the book. It may be considered 112 pages illustrating a relatively limited period of railway life, is expensive at £19.95. But the quality of reproduction and materials fully justify the price of a book that will be greatly enjoyed by anyone with a Southern interest.

At the going  down of the sun. David Rodgers. rear cover
8F No. 48167 leaving huge black smoke train as it climbs towards Sough Tunnel with 19.05 Burnley to Moston freight on 11 July 1968 (the comparable muck from the motorway truck is far less visible, but...)

August 2016 (Number 304)

GWR 'Dukedog' 4-4-0 No.9004 runs through Barmouth station with an up goods on the Cambrian Coast line in July 1958. P.H. Wells. front cover

Memos from the Department of Administrative Affairs. Michael Blakemore. 451

Lingering in Leicestershire. Tommy Tomalin. 452-3.
Colour photo-feature: the lingering existence of the Great Northern & London & North Western Joint Railway in Leicestershire: Leixester Belgrave Road on 19 March 1968; Melton Mowbray on 20 August 1961; Great Dalby on 20 August 1961; WD No. 90104 passing Loddington church with freight heading towards East Norton on 6 Octpber 1962 and on same date Tilton station with ironstone sidings.

Chris Fox. The Lickey Incline in transition, 1960-1966. 454-60.
Transfer to the Western Region brought 94XX 0-6-0PT pannier tanks in place of the LMS Jinties (3F 0-6-0T). In 1956 Big Bertha the Midland 0-10-0 banker Big Bertha had been displaced by a 9F 2-10-0  (see letter from Bob Yate on page 638 for modifications made to tender of 9F to enable it to be coaled at Bromsgrove) and gradually the changeover to diesel traction and the elimination of unfitted freights eliminated the need for bankers and the associated pinning down of brakes for descending freights. The bank is two miles long, straight and has a gradient of 1 in 37. Illustrations: two 3F 0-6-0T and a 3F 0-6-0 at rear of express about to climb from Bromsgrove (the bankers were neither coupled to each other nor to the train); Jubilee No. 45597 Barbados with express waits for bankers at Bromsgrove before ascent (Norman J. Fox); 4F No. 44165 leaving siding for climb with a freight (Norman J. Fox); 4F No. 44131 at front of descending coal train passing Bromsgrove station in July 1962 (colour: C.R. Gordon Stuart); 9F No. 92220 Evening Star restarts a freight from Bromsgrove South in September 1964 (Norman J. Fox); two 94XX (No. 8402 at rear) banking freight on incline on 1 June 1959; 3F 0-6-0T No.47276 at rear of 07.40 ex-Gloucester formed of carmine & cream livery LMS coaches near Blackwell on 11 July 1956 (colour: T.J. Edgington); 9F No. 92079 at rear of express passing Bromsgrove station on 5 August 1961 (T.J. Edgington); B1 4-6-0 No. 61169 passing Blackwell at top of incline with 12.15 Weston-super-Mare to Sheffield in July 1963 (Norman J. Fox); 9F No. 92079 backing through Bromsgrove station on 11 August 1956 (T.J. Edgington); Improved Train Services from 10 September 1962 (leaflet cover) and Type 4 No. D150 passing Bromsrove with York-Bristol express in July 1962 (colour: C.R. Gordon Stuart)

A.J. Mullay. Steam versus diesel: a 1960s argument recalled. 461-7.
This is a diificult article to precis as it cites an IMechE paper presented by H.N. Brown in 1961 which in turn is not simple to summarise; although Mullay has diligently sought contemporary responses to it in journals like Modern Railways.  Modern Railways also noted a paper by H. Rowley presented to the Institute of Fuel and to the Institution of Locomotive Engineeers (not traced so far by KPJ) which noted the inefficiency of the steam locomotive as compared with diesel. In brief, the American consultant claimed that the dieselisation of the American railroaads had not been a financial success. Mullay notes that the anticipated short life of diesel locomotives had been shown to be incorrect quoting the refurbished Classes 20, 37 and 47 and he should have noted the remarkable longevity of the HST power cars as they continue to run at take-off speed day after day. The failure to link investment in motive power to parallel investment in infrastructure is noted. Thus diesel locomotives had to handle unbraked freight trains which were inherently slow, dangerous and inefficient [the short wheelbase saga might have beeen added]. Diesel multiple uinits had to operate at the inefficient King's Cross and Paddington terminals where separate arrival and departure platforms remained. Nevertheless, there were coniderable savings in manpower; although single manning required delicate staff negotitaions. A considerable amount of space given to the "romance" of steam citing Roger Lloyd's Farewell to steam, but also the lack of same quoting Atkins' Dropping the fire which noted the deadly smogs of the 1950s. "...even the most recent steam locomotives were hand-fiuellled; single chimneyed, lacking roller bearings and were maintained, if that is the correct word, in depots were appalingly dirty, poorly equipped and dangerous". Sir Brian Robertson also noted the public appeal of the "mighty steam engine". KPJ is the comparable to the "romance of cigarette smoking?". Illustrations: English Electric Type 4 No. D279 passing Lostock Junction with a parcels train for Bolton on 21 July 1968 (colour: David Idle); Coronation class No. 46228 Duchess of Rutland at Crewe North shed in 1962; Class 5 No. 45025 at Milnthorpe on 14 April 1968 (A. Tyson); Britannia class No. 70007 Coeur-de-Lion passing Stratford on 12 August 1961 (Roy Cole); Brush Type 2 diesel electric at Hitchin with a down local train on 11 July 1961 (T.J. Edgington) was at Hatfield not Hitchin; Derby four coach suburban dmu in green livery at Marylebone station on 18 April 1964 (colour: David Idle); inside York locomotive roundhouse in 1960s (Eric Treacy); 4F 0-6-0 No. 44218 passing Chapel-en-le-Frith on climb to Paek Forest (A. Tyson); interior of Plymouth Laira diesel locomotive maintenance depot; Deltic No. D9000 Royal Scots Grey on arriavl at King's Cross with Queen of Scots Pullman on 11 June 1964 (David Idle). See also letter from Alisdair McNicol on page 573.

John Reohorn. The Sharp Strewart locomotives of the Cambrian Railways: a chronological survey. Part One. 468-74
Notes how the Cambrian Railways formed from struggling Llanidloes & Newtown Railway; Oswestry & Newtown Railway and the Newtown & Machynlleth Railway. They were brought together under David Davies and Thomas Savin. Alexander Walker was appointed locomotive foreman at Oswestry and subsequently became locomotive superintendent. The records held at the National Railway Museum of Sharp Stewart & Co. contain several gaps. Illustrations: 0-4-2 No. 7 Llanerchydol at Barmouth c1880; 2-4-0 No. 2 Mazeppa in original condition; Mountaineer class 0-4-0ST No. 38 Prometheus; Mountaineer class 0-4-0ST No. 36 Plasffynon at Kerry; Albion class 2-4-0 No. 43 Plynlimon leaaving Aberdyfi with up train in 1914 (H.W. Burman); Albion class 2-4-0 No. 54 Palmerston on Barmouth Bridge c1889 (T.F. Budden); Albion class 2-4-0 No. 28 Mazeppa at Machynlleth on 24 June 1909. See also letters from Dave Cousins and Graham Davies on page 638

'Dukedogs' on the Cambrian. 475.
Colour photo-feature of 4-4-0 type: Nos. 9004 (with burnished copper cap to chimney and 9014 at Llwyngwril (P.B. Whitehouse); No. 9018 hauling carmine & cream coaches off Barmouth BBridge in May 1953 (P.B. Whitehouse); two Dukedogs (leading one burnished copper cap to chimney and express headlamps) hauling eight mainly carmine & cream coaches in May 1953 train partly reflected in sea (J. Jarvis) 

Focus on the Furness. 476-9
Black & white photo-feature: Kent Viaduct with Furness Railway 4-6-4T approaching Arnside and LNWR 2-4-0 leaving westward; Jubilee class No. 45674 Duncan and 45651 Tanganyika entering Arnside off Kent Viaduct; Furness Abbey station; Fowler 2-6-4T No. 42401 and Stanier 2-6-4T at Ravenglass with train consisting of four carmine & cream corridor vehicles and at front an unusual six-wheel bogie coach; Coniston terminus in pre-WW2 LMS period; Waterhead Pier, Coniston with steam yacht Gondola and TSS Lady of the Lake; Patriot class No. 45543 Home Guard at Lakeside (Windermere) on 1 July 1956 (T.J. Edgington); Eskmeals station c1908; G1 0-8-0 No. 9329 on local passenger train at Grange-over-Sands on 29 June 1939 (H.S. Wright); FR steam railmotor (railcar) with trailer coach at Foxfield c1910; former MR 2F 0-6-0 No. 58287 on freight at Haverthwaite on 31 May 1960; Sellafield station with DMU on 21 June 1975 (T.J. Edgington)

Go South West. David Idle. 480-3
Colour photo-feature: Merchant Navy No. 35022 Holland America Line on RCTS East Devon Rail Tour at Waterloo awaiting departure on 28 February 1965; No. 35016 Lamport & Holt Line departing Waterloo on 15.30 to Weymouth (photographed from flats above railway); rebuilt West Country No. 34013 Okehampton approaching Tunnel Junction, Salisbury from Eastleigh and Romsey on 5 September 1954; No. 34102 Lapford near Basing with 09.05 Birkenhead to Poole on 25 July 1964; rebuilt Battle of Britain No. 34060 25 Squadron on 08.46 Bournemouth Central to Waterloo near Woking on 9 September 1966 (train consisted of Rail blue/grey, maroon and green liveried stock); Q class No. 33009 with LNS brake van at Wimbledon on 23 July 1965; BR Standard class 5 No. 73083 (once named Pendragon) at Deepcut with 15.35 Waterloo to Bournemouth on 15 August 1966; No. 34015 Exmouth at Deepcut on 12.59 Bourmnemouth to Waterloo on 15 August 1966; No. 35005 Orient Line stopping at Surbiton with 08.53 Bourmnemouth to Waterloo on 28 March 1965.

Jeffrey Wells. The Severn Tunnel: Nineteenth Century aspects. Part Two. 484-9.
Part 1 see page 406. Continues reports from newspapers (Bristol Mercury, Birmingham Daily Post and Western Mail) on floodings (May 1881), a further inundation by the Great Spring and by a tidal wave, strikes (4 June 1881); the partial completion, management inspections in July 1885 and September 1885; the first transit by a coal train on 9 January 1886; the inspection by Colonel F.H. Rich on 17 November 1886; and opening to passenger traffic on 1 December 1886(and the imposition of higher fares to recover the cost).  Illustrations: Monmouthshire portal and signal box c1920s; diagram; No. 5099 Compton Castle passing Severn Tunnel Junction on up express on 28 August 1948 (H.C. Casserley); Sudbrook pumping station on 11 July 1959 (H.C. Casserley); interior of Sudbrook pumping station showing beam engine on 15 January 1961 (colour: Trevor Owen); Tunnel inspection van DW 249 at Pilning station with diesel railcar W23 on 26 October 1952 (R.O. Tuck); Henry Casserley's 1937 Hillman Minx on truck at Pilning station on 14 July 1957; two inspection trains at Pilning station on 26 October 1952 (R.O. Tuck); inspection of tunnel lining in progress on 15 January 1961 (colour: Trevor Owen).

Dave Ferguson. The Crieff & Methven Junction Railway: a 150th anniversary celebration. 490-3
The Perth, Almond Valley & Methven Railway opened on 1 January 1858; the Crief Junction Railway opened on 16 March 1856; andv the Crief & Methven Junction Railway opened on  21 May 1866. The extension from Comrie to Lochearnhead and Balquidder opened in 1905. Branch Lines of Strathearn by John Young. (Lightmoor Press) reviewed by AT in Backtrack, 2015, 29, 62 gives further information. Illustrations: Abercairny station; staff at Balgowan station (including John Mann and his daughters in 1919); Caledonian Railway 0-4-4T No. 439 leaving Balquidder for Crief; map; Comrie station; Madderty station with Durward and his staff; Methven Junction with train of preserved CR coaches on 11 October 1958 (W.A.C. Smith); Lochearnhead station and viaduct c1910.

Western Region permanent way diesel shunters. 494-5
Colour photo-feature: Ruston & Hornsby diesel electric shunting locomotives: No. PWM 653 in green livery with second BR crest at Swindon in 1959 (B. Swain); No. PWM 650 in green livery with second BR crest at Evesham in June 1963; No. PWM 651 in green livery with double arrow symbol at Rayr in June 1976 (K. Fairey); No. PWM 653 in green livery with second BR crest at Taunton Concrete Works (R. Leitch) No. 97 652 in engineers' yellow livery with red double arrow symbol at Exeter Riverside in September 1986; No. PWM 654 in blue livery with large double arrow symbol at Worcester in 1976.

Michael Vanns, Bridges of the Newark and Bottesford branch. 496-9.
The Great Northern Railway arranged for the bridges on the branch to be photographed in March 1903. At Bottesford the line connected with the Grantham to Nottingham line and with the joint (with the LNWR) line to Leicester and gave the LNWR running powers to Doncaster and access to the Nottinghamshire coalfield. The line gave access to the gypsum works at Lowfield including the Cafferata Works now subsumed into British Plaster Board. Consideration was given to closing Newark Castle station and diverting the Nottingham to Lincoln service into Northgate station. Illustrations: (majority were Great Northern Railway official photographs taken in 1903) J6 No. 64225 approaching Newark with train from Nottingham Victoria on 44 September 1954 (Jack Cupit); Bridge No. 274 (from King's Cross on main line and branch on 15 August 1957; Bridge No. 3 in 1903; Bridge No. 11 at Cotham station;  Bridge No. 4 looking towards Newark (immaculate permenet was see letter from John Macnab on p. 573); J6 No. 64234 crossing main line onto Bottesford branch with coal train in 1950s (Jack Cupit); Bridge No. 26 at Bottesford North Junction.

Beverley Cole. J.C. Bourne. 500-1.
John Cooke Bourne was born on 1 September 1814. He observed the London & Birmingham Railway under construction and was inspired to record this and to capture the grandeur of the works.
"In terms of technical information Bourne is generally more accurate than most of his contemporaries — and this is particularly important at such an early period and before the age of photography. The drawing of Camden Town depot, for example, makes clear the arrangements at Camden for the hauling up and lowering down of carriages to Euston. Clearly shown is the engine house where the two 60hp stationary engines used for hauling were located together with locomotives waiting for the trains. In the middle of the view is the engine shed and in the foreground is what Bourne called an "eccentric for shifting rail" which shows how points worked."
Although Drawings of the London and Birmingham Railway was generally well received, with the Birmingham Journal commenting that the views were "well entitled to a favourable place in the library of the studious as well as in the drawing- rooms of the idle", it was not a commercial success. but in 1846 his second and last railway book appeared — The history and description of the Great Western Railway. It was very different from his work on the London & Birmingham Railway. The Great Western Railway was already well established and Bourne produced a series of drawings which reflected the grandeur and performance of Brunel's great broad gauge railway. Again it was not a commercial success and Bourne seems to have turned his back on railway subjects.
In 1863 the Royal Academy accepted a watercolour from him — 'Old Houses of Hastings' - for the first and last time and he tried three times unsuccessfully to join the New Society of Painters in Watercolours. In 1866 he married Catherine Cripps, the 25-year-old daughter of a Buckingham Palace official, and they settled in Teddington in Middlesex. He died, disappointed and relatively unknown, in February 1896. His son died as recently as 1962. Illustrations: Kilsby Tunnel viiew at foot of shaft on 8 July 1837; excavations at Park Street, Camden Town, in September 1836; 'horse runs' of Tring Cutting were drawn by Bourne in 1837.

Alan Bailey. The Great Northern Leeds-Bradford line. 502-8.
Other reminiscences of a Leeds childhood spent in the Armley district see Backtrack, Volume 10, 125 and Volume 29 Page 14. This part considers the GNR route to Bradford minus the Pudsey Loop which closed in 1964. There is some mention of Leeds Central station wich closed in 1967. [Strangely KPJ started married life in Wreththorpe near the main line to Leeds, but journeys to Leeds tended to be made by bus and the most impressive intermediate site was Morley Gas Works]. The railweay into Bradford was characterised by a very steep 1 in 50 bank and Bradford Exchange has also been closed in favour of a pathetic bus/train interchange. Text mentions that the lline has become a "tree tunnel" see also letter from John Macnab on failure to trim vegetation from lineside on page 573. Illustrations: Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42145 at Leeds Central clearing empty carriages after closure of station on 1 May 1967; prototype Deltic locomotive near Tong Road in 1958; Class 91 hauled express from King's Cross passing through Wortley on 12 January 1991; map. See also Coilin Foster's reminiscences in letter on p. 638; 

Readers' Forum. 509

Eric Lomax - the railwayman of war and peace. Editor
At the end of this feature last month, the pictures should have been acknowledged 'Eric Lomax, Stephenson locomotive Society Photographic Collection'.

Eric Lomax - the railwayman of war and peace. Robin Barnes
The Singer 0-4-0ST (p412) is definitely a standard Neilson product and would be the company's No.3, maker's number 5088 of 1896, purchased new and sold for scrap in 1956. I'm pretty certain there is a large 3 on the cab upper side sheet.

The closure of the Somerset & Dorset line. Christopher Rails
Re Edward Gibbins' sarticle (May and June). He is correct in saying: "Mileage was not the most significant factor. An alternative better-laid line with less demanding gradients meant faster movement..."ln the 1963 timetable the fastest train for the 71½ miles from Bath Green Park to Bournemouth West took 2hr 45min, even with a first stop at Shepton Mallet. The slowest took exactly four hours. Today you can travel nearly 100 miles, hourly, from Bath Spa to Bournemouth in 2hr 25min including a twenty-minute wait for a connection at Southampton Central.
Fine if you are travelling directly to Bournemouth, but what about patronage of S&DR local services? Gibbins criticises an objection that bus routes were longer, remarking that this "doesn't explain why rail use was so low." One possible answer is that the railways ran trains at times to suit themselves rather than their passengers. Coiin Maggs, The last years of the Somerset & Dorset (p78) quotes several instances: "no convenient connections were provided to the north". At Bath one had to wait from 08.46 for the I0.10 connection to Birmingham, Sheffield and Newcastle (changing at Mangotsfield). Returning from the north entailed an hour's wait at Bath for a connection."The line was certainly not making an all-out effort to get passengers to use it" Maggs comments. Excursion fare advertisements to Bournemouth and Burnham "gave no idea of the ordeal that had to be undergone." Thus 3½, hours to travel 60 miles from Radstock to Bournemouth; an equally slow return from Bournemouth with a 40min wait at Templecombe. A return to Radstock from Burnham with a 55min wait at Evercreech Junction, or a later train taking nearly three hours. No wonder patronage was low!
Little thought seems to have been given to connections westwards from Templecombe, or to potential traffic to Yeovil, the only large town in south Somerset. For instance the 1950 timetable shows an S&D arrival at Templecombe from the north at 08.15, just missing a local service to Yeovil Town. Gibbins comments: "The S&DR line's severe gradients made operations costlier than a longer, less steep route" and says correctly that the exorbitant costs of operation contributed to slow running. The S&D crossed the former Great Western line to Weymouth just north of Cole. All the steep gradients, tunnels and major viaducts were to the north of this point, while to the south (the former Dorset Central) the S&D was lightly engineered with no steep gradients or major structures. A junction with the former GW line at this point would have enabled a Bournemouth/Weymouth diesel service from Bristol and Bath via Westbury to divide at Bruton or Castle Cary and the northern half of the S&D could have closed. The Bristol-Weymouth service has survived mainly because it shares its route with other services, except for the 32 miles from Castle Cary to Dorchester. Combined with this service, the S&D's independent mileage could have been reduced from 65 to approximately 36, over a much easier terrain. This might have helped to save the line, provided the southern half was considered to be viable.
Incidentally, Gibbins criticises one suggestion for a two-hourly diesel service, saying: "It flies in the face of reality to believe that motorists would be attracted to a train service with a two-hourly frequency." Yet the Bristol-Weymouth service exists happily on that frequency today. In any case, there were gaps of up to four hours in S&D services. He also says that after nationalisation "the S&DR was rightly shown to be superfluous." So why did it survive for eighteen years after 1948?
Ultimately the real crime was not the closure of unremunerative lines, but the failure to preserve infrastructures so that lines might be reopened under changed circumstances. This has been shown to be a costly mistake in several places where trackbeds have been obliterated by subsequent development. The S&D north of Poole is a case in point. (Corfe Mullen Halt, closed as uneconomic in 1956, now has a population of more than 10,000.)
As for the branch to Highbridge, by a curious quirk the route runs through the middle of the Glastonbury pop festival site. Obviously such an eventuality was unpredictable, but imagine the income this would have generated for the line today! [KPJ: cross-country travel from Norfolk in 2016 is broadly comparable to above with waits for nearly an hour in Norwich and at Peterborouugh]

Coals to Kensington. Robin Barnes
The locomotive Nick Lera saw at Hillingdon in 1960 would have been a BR Standard Class 4 2-6-0. In 1960-61 Barnes lived at Ickenham and was a regular Underground user. Each Saturday morning a Neasden Class 4 would run tender first non-stop out to Uxbridge with loaded coal wagons, then return as a pick-up, shunting the various coal merchants' sidings as it worked its way back. Regulars noted were Nos.76037, 76040 and 76049.

