THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 LIBRARY 
 
 N4*^U 
 
 EGOf'r 
 
 nn . 
 O' ih 
 
NEWCASTLE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 TO HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF HAMILTON & BRANDON, K,C.B. 
 
 See. Sec. See. 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF THE PUBLIC MEETINGS 
 
 HOLDEN IN THE 
 
 SEVERAL TOWNS IN SCOTLAND 
 
 THROUGH OR NEAR WHICH 
 
 THE RAILWAY 
 
 FROM 
 
 NEWCASTLE TO EDINBURGH AND GLASGOW 
 
 IS PROPOSED TO GO, 
 
 ' WITH 
 
 THE RESOLUTIONS PASSED AT THE MEETINGS, 
 
 TOGETHER WITH 
 
 THE GENERAL REPORT ON THE LINE, 
 
 X BY 
 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON, ESQ. M.I.C.E.L. 
 
 WITH A 
 
 COLOURED MAP OF THE RAILWAY, ENGRAVED BY COLLARD. 
 
 PRINTED BY JOHN HEENAMAN, JOURNAL OFFICE, PILGRIM-STREET. 
 
c 
 
 r 
 
 ■ (T 
 
 
 HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF HAMILTON & BRANDON, 
 
 K.C.B., &c. &c. 
 
 
 
 
 My Lord Duke, 
 
 The Promoters of the Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Edinburgh and Glasgow 
 Railway are so much indebted to your Grace for your approbation and 
 influential support of a scheme which cannot prove otherwise than 
 highly beneficial to Scotland, as to induce me to ascribe to you the 
 character of its Patron ; and, in doing so, to -avail myself of your Grace’s 
 permission to dedicate this Volume to you. 
 
 With every possible deference and respect, 
 
 I remain. 
 
 My Lord Duke, 
 
 Your Grace’s- most obedient and humble Servant, 
 
 S. REED. 
 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne^ 2Qth July^ 1837 * 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 ' 
 
 https://archive.org/details/accountofpublicmOOnewc 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 TO THE 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, & GLASGOW, 
 RAILWAY PROCEEDINGS. 
 
 The numerous Railways "that are now extending themselves over every part of the kingdom, 
 connecting distant towns and districts with the Metropolis, and by such communication diffusing 
 a spirit of enterprise amongst all classes of people ; afford abundant proof of their growing utility, 
 and the beneficial effects daily developing themselves to the population of the country. 
 
 The Great Northern Railway Company having obtained an Act of Parliament to form a 
 Trunk Railway from the River Tees to the Tyne, and being now in Parliament soliciting a bill 
 to extend this Railway southwards from the Tees to York, there cannot be a question but that at no 
 remote period this great Line of Railway will be completed between the Metropolises of England 
 and Scotland. The exertions of the General Post Office to shorten the Mail Coach Lines through- 
 out the kingdom between considerable Towns, and the expences incurred in the Improvement of 
 the Roads, demonstrate the intention of Government to induce the Road Trustees to facilitate the 
 speed of the Mail by the shortest practical Routes. That the conveyance of his Majesty’s Mails 
 and troops will, at no distant day, be transmitted by Railway communication from one extremity 
 of the land to the other, there can be no doubt of. That time is only delayed till such a safe 
 and expeditious medium of transitis perfected to see such a change effected in the Government 
 Department. 
 
 With this conviction, the writer, in the Autumn of 1835, turned his mind to the practica- 
 bility of a nearer route and more expeditious mode of travelling from Newcastle to the Cities of 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, and having accidentally ascertained that some years back it had been 
 in the contemplation of the Trustees of the Jedburgh Road to improve the Turnpike from 
 Northumberland into Scotland by tunnelling the Carter Fell, it forcibly struck him that if such 
 an undertaking had been thought of for the mere purpose of a Turnpike Road, there could be 
 no insurmountable difficulty in accomplishing the work under the influence of a Company by 
 means of a Railway. 
 
 With these views the writer named the subject to, and obtained from, an intelligent engineer^ 
 a preparatory sketch and report of the line proposed, and having had an opportunity of judging 
 by a personal inspection of the line, that the report given bore out the favourable expectations of 
 its practicability, the scheme was adopted and brought before the public in the month of J uly, 1836. 
 
 The line proposed is much the same, and with only some trifling deviations as is now 
 described. The Railway commences at Newcastle, and proceeds direct across the country, by 
 Whalton, Stamfordham, Ryall, and East Woodburn, to the proposed Station at Woodburn ; the 
 Railway then continues northwards on the west side of the River Reed to Whitelees, and about half 
 a mile from that place enters the Carter Mountain, through which it proceeds by a tunnel of 
 about a mile and 7-8ths in length, emerging again at the north side of the hill, and proceeds along 
 the high ground to Jedburgh, and from thence westward of the village of Ancrum, to Melrose. 
 
 From this town the Railway continues along the course of the Tweed to Galashiels, throwing 
 
IV. 
 
 out a branch to Hawick and another to Kelso, continuing on to Inverleithen from thence to 
 Peebles ; at this town a branch of the railway follows up the river Eddleston by Pennicuick, and 
 thence by the Esk to Edinburgh, which city it enters at the west end of Princess Street, near the 
 Canal Bason. The line from Peebles, proceeds from thence onward to Lanark and Hamil- 
 ton to Glasgow, opposite the Broomielaw. It was originally contemplated to carry a branch 
 from the Carlisle Railway at Hexham, up the North Tyne to join the Main Trunk at 
 Woodburn, but satisfactory reasons have been offered to abandon this branch, and leave the 
 same for future adoption, if the interests of the County require it. It cannot be expected that 
 any one but a practical engineer can thoroughly judge of the favorable or unfavorable face of the 
 country for such a work, but the gradients on the whole line of the way, are so markedly favourable, 
 that they cannot fail to strike the eye of any one who takes the trouble of minutely examining the 
 nature of the country, as being in every respect calculated for railway construction. The first 
 obvious point demonstrated is, that a Water Level is obtainable throughout; you first have the 
 Tyne, then the Reed, after that the noble River Tweed, takes you tp the very source of the Clyde, 
 and so near are those two rivers on the same level at their source, that in time of floods salmon 
 have been known to pass from one river to the other. By following in a parallel course these 
 rivers, you have the advantage, nearly the entire distance, of forming the Railway by side cut- 
 tings on the hills, generally formed of. fine workable sandstone, occasionally meeting with new 
 red sandstone, which is understood to be the cheapest and most ready to work in the construction 
 of railways ; a very small portion of the line, of not more than from four to five miles, being upon 
 a level where casts from each side will be required. The tunnelling of the Carter Mountain, it is 
 expected, so far from being an expensive part of the undertaking, will be easily worked through, 
 the formation being chiefly new red sandstone will be of great value in the construction of the 
 masonry works which will be required. Immediately adjoining the line on the Carter there are 
 very valuable fields of coal and lime. For thirty miles after you enter Scotland, that part of Rox- 
 burghshire is at present supplied at a great expence both with lime and coal from the north side of 
 the Carter ; both these minerals will, therefore, become articles of considerable profit. 
 
 With respect to the curves of this proposed line, they are more favorable than on most rail- 
 ways, very few, if any, will be found to be under a radius of one mile, — indeed, the railway 
 proceeds in nearly a straight line throughout the whole of its course, and is by far the shortest 
 and most direct between Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, the three great and important places 
 of its termini. 
 
 It is not the province of the projector of this railway to attempt any calculation of revenue, 
 that falling properly to the part of the engineer, whose experience can more fully and satisfactorily 
 enter into details, but this observation may be permitted, that the proposed line possesses as favour- 
 able expectations of profitable investment as the generality of railways, from the fact that imme- 
 diately on entering into Scotland, you intersect a manufacturing district daily rising in consequence, 
 and which only wants the facility of direct and easy communication to give double energy to the 
 trade and agriculture of the country, Jedburgh to Galashiels, Hawick, Selkirk, Lanark, 
 Hamilton, and Glasgow, are all places of growing commercial enterprize ; but the vital principle 
 of wealth will be found at the termini of the line, Glasgow and Nowcastle> the intercourse by 
 railway between those two rapidly increasing places affords the best and surest guarantee of suc- 
 cess ; West India produce will find its way to the warehouses of Newcastle from Glasgow, while 
 the merchandize of the Baltic and South of Europe wdll be returned to Glasgow in exchange for 
 the manufactured goods of that commercial city. 
 
 Passengers have always been found to be more profitable to railways than has been anticipated 
 and calculated upon ; the coach returns of travellers alone between Glasgow and Newcastle hold 
 out most flattering prospects of considerable returns, and there is no question that the number of 
 
V. 
 
 travellers will very greatly increase, if the same ratio and results can be relied on for this railway 
 which have invariably characterised that of others. 
 
 With these impressions, and borne out in the view taken of the proposed line of railway by the 
 examination and favourable opinion of Mr. Joshua Richardson, an engineer of eminent talent and 
 abilities, the writer was induced to offer the project to joublic consideration : the subjoined circular 
 was issued, and the result will be seen by the proceedings recorded in the following pages. 
 
 THE TYNE AND EDINBURGH RAILWAY. 
 
 Siu, — The proprieiy of extending Railway Communication from the Tyne to the Capital of Scotland, 
 admits of little hesitation as to its expediency, and still less as to its being a means not only of profitable 
 investment, but also a measure of absolute necessity. 
 
 Now that Railways are about to become so common in England, and by their operation equalize the 
 value of land, it is at least judicious, if not highly imperative on every land-holder to assist in their extension, 
 as by this means only can he now improve the value of his estate. Nor is this all, for supposing a single dis- 
 trict destitute of Railway Communication, and the adjoining districts amply accommodated with it, the tenants 
 of the one would be starving at the same rents that made others rich, who had the advantages of a Railway, 
 cheaply and swiftly to convey the produce to the best market, but also to bring manure to the farmers door, 
 and that, too, at a cost immeasureably below the expence now incurred for those purposes. 
 
 The benefits resulting from the establishment of Railways are indeed so numerous, and, where they have 
 been established, so well known and highly appreciated, that it is deemed unnecessary to say more on the 
 benefits accruing from them generally. 
 
 The advantages of the line now submitted to you must from your intimate acquaintance with the country 
 be self evident and obvious. 
 
 That the value of the land adjoining the railway will be considerably increased, there is, and can be, no 
 doubt of; any damage that may be done will be amply compensated for, and your lands and estates improved 
 to an extent which it is impossible to anticipate. 
 
 Under these circumstances and with these facts before us, I am emboldened to suggest to you a line of 
 railway, which, if it have your support, cannot fail of producing the most salutary results- 
 
 It is proposed to form a Railway from the Tyne to Edinburgh. Its precise route is not yet ascertained, 
 nor can it, until we have the engineer’s report. There can only now be given a general outline, without 
 being confined to particulars. 
 
 It is proposed to leave the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway at Warden, a little West of Hexham, and 
 then pursue the course of the North Tyne to its confluence with the River Reed, the line then to take the 
 direction of that river via Otterburn, and to a place at the foot of the Carter Mountain to or near a place on 
 the Scotch side called Egerton, which will be somewhere about a mile and a half through ; from thence by 
 Jedburgh to Galashiels and Edinburgh, with a branch from Galashiels to Glasgow. 
 
 The great advantage of a Midland Line of Railway is, that both sides of the country will reap the benefit 
 of it, goods and passengers going from Edinburgh to Liverpool, or from Glasgow to Ijiverpool, or from either 
 of those two places to Newcastle, York, London, &c., it offers the most direct line, and much greater general 
 advantages than any railroad either farther east or west could do. On the other side of the Carter, the 
 country is devoid of coal and lime, which is brought to that neighbourhood either from Northumberland, over 
 a mountainous difficult road, or on the Scotch side, from a distance of thirty miles ; such a communication 
 therefore with Northumberland, which abounds with both, would necessarily be highly advantageous, and 
 form one great source of revenue to the shareholders of the proposed railway. 
 
 Another source of r'evenue would be corn, wool, cattle, sheep, and hay, all of which there is a great 
 demand for in the north-western parts of Northumberland, the farmers yearly obtaining from the southern 
 and eastern parts of Scotland both seed and corn, also live stock at a considerable expence of money and time, 
 lead and timber would also find its way on the railroad. A great quantity of timber is now grown in the 
 western parts of Northumberland, which for want of the means of easy carriage, is wholly unproductive to the 
 proprietors, but would then come into profit. Goods sent between Glasgow and Liverpool by sea would also, 
 for greater security in transit, be sent per railway during the winter months, in preference to sea carriage. 
 
 Over and above such merchandize before enumerated, there would be the revenue produced by pas- 
 sengers, which in all instances of railway calculation, has exceeded the estimate formed of it. 
 
 There are numerous other sources of revenue constantly developing themselves, which cannot at present 
 be specified or calculated upon. 
 
 One sure criterion to judge by, is, the certain and increasing intercourse both in traffic and passengers, 
 which will take place between the two countries and the adjacent parts of each. 
 
 Ultimately the communication will extend direct from London to Edinburgh, and there is no doubt but 
 branch railways will be formed to communicate with every considerable town on both sides of the country. 
 Confining the line to the part now projected, namely, up the course of the Rivers North Tyne and Reed, and 
 from Jedburgh to Edinburgh and Glasgow, the whole line may be said to proceed through a populous country, 
 embracing in its way villages and towns of considerable population. From Newcastle to Warden there are 
 twenty miles and upwards of railway already formed ; the proposed line from the latter place up the North 
 Tyne and Reed proceeds through a well populated district, and passes the several places, villages, and small 
 towns following, namely, Wall, Hunshaugh, Barrasford, Wark, Bellingham, Woodburn, Otterburn, Horsley, 
 Rochester, Birness, Catcleugh, Whitelee. 
 
 You must be aware. Sir, that in the employment of engineers and surveyors great expences are unavoid- 
 ably incurred ; without their assistance you are also aware that nothing can be effected to accomplish a project 
 of this nature; and it is in vain to hope for it, unless we can secure to them their usual fees. It is, therefore, 
 especially needful that a subscription should be raised, one to a limited amount will suffice for the present 
 purpose, and that to be repaid from the deposits on the organization of the company. 
 
VI. 
 
 Those landowners, therefore, that feel disposed and friendly to the present undertaking, it is hoped will 
 not sutler it to pass over for want of a subscription. 
 
 It is pro})er to remark that at present, individual emolument is not looked for, but mere indemnity for 
 actual expences. 
 
 The Engineers proposed to be employed are Joshua Richardson, Esq. , M. I. C. E. L., of Newcastle, and as 
 Consulting Engineer, James AValker, Esq., F.R.S., London. -The appointment of Surveyors rests with the 
 P>jgineer, and there is no doubt but that he can secure the zealous co-operation of Mr. N. Weatherley, and 
 other talented surveyors in the district through which the line of railway is proposed to pass. 
 
 I am, Sir, your obedient Servant, S. REED. 
 
 Newcastle Tyne, 9th April, 183G. 
 
 NORTH TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 A meeting is intended to be holden at the Black Bull, Hexham, on Thursday the 30th June Instant, at 
 four o’clock in the afternoon, to take into consideration the expediency of adopting a Midland Line of Rail- 
 way up the North Tyne and Reedwater, by the Carter into Scotland, with branches to Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow, at which meeting there will be submitted for inspection the plans and surveys of the engineer, with 
 his first general report on the proposed line. ' By Order of the Provisional Committee, 
 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 23rd June, 1836. S. REED, Solicitor, Pro. Tern. 
 
 The following report was read to the meeting convened by the foregoing advertisement, 
 Tyne, Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway. 
 
 Gentlemen,— Consonant with the instructions which I had the pleasure to receive, I have perambulated 
 the route proposed for a railway from the termination of the Great Northern Railway to Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow, and beg leave very respectfully to report to you my opinions. 
 
 It is important that any line of railway, having for its object a communication from London to Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow, should, to a certain extent, pass as nearly centrical as possible through Northumberland and 
 Roxburghshire, otherwise equal facilities to commerce could not be obtained, and considerable difficulties in 
 the construction of the line would necessarily have to be encountered and overcome. It is essential also that 
 one great line only ought to pass northwards, inasmuch as one line would easily give all the facilities required, 
 without the diminution of revenue which two lines would necessarily cause. If a line were carried by the 
 east coast, a considerable increase of distance would be caused, and from the nature of the country a greater 
 expenditure would be required. The same objections apply also to a line by the west coast. The accom- 
 panying general plan exhibits the line of the proposed railway, without a special reference to those localities 
 afterwards to be determined on a regular survey. The following are the distances as at present laid down 
 
 on the map : — miles. 
 
 From Warden to Melrose 60 
 
 From Melrose to Edinburgh 30 
 
 From Melrose to Glasgow 63 
 
 Total length of the proposed Railway 159 
 
 From Warden to Edinburgh 90 
 
 From Warden to Glasgow 129 
 
 The line which I have selected is, in my opinion, a very favourable one, although its exact route cannot 
 be ascertained until levels are taken to determine it. Without, therefore, entering into a detailed report at 
 present, I beg leave to submit to you the line as at present projected. 
 
 Taking the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, a great portion of which is now completed, as a pait of the 
 general scheme (thus securing an easy communication both to the east and west), leaving it at Warden, near 
 Hexham, and reserving the exact point of junction with it to be determined afterwards, and suppose that the 
 line should continue northwards on the west side of the North Tyne, west of the Chesters at Humshaugh, 
 leave Houghton Castle on the east, and cross the river near Struthers, and from thence to Chipchase, leaving 
 the Castle on the east, and passing very near the river, to near Carry Hou.se and Reedsmouth, then following 
 the River Reed to near M oodburn, where it crosses the water, and proceeds on the west side, with little 
 interruption or difficulty, to the west side of Whitelee, on Carter Fell. Here a tunnel wfill be necessary, the 
 precise length and depth of which cannot be ascertained without an exact survey ; but, I imagine, it will not 
 exceed one mile in length, or more than 425 feet in depth from the highest surface point. T his, I believe, 
 will be found to be the extreme length and height. After crossing this ridge, I then propose it should follow 
 tije course of the River Jed on the west until it arrives near Woodfield, where I proj)ose it should continue 
 to the west of Jedburgh and Melrose. About a mile to the north-west of Melrose, I propose the lines to 
 diverge to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Edinburgh Branch crossing the Tweed above the Junction of the 
 Gala Water to Dryburgh, crossing the river, or altering its present channel in two or three places in this 
 neighbourhood, keeping its course until we come to Crichton Moss, which I purpose crossing east of the pre- 
 sent turnpike road, and from thence to near Borthwick Castle to the west of New Byre’s Castle, Kirkbill, 
 Cockpen, to near Standing Green, Inch, to the west of Salisbury Green to Edinburgh. The terminus at 
 Edinburgh being a question of considerable importance, and which will be greatly influenced by the levels 
 liereafter to be taken, 1 have no doubt but that a good one can be obtained. 
 
 The line to Glasgow, from the junction already mentioned, I propose should cross the Tweed east of 
 Abbotsford, and by gently curving, cross the river again, north-west of Fairnilee, from thence keeping nearly 
 the course of the Tweed, continue by Inverleithen to the south of Peebles; then crossing the river near 
 Neidpath Castle to Innes Mill House, Stobo, New Pops, and Drummelzier, where leaving the Tweed, it then 
 continues westward by the Biggar Water to the south of Biggar, crossing the Clyde between liindsay Ijands, 
 and Lymington, to near Thackerton, cutting off a great portion of the curve of the river to near Hvndford 
 Bridge, Hill Bank, Stonebyers, Hill House, Allington, to the west of Hamilton; then by Coalshill, West- 
 
Vll. 
 
 burn, Rutherglen, to the River Clyde, on the side opposite to Rromielaw Quay, Glasgow. The terminus at 
 Glasgow cannot, I think, be improved ; further investigation may, however, point out alterations which may 
 be expedient on this as well as on other parts of the line. 
 
 After having carefully inspected the country, and in the course of travelling over the ground collected 
 all the information I could, I have no hesitation whatever in strongly recommending this line to your 
 adoption. The gradients are peculiarly favourable, the greatest rise or fall being only 15 feet in a mile, and 
 the greatest part of it will be considerably under even 15 feet. Nor is this to be wondered at when it is recol- 
 lected that we follow water levels throughout the most of the distance. 
 
 In its formation a great outlay will undoubtedly be required, yet, from the abundance of materials requi- 
 site to make the railway being found throughout the whole line, and from the comparatively few deep cuttings 
 or high embankments, we may fairly presume the capital required will be less than on most works of this 
 description. 
 
 As a continuation of the railways from London via York to Newcastle, and as a main line of communica- 
 tion between England and Scotland, the revenue can scarcely be estimated at present; but it can hardly be 
 supposed to be less than will amply repay the investment of the needful capital. In addition to which it 
 ought to be borne in mind that the towns and country through which it is proposed to pass, will furnish great 
 sources of income. The line passes through the most valuable coal fields in the kingdom. Iron-stone of the 
 first quality is abundant. Slates, stone, excellent lime, timber, and agricultural produce generally would lead 
 to increase alike the traffic on the railway, and the prosperity of the country through which it passes. Branch 
 railways to Hawick, Selkirk, and Kelso, might also be made to join with the main line, and other contributory 
 sources of revenue may probably be discovered on closer inspection. 
 
 This report being only preliminary to an accurate survey, it is not needful at present to enter minutely 
 into these subjects. When I have the pleasure of reporting to you after the survey has been made, I shall 
 s endeavour to furnish you with more exact information on the line and its levels, the first cost, and the proba- 
 ble annual revenue and expenditure. I am. Gentlemen, with great respect, 
 
 Newcastle, 6 Mo. 10th, 1837. JOSHUA RICHARDSON, M. I. C. E., L. 
 
 Since the above report was written, I have, at the suggestion of the committee for Northumberland ex- 
 amined a line commencing on the Town Moor at Newcastle, and from thence northwards to near Matfen, 
 and then joining the original line near Reedsmouth. 
 
 By this line 270 feet will be gained in the levels, and the distance between Edinburgh and Glasgow' 
 lessened eleven miles, I would still recommend a branch down North Tyne to Hexham on account of the 
 west country trade, thus securing by the Newcastle and Carlise Railway a communication with both the 
 eastern and western parts of the country. 
 
 It has been recommended to me to take a line from Peebles instead of Galashiels to Edinburgh. The 
 expediency of this proposed alteration must be determined by the committees, after the levels of both lines 
 have been taken. 
 
 So favourably indeed did the engineer view the project both as to its practicability and great 
 general utility, that he readily took upon himself the risque of proceeding with it professionally 
 on his own responsibility and expence, as will be seen by the nature of the resolutions passed at 
 the several cities and towns mentioned in the following pamphlet, and on this responsible step, 
 Mr. Richardson was the more satisfied as he went onwards, from the universally warm reception 
 and support the projected undertaking met with at with at every place where it was submitted to 
 public consideration. 
 
 NORTH TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 A General Meeting was held at Hexham on Thursday last, pursuant to notice, to take into consideration 
 the Formation of a Railway up the North Tyne and Reedw'ater, through the Carter Mountain into Scotland, 
 and thence to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Company included — 
 
 Thomas Riddell, Esq. Felton Park, High Sheriff* of Northumberland; the Rev. Wm. Elliott, Simonburn ; 
 William H. Charlton, Esq. Hesleyside ; Sanderson Ilderton, Esq. Bradley Hall ; AVilliam Blackett, Esq. 
 Benridge ; Nicholas Leadbitter, Esq. Warden ; John Ridley, Esq. Eals ; William Smith, Esq. Houghton 
 Castle; Christopher Colbeck, Esq. Humshaugh; Joseph Dodd, Esq. Higham ; Nicholas Burnett, Esq. Black 
 Hedley ; William Charlton, Esq. Lee Hall; James Kirsopp, Esq. Spittal ; and J. D. Bell, Esq. Hexham. 
 
 The High Sheriff having been called to the Chair, brieff v stated the objects of the Meeting. 
 
 Mr. Stephen Reed, the Secretary, then, at the request of the Chair, read the Engineer’s Report of the 
 proposed Line of Road, which was very favourably received. 
 
 Wm. Henry Charlton, Esq. of Hesleyside, in an able speech, moved the first of the series of resolu- 
 tions. He particularly alluded to the report of the engineer, just read, assuring the meeting from his own 
 knowledge, that Mr. Richardson had not over-stated the advantages which would inevitably result from the 
 formation of this railway. The excellency of the line, as far as regarded its gradients, was proved by the fact, 
 that nearly the entire route of the proposed railway had been laid down on a water level. This railway being 
 a central line through the country, possessed advantages which could not be presumed on in an eastern or 
 western line ; and the sources of revenue appeared to him amply sufficient to warrant the undertaking. From 
 the able report wdiich had been read to them, and from the information he otherwise possessed, he entertained 
 no doubt of its success and great utility. It was therefore with a pleasure that he moved the first resolution. 
 
 ^ The motion having been seconded, it was unanimously adopted, as were all the others, for which see 
 next page. 
 
 John Hodgson, Esq., of Elswick, proposed the next resolution, and in doing so said, he presumed that 
 the line now proposed was the best that could be obtained ; but if hereafter a better line could be shown to 
 nim, he would support it in preference to the one now' under consideration. At present, however, he w'as 
 
Vlll. 
 
 disposed to imagine the central line the most generally advantageous to the public; and with the reservation 
 he had mentioned, he had no hesitation in moving the resolution. One great feature in Mr. Richardson’s 
 line was, that a great portion of it would maintain itself. He found from the enquiries he had made, that the 
 carriage of coal and lime alone would pay an ample per centage to the sum invested. Slate of the best quality 
 was abundant on the line, and would also form an ample source of revenue. Along about sixty miles of the 
 line, coal could be conveyed. This of itself was of great importance, but when was added to the coal, lime, 
 iron stone, agricultural produce, and manure, there could be but little doubt as to the expediency of the line 
 proposed by Mr. Richardson. As an individual, he was disposed to look at it in the most favourable light. 
 The resolution was seconded, and unanimously adopted. 
 
 Captain Charlton, of Lee Hall, in rising to propose the third resolution, briefly expressed his appro- 
 bation of the proposed Railway, and his conviction that it would be of great utility to the country through 
 which it passed. Although there was a probability of its going through his property and near to his house, he 
 would not oppose the railway, but support it to the utmost of his power. 
 
 This resolution was also seconded and adopted. 
 
 James Kirsopp, Esq., of the Spittal, proposed the fourth resolution ; the fifth, sixth, and seventh resolu- 
 tions were proposed by the High Sheriff from the chair, and severally adopted by the meeting. 
 
 Thanks were then moved by John Hodgson, Esq., to the High Sheriff for presiding at the meeting, and 
 the business terminated. 
 
 NORTH TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 At a meeting holden at the Black Bull Inn, Hexham, on Thursday the 30th day of June, 1836, at four 
 o’clock in the afternoon, to take into consideration the expediency of adopting a Midland Line of Railway up 
 the North Tyne and Reedwater, by the Carter Mountain, into Scotland, with branches to Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow, Thomas Riddell, Esq., High Sheriff of Northumberland, in the Chair, 
 
 It was Resolved, 
 
 1st. — That a Railway to Edinburgh and Glasgow, commencing from the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway 
 at Warden, near Hexham, or at some more eligible point of union, pursuing the rivers North Tyne and Reed, 
 through the Carter Mountain by way of Jedburgh and Galashiels, branching of, from, or near to the latter 
 place to Edinburgh and Glasgow, and forming a connexion with the North of England Railway at New- 
 castle to York, would be beneficial to the country, and promote the agricultural, as well as the mining 
 and commercial interest of the district through which it passes, and by affording ready facilities of communi- 
 cation between distant places, not only increase the value of the property, but be a great public convenience, 
 and ultimately may form a portion of a national railway between the metropolises of London and Edinburgh. 
 
 2nd — That a committee be appointed to enquire whether such proposed Midland Railway be practicable, 
 and for that purpose cause surveys to be made of the country, estimates of the expence in completing the 
 work, v/ith reports on the result of their enquiries for the future consideration of a general meeting, and in the 
 meantime to correspond with committees to be appointed in other towns, and to report their opinion at as 
 early a period as the nature of their duty will admit of. 
 
 3rd — That the following gentlemen be appointed as a provisional Committee, to unite with the Com- 
 mittees to be formed in other towns on the pr oposed line of railway, for the purpose of carrying the first reso- 
 lution into effect, to have power to add to their numbers, and to co-operate with other Committees ; that any 
 five or more of the several committees be competent to act, and that such of the committee as are now present 
 do forthwith proceed to take such measures as may best facilitate the object in view : — 
 
 Thomas Riddell, Esq. High Sheriff of Northumberlnnd ; The Rev. Wm. Elliott, Rector of Simonburn, 
 John Hodgson, Esq. Elswick ; Thomas James, Esq. Otterburn; Wm. Henry Charlton, Esq. Hesleyside ; 
 Nicholas Leadbitter, Esq. Warden ; John Harbottle, Esq. Anick Grange; Thomas Batson, Esq. Newcastle ; 
 Joseph Dodd, Esq. Higham ; Christopher Colbeck, Esq. Humshaugh ; Geo. Jobling, Esq. Humshaugh. 
 
 4th — That public meetings beheld in Jeburgh, iUelrose, Galashiels, Selkirk, Hawick, Peebles, Hamilton, 
 i.anark, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, to forward the object of this meeting, and that Joshua Richardson, Esq., 
 civil engineer, and Mr. Stephen Reed, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, be requested to attend the same, with the 
 preliminary surveys, plans, reports, &c., and give such information as may be required ; also, to make proper 
 arrangements for the effective co-operation of the several committees, and other professional assistance that 
 may be required for carrying the undertaking forward. As these measures are preliminary, and with a view 
 of "ascertaining the practicability of the proposed line, the professional gentlemen now engaged require 
 nothing further than the mere reimbursement of their necessary expences ; but should the object now in view 
 be carried in effect, their time expended in the present work to be paid out of the funds of the Company, after 
 the usual rate of professional charge. 
 
 5th. — That a subscription be now opened for raising a sum adequate to defray the expences that may be 
 incurred by the committee, and that the sums contributed shall be considered as advances of so much towards 
 the shares which the subscribers may take, or shall be allowed or repaid to the non-subscribers out of the funds 
 subscribed for the undertaking, in case the same be proceeded with, and that such subscriptions of parties in 
 England be paid into the North of England Joint Stock Bank, and to be at the disposal of the English com- 
 mittees, and the subscriptions for Scotland be paid into the Royal Bank of Scotland, and be at the disposal of 
 the committees in Scotland. 
 
 6th — That the resolutions of this meeting be inserted in some one or more of the Newcastle, Carlisle, 
 Edinburgh, and Glasgow Newspapers, also in two Ijondon Newspapers, and be laid before, and communicated 
 to, the several meetings to be holden at the places mentioned in the fourth resolution. 
 
 7th. — That Joshua Richardson, Esq. Newcastle-upon-Tyne, be appointed engineer, and Mr. Stephen Reed, 
 of the same place, secretary to the committee. THOMAS RIDDELL, Chairman. 
 
 The High Sheriff having left the chair, it was moved and seconded that thanks be given to the High 
 Sherifl’ of Northumberland for presiding at the meeting. 
 
 Subscriptions will be received at the North of England Joint Stock Bank, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 
 
R E r O R T 
 
 THE rilOCEEDINGS 
 
 OF SEVERAL 
 
 PUBLIC MEETINGS, 
 
 HELD FOR THE PURPOSE OP 
 
 CONSIDERING THE EXPEDIENCY OF FORMING A 
 
 K AIX.W A? 
 
 BETWIXT 
 
 NEWCASTLE, EDINBURGH, & GLASGOW, 
 
 THROUGH 
 
 JEDBURGH. 
 
 (FROM THE KELSO CHRONICLE.) 
 
 KELSO : 
 
 PRINTED AT THE CHRONICLE OFFICE, 
 BY GEORGE GREIG. 
 
 1836. 
 
r 
 
MEETING AT JEDBURGH 
 
 On Tuesday the 9tli August, a numerous and respectable 
 Public Meeting of the inhabitants of the town and district 
 of Jedburgh, was held within the County Hall there, to con- 
 sider the expediency of adopting a midland and centrical 
 line of railway, betwixt some point on the Newcastle and 
 Carlisle Railway at or near Hexham, by the Carter Fell, 
 through Jedburgh, Melrose, Galashiels, &c., to Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow. 
 
 On the motion of James Elliot, Esq., of VTolflee, se- 
 conded by Archibald Jerdon, Esq., of Bonjedward, Wil- 
 liam Oliver Rutherfurd, Esq., Sheriff of the County, was 
 called to the chair. 
 
 Tile Sheriff on taking the chair, said that having had 
 the honour to be called upon to preside over this numerous 
 and respectable meeting, he should in the first place read 
 the advertisement calling the meeting, (for which, see our 
 last number.) As this meeting was held on the same 
 principle as the one which took place at Hexham on the 
 30th June last, to consider the expediency of adopting a 
 midland line of railway up the North Tyne, and Reed 
 Water, by the Carter Mountain into Scotland, with 
 branches to Edinburgh Glasgow, it might not be improper 
 to read the following resolutions which were then and there 
 agreed to, in order that those now present might have an 
 ojiportunity of knowing what had been done. 
 
 “ 1st, That a Railway to Edinburgh and Glasgow, com- 
 mencing from the Newcastle and Carlisle railway at War- 
 den, near Hexham, or at some more eligible point of union, 
 pursuing the course of the rivers North Tyne and Reed, 
 through the Carter mountain by way of Jedburgh and Ga- 
 lashiels, branching off from or near to the latter place to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, and forming a connexion with 
 ihe north of England railway at Newcastle to York, woitld 
 be beneticial to the country, and promote the agricultural, 
 as well as the mining and commercial interests of the dis- 
 trict through which it passes, and by affording ready fa- 
 cilities of communication between distant places, not only 
 increase the value of property, but be a great public con- 
 venience, and ultimately may form a portion of a National 
 Railway between the metropolises of London and Edin- 
 burgh. 
 
 2d, That a Committee be appointed to inquire whether 
 such proposed Midland Railway be practicable, and for 
 that purpose cause surveys to be made of the country, 
 estimates of tlie expense in completing the work, with re- 
 ports on the result of their inquiries, for the future con- 
 sideration of a general meeting, and in the meantime to 
 correspond with committees to be appointed in other towns, 
 and to report their opinion at as early a period as the na- 
 lure of their duty will admit of. 
 
 3d, That the following gentlemen be appointed as a 
 provisional committee, to unite with the Committees to be 
 formed in other towns on the proposed line of Railway, 
 for the purpose of carrying the first resolution into effect ; 
 to have power to add to their numbers, and to co-operate 
 with other committees ; that any five or more of the several 
 C'ommittees be competent to act, and that such of the com- 
 mittee as are now present do forthwith proceed to take 
 such measures as may best facilitate the object in view ; — 
 
 Thos. Riddell, Esq., High Sheriff of Northumberland; 
 the Rev. Wm. Elliot, Rector of Simonburn; John Hodg- 
 son, Esq., Elswick; Thomas James, Esq., Otterburn; 
 Wm. Henry Charlton, Esq., Hesleyside; Nicholas Lead- 
 bitter, Esq., Warden ; John Harbottle, Esq., Anick 
 Grange; Thomas Batson, Esq., Newcastle ; Joseph Dodd, 
 Esq., Highham ; John Ridley, Esq., Eals ; Christopher 
 Colbeck, Esq., Humshaugh ; Geo. Jobling, Esq., Hums- 
 haugh. 
 
 4th, That Public Meetings be held in Jedburgh, Mel- 
 rose, Galashiels, Selkirk, Hawick, Peebles, Hamilton, 
 Lanark, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, to forward the object 
 of this Meeting; and that Joshua Richardson, Esq., civil- 
 engineer, and Mr. Stephen Reed, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 
 be requested to attend the same, with the preliminary Sur- 
 veys, Plans, Reports, &c., and give such information as 
 may be required ; also to make proper arrangements for 
 the effective co-operation of the several committees, and 
 other professional assistance that may be required for car- 
 rying the undertaking forward. As these measures are 
 preliminary, and with a view of ascertaining the practica- 
 bility of the proposed Line, the professional gentletnen 
 now engaged require nothing further than the mere reim- 
 bursement of their necessary expenses ; but should the ob- 
 ject now in view be carried into effect, their time expended 
 in the present work to be paid out of the funds of the com- 
 pany, after the usual rate of professional charge. 
 
 5th, That a Subscription be now opened for raising a 
 sum adequate to defray the Expenses that may be incurr- 
 ed by the Committee, and that the sums contributed sliall 
 be considered as advance of so much towards the shares 
 which the subscribers may take, or shall be allowed or re- 
 paid to the non-subscribers out of the funds subscribed 
 for the undertaking, in case the same be proceeded with, 
 and that such subscriptions of parties in England be paid 
 into the North of England Joint Stock bank, and to be 
 at the disposal of the English Committee ; and the Sub- 
 scriptions for Scotland be paid into the Royal Bank of 
 Scotland, and be at the disposal of the Committees in 
 Scotland. 
 
 6th, That the Resolutions of this Meeting be inserted 
 in some one or more of the Newcastle, Carlisle, Edinburgh, 
 and Glasgow Newspapers, also in two London Newspapers, 
 and be laid before and communicated to the several meet- 
 ings, to be holden at the places mentioned in the 4th Re- 
 solution. 
 
 7th, That Joshua Richardson, Esq., Newcastle-upon- 
 Tyne, be appointed Engineer, and Mr. Stephen Reed, of 
 the same place, secretary to the committee. 
 
 Thos. Riddell, Chairman. 
 
 The high sheriff having left the chair, it was moved and 
 seconded — 
 
 That thanks be given to the high sheriff of the county of 
 Northumberland, for presiding at the meeting. 
 
 Subscriptions will be received at the north of England 
 Joint Stock Bank, New'castle-upon-Tyne.” 
 
 By the fifth resolution, it would be observed, that the 
 money collected on this side of the Border should be 
 lodgetl in the Royal Bank of Scotland. Now, they would 
 
4 
 
 recollect that they were not bound by this arrangement, 
 but that they were at liberty to deposit the money in any 
 bank which the majority of the Committee to be elected 
 might feel inclined to appoint. It might be also proper 
 to remark, that though the contemplated Railway betwixt 
 Newcastle and Edinburgh and Glasgow, was laid down on 
 a certain line, (which was the only one that had been sur- 
 veyed), by the Carter mountain, through the centre of 
 Roxburghshire, yet if a shorter line should be found prac- 
 ticable, they were not bound to adopt the particular one 
 now submitted to the meeting. In order that this meet- 
 ing should be put in possession of all the requisite infor- ' 
 mation, he would now call upon Mr. Reed to read the 
 report drawn up by Mr. Joshua Richardson of Newcastle, 
 in reference to the particular line under consideration. 
 
 Mr. Reed, in compliance with the request of the chair- 
 man, read the following report 
 
 “Consonant with the instructions which I had the plea- 
 sure to receive, I have perambulated the route proposed 
 fora Railway, from the termination of the Great Northern 
 Railway, to Edinburgh and Glasgow, and now beg leave 
 very respectfully to report to you my opinions. 
 
 “ It is important that any line of Railway, having for 
 its object a communication from London to Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow, should, to a certain extent, pass as nearly as 
 possible through Northumberland and Roxburghshire, 
 otherwise equal facilities to commerce could not be ob- 
 tained, and considerable difficulties in the construction of 
 the line would necessarily have to be encountered and 
 overcome. It is essential also that one great line only 
 ought to pass northwards, inasmuch as one line would 
 easily give all the facilities required, without the diminu- 
 tion of revenue which two lines would necessarily cause. 
 If a line were carried by the East Coast, a considerable 
 increase of distance would be caused, and from the nature 
 of the country a greater expenditure would be required. 
 The same objections apply also to a line by the West 
 Coast. The accompanying general plan exhibits the line 
 of the proposed Railway, without a special reference to 
 those localities afterwards to be determined on a regular 
 survey. The following are the distances as at present laid 
 down on the Map : — From Warden to Melrose, 69 miles; 
 from Melrose to Edinburgh, 30 do. ; from Melrose to 
 Glasgow, 69 do. ; total length of the proposed Railway, 
 159 do. From Warden to Edinburgh, 90 do. ; from War- 
 den to Glagow, 129 do. 
 
 “ The line which I have selected is, in my opinion, a 
 very favourable one, although its exact route cannot be 
 ascertained until levels are taken to determine it. With- 
 out, therefore, entering into a detailed report at present, I 
 beg leave to submit to you the line as at present projected. 
 
 “ Taking the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, a great 
 portion of which is now completed, as a part of the general 
 scheme (thus securing an easy communication both to the 
 the East and West), leaving it at Warden, near Hexham 
 — and reserving the exact point of junction with it to be 
 determined afterwards — I propose that the Line should 
 continue Northwards on the west side of the North Tyne 
 — west of the Chesters to Humshaugh— .leave Houghton 
 Castle on the east, and cross the river near Stiuthers, and 
 from thence to Chipchase, leaving the Castle on the east, 
 and passing very near the river — to near Carry House and 
 Reedsmouth — then following the river Reed to near Wood- 
 burn, where it crosses the water, and proceeds on the west 
 side, with little interruption or difficulty, to the west of 
 Whitelces, on Carter Fell. Here a Tunnel will be neces- 
 sary, the precise length and depth of which cannot be as- 
 certained without an exact survey ; but I imagine it will 
 not exceed one mile in length, or more than 425 feet in 
 depth from the highest surface point. This 1 believe will 
 be found to be the extreme length and height. After 
 crossing this ridge, I then propose it should follow the 
 course of the river Jed on the west, until it arrives near 
 Woodfield, where I propose it should continue to the west 
 
 of Jedburgh and Melrose. About a mile to the north- 
 west of Melrose, I propose the lines to diverge to Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow. The Edinburgh branch crossing 
 the Tweed above the junction of Gala Water with that 
 river, and continuing thence towards Edinburgh by Gala- 
 shiels on the west of the Gala Water to Dryburn, crossing 
 the river, or altering its present channel in two or three 
 places in this neighbourhood, keeping its course until we 
 come to Crichton MoSvS, which I purpose crossing east of 
 the present turnpike road, and from thence to near Borth- 
 wick Castle — to the west of New Byre’s Castle, Kirkhill, 
 Cockpen — to near Standing Green, Inch, to the west of 
 Salisbury Green — to Edinburgh. The terminus at Edin- 
 burgh being a question of considerable importance, and 
 which will be grately influenced by the levels hereafter to 
 be taken, I have not thought it expedient at present to 
 flx its locality, but I have no doubt but that a good one 
 can be obtained. 
 
 “The line to Glasgow, from the junction already men- 
 tioned, I propose should cross the Tweed East of Abbots- 
 ford, and, by gently curving, cross the river again, north- 
 west of Fairnilee, ftom thence keeping nearly the course of 
 the Tweed, continue by Innerleithen to the south of 
 Peebles ; then crossing the river near Neidpath Castle, to 
 Innes Mill House, Stobo, New Posso, and Drummelzier, 
 where leaving the Tweed it then continues westwards by 
 the Biggar Water to the south of Biggar, crossing the 
 Clyde between Lindsaylands and Symington, to near 
 Thackerton, cutting of a great portion of the curve of the 
 river to near Hyndford Bridge, Hillbank, Stonebyers, Hill 
 House, Allington, to the west of Hamilton ; then by 
 Coatshill, Westburn, Rutherglen, to the river Clyde, on 
 the side opposite to Broomielaw Quay, Glasgow. The 
 terminus at Glasgow cannot I think be improved ; fur- 
 ther investigation may, however, point out alte.ations 
 which may be expedent on this as well as on other parts 
 of the line. 
 
 “ After having carefully inspected the country, and in 
 the course of travelling over the ground collected all the 
 information I could, 1 have no hesitation whatever in 
 strongly recommending this line to your adoption. The 
 gradients are peculiarly favourable, the greatest rise or 
 fall being only 15 feet in a mile, and the greatest part of 
 it will be considerably under even 15 feet. Nor is this to 
 be wondered at when it is recollected that we follow water 
 levels throughout the most of the distance. 
 
 “ In its formation a great outlay will undoubtedly be 
 required, yet from the abundance of materials requisite to 
 make the Railway being found throughout the whole line, 
 and from the comparatively few deep cuttings or high em- 
 bankments, we may fairly presume the capital required 
 will be less than on most works of this description. 
 
 “ As a continuation of the Railways ;from I^ondon via 
 York to Newcastle, and as a main Line of Communication 
 between England and Scotland, the Revenue can scarcely 
 be estimated at present ; but it can hardly be supposed to 
 be less than will amply repay the investment of the needful 
 capital. In addition to which it ought to be borne in mind 
 that the towns and country through which it is proposed to 
 pass will furnish great sources of income. The Line 
 passes through the most valuable Coal lields in the King- 
 dom — Iron-stone, of the flrst quality, is abundant — Slates, 
 Stone, excellent Lime, Timber, and Aricultural produce 
 generally, would tend to increase alike the traffic on the 
 Railway and the prosperity of the country through which 
 it passes. 
 
 “ Branch Railways to Hawick, Selkirk, and Kelso, might 
 also be made to join witli the main Line and other contri- 
 butary sources of Revenue may probably be discovered on 
 closer inspection. 
 
 “ This report being only preliminary to an accurate sur- 
 vey, it is not needful at jiresuit to enter minutely into 
 these subjects. When I liave the pleasure of reporting to 
 you after the survey has been made, I sliall endeavour to 
 furnish you with more exact information on the Line and 
 
its Levels the first Cost — and the probable Annual Re- 
 
 venue and Lxpendituie. 
 
 “ Since the above Report was written, I have, at the 
 suggestion of the Committee, examined the Line com- 
 mencing on the Town Moor of Newcastle, and from thence 
 continuing northwards to near Matfen, and then joining 
 the original line at near Reedsmouth. By this line the dis- 
 tance between Edinburgh and Newcastle will be lessened 1 1 
 miles, rendering the total distance 99 miles, and I think 
 the line a practicable one.” 
 
 Mr. Richardson then presented himself to the meeting, 
 and said that it was with great pleasure that he appeared 
 before the present meeting, called for the purpose of con- 
 sidering the expediency of adopting a midland Line of 
 Railway from Newcastle up the North Tyne, Reed 
 Water, by the Carter-Fell to Jedburgh, and from thence 
 to Edinburgh and Glasgow, by Melrose and Galashiels ; 
 and he sincerely trusted that the result of this day’s pro- 
 ceedings would be such as to induce them to hope that 
 this great undertaking would go on, and be attended with 
 prosperity not only to those who may invest their money 
 in the work, but also to those towns and the district through 
 which it passes. (Cheers.) They were aware that there 
 was a competition between two separate lines — the one 
 from Newcastle by Berwick to Dunbar, where it is propos- 
 ed to join the Edinburgh and Dunbar railway, and the 
 other that now under consideration. Before pointing out 
 to them the advantages which the latter line possessed over 
 the former, he felt called upon to make a few observations 
 in reference to what took place at a public meeting, held on 
 the 19th ult., at Berwick, to consider the propriety of ap- 
 pointing a local committee to co-operate with the Newcastle 
 committee, with the view of getting the intended railway be- 
 tween Edinburgh and Newcastle to pass by that place. For 
 two of the gentlemen (Messrs. Dobson and Hawthorn) con- 
 nected with the line by Berwick, he had no hesitation in 
 saying that he had the highest respect and esteem, and he 
 had long been on terms of friendship and amity with them. 
 Any thing, therefore, which he might be called upon to 
 say would, he trusted, be considered as said on public 
 giounds and not on any private consideration. He could 
 not do better than reply first to some remarks which ap- 
 peared in the Benvick and Kelso Warder on the 23d 
 ult., contained in an article headed, “ Grand Eastern 
 Union Railw ly," because in this there was a statement 
 made, to whichhe begged particularly to call their attention, 
 inasmuch as that statement had no foundation in truth, but 
 was published solely with the view of prejudicing the public 
 against the Midland Line, the expediency of adopting 
 which they were this day met to consider. The statement 
 against which he complained was to the following effect; — 
 “ We have also learned that the line proposed from 
 Newcastle by way of Hexham, Carter Fell, Jedburgh, and 
 Galashiels, is in Edinburgh looked upon as a most extra- 
 vagant scheme. The engineer, it appears, was in Edin- 
 burgh a short time since, consulting a Scotch engineer of 
 eminence, who expressed his opinion that the line was im- 
 practicable.” In answer to this he had only simply to 
 state, that he was in Edinburgh in the month of April, 
 but he had no instructions to consult any individual there 
 in reference to a midland line of road, nor did he consult 
 any. He had the pleasure of knowing several Scotch en- 
 gineers of eminence whom he highly esteemed, but he not 
 only never consulted any one of these respectable gen- 
 tlemen, but none of them ever said that the line was im- 
 practicable. He should now beg to diaw their attention to 
 the speech of IMr. Ramsay, Editor of the Berwick ^ Kelso 
 Warder, at the meeting referred to — a gentleman whom he 
 had not the pleasure of knowing, and of whom he there- 
 fore wished to speak with the greatest respect. The re- 
 marks of Mr. Ramsay were as follow : — “ The line 
 by the Carter Fell, it must be evident to every one 
 who knew that part of the country, had many moun- 
 tainous obstructions, which must prove a great disadvan- 
 tage to it ; but then, it was believed, it had a great ad- 
 
 vantage in its distance being much shorter than the eastern 
 line. What, however, was tlie fact ? Why, the data he 
 had before him showed that the difference in distance was 
 only one mile. Mr. Richaidson’s survey of the line, he 
 found, made the distance 114 miles : the eastern line, as pro- 
 jected by Messrs. Dobson and Hawthorn, was 115 miles. 
 A mile, then, as the difference in distance, was nothing. 
 But though the western line had apparently an advantage 
 of a mile, he understood that when the undulations of that 
 line were taken into account, it would, for all practical 
 purposes, be found to be the longest line by far more than 
 a mile.” Now, in answer to this statement, he denied that 
 in the first place this was the fact. Their line was said to be 
 1 15 miles, whereas this was only 99 miles. He did not think 
 therefore that it required much ingenuity to discover that the 
 line now submitted to this meeting is not only shorter, but 
 in many respects mote eligible. Another objection brought 
 against this line is that it was apt to be obstructed by 
 snow in the winter season. Now, he was told by gentle- 
 men, on whose opinion he could rely, that snow storms 
 lie less on this upland district than on the sea coast. And 
 if this is the case, he considered that part of the question 
 completely answered. But Mr. Ramsay, in speaking of 
 the disadvantages of the line by the Carter, says — “ Be- 
 sides, look at the scanty population of the country 
 through which that line passed— look at the trifling 
 source* of commerce and agriculture of the greater 
 portion of it. But its natural disadvantages were still 
 greater ; and in illustration of these, he need only 
 refer to the data which had been laid before him.” 
 Now, this statement is as rash as it is unfounded, for 
 not only does this line pass through a fertile and highly- 
 cultivated country, but it passses through the thriving 
 towns of Jedburgh, Melrose, Galashiels and Peebles, 
 whereas, the line from Newcastle by Berwick does not pass 
 through a single town. It keeps clear of Morpeth, while 
 it passes three and a half miles from Alnwick, and one and 
 a half miles from Belford. Now, the line by the Carter 
 passes through towns rising into importance from the pros- 
 perous and increasing state of their manufactures, and 
 should a railway be established, they could not but be still 
 more prosperous and important, since they have everything 
 that could promote manufactures, and they only wanted a 
 natural communication to open up these resources of their 
 wealth and industry to the rest of the country. Think 
 also of the line by Berwick passing the whole way near to 
 the sea, which was the natural and proper medium of con- 
 veyance to those near the coast ; and when they farther 
 considered the fircilities afforded by steam communication 
 — a mode of conveyance that, would always come into com- 
 petition with a railway, and must render it less valuable 
 both to the shareholders and to the country at large, they 
 could not but come to the conclusion that the proposed 
 line by this place was in every point of view preferable to 
 that contemplated to pass by Berwick. In this part of the 
 country the inhabitants had nothing but land carriage to 
 depend upon, and the proposed lin'; of road passed through 
 a country replete with every thing that could contribute 
 to promote the riches and prosperity of the nation. It was 
 therefore important to the inhabitants of this part of the 
 country that they should have an inland communication, 
 whereas to those residing upon the coast it was the less 
 necessary, as they already possessed facilities of communi- 
 cation between (he different sea-ports of the country. He 
 referred to the opinion of another gentleman, quoted by 
 Mr. Ramsay, in order to show that this line, as well as 
 that contemplated by Rimside-moor, Wooler, and Kelso^ 
 was entirely impracticable, for the following reasons ; — 
 “ 1st, Because in both these lines the altitudes of the chain 
 of mountains, of which the Carter forms a part, as well as 
 the mountainous districts about Rimside-moor and the 
 head of Gala Water, render it not only difficult, but next 
 to impracticable, to effect through these districts a loco- 
 motive engine line. The cutting through whin and other 
 transition rocks, bearing no sort of comparison with the 
 
6 
 
 cost of executing similar works in the County of Durham, 
 and the southern parts of Nortliumberland. 2d, Because 
 hotli these lines of country are, generally speaking, defec- 
 tive both in population and natural produce. 3d, Be- 
 cause no material or decisive saving is gained as to 
 distance to compensate for this formidable disadvantage.” 
 Now, in the mountainous districts of the country, the only 
 dilKculty which presented itself to the undertaking was in 
 jiassing the Carter, and this obstacle they proposed to 
 ovcrcolne by means of a tunnel. But even taking the dif- 
 iiculiy presented by the Carter into account, he pledged 
 himself to place his professional character on the state- 
 ment, that there never was a great line of railway laid out 
 under fewer disadvantages than the one whicli he had now 
 ilie honour to propose to this meeting. (Cheers.) But 
 he did not ask them to take his report alone, but he gave 
 tlie authority of Messrs. Grainger and Miller, two eminent 
 engineers, who proposed to carry a tunnel through the 
 (Jarter for the purposes of a common road. Hear the opi- 
 nion of these gentlemen, as expressed in a report to the 
 Trustees of the Roxburghshire turnpikes, relative to the 
 proposed alteration of the road from Hundalee smithy to 
 \rhitelee toll; — “On this line,” say they, “we propose 
 to make a tunnel 1150 yards long, through the Carter 
 ridge, and to this manner of carrying the road we have 
 particularly to request your attention. Works of this 
 nature have not hitherto been adopted on turnpike roads 
 in this country, but from the advantageous manner in 
 which they have been employed on canals and railways, 
 little doubt can be entertained that similar advantages may 
 be derived from their construction on turnpike roads, es- 
 jiecially when on a great leading road, where directness is 
 of so much impoitance, and where that road has of neces- 
 sity to pass over a mountainous country. As to their 
 practicability not tlie least doubt can be entertained, for 
 in many parts of England and cn the Continent, tunnels 
 much longer than that now proposed have been executed ; 
 and indeed the French, in constructing the road by 8em- 
 ])lon, aware of the advantages of tunnels in shortening the 
 distance, have on that road (which is of no very consider- 
 able length) no less than six tunnels. The construction 
 of a tunnel is attended with an expense which may ]ierhaps 
 be considered as going beyond the advantages to be de- 
 rived, but when they can be adopted, as in the })rescnt 
 case, they must claim particular attention.” If then a 
 tunnel should be made, for the purpose of a common road, 
 how much more advisable would it be to make it for such 
 a great national work as this proposed railway. Referring 
 again to tlie ojiinion of the gentleman quoted by Mr. Ram- 
 say, it was stated that it will be impracticable to form a 
 tunnel through the Carter owing to the mountain being 
 composed of limestone and basalt, and that the whinstone 
 rock, of which a great part of the country is formed, will 
 jnesent insurmountable difficulties to a locomotive raihvay 
 line. In answer to this, he would again refer to Messrs. 
 Grainger and Miller’s repoit, which states that “our want 
 of information, as to the nature of the metals to be pene- 
 trated, ])recludes us from giving a very accurate estimate 
 of the probable expense of this tunnel; but in order that 
 you may have a general idea of its expense, we hazard an 
 estimate made uj) in two ways, the one on the supposition 
 that the metals through which the tunnel pass, are soft, 
 and on that account will require to be arched tliroughout. 
 As this, however, is not at all likely to be the case, we al- 
 so give an estimate on the su])])osition that the metals of 
 the ridge arc of the ordinary degree of liatdness, and 
 similar to those found in the coal formation.” This 
 affords a strong j)resum])tion that the Carter was not 
 a whinstone rock, but of coal formation. He did not knov/ 
 the engineer who furnished Air. Ramsay with the informa- 
 tion which he detailed to the meeting, but wlioever he was 
 that advised him, lie has given him wrong advice. They 
 loidd not for a moment sui)pose that Alessrs. Miller and 
 Grainger, alter exj)ending so long a time in surveying that 
 I’art of the country could have been deceived, or that tl)e 
 
 utmost reliance was not to be placed on their opinions 
 
 (Cheers.) As to the population and importance of the re- 
 spective districts through which the respective lines pass, 
 they may fearlessly challenge a comparison. Throughout 
 the whole course of the eastern line they have only two 
 towns of any importance, and these are some distances 
 from the proposed railway. Besides, the population is al. 
 together agricultural, with here and there perhaps a farm- 
 house situated at the top of a hill, and another at the bot- 
 tom of it. If the line submitted to this meeting were ex- 
 amined, it would be found to pass through towns of con- 
 siderable importance ; and the districts which the railway 
 joins, would rise immensely in importance and population, 
 affording as they did every facility for the promotion of 
 manufactures. But as to the eastern line, which is termed 
 the Grand Eastern Railway, I should like to know, after 
 they have brought it to Berwick, how they could make it 
 practicable for locomotive engines, from that place to Dun- 
 bar. There were here insurmountable difficulties, and he 
 would freely put the difficulties of the Carter in juxtapo- 
 sition to those that would be encountered on this line, as 
 the least of the two. In short, there was much greater 
 difficulty to be encountered betwixt Berwick and Dunbar, 
 than in crossing the Carter Fell. Suppose the line should 
 be made to Berwick, how do they propose to get on 
 afterwards ? They cannot go by the coast, for St. 
 Abb’s Head rose three hundred feet, and presented an 
 unsurmountable obstacle ; and if they diverge any dis- 
 tance into the interior, the acclivities were such that no 
 locomotive engine could be used, and therefore the conclu- 
 sion was completely legitimate that the difficulties on tliis 
 line must be greater than those by the Carter. (Cheers.) 
 It is said that it only required, after having got the railway 
 to Berwick, to take it to Dunbar, without stating how it 
 was to be done — truly this was a very convenient way of 
 settling the question. He asked if this was dealing fairly 
 vHth the public, and if it was not still mote unfair to 
 attack them in the way they had done. There is only 
 one observation which he wished to make before conclud- 
 ing, and that is, that the people in this part of the country 
 would be cut off from the advantages to be derived from tlie 
 benefit arising from the great northern line of railroad, 
 unless it passed through the centre of Roxburgshire. Did 
 not the inhabitants on the eastern parts of the country pos- 
 sess all the advantages from a water communication which 
 those in this district desired to obtain from the formation 
 of a railroad? Have they not free and uninterrupted com- 
 munication with Hull, from thence to Selby, and from 
 thence to the interior of England ? on the other hand, 
 were there any such means of internal communication in 
 tl'.is part of the country ? certainly not. Everything that 
 had been told respecting the great advantages to be obtain- 
 ed from a railway passing by Berwick was nothing, in his 
 0 ))inion, to the c.dvantagcs which would accrue from one 
 passing through this part of tlie country. These observa- 
 tions, he begged again to assure them, were made in su]i- 
 port of a great public undertaking, and not upon any pri- 
 vate grounds; and though some of them might have been 
 made too strongly, yet if he had said anytliing to hurt tlie 
 feelings of any gentleman, it was not intended. Connected 
 as this place was with Hawick and Kelso, theie w'as great 
 probability that branch railroads would be formed to these 
 ])laces; besides, the ])rojectors of the other line carefully 
 concealed the fact that the line is to be continued tluougii 
 the county of Lanark to Glasgow, which would ojicn u]> 
 not only a coal field of immense importance, but also of 
 iron stone and other valuable minerals. 'I'his ought to be 
 kejit in view'. They say, let an engineer be selected to 
 reiiort which line is most likely to prove advantageous ti) 
 the country. To this he had not the least objection, fiir 
 lee boldly cliallcngcd a comparison, convinced as he was 
 that this particular line now laid down, would be found most 
 geneially beneficial. This he said with the utmost coitli- 
 (lence, and although the difficulties by the Carter were 
 guat, they were moiothatt countcibaUmccd by those aris- 
 
7 
 
 mg iVoni die nature of’ the eountvy ihrougli wliicli the 
 •'astern line passeil after leaving Berwick. Among the 
 many advantages to he derived fiom the introduction of 
 railways through a country, there were none of more im- 
 )»ortancc than a cheap conveyance of coal atid lime. Tak- 
 ing the calculation throughout the country, they would 
 find that the expense of carriage could not be less upon|the 
 common turnpike roads than dd. per ton per mile. Now 
 the cost of carriage on a railway is only Id. per ton per 
 mile. This was a material saving. For the exportation 
 of stock, a considerable quantity of which is sent from this 
 county, it is admirably adapted, and on that account it is 
 deserving the attention of agriculturists. In the convey- 
 ance of stock the expense and loss of weight sustained 
 was altogether overlooked ; but the following statement 
 from IMr. Walker’s report to the committee for promot- 
 ing a railway between London and York, would place 
 this matter in a striking point of view. The follow- 
 ing facts,” says Mr. Walker, “ named to me by compe- 
 tent authorities, show the importance of a railway to the 
 Fen district, in a light I had not before seen it, and the 
 friendly feeling with which it is likely to be received there. 
 The counties of Lincoln and Cambridge are stated to sup- 
 ply 8900 sheep and 500 bullocks weekly, to the London 
 market alone. The loss of weight and deterioration of 
 quality, by driving to London, calculated from data given 
 me, and stated to be under the mark, I make to be £145,000 
 per annum. This would be almost entirely saved by a 
 railway conveyance, and is exclusive of all other agricul- 
 tural produce. In the first place, this saving is a public 
 good, in the next place, if it be supposed that the railway 
 company have half the saving, that proportion is the in- 
 terest of a million and a half of money, or half the esti- 
 mate of the line from London to York.” These facts shew 
 distinctly the great advantage that would result to the far- 
 mers in this district in getting their stock taken to market 
 in good condition, and with no loss of weight. In con- 
 clusion, he had now to entreat their co-operation in a mea- 
 sure which would not only prove a safe and profitable in- 
 vestment to the shareholders, but also particularly benefi- 
 cial to this part of the country. 
 
 The Sheriff said it had been suggested to him, that as 
 some may be of opinion that a western line of road connect- 
 ing Glasgow with Liverpool, would be superior to this, the 
 meeting would feel obliged to Mr. Richardson, if he would 
 favour it with his opinion. 
 
 Mr. Richardson said it had been suggested by the She- 
 rifl^ that some might consider a western line from Liver- 
 pool superior to this, and therefore likely to interfere with 
 the prospects of advantage held out by this line. Now, 
 he was decidedly of opinion that Scotland and England 
 might very well support two separate lines of railway, and 
 though a railway might be formed from Glasgow to Liver- 
 pool, he did not think that would interfere with this line, 
 which was on many accounts preferable. Mr. Richardson 
 then pointed out on the map, the line from London to New- 
 castle, and from thence by the proposed line to Glasgow ; 
 and then the western line which it was projected should 
 extend from London to Waterford, by Ivaiihoe, Rugby, 
 thence to Coventry, Birmingham, Warrington, on the 
 Liverpool and Manchester railway, and thence to Preston, 
 from which it was to be continued across the Lancaster 
 sands to near Carlisle, from thence across the Solway to 
 near Annan, and thence taking a circuitous route near the 
 sea to Glasgow. Now, supposing that from London the 
 western line was to follow the route pointed out, could any 
 person looking at the map suppose for a moment that was 
 the direct way to Glasgow. It would be recollected that 
 it was proposed to join the Tyne Reed over the Carter 
 Fell, by Jedburgh, with a branch to Kelso, another to 
 Hawick, and a third to Glasgow. Two alterations, it may 
 be proper to state, have been made on this line, the first 
 from Newcastle to Reedsmouth, saves 11 miles, which 
 makes the distance exactly 99 miles ; the second alteration 
 is, that in place of the proposed line, it is intended to go by 
 
 Pennicuick. The importance of a direct communication 
 between Hawick and Kelso, imisl be ai)parent to all jiresent. 
 There is no doubt that a continuation, which has been for 
 some time in cont(;ui|)lation, will be made to Berwick. 
 The line has already been surveyed by .an able engineer, 
 and there is every reason to believe that it will be carried 
 into execution. Thus a direct communication will be 
 opened up betwixt Berwick, Newcastle, Edinburgh, and 
 Glasgow, with all the princij)al manufacturing towns on 
 the borders. And it would be admitted by every impartial 
 person that no line of railroad could be better adapted for 
 opening up the communication betwixt the principal towns 
 of England and those of Scotland, better than by the line 
 of railroad which he now had the honour to lay before the 
 meeting. 
 
 The Sheriff said they had all heard, he had no doubt, 
 with pleasure and satisfaction, the clear and distinct state- 
 ments which Mr. Richardson had submitted to the meet- 
 ing, and he should suggest that if there was any individual 
 who wished to obtain farther information, that this was the 
 proper time ; but if they were quite satisfied with the 
 details which had been given, the different gentlemen 
 w'ould proceed to move the several resolutions with which 
 they had been entrusted. 
 
 Mr. Elliot of Wolflee said, as no one deemed it neces- 
 sary to ask for any further information, he would now 
 proceed to the business of the day by moving the first re- 
 solution, (for which, see advertisement.) Since there 
 were so many views, he thought it better, in order to pre- 
 vent any unnecessary discussion, to keep the resolution as 
 general as possible, therefore he mentioned the line simply 
 as passing through the County of Roxburgh, which leaves 
 them at liberty to select any line that may be considered 
 the shortest and cheapest. The great apparent stumbling 
 block in the way was the Carter, and if any possible means 
 could be found out to avoid the expense of making a tun- 
 nel, it would make the railway perfect and complete. If 
 one half of the advantages could be obtained which the re- 
 solution holds out, he did not think there could be two 
 opinions with regard to the propriety of setting about the 
 undertaking. In place of entering into the merits of the case 
 and taking up the time of the meeting by any remarks, he 
 should just simply move that the resolution be adopted. 
 
 The Sheriff said, he thought the expense in making a 
 tunnel could not be very great, as a single railway would 
 on that particular place be sufficient. 
 
 The resolution, having been duly seconded, was carried 
 by acclamation. 
 
 Major Oliver said that it was with more than ordinary 
 satisfaction^ that he proposed the second resolution, be- 
 cause he did not require to say a single word, more espe- 
 cially, as the first part of it contained a self-evident propo- 
 sition, and with regard to the second, it was quite clear 
 that if the railway was carried through this county, it 
 would be for the advantage of all who heard him. 
 
 This resolution was seconded by Bailie John Ruther- 
 ford and carried unanimously. 
 
 Mr. Jerdon of Bonjedward proposed the third resolution, 
 which was also seconded and approved of. 
 
 Mr. R. Rutherford, writer. Dean of Guild, stated that 
 the Magistrates and Town Council highly approved of 
 the proposed line of railway which had been submitted to 
 the meeting, and with the greatest pleasure proposed the 
 fourth resolution. 
 
 Bailie John Rutherford had the honour to propose the 
 fifth resolution, which, if not unanimously adopted, all the 
 other resolutions wliich had been passed would fall to the 
 ground. 
 
 This resolution was also seconded and approved oflT. 
 
 Mr. Brown of Rawflat proposed the sixth resolution, 
 that the resolutions which had been passed at this meet- 
 ing, should be published in the Kelso Moil and Kelso 
 Chronicle, Edinburgh Evening Courant, and Scotsman, 
 the Glasgow Herald, and two of the Newcastle-upon- 
 Tyne newspapers. 
 
n 
 
 Mr. Richardson said— before retiring, he could not re- 
 frain from expressing his gratitude for the kindness which 
 had been shewn to him by the meeting, and especially 
 for the valuable assistance which he had received from the 
 Sheriff, to whom this county was greatly indebted. He 
 should therefore move that the thanks of this meeting be 
 presented to him for the able manner in which he had 
 discharged his duties as chairman. 
 
