CHAPTER SIXTEEN.
DESCRIBES ENGINEERING DIFFICULTIES, A PERPLEXING CASE, AND A HARMONIOUSMEETING.
Captain Lee's object in visiting London was twofold. He went thereprimarily to attend the half-yearly general meeting of the GrandNational Trunk Railway, and secondarily, to accompany his friend EdwinGurwood to the Railway Clearing-House, in which establishment he hadbeen fortunate enough to secure for him a situation.
The various circumstances which contributed to the bringing about of anintimacy between Captain Lee and young Gurwood are partly known to thereader. It was natural that the captain should feel some sort of regardfor one who had twice shown himself so ready to spring to his assistancein the hour of danger; but that which weighed still more strongly withthe old sailor--who had been a strict disciplinarian and loved a zealousman--was the energy, with which Edwin threw himself into the work of thedepartment of the railway, in which he had first been placed. Perhapsif the captain had known the motives and the hopes which actuated theyouth he might have regarded him with very different feelings! We knownot--and it matters little now.
As a clerk in the Engineers' office, Edwin had, in a few weeks, evincedso much talent and aptitude for the work as to fill his patron's heartwith delight. He possessed that valuable quality which induces a man--in Scripture language--to look not only on his own things but on thethings of others. He was not satisfied with doing his own workthoroughly, but became so inquisitive as to the work of his companionsin the office that he acquired in a short time as much knowledge as someof these companions had acquired in several years.
The engineer's department of a railway is one which involves some of themost important operations connected with the line. But indeed the samemay be said of all the departments--passenger, goods, locomotive, andpolice, each of which is independent, yet connected. They are separatewheels, as it were, which work harmoniously together in one grandsystem, and the gentlemen at the head of these departments must be menof experience; of acknowledged talent and power, each supreme in his owndepartment, but all subject to the general manager.
The engineer-in-chief, who was Edwin Gurwood's superior, had charge ofthe entire railway, which was something over one thousand miles inextent. This vast line was divided into four divisions--namely, thenorthern, southern, western, and eastern; each division being under thesuperintendence of a resident engineer, who was, of course, subject tothe engineer-in-chief. Each division was about 250 miles long, and wassubdivided into districts varying from thirty to seventy miles. Thesewere under the charge of inspectors, whose duty it was to travelconstantly over their lengths--almost daily--partly on foot and partlyby train, to see that the line was kept in perfect working order. Thetravelling inspectors had under them a large body of "surface-men" or"plate-layers," men whose duty it was to perform the actual work ofkeeping the line in order. They worked in squads of four or five--eachsquad having a foreman or gaffer, who was held responsible for theparticular small portion of the line that he and his squad had to attendto. The average number of surface-men was about two to the mile--sothat the entire staff of these men on the line numbered over twothousand. Their business was to go over the entire line twice a day,drive tight the wooden "keys" which held the rails in their chairs, liftand re-lay broken or worn-out rails and chairs, raise or depresssleepers wherever these required alteration, so as to make the linelevel, and, generally, to keep in thorough repair the "permanent way."Again, each of the four divisions had an inspector of signals and aninspector of buildings, the former being responsible for the perfectworking order of all signals, and the latter, who had a few masons,joiners, slaters, blacksmiths, and others under him, having charge ofall the stations, sheds, and other buildings on the line. Every montheach division engineer sent in to the head office a statement ofmaterial used, and of work done; also a requisition for materialrequired for future use.
From all this it can easily be understood that Edwin had a fairopportunity of finding scope for his talents; and he had indeed alreadybegun to attract notice as an able, energetic fellow, when Captain Lee,as we have said, procured for him an appointment in the Clearing-House.On the occasion of the change being made, he invited his young friend tospend a few days at his residence in Clatterby, and thereafter, as wehave seen, they travelled together to London.
It need scarcely be said that Edwin did not neglect this goldenopportunity to try to win the heart of Emma. Whether he had succeededor not he could not tell, but he unquestionably received a strongadditional impulse in his good resolves--to achieve for himself aposition and a wife!