The opening of railway halts. Mike Whitley
Wells gives a tantalisingly brief mention of the Southern Railway's Chestfield and Swalecliffe Halt, on the main Victoria to Ramsgate line, Whitley's local station for 60 years from the late 1940s. The halt was provided as a result of the campaigning of local businessman George Reeves, who had purchased nearby Chestfield Farm, which he was successfully developing as a kind of 'ideal village'. At the same time, the town of Whitstable was expanding eastwards towards Swalecliffe, so the case for a new station to serve old and new communities was a good one.
Manned by a single member of staff, the halt was brought into use on the morning of Sunday 6 July 1930 (not Monday 7 July - the Railway Gazette, quoted in article, got this wrong). Reeves was there to greet the first stopping train. Built entirely on the railway embankment, the station's only means of access was up separate flights of steps from the road to both the up and down line platform end ramps. Prams and pushchairs had to be carried up the steps. The same steps, much-repaired, are still the only access today. There were never any public access stairs further down the platforms - the web site that Jeffrey quotes from in his article is mistaken.
The original concrete slab platforms, supports and walls were in poor shape by the 1950s and were replaced in 1957 with a bullhead rail framework, wooden deck and tubular steel and wire safety rails and extended from 630ft (a ten-coach train) to 820ft, in anticipation of the forthcoming Kent Coast electrification. Both weatherboarded timber booking offices were rebuilt on new foundations (with a small staff toilet beneath the down platform office) and a brand-new facility built for passengers: a fully-enclosed waiting room further down each platform, one of which (on the London-bound side) was heated by a large oil stove. Sadly, both waiting rooms and one booking office have now gone - the present-day 'bus shelters' are poor substitutes!

The opening of railway halts. Andrew Kleissner
Doubt that the rural halt at Dolserau (p377) ever benefited from gas lighting. Surely the 'zany' swan-necked lamp post was provided for hanging an oil lamp, left by the guard of the last train to pass in daylight hours and retrieved later. Members of the Southampton University Transport Society witnessed this being done as late as 1972 at Thornford Bridge Halt on the Yeovil to Weymouth line. The guard carried a number of already-lit hurricane lamps in his van and informed us that their purpose was as much to help the driver correctly to locate the halts as to provide illumination for waiting passengers.

The opening of railway halts. Garry Thorp
Re article on Railway Halts by Jeffrey Wells: one point in associated Editorial deserves comment where stated that the title 'halt' almost went out of use in the 1970s. I agree with your assertion that there are two halts which are currently still designated as such, both on the Looe branch in Cornwall. But there was a third halt still in existence, on the station signage at least, until 30 May 2015. This was Emerson Park Halt on the Romford to Upminster branch in Essex, the service then operated by Abellio Greater Anglia. On 31 May 2015 the branch service was taken over by London Overground and with the installation of TfL 'bullseye' (bar-and-circle) nameboards the word 'halt' was put to rest!

The opening of railway halts. Robert Darlaston
It is hardly true to say that The Hawthorns Halt "is shrouded in mystery" (lune p377).lt was built by the GWR in response to requests from West Bromwich Albion Football Club and opened with modest ceremony on Christmas Day 1931 (trains then ran throughout the Christmas holiday). Thereafter, although not included in public timetables, it was served on match days both by excursion trains and by local trains making additional calls. The final such use was on Saturday 27 April 1968. The Hawthorns had four platforms, not three as stated. There was a platform on the down relief line just before Handsworth Junction where the Stourbridge line leaves the line to Wolverhampton. The present-day Network Rail down platform is at much the same location. The other three platforms lay immediately beyond the junction with one on the up Stourbridge line and two more on the down and up Wolverhampton lines. A train for Wolverhampton which left Birmingham Snow Hill on the relief line would thus pass through two platforms at The Hawthorns – that on the down relief line and that on the down Wolverhampton line. The original platforms were of bare earth and lacked any shelter or lighting (no football matches after dark in those days!) though some improvements were made over the years. By contrast the present-day station (not a halt) is far more sophisticated and comprises two platforms opened in 1995 on Network Rail's Snow Hill-Stourbridge Junction line, plus two further platforms on the Midland Metro line which opened in 1999, taking over the formation of the former GWR Snow Hill-Wolverhampton line. Use of the present station is not confined to football fans and it is served by trains every ten minutes throughout the day as well as a frequent tram service.
There is a curious link between The Hawthorns and Dolserau Halt which is illustrated in the same article. After closure in 1951 the shelter at Dolserau Halt was moved and re-erected at The Hawthorns. The original name could still be faintly discerned painted on the timber, but I doubt if any passenger was prompted to alight at the wrong destination!

Rope-worked Inclines. Anthony Broome 
Unfortunately the "little hut on the right" in the photograph on p349 of the foot of the Sheep Pasture incline of the Cromford & High Peak Railway never had "a single lever which had to be held down when a load coming down approached the catch pit". It was, in fact, the 'office' of the wagon examiner who for many years was Jack Oldbury. The planesman's cabin, which was a much larger and commodious structure, was immediately above the catchpit on the descending side of the incline. On the front were two large gongs connected by wires to two treadles immediately adjacent to one of the descending lines and operated by the wheel flanges of descending wagons. The treadles were well spaced out up the incline so that if the planesman received two rapid gong beats, he knew that the 'run' had broken away from the rope and diverted it into the catch pit. This method of operation was necessary because visibility was often severely limited by the dense mists which come up off the River Derwent or by falling snow which was a regular occurrence between early November and late March..
Also, in the article on the same page, it is suggested (para. 4) that Hopton incline "seems always to have been single track". It was certainly double track like the other inclines in 1877 when a 2-4-0T 'Crewe Goods Tank', LNWR No.3049, was photographed near the top of the incline together with two wagons and the 'Fly' coach. It is a posed photograph with the train plus crew and passengers on the descending line; the ascending one was used at the time for the storage of surplus wagons and some of these can be made out at the foot of the incline. It is not known precisely when the line was converted to a single track but it may have been as late as 1903 when much work was done to ease the gradient. The North London tanks did not take the loads up after the rope was discarded - they did not arrive on the scene until 1931 when Nos.7511 and 7521 were sent up from London. After the rope was discarded, the trains staggered up behind Allan 'Crewe Goods Tanks' until 1895 {KPJ: Allan not Allen as per copy, but see also Stuart and Reed The Crewe type] when Webb 2-4-0T engines replaced them. These were known by the men as 'Choppers' from the characteristic sound of their exhausts when working hard and the very last one, LMS No.6428, lasted well into British Railways days working the Sheep Pasture Top to Middleton Bottom section and shunting Middle Peak coal yard. The water tank in the photograph on p350 is almost certainly from a McConnell LNWR Southern Division engine of about 1850 and several of these lasted until the end of operations in 1967.

Manx sunshine. Clive Lovelock. 510 
There are some gems among the photographs particularly the one of Pender at St. Johns, but errors are in some captions. At the top of p354 a couple of locomotives identified have been crossed. G. H. Wood is piloting Mannin on the Port Erin train whilst Kissack is the engine in the background. At the bottom of p354 the photograh was taken on 4th June 1960. Thornhill ran from 1960 until withdrawal in autumn 1963 with an un-numbered chimney, not the 1950s as stated: perhaps the replacement chimney, which was shorter than her original one, was from one of the larger locomotives reboilered in 1946 (Nos.5, 10 or 12).

Manx sunshine. Barry C. Lane.  
Stated that the Beyer Peacock 2-4-0s were the only type of that wheel arrangement to work the lines in the Isle of Man apart from the 0-6-0T Caledonia. The Sharp Stewart 2-4-0s of the Manx Northern Railway were staples on the northern line for the first two or three decades. See article in Modellers' Backtrack Vol.4 No.5.

Book reviews. 510.

A Third-Rail Centenary: The Southern Way, Special Issue No.12 compiled by members of the Southern Electric Group. Noodle Books, 119 pp. RH *****
An encouraging aspect of current railway history is the flourishing of specialist ('niche') interests and quality publications. This is one such; as it states, a compilation rather than a narrative. It tackles important aspects of the 100-year old third rail dc system, the 'Southern Electric', in detail and with authority.
The text gets off to a good start with an essay by Richard Whitbread on the original system inaugurated by the LSWR, covering background strategies, technological and financial, the personalities involved, notably the General Manager, Herbert Walker and Herbert Jones, the LSWSR electrical supremo. There is a thorough treatment of the Durnsford Road generating station; too many treatments of electric traction pass over the electrical infrastructure as a mere detail, but not this one.
There follow sections covering the fiendishly complex taxonomies of the LSWR-SR EMU rolling stock, probably as lucidly as is possible with so many variant categories involved: carriage numbers, unit or set numbers, steam and converted electric, LSWR, SR, and later, in another section, the unit codes, pre- and post-TOPS. Although these details can be tracked down elsewhere, this Special Issue is likely to remain the standard convenient work of taxonomical reference for some time to come.
Rather too much railway history has recycled secondary source material, but these essays are well-grounded in primary sources, two of them are actual sources reproduced verbatim: R.S. Clarke's Iineside observations made at Wimbledon 1915-16 and a 1937 Railway Gazette article on the London-Portsmouth electrification, cast in the rolling prose of the time. Other essays include the two Iittle- known LSWR electric shunters and a context-setting survey of the SR booster locomotives and the electro-diesels, including the problematic Class 74s, victims of hastening too much insufficiently tried technology into everyday operation. The Bournemouth electrification of which they were a part suffered itself from excessively long pre-planning followed by a hurried implementation, unlike the astonishing speed with which the LSWR devised and executed its 1915 third rail system. The text rounds off with some well-informed crystal ball treatment 'Whither the Southern Electric?' The possibilities are many, including the fading of low-voltage dc and various dc/ac combinations. Perhaps one reason for the success of the LSWR and SR approaches was that they were set in coherent, integrated systems. Now we live with labyrinthine complexities: politics, franchises, functional divisions - silos in place of open chambers. Whatever the outcome, the robust third rail system has served its territory well, transforming its social and economic lives massively into the bargain. This work is a worthy celebration of these achievements.

William Pickersgill and the Caledonian Railway '956' Class locomotives - an objective assessment. Donald Peddie. Lightmoor Press & The Caledonian Railway Association, 168 pages. CPA *****
At the end of 1921 ten British railway companies collectively operated no fewer than 43 distinct classes of 4-6-0 locomotive, of which the most recent, and arguably the most imposing, were the four three-cylinder '956' engines of the Caledonian Railway, which had been completed at St. Rollox Works a few months earlier. Sadly, the well-worn adage 'handsome is as handsome does' certainly did not apply here, as they ranked amongst the most unsuccessful and shortest-lived locomotives in British locomotive history. In this magnificent book the author, a professional engineer, sets out to discover, by means of meticulous and systematic analysis, just what went wrong. He readily demonstrates that the large boiler was poorly proportioned, particularly with regard to the small superheater, and that the cylinder and steam curcuit design was indifferent. Particular interest focuses on the conjugated, or derived, valve gear for the middle cylinder that worked off the two external sets of Walschaerts valve gear, which was devised in St. Rollox drawing office, although never patented. Despite being fitted to all four engines when they were new in mid-1921, so poor did it very quickly prove to be that clearly as a desperate measure three engines, Nos.956/7/8, were each fitted instead with internal Stephenson valve gear within only twelve months of entering service. This radical modification too proved to be disappointing, and further development of the derived gear therefore persisted on No.959, while No.956 also subsequently actually reverted to it, but further embellished with damping devices. No formal official record of these complicated developments, with associated dates, has survived, but the author has made a masterly analysis of the apparent scenario via the St. Rollox drawing register, photographic evidence and surviving working drawings, of which a remarkably high number for this class in general still remain. There was also a final sting in the tail. The two 'middle' engines, CR Nos.957/8, later LMS Nos.1480l/2, spent their entire lives stationed at Carlisle Kingmoor, most of the time fitted with the inside Stephenson motion, and evidently did very little work, even when new and still painted CR blue. However, from contemporary photographs, the author has discovered the surprising fact that following the premature withdrawal of No.14800 in July 1931, after a working life of precisely ten years, this engine evidently bequeathed its (modified) derived valve gear to No.1480l, despite the fact that even as early as 1928 it had been resolved to 'lay aside', ie scrap, the '956' Class at an early date, not withstanding its recent construction.
Unlike its ex-LNWR and L&YR four- cylinder 4-6-0 counterparts, the '956' Class was never subjected to dynamometer car tests in early LMS days. It furthermore suffered the indignity of seeing a further twenty of the earlier, smaller and also lacklustre Pickersgill '60' Class 4-6-0s being built at St. Rollox under LMS auspices in 1925. Hitherto William Pickersgill, the CR locomotive superintendent, has presented a distinctly shadowy figure, in contrast to his flamboyant predecessor, John Mclntosh. However, through very diligent research, the author has uncovered much new information concerning the former, not least his intermittent yet still unexplained use of his stepfather's surname of Duncanson, even in adulthood.
Quite apart from the many fine illustrations of the '956' Class in service, a particular bonus has been the use of photographs taken of the engines under construction, by the late Ernest Glen when he was an apprentice, with his chiefs full permission. These even include views of the original derived valve gear between the frames, details of which had remained a mystery to the outside world until 1943, when the first drawings were 'posthumously' published by the Institution of Locomotive Engineers. These are now extensively illustrated here via the reproduction of numerous original working drawings of the various iterations. Detailed particulars, together with an analysis, accompanied by beautifully coloured contemporary official charts, of the dreadfully disappointing tests conducted with No.956 between Glasgow and Carlisle during 1921-22, are also given at the end of the book.
Although the class became extinct in 1935, the unique and thereby readily distinguishable '956' tenders lasted into British Railways time, seeing further service mostly behind Mclntosh 'Dunalastair IV' and Pickersgill 4-4-0s. Surprisingly, the last surviving example was even fully repainted with the BR 1956 emblem and was not cut up until the beginning of 1960. This book is produced to an exceptionally high standard, being the latest fruit of the very happy alliance between the Caledonian Railway Association and the Lightmoor Press, and it undoubtedly constitutes the most thorough analysis to date of any British steam locomotive design, albeit one that was very poor and short- lived but which was all the more fascinating for these very reasons.

Somerset and Dorset swansong - last days of a steam railway. Bob Bunyar. Wild Swan Books, 96pp. MJS ****
Wild Swan have, over the years, built up an enviable and well-deserved reputation for detailed, near-definitive, A4-sized hardback books containing biographies of many areas of the UK's railways. The company recently changed hands and whilst the intention is to continue the established format wherever applicable, the new owner also has a desire to widen the imprint's public appeal. This latest title from the stable is the first of the new designs and it has chosen well with this subject.
The Somerset & Dorset holds a strong place in the hearts of many enthusiasts and the 50th anniversary of the closure of the Bath-Bournemouth route is prefect timing. The landscape format is ideal to present many full-page images and these, from a wide variety of quality photographers, are a superb collection, including Ivo Peters, both in pictorial quality and reproductive standards. The variety of views among the illustrations sits well with the equally well handled text. The author knew the line before closure and he has weaved an attractive, progressive tale, incorporating with appropriate detail the last days of normal operation, through closure, into post-death hopes and aspirations. Within the mix of illustrations are all manner of different subjects, including the human aspect and although somewhat limited by the 96-page layout, the visual contents never cease to tell the story and satisfy. There is bound to be competition for attention around the 50th anniversary celebrations but this is a fine product that should satisfy both aficionados of the line and newcomers attracted by renewed attention and will certainly not harm the reputation of the publisher with this more 'popular' approach.

Using hydraulic power. M. Wynn. rear cover
Western Region diesel hydraulic locomotives at Bristol Temple Meads with quaint GWR colour light signals: Warship No. D825 Intrepid and a Hymek and a marron Western

September 2016 (Number 305)

Little disturbs the peace of Grange Road station as SECR H Class 0-4-4T No.31263 waits to leave with the East Grinstead-Three Bridges push-pull on 31 May 1963. Trevor Owen. front cover

Do it yourself. Michael Blakemore.  515
Boston Lodge Works in Porthmadog; the joys of the Welsh narrow gauge (including real first class) and the pains of Cross Country's Voyagers (Oh that the might grace Norwich Thorpe rather than the mean wee Class 158s offered by the Gloags)

Glen Kilday. Tyneside electric train working. 516-21.
Train rostering on both the North and South Tyneside services during the 1960s. The articulated multiple units used on North Tyneside had been designed by Gresley and were supplied by Metropolitan Cammell Carriage & Wagon Co. Illustrations: unit at Whitley Bay in June 1967 (colour); two units at Manors with train for Newcastle on 13 June 1964 (R. Patterson); two units in Platform1 at Newcastle Central; two units arrive at Heaton with train for Newcastle Central c1964; two units running along East Coast Main Line; two units at Newcastle Central Platform 2; V3 2-6-2T No, 67646 near Earsdion on Blyhe & Tyne parcels train (Roger J. Kell). See also letters frrom John Gibson on page 702 and from Keith Simpson on page 765 [KPJ adds that in the early 1950s he made use of a first class free pass to travel from Saddleworth to Newcastle for the day, out on the North Briton to sample the Tyneside units which had done a colour change during WW2 when they changed from red and cream (or had he imagined it) to blue and grey and were by then mainly in BR green: the same trip showed the wonderful kaleidoscope of Sunderland trams and provided a trip behind a D20 4-4-0].