 The Sheriff returned thanks to the meeting for the ho- 
 nour which had been conferred upon him, and said, it 
 
 would afford him very great pleasure (if he was spared c(j 
 long) to see this railway completed. Every one present 
 was so well aware of the benefits that would be conferred 
 on this part of the country by such an undertaking, that 
 he would not detain the meeting longer by entering into a 
 detail of them, more especially after the lucid and distinct 
 statements which had been submitted to them by Mr. 
 Richardson, the engineer. 
 
 The meeting immediately afterwards separated. 
 
 A t a PUBLIC MEETING, held at JEDBURGH, 
 on the 9th day of August, 1836, pursuant to no- 
 tice, to take into consideration the expediency of adopting 
 a Midland Line of Railway, up the North Tyne and Reed 
 Water, by the Carter into Scotland, with Branches to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow. 
 
 WM. OLIVER RUTHERFURD, Esq., Sheriff of 
 Roxburghshire, in the Chair. 
 
 Amongst the Company present were the following gen- 
 tlemen : — 
 
 WILLIAM OLIVER RUTHERFURD, Esq. of 
 Edgerston. 
 
 JAMES ELLIOT, Esq. of Wolflee. 
 
 MAJOR OLIVER of Bush. 
 
 ARCHIBALD JERDON, Esq. of Bonjedward. 
 DAVID BROWN, Esq. of Rawflat. 
 
 WILLIAM RUTHERFORD, Esq., Sheriff Clerk. 
 JOHN SCOTLAND, Esq. of Glen Douglas. 
 
 JOHN GRAINGER, Esq., Harestanes. 
 
 JOHN RUTHERFORD, Esq., Manufacturer. 
 ROBERT RUTHERFORD, Esq. 
 
 WM. RUTHERFORD, Esq., National Bank. 
 JOHN ELLIOT, Esq., British Linen Co. 
 GEORGE BELL, Esq., Menslaws. 
 
 ROBERT SELBY, Esq. of Samieston. 
 
 Dr. HILSON. 
 
 Dr. GRANT. 
 
 WILLIAM THOMSON, Esq. 
 
 EPHRAIM SELBY, Esq., Minto. 
 
 Rev. WILLIAM NICOL. 
 
 Rev. JAMES CLARK. 
 
 Rev. JAMES PORTEOUS. 
 
 THOMAS SCOTT of Peel. 
 
 ROBERT LAING, Esq. 
 
 PROVOST JACKSON. 
 
 HENRY BLACK, Esq. of Ulston Mount. 
 
 JA3IES HILSON, Esq. 
 
 GEORGE HILSON, Esq. 
 
 GEORGE SCOTT, Esq. 
 
 BAILIE WILSON, Hawick. 
 
 ANDREW EWAN, Esq., Allars. 
 
 DAVID WALKER, Esq., Nisbet Mill. 
 
 BAILIE MAIN, Kelso. 
 
 DAVID SPENCE, Esq., Melrose. 
 
 JAMES RUTHERFORD, Esq., Fans. 
 
 JAMES BRODIE, Esq., Fernyherst. 
 
 Tke following Resolutions were unanimously agreed (o; — 
 1st, That it is the opinion of this Meeting that the 
 construction of a Railway for Locomotive Engine travel- 
 ling, from the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, through 
 the county of Roxburgh, to Newcastle, is desirable, and 
 will be highly beneficial to the local interests of the coun- 
 ties through which it passes, and by forming a junction 
 with the Great Northern Railway, ultimately connect the 
 cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow with the cities of York 
 and London. That the establishment of this line of Rail- 
 way will tend to the extension of commerce, and bring 
 
 into cultivation many thousand acres of land, at present 
 unproductive, c^ate a demand for the minerals of coal, 
 lime, and iron-stone, and afford increased employment to 
 the labouring classes, and facilitate the intercourse with 
 remote parts of the kingdom. 
 
 2d, That in contemplating a Line of Railway, having 
 the important object of ultimately forming a connexion 
 between the Cities of London, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, 
 the nearest and most direct Line should be kept in view. 
 That the Inne proposed in the foregoing Resolution is 
 deemed by this Meeting to possess that advantage, as also 
 taking its course through the centre of the Country, is 
 likely to be more beneficial than a Railway on or near to 
 the East or West Coast, where the Sea already affords the 
 readier and cheaper medium of water carriage. 
 
 3d, That the Resolutions passed at the Meeting held at 
 Hexham, on the 30th day of June last, for the purpose of 
 taking into consideration the Expediency of adopting a 
 Midland Line of Railway into Scotland, with Branches to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, and now read, be adopted by 
 this Meeting. 
 
 4th, That the following Gentlemen be appointed a Com- 
 mittee of Management, with power to add to their num- 
 bers, to act and correspond with the other Local Commit- 
 tees, and to use their best exertions to promote the estab- 
 lishment of the proposed Railway ; and that the said Com- 
 mittee do appoint a Law Agent to act as their Secretary at 
 Jedburgh, and in conjunction with Mr. S. Reed of New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne, the Secretary for the Committee in 
 Northumberland ; — 
 
 WILLIAM OLIVER RUTHERFURD, Esq., She- 
 riff of Roxburghshire, Convener. 
 
 MAJOR OLIVER of Bush. 
 
 JAMES ELLIOT, Esq. of Wolflee. 
 
 ARCHIBALD JERDON, Esq., Bonjedward. 
 
 DAVID BROWN, Esq. of Rawflat. 
 
 The PROVOST and Oldest BAILIE of JED- 
 BURGH, for the time being. 
 
 6th, That a subscription be forthwith entered into for 
 the purpose of defraying the expenses of surveys, plans, 
 estimates, and the preliminary expenses of meetings, &c. ; 
 it being understood that the professional gentlemen now 
 engaged only at present claim, from the sums subscribed, 
 reimbursement of their actual necessary expenses, as spe- 
 cified in the 4th resolution of the meeting at Hexham, 
 above referred to ; and that subscriptions for the town and 
 district of Jedburgh be paid into such of the banks at 
 Jedburgh as the Committee may direct, to the credit of 
 the North Tyne, Edinburgh, and Glasgow Railway Com- 
 pany, and be at the disposal of any three or more of the 
 Committee acting for the said town and district of Jed- 
 burgh. 
 
 6th, That these Resolutions be advertised in the Kelso 
 Mailj and Chronicle^ Edinburgh Evening Couranty and 
 Scotsman, the Glasgow Herald, and two of the Newcastle- 
 upon-Tyne newspapers. 
 
 WILLIAM OLIVER RUTHERFURD, Chairman. 
 
MEETING AT HAWICK 
 
 On Thursday, the 11th inst., a public meeting of the 
 inhabitants of Hawick and vicinity was held in the Court 
 House there, for the purpose of taking into consideration 
 the propriety of adopting a line of railway from Newcastle, 
 by the Carter, to Edinburgh and Glasgow. Among those 
 present we observed the following gentlemen : — Archibald 
 Dickson, Esq. of Huntlaw; William Scott, Esq., Teviot 
 Bank ; John Chisholm, Esq. of Stirches ; James Grieve, 
 Esq. of Branxholm Braes; Walter Wilson, Esq., chief 
 magistrate of Hawick; John Goodfellow, Esq., junior 
 magistrate of do. ; Wm. Watson, manufacturer, Hawick; 
 John Wilson, do., do.; George Wilson, do., do.; Alex. 
 Laing, do., do. ; Peter Wilson, do., do.; Wm. Elliot, do., 
 do.; John Heslop, merchant, do. Mr. Richardson and 
 Mr. S. Reed attended, conformably to resolutions passed 
 at Hexham on 30th June, and subsequently approved of 
 at a public meeting held at Jedburgh on the 9th instant. 
 In consequence of the unavoidable absence of many gen- 
 tlemen connected with the district, the meeting was ad- 
 journed to a future day, after the resolution proposed by 
 Mr. Scott, Teviot Bank, had been passed. Archibald 
 Dickson, Esq. of Hassendean Burn, was unanimously 
 called to the chair. Mr. Richardson explained, in a clear 
 
 and luminous manner, the scheme proposed, and in the 
 course of his address communicated a variety of valuable 
 information connected with this important undertaking. 
 He also adverted particularly to his friend Mr. Locke’s 
 western line, and expressed his opinion that a western and 
 midland line might be beneficially maintained for the in- 
 terest of both countries. Mr. Scott of Teviot Bank, in 
 proposing the resolution with which he was intrusted, said, 
 that a railway passing through the centre of this district 
 would be a great advantage to the country, and that there 
 could not be a question as to the expediency of supporting 
 it. The only thing he regretted was, that there was so 
 few country gentlemen connected with this district present, 
 to hear the explanations which Mr. Richardson had so 
 kindly and ably afforded to the meeting. He added, that 
 it was with the most friendly feelings that he proposed an 
 adjournment, and he trusted that at the next meeting there 
 would be a greater number of gentlemen of influence in 
 the county present. Under these circumstances, he begged 
 leave to propose the resolution, which will be found in our 
 advertising columns. The meeting was well attended, 
 chiefly by the town’s-people, and all seemed to take a 
 lively interest in this great national object. 
 
 A t a PUBLIC MEETING of the INHABITANTS 
 of the Town and District of HAWICK, holden 
 at the Town-Hall in Hawick, on the 11th day of Au- 
 gust, 1836, to take into consideration the Expediency of 
 adopting a Midland Line of Railway up the North Tyne 
 and Reedwater by the Carter into Scotland, with branches 
 to Edinburgh and Glasgow — 
 
 PRESENT, 
 
 Archd. Dickson, Esq. of Huntlav/, Chairman. 
 
 Wm. Scott, Esq., Teviot Bank. 
 
 John Chisholm, Esq. of Stirches. 
 
 James Grieve, Esq. of Branxholm Braes. 
 
 Walter Wilson, Esq., Chief Magistrateof Hawick. 
 John Goodfellow, Esq., junior, Magistrate of do. 
 Wm. Watson, Manufacturer, Hawick. 
 
 John Wilson, do. do. 
 
 George Wilson, do. do. 
 
 Alex. Laing, do. do. 
 
 Peter Wilson, do. do. 
 
 Wm. Elliot, do. do. 
 
 John Hislop, Merchant, do; 
 
 And various other Gentlemen. 
 
 1st, Resolved that this Meeting is satisfied that a Rail- 
 way from Newcastle-upon-Tyne through Northumberland 
 and Roxburghshire to Edinburgh and Glasgow, would 
 greatly promote the interests and welfare of the Commer- 
 cial and Agricultural Districts through which it passes, 
 aid be especially of most important advantage to Hawick 
 and its neighbourhood ; but as the success of the measure 
 and the probability of carrying it through must depend 
 entirely upon the support it meets with from the principal 
 
 Landed Proprietors in the District, and as from the short- 
 ness of the time in calling the Meeting, those Proprietors 
 have not generally had it in their power to attend, any Re- 
 solutions which could be passed at the present time would 
 not carry the necessary v/eight, nor be understood to ex- 
 press the feeling of the country gentlemen on the subject. 
 That therefore this Meeting do now resolve to adjourn to 
 a day to be hereafter fixed by the committee, and that the 
 following gentlemen be appointed such committee to fix 
 the Adjourned^ Meeting and to take measures for hav- 
 ing the same properly advertised, and in the meantime 
 to collect, as far as possible, the opinion of those most in- 
 terested in the proposed scheme. 
 
 ARCHIBALD DICKSON of Huntlaw, Esq. 
 
 WM. SCOTT, Esq. of Teviot Bank. 
 
 JNO. CHISHOLM, Esq. of Stirches. 
 
 JAS. GRIEVE, Esq. of Branxholm Braes. 
 
 WALTER WIIiSON, Esq., Chief Magistrate of 
 
 JH 3.wick» 
 
 WILI JAM WATSON, Manufacturer, Hawick. 
 
 JAMES DOUGLAS, Esq., Caveis. 
 
 WM. OGILVIE, Esq., Chesters. 
 
 ALLAN E. LOCKHART, Borthwick Brae. 
 
 THOS. STAVERT, Esq., Hoscoat. 
 
 ROBT. FRASER, Merchant, Hawick. 
 
 WM. NIXON, Manufacturer, do. 
 
 2d, Resolved that the Resolutions of this Meeting be 
 advertised in the Kelso Mail and Kelso Chronicle News- 
 pepers. 
 
 (Signed) ARCH. DICKSON, Chairman. 
 
 The thanks of the Meeting was voted to the Chairman 
 for presiding on this occasion. 
 
MEETING AT MELROSE 
 
 A meeting of several of the inhabitants of Melrose and 
 the surrounding district, was held in the Assembly Room 
 of the George Inn, there, on the 12th instant, at five o’clock 
 in the afternoon, for the purpose of considering the pro- 
 priety of adopting a line of railway, which had been ap- 
 proved of by different meetings held at Hexham, Jed- 
 burgh, and Hawick. Mr. Richardson, civil engineer, and 
 Mr. Reed, interim solicitor, from Newcastle, agreeably to 
 a resolution passed at these meetings, attended with the 
 preliminary surveys and plans, in order to communicate 
 the necessary information. The meeting, in consequence 
 of the Fair being held on the same day, was not nume- 
 rously although it was respectably attended. Among those 
 present, we observed thefollowing gentlemen connected with 
 the town and neighbourhood of Melrose : — Messrs. James 
 Curie, Bailie of Melrose ; David Spence, writer, Melrose ; 
 James Clarkson, surgeon, Melrose; James Reid, surgeon, 
 Melrose; James Erskine, writer, Melrose; Samuel Oli- 
 ver, Whitehill ; Robert Haldane, writer, Galashiels ; 
 James Williamson, Auldack ; John Sanderson, builder, 
 Galashiels; William Sanderson, builder, Galashiels; John 
 Blakie, skinner, Galashiels; Rev. Thomas Williamson, 
 Melrose; Robert Gill, manufacturer, Galashiels; Ro- 
 bert Gillon Thomson, writer, JMelrose ; George Craig, 
 writer, Galashiels ; John Mason, Kelso ; Henry Burn, 
 manufacturer, Galashiels ; Thomas Scott, writer, Abbots- 
 meadow ; Thomas Dunn, Melrose ; Alexander Curie, 
 Melrose ; James Bathgate, manufacturer, Galashiels ; 
 John Cunningham, Graharaslaw ; Adam Cunningham, 
 Carterhaugh; William Davidson, George Inn, Melrose; 
 Alexander Pott, Burnfoot; Thomas Davidson, Melrose ; 
 Andrew Davidson, Bemersyde; George Mercer, Kaeside ; 
 
 Walter Murray, Selkirk ; — Brook, surveyor, from 
 
 Edinburgh. 
 
 The meeting appeared to take a deep interest in this 
 important undertaking, the accomplishment of which would 
 tend so materially to promote the prosperity of the dis- 
 trict. 
 
 On the motion of Mr. David Spence, Mr. Curie was 
 vnanimously called to preside. 
 
 Mr. Curie on taking the chair said, that they were 
 aware that this meeting was called, pursuant to notice con- 
 tained in a handbill, in order to take into consideration the 
 subject of the proposed line of railway from Newcastle, by 
 the Carter Fell, Jedburgh, Melrose, and Galashiels, with 
 branches to Edinburgh and Glasgow. Several meetings 
 in reference to this important subject have been held else- 
 where, at Hexham, Jedburgh, and Hawick, the proceed- 
 ings of which they had all seen. Mr. Reed would have 
 the goodness to read to the meeting the resolutions of the 
 different meetings which had taken place, and the prelimi- 
 nary report drawn up by Mr. Richardson. This was an 
 object of great importance, and no district he was sure 
 would hail it more than that in which they were assem- 
 bled. 
 
 Mr. Reed, in compliance with the request made by the 
 chairman, read to the meeting the report by Mr. Richard- 
 son, and the resolutions of the meetings at Hexham and 
 Jedburgh. After reading these documents, he said, that 
 
 the attention of the party engaged in this undertaking was 
 next directed to Hawick, where a very respectable although 
 limited meeting was held yesterday. Resolutions were 
 there passed similar to those at Jedburgh, but the meeting 
 was adjourned to a future time, in order to allow the gen- 
 tlemen belonging to that part of the county an opportunity 
 of being present. It would be unnecessary for him to 
 make any observations on the advantages of this line of 
 road, which are obvious to all, more especially as they 
 would have an opportunity of obtaining every requisite 
 information more correctly from his friend Mr. Richard- 
 son. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then rose and addressed the meeting 
 nearly as follows: — He had great pleasure in appearing 
 before the inhabitants of Melrose and Galashiels now as- 
 sembled, convinced that the work in which they were en- 
 gaged, was one that was calculated to promote the pro- 
 sperity not only of those towns but of the surrounding 
 district. It was quite unnecessary for him to advert to 
 the same topics to which he had directed the attention of 
 the meeting at Jedburgh, more especially, as the proceed- 
 ings which there took place, were so ably and fully report- 
 ed in the Kelso papers, and would in all likelihood have 
 been read by the greater portion of this meeting. He 
 should therefore, with their permission, take a new line of 
 argument, and endeavour to convince them that railways 
 were advantageous to a country, and this line as the best 
 that could be brought forward. Before entering into the 
 merits of this interesting question, perhaps they would 
 allow him to refer to the plan, and explain the different 
 lines. It is clear from the map that the line which they 
 were met to consider was the most direct; although to 
 any line going through a country in which there are a great 
 many hills, there must be several difficulties and ob- 
 stacles. They did not think at first of coming from Hex- 
 ham direct to Reedsmouth, but the Provisional Committee 
 of Newcastle, or rather of Northumberland, conceiving it 
 would be best if they got a shorter route than the original 
 plan proposed, he was, therefore, instructed to make a 
 survey of the country, and they would observe that 
 the present plan according to the map, shortens the dis- 
 tance eleven miles. Mr. Richardson then pointed out the 
 course of the intended line to Melrose, and from thence to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, and also stated that there would 
 be branch railways to Hawick and Kelso, and likewise to 
 Selkirk. He then proceeded to say that it had been sug- 
 gested to him by some gentlemen in the county of Peebles, 
 that instead of taking a branch to Edinburgh a little to 
 the west of Galashiels, it should be done at Peebles, and 
 then going by Pennicuik, they would avoid the only ob- 
 stacle on the line which is near Middleton. As far as 
 this line goes nothing could be more satisfactory. He 
 begged they would permit him to shew them generally, 
 how far the national interest was concerned in the adoption 
 of this line — not the interests of any particular town or 
 party, but of the kingdom at large. From London they 
 are making aline of railway to Cambridge, which passes 
 near Lincoln to York — from thence it is proposed to be 
 carried to Durham, and onwards to Newcastle — from this 
 
11 
 
 point it goes to Edinburgh, and in as direct a line as pos- 
 tible to Glasgow) Ifiliey compare the eastern litte with the 
 one now under consideration, both of which coininencc at 
 Newcastle,it must beclearand unequivocal, from an exa\nina- 
 tion of the map, that the former cannot be so short as the latter. 
 Suppose there should be a western line — and in speaking 
 of that line he has tilready given his opinion, that Scotland 
 and England could well alford to maintain two separate 
 lines — he saw no objection to having a line from liiver- 
 pool to Glasgow, and also another from Newcastle to the 
 same place, but he would ask them, on looking to the map, 
 whether they could possibly conceive that line from London 
 by Liverpool to Glasgow willbe shorter ? Onethingisclear, 
 that it will increase the distance, while no possible advantage 
 could be derived from its adoption. Having shewn the 
 line generally as proposed by the east and the western 
 parts of the kingdom, he thought he need not say more in 
 order to prove that the midland line now proposed, from 
 Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glasgow, is the shortest. One 
 of the great advantages of railways is, that they diminish the 
 cost of carriage on all heavy articles ; for instance, he was 
 told that the coals at Melrose and to the south were sold 
 at one shilling per hundred weight ; the distance conveyed 
 was about twenty-six miles. Suppose that coals cost 5d. 
 a hundred weight, or 8s. 4d. per ton at the hill, the ex- 
 pense of carriage costs 11s. 8d. ; now were a railway estab- 
 lished, the carriage of coals would be only 2s. 2d., leaving 
 a clear saving on every cartload of coals of 9s. 6d. With 
 regard to lime, which is so essential for the improvement 
 of the soil, he need only remark that it would be obtained 
 equally as cheap. The distance of Melrose from Edin- 
 burgh was thirty. six miles, and the fares by the coach 
 were seven shillings for outside, and twelve shillings for 
 inside passengers. Now, they should be happy, after the 
 railway was completed, to convey passengers to Edinburgh 
 at three shillings each. Although this was a great saving, 
 that was not the only advantage — they also saved time, 
 which was equal to capital. Suppose a man went to Edin- 
 burgh in four hours by the present mode of conveyance, 
 and if he should be able to perform the journey in the 
 course of one hour, (a circumstance which was quite pro- 
 bable upon a railway) then there were three hours gained 
 in point of time. Suppose then, that a man, whose wages 
 were three shillings a day, by the three hours gained, he 
 saves more than a one-fourth part of that sum, which is ad- 
 ditional to the difference of the charge between travelling 
 by a stage-coach and on a railway. It was the same with 
 manufactures, and he should just mention a single circum- 
 stance that bore upon this point. It has happened that 
 cotton has been brought across the Atlantic in the short 
 space of two weeks, yet three weeks have elapsed before it 
 reached Manchester, where it was manufactured into goods. 
 Although they were then three weeks in going that dis- 
 tance, yet they can now be taken in one hour and a half. 
 But the advantages which merchants and manufacturers 
 derived, from being able to bring their goods sooner to 
 market, was much greater than the mere difference in the 
 price of carriage. Suppose that a merchant in this coun- 
 try were to import goods from India, or from any other 
 country, it becomes a matter of consequence to him that 
 the raw material should be converted into manufactured 
 goods as soon as possible, because the sooner this is done, 
 it is just so much longer credit given to him. Now, this 
 could not be done so readily as by effecting celerity in the 
 transition of goods, and no method had been found so 
 effectual for this purpose as the adoption of railways. In 
 a county like this, which is likely to become a great manu- 
 facturing district, every facility should be given to commu- 
 nication. He begged leave to read to them a passage of 
 considerable importance, from the report of xMr. Telford, 
 in reference to a railway from Berwick to Glasgow, and 
 which illustrates in a striking point of view the great ad- 
 vantages accruing from their adoption. Mr. Telford was 
 a man of extraordinary powers of mind, and being a coun- 
 
 tryman of their own, it must be graf. tying to know that, 
 by the unaided force of his own genius and talents, he 
 rose, from a common stone-rnason, to be one of the most 
 eminent engineers in England. “ It is, (says Mr. Telford) 
 I presume, at this day, needless to observe, that the pros- 
 perity of a country is most essentially promoted by the 
 introduction of perfect modes of intercourse in its several 
 districts; many parts of England afford such striking in- 
 stances of this, that from the slightest consideration, it 
 would be evident that were they now deprived of these ad- 
 vantages, although left in the possession of turnpike roads, 
 not only their local prosperity, but that of the nation, 
 would be materially affected. The transport of raw ma- 
 terials and manufactured goods, and what is more imnort- 
 ant, of fuel, and manure f^or agricultural purposes, and to 
 circulate its produce with facility and without expense — 
 if it is limited or rather rendered impracticable on a large 
 scale, it would infallibly and speedily lessen the prospe- 
 rity of the state. In this point of view there is, perhaps, 
 no country in which local circumstances are more distinct- 
 ly marked than in the central parts of Scotland.” The 
 importance of a direct line of communication between the 
 metropolises of London and Edinburgh was so evident, 
 that it was universally admitted, and the adoption of such 
 a line, by the Carter Fell, was strongly urged on the road 
 trustees of this county by Messrs. Grainger and Miller, in 
 
 their report The great object,” say they, “ which you 
 
 have in view, is the getting this line of road adopted as 
 the great road from Scotland to England, as it evidently 
 ought to be, and as forming the direct mail line between 
 the metropolis of each country. Anything conducive to 
 this important end, deserves the serious attention of you 
 and the public in general, and it is presumed that nothing 
 will conduce more towards it than the construction of a 
 line upon the most direct tract, and that at the same time 
 consistent with workable inclinations.” In farther illustra- 
 tion of the great advantages arising to the people of this 
 country from the adoption of railways, he might just quote 
 a letter addressed to his Grace the Duke of Wellington, 
 by the talented editor of the Railway Magazine : — “ No 
 man,” says he, “ knows better than yourself that these 
 works, if they are at all to be beneficial to the nation, 
 which every one in his sober senses admits, will form a 
 great and unparalleled era in its prosperity. And, my 
 Lord Duke, permit me to ask you, if they have not been 
 a godsend towards the preservation of this country, by 
 giving a new impetus to industry and trade, and sav- 
 ing us from that anarchy and confusion to which dis- 
 tress was fast hurrying a large portion of the people.” 
 There can be no doubt, however, but that the esta- 
 blishment of railways tend much to promote the comfort 
 of the community, and reduce the expense of living. 
 If this railway — a plan of which he now had the honour to 
 submit to the meeting — was carried on, it is evident that 
 there is not a person in this town or district, but must be 
 benefited by it. He might state a single fact which de- 
 cidedly shows the great advantage of railroads. He had 
 the honour, when a pupil of Mr. Stephenson s, to be con- 
 cerned in the construction of a railway at Canterbury ; 
 while this work was going on, he paid 48s. a chaldron for 
 coals, but after it was finished he paid only 18s. The 
 town, he might add, consisted of 10,000 inhabitants, and 
 he believed there was not a person who would not save 
 20s. a-year on the article of coals alone. The advantages 
 of a railway are not confined to the rich or landed proprie- 
 tors, but to all classes. They extend equally to the cot- 
 tage of the poor, and the palace of the rich. The extensive 
 fair which is held here to-day, reminds me of a subject in 
 which they were much interested. It is a highly impor- 
 tant one. It is natural that they should wish to convey 
 their stock to the nearest market as cheaply and as quick- 
 ly as possible. It is understood that in these markets 
 there is a surplus ; if so, it was of immense consequence 
 that that surplus should be conveyed as quickly and. as 
 
12 
 
 cheaply as possible to another market. He then directed 
 their attention to IMr. Walker’s report, which pointed out 
 the great saving that would accrue from transporting 
 cattle by railways. It must, therefore, be a very impor- 
 tant consideration with the people of this district, to get 
 their stock conveyed to market at the least possible ex- 
 pense, without loss of time and deterioration of quality, 
 and when they took into account the immense quantity of 
 stock raised in this country, which almost exceeded his 
 credibility, they would agree with him in thinking that 
 this interesting, agricultural, and manufacturing district 
 might very well support a line of railway. Suppose that 
 this country was not to be opened up by means of a rail- 
 way, that they did not move on in this important under- 
 taking, or that some other line is adopted. This would 
 leave them short of the facilities which others have for the 
 conveyance of stock and goods. This would leave them 
 without the power of competing with others in the market. 
 
 It is now become a matter, not of expediency, but of ab- 
 solute necessity, that in all countries wherever facilities were 
 afforded, that railways should be formed ; therefore, view- 
 ing it in this light, it required no further recommendation 
 from him. He would, therefore, leave it with themselves, 
 to say, which of the two lines should be adopted — whether 
 the midland line now submitted to their consideration, or 
 the eastern one by Berwick. He begged to read an extract 
 from the concluding article of the last number of the Rail- 
 way Magazine, which appeared to him of considerable im- 
 portance. It was the opinion of a man of talent, the gen- 
 tleman who edits that Magazine : — “ One of the most pro- 
 minent advantages of the proposed line is, that it will go 
 through the heart of a splendid country, instead of running 
 along the side of it, and thus affording great facility for 
 the formation of branch railways to the right and left. 
 The distance by the proposed route will be considerably 
 shorter than by the east or west coast.” It has been said 
 that railway speculations have been all bad, and that a 
 great deal of money has been lost on them. Now, from 
 the returns published last month of all the railways in the 
 kingdom, — the number of which amounts to sixty-one — 
 and after going carefully through the list with the assist- 
 ance of Mr. Reed, he found, out of these sixty-one, 40 at a 
 premium, seventeen at par, and four only at discount ; 
 now this is a conclusive proof of their prosperity, and that 
 they are a paying concern. It is true that bad railways 
 may be projected, but the general result is an unequivocal 
 proof in favour of these speculations. It is said that if 
 the eastern line go on, the town of Berwick will be consi- 
 derably benefited. On this he begged to make a few ob- 
 servations, feeling as he did deeply interested in the ques- 
 tion. It did not appear to him that even if the eastern 
 line was carried through to Berwick, that it would prove 
 so generally advantageous as this. Besides, from Berwick 
 to Dunbar no railway was in projection. It will be ob- 
 served, too, that this line of railway, taking an average 
 distance, was only three miles from the sea. Now it was 
 quite clear that the railway would have to compete with 
 water communication. On this line there were no other 
 mode of communication to come into competiton. But 
 suppose, for the sake of argument, that it went to Berwick, 
 it was a question whether that town would be benefited or 
 not, for it has all the advantages which a sea conveyance 
 can confer on it ; nay, it was problematical whether it 
 would not, perhaps, rather impede its prosperity. He 
 could not avoid drawing the attention of the meeting to an 
 able and talented article which appeared in this day’s 
 number of the Kelso Chronicle on this subject. “ Ber- 
 wick, supposing that the midland line of railway was adopt- 
 ed, would then become the depot for the exports and im- 
 ports of this and the intervening parts of the county, and 
 would assume an importance which hitherto she has never 
 in her best days possessed. Were the line by the coast 
 adopted, we believe that branches to this and the western 
 parts of the county would again remain dormant for years 
 
 to come, and Berwick would not receive any thing like 
 the advantages which are held out, inasmuch as the sea- 
 ports of Newcastle, Eyemouth, Dunbar, and Leith, would 
 draw off even a part of the trade which she at present 
 possesses." In that opinion he did generally concur, and 
 he did think it was a question for the people of Berwick 
 to determine, whether or not it would not be more advan- 
 tageous for them to join them in an undertaking which 
 was ultimately to prove to their benefit. 
 
 Mr. Craig of Galashiels said, it must be very gratify- 
 ing to this meeting to have so very satisfactory an expla- 
 nation of railways in general, but more particularly of the 
 one for which they were this day assembled to consider. 
 He trusted that every attention would be given to the sub- 
 ject, and therefore, he begged leave to move the first reso- 
 lution — (for which, see advertisement) — which he hoped 
 would meet with the approbation of the meeting. 
 
 Mr. Robert Haldane seconded the motion, which was 
 carried unanimously. 
 
 Mr. David Spence had great pleasure in proposing the 
 second resolution, which had been put into his hand, and 
 which he should take an opportunity of reading to the 
 meeting. After the very able observations which they had 
 heard from the engineer, it was not necessary for him to 
 say one word in favour of it; he had no doubt but it would 
 meet with the approbation of the meeting. 
 
 Mr. James Erskine seconded the resolution, which was 
 adopted nem con. 
 
 Mr. Scott of Abbotsmeadow moved the third resolution, 
 proposing that Lord Polwarth and other gentlemen resi- 
 dent in the district should form a corresponding committee. 
 
 Mr. James Clarkson, surgeon, seconded the resolution, 
 which was carried unanimously. 
 
 Mr. Samuel Oliver in moving the fourth resolution said, 
 they were all he believed sensible of the advantages which 
 were likely to result from the adoption of a railway through 
 this part of the country, but he thought the most sanguine 
 could not expect that they could participate in these ad- 
 vantages unless they adopted and acted upon the resolu- 
 tion which had been put into his hands. After reading 
 the resolution, he said, that they would not only feel it to be 
 their individual advantage, but also for the advantage of 
 the country in general to be liberal on the present occa- 
 sion. 
 
 The resolution was seconded, and unanimously adopted. 
 J\lr. Gillon Thomson moved, that subscriptions be left 
 at the British Linen Company and the Commercial Bank- 
 ing Offices in this place for signatures. 
 
 The motion was agreed to unanimously. 
 
 Mr. Curie considered the title and introduction of the 
 subscription papers sufficiently guarded. It was highly 
 requisite that gentlemen who might feel inclined to put 
 down their names should not be called upon to pay more 
 than what they subscribed. He hoped that they would 
 zealously come forward and liberally support an underta- 
 king so well calculated to promote the prosperity of this 
 district, in particular, and the country in general. 
 
 Mr. John Sanderson said, he was happy to think that 
 such a thing as a railway was likely to go through this 
 part of the country. It was an undertaking that had been 
 long spoken of and long wished for. He was of opinion 
 that every publicity should be given to the proceedings of 
 this and similar meetings, called for the purpose of consi- 
 dering the propriety of adopting the line of railway now 
 proposed, and it was with the greatest pleasure he moved, 
 that the resolutions which had been so harmoniously 
 agreed to should be advertised in the Kelso papers. 
 
 Mr. Curie said, it was his opinion, and he had no doubt 
 that the meeting concurred with him in thinking, that it 
 was extremely liberal on the part of the professional gen- 
 tlemen wlio engaged to do the preliminary part of the bu- 
 siness, and who had communicated such important and 
 valuable information to the meeting, without any charge 
 at present for (heir lime and labour except their outlay 
 
expenses. If the work, however, goes on, it was highly 
 proper that they should be liberally rewarded. 
 
 Mr. Reed said, that he spoke for himself, and he was 
 sure also for his friend Mr. Richardson, when he repeated 
 that it would aflbrd them great pleasure to communicate 
 every information in their power to the gentlemen in this 
 part of the country, upon a subject so important as that 
 about which they had assembled to deliberate. In at- 
 tending the different public meetings, a good deal of ex- 
 pense had been already unavoidably incurred, and unless 
 the railway went on, they should give all their time and 
 trouble for nothing, but should the railway be carried into 
 effect, then the usual charges of professional men would of 
 course be expected. 
 
 j\Ir. Richardson said, as the business for which they 
 had met was now concluded, they would perhaps allow 
 him to make a few more observations, and he did so with 
 a great deal of pleasure, inasmuch as the cordiality with 
 which they had received him was greater than he could 
 have expected. He did feel very great pleasure in being 
 concerned in an undertaking which was to unite Scotland 
 and England more nearly together, which was to complete 
 
 that union effected a hmg time ago, and cement more 
 closely the bonds of friendshij) and good neighbourhood. 
 In speaking of this part of Scotland generally, he ought 
 not to omit the name of Sir David Erskine of Dryburgh, 
 and he mentioned the name of that gentleman with the 
 greater pleasure, because he came forward and volunteered 
 his assistance without solicitation, regretting at the same 
 time that it would be impossible for liim to attend the present 
 meeting. He now begged to projxrse a motion, which he- 
 had no doubt would meet with the approbation of all pre- 
 sent; it was that the thanks of this meeting be most cor- 
 dially given to Mr. Curie for the able manner in which he 
 discharged the duties of the chair. 
 
 This motion being unanimously adopted, Mr. Curie 
 begged to thank the meeting for the honour which they 
 had conferred upon him. He was perfectly sure that no^ 
 thing would be wanting on the part of the committee to- 
 carry forward this great and important work. 
 
 After making arrangements for holding a public meet- 
 ing in the Commercial Inn, Galashiels, the following even- 
 ing, the meeting separated. 
 
 T a PUBLIC MEETING of the INHABITANTS 
 of the Town and District of MELROSE, holden 
 
 burghshire, to Edinburgh and Glasgow, would greatly 
 promote the interests and welfare of the Commercial and 
 
 at the George Inn, Melrose, on the 12th day of August, 
 1836, to take into consideration the Expediency of adopt- 
 ing a Midland Line of Railway up the North Tyne and 
 Reedwater, by the Carter into Scotland, with branches to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow — 
 
 PRESENT, 
 
 James Curle, Bailie of Melrose. 
 
 David Spence, Writer, Melrose. 
 
 Jas. Clarkson, Surgeon, do. 
 
 Jas. Reid, Surgeon, do. 
 
 Jas. Erskine, Writer, do. 
 
 Samuel Oliver, Whitehill. 
 
 Root. Haldane, Writer, Galashiels. 
 
 Jas. Williamson, Auldack. 
 
 Jno. Sanderson, Builder, Galashiels. 
 
 Wm. Sanderson, do. do. 
 
 Jno. Blakie, Skinner, do. 
 
 Rev. Thos. Williamson, Melrose. 
 
 Robt; Gill, Manufacturer, Galashiels. 
 
 Robt. Gillon Thomson, Writer, Melrose. 
 
 Geo. Craig, do., Galashiels. 
 
 Jno. Mason, Kelso. 
 
 Henry Burn, Manufacturer, Galashiels. 
 
 Thos. Scott, Writer, Abbotsraeadow. 
 
 Thos. Dunn, Melrose. 
 
 Alex. Curle, do. 
 
 Jas. Bathgate, Manufacturer, Galashiels. 
 
 Jno. Cunningham, Grahamslaw. 
 
 Adam Cunningham, Carterhaugh. 
 
 Wm. Davidson, George Inn, Melrose. 
 
 Alex. Pott, Burnfoot. 
 
 Thos. Davidson, Melrose. 
 
 And. Davidson, Bemersyde. 
 
 Geo. Mercer, Kaeside. 
 
 Walter Murray, Selkirk. 
 
 — Brook, Surveyor from Edinburgh. 
 
 M^ith various other Gentlemen. 
 
 1st, Resolved, That this Meeting having had read to 
 it the Resolutions passed at Public Meetings held at Hex- 
 ham and Jedburgh, for the purpose of considering the 
 Expediency of the proposed Railway, does cordially ap- 
 prove of the Resolutions and sentiments therein expressed, 
 and hereby adopts the same. 
 
 2d, Resolved, That the proposed Railway from New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne, through Northumberland and Rox- 
 
 Agricultural Districts through which it passes, and be of 
 the most important advantage to Melrose, Galashiels, Sel- 
 kirk, and the villages adjacent ; that being so far remote 
 from coals, lime, and intercourse with seaports, these towns 
 labour under great disadvantages, but with Railway com- 
 munication, would become places of great and increasing 
 commercial importance. That for the encouragement of 
 general intercourse, and especially to obtain a more direct 
 and speedy communication with Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 
 Morpeth, York, Liverpool, and London, it is of the most 
 vital importance to these towns and the neighbourhood to 
 promote and establish by every means in the power of the 
 inhabitants, a Railway between the places before mention- 
 ed ; and which this meeting is of opinion will extend 
 Agricultural and Commercial enterprise ; increase the 
 value of property, and facilitate the convenience of these 
 towns and district. Upon such grounds this Meeting 
 most earnestly recommends the measure to public coun- 
 tenance and support. 
 
 3d, Resolved, That the following Noblemen and Gen- 
 tlemen be constituted a Committee, three of whom shall 
 form a quorum, to correspond and act with the Local Com- 
 mittees appointed in other Towns, to forward the object 
 of this meeting with all the influence and interest they 
 possess, and that the committee have power from time to 
 time to add to its number. 
 
 The Right Hon. Lord POLWARTH. 
 
 The Hon. HENRY FRANCIS SCOTT. 
 
 Sir DAVID ERSKINE, Kt. of Dryburgh. 
 
 ROBT. HENRY TULLOCH, Esq. of Ellistoun. 
 
 WM. CURRIE, Esq. of Linthill. 
 
 MARK SPROTT, Esq. of Riddell. 
 
 ARCHIBALD DOUGLAS, Esq. of Adderstone. 
 
 THOMAS TOD, Esq. of Dry grange. 
 
 Lieut -Colonel SPOTTISWOOD of Gladswood. 
 
 GEORGE COLE BAINBRIDGE, Esq. of Gat- 
 tonside. 
 
 ALEXANDER HAY, Esq. of Charlesfield. 
 
 Mr. ANDREW BRYDEN of Weirgate. 
 
 DAVID SPENCE Esq., Melrose. 
 
 JAMES CURLE, Esq., Melrose. 
 
 JAMES ERSKINE, Esq. of Shieldfield. 
 
 ROBERT GILLON THOMSON, Esq., Melrose. 
 
 THOMAS BRUCE, Esq. of Langlee. 
 
 ARCHIBALD GIBSON, Esq. of Ladhopc. 
 
 JAMES PRINGLE Esq. of Torwoodlee. 
 
14 
 
 GEORGE CRAIG, Esq., Banker, Galashiels 
 GILBERT ELLIOT, Esq. Greenwells. 
 
 ROBERT HALDANE, Esq., Banker, Galashiels. 
 iMr. JAMES BATHGATE, Manufacturer, ditto. 
 ]\Ir. ROBERT GILL, ditto, ditto. 
 
 Mr. JOHN SANDERSON, Builder, Buckholmside. 
 Mr. GEORGE PATERSON, Manufacturer, Gala- 
 shiels. 
 
 THOMAS SCOTT, Esq., Abbotsmeadow. 
 
 JAMES CLARKSON, Esq., surf>eon, Melrose. 
 
 Sir DAVID BREWSTER of Allerly. 
 
 FRANCIS BLAKIE, Esq. of St. Helens. 
 
 Messrs. JOHN and THOMAS SMITH, Builders, 
 Darnick. 
 
 Colonel JOHN SCOTT of Ravenswood. 
 
 4th, Resolved, That a subscription list be forthwith 
 prepared for the purposes above mentioned, and contribu- 
 tions be made and entered into, upon the same principle 
 as that adopted at the meeting at Jedburgh ; and let the 
 
 ■urns subscribed be paid into such bank or banks to the 
 account of the Newcast'e-upon-Tyne, Edinburgh and Glas- 
 gow Railway, as the Committee may approve of ; but that 
 subscribers shall not be called upon, or be liable to pay 
 any other sum than that set opposite their respective names. 
 And that the money subscribed shall be from time to 
 time disposed of by any three or more of the (Jommittee, 
 in defraying the preliminary expenses incurred by the 
 professional gentlemen now engaged in the above under- 
 taking. 
 
 5th, Resolved, That the resolutions of this meeting be 
 advertised in the Kelso papers, in an Edinburgh and Glas- 
 gow paper, and in two of the Newcastle-upon-Tyne news- 
 papers. 
 
 (Signed) JA. CURLE, Clerk. 
 
 The thanks of the meeting were proposed and seconded 
 to the Chairman for his presiding in the chair, and carried 
 by acclamation. 
 
 ) 
 
MEETING 
 
 AT GALASHIELS 
 
 A very numerous and highly respectable meeting of the 
 inhabitants of Galashiels and its neighbourhood was held 
 in the Assembly-Room, at Galashiels, on Saturday the 13th 
 inst., to consider the expediency of adopting the midland 
 line of railway as projected by Mr. Joshua Richardson. 
 Among those present we observed — Messrs. Robert Sander- 
 son, manufacturer, John Blakie, wool-merchant, William 
 Thomson, manufacturer, George Lees, ditto, Richard 
 Turnbull, ditto, Richard I^ees, ditto, David Fair, book- 
 seller, -John Haldane, brewer, George Roberts, manufac- 
 turer, Robert Haldane, writer, John Sanderson, builder, 
 John Hislop, engineer, Hugh Lees, writer, Robert Fyshe, 
 schoolmaster, William Hislop, manufacturer, Eliot An- 
 derson, writer, Andrew Dickson, manufacturer, William 
 Pringle, residenter, V^illiam Brown, ditto, John Roberts, 
 manufacturer, Peter Sanderson, merchant, John Weir, sur- 
 geon, Alexander Sanderson, manufacturer, John Cochrane, 
 ditto, Thomas Wilson, wright, John Turnbull, merchant, 
 Adam Paterson, manufacturer, William Waddell, ditto, 
 Thomas Davidson, ditto, Archibald Gibson, Esq. of Lad- 
 hope, Thomas Henderson, wright, Andrew Hislop, manu- 
 facturer, William Gill, ditto, James Sanderson, ditto, 
 Geoige Bathgate, ditto, John Amers, millwright, Robert 
 Turnbull, accountant, John Cranstoun, ditto, Robert Weir, 
 surgeon, John Milne, baker, Thomas Scott of Abbots, 
 meadow, William Wood, wool-merchant, Adam Herbert- 
 son, wright, Robert Inglis, manufacturer, William Hal- 
 dane, brewer, &c. &c. 
 
 On the motion of Mr. Haldane, George Craig, Esq., 
 was called to the chair. 
 
 The Chairman opened the meeting by reading the reso- 
 lutions of the meeting held at Hexham on the 30th of 
 June last, and said that he had much pleasure in presiding 
 over a meeting held for the purpose of encouraging the 
 formation of a railway to Galashiels, which could not but 
 be highly beneficial to them all ; Mr. Richardson was pre- 
 sent, and would explain to them the route of the proposed 
 line of railway. He had no doubt but that they would 
 listen with much pleasure to the statements about to be 
 submitted to them, and he would therefore not now tres- 
 pass longer upon the time of the meeting than to introduce 
 Mr. Richardson to their notice. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then presented himself to the meeting, 
 and said, that considering the short notice that had been 
 given for the holding of this meeting, he was both sur- 
 prised and highly gratified to see so numerous and highly 
 respectable an assemblage before him, inasmuch as it was 
 a convincing proof of the popularity of the scheme which 
 he had the honour to submit to them for their approbation. 
 He then stated to the meeting the advantages that would 
 result to Galashiels and the surrounding country by the 
 establishment of the proposed railway. He then exhibited 
 the line of railway as laid down upon the maps, and also 
 the lines projected by the eastern and western coasts, and 
 concluded by earnestly entreating their co-operation and 
 support. 
 
 [\ft. Scott of Abbotsmeadow, in rising to propose the 
 first resolution, begged the indulgence of the meeting while 
 he made a few very hurriedly prepared observations. He 
 said the idea of a railway from Newcastle to Edinburgh 
 
 and Glasgow, being in length about 160 miles, and run- 
 ning through districts of country partly highly cultivated, 
 and partly abounding in coal, lime, and iron-stone, and 
 other minerals, and studded with prosperous towns and 
 thriving villages, is of itself a splendid conception ; and 
 more especially, when it is considered that it would not 
 only more intimately connect Scotland with England, but 
 bring together the thriving and increasing sea-ports of 
 Newcastle, Ticith, and Glasgow — instil new life, health, 
 and vigour into the minds of the inhabitants — and create 
 atWitional means and causes of exertion among all classes 
 of the community, for the encouragement of their indus- 
 trious habits. My little knowledge of even the localities 
 of my native country, and of its resources, forbid and pre- 
 vent my attempting to dilate on the many, important, and 
 incalculable advantages that would accrue, not only to the 
 district of country through which the line of railway would 
 pass, but to the kingdom at large. The very circumstance 
 of an individual having it in his power to travel in a few 
 hours betwixt the sea-ports of Newcastle, Edinburgh, and 
 Glasgow, and to transact business at all and each of these 
 great emporiums of trade on the same day, would of itself 
 be of immense importance and advantage to the mercantile 
 W’orld and the whole community ; and when the great be- 
 nefits accruing to the districts within 20 or 30 miles of the 
 railway, by the quick transmission and cheap rate at which 
 coal, lime, and other products of the earth and of the soil, 
 could be conveyed, thereby giving ? tenfold impetus to 
 trade, and to the agricultural interests and all the branches 
 of industry therewith connected, it is difficult to foresee or 
 to imagine the extent of aggrandizement to which a rail- 
 way by the line proposed would raise our already prosper- 
 ous and flourishing country. Those who recollect the ap- 
 pearance of the face of the country and the state of 
 society fifty years ago, and in particular the dis- 
 trict in which we now are, must be struck with wonder 
 at the changes and improvements which have taken, 
 place, in the erection of country-seats and villas, in 
 inclosing, in planting, and in the cultivation of the soil, 
 as well as in the manners, habits, tastes, comforts, and in- 
 telligence of the people. And when we look forward to 
 other 50 years, it is impossible even to contemplate what 
 farther changes and improvements may take place. Take, 
 for instance, the town of Galashiels, in which we at present 
 are. Many who now hear me recollect it 50 years ago, 
 and are aware that it was then, in comparison to what it is 
 now, little better than a few shealings ; and notwithstand- 
 ing its present extent and prosperous condition, and the 
 perfection of its manufactures, it is impossible to conjec- 
 ture to what greatness your town and trade might arrive, 
 had you a railway to bring coals and other materials for 
 the use of your manufactures, from the different quarters 
 of the country, and to transport your goods to the sea- 
 ports alluded to, at a comparatively trifling expense, and 
 from these in ships to the remotest corners of the habitable 
 globe. Viewing the rapid changes and improvements that 
 have taken place in every department of science, and all 
 within the period alluded to, and the perfection at which 
 they have arrived, some will be ready to exclaim that 
 nothing farther can be expected or obtained. Far differ- 
 
16 
 
 tMit, gentlemen, are the views 1 take of the state and re- 
 sources of our country — for however great and splendid 
 have been the improvements, progress, and perfection in 
 every department of science and art in the course of the 
 period already alluded to, I have no doubt that succeeding 
 generations will find plenty to do — that the like genius, 
 talent, and perseverance which now inspire our country- 
 men, will in our successors make many new and important 
 discoveries — that many thousands of acres of our present 
 uncultivated soil will be brought under the plough — that 
 the commerce and manufactures of the British empire will 
 yet make rapid strides — and that peace, plenty, and con- 
 tentment will continue to be the portion of the inhabitants 
 of our beloved country. Fifty years ago, the human mind, 
 comparatively speaking, was only beginning to develope ; 
 and even now it appears to me to be little mote than in a 
 state of infancy. By means of the press, which is con- 
 stantly teeming with books, pamphlets, journals, embrac- 
 ing the whole circle of human knowledge, (and which is 
 the grand medium through which the mighty triumphs of 
 human genius, the endless inventions which man has sought 
 out, are promulgated and perpetuated), even a man of or- 
 dinary learning becomes, as it were, a citizen of the world 
 — though a stranger to every language but his own, there 
 are thousands ready to translate for his conveniency — 
 though lame from his infancy, he may be said to travel far 
 and wide — though deaf as a post, he in a manner listens 
 to the voice of the world — and there can be little doubt 
 that the mighty changes, moral and mechanical, which 
 have marked the lapse of the last 60 years, may all be 
 traced to one great source, the illimitable developement of 
 the human mind, aided and assisted by the art of printing. 
 In fact, gentlemen, as the press is the channel through 
 which man becomes acquainted with the opinions, man- 
 ners, haibits, inventions, and employments of his fellow- 
 men in all parts of the world ; and as the art of navigation 
 brings a.11 the ends of the earth into communion, and by 
 the interchange of commodities augments prodigiously the 
 wealth, ctomfort, and civilization of the whole, so a railway 
 through a district of country such as that by which the one 
 in question is intended to pass, would open up new sources 
 of wealth, and prosperity hitherto unknown and unenjoyed. 
 And, gentlemen, though our own district does not abound 
 in mines < if coal, lime, or iron-stone, we have the produce 
 of the soil in corn and cattle, which are not less necessary 
 for the SU3 tenance and comfort of the community ; and I 
 contempla.te, in the distance, thousands of acres of our pre- 
 sent uncul tivated soil, in the line of the proposed railway, 
 not only bring brought under the plough, but bearing 
 luxuriant a ops of corn and grass. It is well known that 
 
 the distance of coal and lime in particular, and the conse- 
 quent great expense of carriage, are the principal draw, 
 backs in the cultivation and improvement of our district ; 
 and it only requires facility, and a lessening of the expense 
 in the carriage of lime, and the transmission of the 
 produce of the soil to proper markets, to enable the 
 cultivators to increase and extend their improvements 
 to an almost unlimited extent, and thereby to pro- 
 vide for the greater comfort of man and beast. Look 
 at the towns and villages on the line of railway in 
 contemplation, conrimencing at Jedburgh, which is the 
 southern limit of my knowledge. At Jedburgh you have 
 Hawick and Kelso at a distance of about ten miles only. 
 You have Ancrum and the fertile vale of the Teviot lying 
 on both sides of the proposed line. It is intended to run 
 through the very centre of the villages of Lessudden, Bow- 
 den, Lilliesleaf, JMidlem, Newtown, Eildon, Newstead, 
 Melrose, Gattonside, Darnick, and Galashiels. At Mel- 
 rose you have Earlstoun and the vale of Leader at a dis- 
 tance of little more than three miles — and at Galashiels 
 you have the town of Selkirk, and the pastoral districts of 
 Ettrick and Yarrow brought within five miles. Further 
 on, you have Stow and the Burgh of Lauder, and Lauder- 
 dale brought within five miles ; and after passing the coal- 
 pits and lime-quarries of Mid Lothian, and the rich agri- 
 cultural district to the south of Dalkeith, you have the 
 populous and thriving town of Dalkeith itself, which has 
 long been the chief market for meal and victual of every 
 description from all parts of the south of Scotland. You 
 have there also the town of Lasswade, and the fertile vale 
 of the Esk. In fine, gentlemen, it is altogether impossible, 
 with my limited comprehension and ideas, even to contem- 
 plate a tithe of the illimitable scope, prosperity and advan- 
 tages that would be alForded and derived from the opening 
 up of a line of communication, between Newcastle, Edin- 
 burgh, and Glasgow, by means of the proposed railway. 
 It would indeed be the chief artery and grand medium by 
 and through which renewed health and increasing vigour 
 would be instilled into the energies and enterprising spirit 
 of our sober, well-disposed, and industrious population — 
 and would be the means of creating new sources of wealth, 
 prosperity, and comfort, and by which these would flow 
 from one end of the country to the other — and ultimately, 
 I have no doubt, into the most remote and inaccessible 
 districts of the land. I have, therefore, great pleasure in 
 proposing for the adoption of this meeting, the resolution 
 which has been put into my hands. 
 
 The meeting evinced the greatest interest in the pro- 
 ceedings, and repeatedly and loudly cheered the speakers 
 who addressed them. 
 
 A t a PUj'^LTC MEETING of the Inhabitants of 
 the To’wn and District of GALASHIELS, held at 
 the Con imercial Inn, there, on Saturday, the 13th 
 day of /Vugust, 183G, to take into consideration tiie 
 expedien cy of forming a Midland Line of Railway, 
 up North' Tyne and Reed Water, by the Carter, 
 into Scotland, to Edinburgh and Glasgow, with 
 Branches to the adjacent towns on the line of road, 
 PRESENT, 
 
 Robert Sahderson, Manufacturer. 
 
 John Blair ie, Wool-Merchant. 
 
 William Thomson, Manufacturer. 
 
 George Lees, do. 
 
 Richard Tuhnbull, do. 
 
 Richard I^ees, do. 
 
 David Fair, liookseller. 
 
 John Haldane, Brewer. 
 
 Geohce Roreuts, Manufacturer. 
 
 Robert llALDiVNE, VFriter. 
 
 John Sanderscin, Builder. 
 
 John Hislop, Engineer. 
 
 Hcgii Lees, VFriter. 
 
 Robert Fyshe, Schoolmaster. 
 William Hislop, Manufacturer. 
 
 Eliot Anderson, Writer. 
 
 Andrew Dickson, Manufacturer. 
 WILLIA 31 Pringle, Residenter. 
 William Brown, do. 
 
 John Roberts, Manufacturer. 
 
 Peter Sanderson, Merchant. 
 
 John Weir, Surgeon. 
 
 Alexander Sanderson, Manufiveturer 
 John Cochrane, do. 
 
 Thomas Wilson, VVTight. 
 
 John Turnbull, Merchant. 
 
 Adam Paterson, Manufacturer. 
 MTlliam \Faddell, do. 
 
 Thomas Davidson, do. 
 
 Archibald Gibson, Esq. of Ladhopc. 
 Thomas Henderson, Wright. 
 Andrew Hislop, Manufacturer. 
 
17 
 
 Tiii.r., niaiiuracturer. 
 
 «) \jiF.s San !)MusoN, do. 
 
 (JKOUOK 1?A'1' irsA'i'K, do. 
 
 John Amkhs, IM iriwri^^lit. 
 lior.EUT 'ruKNiJL’i.i., Accountant. 
 
 John (Juanstoun, do. 
 lioiiEKT Wei It, Surgeon. 
 
 John Milne, liaker. 
 
 Thomas Scott of Abbotsnieadow. 
 
 M'ili.iam Wood, \Vool-nierc.liant. 
 
 Adam IIeubeiitson, Wright. 
 
 Hobert Inglis, IManufacturer. 
 
 William Haldane, Brewei. 
 
 &c. &c. &c. 
 
 GEORGE CRAIG, Esq., in the Chair, 
 
 Moved by Thomas Scott, Esq., Abbotsmeadow, and 
 seconded by Hugh Lees, Esq., 
 
 1st, That this Meeting, having been made acquaint- 
 ed with the proceedings and resolutions passed at va- 
 rious Meetings holden for this purpose, do approve of 
 the same, and is of opinion that the formation of the pro- 
 posed Railway will be of the most important advantage to 
 the country generally, and by connecting the principal 
 towns in England and Scotland by so ready and expedi- 
 tious a medium, greatly extend and encourage the agricul- 
 tural and commercial interests of the inhabitants, by 
 opening new sources of trade, facilitating the transit of 
 farming stock and merchandise, at reasonable rates of car- 
 riage, and encouraging social intercourse between distant 
 parts of the kingdom. That it is the opinion of this 
 Meeting, a Central Line of Railway is desirable for the 
 improvement, welfare, and convenience of the country, 
 which require such a mode of communication more than 
 an Eastern or Western Line of Railway, which, having 
 ready access to sea-ports, already possess the advantage of 
 cheap water-carriage; and the i^leeting is further of opi- 
 nion, if the proposed Midland Line of Railway is aban- 
 doned, and the other lines, or either of them, alluded to, 
 obtain the preference, this country, which has been so long 
 subjected to a most tedious mode, and expensive rate of car- 
 riage, will suffer great injustice, and be unable to compete 
 with other parts of the country having railway communica- 
 tion, and be deprived of the convenience which such mode of 
 communication affords to its population. With these views, 
 this Meeting most cordially offers its co-operation with the 
 Committees of other Meetings, and earnestly recommends 
 the proposed Line of Railway to the serious consideration, 
 not only of the inhabitants of the town and district of 
 Galashiels, but to the influential noblemen and gentlemen 
 on the line of its route ; and that this Meeting will use its 
 utmost exertions to further and promote so desirable and 
 important a measure as that now under consideration. 
 
 JMovcd by Robebt Haldane, Esq., Writer, and se- 
 conded by Mr. Sanderson, 
 
 2d, That the following gentlemen be constituted a 
 Committee for the Town and District of Galashiels : — 
 
 JOHN SCOTT, Esq. of Gala House. 
 
 JAMES PRINGLE, Esq. of Torwoodlee. 
 
 WiM. STEWART WALKER, Esq. of Bowlaw. 
 THOI\IAS BRUCE, Esq. of Langlee. 
 
 ARC HD. GIBSON, Esq. of Ladhope. 
 
 NICOL MILNE, Esq. of Faldonside. 
 
 GEORGE CRAIG, Esq., Banker, Galashiels. 
 
 Mr. JOHN SANDERSON, Builder, do. 
 
 Mr. JOPIN BLAKIE, Wool-merchant, do. 
 
 Mr. ROBT. SANDERSON, Manufacturer, do. 
 iMr. ROBT. FYSHE, Schoolmaster, do. 
 
 Mr. JOHN COCHRANE, Manufacturer, do. 
 
 Mr. GEORGE ROBERTS, do. do. 
 ROBERT HALDANE, Esq., Banker, do. 
 
 Mr. ROBERT GIIiL, Manufacturer, do. 
 
 Mr. JAMES BATHGATE, do. do. 
 
 Mr. GEO. PATERSON, do. do. 
 
 Mr. JOHN HALDANE, Brewer, do. 
 
 Mr. ROBERT LEES, Manufacturer, do. 
 
 Mr. W3I. PATERSON, Tanner, do. 
 
 Dr. WEIR, do. 
 
 Mr. WM. ROBERTS, Manufacturer, do. 
 
 Mr. WM. THOMSON, do. do. 
 
 Mr. ELIOT ANDERSON, Writer, do. 
 
 Moved by Mr. Fyshe, and seconded by Mr. Blakie, 
 
 3d, That a subscription list be now opened to defray the 
 expenses of all preliminary proceedings, conformable to 
 the fourth resolution passed at the meeting held yesterday 
 at Melrose. 
 
 Moved by Mr. Robert Sanderson, and seconded by 
 Mr. Dickson, 
 
 4th, That these Resolutions be advertised in the Kelso 
 newspapers. 
 
 Moved by Tho3ias Scott, Esq., and seconded by 
 Archibald Gibson, Esq., 
 
 5th, That the thanks of this IMeeting is especially due 
 to Mr. Joshua Richardson, for the very able and clear 
 statements which he has submitted to this Meeting, and 
 for his services in prosecuting this measure. 
 
 Moved by Mr. Joshua Richardson, and seconded by 
 Mr. Nicholas Weatherly, 
 
 6th, That the thanks of this Meeting be given to the 
 Chairman, for his services on the present occasion, 
 
 (Signed) GEORGE CRAIG, Chairman, 
 
MEETING AT KELSO 
 
 A numerous and respectable meeting of the inhabitants 
 of Kelso and vicinity, was held in the Cross Keys Assem- 
 bly Room, on Friday last, to consider the expediency of 
 adopting a midland line of railway up the North Tyne, by 
 the Carter, into Scotland, with branches to Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow. At one o’clock, the gentlemen who had been 
 in consultation, entered the large room, and on the motion 
 of Captain Walker, seconded by IMr. Robertson of New- 
 tonlees. Bailie Main was called to the chair. 
 
 Bailie Main, on taking the chair, said that this meeting 
 was called by order of the Provisional Committee of Nor- 
 thumberland, to consider the expediency of adopting a 
 midland line of railway from Newcastle to Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow, by the Carter Fell. After reading the advertise- 
 ment calling the meeting, the Chairman stated that as 
 there were professional gentlemen present, who were pre- 
 pared to give every information upon the subject, they 
 should be glad to hear what they had to say regarding the 
 proposed line. The Chairman also stated that a letter had 
 been put into his hands, subscribed by Mr. Weddell, Se- 
 cretary to the Committee of the Berwick Line of Railway, 
 and he begged to know whether it was the pleasure of the 
 meeting that the letter should be read. 
 
 Mr. Innes of Broomlands moved that the letter should 
 be read to the meeting, a resolution which was unanimous- 
 ly adopted. 
 
 The Chairman then read the following letter : — 
 
 Sir, — At a meeting of the Provisional Committee of 
 the Grand Eastern Union Railway, held here to-day, it 
 was resolved to make a communication to the Public 
 Meeting to be held at Kelso on the 19th instant, “ to take 
 into consideration the expediency of adopting the midland 
 line,” and, as I presume, you will preside upon the occa- 
 sion, I take the liberty of requesting the favour of your 
 reading this letter to the meeting. 
 
 The Committee are most anxious to connect the district 
 of Kelso with the railway by Berwick — convinced as they 
 are that such connection will be mutually advantageous in 
 the highest degree. They propose using their endeavours 
 to accomplish a branch from Berwick to Kelso as a portion 
 of the main line, but whether that is effected or not, tliere 
 is little doubt that a railway from Berwick to Kelso will 
 follow the accomplishment of the Grand Eastern Railway 
 as a matter of course. 
 
 One point the Committee particularly wish to draw the 
 attention of the meeting to, is the apparent certainty that 
 the Eastern Line will be carried into effect. Its natural 
 advantages alone point it out as the most eligible line in 
 this part of the country which could be adopted for the 
 object in view, whilst the resources expected from the 
 wealthy, enterprising, and populous agricultural and com- 
 mercial districts through which it will pass, promise a re- 
 venue which affords every reason to expect that it will 
 prove a profitable speculation. 
 
 The accomplishment of the Midland Line, on the con- 
 trary, would seem to be somewhat problematical ; not only 
 are the natural obstacles to its progress very great, if not 
 actually insurmountable, but the poverty and scanty popu- 
 lation of the greater part of the country through which the 
 line would pass, are such as to hold out little hope of a 
 remunerating traffic. 
 
 But besides all this, the Committee are decidedly of 
 opinion that the district of Kelso would be benefited in an 
 incalculable degree by being connected by railway with 
 the east coast, rather than the western portion of the coun- 
 try ; the port of Berwick, from which Kelso is distant only 
 about twenty-two miles, would then be brought within little 
 more than an hour’s journey, and coal, lime, slate, timber, 
 iron, and other heavy articles would be furnished at a rate 
 of cheapness and expedition which can never be effected by 
 the midland line ; for it should be borne in mind that 
 whilst by the midland line the port of Newcastle would be 
 distant about 80 or 90 miles from Kelso, and would re- 
 quire a journey of four or five hours at a cost of 7s. Gd. or 
 8s. per ton, the cost from the port of Berwick would be 
 only about Is. lOd. or 2s. a ton. 
 
 Under these circumstances, the Committee trust the 
 meeting will see the propriety of not pledging themselves 
 to the Midland Line, until the result of a meeting, which 
 they propose shall be held at Kelso to consider the^merits 
 of the Eastern Line, is known. 
 
 I have the honour to be. Sir, 
 
 Your most obedient humble servant, 
 (Signed) Robert Weddell, 
 
 Secretary of the Provisional Com- 
 mittee for Berwick. 
 
 George Main, Esq., 
 
 Bailie of Kelso, &c. &c. 
 
 August 17, 1836. 
 