"Gurwood," said Captain Lee, after Mrs Durby had taken her departure,"I want you to aid me in a little difficulty I have about our mutualfriend, Mrs Tipps. She is ridiculously determined not to accept ofassistance from me, and I find from that excellent nurse that they areactually up to the lips in poverty--in fact, on the point of going down.I think from what she said, or, rather from what she didn't say, buthinted, that her errand to London had something to do with theirpoverty, but I can't make it out. Now, I have made up my mind to helpthem whether they will or no, and the question I wish to lay before youis,--how is the thing to be done? Come, you have had some experience ofengineering, and ought to be able to cope with difficulties."
"True," replied Edwin, with a smile, "but to bend a woman's willsurpasses any man's powers of engineering!"
"Come, sir," said the captain, "that is a most ungallant speech from oneso young. You deserve to die an old bachelor. However, I ask you notto exercise your skill in bending a woman's will, but in bridging overthis difficulty--this Chat Moss, to speak professionally."
"Could you not procure for my friend, Joseph Tipps, a more lucrativeappointment?" said Edwin eagerly, as the idea flashed upon him.
The captain shook his head.
"Won't do, sir; I have thought of that; but, in the first place, I havenot such an appointment to give him at present; in the second place, ifI had, he could not draw his salary in advance, and money is wantedimmediately; and, in the third place, he would not if he had it be ableto spare enough out of any ordinary clerk's salary, because the debtsdue by Mrs Tipps amount to fifty pounds--so Mrs Durby said."
"It is indeed perplexing," said Edwin. "Would it not be a good plan tosend them a cheque anonymously?"
Again the captain shook his head.
"Wouldn't do. The old lady would guess who sent it at once. Come, Iwill leave it to you to devise a plan. Never could form a plan all mylife, and have no time just now, as I'm going off to the meeting in tenminutes. I constitute you my agent in this matter, Gurwood. You knowall the circumstances of the case, and also about my bet of five hundredpounds with the late Captain Tipps. Your fee, if you succeed, shall bemy unending gratitude. There, I give you _carte-blanche_ to do as youplease--only see that you don't fail."
Saying this, the captain put on his hat and went out, leaving Edwin muchamused and not a little perplexed. He was not the man, however, to letdifficulties stand in his way unassailed. He gave the subjecthalf-an-hour's consideration, after which he formed a plan andimmediately went out to put it into execution.
Meanwhile Captain Lee went to the head offices of the Grand NationalTrunk Railway, and entered the large room, where the directors andshareholders of the Company were already assembled in considerablenumbers to hold a half-yearly general meeting.
It was quite a treat to see the cordial way in which the captain wasreceived by such of his brother directors as sat near him, and, when hehad wiped his bald head and put on his spectacles, and calmly lookedround the hall, his bland visage appeared to act the part of areflector, for, wherever his eyes were turned, there sunshine appearedto glow. In fact several of the highly sympathetic people present--ofwhom there are always a few in every mixed meeting--unconsciously smiledand nodded as his eye passed over their locality, even although theywere personal strangers to him.
Very various are the feelings which actuate the directors andshareholders of d
ifferent railways at these half-yearly gatherings.Doubtless some directors go to the place of meeting with the feelings ofmen who go to execution, and the shareholders go with the feelings ofexecutioners, if not worse; while other directors and shareholdersunquestionably go to hold something like a feast of reason and a flow ofsoul.
The half-yearly meeting we write of was imbued with the latter spirit.Wisdom and conscientious care had steered the ship and swayed thecouncils of the Grand National Trunk Railway, so that things were inwhat the captain called a highly flourishing condition. One consequencewas, that the directors wore no defensive armour, and the shareholderscame to the ground without offensive weapons.
Sir Cummit Strong having taken the chair, the secretary read theadvertisement convening the meeting.