Michael J. Smith. District Railway steam. 522-6.
Originally worked by the Metropoltan Railway, but the Metropolitan District Railway ordered its own locomotives from Beyer Peacock in 1871. These were very similar to the Metropolitan 4-4-0Ts, but slightly heavier and had Stirling-type chimneys. Further batches were ordered as the District extended its services to the werst and to the east. They retained their dark green livery until electrification. In 1931 the Underground group purchased two 0-6-0Ts from the Hunslet Engine Co. to work inter-depot traffic on the District lines and these were based at Lillie Bridge. They were not fitted with condensing apparatus.  The last extant District 4-4-0T was exhibited at South Kensington station together with an electric locomotive and examples of the electric rolling stock to celebrate the Company's Diamond Jubilee in 1928. Illustrations: 4-4-0T No. 42 with Windsor headboard probably in 1883; No. 50 at Earl's Court with Putney Bridge train in 1900; No. 52 approaching Gunnersbury station with train for New Cross; No. 20 at Putney Bridge on 12 July 1902; No. 34 at Lillie Bridge c1910; 0-6-0T No. L30 at Lillie Bridge depot in August 1956; both L30 and L31 at Lillie Bridge in August 1956; L30 at Kensington Olympia in 1959; Peckett 0-6-0ST No. L54 at Lillie Bridge in February 1960.

LNWR via Market Harborough. Michael Mensing. 527
Colour photo-feature: two Metro-Cammell units form 12.24 Ely to Birmingham at Weston by Welland on 19 March 1966; Gloucester RCW two coach diesel unit on a Stamford to Seaton service at Seaton Junction on 19 March 1966; English Electric Type 4 No. D338 passes site of Ashton & Weston station with 12.40 Harwich to Rugby on 19 March 1966. See also letter from aptly named Stephen Spark on scorched grass behind DMU..

Alistair F. Nisbet. The Wet Review of 1881. 528-34.
Staged in Edinburgh on Thursday, 26 August 1881 by contingents from all the Scottish Volunteer Regiments and Corps with Queen Victoria inspecting her troops from an open carriage. Both the North British and Caledonian Railways were greatly involved, especially the former and use was made of the Burntisland to Granton Ferry and Duddingston station. Many changes had to be made to normal train services and traffic was also received off the other Scottish lines (that off the Highland tended to be delayed) as well as the North Eastern Railway. Illustrations: London Scottish detrain from Great Northern Railway coach at NBR destination; London Scottish officers assembling on platform at Leith Walk; map ofEdinburgh railways; Coldstream station; North Eastern Railway six-wheel third class carriage; NBR carriage labelling; Kirkintilloch station; Scotsgap station; York station c1880; Glasgow Central concourse; Roxburgh Junction station; East Fortune station with North Eastern Railway 4-4-0 passing on express in 1912; wet but in step kilted troops pass their Sovereign

Apple green. 535
Colour photo-feature: Gresley A1 Pacific No. 2548 Galtee More under coaling tower at York in 1937; Thompson A2/3 No. 60517 Ocean Swell (tender lettered BRITISH RAILWAYS, but still in LNER colours) at York shed in 1948.

Paul Joyce. Closing the gap: the first 150 years of the Staines-Wokingham line. 536-43.
The Reading, Guildford & Reigate Railway opened on 15 October 1849 and was worked by the South Eastern Railway which included a through train between Rading and London Bridge which took 2 hours. Eventually the LSWR opened its line to Windsor and there were many proposals to link Staines with Reading, but before that the South Eastern Railway made a junction with the Great Western which had installed mixed gauge to enable traffic to work north from Reading. Text mentions Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train hauled by his eponymous Bulleid Pacific with V headcode (not illustrated). Illustrations: 4-VEP approaching Star Lane Crossing at Wokingham on 22 September 1997 when line into Paddington blocked by accident at Southall; HST No. 48 128 on up working during blockage at Southall also on 22 Septermber 1997 (author: colour); Bracknell station with 415 class 4-4-2T on down passenger service for Reading c1910; Btacknell station forecourt c1910; Wokingham station early 1960s; Ascot station in 1930s; Virginia Water station on 10 July 2014 (colour); M7 0-4-4T No. 328 on Bagshot push & pull at Ascot c1938; Egham for Englefield Green station c1910; Staines station with EMU departing on Windsor & Eton service (colour): KPJ did not believe caption and did not list picture but see letter from Peter Thelwell on p. 702 who corrects caption); L11 4-4-0 at Virginia Water station with long train for Reading in late 1930s; Longcross station looking west; Ascot station on 10 July 2014 (colour); Wokingham Junction looking west with 458 8004 for Waterloo (colour). See also letter on page 702 from John Pearse about adder warning at Winnersh and letter from Stephen Spark on page 765 which mentions Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train and another one for Earl Roberts..

The Southern 0-4-4 tanks. 544-7.
Colour photo-feature: O2 No. W28 Whitwell leaving Ashey with 15.30 Ryde to Cowes on 3 August 1964 (David Idle): should be No. W26; M7 No. 30132 on Nine Elms shed on 6 November 1958 (R.C. Riley); M7 No. 30376 shunting at Southampton Terminus on 26 June 1957 with Cunard liner Queen Mary in background (R.C. Riley); H class No. 31350 at Rowfant on East Grinstead to Three Bridges push & pull in 1960; M7 No. 30125 at Brockenhurst wih push & pull unit for Lymington in 1958 (Derek Penney); H class No. 31551 at Rowfant on push & pull for East Grinstead on 31 Msy 1963 (Trevor Owen); M7 No. 30060 leaves Brockenhurst with train for Ringwood on 28 June 1957 (R.C. Riley); )2 No. 24 Calbourne near Shanklin with 17.25 Ryde to Ventnor on 3 August 1964; M7 No. 30241 hauling empty stock (including carmine & cram vehicles beneath Nine Elms Junction signal box with S13 No. 30515 within picture on 6 September 1958 (R.C. Riley). 

Three ways to Blaenau. 548-51.
Black & white photo-feature: double Fairlie Little Wonder at Creua with long test train in 1870; Porthmadog Harbour in 1877; tunnel portal at Blaenau Ffestiniog (T,J. Edgington); Stanier class 3 2-6-2T No., 40208 at Blaenau Ffestiniog North on 11 October 1955 (T.J. Edgington); No. 7414 at Trawsfynydd with freight from Bala to Blaenau Ffestiniog (T.J. Edgington); Tal-y-Cafn and Eglwsbach station with Cauliflower? 0-6-0 entering on a passenger train; Bala to Blaenau freight near Manod on 28 November 1960; 57XX No. 5742 with single coach at Bala on 18 June 1955; double Fairlie Taleisin on The Cob on 11 July 1934; and two Derby lightweight diesel railcars at Bettws-y-Coed with service for Llandudno in 1956.

Jeffrey Wells. Great Western developments at Paddington and Bristol. 552-9
Purports to focus on the 1930s improvements wrought at Paddington and Temple Meads, but ranges widely backwards in time (and in the case of the illustrations well forward of the period described). Sources given include The Railway Gazette; G.W.R. Reflections: a collection of photographs from the Hulton Picture Company by Keith Beck and. Nigel Harris (1987: Ottley 17788) and Tim Bryan's Paddington: a 150th anniversary portrait  (2004), The original station at Paddington was described in The Morning Chronicle (3 June 1854) [Copsey's long series on Paddington began with pictures and plans of the original terminus, GWRJ No. 71]. This functional station was fronted by the Great Western Royal Hotel which received glowing reports in The Morning Post (8 June 1854) and Trewman's Flying Post (15 June 1854). Bishop's Road opened on 9 July 1863: a report appeared in The Essex Evening Standard for 16 July 1863. Surprisingly, electric lighting came to Paddington before the end of the broad gauge: Bridle's book is cited Illustrations: Great Western Royal Hotel and station entrance viewed from Eastbourne Terrace c1910; Platforms 1 and 2 at Paddington (notes capstans in six-foot); 94XX at buffer stops of Platform 1 at 10.30 (on clock or 09.30 in caption with train of second rank; gleaming diesel hydraulic at buffer stops of Platform 8 with petrol station tractor andc LCC ambulance with bell; Blue Pullman at Platform 3 in 1961 (caption noters track on longitudinal supports, but fails to record that this was to cope with lavatory flushing from sleeping car passengers); workmen on roof eating their sandwiches and notes lack of worker protection on 13 )October 1930; GWR offices designed P.E. Culverhouse, Company Arcitect; interior of buffet bar adjoining The Lawn; Bristol Temple Meads exterior c1878; Midland Railway 2-4-0 with train of clerestory coaches in Platform 2 and modern (70 foot?) Great Western coaches in Platform 3 at Temple Meads; Platform 4 at Temple Meads; and Star Class No. 4056 Princess Margaret departing westward with set of LMS coaches in carmine & cream livery in June 1957.

Territorial limits. Tim Edmonds. 560-1
Black & white photo-feature of boundary mainly cast iron markers: LSWR at Basingstoke photographed on 13 November 2012; Taff Vale Railway at Penarth photographed on 3 June 2010; Alexandra (Newport & South Wales) Docks & Railway at Bassaleg photographed on 3 June 2010; LNWR at Bolton-le-Sands photographed on 29 April 2013; LNWR Cromford & High Peak Railway at Whaley Bridge on 1 May 2009; and L&YR (stone) at Irwell Vale on 26 April 2013.   

More men at work. Paul Aitken. 562-3
Colour photo-feature: (earlier features of this ilk: Volume 28 page 300 and Volume 29 Pages 122 and 564): Pollockshields West (Cathcart Circle) receiving fibreglass sheet on track base to improve drainage on 13 May 1990; booking clerk George Colligan at Shawlands station in February 1978; Class 47 with dangerous liquid bogie tank wagon and barrier vehicle and guard's van at Gloucester on 27 June 1990; No. 08 114 shunting at Mossend Yard when dividing a Freightliner from Willesden on 17 May 1997 see letter from Mike Stone who states that was an RfD international seervice from Wembley ; Lidlington ground frame being worked on 3 July 2004; permanent way work at Clapham Junction on 10 July 2004 and closing door on Motorail vehicle at Fort William on 15 April 1995

Malcolm Timperley. Strikes, go-slows and stoppages: Britain's railways and the 1912 Coal Strike. 564-9.
The Miners' Federation of Great Britain was seeking a minimum wage and balloted its members: 80% voted to strike. This was serious not only for the railways, but also for other electricity generation, town gas production, the steel industry and for powering many other industries. The railways (with one exception) reduced services: the Midland Raailway cut 700 services; the LBSCR 580, and the NER 1070. The SECR achieved a 40% reduction in coal consumption. Sleeping cars, dining cars and special trains were withdrawn. The Highland Railway reduced most of its lines to one train per day, as did the West Highland line. Heating and lighting of raikway premises was greatly reduced. Tickets were made available on other company's trains  Walter Hyde, General Manager of the Great Eastern Railway had anticipated the Strike and stockpiled 120,000 tons of coal notably at Whitemoor and was able to run full services and even sell some of its reserves at a profit. The Government intervened with a Coal Mines (Minimum Wages) Act of 1912. It is estimated that the Strike led to a financial loss of £3.2 million to the railways. The North Eastern and Great Central were especially hard hit. The Greenwich Park branch and the South Yorkshire Joint Raiway lost their passenger services and some firms found road transport to offer a speedy alternative, Illustrations: Barry Railway tank engines standing idle during strike; GWR coal stack at Slough; stranded coal wagons at Wilesden Junction; Brent Sidings (LNWR) standing idle; covers of LNWR and NBR emergency timetables; Great Eastern coal reserve at Stratford; and at Whitemoor; Illustrated London News depicting better class of passenger slumming it in guard's van; gathering coal from railway premises at Holmfield during Strike..

Black Country industrial. John Scholes. 570
Colour photo-feature: Earl of Dudley's Round Oak Steelworks: Barclay 0-4-0ST (WN 2117/1941) Lady Edith ; Yorkshire Engine Co.DE2 in distinctive yellow llivery with black stripes; Guy Pitt & Co. colliery owners Andrew Barclay 0-6-0ST WN 782/1896 Peter.

When things go wrong... Dick Riley. 571
Colour photo-feature: derailments: Bulleid Pacific No. 34084 253 Squadron nearly at a parade of shops near Hither Green when it derailed down an embankment with a Dover to Bricklayers Arms freight on 20 February 1960 (photographed on 28 February); a Cravens diesel multiple unit derailed entering King's Cross station from Gasworks Tunnel on 13 April 1976; and view from tower block overlooking Southwark Cathedral of cranes clearing derailed vehicles near Borough Market vJunction on 10 May 1977.  

David P. Williams. The Royal 'Greyhound'. 572
Drummond T9 4-4-0 No. 30119. Most of the class was fitted with superheaters by the Southern Railway and they continued to be used for fast services. They were used on the Eastbourne Sunday Pullman where the U class was displaced and maintained a time of 80 minutes, not bettered by electric traction. They achieved 70,000 miles or more between overhauls. The very last Victoria to Portsmouth steam service was entrusted to a member of the class. No. 119 hauled the Royal Train conveying King George V to the Silver Jubilee Naval Review at Portsmouth. By this time the loomotive had chromium plated cab fittings including regulator handle and a tall organ pipe whistle. The illustration is a computer coloured image.

Readers' Forum. 573

Steam versus diesel. Ed.
The Class 31 on p463 of the August issue is at Hatfeld, not Hitchin as stated.

Steam versus diesel. Alisdair McNicol 
How brave of your contributor A.J. Mullay (August issue) to enter the minefield that the above subject represents! I As a person who "wanted to be an engine driver when I grow up" a few comments are too hard to resist. Local interest? Our Bidston Dock-Shotton iron ore trains had to have the number of hopper wagons reduced by two when diesels took over from the 9Fs, due to lack of brake power. Case prevent What? 90-ton iron ore hoppers without continuous brakes? Quite. But now there is no steel which to run them, only a rolling mill, and even Bidston Dock is no more.
So, what I would like to emphasise is that whilst the 'argument' was being played out (with real taxpayers' money), society and technology was moving at a dizzying pace. Failure to cope with that situation was not unique to British Railways, but replicated through much of British Industry. The motorcycle industry, to name but one, was blindly clinging to pre- war technology and presuming to tell its customers what they 'needed', as opposed to providing what they wanted. Unfortunately, the Japanese competition learned the game at commendable speed. It went on to leave the likes of BSA and Norton in the dust. And anyone remember'those posters 'Shipbuilding. Britain Leads the World"?
However, not all was lethargy. The motor industry had much of its Midland infrasrtucture kindly provided with Government money to build weapons. BR turning out its last steam engine in 1960 was followed in 1961 by the launch of the 150mph capable Jaguar E-Type. This rather puts the argument over single versus double chimney steam locomotives into context! As to freight, in the 1950/ early '60's BR had turned out (in numbers) virtually the same size of wagon as those of the early twentieth century. By way of contrast, the commercial motor industry was producing ever bigger, faster vehicles that even the new, great white hope, 75mph Freightliners, struggled to compete against.
It is undoubtedly true that BR was badly let down, if not actually ripped off, by its private contractors. (English Electric possibly being the honourable exception). The still trying to be the Great Western Region went for a well thought-out comprehensive diesel programme in the West Country. Here, there was no indigenous coal to fuel its motive power anyway, so there was an excellent case for adopting an alternative fuel (as it had attempted with the oil-firing fiasco). New maintenance facilities and amenities were included from Day 1. It also went for a proven technology, the technical bits in its main hydraulic fleet having been developed in the heat of warfare via the Tiger Tank, no less. So, on the face of it, a sure-fire winner. However, politics required that British Industry be tasked with reproducing German standards of manufacture, rather than BR being able to buy the genuine article direct. Needless to say, the UK licensees fluffed it, North British in particular proved unable to clear the higher bar of precision engineering, German style: the same for many component suppliers. The result? Too many locomotives stopped awaiting non-arriving spare parts, whilst traffic ebbed away –- a situation that was far from unique to the West Country or diesel-hydraulics, let me emphasise,
Then of course; Culture Wars. Steam locomotives were simply 'old-fashioned'. The concept of spinning out steam locomotives to the end of their economic life was one thing. Legislators had other ideas. Remember 'SC' on the smokebox door? That meant ash, never mind smoke, liberally spread across the railway's surroundings. The Clean Air Act did away with both the town gas works and the (usually) nearby locomotive sheds. Courtesy of the North Sea and despite the Victorian origins it shared intimately with the rail network, gas nimbly got into the late twentieth century, by getting out of coal. Meanwhile, the general public was getting into the private automobile and dining in the modernist surroundings of new motorway service stations, whilst railway refreshment rooms were the butt of TV comedians.
BR had been denied the capital required for widespread electrification, despite grabbing the opportunity to switch to high voltage industrial voltage ac. Political opinion was basically in favour of road travel and against rail, no matter how much rail supporters kicked against the trend. Bad procurement outcomes did nothing to help BR's cause, but at the end of the day it was caught attempting to dig better sandcastles in the face of a tsunami of changing times.
See also responses from Glenn Middleton and Kevin Jones on page 765.

Brown Windsor Soup. Richard Ardern
The Search Engine at the National Railway Museum is indeed an impressive resource which deserves nurturing and supporting. I am sorry that I am unable to donate the menu card from my first ever experience of a railway dining car to correct the assertions made in your July Guest Editorial that Brown Windsor Soup never existed.
It certainly satisfied my palette as a twelve-year-old on the 09.35 Mancunian from Manchester London Road to Euston on Thursday 2 April 1959. I remember it tasting meaty and looking like a thickened consomme, not that I would have known that word then! The locomotive was a Royal Scot (No. 46129, possibly) but I was most disappointed when our return 16.25 from St. Pancras on Saturday 4 April was hauled by two Metro-Vick Co-Bos (Nos.D5702/1O) when I had hoped for a Jubilee (or two). Even seeing Mallard at King's Cross didn't compensate for that! However, with an easy change at Chinley, we were taken straight home to Romiley.
The Editor notes: In an episode of 'Dad's Army' broadcast on 15 July Corporal Jones reported that in the Rosemary Cafe in Eastgate he had had Brown Windsor Soup followed by whale meat cutlets and tapioca pudding, all for 9d – though it wasn't very good!

'75000s' on the Southern Region. Nigel Whitwell
Re photograph of Nos.34040 and 75076 on p. 435: they are at Basingstoke MPD not Eastleigh (in fact No.34040 is still carrying a Waterloo-Basingstoke head code).