 They had now before them the advertisement calling 
 them to consider the expediency of forming a railway 
 through the central part of this county, and they had a 
 communication from Berwick, requesting them to pause, 
 before they gave any decision on this important matter, 
 until both lines were bettei known. He presumed that, as 
 the meeting had allowed him to read Mr. Weddell’s com- 
 munication, there would be parties present to advocate 
 both interests. The chairman then read to the meeting 
 the first report drawn up by Joshua Richardson, Esq., civil 
 engineer, which was read at the meeting held at Jedburgh 
 on the 9th inst. At that meeting, he stated it occurred to 
 him that it would be proper to have a branch railway to 
 Berwick, and that the subject might be more fully brought 
 before the meeting, more especially as they had a commu- 
 nication from Berwick, he would now ask Mr. Richardson 
 whether he would recommend a branch railway to that 
 place as an integral part of the main scheme contemplated. 
 Mr. Richardson having answered in the affirmative, the 
 chairman then begged to introduce that gentleman to the 
 meeting. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then rose and said, that having appear- 
 ed so frequently before the public, it was a matter of great 
 difficuty to him so to change the subject as to make five 
 or six different addresses interesting to an audience, al- 
 though to-day, he must confess, that he was kindly fur- 
 nished by their opponents, he was gratified to say, with 
 topics sufficient to interest this numerous and highly re- 
 spectable meeting. The first thing to which he should 
 allude was an advertisement which had been put forth l>y 
 the Berwick committee of the eastern line^ ami in allud- 
 ing to this, or to anything that had passed at any public 
 meetings, though some severe things might have been said 
 
Jl> 
 
 on both siiles, he wished most distinctly to be undei stood 
 as speaking on public grounds only, and not on personal 
 considerations. The advertisement, then, stated that it was 
 earnestly requested that the inhabitants of Kelso would 
 not pledge themselves to the support of the proj)osed line 
 by the Carter Fell. And why not? Because notice is here 
 given that a public meeting will be shortly held at Kelso, 
 for adopting a branch betwixt Berwick and this place. 
 He must, with all deference to the respectable gentlemen 
 ])resent, say that this was a most extraordinary proceeding, 
 and that it was altogether contrary to the general practice 
 of holding public meetings. This meeting had been called 
 here to-day at considerable expense to their party, and he 
 thought that this advertisement, calling a public meeting, 
 was an interference which could not be justified on any 
 reasonable grounds. He must say, however, that he was 
 glad that the subject was to be freely and fairly dis- 
 cussed ; for he was quite confident that the line propo- 
 sed by the Carter would be, on impartial investigation, 
 found to be more advantageous and profitable than the 
 eastern line by the coast. Examine the two lines, and he 
 was convinced that their case would be mended by the op- 
 position of their opponents. He begged leave to ask how 
 it was that the gentlemen connected with the eastern line 
 had taken such a sudden affection for Kelso ? Here was 
 their prospectus, and in it there was not one word about 
 Kelso. This was indeed a sudden feeling that had arisen 
 in their breasts in favour of the place ; and it was not 
 until they were about to hold a public meeting here, to 
 consider the propriety of adopting a midland line of rail- 
 way, that the Berwick committee thought proper to issue 
 an advertisement, requesting the inhabitants not to pledge 
 themselves to this scheme. Their fears were no doubt 
 excited when they saw the impression which had been 
 made, and it was with the greatest pleasure that he 
 now stated to this assembly, that the inhabitants of 
 the different towns where they had held public meet- 
 ings were unanimously in favour of the proposed mea- 
 sure. The gentlemen of the Berwick Committee say, 
 that they wish to come into closer contact with the in- 
 habitants of this district, and they wish to try to per- 
 suade them, that it would be more advantageous to have a 
 line of railway by the coast. He was happy to see, that 
 notwithstanding the difference of opinion that prevailed 
 betwixt them in reference to this important matter, that 
 the discussion had been conducted hitherto with much 
 good temper and feeling on both sides, and especially by 
 the conductors of the public press in this town, to whom 
 he was under great obligations. He must say, that he felt 
 excedingly obliged to the gentlemen of the Berwick Depu- 
 tation for being present, and more especially in affording 
 him an opportunity of making a personal acquaintance 
 with them, and because they have endeavoured to do him 
 justice on a point on which they were mistaken. They, 
 like himself, took their own particular views, but these 
 they hold without offending any particular parly. He 
 now begged that the company would favour him with 
 their attention, while he pointed out to tfiem the respective 
 lines on the map, for he would save them the trouble of 
 pointing out the proposed line by Berwick. Before doing 
 so, Mr. Richardson, on its being pointed out to him by 
 Mr. Ramsay, that Kelso was mentioned in the prospectus, 
 said that he must correct himself in that particular point, 
 and that he was much obliged to that gentleman for the 
 trouble he had taken in putting him right. The Pros- 
 pectus did say, that the advantages of their line would ap- 
 pear so obvious, that it would naturally lead to the resump- 
 tion of the branch contemplated formerly to Kelso. Now, 
 taking it even with this allusion, he still maintained that 
 their prospectus did not contemplate a branch-railway to 
 Kelso ; it left it in contingency. They might suppose per- 
 haps, that the shareholders of the old railway scheme, con. 
 templated betwixt Berwick and Kelso, would most likely 
 be induced to bestir themselves; but he maintained that it was 
 
 not an integral part of tlieir ))lan, and therefore it was not 
 brought before the public. Mr. Richardson then produced 
 the j)lan of the proposed line of railway, and pointed out the 
 course laid down, from Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glas- 
 gow, with the scj)aratc branches to Hawick and Kelso, as 
 detailed in the report. As the line of railway passes near 
 to Lanark, he might be allowed to state, that in that dis- 
 trict there was as fine a coal field as this country could 
 boast of, which is capable of being worked to a great ex- 
 tent. It only required a railway to open up the communi- 
 cation with the interior of the country. It has been re- 
 marked by one of his friends, that if the advocates of the 
 eastern line could attack them on any part of the line now 
 proposed for their adoption, they might with propriety 
 do so at a place called Pritchard Moss, near Middleton, 
 betwixt Galashiels and Edinburgh. In this observation 
 he must acknowledge there was some truth. At the place 
 just named, therefore, the greatest difficulties were to be 
 encountered on the whole of the line. But in order to 
 avoid these difficulties, it had been suggested to him that 
 the line to Edinburgh should diverge at Peebles, keeping 
 the course of the different waters all the way to Edinburgh. 
 The principal objection in the opinion of their opponents, 
 however, seemed to be the Carter Fell ; but this was a 
 difficulty which could be easily surmounted. On examin- 
 ing the map they would observe that, from Newcastle to 
 Edinburgh or Glasgow, or to any town through which 
 the railway was intended to pass, they could not have a 
 more direct line. He would wish now to explain to the 
 meeting how far this railway, as now proposed, would 
 affect the interests of the particular districts through which 
 it passed. They would bear in mind that, however much 
 a railway might affect a particular district, it was import- 
 ant that it should be made on such a scale as to become 
 one of national interest. On referring to the map they 
 would observe that all the railways projected were laid 
 down. From London they had railways in ail directions. 
 It was proposed to make a railway from London to Cam- 
 bridge, by York, to Newcastle, to be termed the Great 
 Northern Railway. From Newcastle a railway was con- 
 templated, by the route described, to Edinburgh and Glas- 
 gow. There could not be a doubt that this line was the 
 most direct one that could be obtained, and this was surely 
 a point of great importance. He should afterwards allude 
 to a paragraph which appeared in \X\q Berwick Advertiser, 
 stating that IG miles of additional railway was of no con- 
 sequence ; at present he begged to call their attention 
 to a few important statements, which he did not take on 
 presumption, but which he took as exhibited by their op- 
 ponents in the prospectus which they issued. They had, 
 in common with themselves, the advantage of the Great 
 Northern Railway to Newcastle. From this place the line 
 to Edinburgh and Glasgow now submitted to the meeting 
 was direct, but their opponents, instead of carrying their 
 line to Edinburgh and Glasgow in a direct way, went round 
 by the coast to Berwick, where they stopped. They told 
 them in their prospectus that their line did not go far- 
 ther. Suppose that at some future time they did in- 
 tend to extend it from Berwick to Dunbar, yet that from 
 Dunbar to Edinburgh formed no part of their plan. They 
 have no concern at all with it. There was no doubt that 
 a railway would be made some day or other from Dunbar 
 to Edinburgh, and he made no doubt that it would be 
 made. This line, however, as they might easily see, was 
 anything but direct, and the difference between the mid- 
 land and eastern lines was, he believed, sixteen miles. Mr. 
 Richardson then pointed out the western line, and remark- 
 ed that a line going from London to Glasgow should be 
 as direct as possible. On the western line it was proposed 
 to take advantage of the Bristol railway so far, and then 
 proceed to Liverpool, and from thence to Preston, where 
 the line terminated. It was then proposed to carry the 
 line on by the Lancaster Sands, but that plan was now laid 
 aside, because the Government refused its sanction to the 
 
20 
 
 scheme. They are therefore obliged to cross the Solway, 
 and proceed near by the coast to Glasgow. It did not 
 occur to him to say more on this point, because he thought 
 it was quite clear to demonstration, from what he had now 
 stated, that both lines were considerably longer than the 
 one proposed. If there was any questions that occurred to 
 any now present, he should be happy to answer them. It 
 must be admitted that the directness of any line is the 
 truest test of its expediency, provided always that the 
 country through which it passes be such as would warrant 
 the speculation, and that the line could be had of such a 
 level that locomotive engines could proceed at a high 
 speed. It was a well-known fact, that the speed at which 
 locomotive engines proceed was not greater than 20 miles 
 an hour, but the public would not be satisfied until they 
 could obtain on all the great national railways a still greater 
 degree of speed, and he had no doubt that it might be 
 possible to proceed at the rate of 40 miles an hour. It 
 was, therefore, of the utmost importance that they should 
 view the science of engineering not as it now was, but as 
 it was likely to be. If they, for example, looked at the 
 railways lately formed, and compared them with the Dal- 
 keith, the Canterbury, and some other railways formed 
 about the year 1825, they would find that these railways 
 were totally incapable of conveying locomotive engines at 
 a high speed. If the speed of the engines be increased, it 
 became a matter of immense consequence that they should 
 now anticipate such increased speed, otherwise the railways 
 now in course of formation will be useless, and others be 
 projected to answer the advanced state of science. It was 
 necessary, in going through a country, that they should 
 not proceed above a certain level. About 20 feet to a mile 
 the engine would proceed well. The smallest curve that 
 they ought to allow was about the radius of two miles. In 
 the plan which he had the honour to draw up, the radiuses 
 and curves have been duly considered. They are of great 
 importance ; and with all due deference to the professional 
 gentlemen who have surveyed the eastern line, he must 
 say they had in these respects a decided advantage over 
 them. One great obstacle which has been again and again 
 urged is, that the line passed through the Carter, and that 
 a tunnel must be made at a great expense, besides, that it 
 would be a great inconvenience. Now this meeting knew 
 well that there was not one great railway in the kingdom 
 which had not a tunnel; and although they have two al- 
 ready between Manchester and Liverpool, so absolutely 
 convinced are they of their utility, that they are making a 
 third. If the tunnel proposed to pass through the Carter 
 were even a mile in length, what would be the inconve- 
 nience — the darkness, they were aware, so rapid would 
 they pass through it, would be merely a glimpse. Indeed, 
 from all the information which he had obtained, and from 
 his own experience, he found invariably that tunnels, in 
 place of being considered an objection, were, on the con- 
 trary, regarded as novelties by every passenger. He 
 now begged to direct their attention to the following 
 paragraph, which appeared in the Berwick Advertiser^ 
 and in order to put the meeting fully in possession of the 
 subject, it would be better to read an extract : — “ With 
 regard to what is really the single argument in favour 
 of the Midland line — its comparative shortness — all that 
 need be said is, that the cost of obtaining this advan- 
 tage is too great, that the cutting of a tunnel 1150 yards 
 long, through the Carter ridge, will consume infinitely 
 more money than possibly can be lost by the detention of 
 goods for an additional IG miles on a railroad. Hut the 
 difficulties at the Carter, which rises 14 IG feet, arc, it 
 seems, balanced by some difficulties at St. Abb’s Head, 
 which rises 300 feet, and by which, it is moreover very 
 strangely stated, the projectors of the Eastern line cannot 
 consequently proceed. If they cannot proceed by St. Abb’s 
 Head, they certainly will not; and the comparison, there- 
 fore, falls to the ground. With regard to the communica- 
 tion with Glasgow, and also the agricultural wealtli, and 
 
 the manufacturing capabilities of the Eastern Line, its ad- 
 vantages arc at least equal to those of the Midland route ; 
 and as to the circumstance that the former passes through 
 no towns, the statement made by Mr. Richardson, that 
 ‘it is 34 miles from Alnwick, 1^ from Morpeth and 5^ 
 from Bly th,’ (as the crow flies), settles the question. With 
 respect to the population of these places, surely Alnwick, 
 with its G788 inhabitants, may be pitted against Jedburgh, 
 with its 5G47 ; iMorpeth, with its 4707, against Melrose, 
 with its 4339 ; while Blyth, with its 17G9, and Belford, 
 with its 1354, against Galashiels, with its 2100; and Ber- 
 wick, Tweedmouth, and Spittal, with their aggregate po- 
 pulation of about 14,000, will much more than turn the 
 scale in favour of the Eastern line. One word with regard 
 to rather an amusing discovery which has been made by 
 some worthy gentleman resident in the Midland district. 
 Mr. Richardson says he is informed ‘ that the snow lies 
 a far shorter time here than in the east ; if, then, the snow 
 comes from the east, it cannot be questioned that they 
 must have greater quantiiies of snow than you have, and 
 it must therefore lie for a longer period.’ Reasoning in 
 this wa}', since the snow comes to Berwick from the east, 
 just as much as to Jedburgh, the farther we proceed in 
 that direction, the greater will be the quantities of snow, 
 and the longer will it lie on the ground ; but as our travels 
 to the east, if pursued perseveringly, will bring us ulti- 
 mately, after circumnavigating the globe, to the .Midland 
 district, there will the greatest quantities of snow be found 
 accumulated, and there will it lie longest on the ground ! 
 The fact established by experience, that the snow always 
 lies for a shorter time on the sea coast than in the interior, 
 is so well known, that it is strange so intelligent a man as 
 Mr. Richardson should have allowed himself to be misled 
 by ignorant informants.” These, then, are the arguments 
 of the editor of the Berwick Advertiser. If that gentle- 
 man had consulted an engineer, he would have found that 
 he had greatly miscalculated. He told them as a profes- 
 sional man, that engineers took their own data, on which 
 they calculated the probable expense per mile. The east- 
 ern line by Berwick, was calculated, in round numbers, at 
 £9000 per mile. If, then, they had IG miles at £9000 
 each mile, that would give them £*144,000 as the expense 
 of making the entire IG miles. The next question to 
 consider was, what was the probable expense of the tunnel. 
 Now, taking them at the highest prices — and on this point 
 he could speak experimentally, for he had had the pleasure 
 of making several tunnels — he believed the one proposed to 
 pass through the Carter would not cost more than £30,000. 
 Thus they had an expenditure of £144,000 to save an out- 
 lay of £30,000. Not only was there this immense sum 
 expended, but they had these additional sixteen miles of 
 railway to keep up, which they could not do under the 
 sum of £150 per mile. He could assure them that in 
 England it would cost more, but in Scotland where mate- 
 rials were plentiful and easily obtained it might be rlone 
 at a less sum than in England. Taking, however, the esti- 
 mate of the expense at a lower scale, take it even at £100 
 per mile, which is the very lowest sum — indeed, he did not 
 know any established railway where it had been so cheap 
 
 yet this took £1G00 from their profits, which at five per 
 
 cent, was equal to a capital of £32,000 leaving it some- 
 where about £17G,000. As to the levels of the line by 
 the Carter, he had really said so much about them that he 
 considered it quite unnecessary to detain the meeting 
 longer on that i)art of the subject. An objection hud been 
 taken against the Carter line because it passed through a 
 large tract thinly peopled. Now, referring to the last cen- 
 sus of the population taken in 1831, he found this was not 
 the case, and therefore the objection fell to the ground. 
 It was well for those who supported the eastern line to 
 take the poi)ulalion of one town and put it against ano- 
 ther. On examining the population returns, he found that 
 their line passed directly through towns containing a great 
 amount of population, besides tliose whicit arc intended to 
 
21 
 
 be connected by brandies. Taking from Newcastle to 
 lierwick and a corrcsjionding lengtli of the midland line 
 across the country, it would give the latter a surplus of 
 1048. They have taken Alnwick at 8,788 ; Morpeth, 
 4,707 ; llelford, l,3o4 ; and Berwick, with Tweedmouth 
 and Spittal, at 14,708. Now it w'ill be remembered that 
 Blythe which was jmt down at 17G0, was separated from 
 the intended line 5^ miles, therefore he did not see what 
 advantage it could be to them. The town was close to the 
 sea, and not one ton of coals would come from that quar- 
 ter. Did the inhabitants of that town support the railway, 
 they would be greatly out of pocket, and it was impossible 
 they would support it at their own private expense. Tak- 
 ing Belford, Alnwick, and Morpeth, and the latter was 
 the only town with Belford through which the railway 
 would pass, they would find that the line by the Carter 
 passed through a country not scanty in its population, as 
 had been rci)resented, but superior in point of fact to that 
 through which the eastern line passes. With reg;ard to 
 the people of Berwick and those connected with it, it was 
 evident that they could not reap greater advantages fiom 
 a railway, than they already possessed. They have an 
 excellent and cheap conveyance by sea, by means of their 
 smacks and steam-vessels. The encouragement of rail- 
 ways was altogether a matter of pounds, shillings, and 
 pence, and if they could not make it appear that there 
 would be a saving by a railway transit, they could not es- 
 tablish the fact that they were necessary and advantageous. 
 There w'as another object which those who advocate the 
 Eastern line never loose sight of, and that is regarding the 
 snow. Now, it often happens that when their opponents 
 were weak in argument, they have always recourse to im- 
 material matters, instead of attacking at once the great 
 principle, but he had no objections to meet them on this 
 ground. They said that the snow lies much longer in 
 the country through which the midland line passed than 
 by the coast, and the Editor of the Newspaper from which 
 he quoted the paragraph said, that he was at a loss to con- 
 ceive how an intelligent man like him (he was certainly 
 obliged to him for the compliment,) should be so far mis- 
 led by the statement of ignorant persons. Now, so far 
 from being ignorant or misled on the subject, he held 
 in his hand a letter, from a gentleman of great expe- 
 rience and intelligence, residing ia Jedburgh, who was 
 qualified to give an opinion on the subject, and therefore he 
 deemed it proper to read the following extract : ‘‘We can- 
 not see the influence a snow storm can have in such a 
 question. It occurs seldom with us, even at the Car- 
 ter, and never enters into the calculation of our survey, 
 ors or coach proprietors, and we know that accurate ac- 
 counts may be furnished from the surveyor’s journals, and 
 that, taken on an average, the stoppages in consequence do 
 not exceed half a day every year. Our severe snow storms 
 are mostly from the east, and consequently the fall will be 
 greater upon the coast than in the interior, and the Ber- 
 wick line may be more interrupted.” Now, he certainly 
 thought that was a conclusive answer to that part of the 
 objection. They were aware that if a railway be establish- 
 ed, it was of paramount importance that it should be as 
 direct as possible between London, Edinburgh, and Glas- 
 gow. He had stated that if they increased the distance, 
 they would increase the outlay, and by the tear and wear 
 of their waggons, every additional mile required to be kept 
 up at a great expense, which must be deducted from their 
 ])rofits, and which would tell against any scheme proposed 
 for general adoption. If railway travelling is to establish 
 a cheaper and a quicker mode of conveyance, it is of the 
 highest importance.that the distance should be as short as 
 possible. Otherwise they did not reap any advantage. It 
 v;as clear, that if the distance from London to Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow be increased, that the engines must be longer 
 in travelling, and that greater expense would be incurred ; 
 and if the distance were less, it was a self-evident propo- 
 sition that the expense must be less also. It was strange. 
 
 that any man having the know’cdge of an editor, Khouhl, 
 in the face of this jduin trutli, say that IG miles oi' railway 
 was not an inijmrtant consideration. lie begged leave in 
 conclusion to state, that IMr. Ramsay, one of the gentle- 
 men of the Berwick deputation, whom he had mutji 
 ])leasure in seeing this morning, would address the meet- 
 ing. Mr. Ramsay had very kindly shown him a letter for 
 his authority in slating in the Berwick Warder that In; 
 (Mr. Richardson) had lately been in Ediiiburgh consulting 
 an engineer of eminence, who gave it as his o[)inion that 
 the line of railway which he now |>roposed was imj)racti- 
 cable. lie w^as liajrjiy to inrorin the meeting that Mr. 
 Ramsay had acknowledged that he had been mistaken. 
 He (Mr. Richardson) had advanced no statements which 
 he could not substantiate, although to convince i\Ir. Ram- 
 say would be perhaps a hopeless task, and even if it were 
 practicable, he was afraid that he might prove like the 
 man in Hudibras, 
 
 “ Who, when convinced against his will, 
 
 IMaintains the same opinion still.” 
 
 Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane rose and said, that 
 he had been requested to move the resolution which had 
 beeti put into his hands. It was desirable to get all the 
 information which they could regarding the important 
 object under their consideration, and he had no doubt that 
 this resolution would have a tendency to meet the question 
 and the approbation of the meeting. (For resolution see 
 advertisement.) 
 
 Mr. Innes seconded the resolution. 
 
 The Chairman said, before putting it to the meeting 
 whether this resolution should be adopted, he begged to 
 state that it consisted with his knowledge that Mr. Ri- 
 chardson and Mr. Reed had courteously given their s t- 
 vices for nothing, and a small subscription was all that 
 was required to pay the actual outlays. The resolution, 
 they would observe, had been kept quite general, and that 
 those who subscribed were not pledged to support any par- 
 ticular plan. 
 
 Mr. Ramsay, editor of the Berwick Warder^ said, on 
 presenting himself to the meeting, that being an entire 
 stranger, perhaps he ought to apologise for intruding him- 
 self on their notice. He did not come here, as one of the 
 deputation, ^to interfere with their proceedings, and for his 
 own part he might say, that he did not come in the expec- 
 tation of having any occasion to address this numerous and 
 very respectable meeting. The letter which was read by 
 their respected chairman at the opening of the business, 
 explained the reasons why he appeared to-day, and all that 
 they proposed to do. They were not uninterested specta- 
 tors of what was going on, and while they were anxious to 
 shew their good will to the town of Kelso, he might dis- 
 tinctly state that they were not indifferent to the many ad- 
 vantages which they might derive, in cultivating a more 
 intimate friendship and acquaintance with its inhabitants. 
 He begged to thank Bailie Main for the good feeling which 
 he had manifested in conducting the business of the meet- 
 ing, and also Mr. Richardson, for the gentlemanly man- 
 ner in which he had expressed himself. He thought, from 
 the assurance given, that there did exist a good feeling, 
 which he could assure them was reciprocal, and which he 
 hoped would be continued. He could assure them that 
 they had no party object in view — all that they sought 
 was tlie advantage of the country at large, although they 
 at the same time wished to promote the local advantages 
 of the towns with which they were connected. Mr. Ri- 
 chardson had alluded to the prospectus which had been 
 ])ublished by the provisional committee of Berwick, and 
 he had made a note, in order to reply to him, but as he 
 had corrected a mistake which he made, it was unneces- 
 sary for him to say more. In reference to the prospectus, 
 he might state generally, that he was not responsible for 
 what it contained. It was sent to Berwick, and they 
 adopted the plan, satisfied that it would be most advanta- 
 
22 
 
 geous for the town ; but as to any of the statements which 
 k contained, they wcie entirely innocent ; but certainly 
 i\Jr. Richardson is in an error when he says that Kelso was 
 not named. Kelso was named ; and he quite disagreed 
 with him when he said that this town was left in a con- 
 tingency. They were aware that there was an act of Par- 
 liament for effecting a railway betwixt Berwick and Kelso; 
 and if there was a contingency, it was because that that rail- 
 way, which every person must regret having been so long 
 delayed, will be carried into effect. iJe had now the au. 
 thority, not only of the engineer, but also of the commit- 
 tee, which comprises several names of great wealth and 
 influence, for stating, that they had come to the determi- 
 nation of making a branch to Kelso. This had arisen 
 with those who had shares in the Berwick and Kelso rail- 
 way. It must be known to many then present that the 
 shares had got into the hands of people who had an interest 
 in supporting the welfare and prosperity of the port of Leith, 
 and who had prevented the railway from being carried into 
 effect. This will now be placed beyond their power; very 
 little, if any more expense will be required in making the 
 necessary surveys. His next remark referred to the car- 
 riage of coal. Mr. Richardson said that the line to Glas- 
 gow would open up a very important coal-field. Mr. 
 Richardson had, he thought, stated the distance at about 
 GO miles. They must never forget that although they had 
 a railway, that they had such a thing as distance. It must 
 be admitted that there was a very great expense contingent 
 on the exportation of coals, and he really ought to apolo- 
 gise to the meeting for putting the question, whether the 
 advantages to the town of Kelso of having a railway to 
 Lanark would be more advantageous than one to Berwick. 
 This, he thought, furnished an answer to that part of the 
 argument in favour of Mr. Richardson’s line. Mr. Rich- 
 ardson, alluding to the western line, said it was not likely 
 to be adopted, but that was altogether problematical. He 
 understood that Mr. Locke had been employed to find out 
 the best inlet into Scotland, and has given it as his opi- 
 nion, that the road by Carlisle to the neighbourhood of 
 Hawick, and then branching into lines to Ediiiburgh and 
 Glasgow, was the most preferable that could be obtained. 
 This line, it might be observed, runs parallel to that by 
 the Carter and Jedburgh, and in some places only ten or 
 twelve miles distant. Mr. Richardson has given as his 
 opinion that England and Scotland might support two 
 lines. If there are to be two lines, it is certainly consistent 
 with common sense that the further they are ajrart the 
 better. He came now to a subject which he touched on 
 with great delicacy, and Mr. Richardson might perhajrs 
 suppose that he was treading on tender ground ; but 
 first, as respects the rise in the line, proposed by JMr. 
 Richardson. It is true, the resolution which had been 
 submitted to the meeting rendered it tlie less neces- 
 sary to enter into this part of the question. A survey 
 would be made which would enable them to speak with 
 more decision on this point. He was, iiowcver, much 
 inclined to call in question the statement of IMr. Richard- 
 son, that the rise will not exceed 20 feet in a mile, — 15 ieet 
 in a mile is what he stated in the report. He requested 
 i^Ir. Richardson would have the goodness to state what 
 was the height of the Carter Fell from the level of the 
 Teviot. 
 
 Mr. Richaidson here pioduccd the plan conformably to 
 a report submitted by Messrs. Grainger and rkiller to the 
 road trustees of this county for an alteration of the line of 
 road by the Carter Fell, from which jilan IMr. Ramsay 
 might ascertain the exact rise of each mile; although he 
 considered that this was a matter for after consideration. 
 
 Mr. Ramsay said the great bone of contention was the 
 rise of the level above the Teviot. He was aware there 
 was a report made to the turnpike trustees of this county, 
 and in that report the Carter Mountain was stated to be 
 141C leet above the level of the sea. Now, making allow- 
 ance I'ur the cut tequiicd foi the tunnel, the height will be 
 
 reduced to 1000 feet ; and suppose the distance from the 
 Carter to the level of the Teviot to be 14 miles, the rise 
 would be upwards of 70 feet, but if the distance was only 
 eight miles, the rise must be still more per mile. 
 
 Mr. Richardson said that it was perfectly absurd on the 
 part of Mr. Ramsay to occupy the time of the meeting in 
 discussing the question, as the view he was taking was 
 calculated to mislead. It should be borne in mind that the 
 level could not be taken from the top of the mountain. 
 
 IMr. Ramsay considered there was no necessity for such 
 acerbity of feeling, and since Mr. Richardson had refused 
 the information, he submitted that this was of much less 
 consequence, as the resolution which had been adopted by 
 the meeting was exceedingly satisfactory. All that they 
 were desired to ask this meeting was to pause, and not to 
 pledge themselves either to the one line or the other, until 
 they had such information as would enable them to deter- 
 mine which was the most eligible. In the advertisement, 
 it was proposed to hold a meeting on a future day, but it 
 was the opinion of the Berwick Committee that a deputa- 
 tion of their number should rather attend here to-day. 
 Had a meeting been afterwards held, the answer would 
 very naturally have been — Oh, you are too late, we are al- 
 ready pledged to support a midland line. All they wished 
 was, that the inhabitants of Kelso should not pledge 
 themselves to any particular line, and by their resolution 
 they had agreed to this. This was the real state of the 
 case, and they could now return to those who sent them 
 with satisfaction. He had noted several questions which 
 would require answers, but he should not say anything 
 more but upon one point. Mr. Richardson says that the 
 cost of making a tunnel would be about £30,000, and that 
 the 16 miles of railway would cost about £144,000. Now, 
 it should be remembered that, whilst there would be no 
 traffic on the mile of tunnel through the Carter, the traffic 
 ofthe 16 miles of railway would more than compensate 
 the expense which would be incurred in laying it down. 
 They had reason to be perfectly satisfied with the adoption 
 of the resolution. He had no more to say than to thank 
 them for the kindness and good feeling which they had 
 shewn to him. They should return not only gratified, but 
 confident that the purpose of the inquiry will be such as to 
 connect the town of Berwick with the town and neiglibour- 
 hood of Kelso, by closer ties than they have ever yet 
 been. 
 
 Tile Chairman said, as there was no amendment pro- 
 posed, he should consider that the resolution of Sir Tho- 
 mas Brisbane met with the approbation ofthe meeting. 
 
 Mr. Richardson He should only detain the meeting 
 
 for a few minutes. If he had displayed any acerbity of 
 feeling, he was sorry for it. Mr. Ramsay seemed to say 
 that he (IMr. Richardson) had argued that it would be 
 better to have coals 60 miles distant than from Northum- 
 berland. Now this was not his meaning. He said, on 
 exhibiting the plan, that the railway would open up an 
 excellent coal-field, but he did not say that they were to 
 bring these coals here. He should endeavour to make his 
 observations as brief as possible. He did say that it was 
 his opinion that Scotland and England could sujiport two 
 lines; but it was the opinion of IMr. Ramsay that the far- 
 ther these were apart, the better; that is, they must go by 
 the coast — not on any account go by a direct line, but in 
 as circuitous a manner as possible. Really the jrosilion is 
 so ridiculous, that he believed i^Ir. Ramsay would alter 
 his ojrinion, on giving it a second consideration. It had 
 been asked by the cliairman tliat, supposing a proposition 
 was made that Berwick and Kelso should be joined by a 
 railway, whether they would make it an integral i)ait of 
 the plan ? In answer to this, he had no hesitation in say- 
 ing that he would strongly recommend to the committee 
 to make it an integral part of their i)lan. Having made 
 tlicse few remarks, he had great pleasure in proi)osing that 
 the thanks of this meeting should be given to llailie Main 
 for his conduct in the chair. 
 
Tlie rosoUition was canied unanimously. 
 
 Tlie Cliainuan, after returning thanks fur tlie honour 
 which they had done to him, said it had given him great 
 pleasure to observe that the proceedings of tliis meeting 
 had been curried on with such good temper and gentle- 
 manly feeling. The thanks of the meeting were warmly 
 
 V T a PUllLTC MEETING of the Inuabitants 
 of the 'J'own and District of Kelso, holden in the 
 Cross Keys Hotel Assembly Room, on the U)th August, 
 1830, to take into consideration the cxj)edicncy ot adopt- 
 ing a IMidlaiul liinc of Railway, up the North Tyne and 
 Reedwater, by the Carter, into Scotland, with Branches to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow ; 
 
 Present, 
 
 Sir T. Makdouoall Brisbane, Bart, of Maker- 
 stoun. 
 
 Cart AIN Walker, AEindwalls. 
 
 Dr. Douolas, Kelso. 
 
 .Tames Innes, Esq,, Broouilands. 
 
 Robert Mein, Esq. of Ormiston. 
 
 Adam Brack BoYd, Esq. of Cherrytrecs. 
 
 Robert Oliver, Esq. of Blakelaw. 
 
 Robert Nisbet, Esq. of Lambden. 
 
 Rev. William Kell, B.D., Corsenside. 
 
 Thomas Nisbet, Esq., Redden. 
 
 J. H. Dawson, Esq. 
 
 .John Dudgeon, Esq., Spylaw. 
 
 Peter Robertson, Esq., Newtonlees. 
 
 John Smith, Esq., writer. 
 
 Robert Marshall, Esq., Berwick. 
 
 Robert Weddell, Esq., solicitor, Berwick. 
 Thomas Ramsay, Esq., ditto. 
 
 William Dickson, Esq., ditto. 
 
 Dr. Wilson, Kelso 
 
 George Thomson, Esq., Mindrum. 
 
 George Thomson, Esq., Haymount. 
 
 Adam Thomson, Esq., Rutherford. 
 
 Mr. Brockie, Loch tower. 
 
 Mr. Balmer, East Gordon. 
 
 Mr. RoberTon, Ladyrigg. 
 
 Mr. Broad, Roxburgh Mill. 
 
 Mr. Broomfield, Spotsmains. 
 
 Mr. Dove, Bailieknow. 
 
 Mr. Elliot, Hindhope. 
 
 Mr. Broad, Cliftonhill. 
 
 Mr. Roberton, Edenmouth. 
 
 JMr. Johnston, Marlefield. 
 
 Mr. Scott, Courthill. 
 
 Mr. Bell, Linton. 
 
 Mr. PuRVEs, Burnfoot. 
 
 Mr. Tait, Smailholm. 
 
 Mr. John Dawson, 3Iorebattle Tofts. 
 
 Mr. Usher, Stodrig. 
 
 Mr. Scott, Maxwellheugh. 
 hlr. Elliot, Mowhaugh. 
 
 IMr. Davidson, Swinton. 
 
 Mr. Robson, Lurdenlaw. 
 
 due to both parties, for the great trouble and ex))cnsc which 
 they have already incurred, but in particular to tlieir friends 
 Mr. Richardson and Mr. lieed, who have so courteously 
 given their best services in furthering the project which 
 they begun. 
 
 The meeting then separated. 
 
 Convener Cuaig, Kelso. 
 
 Deacon Robson, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Mason, Distiller, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Lockie, seedsman, ditto. 
 
 Mr. CuuRY, writer, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Hunter, ditto, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Brooks, ditto, ditto. 
 
 JMr. Darling, millwright, ditto. 
 
 JMr. Humble, cabinetmaker, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Ponton, coachbuilder, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Mitchell, merchant, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Lindores, ditto, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Wilson, ditto, ditto. 
 
 JMr. Watt, ditto, ditto. 
 
 Mr. Ker, ditto, ditto. 
 
 JMr. W. Pyle, ditto, ditto. 
 
 GEORGE MAIN, Esq., Bailie of Kelso, in the Chair. 
 
 It was moved by Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane, 
 
 Bart, of Makerstoun, and seconded by James Innes, 
 
 Esq., Broomlands, 
 
 1st, That this Meeting highly approves of Railway com- 
 munication, and that the same will tend to increase the 
 agricultural and commercial interests of the several dis- 
 tricts through which it passes, and afford a cheap and 
 speedy means of intercourse with distant towns. This 
 Meeting, therefore, recommends that a subscription be 
 entered into to defray the expenses of surveys, &c., of the 
 proposed lines, in order that at a future General JMeeting of 
 the several Committees, it may be ascertained which is the 
 most approved and desirable line to be adopted ; and that 
 the moneys subscribed be paid into such of the Kelso banks 
 as the Committee shall think fit, and be applied by any 
 three or more of the Committee, for the purpose above 
 named. That no subscriber be liable, or be called upon, 
 for more than is set down opposite to his name ; and that 
 the following gentlemen be appointed a Committee for the 
 town and district of Kelso, with power to add to their 
 numbers : — 
 
 Sir T. MAKDOUGALL BRISBANE, Bart, of 
 Makerstoun. 
 
 Sir JOHN PRINGLE, Bart, of Stitchel. 
 
 ROBERT MEIN, Esq. of Ormiston. 
 
 ROBERT OLIVER, Esq. of Blakelaw. 
 
 JAIMES INNES, Esq., Broomlands. 
 
 WILLIAM SCOTT KER, Esq. of Sunlaws. 
 
 PETER ROBERTSON, Esq., Newtonlees. 
 
 BAILIE MAIN. 
 
 The CONVENER, for the time being, of the Incorpo- 
 rated Trades of Kelso. 
 
 The PRESES of the Merchant Company. 
 
 (Signed) GEORGE MAIN, Chairman, 
 
A public meeting of the inhabitants of the town and 
 district of Peebles, convened by the Provost and Bailies, 
 was held in the large room of the Tontine Hotel, on Pues-^ 
 dav Sept. 0, to take into consideration the proposed line oi 
 <-onve 3 'ance, hetwecn the termination of the Great Isorthern 
 Uaihvav, to Edinburgh and (BasgoW, passing throogn 
 Northumberland and Roxburghshire, and rmmerous mi- 
 ,„manl localities, ns detailctl In the tepor to the P oj • 
 iional Committee, of Joshua Richardson, Esq., civil en- 
 
 ^’'ortbe motion of Mr. Mackenzie of Portmore, Provost 
 Turnbull was called to the chain 
 
 Provost Turnbull said, that the object of the meeang 
 was to take into considetalion the proposed line of railway 
 conveyance between Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Gl«sgo^, 
 which line bad been originally projected by 
 Reed of Newcastle, and subsequently approved of by • 
 Joshua Richardson, civil engineer, ^Imse professional ad- 
 vice had been called foi by the provisicnal committee, at^d 
 who would explain at length to the 
 
 lemplated, in as far as its exact route could be as.eita.ned 
 by the general survey of Mr. Richardson. _ ^he resolutions 
 which were to be submitted to the meeting, he (Provost 
 
 Turnbull) trusted would be, as they had been 
 unanimously agreed to; and ot this be did no. enterUi 
 the slightest doubt, seeing ^be great benefit which^^^^^^^^ 
 be coPhdeutly expected to be derived from it, not only to 
 Peebles-shire, but to the ^out.try generally. He b^ 
 to apologise for the absence of Mr. Wood, Sheriff of the 
 couity, who had been appointed to 
 rous and influential meeting 
 
 would say, as he bad the honour to sec around him many 
 of the most esteemed landed proprietors of 
 (Cheering.) The Sheriff had expected the i^eeting to 
 aSTce several days previous, and had come to Peebles 
 to atS it ; but in LnLquence of the indisposition of a 
 neighbouring Baronet, who had taken a deep interest in 
 the line proposed, the n.eeting ^d been 
 this day the Slieriff was detained officially in the 
 tration Court, lie (the ,'’"7^7’ ,t hlM 
 
 faction of stating to the n.eeting, 'f 
 
 approved of the proposed line, and heartily concurred 
 the resolutions to be submitted. C^beers.) 
 
 iMr. Stephen Reed then read over, and briefly comment 
 ed on the report of Mr. Richardson to ll.e provts.onal 
 cLnrittee, an'd slated that meetings had been held nr 
 several inrporlant towns near which the proposed ra>l"“y 
 was intrd’ed to pass, and that the line had been umioru ly 
 highly approved of, a..d the plan f f “gl 
 of Jlr! Richardson warmly «1'«'“''' * 
 but the meeting would sec the great beneht « 
 result to Rcebles-shire by the adoption of '>= P™ 
 line, and would also join in their appiobalioi. of Mr. 
 
 ^''"eSSn was then called upon <o poln. oM the 
 proposed line of railway, and to state the ^ 
 
 miMit be expected to be derived from it. He expnsseu 
 tbi’satisfaction he felt in appearing before 
 and influential assembly be bad the honour 
 more especially as he felt conscious that be J^^b ^ 
 r^ilwav projected would be highly bcnclicial m every rc 
 
 spect to the town and district of Peebles. It was not ne- 
 cessary that be should dwell much on railways, as tlieif 
 utility was generally known. He would, however, state one 
 
 fat:t, Ld that was, that wherever railways passed, the value 
 of the property and country around was invariably increa- 
 sed He begged to quote the following paragraph which 
 iiad appeared in the SundcrUmd Herald of last '^^ek, viz. 
 
 “ The Earl of Carlisle is daily expected at Naworth Castle. 
 Great improvements have been made on bis Loiclship s 
 rxtensive'estates on the barony of Gilislanc^, under tbe^u- 
 perintendence of bis indefatigable steward Mr. J. Rams- 
 Ly ; and the railway, traversing the district, 
 importance and value unknown before, i he Earl of Car 
 lisle had been one of those who doubted the e.xpediency of 
 carrying the railway referred to in the journal into effect , 
 mid^thoiigh he had not positively opposed it, he entertamed 
 doubts whether it would not, instead of 
 his nropertv ; but on the contrary, his property had been 
 very^materfally increased in value by it, as was well kiiown 
 to all who were acquainted with that part of the country. 
 Wherrv^ Railways had been carried, the unu^rsal resul 
 
 had been not only improvement as YiftTe 
 
 nrosneritv of towns, but material improvement in the pro 
 perty of those gentlemen near or through which tb ^7 P^sedt 
 S l.e was fully couvinced that every o.te who luu turned 
 his attention to the subject was persuaded of tins tact. It 
 had been said that many schemes of «y» Itad been 
 
 bail Deen saiu uiui. intnv rr . Uob Ua 
 
 o-ot UP and thoughtlessly carried into effect, and had be- 
 ?ome^a lasting or ruinous concern. To prove that this was 
 an pssertion without a vestige of proof to warrant it, he 
 be--ed to exhibit a list of the returns of all the railways 
 in the kingdom, which directly proved the very reverse of 
 
 railways being a bad speculation. In describing 
 v«nta<4s of the railway under consideration, it would be 
 proved that it would not only advantage the country gen- 
 erally, but would give a direct line of communication be- 
 London, Edinburgh and Glasgow, and ^ chrect con - 
 
 munication between the principal towns 
 Scotland ; it would essentially and immediately open up a 
 Lb country which was at present altogether locked up, 
 an X ch Assessed immense advantages for the various 
 kindrof manufacture. Mr. Richardson then describe 
 the proposed line, starting from Newcastle-upon-1 yne, ii 
 Ihc SSon of t’he Reed \Vuter, ,heu to the Carter, ami 
 onwards to Jedburgh, with branches to Kelso and Hawick, 
 SeMiirk &c., continuing onwards to Peebles, and up the 
 Tweed onwards to Lanark, and % 
 
 It bad been originally intended to ‘ f 
 
 hv Galashiels, but some gentlemen had suggestui tnat .1 
 
 aifficulfies in the way, he bad examined ti e nr 
 from Whies to Edinburgh ma Pennycuick ; and be had 
 found that line to present fewer difficulties on the whole 
 than the other, and had the advantage of a considerable 
 LinLn cLtance ; and even bad they found it to have a 
 manv^difficultics as the other, it would be preferred, not 
 onlvLi account of the saving in distance, but a considu- 
 able saving in cost. A western line bad been proposed, 
 which, on examination, they would find to ; 
 
 ably longer than the line projected by M . Rtul. 
 western ^linc was proposed to si.ike off Rom Loudon 
 
by Coventry, onwards to \rarriiifTton, then to Preston, 
 and so on. It was ]iroposcd to go nearly by the coast, 
 to cross the Solway Frith to Annan and Dumfries, 
 and onwards, nearly by the present road to Kilmarnock, 
 and then to (Glasgow. The line he (Mr. II.) proposed was 
 beyond a doubt the most direct and immediate line, and 
 were it carried into effect, the town of Peebles would be- 
 come a town of much greater importance than it was at 
 present. (Cheering.) A line of railroad so extensive 
 could not be unaccompanied with difficulties in its for- 
 mation ; but he would say that there had been no line of 
 equal magnitude and importance where the difficulties 
 were fewer. While on this subject he would quote the 
 opinion of Mr. Stevenson, in his evidence on the Brighton 
 and London line. lie was asked this question, — “ In re- 
 spect to a communication between London and Brighton, 
 do you believe that there is any line that will afford less 
 natural difficulties than the line through the Dorking val- 
 ley and Adur valley to Brighton ? I believe not — Chalk 
 is a very favourable soil, is it not, for the execution of those 
 sort of works ? Yes ; but I like to have clay just as well 
 
 as chalk for tunnelling Do you apprehend that there 
 
 would be any peculiar difficulty in tunnelling through the 
 chalk ? No, I do not apprehend any. — What is the length 
 of that tunnel ? About 900 yards, I think.” He was also 
 a.sked, — “ Describing that line generally, and considering 
 the experience you have had in making railroads, which, 
 
 I presume, you never expected to make without some na- 
 tural difficulties, in your judgment is or is not that a line 
 opposing to you less natural difficulties than you ordinarily 
 meet with ? I think so decidedly.” Now, the line at 
 present in contemplation presented much less difficulties 
 than those on which Mr. Stevenson was examined. Was 
 there even a necessity for a tunnel a mile in length, any 
 difficulties attending it could be easily surmounted. The 
 parties who were opposed to this scheme said that the tun- 
 nel proposed very materially affected it. It appeared to 
 him (Mr. R.) that the promoters of the scheme had not 
 been treated fhirly, as they had altogether misinformed the 
 country in regard to their own scheme, and had misled the 
 country in regard to the one now under consideration. 
 They stated that this line was thinly populated, and would 
 not shpport a railway. He would only refer to the facili- 
 ties that would be open to the country for the conveyance 
 of coal, lime, manure, and agricultural produce, to prove 
 the utility of this railway ; and instead of the line going 
 through a country thinly populated, he would maintain 
 and prove that even in point of population the present pro- 
 posed line would have the advantage. From the census 
 of 1831 he had taken the population in the whole line of 
 both the projected lailways, and the midland line now in 
 contemplation had a surplus population over the other of 
 214,044, and since that period the population had consider- 
 ably increased. The following is a comparative view of 
 the population on the tw'o different lines ; — 
 
 MIDLAND LINE. 
 
 
 EASTERN LINE. 
 
 
 Newcastle & Gateshead 
 
 57,937 
 
 New’castle & Gateshead 
 
 57,937 
 
 Stamfordham, Matfen, I 
 
 1,200 
 
 Morpeth . 
 
 4,797 
 
 and Kyal . . . J 
 
 Lesbury 
 
 800 
 
 East & West Woodburn 
 
 300 
 
 Alnwick . 
 
 6,788 
 
 Ikillingham 
 
 1,500 
 
 Belford 
 
 1,300 
 
 Otterburn 
 
 385 
 
 Berwick . 
 
 8,920 
 
 Jedburgh 
 
 5,047 
 
 Dunbar 
 
 4,735 
 
 Ancrum . 
 
 1,000 
 
 Haddington 
 
 5,883 
 
 Kelso .... 
 
 4,939 
 
 Tranent 
 
 3,620 
 
 Hawick . 
 
 4,970 
 
 Musselburgh 
 
 8,961 
 
 Selkirk 
 
 2,833 
 
 Portobello 
 
 2,781 
 
 Melrose 
 
 4,339 
 
 Edinburgh 
 
 162,156 
 
 Gattonside . 
 Galashiels 
 
 1,000 
 
 2,100 
 
 810 
 
 Leith . 
 
 25,855 
 
 Innerleithen 
 
 Carry forward . 
 
 294,533 
 
 Peebles . 
 
 2,750 
 
 Pennycuick 
 
 1,542 
 
 
 
 Edinburgh 
 
 162,150 
 
 
 
 Leith 
 
 25,855 
 
 
 
 OaiTy forward . 
 
 281,203 
 
 
 
 MIDLAND LINE. 
 
 
 EA.SrHRN LINE. 
 
 
 Broiiglit forward 
 
 281,263 
 
 Brouglit forward . 
 
 291,5.33 
 
 Broughton 
 
 300 
 
 
 
 Biggar 
 
 2,500 
 
 
 
 Lanark . 
 
 7,672 
 
 
 
 llamilton . 
 
 9,513 
 
 
 
 Huthcrglen 
 
 5,503 
 
 Midland Line, 
 
 .Wl,177 
 
 Glasgow 
 
 202,426 
 
 Eastern Lino, 
 
 294, .53.3 
 
 
 .509,177 
 
 Difiercnce 
 
 214,641 
 
 Another thing was to be taken into consideration — the 
 prospectus of the opposing parties’ line, the eastern line, 
 was published by themselves, and signed by their pro- 
 fessional man ; yet the editor of the Warder^ who had 
 attacked the promoters of the midland line, positively 
 disclaimed having taken any part in this prospectus, and 
 he (Mr. Richardson) would ask whether this was or was 
 not the prospectus of the company ? and if not the pro- 
 spectus of the company, on what ground could the op- 
 posers of the midland railway rest their opinions ? The 
 editor of the Warder.^ at the Kelso meeting, positively 
 disclaimed the prospectus alluded to as issuing from 
 their committee, and said he knew nothing at all 
 about it ; but notwithstanding this, it is advertised 
 in the Warder^ and it might be fairly presumed as 
 the prospectus of the company. He (Ulr. Richardson) 
 would also observe, in reference to the eastern line, 
 that from Newcastle to Berwick, it did not pass through 
 one town or village ; and even although it did, it 
 is evident that they could not carry so cheaply on the 
 railway as they could on the sea, with the advantages 
 of steam-vessels. A railroad establishment in the opinion 
 of all intelligent men, was unnecessary and uncalled for 
 where there were the advantages of a water communica- 
 tion ; but in the proposed midland line they were deprived 
 of water. He (Mr. R.) had been accused of passing over 
 the engineering difficulties that would meet them in the 
 Carter Hills. There was certainly a difficulty to be en- 
 countered there which he had not passed over, and which 
 he had explained at the public meeting held at Jedburgh, 
 and more particularly would he allude to it when it was 
 necessary to enter more minutely into details. He 
 would not injure his professional reputation by descending 
 to imaginary figures, but would state real facts, and when 
 a particular survey was called for, then, and not till then, 
 would he give figures. Their opponents said that the 
 Carter was a whiustone rock ; now, he had various opi- 
 nions on the subject, and he had the evidence of an intel- 
 ligent toll-bar-keeper, who had lived in* the neighbourhood 
 ©f where the line is proposed to pass, that the whinstone 
 was considerably westwards. The appearance of the hill 
 itself warranted this, and he (Mr. R.) held in his hand a 
 geological work, by one of the first existing geologists, 
 whose opinion was precisely that borne out by the toll-bar 
 keeper. All this was of importance, inasmuch as their 
 opponents wanted to impose upon them, that the Carter 
 was a solid whinstone rock that would cost them one or 
 two hundred thousand pounds, and a labour of twenty 
 years to cut through. The whinstone dyke on the Carter 
 was considerably westwards of the proposed line, and he 
 would read to them an extract from the geological work of 
 Mr. Bakewell, in corroboration of this. “The same dyke 
 extends from the sea to the western side of the county of 
 Northumberland ; its termination in that direction is un- 
 known.” Then, again, he said, “ the effects of the basal- 
 tic dyke in the different rocks through which it passes are 
 truly remarkable. When it comes in contact with the 
 lower or transition limestone, it is said to render it more 
 chrystaline, a fact, the geological importance of which, 
 will be subsequently adverted to. Where it crosses the 
 coal strata, and comes in contact w’ith the seam of the coal, 
 the substance of the coal is for several feet converted into 
 soot. At a great distance from the basalt, the coal is re- 
 duced to a coke or cinder, which burns without smoke. 
 At the distance of fifty feet from the dyke, the coal is 
 found in its natural unaltered ttate.” Now, if these 
 
symptoms appeared in that part of the Carter through 
 which the line is proposed to pass, he (JMr. R.) was con- 
 vinced, that 80 far as outward appearances went, tliat tlie 
 basaltic dyke was considerably to the west waul, and there 
 appeared to him, that there was no chance of its being 
 met with in the propssed line. Their opponents had 
 given various heights of the Carter, and had asked him 
 at Kelso, several questions on the subject, but they 
 would not extort from him any answers as to heights 
 or sections which he himself had not surveyed ; and un- 
 til he had taken his own heights and surveys, he was 
 not disposed to say anything farther on the subject. It 
 appeared that the friends of the Eastern Railway, after 
 assuring the public, which they had done over and 
 over again, that their line was an easy and practicable 
 one, had never caused the line from Berwick to Dun- 
 bar to be examined by an engineer ; and after finding 
 fault with the tunnel of the midland railway, it appeared 
 that in their line a tunnel was also necessary. He held in 
 his hand a Newcastle Journal, that at a meeting held on 
 the 19th of August last, a resolution was passed, “ that as 
 the country between Berwick and Dunbar is not so inti- 
 mately known to the parties as the rest of the country on 
 the proposed line, it would be satisfactory that the engi- 
 neers should make a more accurate survey of that part of 
 the line.” Why make an accurate survey if it had been 
 surveyed before. The truth was, that it was not ascertain, 
 ed before, and they had come before the public unprovided 
 with the necessary information, at the same time assuring 
 the public that their line was easy and practicable. He 
 had a report also from the gentlemen who had been em- 
 ployed by them in surveying, and who had attacked the 
 promoters of the Midland Line rather severely. He wish- 
 ed to say nothing personal of any who were acting on pub- 
 lic grounds, but it was due to the friends of the Midland 
 Line to state, that the gentlemen employed by their oppo- 
 nents to survey were not engineers, and the survey which 
 they had made in consequence of the resolution referred 
 to, appeared to have been but superficially made ; at all 
 events they had reported on it very imperfectly. 
 
 After commenting briefly on the report, Mr. Mackenzie 
 of Portmore stated that he believed that all present were 
 satisfied that the Midland was the best line of railway that 
 
 had been brought under their notice, and that it was un. 
 necessary for J\lr. Richardson to dwell farther on the re- 
 port, or the line proj)osed by the opposite party, and that 
 they were willing to believe that the attacks made on the 
 
 promoters of the Midland Line had been groundless 
 
 (Cheering.) 
 
 Mr. Richardson said, that since this was the opinion of 
 the meeting, he would no longer detain them, but pledged 
 himself on some future occasion to refute seriatim the ob- 
 jections that had been alleged against the Midland Line, 
 and to repel the attacks that their opponents had indulged 
 in. 
 
 Mr. Ker of Kerfield, before proposing the resolutions, 
 begged to make one or two remarks, as showing the great 
 benefit that might be expected to be derived from the esta- 
 blishment of the projected railroad if ever it should be car- 
 ried into effect. Heavy goods, which constituted agricul- 
 tural produce, would be conveyed upon it at the rate of a 
 penny a ton per mile ; that, for instance, two bullocks of 
 40 stone each, could be conveyed to Edinburgh for the 
 trifling charge of 20d., and that three bolls of lime would 
 be brought from the lime-pits nine or ten miles for 10d., 
 and everything else according to the same ratio. Passen- 
 gers would be passed along at the rate of a penny per mile, 
 their journeys greatly expedited, and that in fact the dis- 
 tance between London and Peebles would be decreased to 
 a ride of twelve or fourteen hours. 
 
 The resolutions were read over and seconded, and una- 
 nimously carried with acclamation. 
 
 Mr. Mackenzie of Portmore begged to ask, in reference 
 to the second resolution, if it was to be considered that 
 proprietors should give their consent to the scheme with- 
 out seeing the terms ? 
 
 Mr. Richardson stated that terms would be submitted to 
 proprietors ; but in the preliminary proceedings it was 
 considered advisable to consult the sentiments and feelings 
 in general in regard to the line proposed. (Cheers.) 
 
 A vote of thanks was given to Provost Turnbull for his 
 conduct in the chair ; and thanks were given through him 
 to the Town Council, and other private gentlemen, for 
 handsome contributions to the fund for carrying forward 
 the preliminary arrangements. 
 
 A t a numerous and highly respectable MEETING 
 of the Nobility and Gentry of the Borough 
 and District of PEEBLES, holden in the Tontine 
 Assembly Room, there, on Tuesday, the 6th day 
 of September, 1836, at Twelve o’clock noon, to take 
 into consideration the expediency of adopting a Mid- 
 land Line of Railway from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, up the 
 Reed Water, by the Carter Mountain into Scotland, to 
 Jedburgh, and from thence to Glasgow and Edinburgh — 
 
 William Turnbull, Esq., Provost, in the Chair : 
 
 It wa$ Resolvedj 
 
 1st, That the establishment of a Railway by the propos- 
 ed Midland Line, betwixt Newcastle, Edinburgh, and 
 Glasgow, will be a great national benefit, and ameliora e 
 the condition of the people throughout the whole line, and 
 form a ready and cheap communication between the two 
 Cities in Scotland and London, and all the manufacturing 
 districts of England, and thereby materially increase the 
 value of the agricultural district through which it passes, 
 by affording a cheap and ready mode of transporting every 
 article of produce to the best markets, and of bringing 
 back coal, lime, and every sort of manure, and thus en- 
 courage the establishment of manufactories in this county. 
 
 2d, Resolved, That this Meeting are decidedly of opi- 
 nion that the strath of the Tweed from about Melrose, 
 
 passing by Peebles, affords a favourable line to Glasgow, 
 and that the strath of Eddleston Water from Peebles, and 
 crossing the South Esk between Pennycuick and Roslin, is 
 the best Line for the Branch to Edinburgh, and that this 
 Line should be accurately surveyed. 
 
 3d, Resolved, That the following Noblemen and Gen- 
 tlemen be constituted a Local Committee, with power to 
 add to their number, three of whom to be a quorum, to 
 correspond and act with the Local Committees .appointed 
 in other Towns, to forward the object of this Meeting 
 
 JOHN WOOD, Esq., Sheriff of the County of 
 Peebles. 
 
 Earl of WEMYSS and MARCH. 
 
 Earl of TRAQUAIR. 
 
 Lord EUBANK. 
 
 Sir JAMES MONTGOMERY, Bart. 
 
 Sir JOHN HAY, Bart., M. P. 
 
 Sir THOMAS GIBSON CARMICHAEL, Bart. 
 
 Sir JOHN NASMYTH, Bart. 
 
 Sir GEORGE GRANT SUTTIE, Bart. 
 
 WILLIAM STEWART, Esq., Glenormston. 
 
 WILLIAM FORBES 3I‘KENZIE, Esq. of Port- 
 more. 
 
 ALEX. CARMICHAEL, Esq. of Skirling. 
 
 Captain KER of Cardrona. 
 
 JOHN KER, Esq. of Kerfield. 
 
2 ? 
 
 W^ILLIAIM ALLAN, Esq. of Glen. 
 
 ANDREW HALLANTVNE, Esq. of Woodhousc. 
 JAMIES BURNET, Esq. of Barnes. 
 
 THOMAS ALLAN, Esq., Banker, Edinburgh. 
 ADAM II A V, Esq., ditto, ditto. 
 
 ROBERT NUTTER CAMPBELL, Esq. of Kelzie. 
 TIIO.MAS IlORSBOROUGH, Esq. of Pirn. 
 JAMES BALLANTINE, Esq. of Ilollilee. 
 ANDREW WHITE, Esq. of Drummelzier. 
 
 JOHN WHITE, Jun. Esq. ditto. 
 
 DAVID DICKSON, Esq. of Hartree. 
 
 WILLIA31 TURNBULL, Esq., Provost of Peebles. 
 JAMES TURNBULL, Esq., Bailie. 
 
 WALTER THORBURN, Esq., ditto. 
 
 JOHN PATERSON, Esq., Dean of Guild. 
 
 ALEX. WILKIE, Esq., Town Treasurer. 
 
 JOHN FOTHERINGHAM, Esq., Town Clerk of 
 Peebles. 
 
 JAMES MURRAY, Esq. of Craigend. 
 
 Mr. RUSSELL of Eshhills. 
 
 Mr. JAMES CAMERON, Ferny haugh. 
 
 Mr. THOMAS SALTON, Traquair. 
 
 Mr. JOHN S03IERVILLE, Innerleithen. 
 
 Mr. MILNE, Horseborough Castle. 
 
 Mr. TODD, Nether Horseborough. 
 
 Mr. JAMES ALEXANDER, Haprew. 
 
 Mr. WILLIAM SYMINGTON, I^yine. 
 
 Mr. THOMAS COCHRANE, Harcus. 
 
 Mr. WILLIAM PATERSON, Melkieston. 
 
 Mr. CRAIG, Hattonknow. 
 
 Mr. WILLIAM AITCHISON, Kirkhouse. 
 
 Mr. JOHN MIDDLEMAS, Ballanrig. 
 
 4th, Resolved, That a subscription be opened to defray 
 
 the expenses tliat may be incuired by tlie committee here- 
 by appointed, and tliat the sums contributed shall be con- 
 ■idcred as advances towards the shares which the sub- 
 scribers may take, and shall be repaid to them out of the 
 funds of the Company, in the event of the work being pro- 
 ceeded with, and that no subscriber shall be held bound 
 to pay more than the actual sum subscribed by him, and 
 that the sums so subscribed shall be paid into such Bank 
 as the Local Committee may agree upon, and that their 
 quorum may dispose of the same in defraying the prelimi- 
 nary expenses already incurred and to be incurred in Scot- 
 land, by the Professional Gentlemen now engaged in the 
 undertaking. 
 
 5th, Resolved, That the subscriptions to be entered into 
 are upon the express understanding, that a Branch from 
 Peebles to Edinburgh by the Strath of the Eddlestone be 
 surveyed, and that the remuneration of the Professional 
 Gentlemen already employed and to be employed in the 
 surveys and other preliminary arrangements, be in accor- 
 dance with the 4th Resolution of the meeting held at Hex- 
 ham, on the 30th day of June last. 
 
 6th, Resolved, That these Resolutions be advertised in 
 some of the Glasgow, Edinburgh, Kelso, and Newcastle- 
 upon-Tyne newspapers. 
 
 The Meeting appointed Mr. Fotheringham, Town 
 Clerk of Peebles, to be clerk to the Committee, and to 
 subscribe their minutes along with the Chairman. 
 
 (Signed) WILLM. TURNBULL, 
 Chairman. 
 
 The Provost having left the Chair, it was moved, se- 
 conded, and unanimously agreed, that the thanks of the 
 meeting be given to him for presiding at the meetine. 
 
MEETING AT LANARK 
 
 A numerous and respectable meeting of the inhabitants 
 of Lanark and its vicinity, was held within the County 
 Hall, on Tuesday, Sept. 13, at one o’clock afternoon, for the 
 purpose of taking into consideration the propriety of form- 
 ing a line of railway betwixt Newcastle, and Edinburgh, 
 and Glasgow, by the Carter Fell, Jedburgh, Peebles, and 
 Lanark. 
 
 On the motion of John Buchan, Esq., Provost of 
 Lanark, David Dickson, Esq. of Hartree, was unanimous- 
 ly called to preside. 
 
 Mr. Dickson, on taking the chair, said that he believed 
 most of those now present were aware of the object of the 
 meeting, but as in all probability there might be some who 
 did not know the exact purpose for which it had been 
 called, he should read to them the circular calling the 
 meeting. 
 
 After reading the notice, the Chairman requested Mr. 
 Reed would submit to the meeting the requisite informa- 
 tion. 
 
 Mr. Reed, in compliance with the request of the chair- 
 man, read the first report drawn up by Mr. Richardson 
 relative to the proposed railway. Since that report had 
 been made, Mr. Richardson has had an opportunity of 
 surveying the road by the Reed Water, and he is of opi- 
 nion that a more direct line can be obtained without go- 
 ing as far as Warden, by which a material saving would 
 be effected. He has also found that by taking the line 
 from Peebles to Edinburgh, although 6 miles farther than 
 by the original plan, yet the expense of laying down and 
 keeping in repair, 10 miles of railway will be saved. As, 
 however, Mr. Richardson would be able to give them every 
 information respecting the details, he would now give place 
 to that gentleman. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then stood forward, and expressed the 
 pleasure he felt in appearing before this numerous and re- 
 spectable meeting as one of the deputation from the provi- 
 sional committee of Newcastle, in order to explain to them, 
 to the best ofhis ability, theprecise line of the proposed rail- 
 way, and the great and important advantages that are likely 
 to result from it — advantages so great and important that 
 he was justified in designating the work contemplated a 
 national work. They would perhaps allow him to occupy 
 their time and attention for a little, while he laid before 
 the meeting such information as he had collected relative 
 to the proposed line, and they might rest assured that he 
 would feel as gratified as they would when this railway 
 shall be established ; for whenever tliis railway shall be 
 established there cannot be a question that it will prove 
 an undoubted benefit, not merely to this particular town 
 and district, but to all parts of the country. He could not 
 better elucidate the benefits which railways are calculated 
 to confer than by merely taking advantage of the informa- 
 tion which he had only obtained this morning from a gen- 
 man. He was informed that between this town and 
 the great and flourishing city of Glasgow there were 
 three stage daily coaches, in general well filled with 
 passengers. Now, from his own experience, and the 
 calculations which he had made on undoubted data, tak- 
 ing the number of passengers generally, at 15 each day 
 for each coach, or 45 for the whole — allowing six days to the 
 week, exclusive of the Sabbath — they would amount in a 
 
 year to 10,425, which at the average price of 4s. 6d. for 
 every passenger, would produce £3,CU5 a-year. He should 
 next attempt to show, not by any suitposition, but by 
 figures, what they would save by a railway conveyance. 
 Supposing only the same number of passengers were to 
 travel by the railway, the expense would only be £1,042, 
 10s., leaving an actual saving to the inhabitants of Lanark 
 of £2,053, or upwards of 10s. a-head. But they might 
 naturally suppose, considering the great local advantages 
 which lianark possesses, that the traffic would be doubled. 
 
 It was not only as regarded passengers, but as regarded 
 fuel, lime, agricultural produce, raw and manufactured 
 materials, on which the saving would in a great proportion 
 principally fall. But, when they further considered that 
 Lanark was equally connected with the whole Line, not 
 only with Glasgow, but with Newcastle, York, and Lon- 
 don, it would share in all those advantages which so ex- 
 tended a communication car, bestow. It should always be 
 borne in mind, that to make a railway a truly national ob- 
 ject, it must be so constructed as to diffuse throughout the 
 whole of its course all those benefits which result from this 
 mode of conveyance. But this was not all, he found on an 
 average, that the coaches which plied between Lanark and 
 Glasgow carried twelve passengers each, whereas he had 
 taken the number at seven and a-half each, or little more 
 than a half in order to prove the truth of the proposition. 
 To prove the advantages of a railway communication, it 
 was only necessary for him to state the opinion of the cele- 
 brated Mr. Arkwright. It is well known to many of them, 
 that when he visited Lanark, and observed its natural fa- 
 cilities for the increase of manufactures, and for manufac- 
 turing cheap and well, he declared that Lanark might 
 easily become the Manchester of Scotland (cheers,) and 
 that it is not now become so, is owing simply to ad- 
 vantage not being taken of those facilities which this 
 town and neighbourhood possessed ; and he was as con- 
 vinced of this as that great man himself, that if they 
 had a railway communication, the increase of the prospe- 
 rity of Ijanark would be equal either to that of Manches- 
 ter or Liverpool; All who knew any thing of the history 
 of these towns, knew that liiverpool, at one time, was a 
 mere fishing village, and Manchester a small hamlet, and 
 it has only been by industry, by the introduction of canals, 
 and afterwards of railways, that they are now distinguished 
 above all other towns. Seeing, then, that these advan- 
 tages are oftered to the inhabitants of Lanark, if they re- 
 fuse to co-operate in this great national undertaking, they 
 would be denying themselves the opportunity of promot- 
 ing, in all its interests, the prosperity of this celebrated 
 town. Mr. Richardson here pointed out upon the map 
 the proposed line of railway, from Newcastle by the Carter 
 Fell, and the towns of Jedburgh, Melrose, Galashiels to 
 Peebles, to Lanark, and Glasgow, and also the line from 
 Peebles to Edinburgh. It was originally intended to 
 bring the railway along the Newcastle and Carlisle line to 
 the Reed Water, but a subsequent survey induced him to 
 alter the plan and he was convinced that the present line 
 now submitted to the meeting was the best and most di- 
 rect that could be adopted. It was his conviction, that 
 where a line is not the most direct, it would undoubtedly 
 invite a competition; to avoid the possibility of such a 
 
20 
 
 thing, which 1 sliall aftorwartls explain, I have taken ag 
 direct a line a« possible by the Carter, through which it 
 was proposed to cut a tunnel. The opponents of the line 
 under consideration, have talked much of its impracticabi- 
 lity, but he trusted he would be enabled to show this 
 meeting that such allegations were entirely without foun- 
 dation. It is also proposed to carry a branch, a little to 
 the north of Jedburgh, to Hawick, and from Melrose it is 
 also intended to carry a branch to Kelso. He had it at 
 one time in contemplation to diverge at Galashiels to 
 Edinburgh, but on that part of the line there were some 
 difficulties, which appeared to him to be so great that he 
 deemed it projier to alter his original intention and to 
 
 make another line, which, although not so direct from 
 
 Peebles — will be found, eventually, to be the cheapest. 
 The difference of the distance is about six miles, but by 
 this line the expense of making and keeping up ten miles 
 of railway will be saved. From Peebles it was proposed 
 to continue the line to near Biggar, and from thence, by a 
 little to the south of Lanark, to Hamilton and Glas- 
 gow. This line appeared to him to be the best and 
 most practicable; and that it is the most direct line 
 from London to the several places mentioned, a single 
 glance at the map will convince every unprejudiced per- 
 son. This line is not only the most direct, but it 
 passed through the most important districts of the coun- 
 try, and had advantages which no other line could have. 
 They were generally aware that it was proposed to take 
 advantage of the Great Northern Railway by York to 
 Newcastle, and from thence to proceed by the line pro- 
 posed to Glasgow. He now came to speak very shortly 
 of the proposed Eastern Line, about which much discus- 
 sion had arisen. From London to Newcastle that line 
 and the one now under consideration were precisely the 
 same, but instead of coming direct, as they proposed to do 
 to Edinburgh and Newcastle, it was intended to keep close 
 by the coast to Berwick-upon-Tweed, and from Berwick 
 it had been contemplated to continue the railway to Dun- 
 bar, but the ground was not surveyed or examined till 
 within these few days. If that line was not more circuitous 
 than the one he had now the honour to propose to this 
 meeting, he knew not what circuitous meant. In refer- 
 ence to the Western Line he wished to speak without pre- 
 judice, candidly and sincerely, and with every respect for 
 Mr. Locke, the able and talented engineer who had been 
 employed to survey it. He had the honour to rank that 
 gentleman amongst the number of his sincerest friends, 
 and therefore no one would be more anxious to render him 
 that riieed of praise to which he is entitled for his great 
 abilities and excellent qualities. It would, however, be 
 found, on investigatioir, that in consequence of the greater 
 distance betwixt London and Glasgow, that the Western 
 Line must be move expensive, and cannot be more bene- 
 ficial. The projectors of this line propose to proceed from 
 London by the London and Birmingham railway to War- 
 rington, and thence to Preston, from that place it was pro- 
 posed to carry the line across the Lancaster Sands ; but 
 that has been abandoned, and it was now proposed to pro- 
 ceed on to Carlisle, from thence to Glasgow. After point- 
 ing out the proposed Western Line, he said he should now 
 give the respective distances betwixt London and Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow, by the different lines, as measured on 
 the map, and until these lines were properly surveyed it 
 was impossible to state exactly the distances of these places 
 from each other. He did not, hov^ever, think that there 
 would be more than one mile and a half of difference, either 
 less or more. On a careful examination of the map, he 
 found the distance from London to Edinburgh, by the 
 3Iidland Line, to be 351 miles, from London to Glasgow 
 404 miles. By the Western Line the distance from Lon- 
 don to Edinburgh was 400 miles, and from London to 
 Glasgow 411 miles. By the Eastern Line from London 
 to Edinburgh the distance was 397 miles, and from Lon- 
 don to Glasgow 429 mile*, making, as they would see, a 
 
 difference as to the length of the Eastern Line, and (hat 
 now under their consideration of 10 miles to Edinburgli, 
 and 25 miles to Glasgow, and a diticrence between the 
 Western Line and theirs of 19 miles to Edinburgh, and ^ 
 to Glasgow. Now as the importance of obtaining the most 
 direct line between one extreme point and anotlicr was so 
 apparent it was quite unnecessary for hini to point it 
 out. He had already expressed his opinion by figures as 
 to the best line of railway, and when a man can do so con - 
 scientiously, it was by far the most certain and accurate 
 method. Although some people may imagine, when they 
 consider the immense speed at which locomotive steam 
 carriages travel, that seven or even sixteen miles was a 
 matter of no great moment, yet it will be found, notwith- 
 standing they should even travel 42 miles an hour, that 
 every mile they travel decreases the annual ])rofit to the 
 shareholders, and will have a tendency to induce compe- 
 tition, by causing others to form a nearer line. He did 
 not wish to take up the time of the meeting unnecessarily 
 by going over various calculations ; he would therefore 
 merely state, that supposing the difference betwixt the 
 Western and Midland IJne to be seven miles, every one 
 of these miles of extra railway would cost no loss than 
 £200 per annum to keep it in repair, or £1400 a-year on 
 the whole distance. If engines travel at a high speed the 
 necessary consequence is that the tear and wear will be 
 proportionally greater. Some engineers he is aware have 
 advocated a different view, and have maintained that the 
 increased distance will be more than repaid by the increas- 
 ed traffic, but it is clear that if they had a longer in place 
 of a shorter railway, supposing the gradients to be alike, 
 tlie expense of maintaining the longer railway must be 
 greater ; this seems so self-evident a proposition that one 
 is almost surprised that it should be advanced. When 
 they considered the speed which it was necessary to ac- 
 complish on railways generally, it was absolutely essential 
 that the gradients should be under a given sum, say 20 
 feet in a mile, and that no curve on that line should ex- 
 ceed a radius of two miles. In passing through a hilly 
 country it was sometimes difficult to obtain this radius, 
 but as far as his observations went he thought they should 
 have no difficulty in accomplishing this result. Taking 
 the line altogether, both as regards the gradients, curves, 
 and radiuses, he could conscientiously say that the line 
 now proposed possessed fewer difficulties than any he had 
 yet seen ; but it was important that they should have other 
 testimony than his own to prove that the most direct line 
 was the most advantageous to the public. Mr. Richard- 
 son here referred to the report by Messrs. Grainger and 
 Miller to the trustees of the County of Roxburgh, from 
 which he read a long extract, shewing that the line now 
 submitted to their consideration was the most direct that 
 could be obtained, and also the practicability of a tunnel 
 through the Carter Hill. Mr. Richardson then proceeded 
 to say that many objections had been urged by the advo- 
 cates of the Eastern Line against that which he had the 
 honour to recommend, and no objection had been more 
 strongly enforced than the impracticability of making a 
 tunnel through the Carter. Now he had been at some 
 trouble to ascertain the exact stratification of this emi- 
 nence, and in place of it being composed of whinstone, as 
 their opponents would lead them to suppose, he had every 
 reason to believe that it consisted of a very different for- 
 mation. The eminent surveyors, to whom he had already 
 alluded, had made two different estimates regarding the 
 expense that would be necessary for making a tunnel. On 
 the supposition that the formation was soft, the expense of 
 carrying a tunnel through the hill would be £21,180, 8s., 
 Gd., and taking it for granted that the material of which 
 it was composed was of a hard substance, the expense of 
 making the tunnel would be exactly £17,433. Thus it 
 clearly appeared that even should the interior of the moun- 
 tain consist of a hard formation, that the expense of mak- 
 ing a tunnel would, in the opinion of the gentlemen whom 
 
30 
 
 he had named, be considerably less tlian if the formation 
 was Koft. 
 