The chairman, who was a tall, broad-browed, and large-mouthed man, justsuch an one as might be expected to become a railway king, then rose,and, after making a few preliminary observations in reference to thereport, which was assumed to have been read, moved, "that the saidreport and statement of accounts be received and adopted."
"He-ar, he-ar!" exclaimed a big vulgar man, with an oily fat face and astrong voice, who was a confirmed toady.
"I am quite sure," the chairman continued, "that I have the sympathy ofall in this meeting when I say that the half-year which has just come toa close has been one of almost unmixed success--"
"He-ar, he-ar!" from the toady.
"And," continued the chairman, with pointed emphasis, and a glance atthe toady, which was meant to indicate that he had put in his oar toosoon, but which the toady construed into a look of gratitude--"_and_ ofvery great satisfaction to those whom you have appointed to theconducting of your affairs."
"He-ar, he-ar!"
Captain Lee, who sat immediately behind the toady and felt his fingersand toes tingling, lost a good deal of what followed, in consequence offalling into a speculative reverie, as to what might be the legalconsequences, if he were to put his own hat on the toady's head, andcrush it down over his eyes and mouth.
"Gentlemen," continued the chairman, "there are three points on which wehave reason to congratulate ourselves to-day, namely, the safety, theefficiency, and the economy with which our railway has been worked. Asregards the first, I find that ten millions of journeys have beenperformed on our line during the half-year with hardly a detention, withvery few late trains, at high speeds, and with only one accident, whichwas a comparatively slight one, and was unattended with loss of life orserious damage to any one."
"He-ar, he-ar!" from the toady.
At this point a wag in the distance got up and suggested, in a very weakvoice, that if the toady would say, "he-ar, he-ar!" less frequently,perhaps they would "he-ar" much better--a suggestion which was receivedwith a burst of laughter and a round of applause. It effectuallyquelled the toady and rendered him innocuous for a considerable time.
"Now," resumed the chairman, "some people appear to think that it is aneasy thing to work a railway in safety, but I can assure you that suchis not the case. Intelligence, care, foresight, and the strictestdiscipline, are necessary to secure this result; and, remember, we havenot the advantage of anything so powerful as military discipline to helpus. We have nothing to appeal to save the hopes and fears of our staff;and we feel it to be our great difficulty, as it is our principal duty,to be most careful in the selection of the thousands of men who, intheir various positions and vocations, have to be employed in theconduct of your enterprise.
"I know well," continued Sir Cummit Strong, "how men shudder whenstatistics are mentioned in their ears! Nevertheless, I shall ventureto give you a few statistics that will, I am quite sure, proveinteresting--all the more so that the figures which I quote apply toseveral other railways--and, therefore, will serve to give those of youwho may chance to be unlearned on railway matters, some idea of the vastinfluence which railways have on our land.
"We run on this railway (I use round numbers) about 700 trains a day.In addition to which we have spare engines and empty trains, whichperhaps ought to be added to the number given. Now, just consider for amoment the operations which have to be performed daily in the ordinaryworking and running of your passenger traffic. These 700 trains stopabout 5000 times in the twenty-four hours, and of course they start thesame number of times. The empty trains and engines have also to stopand start. We have on the line upwards of 1000 signals, including thetelegraphic signals and auxiliaries. Those signals have to be raisedand lowered 10,000 times in the twenty-four hours. There are on ourline 1700 pairs of points, which have to be opened and shut, to becleaned, oiled, and attended to, above 5000 times in the day. Inaddition to all this there are the operations of shunting,carriage-examining, greasing, and other things in connexion with trainswhich involve operations amounting to nearly 6000 in number. So that--apart from repairs to the line and to vehicles--there are above 30,000individual operations which have to be performed every twenty-four hoursin the conduct of this enormous passenger traffic.
"All this information I have obtained from our able and excellentpassenger-superintendent, than whom there is not a more importantofficer in the Company's service, unless, indeed," (here the chairmanturned with a smile and a slight bow to the gentlemen who sat on hisright hand) "I may except the general manager and secretary.