'Through a Glass Darkly'. Arnold Tortorella
Backtrack, May 2016, pp296-303, contained a fascinating account of Britain's railways and the 'Blackout' of the Second World War. I can add the following supplementary information relevant to the LMS Northern Division and the situation it found itself in:
"Traffic Sub-committee' held at 302 Buchanan Street, Glasgow.
Date: 18th November 1941
Item No. 9479
Glasgow Central: light engine in collision with 6.12pm passenger train, Glasgow
Central to Kirkhill on 12th November 1941. "The Chief Officer for Scotland reported that when the 6.12pm passenger train – Glasgow Central to Kirkhill – was stopped on the old bridge at Glasgow Central Signal Box about 6.15pm on 12th November 1941, a light engine forcibly struck the rear carriage of the passenger train.
"No derailment occurred, but 16 passengers, the Guard of the passenger train and the Driver of the light engine sustained injuries. Some of the passengers were attended to at St. Andrew's Ambulance Rest Room at Glasgow Central Station, but it was necessary to convey 10 of the passengers, along with the Guard and the Driver to Glasgow Royal Infirmary for further attention. Only two passengers were detained. One was, however, discharged the following day, but the other, while progressing satisfactorily, was still confined to the Infirmary owing to head and body injuries.
"The electric lighting of the signals at Glasgow Central was withdrawn as a War Measure and oil lighting was in operation. The light of the signal controlling the movement of the 6.12pm from Glasgow Central to Kirkhill had gone out, presumably as a result of vibration, and the Driver stopped to make sure of the position. The Signalman, who failed to observe that the train was not proceeding normally on its journey, lowered the signal for the light engine to proceed out of the dock to make a shunting movement, but when he observed that the train had stopped he took, immediate steps to try and stop the light engine, but owing to the passing of other trains he was unsuccessful. He was responsible for irregularly allowing the light engine to proceed before the train had actually passed the signal in question, and the Driver of the light engine may have avoided the mishap if he had kept a more continuous lookout.
"Both men were being dealt with under the disciplinary scheme. Subsequent to the above, a claim for personal injury to a passenger on the specified working was made, initially for the sum of £ 250. However, this was later settled for £ 150."
The 'Blackout' also extended, quite correctly, to Ross and Cromarty and the line to Kyle of Lochalsh and the Hotel thereat, as the following will explain:
"Hotels Sub-committee' held at 302 Buchanan Street, Glasgow.
Date: 20th January 1942 Item No. 9538
Kyle of Lochalsh, Lochalsh Hotel: blackout offence.
"The Controller reported that at the Sheriff Court, Dingwall, on 27th November 1941, the Manageress of the Lochalsh Hotel, Kyle of Lochalsh, was fined £ 3 3s 0d [three guineas in pre-decimal currency] in connection with a blackout offence." Interested readers are referred to The Dingwall and Skye Railway by Peter Tatlow (Crecy Publishing, 2016) for more information on the Hotel at Kyle of Lochalsh. Having worked in the hotel trade many years ago, when I was financing my university studies, I can easily understand the need for hotel staff to access, say, either a kitchen area and/or a linen cupboard in the hours of darkness to meet the needs of the hotel guests. However, one would have thought that the Manageress of the Lochalsh Hotel would have briefed her staff thoroughly to ensure that 'The Blackout' regulations were fully complied with, especially so given that Naval and Admiralty staff were already 'on site', as it were. It should also be noted that the Northern Division Minutes also note that in April 1940 the Admiralty took over for office purposes the whole of the third floor, comprising fourteen rooms, and one room on the first floor of the Kyle of Lochalsh Hotel, with the total space being occupied extended to 1,651 square feet. The garage adjoining the Hotel was also taken over at the same time for the use of Admiralty officials. Negotiations had also been in hand with the Chief Surveyor of Lands, Admiralty, who had arranged to act on behalf of all Government Departments concerned — and, subject, to the approval of the LMS, it had been provisionally agreed that compensation rentals would be paid to the Company for the use of Lochalsh Hotel at the of £628 0s 0d per annum

Coals to Kensington. Michael J. Smith
I was not entirely surprised to see Nick Lera's letter in July's Backtrack arguing that the photograph at the bottom of p75 of the February magazine shows Mill Hill Park and not Turnham Green. This mistake has been made before, possibly because of an error in a photograph catalogue. Such mistakes in published material easily take on a life of their own and reappear time and again as hoary old chestnuts.
The photograph was taken in 1902 by Ken Nunn whose collection is included in the archive of the Locomotive Club of Great Britain, now at the National Railway Museum. For many years the collection was administered by Graham Stacey on behalf of the LCGB and the catalogue stated that the location of the shot was Mill Hill Park. A few years ago I took this up with Mr. Stacey, arguing from irrefutable evidence that Mill Hill Park station was built on a pronounced curve: see, for example, the photograph in London's Underground Suburbs by Edwards and Pigram (Baton Transport 1986). In his reply dated May 28th 2013 Mr. Stacey wrote: "I have to agree that the location .. .is Turnham Green, not Mill Hill Park alias Acton Town ... Despite all the changes over a century the curve and shallow cutting still remain at Acton Town, as compared with the basically straight formation at T urnham Green." (Incidentally, the station's renaming took place in 1910 and not "before electrification in 1905" as stated by Mr. Lera).
Another example of factual errors gaining credence by virtue of frequent repetition relates to the original Turnham Green station opened by the LSWR in 1869. In London Underground Stations by David Leboff (Ian Allan Publishing 1994) the entry for Turnham Green mentions "the original island platform". Thus Mr. Lera writes: ''Turnham Green at the time had one island platform." The facts, however, are otherwise. The Ordnance Survey of the period clearly shows the station with two side platforms (on a straight alignment). As a timely coincidence the relevant detail of the OS plan is reproduced on page 50 of the April 2016 issue of The London Railway Record:
I must concede that I have no evidence to prove beyond any shadow of doubt that the location is Turnham Green. (What a pity that no station nameboards are in shot!) I cannot comment on the wooden planking of the platforms, the style of the signals or the cross- members of the telegraph poles - all adduced by Mr. Lera. As for the vegetation, why should they not be tall trees! However, a process of elimination (two side platforms on a straight alignment, a signal protecting a junction at the west end 'off' for the right-hand branch and an approaching Ealing train) very strongly suggests Turnham Green. It is clear, though, from all the evidence that the location cannot possibly be Mill Hill Park.

Standard of permanent way. John Macnab.
Paragraphs in two separate articles (August issue, pp 498 and 507) express my feelings on the present-day standards of rail permanent way that seemingly appear to have no finesse in their care or maintenance (does anyone recall 'Prize Lengths?'). Added to this general air of untidiness is the ever encroaching growth of assorted weeds, shrubs and trees on linesides and embankments that, as it is adequately put, creates 'tree tunnels' throughout the railway network and system. Photographs and images of the present time show this arboreal manifestation all too frequently even down to platform tracks within stations.
Surely none of this does anything for day-to-day operations (signal sighting1) and for the infrastructure concerned is verging on dangerous. In this, I have no sympathy with the problems created each leaf fall season - surely prevention is better than cure?
In my own part of the world this 'problem' of overhanging trees and shrubs is only being tackled to allow erection of OHL masts for electrification. Will this be maintained? I doubt it.

Book reviews. 574

Early Victorian railway excursions: the million go forth. Susan Major. Pen & Sword Books Ltd., 195pp. Reviewed by GBS *****
In its once-familiar form the British excursion train disappeared long ago, without receiving authoritative historical treatment until now. Dr. Susan Major's scholarly and readable account of railway excursions between the 1840s and 1860s fills a surprising gap, fleshing out with new detail the briefer coverage in general works, such as those by David Norman Smith and Jack Simmons. In nine fluent chapters she discusses aspects of a phenomenon which helped to popularise railway travel and change social behaviour. Derived from doctoral research amongst newspapers, diaries, letters and reports the text marshals a remarkable volume of material to produce a coherent and intriguing account of the almost accidental birth of the excursion prodigy. Its origins are obvious in retrospect, building on already-established outings by steam boat: increased affluence amongst (mainly) urban skilled workers, the availability of motive power and rolling stock at weekends and holidays which could be cheaply provided, the rapid spread of the railway system to bring varied attractions within relatively easy reach of the main population centres, and the creation of administrative bodies (notably the Railway Clearing House) enabling operation across company boundaries. All these factors made excursions possible and underlay their operation for the rest of their history. The commercial opportunities were soon seized upon by excursion 'agents', of which Thomas Cook (Dr. Major reminds us) was but one amongst many and not the first.
Excursions are described against fascinating glimpses of mid-Victorian Britain. Amongst topics covered are destinations, some still familiar today as tourist attractions (such as Chatsworth House and York), others long forgotten in this context, for instance the Britannia Bridge, memorably described as "almost the Disneyland of its day", where the inspirational qualities of innovative technology were the pretext for rather more popular entertainments. Then there were the mass events which offered profitable opportunities for railway companies and organisers. Many of these have utterly disappeared: great political meetings, temperance and religious rallies, prize fights, and even public executions (football was still to come, of course). There emerges an impression of the restless and productive activity of that era, in which the excursion played an enabling part.
Underlying all this are the complexities and contradictions of Victorian life. There was the growth of local and national institutes, clubs and societies which provided a ready- made market for 'improving' travel. Then there was Victorian pietism and the development of Sunday Schools, another new and lucrative market. And yet simultaneously with the birth of leisure opportunities, especially on Sundays (the only free day for most working people), came fervent efforts by sabbatarian interests to quash anything but religious observance. Powerful campaigners used every means to suppress Sunday excursions, in a bitter battle which lasted decades.
There is another book to be written about the technology and practical operation of the often gargantuan special trains, only touched on here. We note the propensity of excursions to be involved in horrendous accidents (Round Oak, Foxcote and Armagh come to mind) caused in part by improvised timing, primitive signalling, overloading and misbehaviour both by staff and by passengers. The sheer volume of travellers reaching popular destinations demanded special facilities, like the supplementary stations at such places as Scarborough and Weston- super-Mare, which lasted into modern times. What we might term the 'Portillo fallacy', of jovial Bradshaw-reading travellers cultivating their minds en route, is usefully corrected in two of the most intriguing chapters, describing appalling travelling conditions and what might be called 'conviviality' amongst excursionists, especially on their late-night return journeys, a lamentable experience of your reviewer a century later. There is a full index, complete source notes, a range of line drawings and maps in the text and an interesting selection of colour plates.
The world described here, of earnest chapel-goers bent on educational leisure, of the poor working class visiting the sea for the first time, of the great national surge of self- improvement latent in the 1851 Exhibition, all this has gone. But there is one telling reminder that a little of the enthusiasm survives to this day. Dr. Major remarks that in 1835 the Whitby & Pickering Railway offered an excursion train to Ruswarp for the annual fair, but that local traders complained that "families spent all their money riding backwards and forwards rather than at the fair". So even then, to an extent, the means had become an end, just as it is still is on that self-same stretch of line. This is a ground-breaking account of an important and neglected topic and deserves a wide readership.

Samuel Telford Dutton, railway signal engineer of Worcester. Edward Dorricott. Signalling Record Society, 2016, 256 pp., 375 illustrations. Reviewed by RF *****,
The subject of this book is Samuel Telford Dutton, signal engineer and contractor, together with his signalling firm of Dutton &Company and its products. The book is divided into two parts. The first part covers the history of Samuel Dutton as a man, his family, his work and civic responsibilities, together with the history of Dutton and Company, its products, business and personalities. The second part records in detail the work Dutton and Company did for the railways in the British Isles, together with further details of the company's products. In the first part of the book we are taken through the life of Samuel Dutton, who was born in 1838 and spent his childhood in Manchester, before moving to Worcester. There he joined the firm of McKenzie and Holland, the well-known signalling contractor, working for them for many years. In 1889 he left their service and set up the company which bore his name and moved into premises just across the road! The creation, development and decline of Dutton and Company is covered in detail, together with much information on the people associated with the business and who influenced events. Finally a chapter takes us through retirement and details of the members of his family and their activities. Along the way a vast amount of detail is woven into the story about the man, his work, civic and external activities, his homes and family.
Fortunately, the author was able to find members of the Dutton family who gave valuable information and support, while the reminiscences of the seemingly rather downtrodden and undervalued William Buck provided much detail and background to developments. The very fortunate location of the T. E. Haywood photograph album, which contained many pictures of Dutton and Company's work, added significantly to the understanding of the extent of Dutton's work. A number of the wonderful photographs from the album, both taken in the works and of new installations on site, are included in the book, adding considerably to its interest and historical importance. The author has been very successful in filling out details of the lives of the family and the other characters that come into the story. The 'people' material is particularly useful in giving 'life' to the man, his company, its products and the other people involved, and an idea of who did what and how some things came about. Finding out about people beyond dates and basic details can be extremely difficult and the painstaking research that the author has undertaken is very clear from what is included in the book. All is told in a very readable, and at the same time very informative, style with much background material.
Occasionally one is perhaps left wanting to know a little bit more, such as why the young Dutton chose signalling and the firm of McKenzie and Holland in faraway Worcester to start his career, rather than joining one of the many manufacturing companies that surrounded his Manchester home, and what were the feelings at McKenzie's when he seemingly set up in competition with them just across the road! However, the author has almost certainly exhausted all possible avenues so we will probably never know much more.
The designs and evolution of Dutton's very distinctive lever frames are covered in Part I, as they were central to the company's signalling work, and so sets the context for the company by company review of Dutton's work which follows in Part 2. There is a detailed description of the features and working of the various types of Dutton locking at Appendix 3 for those wanting more detail. The second part of the book is a most valuable survey and record of Dutton's work in the British Isles, illustrated by many photographs. Its division by railway company, of which there were a surprising number who had Dutton's installations, especially considering the relatively short life of the company, makes for easy and clear reference. The Cambrian Railways were the largest user of Dutton equipment so this company receives particularly thorough treatment and this provides the opportunity to describe and illustrate many of Dutton's products. The following company by company reviews contain much additional information and highlight features special to the company concerned.
The illustrated review is followed by Appendix 1, which sets out to list details of every known Dutton signalling installation in the British Isles. This is a brave attempt indeed and is a clear demonstration of the thorough work that has gone into this book. Unfortunately, by contrast, very little seems to be known of Dutton's work abroad. The author has been able to put to bed a few apparent myths or misunderstandings. Perhaps most notable of these is the story that Dutton went to India after the end of his company in Worcester. It turns out to have been his second son, Samuel Telford Dutton (which gives a clue to the source of the confusion!), who actually went there. The book is profusely illustrated throughout and there are over 370 illustrations, many of which are in colour. All in all this is a magnificent book containing a vast amount of information and should be a valuable reference work to anyone with an interest in any of the railway companies Dutton undertook signalling work for, as well as being an essential reference work for anyone with an interest in railway signalling. Highly recommended.

Great Northern outpost Vol.1: The Bradford & Thornton Railway. Alan Whitaker and Ian Rapacz. Willowherb Publishing, 112pp, DJ ****
At one level this is simply a book of over 100 colour photographs with a brief introduction. But it is definitely not just another colour album. It looks in great detail at a line little more than five miles in length, taking an almost forensic yard-by-yard approach to its trackwork and structures. Less than half the images show a train.
Is such an approach justified? Well, in the first instance it portrays the initial section of what was arguably the Great Northern Railway's ultimate exercise in futility - the ever-fascinating 'Queensbury lines'. Expensively and spectacularly engineered, they were not completed until 1884. Passenger services only survived until 1955 and all had gone by the mid-1960s. Colour photographs of this outpost have long thought to be extremely rare and if nothing else the authors deserve high praise for devoting many years in bringing together a collection that hitherto is largely unpublished. Indicative of just how few photographers got to these rugged heights of the West Riding is that only once do we see a scheduled passenger train, but at least it is at the extraordinary Queensbury station with its platforms on each side of the triangle. Ensuring satisfactory reproduction of these vintage images can only have been challenging and the print quality is excellent. To use one of the oldest of cliches, this is indeed a labour of love by two historians who have known the line for over 40 years. Alan Whitaker is the son of its last station master and grew up in the Station House at Thornton. Ian Rapacz is a chartered engineer who witnessed the railway in its final struggles when living near Great Horton.
This is not a book for those prone to depression. Decay and demolition are prevalent with timber-built stations rotting away and willow herb among the weeds adding a rare floral touch to the general melancholia. Locomotives are so often in deplorable condition, matching the surroundings of the one-time wool capital of the world that was also in abrupt decline. Some may find it all a bit too much and wish that many of the overgrown track scenes had been edited out, the rest then being combined with the promised second volume on the lines from Queensbury to Halifax and the even more impressive section from Thornton to Keighley. Yet for those wanting a definitive pictorial record – warts and all – of a remarkable railway in the last throes of its existence, it could scarcely be bettered. See also Volume 2 reviewed in Volume 31 p. 701

Seventy years since then. rear cover
No. 5904 Kelham Hall near Maidenhead on express parcels train on 11 April 1946.

October 2016 (Number 306)

Class O4/8 2-8-0 No.63688 (rebuilt from a wartime ROD locomotive to a Great Central design) at Retford GC shed, not long out of works by the look of it. Derek Penney.
See also brief colour photo-feature on page 599

A blast form the past. Dennis Postlethwaite. 579
Guest Editorial. Not many railway enthusiasts have witnessed the awesome spectacle of a steam-hauled express hurtling towards and passing them at full speed while standing 4ft or so from the platform edge [KPJ a deceased former collegue who lived in Hatfield related how a visiting phyicist from Princeton University was awestruck by the passage of expresses through Hatfield station]. I used to take it for granted that it was for many a common sight but, as recorded below, I have come to realise that I was indeed very privileged to have seen it – not once but many times. The station, of course, was Carnforth on the West Coast Main Line where I used to witness, shortly after midday, the procession of 'Duchess'-hauled expresses from both the up main – a longish view with the train passing some 8ft away - or from the down main – a 'head on' view and very close indeed to the mighty 600-ton or so train travelling at 80-100mph taking a run at the formidable climbs to Grayrigg and Shap. He then moves on to the topic of driving miniature steam locomotives.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'Let's Go Glasgow Electric': the revolution in Glasgow's local rail transport. Part One. 580-5
Glasgow used to be a major industrial and commercial centre with the headquarters offices of many major companies, including banks, shipping lines and insurance companies situated in the City centre. Many of its office workers travelled home for lunch and the railways responded with intensified servicess in the middle of the day. East to West suburban traffic was/is provided by underground railways constructed by or for the North British and Caledonian Railways with Low level stations at Queen Street and Central. There is also the Cathcart Circle and many other suburban services which grew along the main lines rather like ribbon development on roads. There is also the Glasgow Subway, a true underground railway, which was worked by cable until 193* when it was electrified. A very extensive electric tramway grew into a network which reached several neighbouring towns (Paisley and Coatbridge), but failed to extend to Motherwell and Dumbarton. It also failed to reach the rapidly constructed slum clearance suburbs, like Easterhouse and Castlemilk, constructed in the immediate Post World War II period. Neither the North British nor the Caledonian sought to electrify their suburban services: on the latter condensing was abandoned during WW1. The LMS considered electrifying the Cathcart Circle using 1500V dc (as per Lord Weir of Cathcart's Report!), but the economic climate precluded this. The main accent is on the Post WW2 studies which eventually led to the Blue Trains — which remain the largest electrified British suburban network outside London. Large scale civil engineering has been restricted to constructing a brutalist motorway network only comparable to that in Birmingham with pollution at least comparable to the old steam undergrounds. Needless to say only the elite can commute on it.
The reports examined are firstly the Bruce report prepared by Robert Bruce, the City Engineer, which is analogous to the County of London Plan which still resonates with Crossrail 2. This envisaged the motorway network, the concentration of railways into two termini and railway electrification. The Fitzpayne plan of 1951 envisaged railway electrification and development of the tramway network along Continental lines. The Inglis Report did eventually lead to railway electrification, although the City was unrepresented in its deliberations. The eventual electrification was a great success although was fraught initially by severe terchnical difficulties due to explosions in the train's onboard transformers.
Illustrations: Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42125 with passenger train in the smoke laden Glasgow Central Low Level in 1962 (colour); Craven DMU at Kilmacolm in September 1973 (colour); Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42689 with suburban train crossing Clyde leaving Central station (colour); DMU at Partick West letter from Leonard Rogers on p. 702 and one from Robert Campbell on page 765 cast doubt as to where DMU was going (and on fate of shipbuilding cranes); Bruce Report 1925 plan; Fitzpatrick Report 1948 plan; Inglis Report 1951 and 1974 plans; Partick Hill station with Blue train above road and Coronation tram car for Dalmuir West on road beneath (colour); Glasgow Electric Train Services timetable cover; Blue train at Balloch Pier with Maid of the Loch beyond in 1962 (colour); Cathcart with Blue train in September 1974 (colour). Part 2 see page 656. See also comments from John Macnab, Leonard Rogers and Kevin Jones on page 702. And on page 765 from Eric Stuart (highly congrulatory, but see note on Cathcart Circle and from Robert D. Campbell on diesel working on Central Low Level line and on Dawsholm shed. The magnificent managerial response to the transformer crisis is covered in letters from Robert Herriott and John Macnab on page 125 of next Volume.