 The Chairman — Did he mean to say that the interior of 
 the mountain consisted of whinstone ? 
 
 Mr. Richardson, in reply, said, that he did not believe 
 that there was any whinstone tliere at all, and of tliis he 
 should be able to convince the meeting. Before doing so, 
 however, he might just state, tliat it was the opinion of 
 Mr. Oliver Ruthcrfurd, the Sheriff of the county of Rox- 
 burgh, who lives near the place, that if the improvements 
 contemplated had been carried into effect on this line of 
 road, the distance betwixt Newcastle and Edinburgh 
 would have been materially decreased, while the obstruc- 
 tion from snow storms, would be much less on this line of 
 road than on any other. Having tlius stated the opinions 
 of Messrs. Grainger and Miller, and Mr. Sheriff Ruther- 
 ford, he would now beg to direct the attention of the 
 meeting to that of two eminent geologists, viz. Messrs. 
 Phillips and Smith. On their geological map it was dis- 
 tinctly shown that the Carter Fell consisted of shale and 
 millstone grit, and according to their opinion, the whin- 
 stone dyke, which has been conjured up by their oppo- 
 nents, to fright them from the undertaking, passed con- 
 siderably to the south of the Carter. But, even supposing 
 that the Carter did consist of whinstone, he maintained 
 there would be no difficulty in perforating that substance. 
 In Phillips’ geological map, it is stated, that near New- 
 castle coal formation is general ; from thence to the borders 
 of Northumberland, millstone grit and Iffmestone shale 
 prevail; from thence grey waik and clay slate extend all 
 the way to Peebles, excepting near Selkirk the millstone 
 grit and limestone shale intervene. From this map, it did 
 not appear that basalt formed any part of the strata through 
 which the proposed line passed. Near Selkirk there was 
 also a part of coloured sienite and trap, there is also near 
 Kelso a largish track of t!ie same, but along the coast 
 their was a deal of basalt. Phillips says, in page 445 of 
 his works, that basaltic eminences form a striking feature 
 in the country between Alnwick and Berwick. At APrait- 
 chitt' Craig, near Alnwick, basalt occurs ; at Dunstan- 
 borough, the cliffs are of columnar basalt, on which the 
 castle is built ; Bambro’ Castle is also built upon the 
 same formation. Basaltic dykes traverse alike the subja- 
 cent formations of limestone, millstone grit, and coal. 
 The phenomena accompanying these dykes, are thus stat- 
 ed by Mr. Winch : — Limestone is often rendered highly 
 chrystalline and unfit for lime as at W raitchlff Craig ; slate 
 clay or shale is turned into a substance like flintslate or 
 porcelain jasper ; coal is invariably charred by it and be- 
 comes exactly like coke. In Phillips’ Geology, page 391, 
 he found it stated as the opinion of Bakewell, that mill- 
 stone grit formed the summit of Blackstone Edge, Pale 
 J\Ioss,* and the higher hills in Yorkshire. A perforation 
 of three miles was lately made through Pale Moss, 7^0 
 feet below the summit of the hill, to form a tunnel for a 
 canal from Huddersfield to Manchester. The tunnel ap- 
 pears to have been principally carried through the shale 
 which lies immediately upon the limestone, the strata are 
 elevated and inclined in an opposite direction, and are in- 
 tersected by a large dyke containing a vein said to bo 
 limestone. Now, he had distinctly proved that the tunnel 
 would not pass through whinstone but through limestone 
 grit, and hence the difficulty of perforating the formation 
 is entirely removed. The tunnel which lie jiroposed to 
 make, would be about 7-ffths of a mile, but the exact 
 height and depth must be determined by future surveys. 
 On the Eastern Line, they had more difficulties to sur- 
 mount, inasmuch, as they have the whinstone rock, tra- 
 versing a great portion of the line. It was not necessary 
 for him to say more on this subject, but taking the line of 
 railway now proposed, generally, from its commencement 
 
 * “ The whole of Romald’s moor ismilston grit, which 
 sowie topographical writers have mistaken for granite.” 
 
 to its te.-mination, he had no hesitation in saying that it 
 might be formed at a much less expense, than any railway 
 he had yet seen. Many have doubted, and the number is 
 considerable, that supposing the railway was made, it 
 would not pay the expense which had been expended in 
 its formation. Now, this was an important consideration, 
 but he would endeavour to prove that it would even pay 
 by passengers alone, independent of any other species of 
 carriage. The proposed line passes through a population, 
 in this district alone, of 510,000. Now, he always found 
 —indeed their coach returns would prove it — that the num- 
 ber of passengers by the coaches, was at least equal to 
 iouble the amount of population. He found that the po- 
 pulation of Lanark was 7,7G2, taking, therefore, the coach 
 passengers at the number mentioned — 1G,725 — they had 
 fully more than double the estimate he had made. Now, 
 taking the population of this district at 510,000, which 
 was the amount taken at the last census in 1831, but 
 which has since greatly increased, and supposing that 
 the number just mentioned travel the whole length of the 
 railway at a little more than Id. per mile, or at the rate of 
 15s. for each passenger, the amount drawn annually would 
 be £382,000, which is equivalent to the interest of a capi- 
 tal of upwards of six millions. Now, all that is required 
 for the formation of this railway is only two millions, there- 
 fore, it is plain to demonstration, that the profits arising 
 from passengers alone is upwards of 15 per cent. ; but 
 when it is considered that passengers will only yield a pro- 
 portion of the revenue arising from the formation of a 
 railway, and that GO miles of this proposed line are unpro- 
 vided with coal and lime, and that a great proportion 
 of the country have to send their agricultural produce to 
 markets, it must be apparent that from these sources an 
 immense revenue will be derived, as well as from the con- 
 veyance of psssengers. It will be observed that he had 
 only taken into account the passengers that travel by the 
 coaches as forming the data on which he had made his cal- 
 culations, and that he had kept entirely out of view those who 
 travelled by post-chaises andother modes of conveyance ; and 
 also the immense numbers that would be induced to visit 
 the beautiful Falls of the Clyde, unequalled perhaps in the 
 world, and the beautiful and picturesque scenery that sur- 
 rounded this interesting town. It would also be observed 
 that he had been careful to take the lowest estimate ; had 
 he taken the highest the result would have been incred- 
 ible even to himself, but much more to those now present. 
 Having trespassed so long upon their time, it would be 
 improper for him to detain them longer. Before sitting 
 down there was one topic which occurred to his mind that 
 he could not avoid stating to the meeting. It was pro- 
 posed to pass Lanark a little on the other side of the river. 
 Now although the line passed at a little distance from the 
 town, yet it has always been contemplated to make a di- 
 rect branch to this place, and if any gentleman would open 
 up a coal field, he could assuie them that a branch would 
 be made thither also. (A laugh and cheers.) 
 
 The Chairman At what distance would the railway 
 
 pass from I^anark ? 
 
 Mr. Richardson said the distance would be about a mile 
 and a quarter, but though it was found necessary to keep 
 on the opposite side of the river, yet he could pledge him- 
 self on behalf of the j)rovisional committee of this propos- 
 ed line, that the branch to Lanark will form an integral 
 part of the scheme. Having now explained the connec- 
 tions and advantages arising from the general scheme, and 
 had shewn how intimately such a scheme is connected not 
 only with the prosperity of this district, but of the country 
 at large, he might now be i)enr.itted respectfully to solicit 
 the co-operation of those gentlemen residing in this town 
 and county, and to look to them for that supi)ort and en- 
 couragement which he was entitled to expect from the 
 grandeur of the project. JMr. Richardson concluded by 
 thanking the meeting for the kindness and attention witli 
 which he had been favoured by one and all now present. 
 

 The (^)mirman said that having' now heard the infornia- 
 lion wliicli liad been so ably {’iven by IMr. Richardson, to 
 whom they were all much indebted for the trouble he 
 had taken, he begfjed to state that if any gentleman pre- 
 sent had any resolution to propose to the meeting, that he 
 would now have an opportunity of doing so. 
 
 ]\Ir. JMarr, in rising to avail himself of the opportunity 
 afforded by their respected chairman, said, that he should 
 have liked much that some of the influential and leading 
 landed gentlemen of the county had stepped forward to give 
 this undertaking, their countenance and support. He had 
 spoken to several who seemed favourable to the proposed 
 line, but not having made up their minds upon the subject, 
 they declined to take any part in the proceedings of this 
 meeting. If there were any now present who, previously 
 to hearing Mr. Richardson, had any doubts as to the prac- 
 ticability of the plan, he hoped that these doubts would 
 now be removed. After what has fallen from IMr. Richard- 
 !Son, it did not seem that any remarks from a person 
 less acquainted with the subject was called for ; but 
 there was one thing which I\Ir. Richardson seemed 
 to have overlooked, although he had adverted to it at 
 previous meetings — that was that a line of railway must 
 be of far greater importance to the inhabitants of an 
 
 inland district than to tliose resident upon the sea const, 
 who arc already supplied with many means of communi- 
 cation. From this view of tiic question, he was clearly of 
 opinion that this railway seemed to deserve their best at- 
 tention, but more especially as it passed so close to the 
 town of Lanark ; and when they found that it was con- 
 siderably shorter than the other lines which had been pro- 
 posed, it should induce them to promote the undertaking 
 with greater alacrity and vigour. VTith regard to the whole 
 engineering part of it, tliat must be left entirely to the 
 professional gentlemen. They were well aware that the 
 precise course could not be ascertained without a survey, 
 and that survey cannot be made without considerable ex- 
 pense ; hence the necessity of adopting the resolutions 
 which he had now the honour to propose (for which sec 
 advertisement.) 
 
 Bailie Fleming concurred in what liad been so ably said 
 by Mr. Marr, and cordially seconded the resolution which 
 had been proposed. 
 
 On the motion of J\Ir. Marr, seconded by Bailie Fle- 
 ming, a vote of thanks was unanimously passed to Mr. 
 Dickson for his conduct in the chair, and the meeting 
 thereafter separated. 
 
 A T a numerous and respectable MEETING holden in 
 the CouNTT Hall, LANARK, on the 13th day 
 of September, 1836, to lake into consideration the expe- 
 diency of adopting a Midland I^ine of Railway, from New- 
 castle, by the Carter, to Jedburgh, Edinburgh, and Glas- 
 gow, with Branches to the adjacent towns — 
 
 DAVID DICKSON, Esq. of Hartree, in the Chair — 
 
 It was unanimously resolved, 
 
 1st, That it is the opinion of this Meeting, that a Rail- 
 way for Locomotive Engine Travelling, from Newcastle- 
 upon-Tyne, up the Reed Water by of the Carter to 
 Jedburgh, proceeding through Roxburghshire to Peebles, 
 and from thence to Edinburgh and Glasgow, embracing in 
 its course Melrose, Galashiels, Lanark, and Hamilton, 
 with Branches to Hawick, Selkirk and Kelso, would pro- 
 mote the agricultural and commercial interests, not only 
 of the towns and country generally through which it im- 
 mediately passes, but would be particularly beneficial to 
 this town, and of a wide and considerable district at pre- 
 sent locked up, for want of a ready communication with 
 other places, where markets may be found for manufac- 
 tured goods and country produce. That such a means of 
 communication would be highly advantageous, and it is 
 therefore very desirable, inasmuch as, being apparently the 
 shortest Line, a direct and speedy intercourse would be 
 opened with the port of Newcastle-upon-.Tyne and the 
 cities of York and London, rendering the transit expedi- 
 tious and easy to passengers, at an incalculable saving 
 both of time and expense. The formation of such a line 
 of road through the centre of the country is fraught with 
 the most important consequences, both in a national and 
 local point of view ; the ready access it would give to all 
 the considerable cities and towns in England, consequently 
 the exchange of commodities which a choice of markets 
 thus attainable in every part of the kingdom, would give a 
 spur to industry and commercial enterprise ; and the con. 
 slant stream of passengers that would follow such extend- 
 ed and ready means of travelling, are all most probable 
 results to anticipate from the completion of the proposed 
 railway. Taking, therefore, such a view of it, this Meet- 
 ing heartily concurs in the projected undertaking, as being 
 
 one calculated to be highly beneficial to all classes of 
 people in the districts through which it passes, and of the 
 very first importance to the country in general. Being of 
 such opinion, this Meeting earnestly recommends the pro- 
 ject to general patronage and support, and, therefore, will 
 do all in its power to promote and carry into operation 
 and effect the proposed Railway. That the following 
 Noblemen and Gentlemen be constituted a Committee for 
 the Town and District of Lanark, with power to add to 
 their number ; and that the Committee be directed to cor- 
 res))ond with the Committees already formed at other 
 towns for the like purpose, and immediately adopt such 
 measures as are most likely to further the object in con- 
 templation. 
 
 The Hon. LORD COREHOUSE. 
 
 Sir NORMAN MACDONALD LOCKHART, of 
 Lee and Carnwath, Bart. 
 
 HENRY MONTEITH of Cartairs. 
 
 DAVID DICKSON of Hartree. 
 
 DANIEL VERE of Stonebyres. 
 
 JOHN BUCHANAN, Provost of Lanark. 
 
 ALEXANDER GILLESPIE of Sunnyside. 
 
 JOSEPH HUTCHESON of Shawton. 
 
 ADAM SIM of Cultennains. 
 
 ROBERT GRANDBERRY BAILLIE of Culter- 
 allers. 
 
 MICHAEL CARMICHAEL, younger, of Eastend. 
 
 THOMAS RENNIE SCOTT, Factor on the Dou- 
 glas Estate. 
 
 GEORGE GILLESPIE of Biggar Park. 
 
 JAMES HARViE of Brownlee. 
 
 WILLIAM LOCKHART of Milton Lockhart. 
 
 CHARLES WALKER of New Lanaik. 
 
 JOHN STEIN of Kirkfield. 
 
 JOHN MARR, Writer, Lanark. 
 
 2d, That a Subscription be forthwith entered into to 
 defray the preliminary expenses already incurred, and to 
 raise Funds to pay the charges of a Survey, Plans, Esti- 
 mates, and Report of the projected Lines of Railway, 
 which Subscriptions shall be paid into such Bank or 
 Banks as the Committee or any three or more of tliem shall 
 
32 
 
 direct, and to be ajiplied by them in dischar^jing the pre- 
 liminary and incidenta], and otlier expenses above named. 
 That no Subscriber shall be liable for, or called upon to 
 pay any larger sum than that set opposite to his name. 
 That the advances now made by parties shall be consider, 
 ed as so much paid towards the Shares the Subscribers 
 may be disposed to take in the event of an act being ob- 
 tained, or otherwise be returned to. them out of the funds 
 of the Company when formed, if they decline becoming 
 Shareholders. And that the remuneration of the profes- 
 
 sional gentlemen rdready employed in the preliminary ar- 
 rangements be in accordance witli the 4lh Kesolution pass- 
 ed at the Meeting held at Hexham on the SOth day of 
 June last. 
 
 3d, That the Resolutions be advertised in two of the 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Kelso 
 newspapers. 
 
 The thanks of the meeting was given to the Chairman 
 for his conduct in the Chair. 
 
TO THE EDITOR OF THE KEl.SO CHRONlCLi: 
 
 SIR, 
 
 I N the JVarf/er of the 24th ultimo, Mr. Ramsay, by 
 an ingenuity of reasoning, for which he has distin- 
 guished himself in discussing the merits of what he calls 
 ‘‘ ^/le competing lines''' of railway, has again laid himself 
 open to animadversion. 
 
 As it is not my intention to notice his productions at 
 the public meetings which 1 may have the pleasure to at- 
 tend in this part of the country, I have adopted this means 
 of briefly noticing the extraordinary articles which grace 
 the columns of the Warder. Regardless of IMr. Ramsay’s 
 vituperative epithets, such as “ downright dishonest,” 
 “ fallacious calculation,” “ audacious mis-statements,” 
 “ palpable piece of fallacy,” and such other courteous 
 phraseology^ I shall steadily pursue the line of conduct as 
 regards these Railways, which I believe will be most con- 
 ducive to the interests of the public. 
 
 The ridiculous absurdity of Mr. Ramsay’s statements as 
 to the population on the Eastern Line, carries with it its 
 own irrefragable refutation. Why Mr. Ramsay has not 
 included the whole population of the county of Northum.. 
 herland appears to have been a piece of self-denial only 
 equalled by his assumption in taking into account the in- 
 habitants of Holy Island, and other places equally conti- 
 guous to, and immediately connected with, the Line of 
 Railway favoured by his Quixotic advocacy ! 
 
 Mr. Ramsay has long complained that too little has been 
 said about the Carter, and now he finds fault that too much 
 has been said about it. Like the man under the lash, 
 strike where you will, there is no pleasing him. The 
 Warder attempts to be exceedingly witty in relation to 
 what I said about the toll-bar keeper at the Carter, and 
 expressed a well-feigned wonder that “ some one of great 
 scientific attainments and experience” had not been quoted 
 by me. If Mr. Ramsay had been desirous to advocate the 
 truth, instead of the views of a party, he ought to have 
 alluded to the opinions of Messrs. Phillips and Winch, 
 which I quoted at the Ijanark Meeting, as well as to the 
 opinion of Mr. Bakewell. My addresses both at Peebles 
 and Lanark were ably reported in your paper of the 16th 
 ultimo, and Mr. Ramsay’s studious silence upon this sub- 
 ject, seizing upon only the opinions of the scientific men 
 which I quoted, and upon which he could fasten a doubt, 
 and leaving untouched those of a decisive character, evinces 
 too plainly his anxiety to close his eyes against all opinions 
 and facts but what tend to the furtherance of his darling 
 scheme.* 
 
 * In Phillips’ Geological Map it is stated as the opinion of 
 Bakewell, that millstone grit formed the summit of Black-stone 
 Edge, Pale Moss, and the higher hills in Yorkshire. A perforation 
 of three miles was lately made through Pale Moss, 750 feet below 
 the summit of the hill, to form a tunnel for a canal from Hudders- 
 field to Manchester. The tunnel appears to have been principally 
 carried through the shale which lies immediately upon the lime- 
 stone, the strata are elevated and inclined in an opposite direction 
 and are intersected by a large dyke containing a vein said to be 
 limestone. Now, he had distinctly proved that the tunnel would 
 not pass through whinstone but through limestone grit, and hence 
 the difficulty of perforating the formation is entirely removed. The 
 tunnel which he proposed to make, would be about 7-8ths of a 
 mile, but the exact height and depth must be determined by future 
 surveys. On the Eastern Line, they had more difficulties to sur- 
 mount, inasmuch, as they have the whinstone rock, traversing a 
 great portion of the line. 
 
 I shall feci obliged to Mr. Ramsay, if, when he lias oc- 
 casion to state my views to his readers, he will do so in the 
 words which I have employed, and not translate them into 
 his own ambiguous language, in order to build upon that 
 translation a charge of downright fallacy. The Warder 
 says, in allusion to the report of 3Iessrs. Grainger and 
 Miller, which I quoted, “ Here we are reminded of another 
 instance of downright fallacy. He (Mr. R.) alludes to 
 the survey of Messrs. Grainger and JMiller fora turnpike 
 road, which was to be taken through the top of the Carter, 
 and appeals to the project of these engineers in proof of 
 the practicability of his own design ; but he keeps back 
 the fact, that as it was for an ordinary turnpike road, the 
 gradient was not so much an object, &c.” I know not 
 whether most to admire the stupidity or ignorance display- 
 ed in this paragraph. Every one who has read my speeches 
 at Peebles and Lanark must clearly see, that in alluding 
 to the opinions of the engineers mentioned, and the Sheriff 
 of Roxburghshire, I did so most distinctly to prove in the 
 first place, that the proposed line was the shortest and most 
 possibly direct between Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow — and in the second place, to prove that tun- 
 nelling the Carter was no new project, but on the contrary 
 had been for some time in contemplation for the purposes 
 of a turnpike road ! ! It will be remembered that the 
 tunnelling of the Carter has been a favourite bugbear em- 
 ployed by the opposite party to frighten the public from the 
 Midland Line. They have said that it was impracticable — 
 they have said that it was composed of whinstone — that it 
 would cost £150,000 to perforate it, and twenty years’ labour 
 to effect the work. And now that I have shown its easy 
 practicability, they complain that the public are nauseated 
 with the subject! Instead of keeping back the fact that 
 the tunnel was proposed for an ordinary turnpike road, I 
 not only read the title of the report, but also actually ex- 
 hibited the plan which accompanies it. If, therefore, there 
 be downright fallacy anywhere, I strongly suspect it will 
 be found in the columns of the Warder. 
 
 Mr. Ramsay is prodigal of figures. Whether they are 
 imaginative or the real representatives of facts, we have 
 yet to learn. If the latter, it is to be hoped that they rest 
 upon a surer foundation than most, if not all, of the state- 
 ments which have appeared in the Warder. Not content- 
 ed by spreading the shadow of his maternal wings over 
 tlie Eastern Line, Mr. Ramsay has shown a disposition to 
 e.xtend his fostering care over the Western Line also. He 
 prides himself, and justly so, that the Eastern Line need 
 have no fear of a competition from Railways being made 
 parallel with it. It cannot but be viewed as an unfortu- 
 nate accident, that the claims of the sea should so materi- 
 ally interfere with the Eastern Line. As regards the Mid- 
 land one, it is unfortunate for Mr. Ramsay that we have 
 no cheap water competition, and that it is probable that 
 the Midland and Western Lines will have one terminus 
 at Glasgow; and instead of running parallel to, and in op- 
 position to each other, an opportunity will be offered for a 
 junction, which will tend as much as any other circum- 
 stance to increase the utility, and extend the popularity of 
 the Midland Line. 
 
 I am, very truly, 
 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON, 
 Civil Engineer, &c. 
 
 Hamilton, 3d Oct., 1336. 
 
MEETING AT HAMILTON 
 
 A meeting of the inhabitants of the town and district of 
 Hamilton was announced by advertisement, to be held in 
 the Town Hall, at Hamilton, on Tuesday, the 11th Oct., 
 at one o’clock, to take into consideration the expediency 
 of adopting a 3Iidland Line of Railway, from Newcastle- 
 upon-Tyne, to Edinburgh and Glasgow. Shortly after the 
 hour of meeting, between thirty and forty gentlemen as- 
 sembled, but owing to the non-arrival of his Grace the 
 Duke of Hamilton, who had been expected to take the 
 chair, the business was not commenced for some time after- 
 wards. 
 
 Mr. Joshua Richardson entered the Hall, and explained 
 that his Grace having been engaged with other gentlemen 
 concerned in the project, in examining the resolutions to 
 be submitted to the meeting, was detained beyond the 
 time he expected to be present. In the meantime, however, 
 he (xMr. Richardson) would lay before the meeting the 
 plans and surveys which he had drawn out. Mr. Richard- 
 son here opened up a general map of the Tyne, Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow Railway, and also a new map of England and 
 Wales, upon which all the railways in the kingdom are 
 marked. These having been carefully examined by the 
 gentlemen present, 
 
 Mr. Reed, Secretary to the General Committees, arrived 
 with the Resolutions which had been prepared for the ap- 
 proval of the meeting. Provost Henderson was then called 
 to the chair. 
 
 Provost Henderson, on proceeding to the business, said 
 he believed that they were all aware of the object of the 
 meeting, and it only required him to introduce to their no- 
 tice, Mr. Reed, who would read to them the reports of the 
 engineer. 
 
 Mr. Reed said, he had great pleasure in reading the first 
 report, drawn up by Mr. Richardson, relative to the pro- 
 posed Railway. Of course, the necessary surveys not hav- 
 ing been completed, it would be proper for Mr. Richard- 
 son to give what explanations were required himself, and 
 he would do so to their satisfaction. After reading the 
 report, he said, Mr. Richardson might have some ob- 
 servations to make, and he would therefore not detain 
 them farther, than merely to request that gentleman to 
 make what statements he should deem necessary. 
 
 Mr. Joshua Richardson then addressed the meeting. He 
 said he regretted that the time of the present meeting had 
 been so long delayed, and he regretted also the absence of 
 His Grace the Duke of Hamilton. The circumstance 
 must have arisen from some cause, unavoidable though 
 not explained. 
 
 Mr. Reed here begged pardon for interrupting Mr. Rich- 
 ardson to state that it was hoped his Grace might be pre- 
 sent before the close of the meeting. (Approbation.) 
 
 M. Richardson resumed. He said he was sure whe- 
 ther his Grace was present or absent they had his support. 
 Looking at the Projects of Railways generally, they must 
 take into consideration the advantages to be derived from 
 them. They must consider whether they would increase 
 the prosperity and wealth, as well as of small districts as 
 of large communities. He could have gone over avast 
 field of argument to show the advantages of the present 
 proposed undertaking, but as there were to be other meet- 
 ings at which full explanations would be made, he would 
 not enter into a great portion of his arguments at the pre- 
 sent time. He would proceed to exhibit the plans of the 
 Railway which they had proposed. Mr. Richardson here 
 exhibited the plans which he had drawn up, pointing out 
 the line, and showing how it affected the diftcrent towns 
 through which it passed, and also its importance in a na- 
 tional point of view. Along with the plan of the railway 
 he placed for inspection the general map of England and 
 
 Wales, and explained how far the railway would be ad- 
 vantageous both to localities and to the nation. It ap- 
 peared from the statement made by Mr. R. that the Rail- 
 way was intended to pass from Newcastle, by Jedburgh, 
 Melrose, Galashiels, to Peebles. From the latter place it 
 is proposed to branch off to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The 
 Edinburgh branch to go by the Eddleston Water at Pen- 
 nycuick, and joining the river Esk to proceed to Edin- 
 burgh. The Glasgow branch to proceed from Peebles by 
 Biggar, Lanark, Hamilton, and to terminate opposite the 
 Broomielaw Quay at Glasgow. That line, continued 
 Mr. R., was important, not only in a local, but in a na- 
 tional point of view. It was the most direct line from 
 liondon by York, Newcastle and Peebles, from which it 
 was to branch off to Edinburgh and Glasgow. It had been 
 proposed to take the line from Glasgow along the west 
 coast, touching as near as possible the towns of Kilmar- 
 nock and Ayr, crossing the Solway Frith, near Annan, 
 and from thence continuing by the coast, by Carlisle, to 
 Preston ; from theace to Warrington, and continuing 
 southwards to Birmingham, and from thence to London. 
 It was clear, however, that would be a more circuitous 
 and more expensive line than the one he now proposed for 
 their adoption. There could be no doubt, even from 
 rough calculation, that this would be an advantageous 
 line. As a proof of this, he would refer in the first place 
 to the facilities of conveyance required in a country abound- 
 ing with immense mineral treasures such as the immediate 
 neighbourhood of that town. That it did possess trea- 
 sures of immense value, he needed only to mention the 
 fact, that within a few days an estate of about 200 acres, 
 containing ironstone, had been let on a lease, for 19 years, 
 at the enormous rate of £12,500 per annum, which is equal 
 to £62, 10s. per acre, besides the pasturage or other sur- 
 face rents. With the production and consequent manu- 
 facture of that ironstone, there would be required addition- 
 al fuel. There were, he understood, no fewer than 20 new 
 furnaces now building ; each furnace would require at 
 least 1200 tons of coal per annum, making an aggregate 
 of 24,000 tons extra of the present demand. The extra 
 demand caused by an increased and increasing population 
 was still to be provided for, and it was necessary that the 
 extra supplies should be provided at the cheapest possible 
 rate. This could only be done by the establishment of 
 that railway ; because, if they let this opportunity slip 
 other parts of the country who laid hold on such advan- 
 tages would come into ruinous competition with them. It 
 would be unnecessary for him to enter into very minute 
 details, as there would be an opportunity given at a meet- 
 ing at Glasgow, to lay his views fully before the public. 
 He might mention, however, a few things to show the 
 amount of revenue to be derived. Supposing that they did 
 establish that railway, the question would come to be, did 
 it pay the proprietors a remunerating profit ? He would 
 give a calculation of the revenue from conveyances. He 
 would first take the probable revenue from passengers. It 
 was reckoned a fair calculation to give twice the number 
 of the population of a town, for the number of persons 
 travelling in the course of a year ; but he would not 
 adopt that mode of calculation. To show them that lie 
 did not hold out vain prospects, he would give the ac- 
 tual number travelling by the different public convey- 
 ances. During the year there travel to Glasgow from Lan- 
 ark, 16,725 passengers, and the population of Lanark is 
 7,762. From Hamilton, 28,060 passengers, and the po- 
 pulation of Hamilton is 9,518. According to Dr. Cle- 
 land’s statistical work, there travelled from Glasgow in the 
 year, 1831, 1,587,189, and the population of Glasgow was 
 202,000. The population on the whole line of railway 
 
■was 610,000, which would produce £382,000, admitting 
 that that number travelled once a year. This was no ex- 
 aggerated estimate. According to Dr. Cleland’s calcula- 
 tions, a number equal to the whole population of Glasgow, 
 left the city by Coaches ^ times a year. He came now to 
 the article of coals. Eighty miles of the main line of the 
 Kailway was totally unprovided with coal, and 24 miles of 
 the branches. On the main line were the towns of Jed- 
 burgh, Ancrum, Melrose, Galashiels, Gattonside, Peebles, 
 Broughton, Biggar, and Lanark : on the branches, Ha- 
 wick, Kelso, Selkirk, and Pennycuick. The population of 
 these are 50,000, the consumption of coal, 1 ton per head, 
 which gives 50,000 tons, carried 50 miles at Id. per ton 
 per mile — was equal to £10,277* To Glasgow there came 
 about 2000 tons per day, upon which there would be an 
 average carriage of seven miles. The exportation of coal 
 from Glasgow would be greater if it could be done at a 
 cheaper rate. At present, with all the conveniences the 
 city of Glasgow had, there was still a mile, or mile and 
 half of cartage added to the price of coal, but the railway 
 would bring them to the side of the river ready to be sent 
 off. The exportation of coal would thus become a most 
 important part of the commerce of Glasgow. Mr. R. next 
 gave a statement showing the calculations he had made 
 regarding the conveyance of coals for the manufactory of 
 iron, the conveyance of lime, and also of cattle and manure. 
 In support of his statements with regard to the advantages 
 of railways in the conveyance of cattle, he read the follow- 
 ing extract from a report by Mr. James Walker, President 
 of the institution of civil engineers, to the committee for 
 promoting a railway betwixt London and York. 
 
 The following facts, lately named to me by competent 
 authorities, show the importance of a Railway to the fen 
 district in a light I had not before seen it, and the friendly 
 feeling with which is is likely to be received there. The 
 Counties of Lincoln and Cambridge are stated to’supplv 
 8000 sheep and 500 bullocks weekly to the London mat. 
 ket alone ; the loss of weight and deterioration of quality 
 by driving to London, calculated from the data given me 
 and stated to be under the mark, I make £145,000 per 
 annum. This would be almost entirely saved by Railway 
 conveyance, and is exclusive of what is sent to other mar- 
 kets and of all other agricultural produce. In the first 
 place this saving is a public good ; in the next place, if it 
 be supposed that the Railway Company have half the sav- 
 ing, that proportion is the interest of a million and a half 
 
 of money, or half the estimate of the line from liondon to 
 York.” 
 
 Mr. Richardson then summed up the accounts of revenue 
 
 from the different sources as follows : 
 
 Passengers, £382,000 
 
 Coa s on the line, iq^ooO 
 
 Coals to Glasgow, .... 58,000 
 
 Lime and building, • ... 20 000 
 
 • ; • • • • 10,000 
 
 Agricultural produce and manure, . . 30,000 
 
 Altogether equal to .... isUKOOO 
 
 Which was equal to a capital of £10,200,000, at 5 per 
 cent, per annum, whereas the present Railway would not 
 cost more than two millions, and therefore the revenue 
 would be equal to 25 per cent, upon the capital required 
 These statements he thought showed the advantages to be 
 derived from the project ; they showed at least that such a 
 project was worthy of being favourably entertained. The 
 Legislature would not hesitate to grant powers for forming 
 such a Railway ; it was willing to pass those acts which 
 have for their object the public weal. He might here 
 read a short extract favourable to his views on that point 
 Mr. R. read the following from a Report of the Select 
 Committee appointed to consider the present system of 
 Turnpike Tolls and Trusts:— 
 
 ^ “ Your Committee submit, that facility of communica- 
 tion in every country, is one of the causes, and also a result 
 ot national prosperity, and that whatever charge or tax has 
 a tendency to check this facility of communication, ought 
 to be avoided by the Legislature.” ^ 
 
 Now, seeing that such a scheme as the one proposed 
 by the Legislature, and by public opinion ; 
 that the Railway would be of importance not only to that 
 district, but to the general community ; they would say 
 he was advocating a good cause, which they would find it 
 th«r duty and interest to support. (Approbation.) 
 
 Captain Aitkman of Ross moved a series of resolutions 
 and the appointment of a committee to carry them into efi 
 lect. (See advertisement.) 
 
 Bailie Bryson seconded their adoption. 
 
 The resolutions were then unanimously agreed to 
 Mr. Reed said his Grace the Duke of Hamilton had ap- 
 proved of the resolutions. ^ 
 
 Mr. Rmhardson voted the thanks of the meeting to the 
 Provost, for his conduct in the chair, which having been 
 given, the meeting separated. ^ 
 
 ^ T a numerous and highly-influential MEETING of 
 Gentry of the Town and 
 District of HAMILTON, holden at the Town Hall there 
 on Tuesday, the eleventh day of October, 1836, pursuant 
 to notice, to take into consideration the Expedienev of 
 adopting a pio^sed Midland Line of Railway, from 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, to Edinburgh, and also to Glasgow, 
 by Hamilton — ^ * 
 
 R* Provost, in the Chair- 
 
 m’ Meeting, as a general principle, 
 
 highly approves of Railway Communication, as tending 
 to increase the Agricultural ana Commercial interests of 
 the several districts through which it passes, and at the 
 same time affording a cheap and speedy means of inter- 
 course with distant Towns. 
 
 2d, Resolved, That the following Noblemen and Gen- 
 tlemen be nominated a Committee, to act with the Com. 
 mittees of other Towns, to inquire into the most advisable 
 Line of Railway to be adopted from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 
 to Edinburgh, and Glasgow, with the relative branches. 
 And this meeting recommends that a subscription be enter- 
 ed into, to assist in defraying the expenses of surveys, &c., 
 of such of the proposed Lines as may be approved of by 
 he Committees— and that the Committee now appointed, 
 beinstructed to take charge of the subscription lisfs, with 
 a view of obtaining subscriptions, and of applying the 
 amount thereof:— 
 
 ^ DON^^ the Duke of HAMILTON and BRAN. 
 
 r ““'I"*® DOUGLAS and 
 
 CLl DESDADE. 
 
 Right Hon. Lord BLANTYRE. 
 
 Right. Hon. Lord DOUGLAS. 
 
 Dsq- of Castle Hill. 
 aitkman, Esq. of Ross. 
 COLIN DUNLOP, Esq. of Tolcross. 
 
 W. D. GILLON, Esq., M.P. 
 
 JAMES FERRIE, Esq. of Farme. 
 
 JAMES FERRIE, jun.. Esq., do. 
 
 WILLIAM DIXON, Esq. of Govan. 
 
 JOHN GRAHAM, Esq. of West Burn. 
 
 ROBERT HARRINGTON, Esq. of Torrence 
 
 JAMES HOPE VERE, Esq. of Blackwood. 
 
 Colonel ROBERT CAMPBELL of Dalserfe 
 
 HAMILTON M‘NIEL, Esq. of Raploch. 
 
 JAMES HENDERSON, Esq. of PeVe Cks 
 HAMILTON, Esq. of Fairholme. 
 
 JAMES BRYSON, Esq, of Sheriff Faulds. 
 
 The PROVOST of Hamilton, and 
 The MAGISTRATES and TOWN TREASURER 
 of Hamilton. 
 
 With power to add to their numbers. 
 
3d, That no subscriber be liable to or be called upon 
 for more money than is set down by him opposite to his 
 name. 
 
 4th, That these resolutions be advertised in some of the 
 
 Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne news- 
 papers, and also in the Kelso Chronicle. 
 
 JAMES HENDERSON, Chairman. 
 The thanks ofthe Meeting were proposed, and seconded, 
 to the Provost for presiding in the chair. 
 
 TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEWCASTLE JOURNAL. 
 
 Sir, 
 
 T he attention of the public in this neighbourhood 
 has been directed to the proposed schemes of Rail- 
 way from England into Scotland. 
 
 The Landed and Manufacturing Interests of this Dis- 
 trict are fully alive to the very great importance of the 
 subject. Great diversity of opinion, however, exists as 
 regards the merits of the two lines of Railway which have 
 been suggested. One Line, as you are probably aware, 
 proceeds from your town to Morpeth and Alnwick, to 
 Edinburgh. The other is called the Midland Line, and 
 proceeds from Newcastle to Otterburn, Jedburgh, Melrose, 
 Galashiels, to Edinburgh ; with a Branch through Biggar, 
 Peebles, Lanark, and Hamilton, to Glasgow. 
 
 In Scotland, the Midland Line is most decidedly the 
 favourite, and for very good reasons, viz., that it will be 
 a means of opening up a country rich in minerals, and 
 abounding with natural facilities for a new and extensive 
 commerce, which have been hitherto retarded by the want 
 of such a cheap mode of conveyance. I have watched 
 with deep interest the progress of the professional gentle- 
 men engaged upon this line. They have had public 
 county district meetings in eight of the principal towns in 
 Scotland through which the Line passes, and at all these 
 meetings I have observed with pleasure the co-operation 
 and support which they have invariably received from the 
 noblemen, gentlemen, manufacturers, and citizens, most in- 
 terested in the districts through which they have passed. 
 
 The list of names of these noblemen and gentlemen who 
 have consented to be on the Committees is both numerous 
 and highly respectable. Indeed, I never knew a project 
 in which all parties seem to unite their interests so exten- 
 sively as they have done in this case. Among its patrons 
 may be mentioned the Dukes of Roxburghe and Hamilton ; 
 the Marquis of Douglas and Clydesdale; Lords Douglas, 
 Blantyie, and Polwarth ; Sir T. M. Brisbane, Bart. ; Sir 
 J. Montgomery, Bart.; John H. Hynde, Esq., M.P. ; 
 W. D. Gillon, Esq., M.P. ; Sir John Hay, M.P. ; the 
 High Sheriff of Northumberland ; the Sheriffs of Rox- 
 burghshire and Peebles-shire ; and many other noblemen 
 and gentlemen of rank and mercantile distinction. I might 
 add to these names, those of the Provosts, Bailies, and 
 County Magistrates ; but what I have named will, I think, 
 be enough to satisfy the public, that with such a guarantee 
 of names, there is every reason to hope that this Line will 
 be carried into execution. 
 
 Before leaving this part of my subject, you will, per- 
 haps, allow me to state, that I think great credit is due to 
 your townsman, Mr. Joshua Richardson, the engineer, for 
 his able statements at the several meetings which have 
 been held in Scotland. I was glad to observe that the 
 Town Council of Lanark had presented this gentleman 
 with the Freedom of that ancient Royal Burgh, in testi- 
 mony of their appreciation of his services. This speaks 
 volumes as to the estimation in which the Midland liine 
 is held in Scotland. 
 
 In reverting to the Eastern Line, after having said so 
 much on the Midland Line, I fear that my impartiality 
 may be called in question. But T assure you, that I am 
 anxious for the freest and fullest inquiry. Beyond sub- 
 scribing for the suryeys, I do not pledge myself to either 
 Line; on the contrary, I deem it essential that exact sur- 
 veys, on both Lines, should be immediately commenced 
 
 with, in order that the public may be satisfactorily assur- 
 ed as to the practicability of both or either of these Lines. 
 Until we have the result of these surveys before us, it is 
 evident no final decision on the Lines can be come to. — 
 Aside, however, from this part of the subject, I should be 
 glad to know the reasons that the public meetings adver- 
 tised to be holden in Newcastle, Alnwick, and the county 
 of Northumberland, have not taken place. Many others, 
 with myself, feel deeply interested in the subject ; and we 
 have been greatly disappointed in seeing no report of the 
 proceedings of these meetings in the newspapers. Per- 
 haps some of your correspondents connected with the Eas- 
 tern Line will have the goodness to explain this. 
 
 It strikes me. Sir, that the project of a Railway should 
 possess other advantages than the mere practicability of 
 its formation — that it ought to be shown that the country 
 through which it passes requires additional facilities of in- 
 ternal communication — and that there is a fair prospect of 
 its paying interest on the capital which may be required 
 to construct it. 
 
 A Line like the Grand Eastern one — running near the 
 sea coast for its whole length — cannot certainly be said to 
 be required by the exigencies of the country, inasmuch as 
 the facilities by steam, and other means of navigation, al- 
 ready available, renders a Railway, at best, a matter of 
 very doubtful expediency. With such a competition, I 
 can scarcely believe that a Line of Railway would or could 
 pay ; — but even suppose the contrary, the benefits it would 
 bestow upon Berwick, Kelso, and the country generally, 
 would be infinitely short of what would be derived from 
 the Midland Line. From what passed at the meeting re- 
 cently held at Coldstream, I think it is very improbable 
 that the Railway from this place to Berwick will ever be 
 carried into execution by the present company ; and there- 
 fore it is essential that we should consider the means which 
 ought to be adopted to secure to this place Railway Com- 
 munication, not only to our port of Berwick, but also to 
 the inland districts of Scotland and to England. If the 
 joint Committee of the Midland Line will guarantee us a 
 Branch from the Main Line, and continue it on to Ber- 
 wick, it appears to me, our interests will be best served by 
 supporting it to the utmost of our power. Berwick, also, 
 in my opinion, will be most benefitted by the connexion 
 with the Midland Line. It would open out a wide field 
 for her imports, and extend the facilities of transmitting 
 agricultural produce, manufactured goods, and other ex- 
 ports to be shipped there. It would open out a direct line 
 of communication with Jedburgh, Peebles, Lanark, Ha- 
 milton, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. Nothing, in my opinion, 
 would tend more to revive and extend the trade and com- 
 merce of Berwick than the establishment of a Midland 
 Line of Railway. 
 
 I do not deny that the Grand Eastern Line would be 
 productive of some good to Berwick, and colaterally to 
 Kelso also; but 1 contend that the advantages to be de- 
 rived from it would be incalculably less than what would 
 result from the Midland Line. With this conviction I 
 have been induced to write you this letter, in the hope 
 that it will excite the attention of those whose future in- 
 terests are dcejdy involved by the projected speculations. 
 
 I am Sir, &c., 
 
 AN OBSERVER. 
 
 Kelso, October 13, 1330. 
 
IMEETING AT GLASGOV^ 
 
 A public meeting of the inhabitants of Glasgow and its 
 neighbourhood, was heUl on the 19th Oct., in the Town- 
 Hall, to take into consideration the expediency of adopting 
 a midland line of railway from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow. Among those present were, the 
 Lord Provost, Bailies Gilmour and Lumsden, Provost 
 Buchanan of Lanark, Bailie Craig of Kilmarnock, Charles 
 Tennant, Esq. of St. Rollox, J. G. Hamilton, of Henry 
 Monteith and Company’s works, 8cc. See. 
 
 The Lord Provost having been called to the chair, on 
 the motion of Bailie Lumsden, stated the object for which 
 they had met. As to the merits of the plan proposed, or 
 the probability of success, his Lordship said it was not for 
 him to give an opinion, he being totally ignorant of the 
 subject. But having been called on by a number of friends, 
 and also by a respectable deputation of the citizens, to at- 
 tend on this occasion — and, moreover, considering it to be 
 his duty, as Chief Magistrate of the city, to take a lead in 
 whatever was likely to advance its interests — he had now 
 come amongst them, prepared to bestow his best attention, 
 as he doubted not all present would do, to the explanation 
 of the very able engineer now present. 
 
 Mr. Richard Hill having read the first report relative to 
 the proposed Railway, drawn up by Mr. Richardson, the 
 Lord Provost intimated that Mr. Richardson was present 
 to give such information as might be deemed necessary. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then rose. — Tn rising on the present 
 occasion to trespass on their patience for a short time, he 
 felt convinced that should the merits of the plan which he 
 was now prepared to lay before them, be once fairly consi- 
 dered and duly appreciated, it would not want such sup- 
 port as would ensure its success. He rose under the con- 
 viction that the picture drawn of the people of Scotland by 
 the celebrated Irish barrister, Mr. Curran, was in every 
 respect a true one. Mr. Curran had said, ‘‘ Scotland — a 
 nation cast in the happy medium between the spiritless 
 acquiescence of submissive poverty, and the sturdy cre- 
 dulity of pampered wealth — cool and ardent — adventurous 
 and persevering — winging her eagle flight against the 
 blaze of every science, with an eye that never winks, and a 
 wing that never tires.” He now felt himself, by the per- 
 mission of his Lordship, and the assistance of the press, 
 addressing the people of Scotland, and he would say that 
 if ever there was a scheme which had powerful claims on 
 public support, the scheme which he was now before them 
 to advocate had those claims. He would preface the obser- 
 vations which he had to make by quoting the opinion of a 
 celebrated engineer, a countryman of their own, for whom 
 they had cherished the utmost respect and esteem — he 
 alluded to the late Mr. Telford. Mr. Telford had been 
 employed in 1810 to survey a line of railway between Ber- 
 wick and Glasgow, and though the line laid down by that 
 gentleman differed in some points from that now proposed 
 for their consideration, yet its general aspect was the same 
 — a circumstance which, in his (Mr. R.’s) opinion, afford- 
 ed a most conclusive argument in support of his views. 
 Mr. R. here read the following passage from Mr. Telford’s 
 report 
 
 “ It is, I presume, at this day, needless to observe that 
 the prosperity of a country is most essentially promoted 
 by introducing perfect modes of intercourse in its several 
 districts. Many parts of England afford such striking in- 
 
 stances of this, that from the slightest consideration, it 
 will be evident, that were they now deprived of those ad- 
 vantages, although left in possession of turnpike roads, 
 not only their local prosperity, but that of the nation at 
 large, would be materially affected. The transportation 
 of raw materials and manufactured goods, and, what is 
 more important, of fuel, and manure for agricultural pur- 
 poses, and the circulating its produce with facility and 
 cheapness, if so limited, or rather rendered impracticable 
 on a large scale, would infallibly and speedily lessen the 
 prosperity of the State.” 
 
 Mr. Richardson then proceeded Before going into the 
 
 general subject, he hoped they would allow him to refer, 
 for a few seconds, to a publication which had been put in- 
 to his hands this morning. It was a printed letter, the 
 whole object of which appeared to be, to prejudice a por- 
 tion of the public against the proposed railway, by repre- 
 senting it as likely to afford means of having coals from 
 Newcastle. He certainly did think that if such a project 
 was entertained — if it was proposed to bring coals from 
 Newcastle to a district such as this, it would be equal to 
 taking coal to Newcastle. (Laughter.) Mr. R. here read 
 the extract to which he referred — 
 
 “ It would surely be more wise for the landowners of 
 Lanarkshire at once to cut all connection with bringing or 
 sending coals to Newcastle, where two millions of money 
 is proposed to be laid out for an object so very remote; 
 for, as regards them, £240,000 will not only suffice and 
 enable a railroad to be made at once, but leave them, as 
 above stated, an overwhelming surplus, to compete with 
 the coalmasters who are more fortunately situated, to be 
 located within a circle of three or four miles from our good 
 city. In fact, the passengers alone would enable them to 
 lay down their coal for nothing, at the fixed depot at Ru- 
 therglen, to join the river, and thus get their coals more 
 speedily sent to a most extensive and most profitable mar- 
 ket, than going further out their way for sales. No; I 
 may be wrong in my calculations, but if so, and that Mr. 
 Richardson with his scientific experience will put me right, 
 and lay before a meeting of Glasgow merchants and manu- 
 facturers, showing them the probable results ef a Railway 
 from Lanark to Rutherglen, to communicate with Green- 
 ock and the open sea, they will not seek much aid from 
 the county gentlemen in filling up a subscription for what 
 to them would be a more important object ; but this line, 
 be it specially remarked, must of course have no connec- 
 tion with any other ; and they would, in such a scheme, 
 agree to admit the subscribers to the Greenock Railway 
 as partners in what to them would also be of great im- 
 portance — to get into a profitable concern for what other- 
 wise will, it is feared, be the reverse.” 
 
 This letter displayed considerable tact and acquaintance 
 with the subject; it was, in fact, likely to be the produc- 
 tion of some brother engineer. But it was nevertheless a 
 palpable attempt to deceive the public. The whole gist 
 of it was, that by making the river navigable up to Ru- 
 therglen, coal could be procured cheaper than by the pro- 
 posed railroad ; now, he could prove, by a reference to the 
 charges made upon the Union Canal, compared with those 
 at which they might be conveyed by railway, that this 
 was not the case. The charges on the canal were 2^d. per 
 ton per mile ; while tliosc on the railway would not require 
 
38 
 
 to be more tliiui a penny. The truth was that the rail- 
 way would be found preferable, though they had it in their 
 power to make the river navigable up to Lanark. He 
 had considered that the question as to the comparative 
 merits of canal and railway communication had been long 
 settled ; and he now slightly noticed this attempt to pre- 
 judice the public of Glasgow on the subject, as he thought 
 it was probably made with a view to furthering another 
 line. He would now shortly allude to an article which had 
 appeared in the Glasgow Herald of the 17th, in which 
 several erroneous propositions had been laid down. It 
 was there said that only one line of Railway would ever 
 pay, and that funds for even that line could not be raised 
 without assistance from Government. The passage was 
 as follows : — “ 1st, Only one line, which must serve for 
 the great trunk, is ever likely to be made across the wild 
 and maintainous district of the south of Scotland. 2d, It 
 is not probable that even one line can ever be made, 
 except by the partial aid of Government. 3d, But whe- 
 ther made with or without Government aid, it is absolute- 
 ly necessary that this great trunk line should not only 
 connect the east side of England and London with Scot- 
 land, but that it should connect Lancashire with 
 lianarkshire.” Now, he was prepared to prove that two 
 lines could be made to pay, and that Government aid 
 would not be required for either. It was also said that a 
 line from Carlisle would be preferable to one from New- 
 castle. “ 4th, A Newcastle Railway will not afford a 
 good connection with Lancashire. 5th, On the other 
 hand, as there is already a Railway from Carlisle to New- 
 castle, a great trunk line from Glasgow and Edinburgh to 
 Carlisle would accomplish both these objects. Lastly, if we 
 waste our energies on a line of inferior importance, we 
 shall postpone indefinitely the period when the more im- 
 portant object can be attained.” He would shew that the 
 Newcastle line held out all the advantages of the Carlisle 
 one, and a great number more. Before holding meet- 
 ings in Glasgow and Edinburgh, it had been thought ad- 
 visable to take the sense of the public in the county towns 
 alpng the proposed line, and he was able to inform those 
 present, that in eight of these towns, where they had held 
 meetings, the proposal had met with general support, and 
 that already there was a list of not fewer than 202 noble- 
 men and gentlemen on the general committee. When 
 it was considered that the line would intersect the estates 
 of those noblemen and gentlemen who had thus come for- 
 ward, it would be seen to what extent the plan received 
 the approbation of the landed interest. i\Jr. R. then 
 mentioned the towns in which meetings had been held, 
 and committes formed; — Jedburgh, 12; Melrose, 33; 
 Galashiels, 24; Kelso, 10; Hawick, 12; Peebles, 40; 
 Lanark, 18; Hamilton, 25; Newcastle and Northum- 
 berland, 22 — Total, 202. He should now endeavour to 
 show the importance of the proposed line, not only in a 
 local but also in a national point of view. Mr. Richardson 
 here exhibited a plan of the line proposed, and also a map 
 of England and Scotland, and pointed out the different 
 places which the railway would affect. He might men- 
 tion, he said, three lines which were before the public, but 
 it would be seen that the one he had the honour of advo- 
 cating was most direct from liondon, which did more than 
 anything he could advance to show its advantages. I'he 
 first of the three lines was the one he supported. Blr. R. 
 again referred to the maps before him. The advantages 
 to be derived by a direct west line, he said, would be bet- 
 ter come at by a junction with their (the niidland) line. 
 The other line was the East. (Mr. R. pointed out the di- 
 rection of that line, and shewed that if the West line join- 
 ed and formed part of the iMidland line at Biggar, and 
 from thence down six miles, less of road would be required 
 than by continuing the East line, drawn on the map to 
 which he pointed.) He had now stated the general prin- 
 ciples of the scheme. Any line of railway, he considered, 
 which should materially interest Scotland, must have com- 
 
 munication with the east, as well as with the west coast. 
 In considering the merits of tlie different lines which might 
 come under consideration it was of ini])ortancc to take 
 down the distances, and this he had dune. 
 
 DISTANCRS. 
 
 
 MILES, 
 
 From Newcastle to Glasgow, . . . . 
 
 
 130 
 
 From Newcastle to Edinburgh, 
 
 
 09 
 
 P'rom London to Glasgow, . . . . 
 
 
 394 
 
 P'rom London to Pldinburgh, 
 
 
 3,(;3 
 
 From Newcastle to Peebles, . . . . 
 
 
 83 
 
 Pb’om Peebles to Edinburgh, 
 
 
 21 
 
 P'rom Peebles to Glasgow^ .... 
 
 
 47 
 
 Main Line, .... 
 
 
 lol 
 
 Branches — Hawick, ..... 
 
 11 
 
 
 Selkirk, 
 
 4 
 
 
 Pt.elso, ..... 
 
 10- 
 
 — 23 
 
 Total length of Railway, 
 
 
 176 
 
 By the Western Line, from London to Glasgow, 
 
 
 41! 
 
 By the Eastern Line, from London to Glasgow, . 
 
 
 429 
 
 This gives us a saving on the Western Line, 
 
 
 17 
 
 And in the Eastern Line, 
 
 
 . 3.3 
 
 He was quite aware that the formation of this railway was 
 a gigantic undertaking, and he had been always careful to 
 state nothing but facts. If be should make the slightest 
 misstatement, he would be glad if any gentleman would 
 correct him. In his explanations he had to go over avast 
 number of figures, and he knew the difficulty of the Press 
 to have them all correct when he had no opportunity of 
 revising. He gave the gentlemen of the Press credit, how- 
 ever, for their fidelity. He knew there were none of the 
 errors committed intentionally on the part of that impor- 
 tant body of gentlemen, and be would rather let the blame 
 rest with himself, that he might be corrected, than wiili 
 them. It was of importance to consider and compare nar- 
 rowly the advantages of the West and East lines in order 
 that it might be known which would benefit most the city 
 of Glasgow. They would find that on the present road 
 there would, by adopting the midland line, be a saving 
 amounting to 29 miles on the whole distance. The dis- 
 tance they would save over the west line would be 17 miles, 
 and over the east line 35 miles from London to Glasgow ; 
 if a railway was wanted to benelit G’asgow, and the coun- 
 try generally, the one he ])roposed was the most likely to 
 answer that end. It was especially of innioitance to state 
 what was the nature of the country over which the railway 
 was proposed to pass. They (the advocates of the scheme) 
 had been attacked about the nature of the Carter, and 
 that part of their line, and here the meeting would allow 
 him again to allude to publications which lie had seen. 
 In the communication which appeared in the Glasf/oiv 
 Herald^ it was stated that their higliest level was 1300 
 feet : — 
 
 “ I mention these considerations, not with a view of 
 checking the laudable desire to investigate the merits of 
 all the lines whiclr may be proposed, but to caution the 
 public against inconsiderately committing themselves as 
 to the “ exjiediency” of any one line. In point of fact a 
 suvvev is now about to be undertaken, under tlie direction 
 of infi'iential and respectable parties, to ascertain the best 
 line from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Carlisle, and thence 
 to Manchester and Liverjiool. The connexion would thus 
 at once be completed from our city to London, tlivough 
 Lancashire. Until it is known that this is impracticable, 
 it seems premature to be seeking a line to Newcastle-upon- 
 Tyne. In point of fact, however, so fai from being im- 
 practicable, this much is known, that while the highest 
 summit on the pro])osed Newcastle line would be 13(ld 
 feet, the highest summit on tlie Carlisle line w'ould be only 
 1000 feet. Both of these are elevations difficult to be sur- 
 mounted.” 
 
 The person who wrote this communication to the Herald 
 
31 ) 
 
 nuisl know souielhiuj; of engiiu'riinjr, umJ if he did, lie 
 luid stated a distinct falsehood, 'riieiv highest level at 
 the Carter was 000 feet. Here IMr. K. pointed out the 
 heights on the map. It had been said that the Carter was 
 composed of whinstone. He held in his hand a proof of a 
 new geological map which contained the stratifications of 
 all that part of the country, and these agreed with his own 
 knowledge, with the exception of a few trifling matters. 
 It had been stated, as he said before, that the whole of the 
 Carter Fell was a whinstone rock. Instead of that, he 
 continued, pointing to the map, they had a limestone and 
 an ironstone formation. They did not need to touch the 
 whinstone rock ; they did not need to cut it one inch. He 
 maintained that the proposed railway would be more ad- 
 vantageous than any other ; and he would stake his pro- 
 fessional knowledge on that point. He never saw a line 
 possessing greater advantages for forming a cheap and 
 well paying railway. Stones, timber, iron, and indeed 
 every thing that was required in its construction were to be 
 found convenient. He would now point out for the en- 
 couragement of those who might embark in the undertak- 
 ing, that it would be no losing concern. Whatever bene- 
 titted proprietors did good to the country, and here he 
 would also undertake to show that the public at large 
 would be profitters by the scheme. He would presently 
 show from the geological plan w hat a large field was to be 
 opened up of minerals, more valuable than even gold itself. 
 The coal and iron brought to Glasgow formed a very great 
 portion of her wealth. The ironstone to be found in these 
 districts was similar to that wrought in and about Glas- 
 gow, and it was well known there was none to equal it. 
 When such fields of ironstone was opened up, the supply 
 of coal would not be equal to the demand ; notwithstand- 
 ing all the advantages of railways and canals which were 
 at present possessed, the supply would still be below the 
 demand. In that he was borne out by many practical men 
 who had been consulted on the subject. It had been con- 
 tended that it would be better to bring the line into Glas- 
 gow by the north rather than by the south side of the river. 
 That point, he considered, could be better discussed in 
 committee after the surveys were made, than at a public 
 meeting. There would be one or one and a half miles of 
 cartage by the north side, but by bringing the railway on 
 the south side, they would be enabled to bring coals and 
 otliev goods to the river side, ready to be sent off to Pais- 
 ley, Port-Glasgow, Greenock, and other towns below. The 
 north side had advantages also, which required considera- 
 tion. iHr. Richardson then went into a calculation of the 
 probable revenues of the railway. 
 
 During the year there travel to Glasgow from Laitark, 
 l(),7ii5 passengers, and the population of Lanark is 7,7b*2. 
 From Hamilton 28,080 passengers, and the population of 
 Hamilton is 9,512. According to Dr. Cleland’s statistical 
 work, there travelled from Glasgow in the year 1831 
 1,587,189, and the population of Glasgow was 202,000. 
 The population on the whole line of railway was 510,000, 
 which would produce £382,000, admitting that that num- 
 ber travelled once a year. This was no exaggerated esti- 
 mate. According to Dr. Cleland’s calculations, a number 
 equal to the whole population of Glasgow, left the city by 
 Coaches 7 times a year. He came now to the article of 
 coals. Eighty miles of the main line of the Railway was 
 
 totally unprovided with coal, and 24 miles of branches. 
 
 On the main line were the towns of Jedburgh, Ancrum, 
 Melrose, Galashiels, Gattonside, Peebles, Broughton, 
 Biggar, and Lanark; on the branches, Hawick, Kelso, 
 Selkirk, and Pennycuick. The population of these are 
 50,000, the consumption of coal 1 ton per head, which 
 gives 50,000 tons, carried 50 miles at Id. per ton per mile 
 — was equal to £‘i0,277» To Glasgow there came about 
 2000 tons per day, upon which there would be an average 
 carriage of seven miles. He could go over the calculations 
 of revenue from coal, lime, and other materials, but seeing 
 
 that he had detained them so loiig, he would merely read 
 the results. 
 
 Mr. Richardson then summed up the accounts of re- 
 venue from the difierent sources, as follows : — 
 
 Passengers, ... . . . . i;3Hi,000 
 
 Coals on the line, . . .... 10,000 
 
 Coals to Glasgow, . ...... .’>8,000 
 
 Lime and building, . ..... 20,000 
 
 Cattle, . . . . .... 10,000 
 
 Agricultural produce and manure, .... 30,000 
 
 Altogether equal to 510,000 
 
 Which was equal to a capital of £10,200,000, at 5 per 
 cent, per annum, whereas the present Railway would not 
 cost more than two millions, and threfore the revenue 
 would be equal to 25 per cent, upon the capital required. 
 Independently of these, it was of importance to show how 
 much saving to the public would accrue from the establish- 
 ment of the railway. 
 
 SAVING BY THE RAILWAY. 
 
 By Passengers £191,000 
 
 By Goods, . ..... 640,000 
 
 Equal to a saving on the whole population of Glas- 
 gow to £4 per head, .... 831,000 
 
 If these were not advantages he knew not upon what 
 ground or upon what showing they could have a railway 
 to benefit the country. Having made these communica- 
 tions, he hoped the scheme would meet with their approba- 
 tion. If farther explanations were required, he was ready 
 to answer any questions ; in the meantime he had to thank 
 them for their attention. (Approbation.) 
 
 Bailie Gilmour then rose. In rising to propose a se- 
 ries of resolutions, he begged to state that he was entirely 
 ignorant of the subject now proposed for their considera- 
 tion ; but he considered it due to Mr. Richardson, who 
 had now so ably addressed them, and also to the nume- 
 rous committees already formed, that a connmittee should 
 be formed in Glasgow, for the purpose of forwarding the 
 necessary inquiries. The resolutions which he had now 
 the honour to propose, would commit no one to more than 
 their own subscription for the survey of the line. Having 
 read the resolutions, (which will be found in our advertis- 
 ing columns). Bailie Gilmour said he would only make 
 one further remark. He felt perfectly convinced that due 
 consideration would always be given to whatever scheme 
 held out a prospect of improving our great and rising 
 city. 
 
 C. Tennant, Esq. of St. Rollox, seconded the resolu- 
 tions. 
 
 J. G. Hamilton, Esq., said he was deeply impressed 
 with the importance of the subject they had met to dis- 
 cuss, and of the advantages to be derived from railway 
 communication. He had no wish to obstruct in any way 
 the passing of the resolutions proposed by Bailie Gilmour, 
 if it was fairly understood, that they committed the meet- 
 ing only as to the propriety of a survey, and not to the ex- 
 pediency of the proposed line. A number of resolutions 
 had been read as adopted in other places, as expressive of 
 the public sentiment in these places in favour of the line ; 
 now he did not see that that meeting were prepared to 
 come to any such conclusion. 
 
 The Ivord Provost referred Mr. Hamilton to the second 
 resolution ; but Mr. Hamilton insisted on something more 
 explicit being said on the subject. 
 
 Mr. Richardson said the resolutions only pledged the 
 meeting to make the survey, but the survey could not be 
 made without expense, and he was sure the meeting would 
 wish to see that expense paid. For himself in his profes- 
 sional capacity he would only say that if the proposed line 
 was not successful, he would charge no fees, and as to the 
 other plans spoken of, he had in his hand reports of the 
 
40 
 
 meetings held there, from which it would be seen that a resolutions were carried unanimously, and thanks having 
 survey was all that any person was pledged to. been voted to the Lord Provost for his conduct in the chair^ 
 
 Mr. Hamilton having expressed himself satisfied, the the meeting broke up. 
 
 A t a numerous and highly respectable MEETING 
 of the INHABITANTS of the CITY of GLAS- 
 GOW and its Neighbourhood, holden at the Town-Hall, 
 on Wednesday, the 19th day of October, 1836, pursuant 
 to notice, to take into consideration the expediency of 
 adopting a proposed Midland Line of Railway from New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne into Scotland, with Branches to Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow— 
 
 The Hon. WM. MILLS, Lord Provost, in the Chair — 
 
 Bailie Gilmour moved the following Resolutions, 
 which were seconded by Charles Tennant, Esq. ; — 
 
 First, — Resolved, That this Meeting (as a general prin- 
 ciple) highly approves of Railway communication, as tend- 
 ing to increase the Agricultural and Commercial interests 
 of the several Districts through which it passes, and at the 
 same time affording a cheap and speedy means of inter- 
 course with distant towns. 
 