"Well, now, gentlemen, I put it to you, is it surprising that the 6000men who have to perform these 30,000 operations in the day--amounting tothe vast total of ten millions of operations in the year--is itsurprising, I say, that these 6000 men should now and then fall intosome error of judgment, or make some mistake, or even be guilty of somenegligence? Is it not, on the contrary, most surprising that accidentsare not far more numerous; and does it not seem almost miraculous thatwhere duties are so severe, the demands made by the public so great--speed, punctuality, numberless trains by day and night--there should beonly one accident to report this half-year, while last half-year therewere no accidents at all? And does it not seem hard that the publicshould insist that we shall be absolutely infallible, and, when theslightest mistake occurs, should haul us into court and punish us withdemands for compensation for accidents which no human ingenuity orforesight could prevent?
"Before leaving this subject allow me to direct your attention to thefogs which occurred this half-year. There were thirty days in whichduring a part, if not the whole, of the twenty-four hours we had out ourfog-signal men; that is to say, an additional staff of 300 men, eachwith his flag and detonating signals, placed within sight, or withinsound of one another, to assist the ordinary signalmen in the safeconduct of the traffic. During these fogs the omnibuses had to bewithdrawn from the roads, the steamers had to be moored on the river,and the traffic on the streets was almost at a standstill, neverthelesswe carried through the fog, in and out of London, above one million sixhundred thousand passengers _without_ _accident_!"
The "hear, hear," which burst from the audience at this point might havesatisfied even the toady himself!
"And yet," continued the chairman, with emphasis, "if a single mishaphad occurred owing to the mistake of any of our half-blinded men, weshould probably have been let in for compensation to the extent perhapsof 20,000 pounds! Is this fair? If it be so, then one may be temptedto ask why does not the same `sauce' suit shipowners, many of whom arenotorious for sending to sea unseaworthy craft, and who consign aboveone thousand human beings to an untimely grave _every_ _year_ withoutbeing punished in any way or being asked for a farthing of compensation?
"I have already said so much on this point gentlemen, that I shall makebut a few remarks on the other two subjects. Well, then, as toefficiency. Our carrying ten millions of passengers in safety andcomfort is one proof of that--and, I may remark in passing, that ourreceipts for the conveyance of these ten millions amounts to nearly halfa million of money. Another proof of our efficiency lies in the factthat all the compensation we have had to pay for loss or detention ofluggage has been only 100 pounds. Then as to goods. F
or merchandisecarried we have received about 150,000 pounds, and the totalcompensation for the half-year amounts to only about 660 pounds. SurelyI may say with truth that such facts speak to the regularity andefficiency of your service.
"If the public only knew the anxiety and care with which its interestsare looked after both by night and by day by our excellent passenger andgoods-managers they would perhaps present each of these gentlemen with atestimonial piece of plate, and would for evermore lay aside that wickedand ungrateful idea that railway companies are `fair game,' to beplundered by every one who receives, or fancies he has received, theslightest possible amount of damage to limb or property. Railwaycompanies are not perfect any more than other companies. There arecertain faults, it may be, and weak points, which all of us deplore, andwhich are being remedied as fast as experience and the progress of humanknowledge will admit, but I hold, gentlemen, that the management ofrailway companies is above the average management of many othercompanies. We have much more work--more dangerous work--to do thanother companies, and we do it with much less proportional loss to life,limb, and property."
"He-ar, he-ar!" burst from the toady in spite of his recent rebuke; butas it was drowned in a round of hearty applause no one was the wiser orthe worse of his note of approval.
"When I think," continued the chairman, "of the condition this countrywas in before the days of railways--which probably most of those presentremember--the ingratitude of the public seems to me utterlyunaccountable. I can only understand it on the supposition that theyhave somehow obtained false notions as to the great value of railwaysand the great blessing they are to the community.