David Joy. Penrith — a bygone junction. 586-93.
The Lancaster & Carlisle Railway (see Jeffrey Wells in Backtrack and especially Part 2 on p. 750). William Tite was the architect to the Lancaster & Carlislr Railway  and his work is still visible at Penrith station. Sarah Losh also had an influence on the architecture of the area: she was from the Losh family who was a niece of William Losh who worked closely with George Stephenson and daughter of James Losh promoter of the Newcastle & Carlisle Railway. Her main contribution is the church in Wreay, but she had grand designs for the railway including its avoidance of a significant tree but was thwarted in her plans for a grand crossing of the River Eden. The Stockton & Darlington Railway backd the South Durham & Lancashire Uniion Railway to construct a railway from Barnard Castle to Tebay to convey Durham coke towards Barrow. It also provided a brach from Kirkby Stephen to Appleby and thence to Penrith, This opened in 1862 shortly before it became part of the North Eastern Railway where it linked to the Cockermouth, Keswick & Penrith Railway over which the North Eastern worked some its freight (but the Cockermouth line's main allegiance was to the London & North Western). All these railways are now closed albeit Kirkby Stephen and Appleby have limited railway services over the tottering Settle & Carlisle line and some trains still pause at Penrith. No mention is made to "planned" revival of train service to Keswick. Illustrations: Station forecourt with charabancs to convey tourists to Ullswater in c1925; main line platforms in 1925; two Ivatt class 2 2-6-0 ready to take over a special working with snow on the ground (photograph lacks caption) waiting to work Lakes & Fells railtour to Workington on 2 April 1966 (Derek Cross); map; No. 46229 Duchess of Hamilton approaching with Lakes Express; No. 46228 Duchess of Rutland (caption) but No, 46248 City of Leeds passing Thrimby Woods with Glasgow to Manchester express on 11 August 1962 (colour: Gavin Morrison); Britannia on freight approaching Clifton & Lowther signal on 8 May 1965 (colour: Gavin Morrison); Precedent 2-4-0 No. 1488 Murdoch and Claughton 4-6-0 passing Brisco with long passenger train of very varied designs of coaches; 4F 0-6-0 No. 44121 wwith permanent way train passing CK&P Junction Signal Box No. 1 on 5 June 1950 (E.D. Bruton); Derrby Lightwight DMU leaving Penrith for Workington in 1955: Class 2 2-6-0 Numbers46458 and 46456 near Troutbeck with return The Budd from the Keswick Convention on 17 July 1965 (Derek Cross); Fowler 2-6-4T No. 43214 leaving Keswick with up Lakes Express on 20 August 1960 (John Marshall); seven car DMU at Keswick on final day of service 4 March 1972 (colour: Gavin Morrison); Virgin Voyager near Thrimby Woods on 24 July 2006 (colour: Gavin Morrison); J21 0-6-0 No. 65089 on Penrith to Darlington passenger train near Eden Valley Junction on 14 June 1960 (E.D. Bruton); Appleby East c1905. See also letter from Andrew Kleissner on p. 702..

Miles Macnair. Emile Bachelet and the Dawn of 'Maglev'. Part Two. 594-8.
Part 1 see page 440. Later in the twentieth century Professor Eric Laithwaite became involved in magnetic levitation and in the dynamics of gyroscopes which sadly led him into the fringes of perpetual motion and other something for nothing non-science. Nevertheless, a form of magnetic levitation was used for a time to convey passengers into Birmingham International Airport [KPJ sadly missed travelling on this whilst it was available in favour of catching an earlier train to Euston which no doubt was subject to violent hunting in a Mk 1 coach, but did associate with classical physicists who were pertubed by Laithwaite's gyrations]. Illustrations: Bachelet Levitated Railway Syndicate share certificate [this Issue should carrry a financial health warning as two share certificates are reproduced]; diagram;; a pre-Robin Barnes depiction of a demo vehicle in colour; Popular Science cover (colour); laboratory with Sir Hram Maxim contemplating maglev mortar bomb; and Birmingham International Airport Maglev floating through the air.

For heavy duty on the Great Central. Derek Penney. 599.
Colour photo-feature of former Great Central Railway 2-8-0 type at Retford shed. O4/1 No. 63608; O4/3 No. 63637; O4/8 (with 100A boiler) No. 63688. See also front cover

Stephen Roberts. Somerset's railways. 600-9.
Dominated by Great Western with main centre within county at Taunton. Most of non-main line lines now closed. Southern Railway intruded at Yeovil; Somerset & Dorset Railway adds to the former railway mileage. In part Somerset was covered by Railway Archive Wish you were here series, but that mainly lacked colour: see Neil Parkhouse for North Somerset. No attempt has been made to illustrate some of the odder lines which used to inhabit the county, but many including the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead are mentioned. The former coal industry and the present nuclear power industry are mentioned. There is no attempt to record how the railways have largely failed to adapt to the massive changes in population (both in nature and distribution) since the Beeching misadventure and possible changes wrought by Global warming. Illustrations: Bath station decorated for visit of HRH Princess Elizabeth on 3 May 1950; GWR map; Ivatt class 2 2-6-2T No. 41202 at Yatton with train for Frome (colour: L.F. Folkard); No. 6977 Grundisburgh Hall at Weston-super-Mare Locking Road in 1961 (colour); Keynsham station c1900; Hallatrow station; Chard station with 57XX No. 4673 with passenger train (caption incorrect not on Cheddar Valley train) (colour: R. Patterson); Highbridge station (GWR with milk churns in 1928); Modified Hall No. 7914 Lleweni Hall on local train near Creech Junction; Chard station with Metro tank 2-4-0T No. 5 half under overall roof  on 2 August 1928 (H.C. Casserley) [KPJ: Chard Junction seems to have been forgotten as does Chard with a population in excess of 10,000 it lacks good access to its relatively local railway]; Clevedon branch push & pull pulling out of Yatton station behind No. 1412 (colour: J. McCann); Taunton station with 43XX No. 6327 on Barnstaple train? and Cross Country DMU on 12 August 1963 (colour: A. Hudson); No. 4575 No. 5594 on freight at Crowcombe on 26 February 1960 (J.S. Gilks); Yeovil Pen Mill station with LSWR push & pull being propelled by M7 0-4-4T? out of Yeovil Pen Mill approaching Yeovil Town in July 1959; internal view of Frome station c1970; 4575 No. 6669 at Portishead station on 2 June 1953 (T.J. Edgington); Shepton Mallet station (GWR) with 0-6-0ST No. 2729 and 0-4-2T? approaching with passenger train c1910; Wells Tucker Street with train for Witham on wet 10 October 1960. See long letter from Peter Davis on p. 61 of next Volume..

Deliver us to Huddersfield and Halifax. Gavin Maxwell. 608-12
Colour photo-feature: Trans-Pennine express from Liverpool to Scarborough entering Huddersfield behind Class 45 No. 45 119 on 8 August 1986; Fowler/Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42414 at west end of Huddersfield station on 14 July 1958; Jubilee cclass No. 45717 Dauntless at Brighouse with 10.30 Liverpool Exchange to Newcastle on 12v July 1960; Class 5 No. 45219 with South Yorkshireman for Marylebone on Lockwood Viaduct on 24 May 1959; Class 45 No. 45 119 at west end of Huddersfield station with train for Liverpool on 4 June 1983; Jubilee No. 45565 Victoria at Dryclough Junction with a Leeds to Blackpool service on 9 July 1966; Fowler/Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42417 passing Bradley Junction with local service from Bradford and Halifax on 27 August 1959; Stanier Class 5 2-6-0 No. 42961 passing Gledholt Junction on climb to Marsden with corridor train of mainly Gresley coaches and three bogie vans (rear being Gresley vehicle) on 24 May 1959 (Sunday diversion off Woodhead route?).

Sometimes an alternative will do. 613
Colour photo-feature: shunting with horse power at Queen's Road goods depot in Sheffield (A.R. Kaye) and by human power at Aberbeeg on 19 April 1962 (Trevor Owen).

Under and over [tunnel portals and viaducts]. 614-15.
Black & white photo-feature: abandoned original Woodhead Tunnels photographed in March 1957 (see also Volume 12 page 490); Ouse Viaduct near Balcombe; Standedge Tunnel with LMS freight approaching Marden end, canal tunnel maintenance boat in basin and motor coach on main road; Ouse Vaiduct near Sharnbrook probably under test; Thackley Tunnels c1906. 

John Reohorn. The Sharp Stewart locomotives of the Cambrian Railways: a chronological survey. Part Two. 616-23
Text mentions 0-6-0T No. 13 Talerddig (WN 2452/1875) which was supplied by Sharp Stewart to bank trains up to Talerddig. The text cites many references to earlier work including several by Christiansen, but not his series on Burman's photographs in the sadly now defunct Railway Archive where the larger reproductions add much to assimilating the rather quaint motive power used in Wild Wales: see Issues Nos. 3; 5, 9 and 16 . Illustrations: 0-6-0 No. 6 Marquis; No, 1 formerly Victoria shunting at Aberdovey Sidings; 2-4-0 No. 55 at Afon Wen on 11 September 1894; 0-6-0 No. 14 shunting at Aberdovey Wharf in 1912; 2-4-0 No. 50 arriving at Llwyngwril station (H.W. Burman); 0-6-0 No. 19 onn up freight near Harlech in July 1914 (H.W. Burman); 4-4-9 No. 16 Beaconsfield; 2-4-0 approaching Aberdyfi with a single coach in 1913 (H.W. Burman); 4-4-0 No. 68 on the Royal Train at Welshpool when conveying HRH the Prince of Wales on 25 June 1896; 2-4-0T No. 56 with light train; 4-4-0 No. 67 approaching Bow Street from Aberystwyth c1905; 4-4-0 No. 47 built by Robert Stephenson & Co.

Aliistair F. Nisbet. Railway jewel robberies. 624-30.
In January 1865 Thomas Burt, a night watchman at Dover was found guilty of stealing jewellery belonging to Valerie Tomkinsob; in December 1874 Lord and Lady Dudley reported the theft of jewels whilst boarding a train at Paddington whilst en route to Witley Court in Worcestershire, but were criticised in the  Boro' of Marylebone Mercury for offering a reward for its return; a tale of robbery from the Glasgow to Aberdeen Night Mail near Stronehaven is of questionable authenticity as it involvrd disconnecting the Westinghouse brake hose between the vehicles (the culprits were Baird and Matthews). Illustrations (only a very indirect connection with text): L1 4-4-0 No. 1787 on 14.42 Margate to Charing Cross at Dover Priory on 25 April 1947 (H.C. Casserley); Caledonian Railway 4-4-0 No. 722 arriving at Edinburgh Princes Street (Ken Nunn); Paddington station exterior in late Victorian period?; Ipswich station exterior; LCDR train leaving Bromley with train departing behind No. 54; Swanley Junction station c1900; Westbourne Park (GWR) station; King's Cross Platform 1 with Ivatt 4-4-0 No. 1433 at head of express; CR 4-4-0 departing Edinburgh Princes Street

Allan Trotter. Finale of the A4 - a personal recollection. 631-3.
Aberdeen Ferryhill motive power depot was the location for the final day of A4 operation on 3 September 1966: the photographs show the locomotives in almost Haymarket condition rather than in the grubby state which Kevin photographed them at St. Rollox. Nos. 60019 Bittern alongside No. 60024 Kingfisher; No. 60019 on turntable and with cod's mouih open; 60024 viewed from rear with NBL diesel and its tablet catcher visible and Bittern ready to make its final boom and take flight for Glasgow (a beautiful feature about the most beautiful locomotives and their wonderful bird names: Oh that one would migrate to Norfolk). See also letter from Eric Oates in next volume.

Bill Taylor. Railway in Court: passenger perils — a few random cases. 634-7.
Legal cases where passengers saught compensation from the railway companies for what they considered should have been provided. A civil engineer named Denton failed to reach Hull from Peterborough due to an inaccuracy in the timetable for March 1858. Lowenfield on 7 August 1891 alighted at Swindon for refreshments whilst en route to Teignmouth: the train departed before time and could only reach Bristol on the next train where he chartered a special for his onward journey. He attempted to recover the cost of the charter, but was largely unsuccessful. Travellers who fail to tender their tickets may be treated too harshly by the company's servants and this mat lead to litgation. A man named Butler, travelled on a Sheffield to Manchester excursion in 1887, but lost his ticket for the return journey and was ejected from the train at Wadsley Bridge: the company attempted to sue for the cost of the return journey, but lost its case when it was taken to the Court of Appeal. The final cases for which tghe references have been sacrificed for not very relevant but highly interesting picture of a Great Western 4-2-2 concern passengers who sought recompence from injuries inflicted by fellow passengers: the bounder named Pounder who was set upon by miners near Sunderland (Pounder was an evicter of striking miners from their homes); Cobb who was robbed by a gang whilst travelling on the Great Western at Wellington (Salop) and a Great Northern first class passenger who sought recompence when the unwashed boarded his compartment during WW1: all lost including the unfortunate Cobb. Illustrations: highly attractive Great Northern Railway timetable cover (colour).

Readers' Forum. 638

Sharp Stewart locomotives on the Cambrian. Dave Cousins
Re article by John Reohorn on p. 433 he writes "Names of first engines Hercules and Vulcan, brass letters"; he then presumes "that this indicates that nameplates were cast and fitted at the works". This is not quite correct. The apparently odd references to "Brass Letters" is significant. At that time, Sharp Stewart nameplates were usually formed from a steel sheet, to which cast brass letters were attached by copper rivets. The edging was brass strip, similarly affixed – just like a King or Castle. Writer has a plate off Wardley, a long-boilered saddle tank of 1888, owned by Manchester Collieries and it is so formed, lettering similar to those on the Cambrian locomotives.

Sharp Stewart locomotives on the Cambrian. Graham Davies
To confirm the information about Milford referred to on page 471 information from the Pembrokeshire Herald & Gazetteer for 31 July 1863 which can be found on the website at httpl/newspapers;library.wales/. At the opening of the Pembroke & Tenby Railway on 30 July 1863 during the Celebration Dinner, David Davies stated that he had a locomotive engine of his own which he had christened the Milford. It was now running on one of the lines in the north of England [by writer surely this should be north of Wales?], and he did not intend to rest satisfied till she ran all the way into Milford which he was determined she should do (cheers). He did, however, provide two Sharp Stewart 2-2-2Ts for the opening of the P&TR which were Works Nos.1410 and 1411, one being named Tenby, the other Milford. This item appears in May 1863 in the same newspaper title. One was definitely delivered in May 1863 as another report stated that it had arrived at Narberth Road station (Clynderwen) and had been hauled to Tenby by a large pack of horses.

The Great Northern Leeds- Bradford line. Colin Foster 
Writer also grew up in Wortley and attended the same school as the author, walking to school along footpath by the railway that he described.  His abiding memory of the line is the distinctive exhaust of the ex-GNR locomotives of Classes J6, J50 and N1 as they pounded up the bank to Armley Moor station. This echoed around the stone-walled cuttings and sounded like an asthmatic bark, as Hamilton Ellis aptly described it. He also remembers seeing the Derby Lightweight DMUs on their first day in service in 1954 [KPJ remembers returning from Harrogate to Halfax in one (between Leds and Bradford) at that time].They had bright silver roofs and were packed to the doorways with passengers.
He is amused that he was a member of the school's Transport Club which writer founded some years earlier with a group of train, tram and bus enthusiasts. It seems that many boys in those days had an interest in transport systems, but doubts if there are any such clubs nowadays in schools or universities. The GNR Leeds-Bradford line has an interesting history and started as the Leeds, Bradford & Halifax Junction Railway. By an Act of 18S2 it was empowered to build a railway from near Leeds Central station to Bowling Junction on the Bradford-Halifax line of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway. This was later extended by powers to build a line to Gildersome and Ardsley and also a line to Batley. It was thus an attractive catch for the GNR which took it over in 1865. During its independence it had a small locomotive stock of which the most unusual were some 0-4-2 tank engines built by Kitson & Hewitson on which the trailing wheels were the same diameter as the coupled wheels.
The press photographer Leslie Overend of Dewsbury took some fine railway pictures in that area during the 1950s. Amongst the best was a shot of Class N1 No..69471 taking the Bradford portion of the Yorkshire Pullman through Laisterdyke station on its way to Leeds to join the up train to King's Cross, a daily sight on the line that he remembers well.

The Lickey Incline in transition. Bob Yate 
Re tender of 9F No.92079: it had a cut-out on the left-hand side of the coal space surround, to help the footplate crews when hand coaling this locomotive at the wooden coaling stage, but have no idea when or where this modification took place, but most photos of this locomotive are taken from the right-hand side, so this small detail is not shown. The accompanying photograph at the Bromsgrove banking engine coaling stage on 6 May 1963 (Hawksworth 0-6-0PT No.9430 is in front of No.92079). This illustrates the height of the tender relative to the coaling stage and the task faced when hand loading it.

Severn Tunnel. John Miles 
Re mistake in the caption to photograph of Severn Bridge stating a Gloucestershire and a Monmouthshire side. The Severn Bridge was entirely in England and went from Gloucestershire to Gloucestershire.