 Second, — Resolved, That the following Gentlemen be 
 nominated a Committee to act with the Committees of 
 other Towns, to inquire into the most advisable Line of 
 Railway to be adopted from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the relative Branches. 
 And this Meeting recommends that a Subscription be en- 
 tered into, to assist in defraying the expenses of Surveys, 
 &c., of such of the proposed Lines as may be approved of 
 by the Committees ; and that the Committee now appoint- 
 ed be instructed to take charge of the Subscription List, 
 with a view of obtaining Subscriptions, and of applying 
 the amount thereof. 
 
 Names of Committee. 
 
 The LORD PROVOST of the City of Glasgow, 
 JAMES OSWALD, Esq., M.P. 
 
 The PROVOST of Rutherglen. 
 
 DAILIE GILMOUR of Glasgow. 
 
 BAILIE LUMSDEN of Glasgow. 
 bailie JOHNSTON of Glasgow. 
 
 COLIN DUNLOP, Esq. of Tollcross. 
 
 ROBERT FINDLAY, Esq. of Easterhouse. 
 ROBERT BROWN, Esq., Hamilton. 
 
 JAMES MCCALL, Esq., Daldowie. 
 
 WILLIAM DIXON, Esq. of Gallownows. 
 HENRY DUNLOP, Esq. of Craigton. 
 
 JAMES HUTCHISON, Esq., Glasgow. 
 
 ROBERT DALGLISH, Esq., Glasgow. 
 
 ROBERT STEWART, Esq., Glasgow. 
 W^ILLIAM DUNN, Esq., Glasgow. 
 
 HUGH COGAN, Esq. 
 
 ROBERT BARTHOLOMEW, Esq. 
 
 JOHN LEADBETTER, Esq. 
 
 CHARLES TENNANT, Esq. of SL Rollox; 
 
 J. G. HAMILTON, Esq. 
 
 Third, — Resolved, That no Subscriber be liable to, or 
 be called upon for more money than is set down by him 
 opposite to his name. 
 
 Fourth, — Resolved, That these Resolutions be advertised 
 in the Glasgow Newspapers. 
 
 WILLIAM illlLLS, Chairman. 
 The thanks of the Meeting were then voted to the Lord 
 Provost, for his conduct in the Chair, by the Provost of 
 of Lanark, which was seconded by Mr. Richardson. 
 
 % 
 
ON 
 
 THE REPORT OF GEORGE STEPHENSON, ESQ. 
 
 TO THE COMMITTEE OF THE 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 My Louds and Gentlemen, 
 
 I T is with considerable reluctance that I now address you. 
 
 The urgency of the circumstances, however, leave me 
 no choice. The confidence wliich you have placed in the 
 statements, which I have had the honour to submit to you, 
 imperatively requires from me an immediate notice of a 
 “Report on the Biidland Line of Railway,” by George 
 Stephenson, Esq., as published in the Newcastle and Ber- 
 wick newspapers. That such a Report should have been 
 published, as proceeding from this distinguished and justly 
 eminent Engineer, appears to me as an enigma difficult of 
 solution. Highly appreciating his great talents, and freely 
 granting his right to the celebrity which he has so justly 
 acquired, I am at a loss to conceive, how he could possibly 
 have been induced to write such a Report. I shall not 
 attempt to canvass his motives, but I will attempt to refute 
 his statements. 
 
 Before entering upon this part of my subject, you will 
 perhaps allow me to direct your attention to a very singular 
 circumstance connected with this Report ; and that is, by 
 whom was he employed ? He was not employed by you, 
 nor by the Committees of the Eastern Line, but, according 
 to the “ Wardei'U hy “ certain parties in Edinburgh, deep- 
 ly interested in the subject of a Railway Communication 
 from England, and anxious to ascertain the most desirable 
 route by which to carry it.” Who these “certain parties” 
 were, we are not informed, but it is a somewhat novel mode 
 of procedure for an umpire to see and converse with one 
 party only — to hear the evidence on one side only, and then 
 say it puts an end to all discussion!” Had Mr. Ste- 
 phenson — had “ the certain parties in Edinburgh” — acted 
 fairly, or wished to have done so, they should have con- 
 sulted with the promoters of the iMidland Line, as well as 
 with those of the Eastern one. This they never did — nay, 
 even moie, Mr. Stephenson went to examine our Line of 
 Railway without any definite plan, and without knowing 
 where our Line was intended to pass, in this destitution 
 of all accurate knowledge of our route, as a last, and in- 
 deed, his only resource, he has been at some pains to re- 
 duce into groAients the common Turnpike Road ! I wish 
 not to speak disrespectfully of Mr. Stephenson, and I 
 deeply regret the duty which now impels me to expose the 
 fallacies he has sanctioned by his great name, but you will, 
 ^ I think, agree with me in saying that he can have but a 
 poor opinion of his employers, when he attempts thus cajole 
 them into self-complacency. He will, perhaps allow me 
 to ask him, if when he opposed the Newcastle and Carlisle 
 Railway Bill in Parliament, did he produce sections and 
 gradients of the military road from this town to that city, 
 as a proof and a test that a locomotive line could not be 
 constructed between the two towns ? Or will he dare to 
 venture his London and Brighton Line of Railway on a 
 similar test ? These queries, I admit, are ridiculous and 
 absurd, nor should I have thought of putting them, had 
 not Mr. Stephenson, with a laughable gravity, attempted 
 to insinuate that the gradients on the Midland Line were 
 precisely those of the Turnpike Road. Nay, so seriously 
 does he treat this subject, and so richly farcical are his cal- 
 culations, that he tells you where a locomotive engine could 
 and where it could not, travel upon this Turnpike Road. 
 
 Before concluding this part of my addres.s to you, you 
 must allow me to say (and I say it with reluctance) that a 
 more direct attempt to mislead and misinform the public I 
 have never known. This I shall presently prove by figures 
 — the data between Mr. Stephenson and myself being 
 agreed upon, for I will take his own (erroneous though 
 they be) for my calculations. 
 
 At all the Public Meetings which have been held in 
 Scotland, I have ever expressed my readiness to enter in- 
 to explanations. These have occasionally taken place, 
 and the result has invariably been in favour of the Mid- 
 land Line. Nor do I wish to disguise, dress up, or evade 
 any question relating to it. I, therefore, have less to fear 
 than those who have to flee to indirect and underhand 
 means. And you will, perhaps, allow me to observe to 
 you, that / was not the projector of the Line, nor was I 
 employed upon it until long after it was first contemplat- 
 ed. The credit of its projection, and a great credit it un- 
 doubtedly is, belongs to Mr. Stephen Reed. I state this 
 in reply, as the “ Warder'’* calls this Line “ Mr. Richard- 
 son’s Scheme,” You will, perhaps, allow me next to dis- 
 cuss the Carter Fell Question. Upon this the credulity 
 of the public has been largely taxed. We have been 
 told that it was composed entirely of Whinstone — that it 
 were better to go a hundred miles extra distance than at- 
 tempt to go through or over it. And Mr. Stephenson 
 lends himself to this delusion. Nay, even more, with a 
 blind inconsistency peculiar to the advocacy of interest or 
 prejudice, Mr. Stephenson has averred that a tunnel of 
 eight or nine miles would be absolutely necessary \ High 
 as Mr. George Stephenson stands in his profession, if this 
 Report be really his (which I can scarcely believe,) he has 
 been guilty of reporting upon what he knows nothing, or 
 he has been silly enough to report the opinions of others, 
 lending them the sanction of his name. For a Locomo- 
 tive engine, Mr. Stephenson says the tunnel through the 
 Carter ought to be eight or nine miles long ! Where the 
 tunnel ought to commence and where it ought to end, he 
 wisely says nothing. But we have his ipse dixit that 
 such, in his opinion, was required ; whilst, at the same 
 time, he negatives his own proposition ! 
 
 He says, “The next 20 miles from the junction with 
 the Tweed to the foot of the Carter Felh I think the 
 average gradient, by making the Line circuitous, might 
 be obtained at the rate of 20 feet per mile.” After pass- 
 ing the Carter Fell, he observes, “ The vale of the Reed- 
 water appears very favourable, so far as I have examined n.*** 
 
 This, my Lords and Gentlemen, is a passage in Mr. 
 Stephenson’s Report to which I wish your attention parti- 
 cularly directed. You will observe he first says that a 
 tunnel of eight or nine miles will be rsquisite — he next 
 brings you to the “foot of the Carter Fell at a gradient of 
 20 feet in a mile — and passing the Carter, he says our 
 Line by the Reedwater is very favourable. Twenty feet 
 in a mile, you are aware, is a good Locomotive Engine 
 gradient, but where is his eight or nine miles’ tunnel ? 
 Would he advise us to commence our tunnel at Jedburgh, 
 or would he recommend Otterburn in preference ? The 
 one is not more absurd than the other, and both not more 
 so than his “ eight or nine miles’ tunnel !” 
 
42 
 
 As nuidi as liiis boon salil about the Carter — as it has 
 bet’ll represented an unpassible barrier, it may perhaps be 
 as well a^iiin to repeat a more than “ thrice told tale” re- 
 specting it. 
 
 You are aware that I have not yet levelled the Line, and 
 that I sjieak now from the sections taken by eminent En- 
 gineers, which have been presented to me. As Mr. Ste- 
 phenson rests hia whole data upon a similar foundation, 
 our circumstances in this respect are as nearly alike as 
 passible. 
 
 From this data I learn that the Carter Fell (where we 
 propose to pass) is 1115 feet above the Tron Church, 
 Edinburgh, 1202 feet above the (Queen’s tiead Inn, New- 
 castle, and 1370 feet above the level of the sea. From the 
 Carter, northwards, and where we cross the Tiviot, we are 
 COO feet above the sea (according to Mr. Telford’s surveys 
 in ICIO); and as we are on crossing the Tiviot 13 miles 
 from the Carter, and taking Mr. Stephenson’s gradient of 
 20 feet a mile, we gain 200 feet before reaching the Carter ; 
 this makes 800 feet, and supposing we tunnel through the 
 Carter at 500 feet below the surface, this leaves us only a 
 bridge of 10 feet height above ordinary levels to make over 
 the much talked of and much made of Tiviot Water. 
 
 The Carter Mountains have been a favourite theme with 
 our Eastern opponents. The pass has been represented as 
 bad, if not worse than that of the Simplon. Permit me to 
 state to you the simple facts as I have gathered them from 
 personal observation and from the sections v/hich have 
 been given to me. There are, as you are doubtless aware, 
 a chain of hills which stretch from the North-East to the 
 South-West of the Island, and any passage from England 
 into Scotland is precluded, save you pass this mountain 
 range, unless, indeed, you keep close by the East or West 
 Coasts. To do so in the formation of a Railway would 
 be evidently circuitous, and therefore in making a direct 
 Line from London to Edinburgh or Glasgow, it appeared 
 to me essential to pass this mountain range, if it could be 
 possibly achieved. 
 
 After a careful and repeated examination of the country, 
 I am decidedly of opinion that a cheaper or a better Line 
 cannot be devised than the one I have had the honour to 
 submit to you. 
 
 Where we propose passing the Carter range, the Moun- 
 tain (if such we must call it) presents every facility which 
 an Engineer could desire. It rises precipitately, and falls 
 as perpendicularly as it rises. A tunnel of a mile in 
 length, supposing the horizontal line of section to be at 
 the summit, (which it would be), and 500 feet below the 
 highest surface level, would actually compensate for less 
 favourable gradients on the other parts of the lane. 
 
 You will perceive, from what 1 have already said, that 
 Mr. Stephenson has been most completely misled as regards 
 the levels. Let us now inquire how far he is right as to 
 the Geological stratification of the Carter. He says, “ It 
 may be said that this hill (the Carter) might be tunnelled 
 through. This is quite out of the question,” &c. ; and 
 afterwards adds, “ as I have particularly examined the 
 geological character of this district, and find that the Car- 
 ter Fell is composed of basaltic (!!!) at a small depth 
 from the surface of the ground, it puts an end to all dis- 
 cussion with respect to a tunnel through it.” Giving Mr. 
 Stephenson full credit for his geological discoveries^ it is 
 somewhat unfortunate that not one of our geological wri- 
 ters or maps agree with his personal examination of the 
 ground ; and instead of his opinion “ putting an end to all 
 discussion” with respect to a tunnel through the Carter, it 
 will, I am persuaded, only tend to excite inquiries into 
 the subject. But even supposing that it may be found 
 
 inexpedient to tunnel the Carter, we can easily go over it 
 by sliort inclined planes and a fixed engine. This mode 
 of passing over high ground has frequently been resorted 
 to even by Mr. Stephenson himself, and there can be no 
 reason why we should not do the same, if it be found ad- 
 visable. 
 
 To obtain the levels to which I have alluded, the tun- 
 nel would be rather less than a mile in length ; were the 
 tunnel to be nine miles in length, as proposed by Mr. 
 Stephenson, he would actually have to go at least 200 feet 
 below the base of the hill in order to obtain a cover for it ! 
 This fact sufficiently exposes the absurdity of his proposi- 
 tion. 
 
 As Mr. Stephenson has been completely mistaken as to 
 our line from Edinburgh to the Tweed, and given himself 
 the trouble of reporting upon what is not our line, this 
 part of bis report requires no remark. From the Tweed 
 to the Carter Fell, Mr. Stephenson approves of our line, 
 and thinks that an average gradient may be obtained at 
 twenty feet a mile. After passing the Carter, he says 
 “ The vale of the Reedwater appears very favourable, so 
 far as I have examined it.” He then diverges from our 
 line, and proceeds to Newcastle without seeing any more 
 of it. Thus, you will perceive, that with the exception of 
 the Carter, Mr. Stephenson unequivocally approves of all 
 which he has actually seen and examined of our line. 
 His opinions on what he has nor seen, and on the turn- 
 pike road, are of little or no value, unless, indeed, as they 
 may happen to be appreciated by the road trustees. 
 
 The approbation which he expresses of our Line is, I 
 am aware, quite involuntary on his part, for it is quite 
 evident that he was employed to report against the Mid- 
 land Line, otherwise he would have told us rather more 
 than he has done respecting the Eastern Line. After 
 gratuitously giving us the gradients of the turnpike roads 
 — after advising us to go 200 feet below the base of Carter 
 Fell, in order to make a tunnel nine miles in length, and 
 reporting upon a Line which we do not contemplate to 
 pursue — it was but reasonable to expect some information 
 from him respecting the Eastern Line, which he says he 
 has also examined. Instead of expending his energies on 
 the Chevy-chase road, he might have told us something of 
 their gradients ; instead of boggling at the Carter, he 
 might have said something about the stratification of the 
 country on the Eastern Line — he might have informed us 
 whether they go 20, 30, or 40 miles through whinstone ; and 
 many other particulars equally interesting. But this he 
 does not do. All he says about the Eastern Line is con- 
 densed into a paragraph of eight lines. He says, I have 
 to inform you that I have also examined the country from 
 Dunbar to the summit between that town and Berwick, 
 and find that almost a level line can be obtained from 
 Dunbar to that summit.'^ Where that summit is, and 
 what the gradients are from that summit to the Tweed at 
 Berwick, he does not inform us. This short sentence is, 
 in fact, all he says about the gradients of the Eastern Line. 
 
 I think you will agree with me that a more unfair and 
 exaggenated report could not well have been written, and 
 I cannot refrain from again expressing my surprise and 
 regret, that an engineer so justly celebrated as Mr. Ste- 
 phenson is, should have so far lent himself to a party as 
 to do such great injustice to the public. 
 
 I am, My Lords and Gentlemen, 
 With great respect, 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON. 
 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nov. 3, 183C. 
 
MEETING AT EDINBURGH 
 
 On Weilnesday, the IGth inst., a public meeting of the 
 inhabitants of Eilinbuigh and its environs was held in the 
 Royal Exchange Coft'ee-house, to take into consideration 
 the practicability and expediency of constructing a rail- 
 way thiough Northumberland, Roxburghshire, Selkirk- 
 shire, Peebles-shire, and Lanarkshire, by Jedburgh, Mel- 
 rose, Galashiels, Peebles, and Pennicuick, to Edinburgh, 
 with a continuation of the line westwards from Peebles, 
 by Biggar, Lanark, and Hamilton, to Glasgovr, as a con- 
 tinuation of the Great Northern Railway from London to 
 Newcastle. 
 
 On the motion of Mr. Roger Aytoun, W. S., Dean of 
 Guild Lamond was called to the chair, who having briefly 
 explained the objects for which the meeting was called, and 
 introduced Mr. Reed, the projector, and Mr. Joshua Rich- 
 ardson, the engineer, as a deputation from the committee 
 in Northumberland, 
 
 Mr. Richardson, after a few introductory remarks, stated 
 that he had letters from several noblemen and gentlemen 
 apologising for their absence. 1 am aware, he said, that 
 a city like Edinburgh, possessing in itself the sources of 
 inexhaustible wealth — possessing seminaries of learning 
 which are famed over the whole world — and gentlemen of 
 great acquirements and knowledge, does not require to 
 wait till those in the higher circles shall have given their 
 sanction to a scheme which is to promote the prosperity of 
 the city, and to advance the interests of every one of its 
 citizens ; and yet it seems necessary to me to observe 
 that several noblemen and gentlemen who intended to be 
 present, have been prevented by various causes, and whose 
 letters I now have in my possession. I may add, before 
 going farther, that in the statements into which 1 am about 
 to enter, if there is any ambiguity or misstatement, I trust 
 the gentlemen who are present, and who may be better ac- 
 quainted with the subject than I am, will have the candour 
 and honesty to state so in direct terms. I wish not to 
 mislead the public — I wish to instruct them fairly and 
 openly. If there is any mistake, it will rest with those 
 gentlemen more than me if it goes forth to the public. I 
 make these observations because I see gentlemen here who 
 advocate another line. (Name.) I have no objection to 
 name — (No, no) — and who have uttered statements at other 
 public meetings, which, I believed at the time, and be- 
 lieve still, will ultimately prove to be unfounded in fact. 
 I may also allude to a report which has been published by 
 Mr. George Stephenson. I do this with reluctance, and 
 my remarks on it shall be brief, as 1 have already pub. 
 lished my opinion on it; but 1 must say that 1 regret Mr. 
 Stephenson has not affixed his name to that report if it be 
 his — for that point is still doubtful, because I lately saw 
 some queries in the Newcastle Courant, asking me if I 
 knew it to be Mr. Stephenson’s report. Why should the 
 opposite party raise a doubt on this point if it be really 
 and truly Mr. Stephenson’s report. For myself I must 
 candidly and truly confess that when I read that report I 
 did not think it was Mr. Stephenson’s. My opinion is 
 still the same ; and 1 must say, that if Mr. Stephenson 
 did write it, I think he never intended it to be made pub- 
 lic. The queries in the Newcastle Courant have con- 
 firmed me in that opinion, because I am there asked if 
 I have seen his signature to that report, although it has 
 been published as his in several newspapers, and more 
 particularly in the Berwick Warder. If I have said 
 
 any thing but what Is due to the professional cha- 
 racter of Mr. George Stephenson, it is not my fault ; it is 
 the fault of his advisers, and those who have published 
 his report. But, quitting these preliminary observations, 
 allow me next to go into the merits of the scheme which I 
 have to submit for your approbation. It is not a railway 
 from Newcastle to Edinburgh, from Newcastle to Glasgow, 
 and the intervening places, merely; but it is a railway 
 from London to Edinburgh, from London to Glasgow ; it 
 is, in fact, to be one of the great arteries of the country. 
 You will see, by the exhibition of the maps, that our line Is 
 the shortest possible line which can be had from London to 
 Edinburgh or Glasgow. Mr. Stephenson tells us that it 
 will require a tunnel of eight or nine miles length through 
 the Carter, or else it will be necessary to go 100 miles 
 round. Now, it so happens, that I do not know a railway 
 in which Mr. Stephenson is engaged which has not a tunnel 
 included, or an inclined plane, or both. Taking the tun- 
 nels in their abstract sense, it is clear that in themselves, 
 in Mr. Stephenson’s opinion, they are not so objectionable 
 as he would seem to wish to make out in reporting upon 
 the Midland Line, Taking this line through the Carter, di- 
 rectly to Newcastle and to Edinburgh, and connecting it also, 
 as it would do, vvith the Great Northern Railway from Lon- 
 don to York, it would open up immediate communication 
 between London and Edinburgh. I need not say a word to 
 remind this company of the advantages of railway commu- 
 nication, because you all understand them. You see them 
 adopted universally around you ; and it is a question of 
 great importance for this district, whether they should be 
 left behind in the march of improvement — whether you 
 shall get that for Gd. for which you now pay Is. It re- 
 duces itself into a question of political economy, int» 
 which I need not enter; but 1 think it behoves every 
 town and city which possesses such facilities to give every 
 encouragement for the formation of railroads. At the 
 same time, it equally behoves Chem to choose the best pos- 
 sible line — the direct line, if that is practicable, and if not, 
 to go round by the sea coast or anywhere else. It is need- 
 less, therefore, to comment on the advantages that would 
 arise to Edinburgh from a direct railway conveyance be- 
 tween it and London ; and I shall condense my observa- 
 tions as much as possible, reserving the privilege, with the 
 permission of the meeting, of replying to any remarks that 
 may be made by parties opposed to our line. Before I 
 go farther, I may mention, that it has been stated in the 
 Berwick Warder that I was the projector of this scheme. 
 That is not true ; I was not the projector of it. The credit 
 of it, and a great credit it is, belongs to Mr. Stephen Reed, 
 and it has been supported by the gentry of Northumberlai d 
 and the whole of the west of Scotland. When I say that, 
 I may mention one fact, that there are 220 noblemen ar.d 
 gentlemen formed into a committee, approving and sup- 
 porting our line ; and I need only mention the name of 
 one nobleman, for whom I am sure you all feel respect and 
 veneration — the Duke of Hamilton. He is an unequivo- 
 cal supporter of our scheme, and has shown it by his sub- 
 scription. I may add, that no survey has yef been made 
 of our line. I make a present of that admission to our 
 opponents ; but there are sections taken which may sati>fy 
 any committee of the practicability of the scheme. I may 
 state, as I did at Kelso, that I have not c )me to give the 
 information we possess to a party which is opposed to u?. 
 
44 
 
 I am willing to give tliat information to a committee of 
 our own ; but it is unreasonable for our opponents to 
 come, as they did at Kelso, and ask us for that gra- 
 tuitously, which, if they come privately to my office, 
 they would have to pay for. (Laughter.) I shall 
 make my explanations as full and as clear as possi- 
 ble, for the goneral purposes of a public meeting, but I 
 shall reserve full communications for the committee which 
 may be appointed. I shall state no fact except on my 
 own knowledge, or which I do not believe to be true. 1 
 shall now direct your attention to the general line. — (Here 
 ]\Ir. II. exhibited a plan of the Carter, with the proposed 
 tunnel.) — Here is the much dreaded — the much made of 
 — the much talked of Carter Fell, about which there have 
 been many misstatements and many exaggerations, by my 
 friend J\Ir. Ramsay of Berwick, v/ho is here to-day, but 
 these, I am inclined to suppose, must have arisen from 
 misinformation. From Mr. Ramsay I have ever experi- 
 enced kind and gentlemanly feelings, although we are op- 
 posed in our support of different lines. Mi. Richardson, 
 after describing the section, said, here is our tunnel, IGCO 
 yards in length, and here is the proposed tunnel projected 
 for a turnpike road. The distance of our tunnel from the 
 surface is 425 feet. The turnpike road only touches us at 
 two points, that is, at Whitelees and on the summit where 
 it is directly above us ; but those of you will recollect who 
 have seen that road, that it winds considerably about the 
 hill before it reaches its summit, and it keeps a higher 
 level than is necessary. In making this section it was 
 necessary, in the first place, to get it into a reasonable 
 compass to comprise it, as engineers generally do in m.ak- 
 ing a v/orking section. This is such a section as we should 
 give to workmen for constructing the works. The hori- 
 zontal scale is 309 feet in one inch, and the vertical scale 
 30 feet in an inch. Here is the proposed turnpike road 
 tunnel (showing it on the section), and here is the railway 
 tunnel. Here is the open cutting at this end down to the 
 Whitelees, and the open cutting on the other side ; this 
 gives the summit of our level, and makes us a level line 
 through the Carter. Here is a section of the same, drawn 
 in its fair proportions (showing another section of the 
 Carter Fell), bearing the natural appearance of the surface 
 of the country ; but the working section shews more 
 clearly the easy practicability of tunnelling through the 
 Carter. On this subject, he continued, I have little 
 moie to say at present, but it is important to remem- 
 her that this line is the most direct one ; as a proof of 
 which, 1 shall give you the distances between the different 
 points. From Newcastle to Glasgow is 130 miles — from 
 Newcastle to Edinburgh 99; but, by a deviation from the 
 original plan, it is made six miles longer, which I shall 
 explain, making this latter distance 105 miles. It was at 
 first proposed to go by Galashiels, but it was found there 
 would be some very expensive cutting at Bortbwick Castle, 
 and I readily accepted an invitation from gentlemen in the 
 counties to inspect another line from Peebles to Edin- 
 burgh up the Eddlestone water. Both plans now remain for 
 our choice ; the merits of either must be determined by 
 their actual levels, but my conviction is, that the line by 
 Peebles will be ultimately chosen. By this plan the dis- 
 tance from London to Glasgow will be 394 miles — from 
 ijondon to Edinburgh 303. From Newcastle to Peebles 
 the distance is 33 miles — from Peebles to Edinburgh 21 
 : — from Peebles to Glasgow 47. The branches to Ha- 
 wick, to Selkirk, and to Kelso, will make a total of 170 
 miles ; and if our Eastern friends will abandon their line, 
 as I trust they will have the good sense to do — (a laugh) 
 and if our Kelso and Berwick friends also abandon their 
 line, which I consider to be impracticable for locomotive 
 engines, then wc would carry a branch railway to Berwick, 
 and in doing so I say we would confer a greater benclit on 
 the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed than has been bestowed 
 u])on that town since the union of the two kingdoms. Wc 
 will expose to them the whole traffic of the interior of the 
 
 country, while the eastern line only opens up to them the 
 traffic of the few fishing villages through which they pass, 
 and the only advantage they will derive therefrom will be 
 a supply of fish, of which they have already a superabun- 
 dant quantity. There is no other advantage but that ; for 
 though the advocates of an eastern line boast of a greater 
 population than we can show, yet I am convinced, if that 
 line is established, Berwick will reap no material advan- 
 tages. It opens no thoroughfares through the interior of 
 Scotland, and it is impossible to conceive that the tourists 
 will keep the line of the sea coast, if they wish to see the 
 beauties of Roxburghshire, Lanarkshire, Peebles-shire, and 
 Northumberland, through which our line passes. How is a 
 man to get to Lanark from Berwick by the eastern line ? He 
 may go as far as Berwick, and then it is just possible he 
 may get to Kelso, but there he must be staid per force. I 
 know, indeed, that the advocates of the east line, following 
 our example, have proposed a branch line to Jedburgh 
 and Hawick. It is not very fair thus to copy our plans ; 
 but, even if they had it, their line would be less service- 
 able to Scotland than our’s. We go through a country 
 unprovided with those valuable materials, coal and lime. 
 There are 104 miles of our railway totally unprovided v/ith 
 either coal or lime for agricultural purposes. Of this, 80 
 miles is on the main line, and 24 on the branches. At 
 Galashiels they pay 19s. to 21s. per load for coal — we 
 could deliver that at from 5s. 6d. to 6s. per load. At 
 Hawick they pay 15s. per load, and it happens, that at 
 present they are takingcoals to Hawick from a place where 
 Mr. Stephenson assures us in his report there is nothing 
 but whinstone rock. We could deliver coals at Hawick 
 for 4s. 6d. a load. Both of these are rising towns; ma- 
 nufactories are being erected on every side of them — and 
 the benefits arising to them from this railway would he 
 incalculable. At Peebles and on every side, I found 
 sources of profit which to me were unexpected and aston- 
 ishing. 
 
 I shall now proceed to show you the practicability of 
 the line as far as I am able from the nature of the sections 
 v/e have. I shall first advert to the rise on the Teviot. It 
 has been said that we shall require a bridge over the 
 Teviot 400 or 500 feet in height. IMr. Stephenson is of a 
 different opinion — he reports that there is not more than 
 ten feet rise over the Teviot, and taking Mr. Stephenson’s 
 data and Mr. Telford’s data, I find we shall have not more 
 than a rise of ten feet. Telford, a man at least as eminent 
 as Stephenson, in 1810, in a report of a line of railway 
 from Berwick to Glasgow, says, “ On the eastern side of 
 the summit, for 7 miles from Berwick, the ascent, in order 
 to clear the banks of the Tweed previous to reaching 
 Paxton Park, is at the rate of 18 feet per mile. In another 
 instance, for a distance of 3 miles the inclination is at the 
 rate of 15 feet per mile. In all other instances as far as 
 Peebles the ascent does not exceed 12 feet per mile.” 
 Telford here says, most distinctly, that in order to clear 
 the banks of the Tweed he was obliged to rise at the rate 
 of 18 feet in the mile. Now, in passing the Tweed 1 have 
 taken it on the average of 15 feet a mile, which gives us 
 GOO at the Tweed water where we mean to cioss. if Mr. 
 Telford be wrong I am not accountable for his error. I 
 have not surveyed the ground, but 1 rely on his report. ^ I 
 have two sections of his ; but the one docs not agree with 
 the other, in consequence of some mistake in the engrav- 
 ing, 1 believe, which is needless to explain. Here is Ah*. 
 Telford’s report, signed by himself, in which he says that 
 the Tweed runs 18 feet a mile. SVhocver is acquainted 
 with the Teviot will grant that it is a much more rapid 
 river than the Tweed. You will easily perceive that in 
 taking COO feet in the whole distance I am going con- 
 siderably below Telford’s report, and below the probability 
 of the case. But even supposing an extreme case on the 
 other side, supposing wc have only 10 feet a niilc rising 
 from the sea to where wc cross the 1 evict, still 
 there would be no great diflicultics. Bridges have 
 
45 
 
 been built for turnpike roads, and wiiy not the same 
 for railways. I know not the height of the Tweed 
 where it is to bo crossed by the eastern line — they 
 are very chary of their comnuinications, however anxious 
 they may be for a sight of ours, but it must be very long 
 and very expensive, and we have no bridge on our line 
 equal to it. From the Teviot to Peebles there is as fair a 
 line as could be laid. From thence to Edinburgh the line 
 has not been levelled, and 1 have no sections of it ; but 
 from an eye examination of it, I can only say that it is 
 well worth surveying. On the other line, by Borthwick 
 Castle, there are diificulties, but by deep cuttings they may 
 be got through. I do not speak of my own knowledge ; but 
 if Mr. Telford is wrong — if Messrs. Grainger and Miller 
 are wrong — or if Mr. Weatherly is wrong — then I am de- 
 ceived and wrong. 1 rely on them and their reports — I 
 rest my whole case on them. From the Carter to New- 
 castle, we have an exceedingly good line ; and I believe 
 the only part of it which Mr. Stephenson saw met with 
 his unequivocal approbation, which being the testimony 
 of an opponent, is worth something ; and I shall only 
 add, that the levels may be maintained at equal gra- 
 dients on the part which he did not see. Seeing, then, 
 as I trust you have seen, that the line is practicable 
 w— it is an exceedingly good line, and a cheap line, 
 for I never knew a railway passing along the sides of 
 hills which could be executed more cheaply, for we have 
 all the materials — 1 shall next go into the question of re- 
 venue. I could easily prove to you that my estimates of 
 the revenue are far short of what it will actually prove to 
 be, by referring to the report of Mr. James Jardine and 
 ether engineers on the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway. 
 As a main line from England to Scotland, passengers will 
 form a very important item in our account, not only on 
 the extreme distance, but it is important, inasmuch as we 
 shall get a great accession of numbers by those who travel 
 to see the interesting scenery of Scotland. We go the 
 precise line in which tourists go to see the beautiful 
 scenery of Scotland, and those places which have been 
 immortalized by the genius of Sir Walter Scott, and 
 which possesses a tenfold attraction for Englishmen 
 since the publication of his novels. Now, taking passen- 
 gers of all descriptions, we may calculate the whole popu- 
 tion on the line to travel once in the year. This is no no- 
 vel mode of calculating the number of passengers, nor is 
 it an untrue one, for it has been ascertained to be correct 
 by unquestionable data. At Lanark, it has been found 
 the population travel twice in the year — at Hamilton three 
 times — in Glasgow seven times, and from the best data 
 which I have been able to obtain, the inhabitants of Edin- 
 burgh travel between eight and nine times a-year. But we 
 only take it once a-year, and you will perceive, on taking 
 the whole population of the line, that this yields a revenue 
 of £382,000. Coals and lime may be estimated at a low rate 
 at £10,000; coals from Glasgow for shipping, and iron, 
 £58,000; lime and building materials, £30,000; cattle, 
 £10,000; the whole amounting to £510,000, or 25 per 
 cent, on a capital of two millions. I shall show you that 
 this is not over estimated, and convince you that it is fea- 
 sible, by referring you to the report of Mr. Jardine on the 
 railway between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Here we find 
 the distance between Edinburgh and Glasgow to be 44 
 miles, on which the committee calculate 243,000 tons of 
 coal to be carried 74 miles ; whereas, on 170 miles, v/e 
 only calculate on 150,000 tons being carried 57 miles. 
 They calculate on 12,800 tons of iron being carried 229 
 miles ; and the whole amount in 44 miles, including pas- 
 sengers, is £60,790 ; and the whole that we calculate on, 
 is £510,000. On goods only, they have £43,184; for the 
 whole revenue on goods and merchandize between Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow, we have £128,000. They, there- 
 fore, estimate £980 per mile ; whereas 1 have made out 
 my estimate at £733 per mile. As far as the estimate 
 has gone, I have endeavoured to put it as low as possible ; 
 
 but my conviction Is, that ultimately the revenue will bo 
 much greater tliau lierc stated. One source of revenue, 
 which I see noticed in tliis report, is the conveyance of 
 coals from Ijanark to liondon. This appears, at first 
 sight, a far-fetched projection ; but, from figures, it appears 
 perfectly feasible; and Mr. Jardine would not give it, if 
 he was not convinced of it. He says “There is great 
 reason for believing that the railway may be made emi- 
 nently useful to the inhabitants of London, and productive 
 of great revenue to itself, by becoming the means of partly 
 supplying the metropolis with coal from the unexhaustible 
 stores of Lanarkshire. For the reasons stated by the com- 
 mittees, they do not calculate upon this as a certain source 
 of revenue : but they suggest it for the consideration of 
 the subscribers. The demand in London is computed at 
 1,500,000 tons of coal yearly; and the following is the 
 statement of the prices at which Lanarkshire coal, equal 
 in quality to some of the best sold in London, could be 
 sold for in that market : — 
 
 Price at which coal may be profitably 
 
 put out of pits in Lanarkshire, £0 3 0 pet ton. 
 Railway dues, ^d. per ton, per mile, 
 
 24 miles, 0 10 do. 
 
 Trackage, . . . . 0 10 do. 
 
 Wharfage, . . . . . 0 0 2 do. 
 
 Price at which Lanarksliire coal may 
 
 be shipped, . . . .£0 5 2 do. 
 
 King’s duty, and other charges, about 0 6 4| do. 
 
 Freight, Insurance, Broker’s Commis- 
 sion and Guarantee, . . 0 11 2^ do. 
 
 £1 2 9 
 
 The price of coal of the same quality in Loiidon, runs 
 from 32s. to 44s. per chaldron.” The projected railway 
 alluded to by Mr. Jardine, goes on the north of the Clyde, 
 ours goes on the south side ; and it is important to take 
 into consideration, in a great national work of this kind, 
 the local as well as the general national advantages to be 
 derived from it. If this statement be correct, it is clear 
 that great advantages will accrue not only to Lanarkshire 
 itself, but to London, inasmuch as we shall be enabled to 
 supply coals to London at a cheaper rate than they are 
 furnished to London from Newcastle. From the Sunder- 
 land papers received this morning, the highest price of 
 coals in London is 26s. 3d. per ton, and the lowest 19s. 6d. ; 
 there would, therefore, be a clear saving to the people of 
 London, if they had the Lanark coals. But I do not 
 pledge myself for this statement, I give it from the re- 
 port. There are many other articles, as regards revenue, 
 that I have not mentioned at all, which are noticed in 
 this report. 1 can liave no doubt that from these state- 
 ments I have shown you that our line is a good line — 
 that it is exceedingly practicable — that it will be advan- 
 tageous to the country ; and that it will pay the proprie- 
 tors, and confer immense benefits on every town connect- 
 ed with it. One thing more I beg to state, that, in as 
 far as regards local railways, although they may advan- 
 tage particular districts, unless they go into a scheme of 
 national utility, their advantages will be short of those 
 which embrace a general and national scheme. I have 
 one thing to say before I sit down, respecting ano- 
 ther raihve v, probably of great advantage to the places 
 through which it is to pass — I mean the Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow Railway. I have no wish to enter into com- 
 petition with that railway, or to say one word other than 
 fiivourable of it, for I believe that two such cities as Edin- 
 burgh and Glasgow ate quite able to support both that 
 line and the line which we have proposed ; but it i's im- 
 portant to Edinburgh, and still more to Glasgow, that the 
 south of the Clyde should have a railway as well as the 
 north. On the north there are already two or three rail- 
 ways which come into Glasgow from high levels, and the 
 goods brought by them are obliged to be cartel to the 
 
46 
 
 shipping for a mile or two ; to remedy that inconvenience, 
 filr. Grainger has proposed a tunnel to the shipping, but 
 that has not yet been done. This is a heavy check to their 
 prosperity. We propose to go at once to the shipping op- 
 posite the Broomielaw, thus affording every facility for the 
 shipment of coal, iron, or other goods. These are import- 
 ant considerations, and I trust you will agree in opinion 
 with me, that you have seldom listened to the details of a 
 scheme more likely to conduce to the interest of Edin- 
 burgh, or to promote the prosperity of the country at 
 large. 
 
 Mr. Bamsay of Berwick, begged to trouble the meeting 
 with a few observations on the question before them, as 
 mention had been made of him by Mr. Richardson in his 
 speech. He held in his hand a credential, which shewed 
 that he did not intrude himself upon the meeting, being 
 a stranger, gratuitously, but that he came there as one of a 
 deputation, not to enter into a controversy with Mr. Rich- 
 ardson, but to keep an eye on the proceedings. He agreed 
 with almost every word spoken by Mr. Richardson on the 
 merits of the case itself, that wherever railways are made, 
 that the advantages on which he enlarged might be rea- 
 sonably expected; but that was not the question before 
 the meeting ; the question was, which was the best line 
 from Newcastle to Edinburgh. Mr. Richardson’s great 
 recommendation of his line was that it was shorter than 
 the proposed Eastern line by ten miles. Now, engineers 
 knew well that ten miles saved in distance might not be 
 ten miles saved in time, and time was certainly a great 
 object. Mr. Stephenson, to whom allusion had several 
 times been made, said that the distance of the 110 miles 
 could be travelled in a shorter time by the Eastern line, 
 than the 100 miles by the Midland line — and Mr. Stephenson 
 was certainly a great authority, and was not hastily to be 
 set aside. It is true that Mr. Stephenson did not go into 
 any detail to prove this assertion, and they had Mr. Rich- 
 ardson’s ipse dixit to set against Mr. Stephenson’s. Mr. 
 Stephenson was known to all — he was now national pro- 
 perty — and this report he had given, signed with his own 
 name, and Mr. Richardson, of whom he (Mr. Ramsay) 
 did not wish to speak but with respect, was not equally 
 well known with Mr. Stephenson. Mr. Richardson, he 
 acknowledged to be an honourable opponent, but he did 
 not explain his plans satisfactorily before a public meet- 
 ing, convened for the purpose of explaining them in detail. 
 He (Mr. Ramsay) did not mean to enter into detail here, 
 but he begged to ask Mr. Richardson whereabouts he 
 meant to cross the Tweed? The data upon which he 
 (Mr. Ramsay) went, were not his own but Mr. Stephen- 
 son’s and Mr. Grainger’s. What was the fact in regard 
 to the Eastern line ? A company had already been formed 
 for a bill to carry into effect a line from Edinburgh and 
 
 Dunbar, 30 miles of which had already been surveyed 
 
 If the Eastern line should not go on as a whole, a company 
 would immediately be formed from Newcastle to Morpeth, 
 and from passengers alone there would arise a large re- 
 venue, which would make it a profitable speculation. He 
 (31r. Ramsay) was unwilling to trouble them with remarks, 
 but he was glad that a gentleman on his left (Dr. Browne) 
 had taken the trouble to make himself master of the sub- 
 ject, who would j)rove to the meeting the impracticability 
 of Mr. Richardson’s scheme. 
 
 Mr. Aytoun, W. S., read the resolutions in regard to 
 the midland railway. He said he appeared with the view 
 of recommending the best line of railway communication, 
 and the midland one he thought the best, but he was not 
 prejudiced in favour of it. He considered it important, as 
 having in contemplation branches to the right and lefc, 
 which must render it superior to the eastern line, which is 
 ])roposed to go by the sea coast ; and the midland one thus 
 having branches on both sides of the great trunk, it would 
 open up the interior of the country for the consumpt of its 
 produce (For Resolutions see advertisement.) 
 
 Air. Hell, W.S., seconded the resolutions. He thought 
 
 it was plain that some of his friends present had opposite 
 interests to those who had called the meeting, and he did 
 not see how, in justice, they could vote against the line of 
 railway which they appeared to have a material interest in 
 quashing. He thought inquiry was the best of all courses 
 they could follow ; and the lesolutions which had been 
 read to them were merely to the effect of making proper 
 inquiry. 
 
 Dr. Browne begged to advert to two circumstances in 
 limine. Mr. Richardson had ascribed the whole merit of 
 his projected line to Mr. Stephen Reed, whose name was 
 attached to the original prospectus, but it did so happen, 
 curiously enough, that these two gentlemen seemed to be 
 established together in that species of alliance of which 
 they had an example in the twins of Hippocritus, who al- 
 ways laughed and cried together. In Air. Richardson’s 
 first report, before anything is done, they had the very line 
 now submitted to them. On what grounds, he (Dr. B.) 
 would ask, were they required to subscribe their money ? 
 These gentlemen called a meeting of the citizens of Edin- 
 burgh, and Air. Richardson’s statement at this public 
 meeting was, that he would only partially impart his plans, 
 and yet he called on them to subscribe their money. — 
 Scotchmen, in particular, were not usually in a hurry to 
 subscribe money ; they liked to know the why and w'here- 
 fore. Since this line was proposed, the constant cry was 
 money. The whole plan seemed to have been created for 
 this purpose. They were to pay these gentlemen their 
 usual fees, and were to be indemnified by a company yet 
 in posse, and might never exist, except in the imaginations 
 of these gentlemen. Was there ever such a proposal made 
 to a company of canny Scotchmen. Air. Richardson had 
 told them that if Air. Stephenson had known that his re- 
 port was intended for publication, he never would have 
 consented to it. Now he (Dr. B.) would put it to any re- 
 spectable engineer, if he would deserve the name respec- 
 table, were he, when called upon to give in a report, to 
 peril his professional reputation, by giving in such a re- 
 port as he would not wish to see published to all man- 
 kind ? What was the fact before them ? Here they 
 had the verbal statement of Air. Richardson, and on 
 the other hand they had the deliberate opinion of one 
 who, perhaps, had had more experience in railways 
 than any engineer in the country, and to whose cele- 
 brity Air. Richardson himself had borne willing and 
 hearty testimony. Here, they had Air. Richardson’s 
 authority on the one hand, and what experience he might 
 have had in this species of engineering, he (Dr. B.) knew 
 not. He believed that Air. Richardson was comparatively 
 unknown in this city, but Air. Stephenson was known to 
 the whole kingdom, and had constructed railways in all 
 their complicated varieties ; and he had come to the con- 
 clusion, the reverse of that come to by Air. Richardson, 
 and had, in the most unequivocal and undaunted terms, 
 denounced the sclieme of Air. Richardson as visionary and 
 impracticable. Here they had two quantities completely 
 anniliilating each other — authoiity against authority— and 
 he (Dr. B.) would ask how they were to decide ? There 
 was no case before them which would warrant them to as 
 sent to the resolutions proposed. Dr. Browne then read 
 an extract from the report of Air. Stephenson on the geo- 
 logical structure of the Carter hell, and said that it ever 
 there was an instance ot doctor versus doctor, or authority 
 versus authority, he submitted tliat this was one ; and 
 when he shewed that fact alone, it would be almost unne- 
 cessary to say a word more. Air. Richardson had said 
 that no survey had been made. Upon what ground, tlun, 
 were they to decide ? Where were the data from which 
 those sweeping conclusions about sentimental tourists and 
 picturesque travellers had been drawn ? They were here 
 U) inquire into matters of fact. Dt. Browne then quoted 
 the opinion of Air. Robert Stevenson, in regard to an in- 
 clined plane at Galashiels, shewing that it was in perfect 
 accordance with the opinion of Air. Stephenson. I’he 
 
47 
 
 learr.cil gentleman then entereil shortly into the inquiry as 
 to the levels, ami he concluded by saying that he had con- 
 sidered he liad shown enough to warrant the meeting in 
 coming to the conclusion, that they were not in a condi- 
 tion to respond to the resolutions proposed. On the one 
 hand they had the report of Mr. Stephenson, on the other 
 the ipse dixit of Mr. llichardson ; and he (Dr. B.) as a 
 citizen of Edinburgh, begged to state that it was a gross 
 delusion to say there were opposing parties — no such 
 tiling. He, and those who supported him, considered 
 tlieinselves bound to oppose those who had an interest in 
 piesenting an impracticable scheme — a scheme for the 
 benefit of certain individuals, of whom they knew no- 
 thing. 
 
 Mr. Bell, W.S., submitted to the meeting whether it 
 was necessary to make such allegations. It was not at all 
 necessary to the carrying of his point to impeaeh any gen- 
 tleman. (Hear, hear, hear.) 
 
 Dr. Browne There was no party in this room that he 
 
 knew of. Their object was to get the best line, and he 
 begged to submit the following counter-resolution. — (See 
 Advertisement.) 
 
 Mr. Bell, W.S., said their object was to ascertain which 
 was the best line, and how could that be done without a 
 survey ? Mr. Stephenson had given a report on an uncer- 
 tain line ; and their object, as inhabitants of Edinburgh, 
 was to obtain another line of survey ; and whether that line 
 might not be on the line of the central communication, and 
 to determine whether this survey should be made by Mr. 
 Richardson or by some other person. He (Mr. Bell) should 
 say that Mr. Richardson should go on with the survey he 
 had begun. 
 
 31 r. David 3Iilne, advocate, said that before coming to 
 a resolution to subscribe, a prima facie case should be 
 made out in favour of the Blidland line. The opinion of 
 all engineers of eminence was against taking a railway 
 through the Carter Fell. He was sufficiently well acquaint- 
 ed with the country to give an opinion as to this scheme, 
 which he considered to be physically impracticable ; and 
 also he considered that the town of Edinburgh would not 
 be so much advantaged by it as was imagined, supposing 
 it were practicable. The Eastern line came through a 
 country full of coal and lime, which were extensively 
 worked, but not so the 31idland line. What coal and 
 lime fields were about the Carter Fell, Jedburgh, and Ha- 
 wick. He (3Ir. 31.) did not hear the whole statements of 
 31r. Richardson, but he considered it better to adopt the 
 resolutions proposed by Dr. Browne, to express their opi- 
 nion, that as far as they knew, the Eastern line seemed 
 preferable, and he would therefore second the resolution 
 proposed by Dr. Browne. 
 
 31r. Richardson begged to offer a word of reply in the 
 first instance to Mr. Milne. He (3Ir. R.) could not but 
 regret that 3Ir. 3Iilne should have spoken on one side of 
 the question, when he confessed he did not hear his (3Ir. 
 R.’ s) statements. Close to the Carter Fell there was a very 
 extensive coal field, and which was laid down in Walker’s 
 Geological 3Iap, corrected from 3I‘Culloch’s ; and it was 
 well known that the whole of the town of Hawick was sup- 
 plied from workings in that very field. Blue mountain 
 lime, as was shown by this map, formed the principal part 
 of the Carter Fell. 
 
 3Ir. Bell said he spoke from his own knowledge in say- 
 ing that the coal-works at the Carter were quite sufficient 
 for the town of Hawick. 
 
 Mr. Richardson. — Now in regard to the sections and 
 levels which had been submitted to the meeting by their 
 opponents, not one of them went on the midland line. In 
 Mr. Stephenson’s report, of whom he (3Ir. R.) spoke with 
 the highest respect, he was bound to say there was an at- 
 tempt to mislead the public. What was the use of giving 
 the section of a turnpike road near which they did not go ? 
 Whoever madi a railway on the surface of a turnpike road ? 
 In giving the section of a turnpike road as the section of a 
 
 proposed lino of railway was an absurdity which he never 
 saw attempted before. Would Mr. Stephenson abide by 
 the section of the turnpike road between London and 
 Brighton as a test of his proposed railway ? Unfortunate- 
 ly for Dr. Browne and 31r. Ramsay, Mr. Stephenson, up- 
 on whose authority they entirely relied, contradicted them. 
 They stated that the Teviot water was 200 feet above the 
 level of the sea at Ancrum bridge. 31r. Stehpenson says, 
 that from the Tweed to the foot of the Carter a line of railway 
 could be got at a gradient of 20 feet a mile. This did not 
 agree with the levels given by Dr. Browne, because if the 
 Tweed were only 200 feet above the level of the sea, which 
 is absurd, it would make the fall of the Tweed and the 
 Teviot only 5 feet a mile, which is exceedingly improbable. 
 If Dr. Browne’s statements were right, 3Ir. Stephenson must 
 be wrong. Taking the levels at 20 feet a mile, how did 
 3Ir. Stephenson’s report agree with the statements of Dr. 
 Browne ? There were 206 feet of difference between 
 them, according to their own shewing. (Here3Ir. Richard- 
 son was interrupted by questions put to him successively 
 by 3Ir. Grainger, 3Ir. 31ilne, 3Ir. Todd, 3Ii. Graham, 
 and others, without giving him time to answer.) 
 
 31 r. Stephen Reed rose to order. He appealed to the 
 chairman against the interruption that his friend 3Ir. 
 Richardson received from the parties opposing the mea- 
 sure, as being irregular, injurious, and unjust. Mr. 
 Richardson’s opponents had been heard with patience, and 
 even without comment, and now that the time arrived 
 when, in fairness, Mr. Richardson was entitled to a reply, 
 an attempt was made to blunt his argument, and to put 
 him down by a succession of irregular interrogatories, and 
 the clamour of an interested party who had systematically 
 arrayed themselves against him. There was a want of 
 impartiality exhibited, and insinuations had been made 
 against the motives of the parties who now appeared be- 
 fore the 3Ieeting with the view of submitting their views 
 as to the practicability of the scheme offe'-ed for their adop- 
 tion, which were unjust, and had no foundation whatever 
 in truth ; and he further begged to state that it was well 
 known to the opposing party that the labours of the party 
 soliciting the support of this meeting were perfectly gra- 
 tuitous. (Hear, hear.) 
 
 31r. Richardson then proceeded. 3Ir. Grainger wished 
 to know the height at which the midland line crossed the 
 Teviot. 3Ir. Telford’s line was in connection with the 
 midland line, because his line came close by the side of 
 the river, and continued onward very near to where the 
 midland line crossed the Tweed. 3Ir. Stephenson said 
 that they could get to the fool of the Carter at 20 feet a 
 mile. It must be recollected in standing a cross-examina- 
 tion of this kind that he (31r. R.) had no plans or sections 
 given him, and that he had taken no exact survey of the 
 line. (Here 31 r. R. was again interrupted.) His (3Ir. 
 R.’s) examination of it had been only eye examination. 
 The only authority he could get was that of 31 r. Telford. 
 He had requested of 31r. Grainger to be furnished with 
 his section that he might ascertain the exact point, but he 
 was told that 31 r. Grainger could not find it. If the Te- 
 viot water where they crossed it were only 200 feet above 
 the level of the sea, it not only pointedly and directly con- 
 tradicted 3Ir. Telford, but it gave to those two rivers, rapid 
 ones, so little a fall as to present almost a phenomena in 
 nature. He had endeavoured to give all the information 
 he could, and he trusted the public would be satisfied with 
 it until they could get precise information by regular sur- 
 vey, the only mode in which it could be obtained. He 
 begged to notice some remarks made by Dr. Browne 
 which were of a personal nature. 
 
 Dr. Browne said, he did not mean to be personal, and if 
 any thing of a personal nature had escaped him, he would 
 retract it. 
 
 31r. Richardson said, he held in his hand the prospectus 
 of the Eastern line, of which the learned Dr. was the ad- 
 vocate. This prospectus did not ask for subscriptions, 
 
48 
 
 but it asked £2 deposit on the shares, towards defraying 
 the preliminary expenses. The projectors and supporter s 
 of the Midland railway thought it better to ask the public 
 for voluntary subscriptions towards the survey, whereas, in 
 the other, they were not only pledged to the amount of £2 
 per share, but to the amount of i,TiO each share; but all 
 that the subscribers of the I\Iidland line was liable for, was 
 the amount of their voluntary subscriptions. In regard to 
 himself, he begged to say that his interest in the line was 
 not great. He was not the projector of the line; and it 
 would be at once seen that any interest he had in it could 
 not be to him of importance, when in the meantime he gave 
 his services gratuitously, and only to be paid if it proved to 
 be the best line of railway communication from England 
 into Scotland. As regarded the formation of the Carter, 
 it was stated by Messrs. Grainger and Miller, that if the 
 formation were hard, the tunnel would cost £ 17 ^ 432 ., 3s. 
 6d. ; but if soft it would cost £21,000 odds. They were 
 employed in that quarter for sometime, and in their report 
 they said they did not know whether it was hard or soft. 
 They evidently thought that if it were hard, it would be 
 a great advantage, giving a saving of £4000. They had 
 even expressed their doubts whether the tunnel would not 
 run through coal formation. Any one that passed over 
 the Carter, and carefully examined its surface, would 
 clearly see that there was not an ounce of whinstone 
 to be had on that ridge. The whole of the dykes or 
 marches in the neighbourhood were formed of mountain 
 limestone, and any one acquainted with geology, in passing 
 over it, must be satisfied on that point. He (Mr. R.) had 
 gone over it several times, and he was certain that the sur- 
 face of it was composed of mountain limestone. Allusion 
 had been made more than once to the amount of popula- 
 tion through which the Midland line passed, and it was 
 
 said that it was the least in population of the two lines. 
 
 The Eastern line did not exceed on an average three miles 
 from the coast from the one end of it to the other. It did 
 not pass through a single town from Berwick to Newcastle ; 
 and so scarce was it of population, that the projectors had # 
 to go over the sea to Holy Island to add to the amount of 
 population on their line. They had taken in a great amount 
 of population which did not approach them — they had ta- 
 ken in collieries near the town of Blyth, which had no com- 
 munication with them, and which had communication 
 Vt'ith the sea by railways of their own, and it was not pro- 
 bable that they would leave their own railways for any 
 other that might be naade. In regard to the Midland line, 
 its projectors had not gone across the sea to swell the 
 amount of population, nor had places at a remote distance 
 been taken for that purpose ; but on the fair showing of 
 the I\Iidland line they had a considerable and increasing 
 population. He had given all the information that it was 
 in the meantime necessary to offer, and if it was not con- 
 sistent with truth, he was not to blame, and if any blame 
 there could be, it must be attributable to the want of exact 
 information. In conclusion, he begged to state, that being 
 an engineer by profession, he did not possess the same 
 advantages in an appeal to a public meeting which his 
 learned opponents had, whose profession and habits accus- 
 tomed them to public appearances. (Mr. Richardson, on 
 resuming his seat, was loudly applauded by the meeting.) 
 
 Mr. Aytoun then suggested that the question should be 
 put for the motion, as formerly read by him, or the amend- 
 ment of Dr. Browne ; which being put by the Ghair, there 
 appeared for the motion in favour of the midland line, 24 ; 
 and for the amendment in favour of the eastern line, 18. 
 Several of the supporters of the midland line having left 
 the room before the termination of the proceedings. 
 
 A t a PUBLIC MEETING of the INHABITANTS 
 of the City of EDINBURGH, and its Environs, 
 held in the Royal Exchange Coffeehouse in Edinburgh, 
 on VTednesday the 16th day of November, instant, to take 
 into consideration the expediency of constructing a RAIL- 
 WAY through Northumberland, Roxburghshire, Selkirk- 
 shire, Peebles-shire, and Lanarkshire, by Jedburgh, i\I el- 
 rose, Galashiels, Peebles, and Pennicuik, to Etlinbmgh, 
 with a contiiiuati->n of the line westwards, from Peebles, 
 by Biggar, Lanark, aiul Hamilton, to Glasgow, as a con- 
 tinuation of the great Northern Railway from liondon to 
 Newcastle, 
 
 PETER LAMOND, Esq., the Lord Dean of Guild, 
 in the Chair, 
 
 The following RESOLUTIONS were moved by Roger 
 Aytoun, Esq., W. S. ; and seconded by William 
 Bell of Hunthill, Esq., W. S. 
 
 First, That as there is every probability that a Railway 
 communication, between London and Newcastle v/ill be 
 soon completed, this Meeting is of ojtinion it would be of 
 great advantage to Scotland, and to the city of ICdinburgh 
 in particular, if a Railway was constructed from Newcastle 
 to that city, by the nearest and most practicable line, 
 whereby an expeditious communication, at the cheapest 
 rate, would be opened between the Metropolises of Eng- 
 land and Scotland. 
 
 Second, That the Midland Line of Railway recommend- 
 ed by Stephen Reed, Esq. of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, soli- 
 citor, and examined and approved of by Joshua Richard- 
 son, Esq., civil engineer, of Newcastle, M. I. C. E. Ij., 
 employed by a meeting held at Hexham on the 30th June 
 last, from Newcastle by the Carter Fell into Scotland, and 
 passing at or near Jedburgh, Melrose, Galashiels, Peebles, 
 and Pennicuik, to Edinburgh, subject to such alterations as 
 may appear to be expedient on farther inquiry, is calculat- 
 
 ed for insuring all the advantages of a Railway commu- 
 nication between the Metropolises of the two countries. 
 
 Third, That this meeting is also of opinion, that the 
 formation of a line of Railway from Peebles to Glasgow 
 will be of great advantage, not only to that great commer- 
 cial city, but to the undertaking in general, as the revenue 
 arising from the intercourse between Newcastle and Glas- 
 gow, upon that part of the line, will thus be employed, 
 along with that arising from the intercourse with Edin- 
 burgh, in defraying the expense of maintaining the line 
 common to both cities. 
 
 Fourth, That in order to ascertain the practicability of 
 the proposed Line of Railway, a survey, under the direction 
 of Mr. Richardson, should be obtained of the country 
 through which they are intended to pass, and of the varia- 
 tions of level in the course of these lines, with estimates 
 of the expense that may be incurred in completing the 
 work, and of the probable revenue that may accrue from 
 the undertaking. 
 
 Fifth, That for these purposes a Subscription be imme- 
 diately entered into, for defraying the expenses of the sur- 
 veys and other necessary charges tliat may be incurred by 
 the Committees. That Messrs. John Meiklejobn and 
 William E. Aytoun, Writers to tiie Signet, be appointed 
 Joint Secretaries, with power to collect Subscriptions, and 
 pay the same into the Royal Bank, to be apjdied by order 
 of the Committee, or their quorum, in pursuance of the 
 foregoing Resolutions, and to corres])ond with the other 
 Committees that have been named by the dilferent towns 
 and districts interested in the concern, and to co-opcrate 
 with them in all measures necessary for obtaining a survey 
 and estimate in terms of the foregoing Resolution, with 
 such other information as may be necessary for enabling 
 the public to judge of the eligibility of the pro])osed plan 
 and that the following gentlemen be appointed a Com- 
 mittee for the city and County of Edinl)urgb accoidingly, 
 
tiny tliice oT whom to he :i quorum, and ilie Lord Dean 
 of(>iuld to l)C Convener: — 
 
 The LORD DLAN of GUILD. 
 
 JOHN liORTMWICK, Esq. younger of Crookston, 
 advocate. 
 
 WI\L IMACKENZIE, Esq. of Portmore, advocate. 
 
 \VILLIAAI CHILD, Esq. of Glcncorse. 
 
 Dr. JOHN RENTON, Pennicuik. 
 
 JAMES BROWN, Esq., Eskmills. 
 
 ALEX. COWAN, Esq., IMorayhoose. Canongate. 
 
 MOLLIA31 BELL, Esq. of Humhill, W.S. 
 
 THOMAS ALLAN, Esq,, banker, Edinburgh. 
 
 NORMAN LOCKHART, Esq., \P.S. 
 
 AVILLIAM STEWART, Esq. of Glenormiston. 
 
 ARCH. NISBET, Esq. of Carphin. 
 
 ROGER A YTOCN, Esq., W.S., Abercromby Place. 
 
 PAT. COCKBURN, Esq., accountant, Edinburgh. 
 
 JOHN BROWN, Esq., Irontneichant, Edinburgh. 
 JOHN GIBSOxN, Esq., \P.S. 
 
 JAMES HAMILTON, Esq. of Karnes. 
 
 ALEX. CRAIG, Esq,, Carlton Street, Stockbridge. 
 
 Or such of them as shall accept, with power to them to 
 add to their number. 
 
 Sixth, That no Subscriber shall be liable for more than 
 the sum subscribed, and that the Subscriptions shall be 
 considered as so much paid towards the Shares of the Sub- 
 scribers who may take an interest in the concern, in the 
 event of an Act of Parliament being obtained, each Sub- 
 scriber being entitled to a preference in subscribing for 
 Shares of one share for each Pound sterling subscribed, or 
 to be returned to them out of the funds of the Company 
 when formed, if they decline becoming shareholders. It 
 being understood that the remuneration of Mr. Reed and 
 Mr. Richardson, the professional gentlemen already em- 
 ployed in the preliminary arrangements, be in accordance 
 with the 4th resolution passed at the meeting held at Hex- 
 ham on the 30th day of June last, viz That the measure 
 
 being preliminary, “ and with the view of ascertaining the 
 practicability of the proposed line, the professional gen- 
 tlemen now engaged require nothing farther than the mere 
 reimbursement of their necessary expenses ; but should 
 the object now in view be carried into effect, their time 
 expended in the present work to be paid out of the funds 
 of the Company, after the usual rate of professional charge.” 
 
 Mr. Richardson then addressed thexMeeting at consi- 
 derable length in support of the Midland Line, and James 
 Browne, L.L.D., advocate, in support of the Eastern 
 June, by Berwick-on-Tweed. 
 
 Mr. Thomas Ramsay, Editor of the Berwick Warder^ 
 attended, and addressed the Meeting on the part of the 
 
 Berwick Committee, in favour of the Eastern Line; two 
 of the IMagistrates of Hamilton being in attendance on the 
 j)art of the Hamilton Committee, in suj)port of the Mid- 
 land Line ; and after considerable discussion on both sides, 
 Dr. Browne moved the following amendment, which was 
 seconded by David Milne, Esq., younger of iMilnegra- 
 den. Advocate : — 
 
 1st, That it is the opinion of this Meeting, that the 
 construction of a Railway from Edinburgh and Glasgow 
 to Newcastle is desirable, and will be highly beneheial to 
 the counties through which it passes; and by forming a 
 junction with the Great Northern Railway, will ultimately 
 connect the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow with York 
 and London, thereby tending to the extension of com- 
 merce, and the increased employment of the labouring 
 classes. 
 
 2d, That, in contemplating any line of Railway with 
 such important objects, the most direct line can only be 
 adopted so far as consistent with workable curves and lo- 
 comotive gradients. That the Line proposed by Mr. 
 Richardson is not deemed by this Meeting to possess 
 those requisites ; and that, in addition to the disadvan- 
 tage of passing through a sterile and thinly peopled coun- 
 try, insuperable natural obstacles present themselves in 
 the various ridges to be overcome, and particularly in the 
 ridge of Carter Fell, and also in the abrupt curves of the 
 vale of the Tweed. 
 
 3d, That the report by Mr. George Stephenson, en- 
 gineer of the ^Manchester Railway, appears quite conclu- 
 sive of the impracticability of Mr. Richardson’s line, as 
 well as decisive of the superior economy and advantage of 
 a line by Berwick ; and as Companies have been already 
 formed, and notices given for making Railways from 
 Glasgow to Edinburgh, and from thence to Dunbar, this 
 Meeting are of opinion, that the public interest calls for 
 the support of a prolongation of the line from thence by 
 Berwick to Newcastle. 
 
 4th, That these Resolutions be advertised in the Edin- 
 burgh Courant and Mercury^ the Scotsman^ North Bri- 
 tish Advertiser, and two Newcastle papers. 
 
 And the Chairman having put the question, motion, or 
 amendment, the motion was carried by a majority of 24 
 to 18, a considerable number of the Meeting having pre- 
 viously withdrawn. The Meeting Resolved, that these Re- 
 solutions be advertised in such of the Edinburgh, Glasgow, 
 Kelso, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne newspapers, as the Com- 
 mittee may see fit. 
 
 On the motion of John Borthwick, Esq., younger of 
 Crookston, the thanks of the Meeting were given to the 
 Preses for his conduct in the Chair. 
 
 (Signed) PETER. LAMOND. 
 
MEETING AT MOllPETK. 
 
 A ]>ublic meeting of landed proprietors, and ot1ier inha- 
 bitants of the county of NortluuTiberland, was held at 
 IViorpeth, on Wednesday, January 18, 1837, and was 
 most respectably and numerously attended. Shortly af- 
 ter 12 o’clock, the High Sheriff of the County (Thos. 
 Riddell, of Felton Park, Esq.) took the chair, and after 
 explaining the object of the meeting, — namely, “ to consi- 
 der the subject of the extension of the communication by 
 railw'ay from Newcastle to Edinburghj and taking mea- 
 sures to ascertain the best and most eligible line to be a- 
 dopted with reference to the interests of the public,” — said 
 he, should be most happy to hear any gentleman who felt 
 disposed to deliver his sentiments on the subject before the 
 meeting. 
 
 Chas. Wm. Bigge, Esq, then came forward (evidently 
 suffeiing from the effects of a severe cold) and observed, 
 that as one of the requisitors who had requested the High 
 Sheriff to call that meeting, he merely begged leave to say 
 that he signed the requisition under an idea that if the 
 project of bringing a railway from London to Newcastle 
 were carried into effect, it might be desirable that the pro- 
 priety of extending it further should be ascertained. He 
 had no predilection for one line more than another ; and 
 was only anxious that the best line should be ascertained, 
 in order that they might not fall into any mistake. This 
 was his whole motive for signing the requisition ; but he 
 must at the same time observe, that after he had put down 
 his name, he understood the business was postponed sine 
 die ; and he was extremely surprised when he saw the ad- 
 vertisement in the newspapers, calling the meeting, with 
 his name down as one of the requisitionists. Under pre- 
 sent circumstances, and as the line from Newcastle seemed 
 to be by no means yet ascertained or distinctly laid down, 
 he thought it would be improper for them' to take any step 
 with respect to a line from Newcastle to Edinburgh ; for 
 it appeared to him that any railway between these two 
 places, unconnected with the line from London to New- 
 castle, ought not for one moment to be thought of, or 
 could be carried into effect with any possible chance of re- 
 munerating the shareholders, or benefiting the public. On 
 these grounds he should leave the meeting to listen to those 
 who were better prepared to address them on the subject, 
 leaving it to them to come to some decision upon it or not, 
 as they thought best. It was with great pain and difficulty 
 that he now addressed them ; and he must therefore leave 
 the question to be taken up by others. 
 
 After a pause. Sir C. RI. L. Monck rose, and said, all 
 who had listened to the remarks of his friend Mr. Bigge, 
 must have felt convinced that he was actuated by the most 
 liberal principles. But JMr. Bigge appeared to have been 
 misled in some degree. Some time ago, he said, he con- 
 sented to have his name added to a requisition for a county 
 meeting on this subject ; but he now told them that he 
 thought that requisition had been abandoned, and that he 
 did not expect to see his name brought forward as a re- 
 quisitionist for holding a county meeting. Mr, Bigge 
 had expressed an opinion that it would be improper for 
 the county to go into this extensive question at this time ; 
 because he declared that he gave his name only under the 
 notion that a railway would be extended from London to 
 Newcastle, and that it might be expedient and necessary 
 to extend tliat line of road from Newcastle to Fdinburgh. 
 But as he did not see any immediate prospect of the ac- 
 complishment of a railway between liondon and New- 
 castle, he liad expressed it as his ojiinion, that perhaps it 
 
 vvouhl be better for the county of Novtbiimbcrland to sus- 
 pend anv inquiry into the subject. Vi'itli these scnliments 
 cxt)rcssed by Mr. Bigge, and as no other gentleman seem- 
 ed to be prepared to move any resolutions, and establislt 
 tlie expediency of the grouiuls on whicl: they were found- 
 ed, lie (Sir C. IMonck) thought it would be better for the 
 the High Slieriff to adjourn the meeting, wh.ich he might 
 again call together at any more suitable opportunity. He 
 therefore begged to move that this meeting be now ad- 
 journed. 
 