"Why, our goods-manager informs me that there is a certain noble lord,whom of course I may not name in public, who has a farm at aconsiderable distance out of town. He has a fancy that the milk andcream produced on his own farm is better than Metropolitan milk andcream--(laughter). He therefore resolves to have fresh milk and creamsent in from his farm every morning, and asks us to carry it for him.We agree; but he further insists that the milk and cream shall bedelivered at his residence punctually at nine a.m. To this we alsoagree, because the thing can be done; yet it is sharp practice, for itis only by the train arriving at its time, punctually to a minute, andby our horse and van being in readiness to start the instant it isloaded, that the thing can be accomplished. Now, gentlemen, it is owingto the extreme care and vigorous superintendence of our goods--I hadalmost said our good-manager that that noble lord has never missed hismilk or cream one morning during the last six months. And the samepunctuality attends the milk-delivery of `Brown, Jones, and Robinson,'for railways, as a rule, are no respecters of persons. Should not this,I ask, infuse a little of the milk of human kindness into the publicheart in reference to railways?
"Then, consider other advantages. In days not long gone by a fewcoaches carried a few hundreds of the more daring among our populationover the land at a high cost and at the truly awful rate of ten miles anhour. In some cases the break-neck speed of twelve was attained. Mostpeople preferred to remain at home rather than encounter the fatigues,risks, and expense of travelling. What are the facts now? Above threehundred millions of separate journeys are undertaken by rail in theUnited Kingdom in one year. Our sportsmen can breakfast in London onthe 11th of August, sup the same night in Scotland, and be out on themoors on the morning of the 12th. On any afternoon any lady in Englandmay be charmed with Sir Walter Scott's `Lady of the Lake,' and, if sominded, she may be a lady on the veritable lake itself before nextevening! Our navvies now travel for next to nothing in luxurious easeat thirty miles an hour, and our very beggars scorn to walk when theycan travel at one penny a mile. But all this is nothing compared withour enormous increase of goods traffic throughout the kingdom. I havenot time, nor is this the place, to enlarge on such a subject, but apretty good commentary on it exists in the simple fact that on your linealone, which is not, as you know, the largest of the railways of thisland, the receipts for goods, minerals, and live-stock carried amountedto 500,000 pounds in the last half-year, as you will see from thereport.
"There is one point to which I would now direct your attention--namely,the great facilities which we give to residential and season-ticketholders. I think it a wise and just course to afford the public suchfacilities, because it tends to produce a permanent source of traffic bytempting men, who would otherwise be content to live within walking or'bus distance of their offices, to go down into the country and buildvillas there, and if you extend that sort of arrangement largely, youcause villages at last to grow into towns, and towns to spread out withpopulation and with manufactures. I regard our course of action inregard to season-tickets, therefore, as a sowing of the seed ofpermanent and enduring income. The receipts from this source alone, Iam happy to say, amounts to 84,000 pounds."
Captain Lee's spirit had, at the bare mention of season-tickets, gonecareering down the line to Clatterby, in the beautiful suburbs of whichhe had the most charming little villa imaginable, but he was abruptlyrecalled by a "he-ar, he-ar," from the toady, who was gradually becominghimself again, and a round of applause from the audience, in which,having an amiable tendency to follow suit, he joined.
After this the chairman expatiated at some length on the economicalworking of the line and on various other subjects of great importance tothe shareholders, but of little interest to the general reader; we willtherefore pass them all by and terminate our report of this meeting withthe chairman's concluding remark, which was, that, out of the freerevenue, after deduction of the dividends payable on guaranteed andpreference stocks and other fixed charges, the directors recommended thepayment of a dividend on the ordinary stock of six and a half per cent.
It need scarcely be said that this latter statement was received withhearty applause and with an irrepressible "he-ar, he-ar!" from thetoady, which was not only tolerated by the meeting, but echoed by thewag in the distance, who, though his words that day had been few, haddone the shareholders good service nevertheless, inasmuch as he hadquelled, to some extent the propensities of a self-sufficient "bore."
Lest the reader should regard us as a statistical bore, we shall bringthis chapter to a close.