Book reviews. 638

Railways and industry in the Western Valley (Newport to Aberbeeg). John Hodge. Published by Pen and Sword Transport. 155 pp.. Reviewed by JR ****
In past times before unitary authorities and political devolution, it was commonplace and acceptable to speak of Wales and Monmouthshire, for that county had long been frontier land, an independently-minded bastion between the English and the Welsh. It was a status that could trace its origin back to Roman times when the great fortress of Isca stood on the banks of the Usk housing a full legion equipped and ready to march out to quell any sign of rebellion. It was in this context of Monmouthshire neutrality that one spoke of Western and Eastern Valleys where the Usk and its tributaries form the east and the Ebbw becomes the West. These locations shared geology and geography similar to those others beyond the Gwent Levels while remaining quite distinctive. This volume from an established name in popular history publishing promises to be the first in a series covering all the South Wales valleys and is produced in partnership with an established author of proven reputation for commentary on this region. John Hodge writes with authority on a subject that is second nature to him as a professional railwayman until recently directly engaged in railway management within South Wales. The presentation is a little unusual in consisting of only four chapters of which the last accounts for 60% of the content. Most of the text is profusely illustrated with a wide variety of subject, all reproduced to a good size with excellent resolution, this aspect alone accounting for the larger part of the work. Included in this aspect are some detailed maps provided by R.A. Cooke.
The railways of The Valleys are notorious for the way in which rival companies sinuously threaded the narrow landscape in often bewildering ways. The Ebbw Valley is unusual in being largely the preserve of one undertaking, the Monmouthshire Railway and Canal Company. Hodge begins with a detailed account of the development of this company from its beginnings with canal building in 1792 through various mutations of tramway to a railway proper persevering against many vicissitudes as rivals and competitors attempted to muscle in on its lucrative traffic. This phase concluded when it was absorbed by the Great Western in 1870. The description continues, explaining how the line flourished under GWR management until rationalised under nationalisation, sectorisation and privatisation.
Another chapter is specifically given over to Newport Docks describing developments in response to the increasing volume of traffic, predominately coal, as that traffic exceeded the capacity of the early riverside wharfs. This is a fascinating account in its own right and made more so by the extensive use of aerial photographs mostly reproduced in whole page format. Remarkably this vast installation built around exports has survived the effects of containerisation and still functions commercially, principally in the import role. An important traffic through Newport docks has been for decades the import of iron ore to feed the several steel works in the Valley itself and in more recent years in the proximity of the docks. A note of melancholy records the use of some dock facilities in the disposal of many sacrificed steam locomotives during the 1960s and 70s.
From this topic the reader is led into a thorough description of the methods applied to the operation of this vast port including much detail regarding the many changes required to the railway facilities as marshalling points, siding fans and signal boxes had to be replaced or moved to accommodate the huge quantities of coal exported and emptied wagons removed. The complex control systems thus required are explained in detail as are the various locomotive types from the early MRCC machines, through the period of Great Western standardisation which saw increasingly large and powerful units deployed, and on into BR days with Standard 9Fs and the changeover to diesel traction. The Western Valley differed from the majority of the other valleys by reason of the iron and steel works located in the upper reaches established there to exploit local iron ore deposits. When this ran out it was necessary to import the ore, either by rail from the English Midlands or from overseas through the docks. This heavy traffic demanded big locomotives capable of hauling heavy loads up the gradients and some interesting coverage is given to the experimental use of King Class locomotives in establishing the best solution.
One aspect that impresses the first-time visitor to South Wales is the density of occupation. Coal and iron were the principal activities: labour intensive industries imposed on deep, narrow, rural valleys with migrant workers in their thousands needing to be housed and fed. The supporting infrastructure serving mines, mills and people created supplementary industries and supportive commerce that also made demands on space. The result is tightly-knit communities strung cheek by jowl the length of every valley and all linked by railways conveying the output while supplying the needs of all. In seeking to explain how this was achieved in the Western Valley Mr. Hodge chooses to provide for each location an informative analytic sketch comprehensively supported by photographs. Even in terms of a single valley this is a mammoth task and having dealt with 27 locations, installations, junctions, collieries and settlements, the author has wisely paused upon reaching Aberbeeg where the valley forks into two arms both of equal density and including major industrial sites extensive enough to fill a promised future volume. This piece of social history probably does more to illustrate and explain how commerce and railway jointly created, served and changed this environment than any formal history or technical treatise. It is a large book of 'coffee table' dimensions (necessary to do justice to the large images) with a valid, serious purpose, well designed and lavishly printed on high quality paper. It is neither an academic dissertation nor an analysis of resources, rather a story of how it was, told by someone who was there and so stands as valuable contribution from the exceedingly important archive of living memory. This essential primary source in relation to railway history is vanishing at an alarming rate and every fragment that can be saved is important in providing future generations with understanding and explanation of how things were and the consequences thereof. The promised sequels are to be welcomed. Some observations in closing: it is surprising to find such a large and detailed subject presented without an index, an omission that detracts from its value as a research resource. Also, while large pages enhance the visuals they tend to have the opposite effect on large blocks of text. Chapter One in particular cries out for some relevant sub-headings as used so effectively elsewhere in the text. Such would assist in locating main topics, especially pertinent given the previously mentioned omission. While the textual maps are excellent in their place, a reader coming to the work without experience of the locale might desire a good contextual reference map. The included line map goes some way to providing this but would have been more useful reproduced as a double page spread instead of being compressed into one column.
These small quibbles aside, it is an impressive work of value to anyone with an interest in the region of Gwent and a significant contribution to describing the unique railway scene in this part of South Wales.

The East Grinstead connrction. rear cover
Maidstone & District low bridge Leyland double deck bus on service to Tonbridge outside East Grinstead station and H class No. 31263 on platform above on 19 August 1962 (escapee from Modellers' Backtrack?)

November 2016 (Number 307)

The late show at Preston - only a few more days of steam to go as LMS Class 5 4-6-0 No.44806 assembles an evening parcels train on 26th July 1968. David Rodgers. front cover

Going over old ground. Michael Blakemore. 643
Main thrust of the Editorial was the significance of re-opening railwayn lines. His own adventure was limited to the Todmorden Triangle, but he observed that when re-opening the Borderrs Line Her Majesty the Queen and her amazing Consort, the Duke of Ediburgh "had a first class compartment 'poshed-up' for them. Seeing on the television news that into this there sidled a political leader [Nicola Sturgeon] who took up a spare seat, it occurred to me that perhaps HM and HRH, being unfamiliar with 'ordinary' carriages, had not been briefed on the tactics traditionally employed to discourage intruders from sliding the corridor door open and enquiring "Is that seat free?" - spreading yourself about, placing coats and bags on the unoccupied seats, having some broadsheet newspapers to read and strew around, scowling ferociously, in the hope that anyone looking for somewhere to sit would be persuaded to keep moving and try a compartment further along.
Gone the days when you could stalk the corridors of a nice long train in search of an empty compartment of which to seize occupancy and defend it. Another politician [Jeremy Corbyn] was more recently in the headlines bemoaning his inability to find a seat on an East Coast route train and consequently having to squat on the floor in a vestibule end. As is often the case in such 'incidents', all was not quite as it seemed since he apparently eschewed several single seats in pursuit of two together so he could sit with his wife.
Unless they had decided to travel on a sudden whim, the situation shouldn't have been any great surprise; seasoned campaigners (many unseasoned ones as well) know to book in advance and obtain seat reservations. Even then, if you leave it late, procuring two together can't be assured and if you go 'on spec', having to split up is often to be expected. An author last month commented on the entrepreneur who intended to make rail travel an experience equal to that of travelling by aeroplane (as if that is enjoyable!) - and that unfortunately he succeeded. The proliferation of 'airline'-style seating in rows of two over the last few decades (supposedly in response to 'public demand' but most likely to prise more seats into the available space) has meant that rarely can more than two people at most can sit together and larger groups or families can rarely manage to gather companionably around one of the few remaining tables.
In the Great Western Railway 1902 public timetable the company advertised that "Upon giving a day's notice Compartments can be reserved for distances over 20 miles upon payment of not less than four First Class or six Second or Third Class full fares..." The Midland could do even better, requiring only two hours' notice at a terminal station where the train started; compartments could also be 'engaged' for ladies only. I recalled having read something like this when I was obliged to crouch on the floor of a Grand Central train between York and London (see Editorial 26/1) without even the company of a slumped politician on whom to vent my spleen, or when standing in a 'Voyager' early this year. And as for the next one to say things will get better... "

Colourful Salisbury. Tom Heavyside. 644-5.
Colour photo-feature: Class 47 No. 47 631 in red livery with train of Mk II carriages in Network South East livery in Salisbury station on 18 July 1992; Class 47 No. 47 701 Old Oak Common Traction and Rolling Stock Depot in Network South East livery with matching train in Salisbury station on 18 July 1992; Class 50 No. 50 003 Temeraire in rail blue livery arriving with 09.40 Exeter St. David's to Waterloo service on 18 August 1981; Class 50 No. 50 005 Collingwood in Network South East livery arriving on Portsmouth to Paignton service on 7 April 1988; and Class 33 passing Tunnel Junction with train for Portsmouth on 18 August 1981.

Jeffrey Wells. The saga of Charing Cross Station roof 1905-1906. 646-51.
Collapsed in afternoon of 5 December 1905 leading to the deaths of two SECR workmen working on the roof, an employee at the W.H. Smith & Son bookstall and three workmen working on the roof of an adjacent Avenue Theatre. Major Pringle investigated the accident which was due to the corrosion of a tie rod. Services were diverted to Cannon Street, but the Continental service was diverted to Victoria. Illustrations: luxury train for Folkestone (colour postcard); approach to station off Hungerford Bridge showing signals and cabin; station interior in 1860s; diagram showing fastening of roofing ironwork; diagram (cros section of roof);

Alan Taylor. Modernising the North Eastern Region: trackwork and signalling. 652-5.
Newe works included a new up slow line from Pilmoor to Alne which led to four-track all the way from Northallerton to York. This eenabled heavy freight to be routed off the severe gradients of the Wetherby, Harrogate and Ripon route. Colour light signalling and AWS was installed between Belford and Tweedsmouth. Centralised Tr affic Control was planned for the York to Hull route, but this was not implemented. The automationn of level crossings was begun on the Newcastle and Carlisle line. A radio telephone system was implemented. Illustrations: No. 60033 Seagull on up Elizabethan passing Pilmoor; interior of Belford signal boz; 9F 2-10-0 No. 92064 underneath a semaphore gantry at Tyne Dock on 2 August 1966; Reguional Headquarters in York (former North Eastern Railway offices) with microwave aerial tower on 8 April 1981 (T.J. Edgington); Q6 No. 63379 at West Stanley on freight on 28 December 1963 (T.J. Edgington); Hull to York DMU at Kipling Cotes station on 1 May 1964 (J.S. Gilks); B16 No. 61478 arriving Londesborough Road excursion station, Scarborough in August 1960; DMU at Rowntree Halt on 27 May 1988 (T.J. Edgington).

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'Let's Go Glasgow Electric': the revolution in Glasgow's local rail transport. Part Two. 656-60.
See page 580 et seq for Part 1. Original Blue train rolling stock built by Pressed Steel at Linwood. The units were painted in Caledonian blue, had wrap r ound windscreens, sliding doors and a forward view for passengers [KPJ; they were super and there was a special illustrated brochure with colour illustrations which is in the Pre-Cambrian layer in our loft]. There was a special logo designed by F.H.K. Henrion.  In KPJ's opinion it brought London Transport standards to Glasgow and the Blue trains were far in advance of the A stock. The electric network has continued to grow partly assisted by the arrival of electric traction from Weaver Junction. Cut backs to the electtrified network have been few: Balloch Pier (the associated steamer services ceased) and to Singer (the factory closed). Some large projects have foundered notably the underground station at Blythswood Square; a link between the North British and the Caledonian at Bridgeton; the Tron line betwen Queen Street and Shields Junction and a link from Paisley to Glasgow Airport. Kilomalcolm lost its service in 1983, but the severed remnant of the Canal line to Paisley has been electrified although East Kilbride remains forgotten. The bulk of the remaining services in Central Scotland, notably the main Edinburgh & Glasgow line are being electrified at present, The exit from Queen Street is singularly unsuited for any form of exhaust emitting traction. The author questions whether light rail might  not have been more suitable for some operations especially the Cathcart Circle and [KPJ East Kilbride]. lIllustrations (all colour unless noted otherwise): 2 Blue trains at Springburn in April 1974; Class 320 in orange livery at Airdrie in September 1991; Joining the Hamilton train set (poster); interior of Blue train (b&w); Class 314 in orange livery at Whifflet in August 1996; Class 334 at Wemyss Bay in maroon livery in 2005 and Class 380 in Scotrail Blue at Troon in January 2015 (according to KPJ's SNP friend: the best trains we have ever had: one of KP' sons in law is working on EGIP). See also letter from Stephen Abbott on organisation of steam services after withdrawal of electric services in 1960 (KPJ was too busy with thoughts of fiancée to remember the impact on his father Frank of this period!)

R.A.S. Hennessey. The train ferries. Part One. 661-7
The Forth & Clyde Canal carried wagons off the Monkland & Kirkintilloch Railway and the Bude Canal coveyed boats with wheels which wer hauled up inclined planes onn rails. The SS Bedlington conveyed chaldron wagons loaded with coal from Blyth to the River Tyne for shipment. But the paradigm train ferry was developed for the Granton to Burntisland passage by Thomas Bouch. It combined ships with railway tracks wuith berths which featured ramps and link spans. PS Leviathan was designed in detail by Thomas Grainger . It was built by Robert Napier & Sons of Govan and was followed by the Robert Napier from the same shipyard and by the PS Carrier from Scott & Co. of Greenock. It should be noted that J. Graeme Bruce wrote about this innovation in Backtrack, 2001, 15, 40, Another train ferry operated across the River Tay from Ferryport-on-Tay (later known as Tayport) to Broughty Ferry. The berthing arrangements were similar to those on the Forth, but the service was briefly interupted by the opening of the Tay Bridge and ceased after its replacement. There is brief mention of how the ill-fated passengers who went down with the Tay Bridge had crossed the Forth on the passenger ferry PS William Muir which lasted until 1937. When the Forth Bridge opened further work for the PS Carrier was sought for it on a ferry linking Langstone Harbour and St. Helens on the Isle of Wight. There is a brief description of how train ferries were introduced during WW1 for service between Richborough and Zeebrugge and between Southampton and Dieppe (the port of Richborough was described in detail by Jeff Wells in Railway Archive No. 24). Hennessey emphsises the influence of Follett Holt on this developmemnt. The train ferries were built by Armstrong Whitworth at Low Wallsend on the Tyne who built two and by Fairfield's of Govan. They were known as Train Ferry 1 to 3. For the Southampton sailings the train ferry Leonard was brought back from Canada where it had been uised on services acr oss the St. Lawrence between Quebec and Levis. As well as being an icebreaker it had a train deck which could be raised or lowered. It had been built at Cammell Laird in Birkenhead in 1914 for the Grand Trunk  Railway. Illustrations: PS Lansdowne owned by Grand Trunk Railway icebreaking on voyage betweeen Windsor (Ontario) and Detroit); PS Carrier probably at Burntisland; Train Ferry 1 or 2 at Richborough (two views one with American ambulance train being loaded); Bali Sea built to operate between near Veracruz in Mexico and Mobile in Alabama (presumably to avoid Trump Wall) elevatin and plan of Train Ferries 1 to 3; Cambridge Ferry; Lucia Carbo owned Entre Rios Railway in Argentine and associated with Follett Holt and Leonard. Part 2 see page 742  See also letter from Paul Joyce on page 61 of Volume 31 and from Bert Blissett in next Volume on p. 125.

Michael B. Binks. The origins diagnosis and historical prevention of track failures. Part One. 668-71
This is a posthumous conttribution. Improvements in the composition of steel for rails: the text includes an unfotunate mistake in referring to Robert Hatfield [sic] when it should be Hadfield. Solution to problem of joining carbon steel to manganese steel resolved by inserting a length of alloy steel. Flat bottom rail and continuously welded rail.. Rail joints. Timber and concrete sleepers. Danger of pumping action under wet conditions. Also advancing wave action  or rolling loading caused by passage of trains. Cross beams to ensure that track remains in gauge.Hammer blow from steam locomotives. Illustrations: No. 6934 Beachamwell Hall on passenger train at Baschurch passing a maintenance gang on 26 March 1964 (colour: G. Paary); permanent way team on motor trolley near Heckington between Sleaford and Boston in 1927; U class 2-60 No. 31791 on trainn of ballast hoppers discharging onto new welded rail on concrete  sleepers at Pirbright on 30 July 1965 (colour: A.F. Hudson); flat bottom rail with timber sleepers at Brayton near |Selby in May 1945;  locomotive ash as ballast at Lincoln in 1911; fishplated joint (David Cope); track gauge (R. Bance & Co. Ltd.)

Night Must Fall. David Rodgers. 672-4.
Colour photo-feature: night scenes taken during end of steam traction on British Railways in 1968: Class 5 4-6-0 No. 45025 at Bolton Trinity Street on Manchester Victoria to Heysham Belfast Boat Express on 17 March 1968; Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0 No. 43027 as station pilot at Preston on 12 April 1968; Class 5 No. 45305 on Lostock Hall shed on 1 August 1968; 8F 2-8-0 No. 48723 on Rose Grove shed on 31 May 1968; 8F 2-8-0 No. 48730 on Carnforth shed on 27 July 1068; and Class No. 45156 at Rose Grove on 10 July 1968.

To Hull ... 675-7.
Black & white photo-feature: Huill Paragon station forecourt: photographed on 24 June 1981 (notes architects  G.T. Andrews and William Bell and ugly British Railways delivery vans) and with porte cochère and South African War Memorial viewed from Paragon Square c1905; Cravens diesel multiple units (one for Scarborough) viewed from platform end looking towards  five arched span roof on 10 October 1964 (T^.J. Edgington); Dairycoates locomotive depot with J71 No. 68264, J72 No, 69003, J39 No. 64914,  and J73 No. 68363;; A6 No, 69796 on Botanic Gardens level crossing with waiting bicycles and trolleybus wires; A5 No. 69836 at Hornsea Town with train for Hull c1955 and J25 No. 65654 at Springhead coaling stage.

David Andrews. 51 Years of Western express running: performances recorded on the Great Western Railway by Charles Rous Marten in 1856 and 1907. 678-81.
Slightly contrived article as considers what is in effect Rous Marten's juvenalia with his final recordings. The early work reflected his ability to exploit cutting edge watch technology as his father was a highly skilled watchmaker. The runs were made on the broad gauge, but after the great efforts made to exploit its potential for high speed: indeed, the printed sources questioned whether 80 mile/h was ever achieved and shows that the highest speeds tended to be attained on relatively light trains over short distances and illustrates this by a run from Slough to Reading when time had been lost in detaching the Windsor portion and 5 miles had been covered at an avaerage speed of 75 mile/h behind 2-2-2-2 Crimea. This was reported in English Mechanic and World of Science, 1878 (671). As is well known Rous Marten went off to New Zealand but returned to England in the 1890s and the article concludes with his final contribution to train recording with an account of 4-cylinder 4-4-2 No. 40 North Star on a run from Paddington to Plymouth via Westbury when 80 mile/h was exceeded between Patney and Westbury (reported in Engineer 9 August 1907). His final contribution was in the Railway Magazine for April 1908 and described the Churchward Pacific No. 111 The Great Bear. Illustrations: 2-2-2-2 Great Western (colour); portrait of Rous Marten; 2-2-2-2 Great Britain; Maidenhead staation in broad gauge period; 4-4-2 No. 40 North Star; No. 111 The Great Bear at Old Oak Common.

Down South. 682-4.
Colour photo-feature: Unrebuilt light Pacific No. 34061 73 Squadron leaving Yeovil Junction with 12.36 Salisbury to Exeter on 26 March 1964 (Roy Patterson); Britannia Pacific No. 70000 Britannia at Portsmouth Harbour with special from Guidford via Eastleigh on 4 October 1964 (Roy Patterson); USA class 0-6-0T in Malchite green livery  leaving Lewes (actually Woking: see letter from photographer in next Volume p. 61) on Midhurst Belle rail tour on 18 October 1964 (Roy Hobbs); unrebuilt Battle of Britain class No. 34066 Spitfire at Exeter Central in September 1964 (Godfrey Platt); H class 0-4-4T No. 31505 shunting stock to form service to Clapham Junction in October 1962 (Roy Hobbs); rebuilt West Country No. 34098 Templecombe at Chard Junction with freight on 28 April 1962 (Roy Patterson); 2-6-4T No. 80018 on viaduct at Riddlesdown with Oxted line train on 5 March 1961 (Roy Patterson).