 John Hodgson Hinde, Esq. i\LP., said, he did not at- 
 tend that meeting with the intention of taking any part in 
 its proceedings, being rather anxious to hear what were the 
 opinions of others on tlie subject than to advance any of 
 his own. But he did think that tliat meeting, having 
 been called for a particular purpose, and the requisition 
 having been signed by so large a nuuiher of gentle- 
 men, who, with the exception of his friend Mr. Bigge, had 
 not stated that their signatures were attached thereto un- 
 der any misapprehension on their pans, it would be advis- 
 able to proceed somewhat further in the business of a 
 meeting called to discuss the propriety of the measure 
 which they had met to consider. Nor did he thmk Mr. 
 Bigge was precisely aware of those steps which had been 
 taken to promote a railway communication between the 
 metropolis and Newcastle — Parliament had already sanc- 
 tioned a line of communication from London to York, — 
 not certainly the straight line which was proposed to be 
 taken from Cambridge to York, but still there was a line 
 of communication which had been sanctioned by parlia- 
 ment, and a portion of which was now in process of forma- 
 tion, leaving London by the London and Birmingham 
 railway, proceeding from this line by the Birmingham and 
 Derby line, from thence to near Leeds by the North JM id- 
 land line, passing through the great manufacturing towns 
 of the West Riding, and from thence to York, and from 
 York bv the North of England line. Now with regard 
 to the line fronr York, there was an act psssed in the 
 last session to incorporate a company, with power, it was 
 true, only to lay down a line between that city and 
 the Tees ; but the capital had been subscribed for 
 carrying it forward from the Tees to Nev/castle, and that 
 company had deternrined to apply to parliament for a 
 continuation of the line during the ensuing session. Un- 
 der these circumstances, he thought it could hardly be 
 considered improper for them to direct their attention to 
 what would be the best means of continuing that line 
 northwards. It might be of little importance whether 
 such a measure was carried into effect a few years soorrer 
 or a few years later, provided they were sure that this 
 county would have the advantage of such a communication 
 passing through it at all. But the meeting were aware, 
 that there was a strong feeling in the minds of many per- 
 sons residing in the West of England aud the South-west 
 of Scotland, that a line should be formed from Preston, to 
 which place a railway had been already sanctioned by par- 
 liament, through Lancashire and by Carlisle and the west 
 coast to Glasgow, with a communication to Edinburgh. 
 Now he (Mr. H.) need not point out the great detriment 
 which would be done to this part of the country if the 
 main line were diverted from going right through the 
 county of Northumberland, aitd takcti by the western side 
 of the island. He did not stand there as the advocate 
 of either one line or the other of the two lines which had 
 been proirosed to traverse this cotuity. But as a native of 
 
:>] 
 
 N'ottluiiiil) an l iiKcr in tlio ]iros])crity iT .!i t 
 
 rniiut-V ami in iii.if ii t!i ' in\v> ol' .Xfwrastlc, lio t ■ 
 it l)L*lu)Vci! lit. an I.) am.lv ila ii’ h.-st energies tow.ar i . i .k- 
 in if cart' iha ilmy i - n.'t dcnrivcd ot’ the :hI '. lar.ij^cs 
 wliid) the n.iaiial nIhi !t'«n if ilic ci'iiniy entitled liK'.n to. 
 (.Vpolamse. ) '1' cri ("uM li • no donbt, he believe.!, in tin; 
 
 mind of any ^rentL'm m who had juid attention to the na- 
 ture of (he conmvy ber ween (Jl:is>>o\v and Lancashire, te.l:- 
 in;,' a route by the wes: coast to Preston, that much o-reaier 
 facilities were firos.-nti-d by Nnrthumbei land than by Cum- 
 berland. And tl'.ceniniry betweeti Lancaster an 1 Car- 
 lisle jirescnted .'.vreat dilHeultics. He was aware that that 
 line I'.ad been surveyed by a talented engineer, and tliat a 
 lai'way commnnic.ition mi^ht lie carried into dfect be. 
 tween these two phie.'s. I>ut iltonjili it could be so, it ap- 
 pc ir^d, from ai in^ti'Ction of tiie sections of the liiie 
 S'' ected by iii.u, ili.ii the e;radients upon the line between 
 N wc.istle and York were more than twice as favourable 
 as those on tite other line. And he believed that a survey 
 of the line between Newcastle and Edinburgh would de- 
 monstrate that the gradients on that line were favourable 
 in a still great'ev degree, and certainly much better than 
 between the city of Carlisle and (ilasgow. Indeed the 
 tlificulties were so great which had occurred on a survey 
 tifthe western line, that the gentleman who had the con- 
 ducting of it had been compelled to take a considerably 
 circuitous route — so circuitous, in fact, that if ever a line 
 should be executed between Newcastle and Glasgow, it 
 would bring the distance between the latter place and 
 London nearer by about 20 miles. He begged the meet- 
 ing to excuse him for having entered into these details, 
 and for stating them, he feared, but imperfectly, being, as 
 he had before said, quite unprepared to address them ; but 
 as no other gentleman appeared disposed to propose any 
 resolution, rather than the proceedings of that day .should 
 turn out to be aliogether a nullity, he begged to propose 
 one which he wmuld word as general as possible, according 
 to the terms of the requisition which, had been presented 
 to the Higli Sheriff. A resolution had been put into his 
 hands, which he had no hesitation to propose, at the same 
 time observing that he should be happy to modify its 
 terms to suit the views of the gentlemen present. iMr. 
 Hodgson llinde then moved that subscriptions be entered 
 into to defray expenses, and that three eminent engi- 
 neers be employed to examine such proposed lines of rail- 
 way through the county of Northumberland as w'ere sub- 
 jnitted to them, so as to enable them to form an opinion 
 on (he most eligible line. 
 
 31r. John Dent Weatiierley seconded the motion. 
 
 Sir C. Monck then again rose, and said he had no dis- 
 position to go into the merits of the question of a com- 
 munication by railway between Newcastle and Edinburgh. 
 But he did not feel that he could with propriety, as a gen- 
 tleman and proprietor in this county, sanction such a re- 
 solution as this. The resoli.iion, as he heard it read by 
 Mr. Hodgson, went to make tlie County of Northumber- 
 land resolve that a subscription should be entered into to 
 defray the expenses incurred with a view of asceriaining 
 the most eligible line of railway between Newcastle and 
 Edinburgh. Now, he considered that this was not a mat- 
 ter for the county to undertake. It was not a county af- 
 fair at all. To ascertain the nature of a route between 
 two points of great importance, like the towns of Edinburgh 
 and Newcastle, was a matter of interest to, and worthy the 
 exertions of different bodies of adventurers, who interested 
 themselves in the different lines of railway, whether on the 
 east or west sides of the island, or in a more central direc- 
 tion. But it was not for the county of Northumberland 
 to lake such a question or questions into its own Itands, 
 and decide upon the same, and so interfere with what was 
 properly a commercial undertaking, and |by pronouncing 
 m favour of one set of speculators, give an advantage to 
 them, to the injury of another party. ..Vnd perhaps any 
 .ich .'^^'f'Jsion might be founded on incorrect assumptions. 
 
 n . iindi r .to(u! th;g tb-' Ni wcastle and (kirlisle Bail way 
 (' inipany Dad lii iml that in their undertaking they hatl iti 
 lie p li t of the line been mistaken with regard lo the 
 h vels. He beggeil pardon for liis ignorance of the exjires- 
 sioiis which were co<iimonly employed in railway matters, 
 lie had h ard sometliing about gradients, and he suppo.scd 
 by that word wa.s meant ascents and descents ; but be 
 trusted t!ie meeting would excuse him from attempting to 
 aiidross (Item in language which be did n it understand. 
 He wished to be understood as saying, that that part of 
 the Newcastle and Ctirlisle railway line which was nearest 
 to the town of Newcastle had been fixed upon inconvenient 
 levels, so that its beneficial use as a railway line was in 
 so. ue measure im])aired. And if so, was it reasonable to 
 suppose that a company forming a railway for their own 
 benefit, and having the expenses of every description to 
 meet out of their own resources, would proceed in their 
 work without thinking that they were lightly informed, 
 and that (he infonnation they had received was that on 
 which they could best deiiend > Now if such a company 
 of gentlemen weie so lir.ble to be mistaken, were tl’.ey to 
 suppose tl'.at the couiily of Northumberland would be less 
 likely to be misled ? in fact, he might fairly ask who 
 were most likely to be misled, the inhabitants of a county 
 who were not immediately interested in the success of any 
 particular line, or a body of adventurers who, embarking 
 their money in the cause, would naturally do all in their 
 p..wer to see that that money was not misapplied, nor them- 
 s'jlves be led to act on erroneous information ? Indepen- 
 d ;nt of this, he thought it would not become the county of 
 Northumberland to act the part of a private meeting of spe- 
 culators. 1 his was a public meeting of the county, called by 
 their own officer — called by the ministerial representative of 
 the King himself; and yet they were called on to resolve 
 that a subsciiption should be entered into, to effect surveys 
 of the comparative merits of different lines, recommended 
 by different }>arties. These were questions fitted for the 
 decision of private bodies of ad venturers, who possessed ca- 
 pitals, and'were inclined to invest them upon the risk of one 
 or other of these lines. But it was not for the county of 
 Northumberland to take up such questions, and adopt the 
 steps necessary to get subscriptions out of the hands of 
 those very persons who would become the shareholders ; 
 and end by coming to a decision in favour of one party to 
 the injury of another. Even then, however, they were 
 liable to be mistaken, and were, indeed, likely to be mis- 
 taken ; and it did not become the county of Northumber- 
 land to take upon itself to decide in such a matter, for he 
 thought they ought not be called together for any such 
 purpose. Entertaining these views, he was against that 
 meeting interfering further in the subject, and he teh. 
 obliged to oppose the motion as one which could only be 
 passed with propriety by a body of individuals interested 
 in either of tiie undertakings. 
 
 John Fife, Esq., next addressed the meeting, and said, 
 as a freeholder of the county of Northumberland, and as 
 an individual deeply interested in the jirosperity of this 
 part of the county, and of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in parti- 
 cular, he begged to offer a few remat ks to the meeiuig, 
 wliich he hoped he might be excused for offering, and in 
 which he would be as brief and perspicuous as possible. 
 He offered them with diffidence, because they could have 
 no weight with that meeting, excepting such as they pos- 
 sessed from their intrinsic worth ; and he offered tiiem with 
 care, because at some future period the proceedings of that 
 day might be referred to, and the characters of those m-en 
 who took part therein, for public spirit and geiitral intelli- 
 gence, would be measured in no slight degree by their con- 
 duct at that meeting. VV’hen he first saw the requisition, 
 and the manner in vvhich it was drawn up, it striick him 
 to be a proceeding emanating from a party ; and he was 
 surprised at this, when he saw attached to it tiie name or 
 Charles William Biggc, because from all that they had 
 known of that gciitlcman in his {mblit character, during a 
 
considerable number of years, they bad reason to be- 
 lieve him to be incapable of lending himself to any party 
 purpose. 
 
 Mr. Bigge — Merely allow me to say, that I have no 
 party purposT to answer. I stated before, that I signed the 
 requisition simply to give a public meeting an opportunity 
 of deciding whether they thought a railway through the 
 county advisable or not. 
 
 Mr. Fife — That was precisely his (Mr. F.’s) argument. 
 He was remarking upon the inconsistency of a requisition 
 drawn up in terms which evidently went to serve a party 
 purpose, and seeing that requisition bearing a name which 
 never could be lent to any party purpose whatever. (Ap- 
 plause.) Mr. Bigge, however, in opening the business of 
 the meeting, had explained this anomaly. He had ex- 
 plained that he signed the requisition under an impression 
 that the question, which was the best line through the 
 county, would be fairly met, and treated with impartiality; 
 and that he was surprised, after much time had elapsed, 
 at seeing that requisition published, with his name attach, 
 ed to it as one of the signaturists. And what was the 
 chief feature of the requisition which excited that surprise ? 
 Mr. Bigge said, he signed a requisition purporting to have 
 in view only such an investigation as would contribute to 
 the public good ; and yet, after that requisition had slept 
 for some time, out came one which excluded from the con- 
 sideration of the meeting a line of railway which, if esta- 
 blished, would be of immeasurably greater importance 
 than the line proposed for such exclusive consideration. 
 The meeting was purported to be called for the purpose of 
 considering the extension of the communication by rail- 
 way from Newcastle to Edinburgh. Now when this re- 
 quisition was got up, it was well known that another line 
 was projected and speculated on, promising, in addition 
 to any advantage which might be derived from a railway 
 communication between Newcastle and Edinburgh, ano- 
 ther advantage of tenfold greater importance — he meant a 
 direct railway communication with Glasgow. (Applause.) 
 H e believed every one present was aware that the population 
 of that town was considerably more than double that of 
 Edinburgh ; and every one was no doubt also aware that 
 in commercial and manufacturing importance it was im- 
 measurably superior to Edinburgh. Hence, whatever 
 benefits might be realised between one place and another, 
 could be had in a much greater degree between Newcastle 
 and Glasgow, than between Newcastle and Edinburgh. 
 Therefore he felt himself to be justified in saying, that the 
 name of Glasgow had either been unaccountably omitted 
 from the requisition, or that it had been omitted to 
 serve a party purpose. (Hear, hear.) He believed it 
 would scarcely be competent for him then to enter into a 
 full explanation with the view of comparing the two diffe- 
 rent lines, because the meeting was called for the purpose 
 of adopting proceedings to investigate, and not to decide 
 upon, the best line which could be adopted. Under these 
 circumstances, he felt that he was not permitted to enter 
 into a full discussion of the advantages of each line. But 
 if such a discussion were entered into, he had no doubt it 
 would be well met, and treated to the satisfaction of the 
 meeting. Mr. Hodgson Hinde had brought forward a 
 motion, but he (Mr. Fife) thought it did not point out 
 with sufficient distinctness the terminii of the railways. 
 It did not mention the cities between which they were 
 proposed to communicate. True, he did not find the 
 name of either Newcastle or Edinburgh in the resolution ; 
 but he conceived Mr. Hinde could scarcely name Newcastle 
 and Edinburgh without mentioning Glasgow, if it were 
 his intention and desire to promote that line of railway 
 which would best advance the public good, and which 
 would prove most advantageous to the commercial, trad- 
 ing, manufacturing, and labouring population of this part 
 of the country. Now he begged to submit a resolution so 
 guarded in its terms that he trusted it would escape even 
 from the censure which might have been indirectly thrown 
 
 u)»on it }>y (he observations of the hon. baronet. He 
 thought the resolution which he should submit in the form 
 of an amendment, was so guarded and fair in its terms, 
 that the meeting would adopt it without hesitation, and 
 that by it the hon. baronet’s objections would be obviated. 
 Not but that he (Mr. F.) appreciated the force of those 
 objections. He perfectly agreed with the hon. bart. that 
 this county ought not to lend itself to any one party. He 
 admitted that there would be a gross impropriety in its 
 lending itself to be the tool of any set of adventurers or 
 speculators upon this or that line of Railway. But he 
 thought the hon. bait, would not object to the appoint- 
 ment of a Committee, with instructions to report on the 
 formation of that line which would be most calculated to 
 benefit the county. This was the utmost extent of the 
 arrangement which he should propose, and he thought it 
 might be fairly and reasonably adopted by the meeting. 
 His amendment was, — That a Committee be formed to 
 report to the County of Northumbeiland upon the line of 
 railway between Newcastle and Edinburgh and Glasgow, 
 the most calculated to benefit the county of Northumber- 
 land. Such was the amendment which he submitted to 
 the meeting, and he appealed to them as to the fairness 
 and liberality of the proposition. He conceived that no 
 party purpose could be served by such an amendment as 
 that ; and he now left it in the hands of the meeting, 
 thanking them for the patience with which they had heard 
 his observations. 
 
 N. Longridge, Esq., seconded the amendment. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson Hinde said, he could not have entertain- 
 ed the slightest objection to any thing which appeared on 
 the face of the amendment, but he thought it did not go 
 far enough. If the meeting adopted it, some other resolu- 
 tions must follow, or what were the committee to do ? 
 They must define their powers, and direct how they were 
 to apply their energies, and, what was of more importance 
 and frequently the most difficult thing to be effected, to 
 find them funds for carrying on their operations. He was 
 sure that any proposition for inquiry would fall to the 
 ground, unless they resolved to put their hands in their 
 pockets, and subscribe to defray the necessary expenses. 
 If, as an individual, he had prepared any resolutions for 
 the adoption of the meeting, he should have drawn up a 
 string of four or five — first, declaring the expediency of the 
 measure to be undertaken ; second, proposing the formation 
 of a committee to carry it into effect ; third, giving them 
 power ta consult engineers ; and fourth, endeavouring to 
 provide them with funds to accomplish these several ob- 
 jects. Perhaps this might be done by making some trifl- 
 ing alterations in the resolution which he held in Ins hands. 
 It was quite true, that it did not contain the names of 
 Newcastle and Edinburgh, and the reason why he did not 
 include the names of those places was this, that the resolu- 
 tion sufficiently defined the railways, the merits of whieh 
 were to be considered, by stating that they were the lines 
 of railway now proposed through the county of Northum- 
 berland. The same thing had occurred to him that had oc- 
 curred to Mr. Fife, — and which, indeed, Mr. Fife mention- 
 ed to him before the meeting, — that it was highly ilesir- 
 able the lines should be considered, not to Edinburgh only, 
 but also to Glasgow. But he conceived that the terms of 
 the requisition on which the meeting was called, precluded 
 the town of Glasgow by name, andj therefore he omit- 
 ted Edinburgh also. He objected to the amendment, be- 
 cause it did not provide the means of carrying its own ob- 
 ject into effect ; or at all events, because it did not put it in 
 the power of the individuals who attended the meeting to 
 advance the surveys which they therein resolved upon be- 
 ing made. If it turned out that sufficient funds could not 
 be obtained, then they might fairly conclude that the 
 county generally did not consider the matter of sufficient 
 importance to induce them to subscribe towards it ; and 
 the thing would naturally and properly fall to the ground. 
 He now begged to make one remark in reply to Sir Charles 
 
i\Jonck, as to llu; impropriety of a county meeting interfer- 
 ing in a matter of this kind. He (Mr. II.) conceived they 
 could do so with the greatest propriety because at a public 
 meeting like this, which it might be supposed not many 
 would attend to advocate their peculiar views; they would 
 have persons present entertaining views of all kinds ; and 
 if the opinions or decision of a meeting like this — if the 
 resolutions which were proposed met with something like 
 the unanimous voice of all the parties present, they might 
 reasonably conclude that those resolutions were calculat- 
 ed to forward measures which would promote the general 
 prosperity of the county. Nor was there any difficulty in 
 taking this course, for it was precisely the same as that a- 
 dopted with respect to the railway to which the lion. bart. 
 had alluded — the railway from Newcastle to Carlisle — 
 That railway was first brought forward at a county meet- 
 ing held in the Moot Hall, at which it was resolved to en- 
 ter into a subscription to meet the expenses of surveys 
 and other preliminary arrangements. The surveys were 
 made, not by any company of speculators, but by means 
 of the subscriptions entered into, in pursuance of the re- 
 solution adopted at the county meeting ; and the railway 
 was intended subsequently to pass into the hands of a com- 
 pany, provided it turned out that it could be undertaken 
 with advantage. Under all the circumstances, he should 
 adhere to his resolution, and take the sense of the meeting 
 upon it. 
 
 Mr. Fife said he believed he was entitled to the privi- 
 lege of making some reply. The amendment which he 
 had submitted to the consideration of the meeting, had 
 lost nothing in his estinBation from any of the objections 
 which had been made to it by the hon. member for New- 
 castle. He conceived that his amendment would lead to 
 proceedings so evidently not only for the good of a parti- 
 cular district, but for the general good, and that it set this 
 forth in so open a manner, that it was inevitably calculated 
 to lead to a just conclusion for the advancement of the 
 public good, and he really saw no reasonable objection to 
 it. The hon. member objected to the difficulty of obtain- 
 ing cash. — Now he (IMr. F.) believed it had been abun- 
 dantly shown that at this day, as soon as an enterprise or 
 speculation was found to be good, cash was forthcoming, 
 and in abundance; and with reference to a communication 
 between Newcastle and Glasgow particularly, the cash was 
 in great part subscribed. They had only to say whether 
 there should be any direct communication undertaken on 
 this side of the Tweed, for a railway was already sub- 
 scribed for as far as from Glasgow to Peebles. Thus they 
 had only to show that a railway betw'een Newcastle and 
 Glasgow, with a line of communication to Edinburgh, was 
 profitable, and the money would be had forthwith. He 
 conceived, therefore, that this objection to his amendment 
 was removed, or at all events, that it applied as much to 
 the hon. member’s resolution as to his (Mr. Fife’s) amend- 
 ment. Then, again, the hon. member seemed to justify 
 the omission of the name of Glasgow in his resolution, on 
 the ground that it had previously been left out in the re- 
 quisition. Now he (Mr. F.) would have thought nothing 
 of its omission from the requisition, if that document had 
 not ended with the following words : — “ The best and 
 most eligible line to be adopted with reference to the inte- 
 rests of the public.” Professing such an intention, he 
 conceived it to be quite impossible that so important a 
 point as a direct communication with Glasgow could have 
 been entirely omitted, had some particular object not been 
 to be served. The importance of such a line of communi- 
 cation was ten times greater than they would find a line 
 to Edinburgh to be. Alluding in the most superficial 
 manner to the superiority of Glasgow, he might mention, 
 by way of comparison, the immensity of the V\^est India 
 trade to that town, and the slight portion of West India 
 produce that reached the east coast of England. Now, 
 were a direct communication opened out by railway to 
 Glasgow, he did not at all doubt that the produce of the 
 
 M’est Indies would be reduced us much as 2d per cent. 
 There was not a labourer in the district who would not 
 speedily feel the many advantages of such a direct mode 
 of communication, and of course those in difierent and 
 higher stations would enjoy a much larger share of the 
 like advantages. He conceived, therefore, that it was im. 
 possible to overlook the public good which would neces- 
 sarily follow the establishment, and hence the great im- 
 portance of adopting, a direct line of railway coirrmunica- 
 tion with Glasgow. The hon. member for Newcastle, had 
 referred to his want of preparation ; but it was quite ob- 
 vious that all must have been equally prepared for that 
 meeting ; and it might have been expected that the party 
 who called the meeting would have been prepared with 
 resolutions to propose for their adoption. He thought the 
 omission of the name of Glasgow was sufficiently serious 
 to justify his proposition to amend the original motion ; 
 and his amendment itself simply went to this — to appoint 
 a Committee to investigate these lines with a view to as- 
 certain which of them was calculateu, in the utmost pos- 
 sible degree, to work for the public benefit. A resolution 
 so fair and open, and so entirely free from all party feel- 
 ing, as this, could not, he thought, meet with reasonable 
 objection ; and he should therefore press his amendment 
 on the meeting. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson said he ought to apologize for so repeat- 
 edly rising to address the company, but he was not going 
 to trouble them with another speech. A series of resolu- 
 tions, which had been drawn up by some gentlemen who 
 had attended much more to the subject than he himself 
 had, had been put into his hands, and he hoped they would 
 be found to combine the views contained in both his mo- 
 tion and Mr. Fife’s amendment. He begged leave to move, 
 that a railway communication from Newcastle to Edin- 
 burgh, and to Glasgow, if the meeting would allow him to 
 add the name of that town — 
 
 Mr. Fife — I beg to say, that if the name of Glasgow 
 be added to the resolution, I shall withdraw my amend- 
 ment. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson then read three resolutions for the adop- 
 tion of the meeting. 
 
 Sir C. Monck, on again rising, was received with ap- 
 plause, which broke in upon his first sentence. He then 
 said, he was about to observe that in his opinion the amend- 
 ment proposed made the case worse than the original mo- 
 tion, because Mr. Fife’s amendment proposed the formation 
 of a County Committee. Now that was what he wished 
 to avoid. He was desirous that the county of Northum- 
 berland should not be called on to take any such measure, 
 with a view to decide between competing speculators. If 
 the county were to take this expense upon itself, it ought 
 not to do so alone, because the two points at which the 
 proposed railway would terminate were the metropolis of 
 Scotland and the rich town of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Be- 
 sides, more than one-half of that distance came through 
 the Scottish counties. He therefore thought the county 
 would act in a matter suited to its own dignity, and best 
 do justice to the subject, by leaving it in the hands of the 
 projectors, who would doubtless take care of their own in- 
 terests. They might invite the friends of the undertakings 
 in Scotland to a conference, and, when they were together, 
 take steps for communicating, in such manner as they 
 thought best, between the great towns which had been alrea- 
 dy mentioned. What Mr. Fife proposed as to Glasgow, he 
 (Sir C. Monck) quite agreed with; for Glasgow ought 
 certainly to be considered as of more importance than 
 Edinburgh. (Hear, hear.) It was not merely personal 
 communication that was required from this mode of con- 
 veyance ; it was also communication in a commercial and 
 manufacturing point of view, which would allow the 
 streams of wealth to pass from one great town to another, 
 (Applause.) Now the streams of wealth that would pass 
 between Glasgow and Newcastle were of infinitely greater 
 importance than those which would run between Newcastle 
 
r>4 
 
 and Edinbuvgli. liut the name of Glasgow was not men- 
 tioned in the requisition ; audit was therefore right and 
 expedient to consider, that if they enforced that county to 
 take any step in the matter, they must exclude from their 
 consideration every line of railway but that projected be- 
 tween Newcastle and Edinburgh. Many persons who 
 would have lent their assistance on that occasion, had 
 notice been given respecting Glasgow, might have stayed 
 away on account of its name being omitted. The rule 
 established at all public meetings in this kingdom was, 
 that no matter should be gone into inconsistent with the 
 notice. And it was a very proper rule, for so long as it 
 was enforced, no one could be taken by surprise. But if 
 they went into the questiori of a railway communication 
 between Glasgow and Newcastle now, the advocates of one 
 interest, and that the most important of the three, — namely, 
 Glasgow, — would be taken entirely by surprise. Indepen- 
 dent of this consideration, and notwithstanding all that had 
 fallen from Messrs. Hodgson Hinde and Fife, his opinion 
 was still for adjourning tlie meeting; because it was ex- 
 pedient that the claims of tlie Glasgow line should be 
 taken into consideration, and be permitted to have an 
 equal participation in tiieir iutention. If it were proper 
 that this question sin uUl be gone into, a meeting should 
 be called afresh, and notice should be given, including 
 Glasgow which would enable parties interested in the line 
 to that place to tome forward and meet those who were in- 
 terested in the line from Newcastle to Edinburgh. Be- 
 sides, he was of opinion that the appointment of a County 
 Committee would give rise to great disputes, and then let 
 them see the consequences. Suppose that the committee 
 should think itself rightly informed, and decide upon this 
 or that line, the certain consequence would be to bring 
 forward a rival one. And then if the line lecommended 
 by them Vv-ent to the House of Commons, as it must do, 
 and the other party could show that the Committee had 
 been misled, and that another line would be more expedi- 
 ent, the County would be obliged to instruct their mem- 
 bers to support the line recommended by their Committee. 
 And was that the figure which the County of Northumber- 
 land ought to cut before Parliament ? Were they to be 
 found meddling with the concerns of rival adventurers, 
 and interfering with matters in which tliey had no more 
 interest as a county than related to its general prosperity 
 and to be mixed up in the fiist instance, and in limine^ 
 with the two parties, and instructing their members to 
 support a particular line, which, it might turn out, they 
 had adopted on imperfect information, as the Newcastle 
 and Carlisle Company had doiie with respect to a part of 
 their line ? For liis part, he was fully satished that the 
 course most prudent and safe for them to take, and most 
 consistent with the dignity and proper position of the 
 county, was to adjourn the further consideration of the 
 question, at the least, though his own opinion was that 
 they ought never to take it up again. 
 
 Mr. Joshua llichardsnn said, there was one part of the 
 Speech of the honourable baronet to which he wished to 
 reply. He stated tliat the counties of Scotland should be 
 consulted as well as Northumberland. Now he (I\Jr. 11.) 
 was happy to inform him that the Scottish counties had 
 been consulted — that eight county district meetings had 
 been held at Jedburgh, Melrose, Hawick, Peebles, Glas- 
 gow, Edinburgh, &c. ; that 280 noblemen and gentlemen 
 had formed themselves into committees, and subsciibed in 
 favour of the midland line, and that it was generally ap- 
 proved of in Scotland. 
 
 C. A. Monck, Esq., next addressed the meeting in a low 
 tone, and was very imperfectly heard. He took the same 
 line of argument as that adoj)ted by the honourable baronet 
 his father, contending that the inquiries to be undertaken 
 by the proposed Committee could only be properly jnir- 
 sued by the respective coni{)anies who entered into the 
 speculations ; and that the dignity and impartiality of the 
 
 unty should not be compromised by deciding between 
 
 two parties, and probably on imperfect infuraiation, there- 
 by getting into the awkward and ungracious position of 
 declaring itself friendly to one body of adventurers at.d 
 unfavourable to another. He concluded by reimirking 
 that it was not a little extraordinary tlie words “ County 
 of Northumberland” did not occur at all i:i the resoluiio'is. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson said, it was a matter of corumon sense 
 that they could not get by railway from Newcastle to Edin- 
 burgh or Glasgow without first going through the county 
 of Northumberland. (Laughter.) 
 
 Mr. Monck observed, that if they appointed a committee, 
 they must put into their hands the means of paying engin- 
 eers, and defraying the other expenses of their proceedings ; 
 and he could not help thinking that a great deal of ill-will 
 would thus be produced, while they might be entain that 
 the whole of the money subscribed would be cciusumed. 
 It appeared to him that all tlie argumeius employed on the 
 other side only strengthened the proj>rie(y of an adjourn- 
 ment. 
 
 Sir Charles Monck’s motion, that this meeting do now 
 adjourn, was then put and negatived. 
 
 The resolutions moved by xMr. Hodgson were next jJiit, 
 and carried by a large majority. 
 
 On the second resolution, Sir C. IMonck observed, that 
 it provided for examining all the lines between Edinburgh 
 and Glasgow and Newcastle. Now, he doubted, in the 
 finst place, whether the Scottish proprietors would allow 
 this; but whether or not, he thought the county ought not 
 to undertake the whole of the expense. 
 
 Mr. H. Hinde said, they must necessarily exaniine the 
 whole country, because one line might be much better in 
 the county of Northumberland than the other, while at 
 the same time, the Scottish continuation of such line 
 might be impracticable. 
 
 Sir C. IMonck thought there would be a gross improprie- 
 ty in the county of Northumberland interfering in any mea- 
 sure which went out of the county. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson then said it would be necessary to have a 
 list of gentlemen prepared, to form the committee, and 
 perhaps some gentleman present v/ould be so good as draw 
 up one, as he was not prepared to do so. 
 
 Mr. Henry Turner handed in a list, the gentlemen 
 named in which, Mr. J. D. Weatheiley (who said he was 
 himself perfectly disinterested in the matter), moved should 
 form the committee, with power to add to their number. 
 The list having been read over, 
 
 Mr. C. A. Monck said, there really was not one gen- 
 tleman, except i\lr. Fife, on that list, who was not particu- 
 larly interested in the eastern line. And what the xMayor 
 of Berwick and the Mayor of Newcastle had to do with 
 the county of Northumberland be really did not know. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson Hinde said, it was certainly desirable 
 that the committee should consist of gentlemen favourable 
 to both the proposed lines of way. As for liimself, be 
 might be supposed to have a prejudice in favour of the 
 midland line, as he bad subscribed bis money in behalf of 
 a survey of that line. It happened, however, tiiat be had 
 likewise subsciibed towards supporting the coast line, so 
 that he might be considered disinterested as to cither. 
 
 Mr. Fife felt it necessary to apologise for again troubl- 
 ing the meeting, but he was really obliged to do so. 
 Every man to whom that fair play which was dear to En- 
 glishmen must feel obliged to Mr. Monck for having 
 pointed out the manner in which the list had been pre- 
 pared, which Mr. Weatherly had been mstrumental in 
 submitting to the meeting. — If any individual bad taken 
 a pen, and drawn it (hrougb the land of the difterent piii- 
 ])rietors on the eastern line, be would have fouml the very 
 names in the order in which they stood on that list, wiili 
 the exception of bis own name. He felt greatly obliged 
 to Mr. Monck for having so promptly ))ointed out the mi- 
 turc of this partial arrangement, and be bopeil the meeting 
 never would submit to it. It would be only lair titat an 
 equal number of names should be appointed on both sides. 
 
; h ('. .Mo ulc s.iiil, it seemed eleur tliat if ti committee 
 M ri- a; I'uint. d of the gciitlenu'ii wlio were on that list, as 
 it now stood, it was at once lending? the name of the 
 o(Minty of Northumberland to serve the views of one set of 
 ••I'rciiiators. IMr. Fife had clearly shown, that the persons 
 luiiposed to be placed on tbe committee, were either pro- 
 ])rietors or interested sjieculators in the eastern line of 
 ruihvay. Now he (Sir C. JM.) was not surprised at this ; 
 because be felt certain, tliat when they brought that which 
 was the business of a jirivate meeting before a public meet- 
 ing of the county, at every turn tliey took they would 
 meet wiih some absurdity or other, — something contrary 
 to the object, justice, and dignity of a county meeting. 
 On that account, be was still of o])iuion that their best 
 plan would be to rescind the resolutiotis they had passed, 
 and adjourn the meeting. They might depend ujton it, 
 that they would speedily meet with some greater impedi- 
 ment ; and find themselves, at length, compromising tlieir 
 own dignity, and incurring greater danger of doing some 
 gross act of injustice in the case. He (Sir C. M.) was for 
 a free trade. (Cheers.) He begged not to be misunder- 
 stood in his application of the principle of free trade. He 
 had seen that principle in operation for twenty years ; and 
 although he had seen it practised imprudently and prudent- 
 ly, he was upon the whole an advocate and a steady friend 
 of free trade, though he would always have it applied in 
 reference to the peculiar condition of the country. Let 
 them not have free trade between that country and others 
 which were situated more advantageously than them- 
 selves. But let them have free trade with each other, be- 
 tween Englishman and Englishman. (Cheers.) Let 
 every man pursue his own interest as thoroughly and as 
 speedily as he could, but not so as to make the people of 
 a great county like that of Northumberland decide for one 
 competing body of speculators against another. Let 
 them be just in general things, which was the only right, 
 expedient, and really profitable course. If they were free 
 traders, and would have their capital usefully employed, 
 let them consider which would be the best channel to em- 
 ploy it in, and thus, without invading the privileges of 
 any of their countrymen, they would leave to every man a 
 free couise to pursue for his own advantage. They must 
 not apply to bodies like the county of Northumberland, 
 or the municipalities of Newcastle, IMorpetb, or Berwick ; 
 but let them fairly struggle, as individuals, for themselves. 
 He felt strongly that the character of the county ought not 
 to be compromised by any step taken at that meeting ; and 
 he repeated that their best course would be to rescind 
 their lesolutions, which had already been found inconveni- 
 ent, revive tbe question of adjournment, and have another 
 county meeting. But if they now determined to take the 
 consideration of the merits of these lines of railway into 
 their own hands, they could not fail to do disservice to 
 one party by favouring the views of another ; and thereby 
 involve themselves in some gross act of injustice, which 
 would destroy their own character, and prove a source of 
 unavailing repentance and regret. As to the proposition 
 of tbe gentleman below him (Mr. Weatherley,) it appeared 
 they could not, as certainly they ought not, to form a 
 County Committee. He proposed that the Committee 
 should have power to add to their number. Now where 
 would be the remedy in this ? It was admitted that the 
 Committee was all on one side ; and if the power of add- 
 ing to their number was placed in their hands, would they 
 not extend it by adding their own friends ? Thus they 
 would piovide nothing but an extension of the evil. This 
 was another of the many absurdities that would meet them 
 at every turn ; for when they had once entered upon a 
 
 wrong course, every step, except they retraced their steps, 
 would draw them further into danger. Therefore, as a 
 proprietor in the County of Northumberland, not interest, 
 ed in this or that line of railway, but desirous to have a 
 right line adopted, his firm conviction was, that they ought 
 not to interfere with private speculations at a county meet- 
 ing. He should add, that though his interests as a pro- 
 prietor might incline him to support one line of railway, 
 yet if he were convinced that another line was more cer- 
 tain of success, lie should not oppose it, because the best 
 line must ultimately prevail; and he tb.ought that any 
 tran who supported the v/orst line on account of its locali- 
 ties would take a veiy rash stej), and incur the loss of his 
 capital. 
 
 Mr. iM. Dunn said there seemed to be an intention to 
 give that meeting an impression that the list just read had 
 originated with the supporters and projectors of the eastern 
 line. On the part of the projectors, he disclaimed the 
 thing altogether. They had neither seen nor heard of the 
 list before that day ; and he called u})on the gentleman 
 who had produced it to declare whether they had so or 
 not, aiKi he also called upon his friend IMr. Fife to with- 
 draw his imputation. 
 
 Mr. Henry Turner said, the list was made out by a gen- 
 tleman who took the names of such proprietors as he 
 knew, but there were many with whom lie was not acquaint- 
 ed in the northern parts of Northumberland, and on the 
 proposed midland line. This accounted for its being left 
 in an imperfect state, and for the clause “with power to 
 add to their number.” He at once declared that tbe pro- 
 jectors of the eastern line knew nothing of the list, and had 
 not seen it until that moment. 
 
 Mr. H. Hinde admitted it would be highly improper to 
 constitute a committee of the gentlemen who had been 
 named ; and suggested that the friends of the midland line 
 should add an equal number of names. 
 
 John Lambert, Esq. then observed, that all imputation 
 having been removed fiom the projectors of the eastern 
 line of railway, and as there could be no doubt that the best 
 course they could adopt was one of perfect impartiality- 
 in the selection of a committee, he begged to propose that 
 the names of 10 gentlemen should be handed in by each 
 of the conflicting parties, who should form the Committee 
 which the meeting had resolved to form. 
 
 Mr. Fife said, he had stated a simple fiict with respect 
 to the names contained in the list, and had made no im- 
 putation which he felt called on to withdraw. It was cer- 
 tainly a grossly partial list; but in saying that he meant 
 no imputation. He did not deal in such weapons of of- 
 fence. He had stated a fact, and he still adhered to it. 
 With regard to the proposed mode of rectifying the affair, 
 he really could not think of it without smiling. The op- 
 posite party had proposed a Committee of gentlemen al- 
 most -wholly favourable to their views. Was it to be 
 supposed that they would add to their numbers men who 
 were opposed to them in opinion and sentiment ? The 
 idea was quite ridiculous ; and the meeting were obliged 
 to the hon. hart, for the perspicuity with which he had 
 pointed it out. While he was upon his legs, he begged, 
 by way of endeavouring to save the time of the meeting, 
 to second the proposition just made by Mr. Lambert, 
 which appeared to him to be a fair one. 
 
 After some further discussion, Mr. Lambert’s motion 
 was put and agreed to, and the names of the gentlemen 
 handed in, read, and approved of. 
 
 Thanks were then voted to the Chairman for his patience 
 and for his general conduct in the Chair, which he briefly 
 acknowledged, and the meeting separated. 
 
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW 
 
 RAILWAY. 
 
 TO THE EDITOR OF THE KELSO CHRONICLE. 
 
 Sin, 
 
 H aving observed from time to time the attention 
 you have paid to this important project, the share 
 you have given to it in your columns, and the interest ex- 
 cited towards it on both sides of the Border, I am induced 
 to trouble you with a few remarks, which, if you consider 
 worthy of a place in your paper, 1 shall feel flattered and 
 obliged by their insertion. 
 
 As a freeholder of Northumberland, I have watched with 
 considerable care the progress of this stupendous under- 
 taking ; and, although, Sir, not sanguine as to its result, 
 on the scheme being first introduced to public notice, 
 more from the vastness of the work than a conviction of 
 its inutility, the general adoption of railway communica- 
 tion, not only in the British dominions, but in Europe 
 and America, sufficiently proves that it will, and must 
 universally become the medium of intercourse, and that 
 the community now require and call for that facility. My 
 opinion at the outset of this work was, that it would likely 
 be taken out of the hands of private individuals and be- 
 come a measure of Government ; at least that the Legis- 
 lature would step in and exercise a wholesome control over 
 what so deeply affected the interests of the country, and 
 by carrying out the effort, almost beyond the power of a 
 private company, (and none but a British set of adven- 
 turers would dare to grasp at so vast a work, or find means 
 to accomplish it,) complete a grand connecting trunk of 
 Railway, that will remain a monument of the spirit of the 
 country to after ages, which I contemplated the direct 
 union of the metropolises of England and Scotland, in- 
 cluding the important city of Glasgow, must necessarily 
 prove. From trifling beginnings the most important re- 
 sults not unfrequently take place, and from the gradual 
 progress this proposed Railway has made in the sentiments 
 of the public and the population generally throughout the 
 country, it has put on a complexion that is removing 
 every doubt of its ultimate completion. I have noticed 
 with no small degree of impatience and disapprobation, 
 attempts from an opposing party to frustrate, what has 
 daily more and more appeared to me, a scheme fraught 
 with immeasureable benefits to the community at large, 
 and the opposition made to the Midland or Central Line, 
 has gradually developed the legitimate claims it has to 
 public support, by calling forth expressions and opinions 
 on all sides in a free discussion of its merits. My sur- 
 prise has been that the scheme was not immediately taken 
 up by such an influential body, which would have at once 
 set at rest any puny endeavours to suppress it, especially 
 as those endeavours evidently emanated from a party of 
 other adventurers desirous to promote a scheme of their 
 own. I feel an impression that the original liine of Rail- 
 way through the centre of the country, must and will ul- 
 timately prevail ; for the good sense of the people, when 
 fairly called into the field, will never sanction a liine that 
 can be only partial and confined as to general utility. 
 Luring the progress of this momentous question, the 
 parties who have had the spirit and nerve to advocate the 
 Central liine have certainly adopted the most prudent 
 course; that of ascertaining the sentiments of the popula- 
 tion on the Line it is proposed to be taken, and I see by 
 the public prints, that the scheme has been universally 
 well received, as expressed by publicly convened meetings 
 at the principal towns the Railway is intended to pass 
 through. Another strong feature in favour of this Rail- 
 
 way is, that it not only is the most direct and shortest 
 Line, but it embraces many manufacturing towns of con- 
 siderable celebrity, and through a country possessing at- 
 tractions both to the man of business and the tourist; there 
 can be no reasonable doubt that the return made by pas- 
 sengers on this liine, to say nothing of the commercial 
 ones, and those arising from the agricultural and mineral 
 productions of the country, that they will more than amply 
 make up any anticipations of revenue, which can at pre- 
 sent be calculated upon. I have digressed already too 
 much upon your patience in my remarks, arising out of 
 the subject, and will, therefore, proceed to mention more 
 particularly the cause that has induced me to take up my 
 pen on the present occasion. It has, for some time past, 
 been understood, that a County Meeting of the freeholders 
 of Northumberland was to be convened by the gentlemen 
 who have offered to consideration a Line of Railway on 
 the extreme east side of the country. The requisition 
 appeared to be numerously signed, and in compliance 
 therewith, the High Sheriff appointed a meeting of the 
 county at Morpeth, on Wednesday last, the 18th in- 
 stant. Aniongst the names of the requisitionists ap- 
 peared those of several gentlemen of weight and respecfa- 
 bility in the county, and many others whose locality was 
 not known, the whole of whom appeared, as far as they 
 could be made out, to comprise parties who resided, or 
 had property, on the east side of Northumberland only, al- 
 though the language of the requisition was to determine 
 on the best line of railway througli the county for the pub- 
 lic. It is remarkable that not a friend of the Midland 
 line, so long under public consideration, was seen to have 
 a place in the requisition, or none that I could ascertain 
 were ever invited to sign it, or yet was the requisition 
 made public, so as to obtain the names of all parties so 
 deeply concerned in a public measure of this nature. It 
 was expected, therefore, that the county meeting would 
 be found to be a packed one, and this particular party be 
 able to carry resolutions solely favourable to their own 
 views, and destructive to the expectations of the other. 
 It was with no inconsiderable anxiety and curiosity that I 
 witnessed the upshot of this partial manoeuvre. The 
 county meeting consisted of very few of the aristocracy, the 
 audience being chiefly composed of parties who might be 
 considered to have very little interest, and less weight, 
 in the important matter that was intended to be discussed. 
 After the requisition was read by the High Sheriff', and all 
 due forms gone through, no person appeared prepared to 
 open the business of the day ; and after the Sheriff' had 
 requested gentlemen to bring forward any motion they 
 might have to offer, the Chairman of the Quarter Session, 
 Charles Wm. Bigge, Esq., one of the requisitionists, (a 
 gentleman, by the way, who possesses, and justly so, the 
 estimation, respect, and confidence of the county,) came 
 forward and utterly disclaimed any partizanship in the 
 proposed proceedings; he admitted having put his name to 
 the requisition, but that he had afterwards understood all 
 intention of proceeding upon it had been abandoned, and 
 expressed his surprise and disapprobation that, after so 
 considerable a lapse of time, he saw the requisition pub- 
 lished in the papers. A similar declaration was made by 
 a reverend gentlemen present, another of the requisition- 
 ists, who declared that so far from advocating the Eastern 
 line, he was favourable to, and approved of the other. Sir 
 Charles Monck, Bart., after a forcible address, in which 
 he repudiated the attempt to draw the county in, as ap- 
 
57 
 
 proving of a partial scheme, get up by Julventurers to 
 suit a particular section of the couiitv, concluded with a 
 motion to adjourn the meeting sine die, from which fate 
 it was alone rescued by .John Hodgson Iliiide, Escp the 
 member for Newcastle, whoproposed general resolutions, 
 that had for their object an authentic survey of l)oth 
 iinesjiu order that the county, at some future day, inight 
 judge which was the most practicable and conducive to 
 the general good of the country. Thus were the mea- 
 sures of the Eastern party saved from total annihilation. 
 Another attempt, however, desperate as it was partially 
 gross, was made to render useless the resolution come 
 to, by the Eastern party nominating a Committee, with 
 power to add to their numbers, entirely composed (with 
 one exception) of the friends and advocates of the Eastern 
 line; this, however, was seen through byC. A. JVlonck, 
 Esq. who exposed the sophistry and dishonesty of the 
 proposal, and other gentlemen were then added to the 
 list, connected with the western part of the county. 1 
 have already said that I, on conviction, preferred the 
 Midland railway, as most generally adapted to public 
 convenience. To put my opinion in a stronger point of 
 view, and contrast it with the Eastern railway, I would 
 ask, how a line professing to run along, ov near to the 
 coast, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to Berwick-upon- 
 Tweed, can possibly advantage the county ? It is true 
 such a railway might be a convenience to a small portion 
 of the country, but is it calculated to be a general good ?' 
 It may afford facility to the agriculturist and stock- 
 farmer immediately on that particular line of road, to 
 bring the produce of their farms to a certain market, or 
 it may afford the Merchants of Newcastle and Berwick 
 the means of exchanging their heavy goods by railway 
 ti'ansit from one town to the other, but does it not also 
 appear that a much cheaper mode of carriage, and with 
 which a railway can never compete, already offers itself 
 by the sea, where no expensive machinery is to be kept 
 up, which must, and inevitably will fall, upon thecarriage 
 of the goods. Have the projectors calculated, that before 
 they can divide profit, they must annually defray for 
 each mile of double railway for the wear and tear of rail 
 and machinery from three to four hundred pounds ? Has 
 it ever occurred to the different towns through or near 
 which the intended railway is to pass, that the commo- 
 dities, which usually find a ready market at home, will 
 inevitably pass on to swell the great commercial interests 
 of Newcastle, its southern terminus, and that the in- 
 habitants of those towns lying intermediately between 
 the terminii of the railway, will, in all probability, avail 
 themselves of the cheap rate of travelling to make their 
 purchases at one or the other of those towns where they 
 can have greater choice, and obtain their goods at more 
 reasonable prices. This observation applies to all, but 
 to none so much and so seriously as to the town of f\Jor~ 
 peth, which must feel that its most vital interests are 
 jeopardized by the proposed eastern railway. Indeed, 
 from a handbill I saw put out there on the day of 
 meeting, they appear roused from their apathy, and 
 become awake to the position they may be placed in 
 by such a measure. Anything more than a railway com- 
 naunication from thence to Newcastle will be fatal to that 
 town’s prosperity ; and if the inhabitants are alive to their 
 real situation, they will not lose one moment in petition- 
 ing the Earl of Carlisle, whose interests are bound up 
 with their own, to withdraw his namefrom thereqnisition, 
 or rather repudiate the authority of its appearing there, 
 and exert all his influence to oppose any scheme so 
 demonstratively calculated irreparably to injure the town. 
 The convenience to passengers will not be so great as the 
 advocates of the Eastern line hold forth, from reasons 
 already given, and in the summer season, where the 
 facility afforded by the steam packets is so ready from 
 Newcastle to Berwick and Leith, the transit by railway 
 will be necessarily greatly diminished. But even were 
 it not so, this partial railway ought never to be put in 
 competition with the general convenience of an entire 
 country, when large districts on both sides may reap 
 
 the advantage of a central line. I have alluded to the 
 heavy exjiense of keeping up a double railway ; it affords, 
 tlierefore, a strong argimient in favour of the shortest 
 line; a few miles only will amount to a vast saving. 
 The expense of original construction varies from eight 
 to ten and fifteen tliousand pounds a mile, in some rail- 
 ways very considerably more ; the interest therefore on 
 this sunk capital must be added to the annual repair — 
 no trilling sum in the aggregate, to make up before 
 profit can be calculated. It is, therefore, imperative on 
 railway directors to have a watchful eye to this expen- 
 ditin’e. Much has been said as to the engineering diffi- 
 culties of the Carter, and most extravagant and erro- 
 neous accounts appear to have been promulgated re- 
 specting it, which, as far as I can ascertain, will be 
 found to be utterly fabulous. It is true, a tunnel of 
 some length will have to be formed, but the probability 
 is, that the strata it goes through, will become a source 
 of profit to the company; and when we know that on 
 other lines tunnels of from two to three, nay, I believe 
 five miles in length, are in the course of formation, the 
 short one of the Carter melts into insignificance. We 
 know also that viaducts of very considerable height and 
 length have been formed ; if these works are engaged 
 with in other counties, what earthly difficulty can there 
 be to complete the same in the north of England, when 
 the chief material is found in such abundance on the spot. 
 These, Mr. Editor, are remarks which have occurred to 
 me, arising out of the subject discussed at the County 
 Meeting of Northumberland, and the opinions induced 
 by previously reading in the public prints the statements 
 made by the parties in collision respecting these rival 
 railways. As far as I am concerned, I wish to avoid 
 every approach to what may give offence to those who 
 may enterta n a dififerent opinion, but I think it due to 
 the public, as well as myself, as a party interested in the 
 prosperity of my native county, that the whole matter 
 should be brought before it with all its advantages and 
 disadvantages, that so important an undertaking may 
 be seriously and dispassionately considered as it de- 
 serves ; for it must be recollected that the interests of 
 the whole country are concerned, and as one line of 
 railway in all probability will only be sanctioned, it be- 
 hoves therefore, that the one most calculated for the 
 general welfare of both agricultural and commercial 
 capitalists, as well as the national convenience, should 
 be adopted— ajid that, one, in my opinion, is the most 
 centrical line that can be found. It is also to be kept in 
 mind, that the line of railway once fixed, will be once 
 and for ever — it will be too late to deplore an error made 
 in its direction, after the cotxntry is committed. To 
 conclude, I beg to call to your recollection, that the very 
 greatest portion Of this proposed JMidland Railway has 
 received the approbation and sanction of the Scotch 
 public, who are generally cautious in expressing an 
 opinion, even on trivial subjects ; no inconsiderable 
 weight, therefore, ought to be given to sentiments so 
 unequivocally expressed in favour of the Midland Line. 
 It only now requires similar energy on the part of the 
 landed interests of Northumberland to carry this pro- 
 ject forward to a favourable consummation. Vast as 
 the undertaking appears to be, there are resources in 
 the country equal to it, and it was very energetically 
 and properly remarked by a gentleman at the County 
 Meeting, that wherever a scheme was proposed which 
 had fair and legitimate claim to support, and with rea- 
 sonable grounds to justify the expectation of a moderate 
 return for capital subscribed, there was abundance of 
 means in the country ready and forthcoming to carry it 
 into effect. The importance of the subject is the only 
 apology I will offer for trespasing so much upon your 
 time, and requiring so great a portion of your valuable 
 paper. 
 
 I remain. Sir, your obedient servant, 
 
 A REGISTERED VOTER 
 For the North Divisiop of Northumberland, 
 1837, Jan. 21st, 
 
MEETING AT NEWCASTLE 
 
 At a Meeting, held at the Assembly Rooms, New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne, the 28th Day of July, 1837, at 
 Twelve o’Clock at Noon, to take into consideration 
 the expediency of forming a Railway from Neivcastle- 
 upon-Tyne to Edinburgh and Glasgow, 
 
 PRESENT. 
 
 WILLIAM JOHN CHARLTON, Esa. 
 
 High Sheriff' of Northumberland in the Chair. 
 
 GENERAL AUSTIN 
 WM. H. CHARLTON, Esq. 
 ROBERT WALTERS, Esq. 
 F. SCOTT, Esq. Edinburgh 
 EDWARD RIDDELL, Esq. 
 WM. THOS. SALVIN. Esq. 
 
 SALVIN, Esu. Jun. 
 
 GEORGE SILVERTOP, Esq. 
 HENRY WHITHAM, Esq. 
 JOHN BRANDLING, Esq. 
 
 J. B. COUL.SON, Esq. 
 
 JOHN H. HINDE, Esq. M.P. 
 C. ATTICUS MONCK, E-.q. 
 JOHN FIFE, Esq. 
 
 FRANCIS CHARLTON, Esq. 
 Mr. BOLAM 
 Mr, BURDON 
 Mr. ANGAS 
 
 Mr. BELL, Jun. 
 
 Mr. JOSEPH CRAWFORD 
 Mr. THOMAS HEDLEY 
 Mr. DUNLOP 
 Mr. M. DUNN 
 Mr. EDWARD CHAPMAN 
 Mr. SOPWITH 
 iMr, SMITH 
 Mr. GRIFFITH 
 Mr. JOHN BOURNE 
 Mr. BEAUMONT 
 Mr. MASON 
 
 Mr. ROBERT PLUMMER 
 .Mr. PRIESTMAN 
 Mr. CHARLES BRAGG 
 Mr. GEORGE BRUMMELL 
 Mr. THOMAS WALKER 
 (And several other Gentlemen, 
 The following Resolutions were passed : — 
 
 1st. This Meeting having had placed before it the 
 Resolutions adopted at the several Towns in Scotland, 
 where Meetings have already been held to consider 
 the expediency of a Railway Communication between 
 Newcastle-upon-'fyne, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, most 
 cordially coincides in the Sentiments expressed at 
 those several Meetings, and is of Opinion that the 
 E'ormation of a Railway, connecting the Places above 
 mentioned, and therefore necessarily all the interme- 
 diate Towns on its Route, is a measure of the very 
 deepest Interest both as regards the Commerce and 
 Agriculture of the Country, as also the social Inter- 
 course of the People, all tending to the most impor- 
 tant and beneficial Results. That Measures being 
 now in the Course of Operation to extend Railway 
 Travelling from London to Newcastle, this Meeting 
 is of Opinion that it becomes imperative upon the 
 Country to carry the. Railway forward into Scotland, 
 in Order to communicate with the great Commer- 
 cial Cities there, so that. Scotland and the North 
 Part of Emgland may participate in the same advan- 
 tages which Railway Communication holds out to 
 other Parts of the "Kingdom. Resolved, therefore, 
 that it is expedient that a Railway be formed from 
 this Town to Edinburgh and Glasgow, with such 
 Branches to connect other Towns with the Main Line 
 as the Directors from Time to Time may consider 
 beneficial and practicable. 
 
 2nd. That this Meeting, having had submitted to 
 its Inspection and Consideration the Map or l^lan of 
 the Line proposed, it appears that it is by far the short- 
 est between this Town, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, 
 and most easy of Formation, presenting fewer Diffi- 
 culties than any other Line that has hitherto been 
 proposed into Scotland. Resolved, that the Midland 
 Line now exhibited to this Meeting be adopted, with 
 such Alterations or Deviations as may be deemed ex- 
 pedient by the Committee. 
 
 3rd. Resolved, That the following Gentlemen be 
 requested to act as a Committee for the Town of 
 Newcastle and its Neighbourhood, in Conjunction 
 with the Committees already aj)pointed in other 
 Towns to carry into eff'ect Measures for finally ac- 
 
 complishing the Formation of the proposed Railway, 
 with power to add to their Numbers ; 
 
 Sir CHAS. M. L. MO.NCK, Bart.. JOHN H. HINDE, Esq. M.P. 
 
 Sir JOHN TREVELYAN, Bart. JOHN CLAYTON, Esq. 
 
 Sir EDWD. BLACKETT, Bart. T. FENWICK, Esq. Dipton 
 EDWD. COLLINGWOOU, Esq. WILLIAM WOODS, Esq. 
 EDWARD RIDDELL, Esq. JOHN BRANDLING, Esq. 
 RALPH BATES, Esq. THOMAS R. BATSON, Esq. 
 
 C. ATTICUS MONCK, Esq. JOHN FIFE, Esq. 
 A.J.CRESSWELLBAKER,Esq. GEO. THOMAS DUNN, Esq. 
 WILLIAM ORDE, Esq. ROBERT PLUMMER, Esq. 
 
 Rev. ARCHDEACON SINGLE- GEORGE BRUMMELL, Esq. 
 
 TON GEORGE BURUIS, Esq. 
 
 SIMON DODD, Esq. J. GRAHAME CLARKE, Esq. 
 
 THOMAS REED, Esq. IjOSEPH HAWKS, Esq. 
 
 The MAYOR of NEWCASTLE"! General AUSTIN 
 TheSHERIFF of NEWCASTLE! JOHN T. CARR, Esq. 
 
 4th. Resolved, That a Subscription be entered 
 into to defray the Expenses which have been incurred 
 in submitting the Scheme of this Railway to the 
 several Meetings •, as also of the Levelling and pre- 
 paring Sections of that portion of the Line lying be- 
 tween Horsley and Melrose ; and to provide Funds 
 to meet the further Expenses of Surveys, &c., of 
 other parts of the proposed Line, preparatory to going 
 to Parliament. The Subscription Lists shall be left 
 at the several Banks in Newcastle, and the Sums 
 subscribed shall be paid into the North of England 
 Joint Stock Bank, to the credit of the Railway Com- 
 pany, ^nd that any three or more of the Committee 
 at Newcastle shall have power to pay the same, or so 
 much thereof as they shall from time to time think 
 fit, in defraying the Expenses incurred in prosecuting 
 this undertaking. And that Subscriptions shall be 
 considered in part payment of any Shares the Sub- 
 scribers may take in the Railway Company, or be re- 
 turned to the Subscribers out of the Funds of the 
 Company, if they decline becoming Shareholders. 
 And, finally, that no person shall be liable for more 
 money than is actually expressed to be subscribed 
 by him. 
 
 5th. Resolved, That General Austin be ap- 
 pointed Treasurer; Mr. Stephen Reed, Secretary; 
 and Mr. Joshua Richardson, Engineer of the said 
 Company. 
 
 6th. Resolved, That these Resolutions be adver- 
 tised in the Newcastle Journal, Courant, and Chro- 
 nicle Newspapers ; the Kelso Chronicle ; the Sun- 
 derland Herald ; the Scotsman ; the Edinburgh 
 Courant; the Glasgow Chronicle and Herald New.s- 
 papers. 
 
 (Signed) W. J. CHARLTON, Chairman. 
 
 The Thanks of the Meeting were voted to the 
 High Sheriff' for his Conduct in the Chair. 
 
 ( From the Newcastle Journal^ August 5, 1837 - ) 
 
 A highly respectable Meeting was held in the As- 
 sembly Rooms, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, on Friday the 
 28th ult., to take into consideration the expediency of 
 forming a Railway from Newcastle-uj)on-Tyne to 
 Edinburgh and Glasgow, at which several inlfuential 
 gentlemen in the counties of Northumberland and 
 Durham were jiresent. Owing to the contested Elec- 
 tions at Newcastle, Gateshead, and other places in 
 the neighbourhood, many gentlemen who wished to 
 bo present were unavoidably absent. We were, how- 
 ever, glad to observe so strong an interest manifested 
 in the success of this great undertaking, and such a 
 
59 
 
 general desire expressed for its speedy accomplish- 
 ment. For the resolutions we refer our readers to 
 another pait of our paper, by which it will he ob- 
 served that the meeting unanimously apj>roved of the 
 Midland lane of llailway, and ajjpointed a Commit- 
 tee to co-operate with the Committee already formed 
 in Scotland, for the j)urpose of forwarding the 
 measure. The High Sheriff of Northumberland, 
 William John Charlton, Es(p of Hesleyside Hall, was 
 called to the chair, who, after having slated the object 
 of the meeting, requested the Secretary to state to the 
 comj)anv such information as he was possessed of on 
 the subject. 
 
 Mr. S. Reed then first read the resolutions passed 
 at a County Meeting held at Hexham, on the 30th 
 June last year, at which Thomas Riddell, Esq. of 
 Felton Park, the High Sheriff of Northumberland, 
 presided. Mr. Reed then stated that, in pursuance 
 of instructions received at that meeting, public meet- 
 ings had also been held at Jedburgh, Melrose, (fala- 
 shiels, Harvick, Kelso, Peebles, Lanark, Hamilton, 
 Glasgow, and Edinburgh, at wdiich Mr. Richardson 
 and himself attended. He was happy to inform the 
 meeting that the measure was every where warmly 
 received, and a strong disposition evinced for its sup- 
 port. Upwards of two hundred Noblemen and Gen- 
 tlemen (at the head of whom is his Grace the Duke of 
 Hamilton and Brandon) would be found on the seve- 
 ral committees, and subscriptions had been opened to- 
 wards the surveys and other necessary expenses. It 
 had been thought mo'fet prudent, before calling the 
 present meeting, to consult the feelings and disposi- 
 tion of those who would be most affected by the 
 Railway, and the unanimous approbation with which 
 this scheme had been r ceived in Scotland, would, he 
 trusted, amply satisfy the meeting as to its expedi- 
 ency. He begged now to read the report drawn up 
 by Mr. Joshua Richardson, the Engineer, which, he 
 trusted, would satisfy the meeting as to the practica- 
 bility and great importance of the undertaking. After 
 reading the names of the provincial committees, the 
 Secretary ]iroceeded to read the Engineer’s report, 
 which was flatteringly received by the meeting. 
 
 AEilliam Henry Charlton, Esq. then rose and 
 said he had to propose to the meeting the first reso- 
 lution, to the effect that it was expedient that this 
 Railway should be formed. A.fter the veiv able Re- 
 port of Mr. Richardson, which they had just heard 
 read, it was unnecessary for him longer to detain the 
 meeting than to express his concurrence and cordial 
 aj)probation of the resolution he had the honour to 
 propose for their adoption. 
 
 This resolution was briefly seconded by General 
 Aust-in and carried unanimously. 
 
 John Fife, Esq. then rose and said he was glad to 
 observe, by the appearance of the meeting, that the 
 important subject before it was beginning to excite in 
 this part of the country something like the interest 
 exhibited by our intelligent neighbours on the other 
 side of the Border. There indeed the excitement is 
 great. Within the last few days, he had had an op- 
 portunity of observing it in several communications 
 w'hich he had had with able and w^ealthy men in the 
 neighbourhood of Glasgow and in the ^Vestern High- 
 lands. In those parts every well-informed man, who 
 had attended at all to the subject, acknowledged at 
 once its immense national importance, — promising as 
 it does, advantages so immeasurable, but requiring in 
 the first instance resources so great, as to deserve and 
 demand the immediate patronage and fostering care 
 of the government. ( Cheers.) The prevailing 
 opinion in the West of Scotland is, that a proper re- 
 presentation of this great work, in a national as well 
 as a local point of view, must insure from the govern- 
 ment such loans as may be necessary to carry it into 
 
 execution. However unwilling he might he to oc- 
 cupy the time of the meeting, he must revert to some 
 circumstances which would enable them to estimate 
 more clearly the advantages of tlie j)roposed Idne of 
 Railway from this town to Edinburgh and Glasgow; 
 they would remember that another Line was brought 
 under the consideration of the public by way of the 
 Eastern Coast to Berwick, and from thence to Dun- 
 bar and Haddington to Edinburgh, that in the first 
 instance, the East Line had the advocacy and sup- 
 port of a great mass of talent, capital, and influence, 
 consequently the merits or defects of the Midland 
 Line, which we have now met to examine, were scru- 
 tinized with the utmost jealousy, and put to the 
 severest tests. What has been Ihe result ? it was 
 this; that the Eastern Line had been abandoned, and 
 that, in this part of the Island, the Midland one has 
 no competitor ! ( Cheers.) The beneficial effect of 
 
 steam conveyance is always the most felt where 
 places the most dissimilar in character and produce 
 are brought, as it were, nearer together. Upon a 
 coast, each town has what its neighbour possesses, or if 
 not, every place can avail itself of Steam Navigation, 
 who then will be at the expense of forming a Rail- 
 way, and afterwards maintaining it at the expense of 
 £500 per mile per annum, in situations, to and from 
 which, Steam Conveyance may be obtained on the 
 open sea ! When a Railway passes along a coast, it 
 can only have lateral branches and tributaries from 
 the land on one side, and passengers must necessarily 
 be less numerous, than when we take the back bone of 
 the country, and as a necessary effect have from both 
 sides, all that can render a Railway successful and 
 beneficial. ( Cheers.) Several Lines of Railway 
 have been contemplated on the Western Coast from 
 Liverpool to Glasgow by Carlisle, but the natural 
 obstacles to most, if not all, of these, are nearly insu- 
 superable. The Lines are less direct, and what is yet 
 of more importance to us, Newcastle-upon-Tyne is 
 excluded from the most direct communication with 
 each Northern Metropolis, so far as regards the 
 Western Line. ( Hear, hear.) At the time when 
 the advocates of the Eastern Coast Line were natu- 
 rally inclined to see in an exaggerated position, the 
 difficulties of the Midland Line, much was said of the 
 obstacles in the way of it. To the honour of that 
 party, as much as to our satisfaction, it is now ad- 
 mitted that the only presumed difficulties are com- 
 pletely removed by the result of the careful survey 
 lately completed by Mr. Richardson. ( Cheers.) No 
 man can look upon a map of Great Britain, without 
 at once seeing that the Line under consideration is 
 the most direct between London, Edinburgh, and 
 Glasgow, and there can be none to compete with it, 
 since the Great Northern Railway comes from York 
 to Newcastle, and I am happy to add that the gra- 
 dients of our Midland Line, in the whole, will bear 
 comparison with the best railways in the kingdom. It 
 is impossible to reflect on the opposite description of 
 country and its produce in this Line, without antici- 
 pating incalculable advantages to the towns through 
 which it passes, and at its termini. At its northern 
 extremity you have the swarming suburban popula- 
 tion of Glasgow, with abundance of manufactured 
 goods. At the southern thinly occupied rural dis- 
 tricts, agricultural produce, and in many parts of the 
 i-ine minerals abound, of which other parts are per- 
 fectly, or nearly, destitute. Whether, therefore, we 
 try the merits of this plan by the reciprocal wants of 
 the places to be united, or by the directness of the 
 Line from one metropolis to another, or by the gra- 
 dients, or the easy practicability of the whole Line, 
 the enterprise is as promising as it is gigantic, worthy 
 of the utmost exertions of the people, and, at the 
 same time, of the warmest encouragement of a liberal 
 
60 
 
 government. ( Great applause.) He had not clone 
 justice to the resolution which he now proposed to 
 them, but he could not do less than make the few re- 
 marks which he had done. Mr. Fife then moved the 
 second resolution, which was carried unanimous!}'. 
 