Mike G. Fell. Charles Clare 1832-1882: Locomotive Superintendent — North Staffordshire Railway. 685-
Portrait, map, Class A 2-4-0T No.m 35 at Pipe Gate on Market Drayton line; Class B 2-4-0T; Class B 2-4-0T No. 18 at Manchester London Road; 0-6-0ST No. 58A at Stoke locomotive shed; 2-4-0 No. 54 John Bramley-Moore at Derby Midland; 2-4-0 No. 55 Colin Minton Campbell on turntable at Manchester London Road; 2-4-0 No. 55 Colin Minton Campbell after rebuilding at Crewe.

Geoffrey Skelsey. 'Tickets of joint railways. 690-1.
Illustrations (all colour): Cheshire Lines Committee walking tour ticket — outward from Manchester Central to Chapel-en-le-Frith and return from Edale; Manchester, South Junction & Altringham monthly return from Sale to Colwyn Bay; Oldham, Ashton & Guide Bridge Junction child cheap day return from Ashton Oldham Road to Park Bridge; GWR & LMS Joint Wooferton to Ludlow single; GNR & LNWR Joint Scalford first class blank return for travel on GNR train issued on 5 December 1953; Smerset & Dorset Railway Joint Committee HM Forces on leave single blank Evercreech Junction; County Donegal Railwaay Joint Committee Letterkenny to Bundoran excursion of 30 July 1950; LMS & GWR Joint Severn & Wye Joint committee Berkeley Road to Severn Bridge monthly return

John C. Hughes. Clearing the air. 692-7.
The problem of ventilation on a steam worked underground Mersey Railway with very steep gradients and underground stations. Powerful Guibal fans were installed and the locomotives were fitted with condensing apparatus and fascilities were available at the termini to replenish the water in the tanks. Illustrations: map from official opening brochure of 1886; sketch plan showing ventilation arrangements from opening brochure; plan and section of Birkenhead fan house; diagram from Francis Fox ICE paper. James Street station from brochure (no hint of smoke); Royal train on opening day; 0-6-4T No. 8 Birkenhead at Park station; 2-6-2T fireless locomotive from Paris. See also letter from Author in Volume 31 p. 61.

Jeffrey Wells. Christ's Hospital Station: the LBSCR's 'White Elephant'. 698-9.
Opened in 1902 to serve Christ's Hospital School which had moved to a green field ssite near Horsham from Hertfordshire (the school had originated in London, but had moved out to Hrtfordshire after the Great Fire of London). It  enjoyed Royal patronage and explains the lavish provision (rather like lhe lunatic right of the may administration who wish to build a royal yacht). The new location was near the junction for the lines to Guildford and to Shoreham (for Brighton) as well as being on the main London to Portsmouth line. Thus there was a plethora of platforms and a huge imposing station.

North British six-coupled. 700.
Colour photo-feature: J37 No. 64592 on Mallaig shed on 1 June 1963; J36 No. 65243 Maude at Riddochhill Colliery, Bathgate on 31 March 1964; J37 No. 64569 on Fife Coast rail tour at Anstruther on 28 August 1965.

A.J. Ludlam. A Lincolnshire signalman. 701
Percy Carter began work as a lad porter at  Authorpe in 1927, moved to Red Bank signal box, Doncaster as a telegraph lad and became a signalman at Southrey at the outbreak of WW2. Illustrations: Percy Carter at Marsh Lane Crossing, Tattershall; B1 No, 61366 at Authorpe on 11 July 1959; Southrey station in August 1970.

Readers' Forum 702

Gremlinia. Editor
Gremlins have been out and about recently. Southern 0-4-4 Tanks: In the September issue p544 the 02 tank in the top photograph is No. W26.
Penrith: In the October issue the LMS Pacilic the colour photograph on p588 clearly says on the front that it is No.46248 City of Leeds (not 46228). Worse, the caption for the photograph on p587 has got lost altogether. It depicts Ivatt 2-6-0s Nos.46458 and 46426 at Penrith preparing to head the 'Lakes & Fells Railtour' to Workington on 2nd April 1966; the photographer was Derek Cross.

Tyneside Electric train working. John Gibson
Glen Kilday in his article in the September issue says that he has never come across a South Tyneside train set being used on North Tyneside. However, this was something that I came across on one occasion.
The train was the 7.3Sam from Newcastle to the coast. I believe this train was the next working of the roster that took a North Tyneside set to South Shields, so it seems possible that the North Tyneside set had been badly delayed on it's way to South Shields, which had then substituted one of its own sets which, after arrival in Newcastle, then continued in the working. This is speculation of course, but it seems likely that something like that must have happened to explain what must have been a very rare occurrence.
Regarding the South Tyneside sets, I notice that there is an increasing tendency to refer to them as HPB units, but I don't think that is correct. HPB is the code that the Southern Region used for its own suburban units, but that had nothing to do with the North Eastern Region. Although they were of the same basic design, the North Eastern sets differed in having a larger luggage compartment, first class accommodation and they were also provided with destination indicators, a feature that might have been useful on the Southern. According to Ken Hoole's Oakwood Press booklet, they were officially referred to as 1951 stock. Glen Kilday also mentions a working for a Motor Luggage Second from South Gosforth to Newcastle and back. There were two of these single units which were built to work the controlled set. This was a rake of six coaches, originally ordinary compartment coaches, which were fitted with through control cables so that it could operate with a motor coach at both ends. It was used to work a couple of workmen's services on the Riverside branch, but had fallen out of use by the early fifties. I can recall one of the coaches parked in a siding near to South Gosforth station, although from its condition it had obviously long been out of use. The two motor coaches were then converted to perambulator coaches. This was a peculiarity of the Tyneside system. The two coaches had most of the normal seating removed and replaced by bench seats along the side to make room for prams, which in those days were large contraptions rather than the buggies in use today. As well as these two coaches, four of the 1920 stock, made redundant from the South Shields, service were also converted. On Saturdays and Sundays they would be included in trains for families travelling to Whitley Bay and Tynemouth at the weekend during the summer. The 1920 coaches had, I think, been withdrawn by 1962, but the two motor coaches were still in existence, but were they still used as perambulator coaches? If so, it would be interesting to know how they were worked. A curiosity of this was that as the 1920 coaches were un powered, a train that included one in its formation would have had less power available than a normal train, whereas the two motor coaches had motors fitted to both bogies to give them the power to operate the controlled set, so a train with one of those would be super-powered. I wonder how that affected performance.
It should also be mentioned that the description of the operation applied only in the summer. During the winter, off-peak trains were reduced to a single articulated set, with longer trains being provided at peak times. This meant that trains would be divided at the end of the morning peak and re-combined for the evening peak. The only winter working that I have seen specifies the make-up of each set at the start of the day preeisely rather than just giving the number of carriages.
Sadly, when the electric trains were operating, I rather took them for granted. It was only when they had gone that I realised what a fascinating system the Tyneside Electric service was.

Let's go Glasgow Electric. John Macnab 
An extremely interesting part one article (October issue) on the evolvement of local rail transport in Glasgow. The maps showing the reports of 1945, 1948 and 19S1 are particularly revealing in what was proposed, what has come to pass and what never saw the light of day. It is the inception and trials and tribulations of the Glasgow north side suburban electric services of 1960/1 is where I come in, so to speak.l joined the coaching rolling stock section within Glasgow North DOSO in the spring of 1961 and was immediately immersed in the aftermath of the debacle of December 1960 and the re-introduction of steam-hauled trains. There was also much involvement in the movements of the 'Blue Trains' going to and from rectification work in Manchester. I came under the tutelage of a redoubtable lady whose job I had taken over but she was one of the many who could claim to be a major factor in the line of sentence in the above article (pS84) which states "In a feat of improvisation which would now be inconceivable steam trains were restored to operation within a day .... " Within hours in point of fact from the time electric units were withdrawn at 01.38 on Sunday 18 December to the commencement of services on Monday morning 19 December, the statistics were truly staggering. Disposal of errant EMUs, provision from here and yonder (in certain cases literally from the yards of scrap merchants) to form around 40 sets of non-corridor stock (totalling some 270 individual carriages), steam locomotives to be found wherever and the rostering of staff numbering hundreds was undertaken with amazing rapidity. Not to mention platform lengthenings at two stations - Hyndland and Garscadden!
All praise to those within the DOSO (by and large of relatively lowly clerical grades) and at station and depot level who carried out a remarkable piece of work that should go down in the annals of British railway history. If I recall aright, the lady in charge of the office typing pool was honoured in some way - so should have my lady in the coaching stock section! As mentioned in the article, we did it all again (in reverse order) but with a more relaxed time-scale to achieve the resumption of public 'Blue Train' services from Monday 2 October 1961. By now I could claim a small credit for the events in the autumn and still have, on a single sheet of paper, the disposal of the steam sets over the last weekend of September. John Macnab had article published in Volume 14 on this topic. See further letters from John Macnab in Volume 31 psge 61 and again on page 125. and in response to this letter from Robert Herriott on page 125 of next Volume

Let's go Glasgow Electric. Leonard Rogers,
Many thanks to Geoffrey Skelsey for yet another of his fascinating articles on the development of 8ritain's urban rail networks, that in and around Glasgow. However, the photograph on p. 582 appears to somewhat miscaptioned. The DMU depicted is actually on the Crow Road branch, eastbound, on what seems to be an early morning working and it is the Dumbarton line which is diverging to the right. The smaller of the cranes in the background will be on Meadowbank Quay on the north bank of the Clyde, while the taller 'hammerhead' shipyard cranes will be on the south bank of the river in Govan, one of only two places in Glasgow where shipbuilding still takes place. (The other is Scotstoun.) In that sense the cranes were not "doomed". Moreover, the late W A C. Smith, a railwayman and a Glasgow resident at the time, in his book records that "Towards the end about half of the Central Low Level services were diesel operated", contrary to the caption's assertion that "The Central Low Level lines were seldom served by diesel trains". The services were said to be worked by Clayton Type 1s, English Electric Type 1s and diesel multiple units. [Reference: An illustrated history of Glasgow's railways, W.A.C. Smith and Paul Anderson, Irwell Press, 1993, p9.]

Let's go Glasgow Electric. Kevin Jones
Geoffrey Skelsey's reference to condensing locomotives having never been used in Glasgow on the Central Low Level lines is incorrect. H.J.C. Cornwell's Forty Years of Caledonian locomotives (1974) condensing apparatus was frtted to Lambie and Mclntosh 4-4-0T, 0-4-4T, 0-6-0T and 0-6-0 tender locomotives working on the CR underground lines and footplate crews were disciplined if they failed to use it, but the equipment was removed from about 1917. The LMS certainly did not reinstate it but did use diesel locomotives experimentally in a half-hearted experiment to obviate the smoke problem.
No less a person than E.S. Cox (Chronicles of Steam ppI70-1) commented on the "murky depths of the steam-operated underground" and "condensing tank engines rather sensibly painted black operated the service", but"by the period of World War I condensing was undertaken as much in the breach as the observance". On a personal note I once took my future wife down to Dumbarton from Central Low Level in the days of steam, but we returned to the vastly more salubrious Queen Street Low Level.
Eric Fitzpayne, the Glasgow Transport Manager, attended at least one Institution of Locomotive Engineers' meetings and commented on Barton's paper (1962 Journal) on monorails, proposing a monorail link to Prestwick Airport. It is probable that the tram reserved track at Bellahouston laid for the 1938 British Empire Exhibition was the inspiration for his 1948 proposals.

Closing the gap. Peter Thirlwell 
Re caption to illustration on p541 of the September issue in the article on the Staines to Wokingham line: the train illustrated has just left the down platform of Staines and is heading for Windsor &: Eton Riverside along the Windsor branch. There are no trains showing on any of the up lines to Waterloo!

Closing the gap. John Pearse.
^{Re feature on the Staines-Wokingham line. In the 1970s, my wife and I occasionally used this route from Winnersh, the next station west of Wokingham. Like the more famous Ingra Tor Halt in Devon, the path to the up platform at Winnersh had a sign saying 'Beware of Adders', not uncommon in the heath lands on the Berks/Surrey borders. Perhaps it still does? ,}

Even more men at work  Mike Stone
Top photograph on p563 of the September issue is not a Freightliner, but an RfD intermodal service from Wembley, probably 4S90 - this being the heyday of Channel Tunnel freight services.

Penrith. Andrew Kleissner
The irate 1911 shareholder of the Cockermouth, Keswick & Penrith Railway mentioned by David Joy (October) was not the first person to allude to his company in Biblical terms. According to John Thomas's The Scottish Railway Book (David & Charles 1977), a similar reference was made by a Mr. Masterton in the annual concert for North British Railway employees held at Methil in 1902. According to a Dundee newspaper, he "propounded the theory" as to where in history this railway was first mentioned and answered with the same reference to the book of Genesis and the creation of "all creeping things". The newspaper report was accompanied by a cartoon of a NB train, roughly constructed of old planks and bearing on its smokebox an emblem of two crossed snails!

Book Reviews 702

Dark days and brighter days for Northern Ireland Railways. Edwin McMillan. Colourpoint, 288 pages, Reviiewed by DWM ****
Books of railway reminiscence have become fairly commonplace over recent years, usually involving themselves with tales of the footplate or signal box or, on occasion, the higher levels of railway management. This book takes an entirely different angle; written by an enthusiastic railwayman - and obviously a railway enthusiast, it is a very detailed account, from platform level, of the trials, tribulations and eventual triumph of the railways of Northern Ireland through the awful times of 'The Troubles' and on into the less turbulent present. The book falls conveniently into three parts: an outline of the author's railway career, a detailed account of incidents and occurrences during 'The Troubles' and a more general account of railways operations. As well as the development of stations, special trains and operational accidents and incidents this latter section includes the formation of 'The Railway Patrol' - the author's remarkable initiative to deal with the little-addressed topic of anti-social behaviour, vandalism and trespass on the railway.
The detailed account of the attacks on the railway by terrorists is a darkly Northern Irish episode. The 'diary' style of the book works very well here and the damage and disruption caused by the explosions, fires and derailments is graphically illustrated. Throughout the book the photographs are a splendid and apposite selection, many of the author's own taking and, as ever, the Colourpoint 'style' has assured a book of considerable quality.
To the best of your reviewer's knowledge there isn't a 'formal' history of Northern Ireland Railways in print at the present time. Were one to appear then this personal account would complement it brilliantly - a detailed story with a human touch and well worth a read.

When Autumn leaves start to fall. Roy Hobbs. rear cover
U class 2-6-0 No. 31619 near Reigate with Reading tyrain in October 1964

December 2016 (Number 308)

The age of the Inter-City 125 - the 13.00 King's Cross-Edinburgh High Speed Train runs along the cliff tops near Burnmouth on 2nd June 1978. (Gavin Morrison). front cover
See also Keith Dungate's colour photographs in which the liverish liveries cannot conceal the beauty of the original design which had but two failings: the lack of power doors and the failure to exploit the luggage space in the power cars

A.J. Mullay. A steady climb: the story of Beattock and its famous incline. 708-14.
Auden's poem Night Mail vividly captures the power expended by the locomotive to ascend the 675 feet from Beattock to the Summit with all those letters for the girl next door. In an age of laissez faire Parliament had unusually intervened to allocate the route for the railway between England and Scotland, and had selected a route via Annandale rather than Nithdale as it could serve both Edinburgh and Glasgow. To some extent this was usurped by a group from Edinburgh who were seeking a route into England via Berwick. Joseph Locke, the engineer for the Lancaster & Carlisle Railway doubted whether the Annandale route was viable, but after a resurvey a route was agreed, but construction did not start until 1846. Illustrations: Class 5 4-6-0 No. 44991 on freight on 23 March 1960 (colour: David Idle); Duchess Pacific No. 46253 City of St. Albans on Royal Scot in 1950s (Eric Treacy); Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42215 banking Manchester to Glasgow express passing Greskine on 11 July 1956 (Gavin Morrison); Beattock engine shed with 439 class 0-4-4T Nos. 55232 and 55260 and Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42214; No. 55234 at Beattock with single coach for Moffat branch; Clan Pacific No. 72008 Clan Macleod near summit on 22 April 1965 (colour: Tommy Tomalin); former CR 0-4-4T at Beattock Summit with single coach to take railway workers shopping; No. 55260 at rear of express at Greskine being told by signalman that driver of engine at front wished more effort from rear on 11 July 1956 (Gavin Morrison); No. 80045 banking freight leaving Beattock on 22 April 1965 (colour: Tommy Tomalin); No. 55232 at Moffat on 4 December 1954 (adjacent water tank); No. 46244 King George VI crossing Harthorpe viaduct with express with banker at rear (Eric Treacy). See also letters from John Macnab and C.A. Allenby: latter on train fire near Beattock.

Jeffrey Wells. The early years of 'The gem of railways'. 715-23.
The extant Oxenholme to Kendal and Windermere branch line. Kendal was reached on 22 September 1846. Cornelius Nicholson of Kendal was the driving force behind this development and John Harris was the engineer. As usual for this author the text is built aroungd contemporary newspaper reports. Illustrations: Class 5 No. 45321 adorned with express headlamps at Windermere with another Class  5 No. 45055 shunting (colour: Ron Mason); Windermere station frontage with porte cochère and gas lamp cum drinking foutain c1913; Windermere station platforms with bookstall showing date 1902/3; Fowler 2-6-4T No. 42313 arriving Windermere with ordinary passenger train on 6 June 1950 (E. Bruton); Stanier 2-6-4T No. 42571 at Oxenholme with branch train on 25 August 1962 (Alan Tyson); Fowler 2-6-4T No. 42378 leaving Kendal with 15.32 Oxenholme to Windermere on 25 August 1962 (Alan Tyson); Burnside station; view from train approaching Oxenholme with No. 46234 Duchess of Abercorn in station on 25 August 1962 (Alan Tyson); Staveley station, Class 156 DMU in Regional Railways livery at Staveley on 22 December 1994 (colour: Gavin Morrison); Nos. 20n 025 and 20 131 on Pathfinder tour near Staveley on 23 May 1993 (colour: Gavin Morrison); Precursor 4-4-2T as LMS No. 6782 between Staveley and Burnside c1930; Patriot No. 5539 E.C. Trench at Windermere with special train in 1944.

David J. Hayes. A Wednesbury winter's night. Part One. 724-32.
Partly a description of the freight services and the freight which used to be conveyed to long extinct power stations and steel works in this former centre of industrial activity. Most of the former LNWR railways have closed leaving Dudley without either a train or tram station, but there is now a stop at Wednesbury on the Midland Metro and a railway station at Sandwell from which Dudley can be seen with the aid of a powerful telescope. Major plant closures included the coal-burning Ocker Hill Power Station, the steelworks at Spring Vale, Bilston and at Round Oak near Brierley Hill and the Patent Shaft Steelworks. The article describes actual train workings which would have been observable from Wednesbury No. 1 signalbox with some faction to enliven the rather rundown dreary landscape. Illustrations: Class 47 passing Wednesbury No. 1 signalbox on freight which may have worked from Scunthorpe to Brierley Hill on 4 April 1970 (David Wilson); map of area as in 1976; Class 45/1 No. 45 143 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards passing site of Wednesbury Town station on 8 April 1977 with wagonload freight from Bescot Up Yard to Gloucester (Michael Mensing);  same train and date and photographer as previous but approaching closed Ocker Hill Power Station;  Potters Lane level crossing; withdrawn Ruston & Hornsby diesel locomotives belonging to R.A. Giblin  on 8 April 1977 (Michael Mensing); Class 25/1 No. 25 038 with freight taking raw materials to Spring Vale Steelworks on 2 June 1977 (John Whitehouse); Class 25/3 No. 25 268 at Wednesbury Exchange Sidings on 27 June 1977 (Michael Mensing), Part 2. Letter of appreciation on page 253 of next Volume.