 In moving the third resolution. General Austin 
 observed, that after the able and eloquent speech 
 which they had just heard from Mr. Alderman Fife, 
 it was unnecessary for him to detain the meeting by 
 any lengthened address. But they would perhaps 
 allow him to express his high satisfaction in witness- 
 ing so respectable and influential a meeting in fur- 
 therance of this great measure, he was convinced that 
 the Line now proposed would conduce most to the 
 interests of the country, and well deserved the sup- 
 port and assistance which he trusted it w'ould receive 
 from the public. As the meeting had already ex- 
 jiressed its approbation of the Line, it was necessary 
 that a committee, should be appointed to carry this 
 object into effect ; he therefore had the honour to 
 propose the following gentlemen for their approval — 
 (Vide third resolution.) General Austin then ob- 
 served, that he should also submit to the meeting the 
 
 fourth resolution, which, in fact, was a most essential 
 one, and ujjon the spirit and operation of which, the 
 success of this important project entirely depended. 
 He need hardly say, as the company must anticipate 
 the nature of the resolution alluded to, that funds 
 would be required to carry on the work, and also 
 defray already incurred expenses, which, as in all 
 similar undertakings, was provided for by voluntary 
 subscription. As an adjunct, therefore, to the third, 
 he would also move the fourth resolution, which being 
 seconded by Edward Riddell, Esq. of Cheese- 
 burn Grange, were unanimously carried. (Vide 
 fourth Resolution.) 
 
 The fifth and sixth resolutions were moved by 
 William Henry Charlton, Esq. and seconded by 
 Jonathan Priestman, Esq. and also passed unani- 
 mously. 
 
 Thanks were then voted to the High Sheriff for his 
 able conduct in the chair, who expressed his high 
 gratification at the proceedings of the day, and his 
 earnest hope that this great and important measure 
 would speedily be proceeded with. 
 
 NEWCASTLE, EDINBURGH, AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 It is gratifying to reflect that the Municipal Authorities, and the principal Merchants of 
 Newcastle, are alive to the importance of this undertaking, and of the advantages which their 
 great commercial town, in common with the inhabitants on the entire line of the projected Railway, 
 would derive from its accomplishment. At a meeting of the Newcastle Town Council, held on 
 Wednesday, the sixth of September, 1837, the subject came under discussion, when, on the 
 motion of Mr. Alderman Fife, seconded by Mr. Alderman Batson, the sum of £25 was voted 
 from the Corporate Funds towards defraying the expenses of the necessary Survey ; and jhe 
 Report on the Line of Railway was, at the same time, allowed to be laid before the Committee on 
 Trade, who will thus have the subject before them. The Newcastle Chamber of Commerce have 
 acted in a similarly liberal manner. At a special meeting oL that wealthy and influential body, 
 held on Thursday the fifth of October, 1837, the Committee of the Chamber were recommended 
 to vote the sum of ten guineas towards defraying the cost of the Survey of the projected Midland 
 Line of Railway, between Newcastle, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. 
 
THE SECOND GENERAL REPORT 
 
 ON THE 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH & GLASGOW, 
 
 RAILWAY. 
 
 AKHKESSED TO THE PROVISIONAL COMMITTEES. 
 
SECOND GENERAL REIH)H'J 
 
 ON TUC 
 
 NEW C A STL E- LI PON- 1 V N E, 
 
 E^DINBURGH AND GLASGOW 
 
 RAILWAY. 
 
 ADDRESSED TO THE PROVISIONAL COMMITTEES. 
 
 BY JOSHUA RICHARDSON, 
 
 CIVIL ENGINEER, 
 
 MEMBER or THE INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS, LONDON ; 
 HONORARY AND CORRESPONDING ASSOCIATE OF THE GLASGOW AND CLYDESDALE 
 STATISTICAL SOCIETY, &C. &C. 
 
 PRINTED BY JOHN HEBNAMAN, AT THE JOURNAL OFFICE, 
 
 69, PII-ORIM-STREET. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The Establishment of Railway Communications having now 
 become so universal in England, we cannot be surprised that our 
 enterprising neighbours in Scotland have evinced great alacrity in 
 coalescing in a scheme of internal commerce, which cannot fail of 
 cementing still more closely the union of the two kingdoms. The 
 highly respectable names appended to this Report, as a Provisional 
 Committee or Committees, clearly prove the anxiety which is felt 
 in Scotland for the increased facilities of internal communication 
 by a Railway. 
 
 There are few, if there be any, schemes of this description, 
 
 I 
 
 that have been put to more severe tests, or where their expediency 
 has been more questioned. It has never been denied, that a Rail- 
 way to Scotland, starting from the termination of the York and 
 Newcastle (or Great Northern) Railway, was anything but highly 
 desirable but the question has been,— whether it was not better to 
 go 15 or 20 miles out of a direct line by the sea side, rather than 
 go through the centre or very heart of the country in a direct line 
 to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The impracticability of the Midland 
 Line has been made the most of by the advocates of the Eastern 
 or Coast Line. The following Report embraces the whole of what 
 was most' objected to ; and if it be found a sufficient apology for 
 my so frequently appearing before you as its advocate, I shall rest 
 satisfied, in the consciousness that no efforts of mine, though feeble 
 they be, have been wanting to do justice alike to my employers 
 and to the public. 
 
 Bird-WM, 22nd June, 183J. 
 

 
 
 ■■*'.<' » ■. 
 
 :;,/AVV, vV'.^ -." 
 
 ’ ■ ' ' \ '' '' ■ '■ ':'■ ,. oi'-T.'i;i.iao ji V i 
 
 ;,r\i 
 
 " V ' 
 
 ^ K'i - 
 
 1C 
 
 • V-o-fi 
 
 -■ ' / 
 
 
 
 
 ■■•iiKi imU Ki^ •kiU:’(r,-> -a-r I'Ji r:rv.:’i ;h?Ji b« ■.•'?.{ 
 
 ^"'4 x>i/d^o^>?^''r'r:nfjufh ■ 
 
 li^iV iBhfy/ ' 
 
 i)iiT 'a/fi ? 1 '>‘ -Ktf -Hba: ' 
 
 „ !foife^hu;:a^f 4 i'> '■ MfiWkt?- fo’ ml 
 
 • ■ ' . ' -- 'A .jV? . *"■ ■ . -- b '‘ '''^ 
 
 77 ^ . . :. - A .„ 7 f'v';.- 7 ' : . ■ ^ ' , ■- ^ "^'b-'. 
 
 '■4iJ'ii -h' .-.: j^yA ^i%i a t^'pyni jw'kI'hf', 
 
 ■ hil;'; ib" ' '>-^. 7 . ;^ >W^ 
 
 ;,yfaV .1 Pr} iH'/ffi)' '^.^vr '7 a) A\f;-- *"77' ' *'^ ' 
 
 o/ ^rcr f?:'^v; -I 'l*? ;-Ui 0 l-:'*t 7 \.U> 
 
 • irH'j- i^'r-A \-ij -i^T t^nii 7;-'J«s 0^. 
 
 ; <:*;77 7 ^'AKb‘v •. ^ 'r^ * 0 ' vam^a ;' 'Ab, '; ;• 
 
 A -SriAH^xAy^qA- v'^A 7 b.j- 
 
 ' ■’ " ', 7 ''" ■“ \i' ' ■ ■■ '^' ' /• ' ' ■■' I '"b‘* ■ 
 
 ' lV» - ••'•’>*^‘ V*' • «*■ <’)'?■ »-Wi!. 'f. •»■ ' : . 'A( J . 7 ' > i ,.'-■> < i '•*’'' ■ •■“.•* -'Hil 
 
 
 
 
 fA i r-' 
 
 if i,^-? t:--, 1 . ^ !■■*'■■■-■■ 
 
 \,‘; V- iib'^fv} 'I 
 
 : ■ '• ?r Ai(^''' 
 
 \' - 
 
 X' ■ '>V( 
 
 . :. 7 I? A 
 .,>r+^ ' ''i' 
 
 K' ; ’.r)-tl''^-„^,''‘ 
 
 ''A a/ 7 ' :,-';:’ 7 " ’ I I A">b 7 ^'.-'' 
 
 , '■ ■ "-^ \ 
 
 ->-7 7 
 
 i''' 
 
 k’'ft'’:' '■' 
 
 ■., 7 'V "7 : 7 :', b^r<:''v' '• 7 
 
 >;» > 77 ^ a 4 - 4 ;‘ : . . ;.. 
 
 
 " '‘:V?v ^ ■’ 
 
 A. t:l 
 
 
 
 
 '-i\ 
 
 '■k 
 
PROVISIONAL COMMITTEES. 
 
 HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF HAMILTON AND BRANDON. 
 
 HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF ROXBURGHE. 
 
 THE MOST NOBLE THE MARQUIS OF DOUGLAS AND CLYDESDALE. 
 THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL OF WEMYS AND .MARCH. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL OF TRAQUAIR. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD ELIBANK. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD BELHAVEN. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD REDESDALE. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD DOUGLAS. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD BLANTYRE. 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. LORD POLEWARTIK 
 THE HON. LORD COREHOUSE. 
 
 THE HON. HENRY FRANCIS SCOTT. 
 
 THE HON. WM. MILLS, Lord Provost of the City of Glasgow. 
 
 TFIE LORD DEAN OF GUILD, EDINBURGH. 
 
 SIR JAMES MONTGOMERIE, Bart. 
 
 SIR THOMAS M. BRISBANE, Bart. K.C.B. &c. 
 
 SIR JOHN PRINGLE, Bart. St itch ell. 
 
 SIR JOHN HAY, Bart. M.P. 
 
 SIR THOMS GIBSON CARMICHAEL, Bart. 
 
 SIR JOHN NASMYTH, Bart. 
 
 SIR GEORGE GRANT SUTTIE, Bart. 
 
 SIR NORMAN M. LOCKHART, Bart. 
 
 SIR DAVID ERSKINE, Dryburgh. 
 
 SIR DAVID BREWSTER. 
 
 JOHN HODGSON HINDE, Esq. M.P. 
 
 JAMES OSWALD, Esq. M.P. 
 
 WILLIAM DOWNS GILLON, Esq. M.P. 
 
 THOMAS RIDDELL, Esq. High Sheriff of Nortiutmrerland. 
 
 WILLIAM OLIVER RUTHERFURD, Esq. Sheriff of Roxburghshire. 
 
 JOHN WOOD, Esq. Sheriff of Peebleshire. 
 
 WILLIAM JOHN CHARLTON, Esq. High Sheriff of Northumrerlayd. 
 
 THE PROVOST AND BAILIES OF JEDBURGH. 
 
 THE BAILIE, THE CONVENOR OF THE INCORPORATED TRADES, AND 
 THE PRESES OF THE MERCHANTS’ COMPANY, Kei.so. 
 
 THE MAGISTRATES AND TOWN CLT:RK OF HAWICK. 
 
 THE PROVOST AND BAILIES OF PEEBLES. 
 
 THE PROVOST AND BAILIES OF LANARK. 
 
 THE PROVOST, MAGISTRATES, AND TOWN TRICASURER OF HAMILTON. 
 THE PROVOST OF RUTHERGLEN. 
 
6 
 
 Thomas James, Esq. Otterburn Castle, 
 llev. John Elliot, Rector, Simoiiburn. 
 
 William Henry Charlton, Esq. Hesleysicle. 
 Nicholas Leadbitter, Esq. Warden. 
 
 John Ilarbottle, Esq. Anick Grange. 
 
 Thomas R. Batson, Esq. Newcastle. 
 
 Joseph Dodd, Esq. High Leain. 
 
 Capt. Jopling. 
 
 William Jopling, Esq. Cow don. 
 
 James Lawsoui, Esq. Reedsdale Cottage. 
 
 Major Oliver, Bush. 
 
 James Elliot, Esq. Woldee. 
 
 Archibald Jerdon, Esq. Bonjedw'ard. 
 
 David Brown, Esq. Rawflat. 
 
 Archibald Dickson, Esq. Huntlaw 
 William Scott, Esq. Teviot Bank. 
 
 John Chisholm, Esq. Staches. 
 
 James Greive, Esq. Branxholm Braes. 
 
 Walter Wilson, Esq. Hawick. 
 
 James Douglas, Esq. Cavers. 
 
 Allan E. Lockhart, Esq. Borthwdck Braes. 
 Thomas Stavert, Esq. Hoscoat. 
 
 Mr. William Watson, Hawdck. 
 
 Mr. Robert Frazer, Hawick. 
 
 Mr. William Nixon, Hawick. 
 
 Robert H. Tulloch, Esq., Ellistoun. 
 
 William Currie, Esq. Linthill. 
 
 Mark Sprott, Esq. Rindell. 
 
 Archibald Douglas, Esq. Adderstoiie. 
 
 Thomas Todd, Esq. Drygrange. 
 
 Lieut. Col. Spottiswood, Gladsw ood. 
 
 George C. Bainbridge, Esq. Gattonside. 
 
 Alex. Hay, Esq. Charlesfield. 
 
 James Curie, Esq. Melrose. 
 
 David Spence, Esq. Do. 
 
 James Erskine, Esq. Shieldheld. 
 
 Robert G. Thompson, Esq. Melrose. 
 
 Thomas Bruce, Esq. Langlee. 
 
 Archibald Gibson, Esq. Ladhope. 
 
 .James Pringle, Esq. Tor wood lee. 
 
 Thomas Scott, Esq. Abbot’s Mcadow\ 
 
 .James Clarkson, Esq. Melrose. 
 
 Francis Blakie, Esq., St. Helens. 
 
 Col. John Scott, Ravenswood. 
 
 Gilbert Elliott, Esq. Greenwells, 
 
 Messrs. John & Thomas Smith, Darnick. 
 
 John Scott, Jilsq. of Gala House. 
 
 William Stewart Walker, I^sq. of Bowdaw'. 
 Nicol Milne, Esq. of I^’aldonside. 
 
 (Jcorge Craig, Esq. Banker, Galashiels. 
 
 Mr. .lohn Sanderson, Builder, Do. 
 
 Mr. John Blakie, Wood Merchant, Do. 
 
 Mr. Robert Sanderson, Mannfachirer, Do. 
 
 Mr. Robert h’yshe, SclM)oImastcr, Do. 
 
 Mr. .John Cochrane, Manufacturer, Colasliicls, 
 
 
 I 
 
 ( 
 
 \ 
 
 \ 
 
 ( 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 \ 
 
 j 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
 \ 
 
 Mr. George Roberts, Do. Do. 
 
 Robert Haldane, Esq. Banker. Do. 
 
 Mr. Robert Gill, Manufacturer, Do. 
 
 Mr. James Bathgate, Do. Do. 
 
 Mr. George Paterson, Do. Do. 
 
 Mr. John Haldane, Brewer, Do. 
 
 Mr. Robert Lees, Manufacturer, Do. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Paterson, Tanner, Do. 
 
 Dr. Weir, Do. 
 
 Mr. Wm.'Roberts, Manufacturer, Do. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Thomson, Manufacturer, Do. 
 
 Mr. Eliot Anderson, Writer, Do. 
 
 Robert Mein, Esq. Ormiston. 
 
 Robert Oliver, Esq. Blakelaw. 
 
 James Innes, Esq. Broomlands, Factor on the 
 Roxburghe Estates. 
 
 William Scott Ker, Esq. of Sunlaws. 
 
 Peter Robertson, Esq. Newtonlees. 
 
 William Stewart, Esq. Glenormston. 
 
 William Forbes MM^enzie, Esq. Portmore. 
 Alex. Carmichael, Esq. Skirling. 
 
 Capt. Ker, Cardrona. 
 
 John I^er, Esq. Kerfield. 
 
 William Allan, Esq. Glen. 
 
 Andrew Ballantyne, Esq. Woodhouse. 
 
 James Burnet, Esq. Barnes. 
 
 Thomas Allan, Esq. Banker, Edinburgh, 
 Robert Nutter Campbell, Esq. Kelzie. 
 
 Thomas Horsborough, Esq. Pirn. 
 
 James Ballantiue, Esq. Hallilee. 
 
 Andrew White, Esq. Drummelzier. 
 
 Andrew White, Jun. Esq., Do. 
 
 David Dickson, Esq. Hartree. 
 
 William Turnbull, Esq. Peebles. 
 
 James Turnbull, Esq. Bailie, Do. 
 
 Walter Thorburn, Esq. Do. 
 
 John Paterson, Esq. Dean of Guild, Do? 
 
 Alex. Wilkie, Esq. Town Treasurer, Do. 
 
 John Fotheringham, Esq. Town Clerk, J)o. 
 James Murray, Esq. Craigend. 
 
 Mr. Russell, Eshills. 
 
 Mr. James Cameron, Fernyhaugh. 
 
 Mr. Tiiomas Salton, Traquair. 
 
 Mr. .John Somerville, Innerleithan, 
 
 Mr. Milne, Horsborough Castle. 
 
 Mr. Todd, Nether Horsborough. 
 
 Mr. .James Alexander, Haprew. 
 
 Mr. William Symington, Lyme. 
 
 Ml’. Thomas Cochrane, JJorcus. 
 
 Mr. William Paterson, Melkieston. 
 
 Mr. Chaig, JJattouknow. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Aitchison, Kirkhousc. 
 
 Mj-. .John Middlcinas, Ballunrig 
 licni y Montcilh, Es(|. (.arstairs. 
 
 .loliii Life, Es<i. Ncwcasllc. 
 
7 
 
 Daniel Vore,Esq. Stonebyrea. 
 
 John Buchanan, Esq. Provost of T.rfinark. 
 Alexander Gillespie, Esq. Sunnyside. 
 
 .loseph Hutchison, Esq. Sluiwton. 
 
 Adam Sim, Esep Cultermains. 
 
 Robert Grundberry Buillie, Esq. Culterallers. 
 Michael Carmichael Younger, Esq. Eastend. 
 Thomas Rennie Scott, Esq. Factor on the 
 Douglas Estate. 
 
 George Gillespie, Esq. Bigger Park. 
 
 James Harvie, Esq. Brownlee. 
 
 William Lockhart, Esq. Milton Lockhart. 
 Charles Walker, Esq. New Lanark. 
 
 John Stein, Esq. Kirkfield. 
 
 John Man*, Esq. Writer, Lanark. 
 
 James Ferrie, Esq. Farme. 
 
 James Ferrie, Jun. Esq. Do. 
 
 William Dixon, Esq. Goran. 
 
 John Graham, Esq., West Burn. 
 
 Robert Harrington, Esq. Torrence. 
 
 Patrick Graham, Esq., Lime Kilns. 
 
 James Hope Vere, Esq. Blackwood. 
 
 Col. Robert Campbell, Dalserf. 
 
 Col. Hamilton McNiel, Raploch. 
 
 James Henderson, Esq. Peasebanks. 
 
 James Hamilton, Esq. Fairholme. 
 
 James Bryson, Esq. Sheriff Faulds. 
 
 Wm. Gilmour, Esq. Glasgow. 
 
 James Lumsden, Esq. GlasgoAv. 
 
 Bailie Johnston, Do. 
 
 Colin Dunlop, Esq. Tollcross. 
 
 Robert Findlay, Esq. Easter House 
 
 Robert BroAvn, Esq. Hamilton. 
 
 James McCall, Esq. Daldowie. 
 
 William Dixon, Esq. Gallownows 
 Henry Dunlop, Esq. Craigton. 
 
 James Hutcheson, Esq. Glasgow. ^ 
 
 Robert Dalglish, Esq. Do. 
 
 Robert Stewart, Esq. Do. 
 
 William Dunn, Esq. Do. 
 
 Hugh Cogan, Esq. Do. 
 
 Robert Bartholomew, Esq. Do. 
 
 John Leadbetter, Esq. Do. 
 
 Charles Tennant, Esq. St. Rollox. 
 
 J. G. Hamilton, Esq. Glasgow. 
 
 William Mackenzie, Esq. Portmore. 
 
 William Child, Esq. Glencorse. 
 
 Dr. John Renton, Pennicuik. 
 
 James Brown, Esq. Eskmills. 
 
 Alex. Cowan, Esq. Morayhouse, Canongate. 
 Wm. Bell, Esq. Huntliill, W.S. 
 
 Thomas Allan, Esq. Banker, Edinburgh. 
 Norman Lockhart, Esq. W.S. 
 
 William Stewart, Esq. Glenormiston. 
 Archibald Nisbet, Esq., Carphin. 
 
 Roger Aytoun, Esq. W.S. Abercromby Place, 
 Edinburgh. 
 
 Patrick Cockburn,Esq.Accountant,Edinburgh. 
 James Brown, Esq. Iron Merchant, Edinburgh. 
 John Gibson, Esq. W.S. Edinburgh. 
 
 James Hamilton, Esq. Karnes. 
 
 Alexander Craig, Esq. Edinburgh. 
 
 Robert Steuart, Esq. Carfin. 
 

 ' ? ; j 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■, ■_, ^ ^ V. 
 
 \ ■■■^ ' 
 
 
 
 , : fV,V./^ , ■ / ' 7 
 
 ,.'-V' ■ -C > 
 
 V .■■; .'7^ 
 
 i ' > 
 
 
 ' -i ■ " * 
 
 
 ■■' , «■■' .' '\i' ,,?;s; /■ 
 
 > » c ' - 
 
 .y ‘ Hi .■■':* .ffr.'U-l.. 
 
 ' fr *■'. 
 
 " ^':yr7;:7 
 
 i'fr, .•:. '- u,;.; 
 
 ' ..7 '■ 
 
 '■Oy 7-.:.i;>'W.v 
 
 
 . ’ ; 
 
 :■ 
 
 
 '.„,• .y.y 
 
 
 t". , ‘ ' .^ 
 
 .V-; >■ .'V; .. 
 
 ■'rv m 
 
 yi . ' -k ■ ' u.*:S’ 
 
 
 
 >■ ■■' *' .'•' 
 
 
 i nrK^.Oi'.i 
 
 
 4 :4';>". >■■ '■■ 
 
 
 ' ■^''- 
 
 
 
 ■7' 
 
 
 Vy. ;■ 
 
 
 
 
 . .. . 
 
 
 
 
 ^4:7 -, -U 
 
 
 
 r..^-j;r' * . '^-‘ •/• /■'’■■ 
 
 •/ ■ ‘ V- ■ ' ■' ^• 
 
 ',...-b-T.r:. - A.;f" 
 
 '■'■ ' - • - • - • ' ’ yV' 5 ' - 
 
 ) ; . >r££ ^ ^ '• 
 
 ■;, ’ 4 ^^} - ‘V;. : 
 
 ft: 
 
 
 
 ... 'V;<P 
 
 •■ '-'f, • 
 
 
 
 .{viv'lifv.i- 
 
 ) ;?f' 
 
 ■‘.v «' . ■'.,. -A';!’ ,■•.<. ► ■ 
 
 . , - • '.vtSi^v -<.•••. .,/ '■. ■ -vP . / 
 
 „•- ■'.- .,. -i. i-‘' '-■‘■t 
 
 - ^ -ri ' i-y i ■' J ., ' .*'«>..t,.. // biE»i i#p# ‘ 
 
 ; ••■ v-v j 
 
 .''•■■v --'7 
 
 7 « 1 ,'i' '.^;.i' ' ’*'•■ . . .\ 
 
 * ' 'R4;:7 ,: i-.f> . .: .ftn '>' 
 
 ' ■' •- ' it.fr J lii 
 
 sV;',,,._„zwi'’. ■ •■:•' ... i 
 
 r .. , ' / • ".' ■ ‘I ‘ 
 
 .';.:.l;, ..■/'•■ ',. . ■ V ^ 
 
 - ’ -V , ■■■ ' 7 ’ 
 
REPORT 
 
 Co tifte UroOt0tonal Committe^^* 
 
 MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, 
 
 Since the publication of my First Report in June last, much has occurred 
 in relation to the project of establishing a Railway Communication from New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne to Edinburgh and Glasgow; and in reporting to you the 
 proceedings which have taken place, it affords me great pleasure to be 
 enabled to assure you of the increased and increasing popularity of this im- 
 portant scheme. It has now been upwards of a year before the public, and 
 its merits and demerits have been closely examined into and freely discussed. 
 The majorities of ten public city, district, and county meetings in Scotland 
 have decided in its favour ; and upwards of two hundred of the nobility, 
 country gentlemen, and merchants of Scotland, are on the Provisional Com- 
 mittees. This will, I trust, sufficiently prove to you, that the exertions 
 which have been made to direct the public attention to this great national 
 undertaking, have not failed in accomplishing so important an object ; and 
 that nothing but its intrinsic merits, and the certainty of the immense benefits 
 which would accrue from it to the country at large, as well as to the neigh- 
 bourhood through which it passes, could have given birth to and kept alive 
 the deep interest which has been manifested in its favour. 
 
 In compliance with the fourth resolution* of the county meeting held at 
 Hexham on the 30th of June, 1836, Thomas Riddell, Esquire, High Sheriff 
 of Northumberland, in the chair, I accompanied Mr. Reed to Scotland. 
 
 As the proceedings of the meetings which were held will be shortly pub- 
 lished, as reported in the Kelso Chronicle,*!* it is unnecessary for me now to 
 do more than briefly notice them. 
 
 * “ That public meetings be held in Jedburgh, Melrose, Galashiels, Selkirk, Hawick, 
 Peebles, Hamilton, Lanark, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, to forward the object of this meeting ; 
 and that Joshua Richardson, Esq. Civil Engineer, and Mr. Stephen Reed, of Newcastle-upon- 
 Tyne, be requested to attend the same, with the preliminary surveys, plans, reports, &c. and 
 give such information as may be required ; also, to make proper arrangements for the effective 
 co-operation of the several Committees, and other professional assistance that may be required 
 for carrying the undertaking forward.” 
 
 f The Committees are under great obligations to Mr. Dawson, the talented Editor of the 
 Kelso Chronicle, who, apart from all political considerations, has invariably advocated the 
 Midland Line ; and, with great inconvenience to himself, has ably endeavoured to promote the 
 success of this project, 
 
 B 
 
10 
 
 On the 9th of August last, a County District Meeting was held at Jed- 
 burgh, W. O. Rutherfurd, Esq. Sheriff of Roxburghshire, in the chair, at 
 which Resolutions were passed in favour of the Railway, and a Committee 
 appointed to co-operate with other Committees in forwarding the measure. 
 Similar meetings were held at Hawick on the 11th of August, at Melrose on 
 the ISth, at Galashiels on the 13th, at Kelso on the 19th, at Peebles on Sep- 
 tember 6th, at Lanark on the 13th, at Hamilton on the 11th October, at 
 Glasgow on the 19th October, and at Edinburgh on the 16th of November 
 last. 
 
 The most perfect unanimity prevailed at all these meetings, with the 
 exception of those held at Kelso and Edinburgh, at which parties interested 
 in the Line from Newcastle by Berwick and Dunbar to Edinburgh appeared, 
 and endeavoured to avert the proceedings, to the advantage of their scheme, 
 and to the prejudice of the Midland Line. After considerable discussion, 
 and a fair, full, and free enquiry into the respective merits of both Lines, the 
 decision of both meetings were unequivocally in favour of the Midland Line ; 
 and highly respectable Committees were appointed to correspond and coalesce 
 with the other Committees, in endeavouring to promote this measure. 
 
 Strong objections having been frequently urged against the practicability 
 of passing the range of the Carter Hills with a Locomotive Line of Railway, 
 I was induced, by the request of several influential Members of the Com- 
 mittees, to level that part of the Line against which these presumed 
 obstacles were attributed. Commencing at Horsley, on the Reed Water, I 
 continued the levels to Whitelee, over the Carter, into the Valley of the 
 Jed, to the Teviot Water, and from thence to the Tweed near Abbotsford. 
 Two longitudinal and several cross sections were taken with great care, and 
 no pains spared to prove their accuracy. It affords me great pleasure to in- 
 form you that, although the results are not quite so favourable as I at one 
 time anticipated, yet, as regards both gradients and curves, the Line is de- 
 cidedly superior to many, if not most of the Railway Schemes now before_the 
 public. From Wishaw’s Analysis of the Projected Railways now before 
 Parliament, it appears that there are upwards of one hundred miles in which 
 the gradients vary from thirty, forty, fifty, and sixty feet to upwards of two 
 hundred feet per mile ; — that there are one hundred and seventeen curves 
 under a radius of three-quarters of a mile ; and forty miles of tunnelling, the 
 longest of which is on the Sheffield and Manchester Railway, it being nearly 
 three miles in length. It ought to be remembered, that these schemes of 
 Railway have been laid down under all the advantages and improvements 
 which experience can bestow, and, therefore, we may presume that they are as 
 perfect as the nature of the country through which they pass will allow. The 
 extracts from Wishaw’s Analysis attached to the Report, exhibit, in a tabular 
 form, the information required to enable you to form a judgment of the com- 
 parative merits of the Line I have the honour of again bringing before your 
 notice. With the titles of the Railways, you will find the names of the en- 
 gineers by whom they were designed ; and among these you perceive Walker, 
 
11 
 
 'Rennie, Stephenson, Brunei, Locke, Rastrick, Giles, Palmer, Gibbs, and 
 others of known talent and celel)rity. 
 
 With these prefatory remarks I shall now, in the first place, attempt to 
 describe the route of the proposed Line, — the gradients of such parts of it as 
 has been actually levelled, with the probable gradients of that portion of 
 which no section has been taken, — the conjectural cost of the entire Line, — 
 and the probable revenue to be derived from it. 
 
 It will be recollected, that it was originally proposed to take advantage 
 of the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, from Newcastle to Warden, and 
 thence continuing the Midland Line by the North Tyne to the Reed Water. 
 As this would have increased the distances from Newcastle, nineteen miles by 
 Galawater, and eleven miles by Peebles to Edinburgh, and twenty-four to 
 Glasgow, without any other remunerating advantages than what may be ob- 
 tained by a Branch to Warden ; and as the expence of the first cost of nine 
 miles of additional Railway, which would be required to start from New- 
 castle, would be compensated for in the more favourable gradients, I have 
 been induced to recommend the following route in preference to the one by 
 Warden, — subject necessarily to such deviations as may be required on an 
 exact section of the whole Line being taken. 
 
 The terminus at Newcastle is of too important a nature to be fixed with- 
 out great care and deliberation ; and must, in a great measure, be influenced 
 by the terminus of the Great Northern, and other Railways now in the course 
 of formation in this neighbourhood. Leaving this to be fixed as circumstances 
 may afterwards induce the Committees to direct, I propose at present to com- 
 mence on the north-west side of the Town Moor or Leazes, and from thence 
 proceeding northwards to near Stamfordham by Sweethope to the Reed, near 
 Woodburn, crossing the river near Corsenside Church, and proceeding to 
 near Troughend and Cleughbrae, on the south side of the Reed, to Chattle- 
 hope and Whitelee. From thence the Line continues to the Carter Toll Bar 
 House, south of Letham, and near to Shaw, to a little above the New Jail at 
 Jedburgh, and from thence south of Bonjedward to the Teviot, which it crosses 
 near Broom (about a mile and a quarter above Ancrum Bridge,) and from 
 thence to Ale Water, which it crosses about two miles south west of Ancrum, 
 — to the south of Newton to Melrose, and from thence by an easy curve to the 
 Tweed, near Abbotsford, which it crosses to Galashiels. From Galashiels 
 I entertain considerable doubt as to the best way of proceeding to Edinburgh. 
 There are two routes, either of which may be adopted, as may be determined 
 most advisable after the levels are taken. The most direct one is to proceed 
 from Galashiels up the Gala Water to Torsonce, crossing the river, or alter- 
 ing its present Channel in two or three places, and keeping its course until 
 we come to Crichton Moss, which I purpose crossing east of the present turn- 
 pike road, and from thence to near Borthwick Castle, to the west of New 
 Byre’’s Castle, Kirkhill, and west of Cockpen, to near Standing Green, Inch, 
 to the west of Salisbury Green, to Edinburgh ; and the other is to continue 
 both Lines on to Peebles, and from thence diverge to Edinburgh by the 
 
12 
 
 Eddlestone Water, to near Pennycuik, and from thence by the River Esk to 
 Edinburgh. Although this would increase the distance from Newcastle to 
 Edinburgh about eight miles, yet by continuing the joint Line on to Peebles, 
 the making of nine miles of Railway would be saved. As far as any mature 
 consideration of mine may have any influence, I certainly should recommend 
 to the Committees the Line by Peebles in preference to that by Crichton 
 Moss (supposing the gradients more favourable), as I believe the description 
 of passengers which would travel by the Railway would be principally of 
 that class who would prefer passing along the banks of the Tweed by Abbots- 
 ford, Asheysteel, Inverleithen, &c. instead of by the other Line, although it 
 may be eight miles shorter. The Line to Glasgow from near Galashiels, I 
 propose should cross the Tweed east of Abbotsford, and, by gently curving, 
 continue by Inverleithen, and cross the river again north-west of Cardrona, — • 
 from thence keeping nearly ^he course of the Tweed to the South of Peebles ; 
 then crossing the river near Neidpath Castle to Innes Mill House, Stobo, 
 New Posso, and Drummelzier, where, leaving the Tweed, it then continues 
 westwards, near Broughton, by the Biggar Water to the south of Biggar, 
 crossing the Clyde between Lindsaylands and Symington, to near Thacker- 
 ton, cutting olF a great portion of the curve of the river to near Hyndford 
 Bridge, Hill Bank, Stonebyres, Hill House, Allanton, to the west of 
 Hamilton ; then by Coatshill, Westburn, Rutherglen, to the River Clyde, 
 on the side opposite to Bromielaw Quay, Glasgow. 
 
 This is the general route of the Line, as laid down on the accompanying 
 plan, subject necessarily to such deviations or alterations as may subsequently, 
 and after a more minute examination, be thought expedient. 
 
 As several alterations have been made in the Line since the distances 
 were last given, I beg to state the distances as the Line is now laid down on 
 the accompanying General Plan : — 
 
 MILES. 
 
 From Newcastle to Edinburgh by the Gala Water 94 
 
 From Newcastle to Edinburgh by Peebles 102 
 
 From Newcastle to Glasgow 128 
 
 Main Line from Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glasgow by the Gala Water 158 
 
 Main Line from Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glasgow by Peebles 149 
 
 Kelso Branch 10 
 
 Hawick Branch 10 
 
 Selkirk Branch 4 
 
 If the Line goes by Peebles, there will require a Branch to Galashiels of 2 
 
 In a scheme of such importance as this it is highly essential that no in- 
 terested motives or bigotted attachments should interfere in the selection of 
 the best possible Line that can be obtained. Acting under these impressions 
 of duty, I cheerfully acquiesced in the request made to me on the 15th Marcli 
 last, by the Jedburgh District Committee of Roxburghshire, to examine one 
 Line from Huntford to the Rule Water, and from thence to theTcviot; and 
 another from Bellingham, up the North Tyne to Note of the Gate, into the 
 Rule Water, and so on, as before, to the Teviot. 
 
13 
 
 The first Line proposed by tlie Committee does not appear to me to 
 possess claims equal to our present Line, inasmuch as we should have to 
 encounter some awkward curves ; and the distance from the diverging points, 
 viz. ten miles, would be increased about two miles in length, without giving 
 us any additional facilities of passing the Carter range of hills, or cause any 
 saving either in the first cost, or in tlie annual expenditure. I cannot, there- 
 fore, recommend the deviation proposed from Huntford by Doorpool to 
 the Spittab’ for your adoption. 
 
 The other line of deviation, proposed for examination by the Rox- 
 burghshire Committee, certainly has greater claims to your attentive con- 
 sideration. The deviation would commence near Stamfordham, and continue 
 to near Matfen and Rial to Reedsmouth, — from thence to Bellingham, up 
 the North Tyne, near Keilder, to Dead Water, — up the Singdean Burn, to 
 Note of the Gate, and from thence by the Rule Water to the Teviot, and join 
 the present Line near Newton. The distance between the two diverging 
 points would be increased six miles, the length of the diversion being fifty 
 miles. As far as an eye examination of the Line goes, I am induced to believe 
 that the Section ©f this Line will prove more favorable than the Carter Line. 
 From Bellingham upwards, the North Tyne rises very gradually,^ and this 
 rise does not increase (I am told) as we proceed Northwards into the Dead 
 Water. From the Dead Water this Line would proceed, in a deep cuttingthrough 
 Sandstone, to Singdean Burn, which flows in a deep valley or ravine to near the 
 Note of the Gate. The whole of the stratification here is Slate Rock ; and a 
 Tunnel of about half a mile in length would be required. After passing 
 through the Tunnel, the Line would proceed to Hindlee, in the valley of the 
 Rule Water, which is chiefly composed of Sandstone. The summit level of 
 this Line would be at the Note of the Gate, which is evidently considerably 
 lower than the Carter Fell ; but as no sections have been taken of it, nothing 
 can be said as to any definite heights with any great certainty upon the sub- 
 ject. My great fear is, that although we cross the Teviot two and three- 
 quarter miles higher up than by the Carter Line, the fall of the Rule Water 
 will exceed the gradients on that Line. The Tunnel also, although a shorter 
 one, will have to be made through a hard rock, which will nearly, if not 
 quite, equal the expense of a longer Tunnel through the Carter. I also en- 
 tertain considerable apprehension that this Line would be opposed by tJie 
 Duke of Northumberland, as we should have to pass very near Keilder Castle, 
 and through his property there. On the other hand, the Line would be 
 warmly supported by most of the other Landowners, — the country is decidedly 
 more populous, and there are good and extensive fields of Coal, Lime, and 
 Iron on the Line. 
 
 There is also another Line in nearly the same direction, although con- 
 siderably more curved than the one to which I have alluded ; and that is 
 continuing up the North Tyne to the Dead Water, and then crossing the 
 
 * At Bellingham the fall of the River is only fourteen feet in two miles, one mile above and 
 another below the New Bridge. 
 
14 
 
 mountain range a little to the west of Peel Fell into the River Jed. The 
 advantages of this Line are, that the Tunnel, as in the last case, would be a 
 short one, and differing from it in stratification, as the hill through which we 
 should have to Tunnel is composed entirely of lime and sandstone. The 
 northern approach of this Tunnel would be more expensive than that of the 
 Rule Water ; and the same objections as to the southern approach by 
 Keilder, apply with equal force to both Lines. 
 
 Having thus laid before you the whole information as to the route of the 
 Railway, which I have been enabled to collect, after nearly a twelve-month’s 
 residence in Scotland, I shall now, with your permission, direct your attention 
 to its western extremity. 
 
 It has long been in contemplation to establish a Railway communication 
 from Liverpool by Carlisle to Glasgow. I am not aware if the schemes first pro- 
 posed are still before the public ; be this as it may, it is important that our Line 
 from Biggar or Lanark should form a part of any such scheme ; and I have 
 been informed by a gentleman conversant in these matters, that an excellent 
 Junction Line might be effected with our Line from near Cumnock, on the 
 Western Line, to join us on the Douglas Water, near Hydleford Bridge, not far 
 from Lanark. If this Junction could be effected, the advantages which would 
 result from it would be highly beneficial. A Junction might also be made 
 with the Paisley and Greenock Railways near Glasgow ; also, with several 
 collieries and iron works in Lanarkshire, &c. 
 
 The Terminus at Glasgow I propose to be a little west of the New 
 Bridge on the River Clyde, opposite to the Broomielaw Quay ; and that at 
 Edinburgh, at Port Hopetown. Further investigation may, however, suggest 
 improvements on these, as well as on the precise route of the Line. 
 
 Before entering upon a detail of the gradients which will be required in 
 forming a Railway from Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glasgow, I beg leave 
 to state to you that thirty-six miles of the Line only have been levelled under 
 my inspection, viz., that part of which commences near to and opposite to the 
 Horsley Inn, Reed Water, across the Carter Fell, to the Tweed, between 
 Abbotsford and the junction of the Gala Water with that River. The data 
 upon which I have presumed, as regards the inclinations of the other parts of 
 the Line, has been derived from a careful and repeated examination of the 
 ground ; with the assistance of such information as I have been able to collect 
 from sections of the country adjacent to, or touching, or crossing, some parts 
 of the Line, previously taken for the purpose of Turnpike Roads and Rail- 
 ways, by Telford and other engineers. The difficulty of arriving at satisfac- 
 tory conclusions on this important subject is very considerably diminished, 
 by the circumstance that, from where we first join the I’weed, the Line con- 
 tinues Westward parallel, nearly all the way to Glasgow, with the Rivers 
 Tweed, Biggar, and Clyde. The Line to Edinburgh cannot be described 
 with an equal degree of approximate truth, inasmuch as that l)y the Gala 
 Water, as well as that by the Eddlestone Water, do not continuously pursue a 
 water level ; yet I trust I shall be able to satisfy you that a Locomotive Line 
 
15 
 
 of Railway can be obtained by one or both of these routes, leaving the ulti- 
 mate preference of one Line over the other to be determined by the exact 
 Sections hereafter to be taken . 
 
 It has, I understand, been ascertained that the summit of the Carter Fell, 
 under which we ])ropose to pass, is 1200 feet above the Queen’s Head Inn, 
 Newcastle, 1100 feet above the Tron Church, Edinburgh, and 1370 above 
 the Sea. These facts are important, inasmuch as. I have great reason to be- 
 lieve in their accuracy, as far as round numbers go, without entering into 
 minutia, from having at different periods taken several Sections in the coun- 
 ties of Northumberland and Durham, strongly confirmatory of their general 
 correctness, as regards the Southern extremity of the Line. Presuming, 
 therefore, on the truth of this data, I take it as my base, making the White- 
 lee the summitof the whole Line. 
 
 I shall first attempt to describe to you the gradients from Newcastle to 
 the Whitelee, and then proceed to relate the inclinations to the Tweed, and 
 from thence to Glasgow and Edinburgh. I have fixed the summit at the 
 junction of the Whitelee Burn, with the River Reed, which is, according to 
 my levels, 510 feet below the top of the Carter ; this leaves 690 feet to be ac- 
 counted for between this point and Newcastle. This I propose to accomplish 
 by the following inclinations, — the distance being 42 miles : — 
 
 From Newcastle to a mile South of Dalton at 1 in 440 
 
 From Dalton to Woodhurn at 1 in 352 
 
 From Woodhurn to Whitelee at 1 in 264 
 
 Which gives an average gradient of 15.66 feet per mile, and a total rise of 
 683 feet from Newcastle to Whitelee. 
 
 In proceeding Northwards, we have to encounter the worst, most diffi- 
 cult, and most expensive portion of the whole Line, until we arrive at the 
 Teviot. After which, the difficulties as to gradients are few, and the Line 
 may be almost viewed as unobjectionable. 
 
 I propose, in the Section now submitted to you, that the Tunnel should 
 commence three-quarters of a mile North of Whitelee, to be of about two 
 miles in length, and 550 feet below the Top of the Carter. 
 
 From the Section which I have taken, it appears that the Tweed is 580 
 feet below Whitelee, the distance being 24 miles. The inclinations are as 
 follows : — 
 
 From Whitelee to near Letham at 1 in 151 
 
 From Letham to North of the Jed at 1 in 117 
 
 From the Jed to the Teviot at 1 in 176 
 
 From the Teviot to the Tweed at 1 in 1056 
 
 which is equal to an average gradient of 28*75 feet per mile, or 564 feet on 
 the whole distance. 
 
 It may be proper to remark, that I have given these inclinations on the 
 principles now generally adopted, that it is better to concentrate your incli- 
 nations from the horizon, as far as the nature of the country and the traffic 
 
16 
 
 will admit of. W ere it thought desirable that gradients approximating more 
 nearly should or ought to be adopted, in reference to this part of the Line, 
 considerable alterations may be made to effect that object. It ought, how- 
 ever, to be borne in mind, that the load is with the inclination ; with the 
 exception of through passengers, the tonnage here will all be Coal and Lime 
 going into Scotland, from whence the Waggons would return only half, if 
 even half, loaded . 
 
 According to a Section taken by Telford in the year 1825, it appears 
 that from where we cross the Tweed, near Abbotsford, to the Bridge at 
 Peebles, there is a rise of 200 feet — the distance being 17 miles. Fiom near 
 the Gala Water to Broughton, which is nine miles West of Peebles, and 
 which is the whole distance the Line runs parallel with the Kiver Tweed, I 
 propose an inclination of 1 in 440, or 12 feet per mile, which will give a total 
 rise of 312 feet. A little west of Broughton we join the Biggar Water, and 
 proceed by it to the Summit Level, about Ij South West of Biggar. As 
 this River evidently rises a little more than the Tweed, I have laid down the 
 next six miles at an inclination of 1 in 352. It is a remarkable and well-known 
 fact, that in the floods the Waters of the Clyde and Biggar frequently meet on 
 this summit, which incontestibly proves the summit between these two great 
 rivers to be unusally low, and admirably adapted for the formation of Rail- 
 ways. We then join the Clyde near Lindsay Lands, about 1^ mile South of 
 which we cross that River, and proceed, as shewn on the Map, by Lanark and 
 Hamilton to Glasgow. The distance from the Summit to the Terminus at Glas- 
 gow is 32 miles ; and as Telford’s Section shews that there is a fall of 400 feet 
 Westward, a gradient of 12 feet in the mile, or 1 in 440 will be all the inclina- 
 tion that will be required on this most important portion of the Line. When 
 the actual sections of the determined route of the Railway are taken, some in- 
 termediate change of gradients may be required in order to suit particular loca- - 
 iities. The nature of the country is, however, such that little difficulty will 
 be experienced in preserving a near approximation to one general scheme of 
 inclinations. In this part of the line also, I am to inform you that the prin- 
 cipal tonnage will have to descend from the higher to the lower levels, which 
 is certainly of consequence, though of not such great importance *as where the 
 inclinations do not approach so nearly, as in this instance, to a level Line. 
 
 I now beg to direct your attention to the Edinburgh Lines. I have be- 
 fore stated that the Tron Church of that city was 1100 below the summit of 
 Carter Fell, that there was a fall of 510 feet to the Whitelee, and from thence 
 to the Tweed there is another fall of 580 feet, which together makes 1090 
 feet, or the Tweed nearly on a level with Edinburgh. Both by the Gala 
 Water and Peebles there is a considerable rise and fall towards Edinburgh^ 
 The summit in the first Line is at Critchon Moss, and the other at the head 
 of P]ddleston Water, near Howgate. In both lines there are considerable 
 difficulties to be encountered ; and the adoption of one Line in preference to 
 the other, can only ire decided by an instrumental examination of both Lines. 
 i\ot having been able to obtain a copy of tlie Section of the Road from tlie 
 
17 
 
 Tweed to Edinburgh and as I neither know nor have ever heard of any Section 
 being taken from Peebles to Eldinburgli, by Eddleston and Pennycuick, I am 
 unprepared, on either Line, to give any scheme of gradients which will be 
 satisfactory either to you or myself. After a careful and repeated examina- 
 tion of both Lines, I am induced to give the preference to that by Peebles, as 
 being, in my opinion, less expensive than that by the Gala Water, and the 
 one which will prove more favourable as to gradients, population, and the 
 entrance into Edinburgh. 
 
 Haying now laid before you, as minutely and eorrectly as circumstances 
 will admit, the gradients of the entire Line, you will perhaps allow me, before 
 passing to other subjects, to offer a few general remarks on what I have 
 already stated. 
 
 From the scheme of gradients which I have submitted to you, it will be 
 observed that there are only six miles which may be considered as at all ob- 
 jectionable, viz., from Whitelee to the River Jed. These are respectively 
 at inclinations of 1 in 117 and 1 in 151. Were it probable that the load 
 would be ascending instead of descending, I should have felt a strong re- 
 pugnance in recommending such gradients for your adoption. The contrary, 
 however, being the probable fact, construes what otherwise might have mili- 
 tated against the scheme into a strong recommendation of it. On the Liver- 
 pool and Manchester and other Railways, the gradients are worse even with 
 the load. On the former there are two planes of nearly three miles each, one 
 ascending at an inclination of 1 in 96, and the other descending at 1 in 103 ; 
 so that in passing either one way or the other, the load has to ascend a steeper 
 plane than any on this Line, where the principal tonnage would be always 
 descending. Other Railways might also be mentioned, in which the gradients 
 considerably exceed even the worst of what is proposed on this Line, as an 
 inspection of the table in the Appendix indisputably proves. And it ought 
 to be borne in mind, that the gradients now proposed are by no means defi- 
 nitely fixed, that alterations and improvements may, and probably will, be 
 made in them, with the objects of decreasing the length of the Tunnel, and 
 lowering the heights of the Bridges over the Jed and the Teviot. 
 
 Connected with the gradients the stratification of the country through 
 which a Line of Railway is proposed to pass is of great importance, inasmuch 
 as the expense of its formation depends very much on the nature of the earths 
 or minerals to be excavated. The following rough outline of the geological 
 characteristics of the Line will, I think, be deemed sufficient for general in- 
 formation. 
 
 From Newcastle to Buryness it is all in the Coal formation, with the ex- 
 ception of the Dyke of Whinstone, about three miles South of Woodburn. 
 
 * Lest you might think I had neglected any means of obtaining certain data when 
 it might have been obtained, I beg to state that I applied, both personally and by letter, to 
 Messrs. Grainger and Miller, for a copy of the Section of the Turnpike Road from the Tweed 
 to Edinburgh ; and the answer was, either " that it could not be found,” or, “ that it would be 
 of no use to me.” A copy of this Section was, I understand, afterwards furnished by them to 
 to Mr. Stephenson— upon which he reported. Messrs. Grainger and Miller Avere, I afterwards 
 learnt, the Engineers on the Edinburgh, Haddington, and Dunbar Railway. 
 
 c 
 
18 
 
 Near Riiken there are extensive beds of excellent Freestone, than which, for 
 bridging or architectural purposes, I have seen few if any better. From 
 Buryness to Whitelee frequent alternations occur between the Sandstone and 
 the Slate Rocks, Occasional Dykes also here intervene ; but the excavation 
 for the Railway will be here so slight, and being principally in side cuttings, 
 renders this part of the Line unobjectionable. From Whitelee to near 
 Letham the strata is considerably broken. As this was in the direction of 
 the Tunnel, I made a careful examination of this part of the Line, by em- 
 ploying men to open out the surface of the hill; the result of which was, that 
 from the summit level at Whitelee Burn, the Clay Slate alternating with other 
 secondary Rocks made their appearance, — we then had the Mountain Lime- 
 stone, — an inconsiderable Dyke of Whinstone, about two chains in width, 
 crossing our Line at right angles, — when the new Red Sandstone, or Coal for- 
 mation again set in, and continued all the way to opposite Letham. From 
 which appearances I conclude that the Tunnel, with the exception of about 
 ten yards at the South entrance, which would be in the Whin, would alto- 
 gether be in the Coal formation. After passing Letham the Trap Rocks again 
 appear for a short distance, and we then come into the old Red Sandstone 
 until we arrive at the Tweed. Proceeding Westwards, through Peebles to 
 Biggar, the strata is chielly the Clay Slate, until we arrive near Lanark, when 
 we again get into the Coal formation, which continues with slight changes to 
 Glasgow. From the Tweed by the Gala Water, the strata is generally favour- 
 able, as is also the line by Peebles to Edinburgh. 
 
 In giving this description of the geological character of the district 
 through which we pass, it is needful to caution you not implicitly to rely upon 
 it as regards eccact localities. With the exception of the Carter, I have not 
 had opportunities minutely to investigate every mile of the ground over which 
 we propose to pass. I have, therefore, given the general description as cor- 
 rectly as memory has enabled me to trace it, reserving for a future report a 
 more exact statement. As some objection may be possibly made to our pas- 
 sing through or over such an extent of secondary rock, as I have stated we 
 shall have to do in Peeblesshire, it is necessary to be understood that nearly our 
 whole excavations on this part of the Line will be in side cuttings. The ease 
 and cheapness with which this description of cutting is accomplished, cannot 
 be more easily or better illustrated than by the fact, that the whole of the 
 Turnpike Roads in this district are made in this manner. It will, I am sure, 
 require no explanatory diagram to prove to you that a side cutting, even 
 through the surface of a slate rock, must be much cheaper than a mid cut- 
 ting through strong clay. Besides, when these cuttings and embankments 
 are once formed no ballasting (an important item in most Railways) will be 
 required. From the nature of the material of which the embankments are 
 made, no expense or inconvenience will be felt in maintaining them, after they 
 are made at their proper sectional height, which in other cases invariably en- 
 tails a great annual expenditure. 
 
 Taking then, into consideration, the advantages as well as the disadvan- 
 tages which may add to or diminish the requisite expenditure in making this 
 
19 
 
 Railway, I think you will agree with me that, as a whole, few, if indeed any, 
 schemes have been brought before the public, wherein the physical objections 
 have been less, or wherein the facilities in an engineering view are greater. 
 
 Connected with the gradients, the curves always, and must ever, consti- 
 tute a most important feature in any scheme of Railway communication, in 
 which a high speed is to be maintained. It must be evident to you that, 
 where the radius of a curve is so limited as to render necessary the heighten- 
 ing of one rail over the other, considerable tractive power must necessarily be 
 lost in overcoming the additional friction thus caused ; besides the danger 
 there is of the engine and train, when moving at a great velocity, passing on 
 in a direct line instead of the curved one, where the radius is short, and thus 
 endanger the lives of all who may be travelling with it. Whilst other Rail- 
 ways have curves of a quarter, a half, three-quarters, and a mile radius, it is 
 surely no small recommendation to this Line that its greatest curvature is only 
 a mile and a half radius; — the others being of two, three, and more miles. As 
 far, therefore, as curves are concerned, a less objectionable Line could not 
 well have been proposed. ^ 
 
 In making an estimate of the probable cost of a Railway which has 
 neither been surveyed nor levelled, much necessarily depends upon conjecture. 
 The difficulty, however, of arriving at an approximate estimate is consider- 
 ably diminished by the experience of what other Railways have cost, — by a 
 knowledge of the country, — its general stratification, — the price of the requi- 
 site materials, — and the greater or less facilities of obtaining them. In this as in 
 Railways in other parts of the country, a great deal depends upon the natural 
 and local facilities for their construction. In Railways of equal importance, 
 as regards their public utility and general object, we find a great disparity as 
 to their original as well as annual expenditure. Whilst one Railway is esti- 
 mated at <£^6,508, the cost of another is fixed at ^£^790,400 per mile, — the 
 latter requiring more than 120 times the expenditure of the former.^' In the 
 one case I grant this is ^in extreme instance, and I believe an unparalleled one 
 in the history of Railways. Other instances might, however, be adduced, 
 where the differences of cost are as 4, 5, 6, and 7 thousand pounds per mile, 
 to 8, 10, 12, 16, to 33, and 141 thousand pounds per mile. It is clear, 
 therefore, that you cannot take the cost of other Railways abstractedly as an 
 invariable guide. In the instances which I have mentioned where the cost is 
 so great, the principal expenditure is caused by the Railways going through 
 the principal streets of London or other towns. As regards this Railway, we 
 have nothing of this kind to contend with. 
 
 At Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow, the several termini will pass in 
 such a way as very slightly to interfere with the houses or streets ; and 
 throughout* the whole Line there is not one nobleman or gentleman’s house 
 
 * The Bath and Weymohtli Railway, (R. Hopkins, Engineer,) is stated to be, with the 
 Branches, upwards of 118 miles in length, and estimated at £771,000 or at a cost equal to 
 £6,508 per mile. The London Commercial Railway, (W. Cubitt, Engineer,) is 30.75 chains in 
 length, and is estimated at £296,400 or at a cost equal to £790,409 per mile. 
 
20 
 
 or pleasure grounds interfered with. Nor will the Line approach towards 
 any of them otherwise than advantageously : that is, it will be at such a dis- 
 tance as to cause no nuisance (to use a strong term,) and yet secure to them 
 the advantages which will result from a quick and immediate transmission of 
 their letters and parcels. 
 
 ; It is also a very favourable circumstance, as regards the cost of this 
 Railway, that a great portion of the Land through which it will pass is com- 
 paratively unimproved. This is advantageous, not only as regards its value 
 in connexion with the estimate, but also as securing a constant and large 
 revenue to the Railway, in the transmission of Lime, &c., for the purpose of 
 effecting that improvement of which the land is capable, and which would 
 be carried into effect by the agriculturists, were the means afforded by Rail- 
 way of a cheap conveyance, and of a plentiful supply of Lime of good quality. 
 Indeed, so anxious are the landowners for the establishment of the Railway, 
 and so alive are they to the immense benefits which would accrue from it, that 
 in many cases I have been told the land will be obtained gratuitously. 
 
 Stone, Lime, and Timber, fit for building purposes, are plentiful through- 
 out the Line ; and by a judicious and easy arrangement in the carriage of these 
 materials (which in other Railways constitute so heavy an item of expense,) 
 nearly the whole of what may be needed may be conveyed on such parts of 
 the Railway as are nearest, to those which are more distant from the localities 
 of these important materials. 
 
 In estimates of this kind it is not unusual to anticipate the expenses 
 which may be incurred by supporting the bill in Parliament, in case of an 
 opposition being made to it. It may be as well to state that, in this item 
 also, there is no prospect of incurring the immense expenditure which a deter- 
 mined opposition would cause, as we have the decided approbation of most, if 
 not of all, the landed proprietors on the Line. In the towns, boroughs, and 
 cities through or near which we pass, the partiality of the authorities and in 
 habitants are unequivocally favourable to the scheme. 
 
 The propriety of canvassing the opinions of the public most interested 
 in the scheme, before issuing a prospectus and establishing a company, will 
 now, I think, be apparent to you ; and the information which has been ob- 
 tained by this means will enable you to form a more correct opinion than 
 otherwise would have been in your power, had no preliminary measures been 
 taken. This, as you will readily perceive, is most important, as relating to 
 the estimate and the numerous contingencies connected with it. 
 
 I shall now attempt to furnish you with such a conjectural estimate as, 
 in my opinion, will be amply sufficient to cover the actual expenditure which 
 may be required, without entering into that minutia which an estimate from 
 ascertained levels would demand. Before giving these, however, you will 
 perhaps allow me to observe, that from Troughend to Whitelee, — from Gala- 
 shiels to Broughton, — and from Lanark to near Hamilton, are principally 
 Hde cuttings and embankments : and that the materials to be excavated are 
 generally of such a description as may be easily worked at a comparatively 
 
21 
 
 slight expense, and an inconsiderable dope. That the ballasting of the Rail- 
 way will be merely surface work ; and that blocks, sleepers, and fencing may 
 be had throughout the Line wherever they may be needed. 
 
 CONJECTURAL ESTIMATE. 
 
 From Newcastle to near Stamfordham £08,000 
 
 From Stamfordham to near Troughend 00,000 
 
 From Tronghend to Catoleugh 41,250 
 
 From Catcleugli to the Tunnel in the Carter 22,500 
 
 The Tunnel (for a Double Line) including the Approaches 03,360 
 
 From the Tunnel to the North of the Teviot, including the Bridges 110,000 
 
 From the Teviot to the Tweed 00,000 
 
 From the Tweed, near Galashiels, to Broughton, including the 
 
 Bridges 151,255 
 
 From Broughton to Lanark, with a Bridge across the Clyde near 
 
 Symington 105,000 
 
 From Lanark to Hamilton 120,000 
 
 From Hamilton to Glasgow 130,000 
 
 From Newcastle to Glasgow , 997,365 
 
 To Edinburgh by Peebles 220,000 
 
 From Newcastle to Edinburgh and Glasgow 1,217,365 
 
 Additional, if by the Gala Water 100,000 
 
 1,317,365 
 
 Branch to Kelso ^ 60,000 
 
 Ditto to Hawick 40,000 
 
 Ditto to Selkirk 12,000 
 
 , £1,429,365 
 
 This estimate is undoubtedly a large one, and clearly shews that the 
 prosecution of this scheme necessarily involves a large expenditure of capital. 
 It remains for me to show to you, whether in a national, local, or private 
 view, it is likely to bestow advantages commensurate with the requisite outlay ; 
 and in attempting to do this, I think I shall have little difficulty in confirm- 
 ing your opinions of its great expediency. As a national affair, it will di- 
 rectly connect London and Newcastle with Edinburgh and Glasgow, and the 
 intermediate towns through which it passes. It will rival the steam-boats in 
 cheapnesss, and surpass them in speed, and in the certainty as to time in 
 performing the journey from any given place to another. In times of civil 
 discord or disturbances, troops or policemen may be swiftly conveyed from 
 one metropolis to another. Letters, &c., conveyed by the mails, will be ac- 
 celerated to at least one-fourth of the time now employed in their trans- 
 mission ; and the saving, as compared to the present mode, which will accrue 
 to travellers by their time being thus economised, will be greater than the 
 actual charges for conveying them ! These are undoubtedly great national 
 benefits, the achievement of which is, and cannot but be, highly desirable, 
 even if a sacrifice of capital was required to accomplish it. But when, as 
 in this instance, it can be shown that no sacrifice of capital is required, that 
 for the money invested in it a good return is indisputable, and that the se- 
 curity for it is unobjectionable, we may reasonably anticipate this scheme 
 being carried into partial or general effect. In saying partial, I mean, that 
 although it may be deemed most advisable to take this Line in Sections, in 
 applying to the Legislature for bills to carry it into effect, yet the integrity 
 
22 
 
 of the whole line will be preserved; and in this way the interests of the public 
 will be better served than if an act was at once obtained for the whole Line. 
 
 The revenue to be derived from a Railway of such great magnitude, 
 embracing so many interests, and deriving its resources from such a variety 
 of channels, necessarily requires as correct a statement as can be obtained, 
 and as full an explanation as may be required even by the most sceptical. In 
 attempting to give these details I shall be as explicit as possible, that their 
 approximation to probability, or rather to truth, may be canvassed by those 
 most interested in the result, and who, from their local knowledge, are most 
 likely to detect any unintentional error, be they on one side or on the other. 
 In order to place the subject fairly and fully before you, I shall precede my 
 estimate on the different items with remarks on them severally, stating the 
 facts which have influenced my opinion, and leaving you to determine the 
 positive value of the data I thus submit to you, and the inferences I have 
 drawn from it. Passengers are justly esteemed the most valuable traffic on 
 a Railway — they are the least variable, and produce the greatest revenue with 
 the least trouble or extra expence. It is, therefore, important to ascertain, 
 as nearly as possible, the probable revenue which will accrue from them. 
 
 It has been found by experience that the number of persons which travel 
 from one town to another by coaches or the existing conveyances, forms no 
 criterion of the passage on a Railway. Were it necessary, I could give many 
 instances of this being the case, but the fact is so notorious, as to render my 
 doing so unnecessary. Another criterion, and perhaps a better one, has been 
 established, and as it agrees with my experience as far as that extends, I am 
 induced to adopt it, under certain limitations. This goes to prove (as in the 
 consumption of fuel and other statistical facts) that in a certain })opulation, 
 and with the existing facilities for travelling, the whole inhabitants travel at 
 least three times in a year from their resident town to another, either near or 
 remote. Some have even taken the average number of travellers at fire times 
 the population, and in some instances it is not improbable that this may be cor- 
 rect. It is somewhat a singular circumstance, but one easily accounted for, 
 that the largest towns do not always produce the greatest number of passen- 
 gers. Glasgow for instance, is less than Edinburgh, and both of them give 
 less than Newcastle. The reason is obvious. Without, however, entering 
 minutely into this subject, you will perhaps permit me to give you the result 
 of my enquries through or near to which this Railway is proposed to pass. 
 The population of Lanark is 7,762; during the last year the persons travel- 
 ling between that place, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, were near 17,000, which is 
 equal to more than twice the population. In the same period 28,080 passen- 
 gers travelled from Hamilton and Glasgow, the population being 9,512, which 
 gives rather more than three times the population. According to Dr. Cle- 
 land's able statistical “Annals of Glasgow,’’ it appears that in 1881, 
 1,587,189 persons weie travellers in a population of 202,000, which is equal 
 to rather better than seven and a half times the population. The ])opulation 
 of Edinburgh is 162,156, and in 1836, 1 have every reason to believe that the 
 number of travellers v/ere equal to nine times the amount of its population; 
 
23 
 
 whilst in Newcastle it is equal to ten times the population. All these state- 
 ments I believe to be considerably within the actual present traffic, having 
 been especially careful to guard against exaggeration. Were it possible to 
 obtain correct returns of all passengers travelling by public conveyances, mucli 
 valuable information might be derived from them. The mode of levying the 
 coach-duty upon Railways secures to the public this information so far; but 
 a mileage and other duties being imposed on stage coaches, merely limiting 
 their maximum number of passengers, without requiring the proprietors to 
 return to the government officers the number of passengers which they may 
 have conveyed in a limited or fixed period, renders it very difficult to ascer- 
 tain the exact number of passengers which may or have travelled by any one 
 coach during the year. Owing to this difficulty I have been obliged to elicit 
 the information by ascertaining, in the first instance, the number of public 
 conveyances which pass from one place to another : and in the second place, 
 the fares or passage money usually charged; and then calculating the num- 
 ber of passengers which is acquired to pay the expense incurred by the pro- 
 prietors of the coaches, &c. This you will perceive only gives the minimum 
 amount of passage, and must necessarily be very considerably below the 
 average number throughout the year, otherwise this description of business 
 would be a profitless one to those engaged in it. We may therefore presume, 
 that where we take the whole population of the several districts as travelling 
 twice, thrice, seven, or ten times in a year, we are considerably within the 
 actual transit. 
 
 The following is the statement of the population, according to the census 
 of 1831, as nearly as it could be ascertained. Since which period it is well 
 known that a very great increase, especially in the manufacturing and com- 
 mercial towns, has taken place. To avoid exaggeration I think it better to 
 adhere to it. 
 
 POPULATION. 
 
 Newcastle and Gateshead 57,937 
 
 Ponteland, Belsay, Stamfordham, and Matfen 1,300 
 
 East and West Woodburn, Sweethope, and Kirkwhelpington 423 
 
 Otterburn, Elsdon, Rochester, Burness, and Whitelee 585 
 
 Bellingham and the North Tyne (say as likely to be available) 1,500 
 
 Jedburgh ; 5,647 
 
 Hawick and Ancrum (on the Teviot) 5,970 
 
 Melrose 4,339 
 
 Newton, Gattonside, and Darnick - 1,300 
 
 Selkirk 2,833 
 
 Kelso and Crailing 5,039 
 
 Galashiels 2,100 
 
 Inverleithen 810 
 
 Peebles 2,750 
 
 Eddleston and Pennycuick 1,842 
 
 Edinburgh and Leith 188,011 
 
 Broughton 324 
 
 Biggar, Lindsaylands, and Symington 2,650 
 
 Lanark, including the New Town, with the Royal Burgh 7,672 
 
 Hamilton 9,515 
 
 Rutherglen 5,503 
 
 Glasgow 202,426 
 
 510,476 
 
 This portion of the data is very important, and I therefore have to beg 
 of you to make such deductions or additions as your local knowledge may 
 enable you to do. In the meantime, presuming upon its accuracy, you will 
 
perhaps allow me to found my estimate upon it. As regards passengers, we 
 will take them, not as passing two, three, five, or ten times, but that, out of 
 510,000 inhabitants on the Line, 255,000 only travel on our Railway, it will 
 give us a revenue of .£^209, 000, which alone is equal to upwards of £14f per 
 cent, per annum on the capital to be invested. 
 
 Next to Passengers, Coal will constitute the next important item of 
 revenue. From Newcastle to Whitelee the country is plentifully supplied 
 with Coal for common domestic purposes. The cost of the carriage of this im- 
 portant item of household expenditure might, however, be considerablv re- 
 duced by the establishment of the Railway. After passing the Carter, there 
 is no coal worked until we arrive West of Lanark, in the West Line, and 
 within a few miles of Edinburgh on the other. 
 
 At the risk of being tedious, it is needful that I should state to you the 
 precise grounds of anticipated revenue likely to arise from this source. It is 
 the more necessary that I should do so, as the general, I might almost say the 
 universal, support which this scheme has experienced in Scotland, has been 
 under the conviction, that, if carried into execution, it will considerably re- 
 duce the price of this important auxiliary to manufacturing increase, commer- 
 cial prosperity, and domestic comfort. Before entering into the items of 
 revenue, you will perhaps allow me to observe, that, at Hawick, the manu- 
 facturers, &c., are paying -from 15s. to 20s. a cart load of 15 cwt. At Jed- 
 burgh it is nearly the same price ; and that at the spirited and thriving manu- 
 facturing town of Galashiels, upwards of 20s. per cart is charged for coal. 
 At other places on the Line it is still more expensive ; and I mention these 
 only as an average of the district. 
 