David P. Williams. Snaigow and Durn. 733.
Computer generated colour image based on photograph of No. 14523 Durn in crimson lake livery at Blair Atholl with local train for Perth in 1928. See also letter from John Roake in next Volume p. 190.

A Derbyshire outing. Alan Tyson. 734-5.
Black & white photographs taken on 5 May 1962 on Buxton to Ashbourne line: alll locomotives are LNWR G2a 0-8-0 locomotives: banking locomotive viewed from brake van on 1 in 60 exit from Buxton towards Uttoxeter; No. 49439 at Hindlow shunting freight for Uttoxeter; another G2a at Parsley Hay on a ballast train;  No. 49439 view from footplate of junction at Parsley Hay for High Peak line; crews of Nos. 49281 and 49439 stopped at Alsop-en-le-Dale to exchange locomotives; No. 49281 belching black smoke in preparation for 1 in 60 climb towards Buxton.

High Speed Trains.  Keith Dungate. 736-41.
Colour photo-feature: See also front cover where a unit painted throughout in corporate British Rail blue and grey on the scenic Berwickshire coast is seen at its very best (livery-wise it has been downhill all the way since privatization): set with power cars in Inter-City livery and coaches in blue/grey on London-bound service at Castle Hills Junction, Northallerton on 26 May 1987; power car 43 095 Heaton at Leeds City with 13.45 to King's Cross on 1 March 1988 (train in Inter City livery); 14.35 Paddington to Plymouth servise in Inter City livery passing Sheldon Bridge, Teignmouth on 13 May 1992; GNER dark blue livery set at Ryther, south of Colton Junction heading for London on 19 May 1998; Midland Mainline daubbed set on 10.37 from Leeds to St. Pancras passing Sandal & Agbrigg on 22 March 1998; East Midland Trains with power car No. 43081 leading on 05.25 Leeds to St. Pancras waiting to start its journey on 28 September 2012; Midland Mainline power car No. 43 073 with  adjacent Virgin livery coach forming 08.28 Leeds to St. Pancras at Leeds on 7 April 2003; pathetic iimpoverished Notional Express set (power car 43302 leading) at York with 12.00 King's Cross to Inverness on 15 September 2009; Virgin West Coast on diverted Edinburgh to Penzance service on Settle & Carlisle line crossing the Ribble at Helwith Bridge with Penyghent in background on 12 January 2002; Network Rail Measurerment Train formed from two power cars (Nos. 43014 and 43 062)  approaching Settle Junction on 20 April 2009 [this set has visited Norwich!]; Grand Central Republica Bananica liveried set on 15.29 ex-Sunderland at Colton, south of York on 11 May 2013; Last group (First) group power car No. 43 137 obviously heading west but on wrong track? with driver looking back towardsb typical tardy despatch at Chippenham with train (14.30 ex-Paddington for Weston-super-Mare on 11 February 2016; pink and grey Virgin East Coast set on 10.00 King's Cross to Aberdeen near Colston on 25 February 2016. See also comments by L.A. Summers on page 125.. See also KPJ's experiences.   

R.A.S. Hennessey. The train ferries. Part Two. 742-7
Part 1 see page 661. Text documents the Harwich to Zeebrugge freight services from the Great Eastern Train Ferry Company formed to take over the government-owned ferries and the associated link spans. Services started in 1924 using Belgian rolling stock owned by La Société Belgo-Anglais des Ferry Boats SA. The LNER took over the ferries in 1934. Only one vessel servived WW2: two vessels were lost and were replaced by the diesel powered Suffolk Ferry built by John Brown of Clydebank in 1947 and by the similar Norfolk Ferry in 1951. The sole survivor after reconditioning became Essex Ferry. This part also outlines the development of passenger and freight services from Dover to Dunkirk with some emphasis on passenger carrying, notably on the London to Paris sleeper service. This followed the collapse of a proposed Channel Tunnel in 1930. Construction of the dock at Dover encountered difficulties due to fissures in the chalk and consideration was even given to returning to Richborough. The overnight Night Ferry service was in dark blue Wagons-Lits vehicles built to the British loading gauge. Three new ferries were constructed by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson's Neptune Yard on the Tyne and had coal fired boilers using coal from the Kent coalfield: they were Twickenham Ferry, Hampton Ferry and Shepperton Ferry. Freight was also carried. The Night Ferry service lasted until 1980 (KPJ: long enough to be used by our French next-door neighbour, Simone, who lived in Welwyn Garden City, to travel to Paris to holiday with her relatives). The decline of the British-based train ferries began with the withdrawal from Harwich . See letterr from Bert Blissett in next Volume on p. 125. . Illustrations: L1 class 4-4-0 and Battle of Britain Pacific No. 34068 Kenley passing Sydenham Hill on up Night Ferry on 13 June 1959 (colour: R.C. Riley); Train Ferry No. 2 leaving Zeebrugge in inter-war period; Granton to Burntisland ferry Balbirnie showing link span (floating bridge) at Granton; cutaway diagram (colour)  of Southern Railway train ferry with Night Ferry train on board accompanied by high value motor cars on covered deck above; MV Vortigern in Sealink livery; contemporary engraving of Granton to Burntisland train ferry showing link span; Norfolk Ferry  being loaded with Interfrigo wagon prominent.

Across the Midlands. 748-9.
Colour photo-feature: A4 No. 60033 Seagull at Grantham on up stopping train in August 1958 (D.B. Swale); Class 5 4-6-0 No. 45448 with ballast train near Nuneaton Abbey station on 15 October 1965; D11/1 Director 4-4-0 No. 62660 Princess Mary at Nottingham Victoria in August 1958 (D.B. Swale and following); 9F 2-10-0 No. 92095 passing New Basford with up mineral train in 1964; 4F No. 44124 approaching Derby Midland.

George Smith. The departure list: fatal accidents on the Stockton & Darlington Railway between 1825 and 1845. 750-5.
John Glass, a child and son of an engine driver of the same name is the earliest recorded death of a human on a railway. Many of these early accidents were caused by people being rrun down by trains, and many of the victims were children. Locomotive boiler explosions were common, In 1815 a locomotive called the Mechanical Traveller developed by William Brunton  for Newbottle Colliery which moved through mechanical legs killed its crew when the boiler exploded. Stephenson's Locomotion No. 1 suffered a boiler explosion on 4 July 1828 which killed its driver John Cree. Locomotive No. 5 Stockton had suffered a boiker explosion in Occtober 1826 and Locomotion suffered further explosions. Rope-worked inclines were another lethal location. Illustrations: Punch cartoon; Aycliffe Lane station; Brusselton Incline (see letter p. 125 which states that Black Boy Incline at Shildon); chaldron wagons; Etherley Incline; Locomotion No. 1; 0-6-0 Wilberforce; Locomotion No. 1 on S&DR opening day; drawing of Mechanical Traveller; Punch cartoon: permissive slaughter (dangers to shunters).

Richard Smith. Further recollections of Reading Shed and its many duties as told to Paul Joyce. 756
Further memories see page 326 et seq

Readers' Forum 765

'Let's go Glasgow Electric'. Eric Stuart 
Re picture on p584 my two favourites – a tram and a Glasgow one at that – with possibly the most beautiful train ever built by BR, the Glasgow 'Blue Train'. One odd error on p585. There was and is only one Cathgart Circle route. The clockwise service was and is the Outer Circle and the anti-clockwise service the Inner Circle. The original service was two each way, so it should read Cathcart Circle 2 (per hour per direction). The DMU destination blinds wed CATHCART in large capitals and INNER or OUTER CIRCLE in smaller capitals underneath. The original 'Blue Trains' showed INNER or OUTER in large capitals, with (CIRCLE in smaller capitals underneath. This nomenclature is different from London, where the lnner, Middle and Outer Circles were three different routes.
The South Side diesel service was marketed as '(D) Lanarkshire Green Train Service', the bracket symbols being pointed.
I only had one trip by steam through the Central Low Level and it must have been like early days in London! I also travelled by steam on the NB line, during the replacement service following the debacle of December, but it never seemed quite so smokey.
My age must me the same as your Guest Editor. Yes, a steam train in full cry was a sight to see, but those trips underground possibly had far more atmosphere in more ways than one! [Kevin: Eric could not have been through Woodhead Tunnel where even a first class compartment was filled with dank smoke; the difference at Central Low Level is that one stood there waiting for the train to arrive; and see my note on Grantham where one comes into far too close proximity with expresses rushing by].

'Let's go Glasgow Electric'. Robert D. Campbell 
It is probably not generally known that, following re-introduction of 'Glasgow Electric' services in 1961 after some technical difficulties had been resolved, all the administration for Balloch and Helensburgh electric depot, Dumbarton and Yoker diesel (formerly steam) depots and also Maryhill Central's large complement of passenger and goods guards, was undertaken at Dawsholm shed (65D), whose steam and diesel locomotives worked !he Glasgow Central Low Level and associated lines.
As a member of Dawsholm's clerical staff who was then resident in Balloch, in those pre-computer days I brought up all the documentation from these depots by 'Blue train' every morning for processing and on-forwarding to the Chief Accountant's Office in Glasgow on the same day. This enabled up- to-the-minute statistics relating to the new-fangled electrics and diesels to be provided to !he General Manager's Office daily. There were also electric depots at Bridgeton Central and Airdrie and a maintenance depot at Hyndland, which did not come under Dawsholm. A small correction I would make is to the caption for the photograph on p582. The cranes are in fact those of the Fairfleld shipyard at Govan, on the south bank of the Clyde. The famous John Brown yard at Clydebank was located some four miles downriver, on the north bank.

Closing the gap. Stephen Spark 
Paul Joyce mentions the use of the Staines to Wokingham line for Sir Winston Churchill's fimeral train in 1965, which I witnessed as a young boy in the company of thousands of respectful onlookers. On a similarly 'grey and very cold' day half a century earlier, the line saw the final journey of another great wartime leader: Field Marshal Earl Roberts of Kandahar. Descnbed as the 'Nelson of the Army', he was hugely popular and probably the only person to have pacified Afghanistan.
Lord Roberts died in harness on the Western Front on 14 November 1914 at the age of 82 after reviewing troops of the Indian Expeditionary Force. His body was carried on an SECR ferry from Boulogne to Folkestone and transferred to a special train for the journey onwards to Ascot, for which the SECR provided the motive power. After a private funeral in the village, his body was returned to the train the next morning (19 November), which was hauled by a suitably decorated LSWR T9 4-4-0 No.773. This was the last of the class to be delivered and, like No.119 mentioned in 'The Royal Greyhound', was often employed on special trains. Remarkably, the T9 took the train all the way through to Charing Cross – an unusual, if not unique, working.
From there the old soldier was conveyed on a gun carriage through crowded streets to St. Paul's Cathedral for a state funeral. His body then lay in state in the cathedral, an honour accorded to only one other non-royal in the twentieth century – Sir Winston Churchill.

Tyneside Electric Train Working. Keith Simpson 
The 1937/8 sets were fitted with bucket seats similar to those fitted to the LNER tourist stock. These can be seen in the photograph of the empty train using the ECML en route to Newcastle. The trailer vehicle of those sets with a luggage compartment (Types B & D) had a declassified first class area. The centre of the coach had a small non-smoking compartment of just one bay of seats and the outer end had a former first class smoking area with seating in bays of four. Second, formerly third class seating areas had what would today be called' Airline face to back seating facing in to the centre of the saloon. All coaches had longitudinal seats where the pockets for the sliding doors were.
There were actually four single unit vehicles built. Two were designated 'Motor Luggage Cars'. These were similar to the power cars of the Type B and D units, but with a cab at both ends, the other two were designated 'Motor Parcels Cars': these had four sets of double luggage doors on either side and no passenger accommodation. They were fitted with normal couplings and buffers as well as the 'Cowhead' couplers of the passenger stock. They also had two power bogies and vacuum brake equipment for hauling normal stock. By the late 1950s the Motor Luggage cars had been modified to have longitudinal seating throughout and a larger door between the luggage compartment and the passenger saloon for the convenience of passengers with prams. In high summer they were often to be seen included with 3 x 2 car sets and carrying paper labels 'Perambulator Car'; for this task four coaches from the 1920 build had also been converted and were to be seen in the middle of trains. I think this may have ceased the year before Glen is describing.
I remember times when, as you alighted from the train at Newcastle, small signs could be seen on the platform inspector's hut saying 'Augmented Workinhg'. I do remember on warm sunny days it was quite regular for us to be waiting on the platform for our train to the coast and for a train to come through showing 'Tynemouth Express' on its blinds. I think that these may have been laid on as a crowd-busting measure, something totally impractical in this day and age.
At Monkseaton, behind the Benton-bound platform was an electrified headshunt. I do remember at some point a train arriving from the Tynemouth direction and then setting back into the sidings adjacent to the running lines described by Glen, but I don't think that this was a regular working. I do remember that a set of green non-corridor coaches was stabled there for a few weeks. These raised my curiosity as they has jumper cables similar to the electrics. I was told that they had been used on workmen's trains on the Riverside branch sandwiched between the two Motor Luggage Cars, but cannot confirm this.
I suspect that the reason that the 1951 South Tyneside units were never used north of the river may have been to do with clearances. Many of the bridges around the North Tyneside loop had the 'Battenberg' style of checkered 'Limited Clearance' signs on them and I believe that clearances in North Shields Tunnel were particularly tight. Certainly, it wasn't too long after the DMUs took over these services that they acquired window bars similar to those used on West Cumbrian services. The 1951 build also included an electric parcels van which was transferred to Merseyside when the South Shields line was de-electrified.
Finally, a word on headcodes. The four lights underneath the right-hand window on these sets showed the route of the train. All four were used for a train via Benton and Wallsend, but only the right-hand two for a train in the opposite direction. Trains to and from South Gosforth sheds had the top two and right bottom and South Shields trains just the top two. The 1951 sets had these between the cab windows with a tail light in the centre. The tail light on the 1937 stock was above the cab window. Oil tail lights were not required to be carried. In truth, in daylight it was difficult to see the headcodes on the North Tyneside stock, but they stood out at night.

Steam versus Diesel. Glenn Middleton.
I feel I must comment on Alisdair McNicol's letter regarding the introduction of diesel motive power to BR. From 1960 until early retirement in 1995 I was employed by the Railway's Board in the Research and Scientific Departments in Derby and Doncaster and via my work had very involved dealings with both the National Coal Board and the Central Electricity Generating Board. In my early years of employment many of my immediate superiors were people who had been heavily involved in the introduction of diesel power to the main line.
1. The reduction of the number of hopper wagons on the Shotton iron ore traffic had nothing to do with actual braking power of the new diesels, but rather a problem of adhesive weight. The old 90-ton hopper wagons were very heavy, even before they were loaded, and the much lighter weight of the new locomotives meant that when the loco brakes were applied, the wagons took control and push the locomotive along with wheels fully locked.
2. There was nothing remotely unusual or wrong with the Board building vast numbers of pre-war designed 10/16-ton coal and mineral wagons along with numbers of 16-ton covered/box wagons. Britain had just fought a war and the pre-war goods fleet was completely worn out – mostly due to no preventive maintenance and gross overloading in some instances. However, the idea of introducing new build larger capacity wagons was a complete non-starter; the private rail infrastructure at the company factories that used the rail freight business to carry their output was dated, pre-war and sized for two-axle short wagons, eg short sidings, short turntables ete.
3. Steam was dropped very quickly and very unfit-for-purpose diesel-electrics appeared. The problem was that the actual diesel engines were basically marine units and they soon started to succumb to the unique vibrations that occur when running on rail trackwork. Bearings, pistons, crankshafts etc started to wear and fracture and this eventually led to my department testing oil samples from EVERY diesel locomotive type on a weekly and in many cases a daily basis. Using advanced analytical techniques such as X-ray Fluorescence we were eventually able to tell the CME exactly how the internals of the engine were wearing and which part was going to fail – eg piston, main bearing. cam bearing, internal water leak ete.
4. The indecent haste in abandoning steam was all down to money and the greed of the NCB. An ex-boss was working in the Rugby Test House at the time, testing modifications to the draughtinglblast arrangements in the Standard-type steam engines and a series of modifications had been worked out that solved all the smoke and ash blast problems and increased fuel efficiency also. Whilst the increase in fuel efficiency did offset some of the costs involved for BR, a reduction in coal costs was also needed. The picture of the Whitemoor coal stock on p568 is rather misleading as NCB's mechanisation of the coal face produced a product more akin to 'slack', as my Dad used to call the dusty rubbish we got some times for the fires at home – a product that would easily pass through a ½in sieve. This size of coal proved ideal for the mechanical stokers that had been designed to solve the firing problems. Sadly the NCB refused to come down to the price envisaged by BR at the important pricing meeting and for the sake of a few old pence the rest is history. I still have the letter my ex-boss received the day after the pricing meeting, telling him to pull the locomotive off the rollers, remove all the instrumentation and return the engine to traffic immediately Very sad, really: we should have continued with steam whilst the Government found the monies for full electrification instead of running totally inadequate motive power that required such an effort to keep on the track. The size of coal produced another headache for BR when the CEGB Merry-Go-Round service with the 32-ton HAA wagons came on line – fine in summer, but impossible to unload in winter if the coal froze. Another horror story for some other time, perhaps.

Steam versus Diesel . Kevin Jones
The long letter by Alisdair McNicol demands a response. About two years ago I acquired an almost complete set of the Locomotive Magazine and I have been attempting to index/precis it on steamindex.com. The experience of looking at railways as they were perceived at the time from the 1890s until the 1940s has changed my perception of railway history, and in particular the steam locomotive and its challengers.
During the 1920s and '30s British firms implemented electric traction in several Commonwealth countries, notably in India, New Zealand and South Africa. Diesel traction was advancing in Europe, especially in Denmark and Holland, as well as in Germany. Against such a background the Riddles Standard steam locomotive adventure appears even more ridiculous. Following the First World War senior consulting engineers had attempted to show that conveying coal in modern wagons would have led to great savings in the war effort. A world war later the Locomotive Magazine was proudly illustrating the pocket-sized steel mineral wagon with neither continuous brake nor automatic coupler. Modern couplings were introduced into India in the 1920s.
Pictures of coal being hauled up the long banks of the Highland main line typify the absurdity of steam traction on a line which is still not electrified in spite of the Highlands being the only major source of green energy from water power in Great Britain. The Labour administration of1945 was naive in not setting environmental and worker safety targets for the nationalised railways and for not imposing a proper management structure in which individuals like Riddles were kept in check. There was a lack of someone who could grasp the whole picture in the way that Lord Adonis eventually did. Reading Frank McKenna's chapter on working in the ashpits in The railway workers, 1840-1970 (1980) is sobering indeed

Index to Volume 30 766

Ups and down the City roads. Robert Sandusky. rear cover
See also letter from Michael Elliott on page 125