 The Railway would enable Hawick to be plentifully supplied with Coal 
 (in which there is a frequent scarcity) at 5s. 9d. per ton, making a saving of 
 13s. per ton on the present price. Jedburgh would derive benefits equal to 
 Hawick. Galashiels would, however, be most benefited. It is rising 
 rapidly into increasing importance as a manufacturing town, which entitles it 
 to all the benefits which a public Railway can bestow. There are few, if 
 there be any, towns in the united kingdom where increased facilities for com- 
 mercial communication are more or better deserved. The price of fuel at 
 Galashiels is 20s. for 15 cwt., by the Railway they would obtain this at 4s. fid. 
 These instances will surely prove the advantages which the Railway would 
 bestow, without entering into other particulars, wherein the benefits conferred 
 upon the country and the advantages to be reaped by the Shareholders are 
 equally apparent. 
 
 Besides the places mentioned, Selkirk, Inverleithen, Peebles, Pennycuick, 
 Broughton, Biggar, Lanark, and Glasgow, will all be benefited to a less or 
 greater extent. When I was last at Glasgow, Coal was upwards of 20s. per 
 ton, and even at that extraordinary price the supply was short of the de- 
 mand. As the Railway will go through one of the richest coal-fields in Scot- 
 land, which has hitherto been very little and partially worked, a great 
 revenue may be reasonably expected from this source, especially as we shall 
 be enabled at once to ship them on the Clyde and to deliver them in the heart 
 
25 
 
 of tlie city. The existing Railways and Canals have to cart their Coal about 
 two miles from their termini to the Clyde, which necessarily adds very consi- 
 derably to its selling price. The exports of this important article of com- 
 merce has, in consequence of these liinited facilities of internal communica- 
 tion, been but trifling as compared with Newcastle, Sunderland, and other 
 places, where the coal-flelds are not more distant from the shipping places, 
 or the natural supply more abundant.* ' 
 
 The Kennel Coal also will prove to be an important item of revenue, in- 
 asmuch as notwithstanding its high price it has been found to be the best and 
 most economical Coal for the manufacture of Gas, the drying of Oats and 
 Barley, &c. Northumbrian Coal for the purposes of Horse-shoers, and other 
 workers in Iron, will also constitute a constant although not a large source of 
 revenue. Small or refuse Coal will be required in great quantities for the burn- 
 ing of Lime, for the Slate Quarries, and the several manufactories on the Line. 
 
 Estimating this source of revenue at only One Penny per Ton per Mile, 
 it gives the following results : — 
 
 REVENUE TO BE DERIVED FROM COAL. 
 
 .Jedburgh, and places adjacent 
 
 Hawick, ditto ditto 
 
 Ancrum, Newtown, ditto ditto 
 
 Melrose, Gattonside,, ditto ditto 
 
 Galashiels, ditto ditto 
 
 Selkirk, ditto ditto 
 
 Peebles, Inverleithen, ditto ditto 
 
 Broughton, Biggar, ditto ditto 
 
 Lanark, ditto ditto 
 
 Glasgow,t for Home Consumption 
 
 Ditto, for Steam Boats and Exportation , 
 Eddleston, Pennycuick, and places adjacent . 
 
 Edinburgh 
 
 Gas and Blacksmiths’ Coal on the whole Line. 
 
 TONS. 
 
 MILES. 
 
 1 
 
 8,000 
 
 10 
 
 ! 333 
 
 10,000 
 
 21 
 
 1 875 
 
 2,000 
 
 15 
 
 125 
 
 6,000 
 
 22 
 
 I 550 
 
 6,000 
 
 25 
 
 625 
 
 3,000 
 
 30 
 
 375 
 
 5,000 
 
 35 
 
 729 
 
 4,000 
 
 26 
 
 433 
 
 10,000 
 
 12 
 
 500 
 
 200,000 
 
 5 
 
 4,166 
 
 150,000 
 
 5 
 
 3,125 
 
 3,000 
 
 10 
 
 125 
 
 100,000 
 
 6 
 
 2,500 
 
 ^ 
 
 ' — 
 
 500 
 
 
 
 £14,96U 
 
 * In his report on the Edinburgh, Leith and Glasgow Railw^ay, dated “ 16th October, 
 1830,” Mr. Jardine says — “ There is great reason for believing that the Railway may be made 
 eminently useful to the inhabitants of London, and productive of great revenue to itself, by 
 becoming the means of partly supplying the Metropolis with Coal from the inexhaustible stores 
 of Lanarkshire. For the reasons stated by the committees, they do not calculate upon this as 
 a certain source of revenue, but they beg to suggest it for the consideration of the subscribei s. 
 The demand in London is computed at 1,500,000 tons of Coal yearly : and the following is a 
 statement of the prices at which Lanarkshire Coal, equal in quality to some of the best sold in 
 
 liondon, could be sold for in that market. ^ per ton. 
 
 Price, at which Coal may be profitably put out of pits in Lanarkshire ... £0 3 0 
 
 Railway Dues ^d. per Ton per Mile, 24 Miles 0 10 
 
 Trackage 0 1 0 
 
 Wharfage t 0 0 2 
 
 Price at which Lanarkshire Coal may be shipped 0 5 2 
 
 King’s Duty and Charges, about 0 6 4^ 
 
 Freight, Insurance, Broker’s Commission, and Guarantee 0 11 2^ 
 
 £12 9 
 
 Which is per London Chaldron, £1 8s. 3d. 
 
 The price of Coal otf the same Quality in London runs from 32s. to 44s. per Chaldron.” 
 
 Since that period the Duty of about 6s. per Ton has been removed, by which the Coal- 
 owners in Lanarkshire would be enabled by the above statement to deliver Coals in London, 
 or other places equally distant, at 16s. 9d. per Ton. According to the “Sunderland Herald” 
 the lowest price on the 19th inst., was 18s., and the highest 22s. 6d. per Ton on the Coal Ex- 
 change, London. 
 
 + “ The sale of Coal at Glasgow is computed to exceed 800,000 tons yearly, — that of Edin- 
 burgh approaches to 400,000 tons ; and the demand at both places is increasing.” The Com- 
 mittees’ Report on the Edinburgh, Leith, and Glasgow Railway, 1830. 
 
 X On the Berwick and Glasgow Railway Mr. Telford estimated the revenue from Coals 
 at £16,109. 
 
 D 
 
26 
 
 In a Country so capable of improvement, it is scarcely possible to estimate 
 ^he quantity of Lime which will be required by the agriculturists, in case it 
 could be easily and cheaply obtained. There is on the Main Line and 
 Branches 90 miles of the Country unprovided with Lime ; — if, therefore, we 
 presume that for six miles in breadth (that is for three miles on each side of 
 the Railway) it will be required ; and supposing only one sixth of it annually 
 in Lime which will be conveyed on the Railway, an average distance of 2Q 
 miles ; and allowing four tons per acre, this important manure will give us a 
 yearly revenue of =£^13,705. " , 
 
 Stone for both Building, Road, and Street purposes is abundant on the 
 Line. Freestone of excellent quality may readily be obtained in large or 
 small blocks, and in any quantity on the Reed Water. This could be con- 
 veyed by Railway to Newcastle almost if not quite as cheaply as that now 
 supplied from Gateshead Fell ; and when we recollect the great quantity 
 which is now and is likely to be consumed in Newcastle, we cannot doubt but 
 that a large income will be derived from it. 
 
 There are also Slate Quarries, which, in case of an increased demand for 
 them over what now exists, might be more advantageously worked, and a 
 good and durable Slate obtained for the markets, both on the East and West 
 extremities of the Line, as well as in other places. In both Native and 
 Foreign Timber there would be a very considerable traffic, as well as in Lime, 
 Iron, Lead, and other requisites for Buildings. 
 
 In estimating this source of Revenue at o£^10,000 per annum, I am, I 
 believe, considerably below what it will actually prove to be. 
 
 Ironstone, Iron in pigs, bars, and rods, for and from the Manufactories 
 near the Line, may be estimated as at least ci£^2,000 per annum. 
 
 Agricultural produce, including Grain^ of every description. Pease, 
 Beans, Potatoes, Turnips, Hay, Garden Fruit, *f and Vegetables, will be 
 transmitted in large quantities from the interior of the Country to the Mar- 
 kets at Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, both for home consumption and 
 exportation. Fat and Lean Cattle, J Sheep and Pigs for the Southern Mar- 
 kets, will also constitute a very considerable and constant source of revenue; 
 as also will manure being conveyed from the large towns into the Country 
 districts. These items I estimate at <P30,000 per annum. 
 
 I now beg to direct your attention to the income likely to be derived 
 from general Merchandize. Under the head I include Wool, Hemp, Flax, 
 Linens, Cotton, Yarns, Cloth of every description. Tobacco, Coffee, Sugar, 
 Tea, Salt, Butter, Ham, Bacon, Irish provisions. Fish cured or dried, Edin- 
 
 * In 1810, Mr. Telford estimated the grain to be conveyed to Glasgow, on the western jiart 
 of the Berwick and Glasgow Railway, at <£0,000. 
 
 t It is stated by Dr. Cleland that, in 18.‘10, upwards of 800 tons of Apples and other 
 Garden Fruits were sent to the Glasgow Market, from Clydesdale, near Lanark and Hamilton. 
 
 t In reporting on the London, Cambridge, and York Railway, Mr. Walker says “ 'bhe 
 counties of Lincoln and Cambridge are stated to supply'8,000 sheej) and 500 bullocks weekly to 
 the London market alone. The loss of weight and deterioration of quality, by (Iricifuj to 
 London, calculated from data given me, and stated to be under the mark, I make to be £115,(M)0 
 per annum. This would be almost entirely saved by a Railway conveyance.'*^ 
 
27 
 
 burgli Ale, Loiulon Porter, Wine, Spirits, Glass of all kinds. Paper, &c. &e. 
 When it is recollected tliat the Western Markets for West Indian produce 
 are generally much lower than those in London and on the Kast coast, that 
 in the event of the Railway being established, the carriage of a hhd. of Sugar, 
 for instance, will cost little more from Glasgow than it does now by Sea from 
 London to Newcastle ; and that to Edinburgh it could be conveyed cheaper 
 than it is by Canal from Glasgow, or by Sea from London, it will, I think, 
 be apparent to you, that in this department a very great increase upon the 
 existing traffic is inevitable. Taking, therefore. Merchandize as equal to 
 cP25,000 per annum will, I think, preserve us from even an approximate 
 exaggeration.* 
 
 OO 
 
 SUMMARY OF ANNUAL REVENUE. 
 
 Passengers £209,000 
 
 Coal 14,961 
 
 Lime 13,705 
 
 Freestone, Timber, and other Building Materials 10,d6o 
 
 Ironstone and Iron 2,000 
 
 Agricultural produce 30,000 
 
 General Merchandize 25,000 
 
 Total Annual Revenue £304,666 
 
 ANNUAL EXPENDITURE. 
 
 Expense of working and maintaining the Line, Managing, Superintend- 
 ing, Office and other Expenses, with all Rates, Taxes and Dues, <P38,084. 
 
 I have deemed it unnecessary to detain you by a prolix statement of the 
 minutia in this expenditure ; but it may be as well, perhaps, to add, that it 
 has been calculated upon the data afforded by the actual expenditure of other 
 Railways, and will be found amply sufficient to cover the real expenditure. 
 From the estimates which I. have submitted to you, it appears that 
 
 The first cost of the Railway will be £1,429,365 
 
 That the Annual Revenue to be derived from it will be 304,672 
 
 And the Annual Expenditure will be 38,084 
 
 Lea\dng an Annual Profit of £266,588 
 
 which is equal to rather more than 18^ per cent per annum on the Capital 
 required to be invested in it. 
 
 The whole of the Estimates have been carefully formed with a view to 
 avoid even a remote alliance with any thing like exaggeration,-!* whether it. 
 was likely to prove injurious or beneficial to the scheme. 
 
 I have spared neither trouble nor expense in endeavouring to obtain 
 correct local information, and have now attempted to lay it honestly and 
 
 * In the Committee’s Report on the Edinburgh, Leith, and Glasgow Railway, the above 
 .is estimated at £42,234. 
 
 + Had I estimated the passengers as equal to the whole population, it would have given a ^ 
 Revenue of 32 per Cent, on the Capital to be invested. If I had followed the example of 
 others engaged in the same way, I might have taken them at three times the amount of the 
 population, which would have given an additional per centage of 77 per annum ; and at ten 
 times the enormous and almost incredible return of 278 per Cent, per Annum, — deducting at all 
 times the increased Annual Expenditure which would be incurred. 
 
 t 
 
28 
 
 fairly before you, in such a way as to enable you to judge of the probable 
 truth of the data upon which I have presumed. 
 
 It has behi suggested by some influential members of the committees, 
 that instead of endeavouring, in the first instance, to obtain an Act of Par- 
 liament for the whole Line, a certain part of it only ought to be attempted in 
 the ensuing sessions, — another portion in the year following, and so on, until 
 power was obtained and funds raised to make the whole Line. One obvious 
 advantage of this plan is, that by determining to execute the most profitable 
 portion of the Line, for instance from Glasgow to Lanark, a large and imme- 
 diate revenue might be obtained whilst the other parts of the Line were in the 
 course of formation. I have respectfully to request your early decision on 
 this subject, as if you determine on prosecuting the measure in this way, the 
 Plans and Sections, required by the standing orders of Parliament, ought to 
 be completed at as early a period as possible. 
 
 I have also to request your attention to the Line by the North Tyne to 
 Note of the Gate, and intothe Rule Waterj that I may receive your directions 
 in case you wish that Line to be tried by actual Levels, in order to enable you 
 to arrive at a definite conclusion from real data, as regards the best way of 
 passing the border range of hills into Scotland. As I have before stated to 
 you, the only part of the Line as now laid down to which any possible objec- 
 tion can be urged, is that portion of it which extends from Whitelee to the 
 River Jed ; and in all schemes of this description, it is important to prove that 
 the Line adopted is the best possible Line that can be obtained in the country 
 through which it is proposed to pass. That there are other Lines with worse 
 gradients, greater curves, and longer tunnels,* than the one now submitted to 
 you is indisputable ; yet it is indispensably necessary, in fixing upon a great 
 national Line of Railway communication like the present, that it should be as 
 unobjectionable in these respects as the nature of the Country will allow. 
 
 In laying out the Line, every possible care has been taken to avoid dis- 
 turbing the privacy of gentlemen's seats and ground ; and it fortunately 
 happens that, with the exception of passing through a small portion of the 
 Deer Park belonging to His Grace the Duke of Hamilton and Brandon, I 
 have felt no difficulty in following the instructions given to me on this subject. 
 The public spirit lately evinced by this distinguished nobleman, in allowing 
 an improved road to pass through his park, at a comparatively short distance 
 
 We have just been favoured with a printed Report, signed by Drs. Paris and Watson, 
 Mr. Lawrence, Mr. Phillips, and Mr. O. Lucas, as to the probable effect of the passage throijgh 
 Tunnels. The experiment made by them was in the new Tunnel near Primrose Hill. Tlie 
 western end of the Tunnel was only partially opened : the ventilation, therefore, was not so 
 complete as it will be when the whole is finished. ‘ We found,’ says the Report, ‘ the atmos- 
 phere dry, and of an agreeable temperature, and free from smell ; the lamps of the carriages 
 were lighted, and in our transit inwards, and back again to the mouth of the Tunnel, the sen- 
 sation experienced was precisely that of travelling in a coach by night, between the walls of a 
 narrow street. The noise did not prevent easy conversation, nor aj>pear to be much great<*r 
 in the Tunnel than in the open Air.’ 
 
 " The Reports of Drs. Davy and Rothman, and also of Dr. Williamson, senior })hysician 
 of the Leeds General Infirmary, as to the Leeds and Selby Tunnel, are equally satisfactoi y.” — 
 Wiihaw on Railways. • 
 
29 
 
 from his splendid palace, induces me to believe that no opposition will be 
 made to the Railway. Tlie strongest objection which I at present entertain 
 against the Line by the North 'fyne, to Note of the Gate, and the Rule 
 Water, is, that I fear it will interfere with the privacy of Keilder Castle, the 
 property of his Grace the Duke of Northumberland, — yet, if it could be 
 shown to his Grace, that this Line was the best that could be obtained, — that its 
 construction was desired by the whole of the population likely to be affected 
 })V it, — that its practicability had been ascertained, and its feasibility proved? 
 1 have strong reasons to believe that his Grace's sanction would not be re- 
 fused to a scheme so replete with local as well as national benefits. 
 
 The Marquess of Lothian entertained strong objections to our passing 
 through or near his park at Mount Teviot. By a deviation of the Line, 
 which is advantageous as regards the levels, we do not now approach his 
 Lordship's grounds.* I may be mistaken, but I imagine that the strongest 
 reasons of his Lordship's objection to this Railway arises from a fear that it 
 will militate against the Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway (of which I have 
 been told he is the principal proprietor,) and the sale of his Coal, by intro- 
 ducing other Coal into markets now almost exclusively his own. If tenable, 
 these objections are strong ones , but I am persuaded that no such results 
 will accrue from this Railway. By cheapening the price of carriage, a 
 greater quantity of fuel will be consumed, and his Lordship, with other Coal 
 proprietors in Lothian, will reap the advantages of this increased demand. 
 Between the Dalkeith and this Railway there can be no rivalship, or if, by 
 any possibility, such should occur, his Lordship has the power at once to put 
 a stop to it. In making these remarks, I have no intention whatever to speak 
 otherwise than with the highest respect of the Noble Marquess ; and should 
 feel deep regret were you to imagine that such was my meaning. I am under 
 great obligations to his Lordship for his kindness and invariable courtesy ; 
 and if I have misrepresented his views, as regards this Railway, I can assure 
 you that it is unintentional. I have mentioned the circumstance to you, that 
 you might be enabled fairly to embrace, in one view, the whole difficulties 
 with which, as far as I am acquainted, you will have to contend. 
 
 It would be unjust towards my friend Mr. Stephen Reed, were I not to 
 acknowledge that the projection of this Line was entirely his own. After 
 advising with gentlemen of great influence he consulted me, when I saw at once 
 the immense advantages which would accrue from it to the public, and ac- 
 quiesced with pleasure in his request to examine it. The result of this ex- 
 amination was laid before you in my first Report ; and according to the 
 instructions I subsequently received from you, this Report is submitted for 
 your approbation. ' 
 
 Having now laid before you the details of the whole scheme, you will 
 perhaps allow me to take a brief retrospect of the general benefits which 1 
 
 * In saying “ grounds,” I mean parks, policies, or pleasure grounds. In our present Line 
 we pass through his Lordship’s estates at Todlaw and Hundalee, both of which will be greatly 
 benefited by the Railway. 
 
30 
 
 conceive would result from it, were it carried into effect. Its great and prin- 
 cipal recommendation is, that it goes through the centre of the Country^ that, 
 as a trunk Line, {numerous branches to the right and the left will diverge 
 from it, spreading increased means of prosperity and comfort throughout the 
 land. Its advantages will not be exclusive, or confined to particular localities. 
 The interest of the nobility will not be more propitiated than that of the 
 peasant, or the benefits resulting from it more immediately felt in the palace 
 than in the cottage. To the Agriculturist, the Merchant, and the Manufac- 
 turer, it is especially valuable, inasmuch as it will open new fields of enterprize, 
 and enable them to compete with increased success with the continental nations. 
 
 Under the consideration of these circumstances, I am deeply impressed 
 with the importance of this Railway, in its national as well as regards its 
 local consequence, and feel no hesitation in strongly recommending it (with 
 such alterations as you may on further enquiry deem expedient) to your adop- 
 tion. It is one of the most important upon which I have ever been engaged ; 
 -and I have no doubt but that, when its merits have been examined into, the 
 means will be soon found to carry it into effect. 
 
 Before concluding, perhaps you will allow me thus publicly to acknow- 
 ledge the many instances of kindness which I have received from you in Scot- 
 land, in furnishing me with every possible information which it was in your 
 power to obtain ; for this, and for the honor of being retained by you in a 
 w^ork of such great national importance, I shall ever retain a lively sense of 
 grateful esteem. 
 
 I have the honor to be. 
 
 My Lords and Gentlemen, 
 
 With great respect, 
 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON. 
 
 Bird Hill, 22nd June, 1836. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 
 
 The following valuable details are extracted from an able Work by Mr. 
 Wishaw,* which contains an interesting Analysis of the projected Railways 
 now in Parliament. A work of this description has been long wanted ; and 
 the thanks of the Profession, as well as of every one interested in Railways, is 
 due to him for the perspicuous manner in which he has exhibited the required 
 information. As a first attempt, the author must be perfectly satisfied that 
 his labours are appreciated as they deserve to be ; and he would confer still 
 greater obligations, in my opinion, if he would condense more of the informa- 
 tion he has to communicate into a tabular form : if. in this shape, the detailed 
 estimates could be given, as relates not only to the first cost, but to the annual 
 expenditure and probable revenue also, it would increase the value of the 
 Work. I am quite aware that some difficulty might be felt in acquiring this 
 information at the beginning of a Session of Parliament ; but this, I think, 
 might be overcome, by an application to the Engineers employed on the several 
 projects introduced to the Legislature. As an antecedent to the present 
 volume, it is highly desirable that an Analysis of the existing Public Railways 
 ' (for which Acts of Parliament have been obtained) should also be published : 
 and the difference, if any, between the actual cost and the parliamentary 
 estimates, fairly and honestly stated. I trust that Mr. Wishaw will be in- 
 duced to attempt it. 
 
 * “ Analysis of Railways, consisting of a Series of Reports on the Twelve Hundred Miles of Projected 
 Railways in England and Wales, now before Parliament ; together with those which have been abandoned 
 for the present Session ; to which are added, a Table of Distances from the proposed London Termini to 
 Eight well-known Places in the Metropolis ; a Table exhibiting the- Length, Cost, Tunnelling, Curves, &c. 
 of each of the Railways for which Bills are now in progress through- Parliament ; with a Glossary, and other 
 useful information. — By Francis Wishaw, Esq., Civil Engineer, M. Just. C. E.” 
 
THE GREATEST GRADIENTS 
 
 OF 
 
 i 
 
 I THE RAILWAYS BEFORE PARLIAMENT, 
 
 f IN THE SESSION OF 1837- 
 
 No. 
 
 TITLE. 
 
 ENGINEER. 
 
 MAIN LINE. 
 
 BRANCH LINE, 
 
 
 Length of 
 Plane. 
 
 Gradient. 
 
 Inclina- 
 
 tion. 
 
 Length of 
 Plane. 
 
 Gradient. 
 
 Inclina- 
 
 tion. 
 
 1 
 
 Bath and Weymouth 
 
 Roger Hopkins, 
 
 Miles.Chains. 
 3 60 
 
 Feet. 
 
 43.00 
 
 1 in 122 
 
 Miles.Chains 
 2 27 
 
 . Feet. 
 60.68 
 
 1 in 87 
 
 2 
 
 Birmingham, Dudley, &c.. 
 
 George Leather, 
 
 0 74| 
 
 34.28 
 
 1 
 
 1 in 154 
 
 3 78| 
 
 50.28 
 
 1 in 105 
 
 3 
 
 Bishop-Auckland and } 
 Weardale ( 
 
 Thomas Storey, 
 
 6 581 
 
 30.34 
 
 1 in 174 
 
 1 13 
 
 112.00 
 
 1 in 47 
 
 4 
 
 Bolton and Preston 
 
 J. U. Rastrick... 
 
 5 79 
 
 35.20 
 
 1 in 150 
 
 0 154 
 
 176.00 
 
 1 in 30 
 
 5 
 
 Brecon and Merthyr > 
 Tydvil \ 
 
 Cheltenham Union 
 
 Edward Powell, 
 
 0 78 
 
 240.00 
 
 1 in 22 
 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 Capt. Moorsom, 
 
 1 21 
 
 176.00 
 
 1 in 30 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 Devizes ?ind Melksham ... 
 
 J. K. Brunell . . . 
 
 0 471 
 
 188.00 
 
 1 in 28 
 
 1 69 
 
 77.64 
 
 1 in 68 
 
 8 
 
 England and Ireland Union 
 
 
 2 501 
 0 31 
 
 1 
 
 105.60 
 
 1 in 50 
 1 in 27 
 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 Glastonbury and Bruton . . . 
 
 
 195.55 
 
 4 26 
 
 24.55 
 
 1 in 215 
 
 , 
 
 
 
 ’ 10 
 
 Grand Connection 
 
 Geo. Landmann, 
 
 1 0 
 
 63.61 
 
 1 in 83 
 1 in 124 
 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 Great North of England ^ 
 Junction ^ 
 
 Steph. Robinson, 
 
 0 62 
 
 42.58 
 
 3 0 
 
 125.70 
 
 1 in 42 
 
 1 
 
 Ireland, South Wales,) 
 and Bon don ( 
 
 H. R. Palmer... 
 
 2 111 
 
 132.00 
 
 1 in 40 
 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 Lancaster and Preston . . . 
 
 Joseph Locke... 
 
 0 81 
 33 23 
 
 42.24 
 
 1 in 125 
 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 London and Brighton 
 
 Sir John Rennie, 
 
 20.00 
 
 1 in 264 
 
 0 554 
 
 105.60 
 
 1 in 50 
 
 ‘15 
 
 Ditto Ditto 
 
 Joseph Gibbs ... 
 
 0 60 
 
 120.00 
 
 1 in 44 
 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 London, Exeter, and Fal- ) 
 mouth j 
 
 Geo. Landmann, 
 
 10 391 
 
 51.26 
 
 1 in 103 
 
 0 464 
 
 125.70 
 
 1 in 42 
 
 17 
 
 Manchester, Cheshire, ) 
 and Staffordshire f 
 
 J. U. Rastrick... 
 
 
 
 
 2 0 
 
 53.33 
 
 1 in 99 
 
 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 Manchester and Leeds . . . 
 
 Geo.Stephenson, 
 
 5 37 
 
 32-19 
 
 1 in 164 
 
 
 
 
 J9 
 
 Midland Counties 
 
 Chas. Vignoles, 
 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 North Midland 
 
 Geo. Stephenson, 
 Chas. Vignoles, 
 William Cubitt, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 Sheffield and Manchester, 
 
 7 60 
 
 44.00 
 
 1 in 120 
 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 South Eastern 
 
 10 13 
 
 52.80 
 
 1 in 100 
 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 South Midland Counties... 
 
 Francis Giles ... 
 
 3 0 
 
 48.44 
 
 1 in 109 
 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 South Western 
 
 Geo.Stephenson, 
 J.U. Rastrick... 
 
 2 20 
 
 22.00 
 
 52.80 
 
 I in 240 
 1 in 100 
 
 
 
 
 25 
 
 StourbridgeandBimiing- 1 
 ham I 
 
 0 27 
 
 3 5 
 
 20.00 
 
 1 in 2(!4 
 
 26 
 
 Warwick and Coventry... 
 
 Geo.Stephenson, 
 Fred. Twynam, 
 
 1 18| 
 1 40 
 
 44.00 
 
 1 in 120 
 
 
 
 
 27 
 
 London and Exeter 
 
 44.00 
 
 I in 120 
 
 0 27 
 
 40.30 
 
 1 in 131 
 
 28 
 
 Weardale Junction 
 
 Robt. Nicholson, 
 
 0 36 
 
 377.00 
 
 1 in 14 
 
 0 504 
 
 376.00 
 
 1 in 14 
 
32 
 
 TUNNELS, 1837. 
 
 No. 
 
 TITLES. 
 
 ENGINEERS. 
 
 No. 
 
 Length. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Miles. 
 
 Chains. 
 
 1 
 
 Hath and AVeymonth 
 
 lloger lIoi)kins 
 
 8 
 
 6 
 
 264 
 
 2 
 
 Hii'ininq'ham and Dudley 
 
 George Leather 
 
 2 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 3 
 
 Hristol and Gloneestcrsliive 
 
 .1. R. Hrunel 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 674 
 
 4 
 
 Clieltenhain Union 
 
 Capt. Moorsom 
 
 3 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 5 
 
 Clioster ,1 unction 
 
 dames Walker 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 144 
 
 6 
 
 Doncaster and (roole 
 
 George Stephenson 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 10 | 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 0 
 
 2 
 
 0 
 
 8 
 
 Gloucester and Hristol 
 
 J. AValker 
 
 
 0 
 
 224 
 
 8 
 
 Gi-and Connection 
 
 George Landmann 
 
 2 
 
 0 
 
 26 
 
 10 
 
 T})swicli and Hury St. Kdinund’s 
 
 John Braithwaite 
 
 J 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
 11 
 
 Ireland, South Wales, and London 
 
 11. R. Palmer 
 
 3 
 
 1 
 
 133 
 
 12 
 
 Kent 
 
 James Walker 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 29 
 
 13 
 
 London and Hri<rhton 
 
 Sir John Rennie 
 
 5 
 
 1 
 
 32 
 
 14 
 
 Ditto Ditto 
 
 Josei)h Gibbs 
 
 4 
 
 3 
 
 224 
 
 15 
 
 Ditto Ditto 
 
 George Stephenson 
 
 3 
 
 0 
 
 58| 
 
 16 
 
 Exeter and Falmouth 
 
 G. Landmann & Mr. T. Clark 
 
 8 
 
 2 
 
 Ilf 
 
 17 ! 
 
 Alanchester, Cheshire, and Staffordshire ... 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 3 
 
 1 
 
 25 
 
 18 
 
 Alanchester and Leeds 
 
 G. Stephenson 
 
 5 
 
 1 
 
 69 
 
 19 
 
 St. George’s Harbour 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 49 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
 Sheffield and Alanchester 
 
 Charles Vignoles 
 
 i 
 
 2 
 
 76 
 
 21 
 
 South Eastern 
 
 Wm. Cubitt 
 
 3 
 
 2 
 
 674 
 
 22 
 
 South Eastern and Newhaven 
 
 
 5 
 
 1 
 
 33 
 
 23 
 
 South Eastern and Sandwich 
 
 Bewicke Blackburne 
 
 
 0 
 
 114 
 
 24 
 
 South Midland Counties 
 
 Francis Giles 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 20 
 
 25 
 
 South Western 
 
 George Stephenson 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 
 26 
 
 Stafford and Rugley 
 
 Joseph Locke 
 
 3 
 
 0 
 
 42| 
 
 27 
 
 Stourbridge and Birmingham 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 1 
 
 0 
 
 61 
 
 28 
 
 London and Exeter 
 
 Frederick Twynam 
 
 5 
 
 2 
 
 28 
 
 CURVES, 1837. 
 
 No. 
 
 TITLES. 
 
 ENGINEERS. 
 
 No. 
 
 Radius. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chains. 
 
 1 
 
 Bath and Weymouth 
 
 Roger Hopkins 
 
 1 
 
 7 
 
 2 
 
 Birmingham and Gloucester 
 
 Captn. Moorsom 
 
 J 
 
 17 
 
 3 
 
 Bolton and Preston 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 1 
 
 14 
 
 4 
 
 Central Kent 
 
 
 1 
 
 26 
 
 5 
 
 Cheltenham Union 
 
 Captn. Moorsom ’. 
 
 
 294 
 
 6 
 
 City of London and Richmond 
 
 W. Laxton & C. J. Blunt ... 
 
 1 
 
 184 
 
 7 
 
 Collier AVharfs '. 
 
 Joseph Gibbs 
 
 1 
 
 11 
 
 8 
 
 Clarence and Hartlepool f 
 
 Christopher Tennent 
 
 1 
 
 24 
 
 9 
 
 Devizes and Melksham 
 
 J. R. Brunei 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 10 
 
 Durham Junction 
 
 Thomas E. Harrison 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
 11 
 
 Durham and Sunderland 
 
 Thomas E. Foster 
 
 1 
 
 10 
 
 12 
 
 Gloucester and Bristol 
 
 James Walker 
 
 1 
 
 15 
 
 13 
 
 Great North of England Junction 
 
 S. Robinson 
 
 1 
 
 30 
 
 14 
 
 Hampshire and Wiltshire Junction 
 
 Edwin Octavius Tregelles ... 
 
 1 
 
 22 
 
 15 
 
 Ireland, South Wales, and London 
 
 H. R. Palmer 
 
 1 
 
 16 
 
 16 
 
 Kent ' 
 
 James AValker 
 
 1 
 
 14 
 
 17 
 
 Lancaster and Preston 
 
 Joseph Locke 
 
 
 17 
 
 18 
 
 London and Brighton 
 
 Sir John Rennie 
 
 4 
 
 20 
 
 19 
 
 London, Exeter, and Falmouth 
 
 George Landmann 
 
 1 
 
 16 
 
 20 
 
 Manchester, Cheshire, and Staffordshire 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 1 
 
 15 
 
 21 
 
 Manchester Connexion 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 4 
 
 18 
 
 22 
 
 Maryport and Carlisle 
 
 George Stephenson 
 
 2 
 
 15 
 
 23 
 
 Oxford and Great AVestern Union 
 
 J. R. Brunei 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 24 
 
 Salisbury, Romsey, and Southampton 
 
 F. Twynam 
 
 1 
 
 22 
 
 25 
 
 South Alidland Counties 
 
 Francis Giles 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
 26 
 
 Stafford and Rugley 
 
 Joseph Locke 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
 27 
 
 Stourbridge and Birmingham 
 
 J. U. Rastrick 
 
 2 
 
 20 
 
 28 
 
 Weardale Junction 
 
 Robert Nicholson 
 
 1 
 
 8 
 
 29 
 
 AA^est Durham 
 
 
 1 
 
 16 
 
 30 
 
 Loudon and Exeter 
 
 Frederick Twynam 
 
 1 
 
 20 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 1 
 
 NEWCASTT.E & EDINBURGH RAILWAY. 
 
 ( From the Neivcastle Journal^ July 23, 1836.^ 
 
 TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEWCA.STLE JOURNAL. 
 
 Sir, — The Advocates for the Grand Eastern Union 
 Railway having obtruded their claim to public patron- 
 age, in a communication which appeared in your paper 
 of the 16th instant, and in the Tyne Mercury, of 
 to-day, and in the latter instance having had re- 
 course to misrepresentation, I trust I may be allowed, 
 in contradiction to their statements, briefly to reply 
 to them. 
 
 Before entering into the merits of the two schemes, 
 you will perhaps allow me to observe, that an altera- 
 tion has been proposed on the Midland Line, which 
 would diminish the distance from Newcastle to Edin- 
 burgh 11 miles, making the total distance only 99 miles. 
 
 The Advantages of a Line running near to and par- 
 allel with the Coast are at least problematical, nor will 
 the competition with a direct, cheap, and expeditious 
 water convevance (as will undoubtedly be the case 
 with the Coast Line), render this Line, in the words 
 of your Correspondent, “obviously the most desirable.” 
 Your Correspondent will have some difficulty in per- 
 suading the public that a Line passing near the Coast, 
 by Berwick, Dunbar, and Haddington, is “the most 
 direct Line” from Newcastle to Edinburgh, the dis- 
 tance being, according to the Prospectus lately issued, 
 115 miles, whilst the distance on the Midland Line is 
 only 99 miles. 
 
 The paragraph in the Tyne Mercury is replete with 
 misrepi'esentation, which I shall now proceed to ex- 
 pose. To enable your readers to form their own 
 opinions of the way in which the Tyne Mercury has 
 attempted to prejudge the question, I shall as briefly 
 as possible extract such portions of it as appear to me 
 imperatively to require lefutation. 
 
 The Editor says, “ We are glad, however, to find it 
 is in agitation to form a Company for making a Rail- 
 way from Newcastle to Edinburgh, by way of Berwick, 
 for we consider that route m every respect decidedly 
 preferable to that by the North Tyne. By the Berwick 
 Line there is obviously a much better prospect of 
 revenue, an I so far as we can judge from appearances, 
 the levels seem to be incomparably better. There 
 are several considerable and populous towns in this 
 route, which would contribute to a Company’s income 
 both in goods and passengers.” 
 
 Until the sources of revenue be correctly ascer- 
 tained, it is evident that all statements concerning it 
 must be purely conjectural; and there is not one 
 article named in the Prospectus of the Grand Eastern 
 Railway Company, which will not form an item of 
 revenue to the Midland Line. In passengers, mer- 
 chandise, iron, iron-stone, slate, and lime, I ihink the 
 Midland lane would possess an advantage over its 
 rival. In agricultural produce, manure, timber, and 
 building materials, it certainly would be equal to the 
 Grand Eastern Union, as it would not have to com- 
 pete with water carriage, either by steam boats or- 
 sailing vessels. 
 
 As to the levels, there is something so irresistibly 
 ludicrous in his, “ .s’o far as we can judge from appear- 
 ances, Die levels seem to be incomparably better,” that 
 it is scarcely worthy of notice, was the statement not 
 diametricaliy ojqrosed to fact, and might mislead some 
 
 who placed reliance on his judgment, “from appear- 
 ances,” which, in this instance, have egregiously de- 
 ceived him. The Prospectus states, that the district 
 through which it is jrroposed the Grand Eastern Union 
 Railway should pass, “is, in a general point of view, 
 exceedingly favourable as to levels, none of ihe gradients 
 exceeding one in three hundr’cd. On the North Tyne, 
 Edinburgh, and Glasgow Railway the gradients are only 
 one in three hundred and fifty! 
 
 The Editor then proceeds to stale, that there are 
 several considerable and populous towns in this route 
 which would contribute to the Company’s income, 
 both in goods and passengers. From this the public 
 would infer that the Eastern lAne actually passed 
 through many towns of great population and wealth ; 
 if it be so, the plan issued with the Prospectus must 
 be extremely erroneous. On consulting it, I find that, 
 fiom Newcastle to Berwick, it does not pass through a 
 single town ! Measuring from the map, I find that it 
 is, (in round numbeis), a mile and a quarter from Bed- 
 lington, five and a half miles from Blyth, one and a 
 quarter mile from Morpeth, nearly three miles from 
 Alnwick, one and a quarter mile from Belford, one and 
 three-quarters of a mile from Kyloe, and -three miles 
 from Ancroft. In measuring these distances, I have 
 taken the direct lines, and not followed the courses of 
 the streams, which, to obtain the needful Levels, will 
 be necessary in making the connecting branch Railways 
 to those places. I am, therefore, considerably under 
 the actual distances. Of these places, we have only 
 Morpeth, Alnwick, and Belford, wiiich are at all likely 
 to contribute materially to the Company’s income, 
 even under the most advantageous circumstances : for 
 Blyth and other places to the seaward of the Railway, 
 are scarcely likely to sujrpoitit, when they have a 
 cheaper mode of conveyance bv water. It will also be 
 a consideration with the inhabitants of Morpeth and 
 Alnwick, how far the Grand Eastern Union Railway 
 deserves their support, seeing that its route is diverted 
 from them, and that they can only have connection 
 with it by Branches. 
 
 As to the population of the towns through and near 
 which it is proposed the North Tyne, Edinburgh, and 
 Glasgow Railway should jrass, we mayboldly challenge 
 a conqjarison. Had the Editor of the Meicury made 
 any inquiry at all, he might have soon satisfied him- 
 self that on this score the Midland liine had also the 
 advantage. He also adds, that on the Jedburgh and 
 Melrose liine there is no trade of any account ! Had 
 he been desirous to obtain information on this matter, 
 he ought in justice to his readers to have sought it, ere 
 he condemned such towns as Jedburgh, Melrose, Ga- 
 lashiels, Selkirk, Hawick, ai d Kelso, to insignificance 
 either in population or manufactures. He ought to 
 have learnt that the district through which the Mid- 
 land Line is proposed to pass is rich in minerals, es- 
 pecially in coal, slate, ironstone, limestone, and build- 
 ing stone of the first quality. He might have known 
 that on sixty miles of the North Tyne, Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow Railway, coals, lime, &c. would have to be 
 conveyed, and that the manufactures are very consi- 
 derable. As to the j)hysical obstacles, it is a "bugbear 
 of his own creation. 1 -have already shown that the 
 distance between Newcastle and Edinburgh is less by 
 the North Tyne, Edinburgh, and Glasgow Railway, 
 by sixteen miles, than by the Grand Union Railway, 
 

 and tliat the j^radicnts are decidedly more favourable, 
 'riie only tljinj^ which he can carp at on this Line, is 
 the 'I'unnel throuj^h the Carter. Keterrinf; to a para- 
 graj)h in your paper of the JHh instant, 1 heg leave 
 now to state that the 'runnel will he a short one, not 
 exceeding, hut considerably within, one mile in length. 
 'I'here are few, if there are any. Railways of equal 
 magnitude, where the gradients are so favourable, or 
 the tunneling less. On the liondon and llirmingham 
 Line there is ui)wards of three n).les of tunneling; 
 on the (ireat Western there is four miles and a half; 
 on the Leicester and Swannington there is a tunnel 
 of a mile and a (quarter ; and on the Canterbury one 
 of half a mile in length. Other instances might he 
 quoted if it were necessary, hut it is j)resumed these 
 will be sufficient to convince the public that, in the 
 formation of a Railway, a short tunnel is by no means 
 an insurmountable “ jdiysical obstacle.” 
 
 An estimate of the comparative expence of the two 
 Lines cannot be formed until exact surveys and levels 
 are taken ; but it must be evident to those the least ac- 
 quainted with engineering, that a Line like the Grand 
 fiastern Union, which crosses at right angles about 
 twenty rivers and streams, must be much more ex- 
 pensive than a lane which, like the North Tyne, 
 Edinburgh, and Glasgow, runs parallel with them. In 
 the one instance, to maintain your gradients, you have 
 to cut through hills and fill up valleys ; where, in the 
 other instance, you have merely, by side cuttings, to 
 level the path pointed out to you by the natural 
 formation of the country. 
 
 Having thus replied to the paragraph which has ap- 
 peared in the Tyne Mercury, I may, perhaps, be 
 allowed to state the reasons which induced me to 
 believe that the Midland Line of Railway will ulti- 
 mately be found most conducive to the public interest. 
 I should not have attempted this public comparison 
 of the two schemes had not the friends of the Grand 
 Union rendered it imperative, but since they have 
 done so, and as a continued silence on my part might 
 be interpreted wrongfully to my employers and 
 myself, 1 have ventured with reluctance to reply to 
 the strictures which have been made. I did not in- 
 vite a comparison of the two Lines — that invitation 
 has proceeded from the other party. It is for the 
 public to judge between the merits of the two schemes; 
 and that they may be enabled to do so, I shall recapi- 
 tulate the claims set forth by both for public patronage. 
 
 The Grand Eastern Union Railway proposes to 
 effect a Junction with the Great North of England 
 Railway, and continue it Northward to Berwick-upon- 
 Tweed. The projectors evidently contemplate a 
 Junction at the 'i'weed with the Dunbar, Haddington, 
 and Edinburgh Railway. They state in the Pros- 
 pectus, “ We have not extended the plan beyond the 
 Tweed, inasmuch as we consider that it would be a 
 matter for consideration of the several Committees of 
 the General Line, as to the manner of providing for 
 the execution of this intermediate distance.” So that, 
 after all, this is not a Railway ^rom Newcastle to 
 Edinburgh, but one from Nevcastle to Berwick only ! 
 Its completion to Dunbar depending upon con- 
 tingencies, and then to join a Railway from Dunbar 
 via Haddington to Edinburgh, the Act for which is not 
 yet obtained ; leaving an hiatus between Dunbar and 
 Berwick perfectly unprovided for. I state this on the 
 authority of their own Prospectus. 
 
 Presuming that the Bill for the Edinburgh, Had- 
 dington, and Dunbar Railway be obtained in the nexc 
 Session of Parliament, what guarantee have they to 
 give the public that the Railway from Berwick to 
 Dunbar shall also obtain the sanction of the Legisla- 
 ture? On the contrary, it might be shewn that tak- 
 ing the distances from the Coast in nine places on 
 their Line from Newcastle to Berwick, the average 
 distance from tne Sea Coast was only three miles. 
 
 The gradients uj)on the Grand Union liine is one in 
 three hundred; those upon the North 'Pyne, Edin- 
 burgh, and Glasgow liine one in three hundred and 
 fifty, 'fhe distance upon the former, supposing it an 
 entire l.itie, which it is not, is one hundred and fif- 
 teen miles ; the distance on the other is ninety-nine 
 miles, 'fhe North 'Pyne, Edinburgh, and Glasgow 
 iiine passes, not only directly to Edinburgh, but also 
 to Glasgow. It goes through districts and towns of 
 high importance, both as regards the mineral and 
 agricultural produce and manufactures. Erom Ber- 
 wick via Kelso, it offers an immediate communication 
 with Glasgow* It jrasses through the centre of the 
 country, where no water competition can jrossibly 
 occur, and is the route pointed out by nature itself, 
 as the highway of communication between the two 
 countries. 
 
 The Branch to Glasgow is peculiarly favourable, 
 not only for the construction of a Railway, but also 
 for the immense advantages it would bestow upon 
 the country through which it passes, and the revenue 
 to be derived from it. 
 
 Fearing, however, I have already trespassed too 
 much on the patience of your readers, 
 
 I am, verv truly, 
 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON. 
 
 RAILWAYS. 
 
 TO THE EDITORS OF THE NEWCASTLE COURANT. 
 
 Gentlemen, — Having seen in the Kelso Mail the 
 report of a meeting of the inhabitants of Berwick, held 
 in the Town Hall, on the 19th of July, to consider 
 the propriety of appointing a I^ocal Committee to co- 
 operate with the Newcastle Committee, for the pur- 
 pose of getting the intended Railroad between New- 
 castle and Edinburgh to pass by way of Berwick, in 
 preference to the l.ine proposed by the Northum- 
 berland Meeting, held at Hexham, by the Carter 
 Mountain, Jedburgh, and Galashiels, I am induced to 
 offer the following remarks for the consideration of 
 those interested in the undertaking, as tending to show 
 the advantages of the Northumberland and Jedburgh 
 Line over that pointed out by the Meeting at Berwick. 
 
 It is stated that the Line passing by Berwick is very 
 little, if at all, longer, than that through the County 
 of Northumberland by Hexham. When there are no 
 actual Surveys before the public, the post roads may 
 be taken as a fair data in both Lines ; without being 
 minute, therefore, we hold the distance from New- 
 castle by Berwick and Dunbar to Edinburgh to 
 exceed 1*20 miles, and the distance by Jedburgh to be 
 100 miles, which leaves a difference of twenty miles 
 in favour of the .ledburgh Line. 
 
 The second objection is to the country itself through 
 which the Line is intended to pass, which is said to be 
 almost unproductive, and very thinly and poorly 
 peopled, and, at the same time, to be in the winter, 
 wholly covered for long periods by snow'. This is 
 answered by stating the fact, that part of the distict 
 like other parts of Northumberland and Roxburgh- 
 shire, is mountainous, but with regard to cultiva- 
 tion, the new Line of Road from Newcastle to 
 Jedburgh on the north side of the Tyne, and the vale 
 of the Reed is considerably improved, and the culti- 
 vation is extending towards the Carter; and although 
 thinly peopled, like other pastoral districts, it feeds 
 the finest of Cheviot sheep, and if less in weight they 
 are more in number, and the flesh and the wool find a 
 ready market, equal to the heavy wedders fed in the 
 district of Berwick. Upon crossing the Carter, and 
 entering Scotland, the soil along the road is all enclo- 
 sed and cultivated ; and it may be observed that the 
 traveller sees little open ground in Roxburghshire for 
 nearly 30 miles. The course of the road by Jedburgh 
 and the Vale of the Tweed and the Tweed afford, 
 perhaps, the finest instance of agricultural improve- 
 
3 
 
 ment between the river Tyne and the Forth ; and if 
 we are poor people, or poorly peopled, as our wealthy 
 friends of Berwick may suppose, we claim the merit 
 of dilijrence, and make the mo&t we can by judicious 
 management; and when we point out the extending 
 manufactories of Hawick and Galashiels, we may boast 
 a comparison with any town on the Berwick Line 
 from Newcastle to Edinburgh. We cannot see the 
 influence a snow storm can have in such a question. 
 It occurs seldom with us, even at the Carter, and 
 never enters into the calculation of our surveyors or 
 coach proprietors, and we know that accurate accounts 
 may be furnished from the surveyors’ journals, and 
 that, taken on an average, the stoppages in conse- 
 quence, do not exceed half a day every year. Our 
 severe snow storms are mostly from the east, and con- 
 sequently the fall will be greater upon the coast than 
 in the interior, and the Berwick Line may be more 
 interrupted. 
 
 We admit with pleasure that the Berwick line will 
 pass through a fertile and populous district, and con- 
 gratulate these industrious people ujron the many ad- 
 vantages they enjoy, particularly their access to so 
 many sea-ports. This is just the advantage we are 
 labouring to obtain. W e have no water carriage nearer 
 than 32 miles, and we are endeavouring to have our 
 border district, so long shut up, opened to the more 
 wealthy districts upon the south and the north by a 
 railway ; and we trust, if we are successful, our 
 opulent neighbours on the east will suffer no deterio- 
 ration, but continue to enjoy their extensive ship- 
 ping, fisheries, and manufactures, and allow us to 
 benefit by this improvement as the only means of con- 
 necting us with the important stations upon the Tyne, 
 the Forth, and the Clyde, and uniting the ports of 
 Newcastle, Leith, and Glasgow, at most within one 
 day’s journey of each other. 
 
 Should the railway succeed, coal and lime will be 
 procured upon moderate terms, and many thousand 
 acres of excellent land will be cultivated in the dis- 
 trict, and markets will be provided for our agricul- 
 tural produce and manufactures on the west and north. 
 At present the central parishes of the county are more 
 than 20 miles from coal and lime, which is a great bar 
 to agricultural improvement. 
 
 We might inquire of what utility the intended rail- 
 way would be to Berwick, where there is an excellent 
 harbour, and ready communication by sea with all 
 the ports of the empire. Will the merchants bring 
 coals from the south, or from the north, when they 
 possess unexhaustible mines at home, or will they 
 purchase corn at the markets at Alnwick, or Dunbar, 
 or Haddington, to ship from Berwick. It would be 
 well if the Committee would point out the uses of the 
 railway, distinct from the trade of coal and lime, and 
 the shipping from the river, about which the purchasers 
 of shares in the south will exjiect information. 
 
 The great railways in England are in the interior 
 of the island, and the Northern Railway, of which 
 this is an extension, does not approach the sea coast. 
 The commencement at the port of London, and the 
 termination at the port of Glasgow, and on the Forth, 
 s understood, but no line parallel to an extended 
 lavigable coast has been hitherto proposed for this 
 ibvious reason, that it is not required, and that the 
 ipen sea affords a ready and preferable mode of con- 
 eyance. It. 
 
 Jedburgh, July 30, 1030. 
 
 NEWCASTLE, TYNE, EDINBURGH, AND 
 GI.ASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 (7'Vom the Kelso Mail of Amjusl 10, 1000.) 
 
 In all parts of the line of this magnificent proj'ect 
 the gentry and inhabitants are taking most active 
 Jteps to promote the success of the measure. Public 
 
 meetings, in addition to that at Jedburgh reported in 
 our last, have been held at Hawick and Melrose, at 
 both of which we understand the utmost unanimity 
 prevailed, as to the immense benefits which the pro- 
 posed railway could not fail to confer upon the com- 
 mercial and agriculturul districts through which it is 
 intended to pass. For the resolutions jjassed at these 
 meetings, and for the names of the gentlemen appoint- 
 ed as Local Committees to forward the great object in 
 view, we beg to refer our readers to our advertising 
 columns. We understand that a meeting for a similar 
 purpose was held 'At Galashiels on Saturday evening 
 
 last. 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH 
 AND GLASGOW RAII.WAY. 
 
 {From the Kelso Chronicle of August 1836.) 
 
 The report of the proceedings which took place in 
 this town on Friday last, relative to this line of rail- 
 road, which may be truly termed a great national un- 
 dertaking, will be found elsewhere. The address of 
 Mr. Richardson was clear and perspicuous, and replete 
 with important information. A deputation attended 
 the meeting from the town of Berwick, reji-esenting 
 those who advocate a line by the sea-coast, in op- 
 position to one going through the County of Rox- 
 burgh- Mr. Ramsay, the editor of the Warder, ap- 
 peared as the s]K)kesman upon the occasion. We 
 humbly think the deputation might have selected 
 a better advocate of their views. He is unfitted to 
 address a public audience. The meeting must have 
 convinced him of this by the gi'eater projrortion re- 
 tiring from the room. His statements, besides, were 
 inconclusive. Indeed, at every step he was baulked, 
 and fairly broke down. 
 
 It were needless for us to expatiate upon the advan- 
 tages which would be derived from a railroad commu- 
 nication through the most centrical part of the 
 country, lying betwixt the Solway Frith and the 
 German Ocean. “NTe adhere to our opinion that a line 
 by the sea coast is quite uncalled for. It will not 
 benefit Berwick itself so much as one passing through 
 the interior of the country, and cannot be maintained 
 as comprising the general benefit of these districts. 
 In point of pojnilation, expence of construction, (Sec., 
 the Midland Line has a decided advantage. 
 
 AYe observe that in the Warder of Saturday last, 
 the Editor has a long article, entitled “ Resjrective 
 Merits of the Two Competing liines.” Althougli he 
 showed at the meeting on l'’riday, that he knew as 
 much about his subject as the man in the moon, he 
 here parades an apjiarent show of learning — engineer- 
 ing and geological knowledge — and juit forward too 
 with an air of such consummate assurance, which 
 would lead any ignorant person to suppose, that he 
 were conqdete master of his subject ; whereas at the 
 meeting on Friday, so far from ]\Ir. Richardson refus- 
 ing to answer his question — as he said at the meeting, 
 and aswe have rejrorted him, as to the heiglit of the 
 CarterFell above the level of the ’I’cviot, Mr. Rich- 
 ardson produced a plan, which Mr. Ramsay, after 
 Hounderingover some seconds, corrW not understand, and 
 laid aside. Mr. Ramsay, we know, also stated, that he 
 regretted this very article in his |)a])cr was to appear 
 on the following day, and yet it made its a])pcarance 
 as a pamphlet, which will not, however, we feel as- 
 sured, gull the ])ublic. 
 
 JMr. Kamsay, after reiterating his statement as to 
 the levels, goes on to talk of the formation of the 
 Carter, and says — 
 
 “ 'Phis hr i Mgs ms to notice a contradiction of Mr. Uicliardson’s, 
 wliich, if \'alid, wonld have told mneh against us; hut lortut 
 nately it is o, hei wise. \Vc mean his denial of our statcnicn- 
 that the tunnel at the Carter must go through a forinatiou of 
 Whinstone rocK's. lleatlcmiits to upset oui'o))inion hj' t('fer- 
 ring to the report of Messrs. (Jrainger and M iller i('sj)eeting a 
 tunnel proposed in i)ro.)ecting certain impro\'einents upon the 
 turnpike road iu that direction, wlierein tliey iiuzard a con- 
 
4 
 
 jocturo that the ontting would he tlirougli ii coal formation. 
 Now, the’lucls are tliese. Those engineers, in order to avoid a 
 very eircuilous line, ami get an inclination of 1 in ;i0, or \TAfcct 
 per Mile, found it necessary to propose a tunnel 1,1.')0 yards in 
 length; this, however, was o)dt/ 2(H) feet below the srimrnit of 
 the ridge; but Mr. Uiehardson’s wonid probably be yoofect below 
 (he ri<l(/e ; and you :nay have coal formation and other soft ma- 
 terial iit 2(i(t feet deep, u hen you would have basalt or other 
 very hard material at /bdleet. Nsihing, indeed, is more likely 
 than such a change in the strata.” 
 
 Tliis ]\Ir. llichardson again denies, and from the 
 nature of the various stratifications which are laid 
 down by geologists, and the positions in which they 
 are found, asserts that there is a certainty of there 
 being no materials to be found so deej) in the moun- 
 tain as the level of the Tunnel would reach, which 
 would present any obstacle to an engineer. Mr. 
 liichardson has pledged himself to answer at the next 
 meeting, which will be shortly held at Lanark, and of 
 which proceedings we shall afford our readers an 
 account. 
 
 We have made these remarks from no feeling of api- 
 mosity, but from what we deem a public duty. We 
 wish to give no offence — but if Mr. Ramsay, or any 
 other man, puts himself forward in any matter which 
 concerns the public interest, we have not hitherto, 
 and trust that we never shall, from any feeling of 
 delicacy, refrain from exposing such a farcical exhibi- 
 tion as we witnessed last Friday. 
 
 We cannot omit noticing a rather unique piece of 
 conduct, and which, it will be seen, has drawn forth a 
 letter from a valuedcorrespondent, viz., that the sums 
 to be subscribed in order to defray the expences of a 
 future survey, &c., are to be devoted,' not to the sur- 
 vey of the Midland Line, but by the Line by the sea 
 coast also. We have not seen for some time such a 
 piece of barefaced assumption. We are sure this must 
 have originated with the Editor of the Warder alone. 
 Mr. Richardson, at the meeting at Jedburgh, stated 
 that no parlicular line as related to a mile or two was 
 definitivt ly fixed. It nright pass through the Carter, 
 and take a line a little to the east or to the west. Thus 
 the word “ lines’^was introduced into the resolutions 
 passed at Kelso. But surely no one contemplated 
 that those friendly to the Midland Line were going 
 to subscribe to survey the line by the coast. 
 
 To conclude, we would entreat our friends to care- 
 fully peruse Mr. Richardson’s masterly address, and 
 would remind those who wish well to the undertaking, 
 to lose no time in coming forward with their subscrip- 
 tions, to enable the contemplated survey to be set 
 about. 
 
 RAILWAY FROM NEWCASTLE TO EDIN- 
 BURGH AND GLASGOW. 
 
 {From the Kelso Chronicle of Oct. 22, 1836.) 
 
 The interesting subject of a Railv?ay Communication 
 between England and Scotland continues to occupy, as it 
 deserves to do, a large share of public attention. Every 
 light that can be thrown upon it is valuable; as there are 
 two, if not three, competing Lines, and it is of the first im- 
 portance that the best Line be adopted — that which pre- 
 sents the fewest engineering difficulties, and hence will 
 require the smallest outlay of capital in its execution, while 
 it possesses such an abundance of facilities and resources 
 as will secure the highest degree of profitable return for 
 such capital, and also prove of the greatest public advantage. 
 
 Whatever may be done in the Western part of the 
 Country, the Lines which most interest these Eastern dis- 
 tricts are the Middle or Carter Fell Line, and the Eastern 
 Line. The adventurous projector of the former, Mr. 
 Richardson, has put forth, as we have repeatedly shown, 
 the most delusive statements concerning his scheme. His 
 Line would run in the poorest, the most barren, and the 
 most thinly populated parts of the country. The Eastern 
 Line, on the contrary, would embrace a rich, highly culti- 
 vated, and thickly populated country. Two comparisons 
 will place this beyond dispute. The average population 
 
 along the Midland Line, exclusive of its termini, does not 
 exceed 40 souls, and its rental of £250, to the stpiare mile ; 
 while the average population of the Eastern Line is about 
 125, and its rental about £740, to the s((uare mile. In a 
 comparative statement of the population we lately gave, 
 we find that what we then set down for the Eastern lane 
 was considerably below the mark. We calculated the po- 
 pulation between Edinburgh and Glasgow at only 20,000 ; 
 but we learn that, including a branch to Stirling, it is 
 actually 46,000, as will be seen by the following enumer- 
 
 ation : — 
 
 Cofstorphin 1,4G1 
 
 Rato 
 
 Kirkliston 2,2G.'5 
 
 Uphall 1,254 
 
 Polmont .3,210 
 
 Linlithgovv •3,137 
 
 Felkirk 12,743 
 
 Stirling, (by branch Railway);- 8,56.3 
 
 Cumbernauld • • 3,080 
 
 Kirkintilloch 5,888 
 
 Cadder 3,048 
 
 Amounting to 46,012 
 
 Being 26,000 more than we had calculated upon. Be- 
 sides, we omitted the population of North Berwick, 1,824. 
 These corrections increase the population in favour of the 
 Eastern Line to 76,782 surplus. 
 
 But the nature of the country gives the Eastern Line a 
 still more desided preference. This we have frequently 
 shown ; and we have been put in possession of a confirma- 
 tion of our views from an authority which decides the case 
 in favour of the Eastern Line beyond all manner of doubt. 
 Certain parties in Edinburgh, deeply interested in the sub- 
 ject of a Railway Communication from England, and 
 anxious to ascertain the most desiiable route by which to 
 carry it, lately employed the eminent engineer of the Man- 
 chester and Liverpool Railway, Mr. George Stephenson, 
 to examine the Line by the Carter Fell, and that by Ber- 
 wick and Dunbar; and we are now enabled to lay his 
 opinion before our readers. It is as follows : — 
 
 Gentlemen, — “In compliance with your request, I have ex- 
 amined the country from Edinburgh towards Newcastle,by way 
 of Melrose, Jedburgh, and the Carter Fell, and thence into the 
 vale of the river Reed, and having obtained a section of that por- 
 tion of the route from Edinburgh to Carter Fell, along the Line of 
 the present Turnpike Road, I am enabled to give you a pretty 
 correct statement of the nature of that country, with my 
 opinion upon some of the engineering difficulties which would 
 have to be encountered, in carrying a Line of Railway through it. 
 
 The Datum Line from which I compare the different levels 
 of the country, is 255 feet above the sea ; and on a level w ith 
 the Tron Church at Edinburgh, — w'hich appears to be the only 
 part of the town w’herea Line of Railway can approach it, from 
 the route I have examined. 
 
 The ground is very favourable for the first mile from Edin 
 burgh. Between the first and second mile, the road descends 
 about 79 feet; and from the second to the third mile the ground 
 again rises to the level of Tron Church. Up to this point the 
 Line might be made suitable for locomotive engines, at a great 
 expence of Earthwork. Between the third and fourth mile, the 
 road again rises 141 feet, and descends before the fifth mile to 
 the level of Tron Church. It does not appear to me that any 
 deviation can be made in this portion, so as to form a Line 
 which can be worked by locomotive engines. Between the 5th 
 and 7 th mile, the i-oad descends 80 feet; and from the 7th to the 
 8th mile, suitable levels for locomotive engines could only be 
 attained at a considerable expence. From the 8th to about the 
 15th mile, which is the summit of that part of the country, — 
 the ground rises w'ith a pretty uniform ascent, at about the 
 rjite of 85 per mile. This could not be w'orked by locomotive 
 ehgines, nor does it appear that this gradient could be materially 
 improved. The next six miles the road descends at the rate of 
 about 28 feet per mile: from near the 21st mile, the line still 
 descends to the 27th mile at nearly the same ratio. From this 
 place to the 31st mile, a distance of four miles, the ground is 
 almost level. The next four miles the ground descends into the 
 valley of the Tweed, near Abbotsford, at the ra te of about 45 feet 
 per mile. In the last 20 miles I have described, the line cannot 
 be materially improved in gradients, as it must be carried along 
 the vale of the Gala. In consequence of the extreme ruggedness 
 of the country on both sides of the valley, and its geological 
 character being almost entirely basaltic, of a very high and 
 compact nature, it is quite out of the question to attempt heavy 
 cuttings in this material. The course of the river Gala is 
 extremely circuitous, and many of the curves would vary from 
 a quarter to half a mile radius. 
 
 The next 20 miles from the Junction with the Tw^eed to the 
 foot of Carter Fell, I think the average gradient, by making the 
 line circuitous, might be obtained at the rate of 20 feet per mile. 
 
 The next five miles brings us to the summit of Carter Fell, 
 W'hich rises at the rate of 180 feet per mile. It may be said that 
 this hill might be .tunnelled through. This is quite out of the 
 
([iH'sVon, as the. Icncith of n Tmwrl required nl this ])lac.c, so as to 
 preserce. snUahlc uradients for locomotive engines, could not he less 
 than, cifit or nine miles between the valley of the Jed and the 
 Reedwater valley; and as I have particularly examined the 
 Kcologieal character of this district, and find that Carter I'ell is 
 composed of basaltic, at a small depth from the surface of the 
 Kround, '//, pats an end to all discussion with respect to a tunnel 
 Ihroufjh it. The vale of the Reedwater appears very favamrable, 
 so far as I ha\'e examined it, — but it very soon leaves the direc- 
 tion of the road to Newcastle, and takes a more westerly 
 course; and from the rugftedness of thecountry which presents 
 itself on the direct line of the Turnpike Road, from Carter Fell 
 to Newcastle, 1 do not think it would be possible to carry the 
 line to Newcastle, by any other routes than the valleys of the 
 Reed and the Tyne, both of 'which are very circuitous. 
 
 I have calculated the loss of pow er which would have to be 
 sustained by the route from the summit at Carter Fell to 
 Edinburgh, and find that it amounts to 100 miles when com- 
 pared with a dead level. This is supposing that a Tunnel is 
 not to be made through Carter Fell. 
 
 I have to inform you that I have also examined the country 
 from Dunbar to the submmit between that Town and Her- 
 M'ick, and find that almost a level line can he obtained f rom, Dunhnr 
 to that summit. From what I now know of the country and the 
 various routes tvluch have been proposed through the East 
 Centre, and West of the Island between England and Scotland. 
 
 1 am prep.ared to state that, in my opinion, po line can he found 
 equal to the one on the Eastern coast, both as regards gradients, ex- 
 pence, and population." 
 
 Here, then, is the opinion of one of the most eminent 
 engineers in the kingdom — a man whose great r<’piitation 
 is of itself a sufficient guarantee for the truth and accuracy 
 of his statements — that the Eastern Like is the om,y 
 PRACTicAiJEE LiNF. The Carter Fell he sliews to be ab- 
 solutely impracticable ; while of that by Berwick and Dun- 
 bar he unreservedly declares — “I am prepared to state 
 that in my opinion, no Line can be found equal to the 
 CNE ON THE Eastirn COAST, botli as regards gradients, 
 expence, and POr^EM-ATION.” 
 
 Tliis settles the question out and out. After such an 
 opiuion, from such an authority, few, we think, will be 
 rash enough to connect themselves with so impracticable a 
 project as the Carter Fell Line. The Eastern Line thus 
 stands unrivalled ; and this being the case, the projectors 
 and supporters of the Grand Eastern Union Railway, by 
 Berwick and Dunbar, may well take co'.irage and proceed 
 in good earnest with their noble undertaking. 
 
 N E WC A ST LE-UPON-T YNE, EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 {From the Kelso Chronicle of Nov. 10, 1830.) 
 
 Tbe space of our columns has precluded us, for 
 some time back, from directing the attention of our 
 readers, to the manifest advantages which present 
 themselves, in reference to this contemjilated Line of 
 Railway. We have over and over again pointed out 
 Vae 'prim a facie absurdity of constructing a Ijine along 
 the sea coast. It was like “ bringing coals to New- 
 castle.” We yet find that the supporters of the Eastern 
 ITne confidently believe that their jirqject will be the 
 most beneficial to the country, and their opinion is, so 
 far as artificial obstacles intervene, sujiported by the 
 survey of Mr. Stephenson. 
 
 To us on the Borders, it is of the utmost impor- 
 tance that a Idne of Railroad, Avhich would connect 
 New'castle with Edinburgh and Glasgow, should be 
 completed ; but we are at a loss to discover, why this 
 liine should not, as a matter of course, pass through 
 the most centrical jiart of the country? It would 
 thus draw to itself all the traflic of the country which 
 lies to the east or to the west -it would stimulate in- 
 dustry where ajiathy is most likely to jiredominate, 
 in the rural inland parts of the country — it would 
 quicken men’s minds, who, as agriculturists, might 
 become, in comparison, the regulators of trade — it 
 would, in point of fact, make the mere farmer an agri- 
 cultural merchant. (Ithers, we know, occupy these 
 dejiartments, but he would then have it in his jiower 
 to save several per cents. Suppose he now commis- 
 sions his grain for sale — it is sent to granaries at a 
 great exponce ; not so mucli because he has not room 
 at home, as because be has it lying at the port readiest 
 for exportation. Supjiose, again, a jiorsoii is an exten- 
 sive grower of com — this peisoii lives inland — ol‘ what 
 
 use, to him, is a Line of Railway by the sea coast ? 
 Nay, of what use is it to those who live close by the 
 sea coast ? The thing is a nerfect burlesque. 
 
 But we would come to facts, and we would ask the 
 supporters of the Eastern Idne whether they can 
 point out to us advantages that will, in the most re- 
 mote shape, affect the (piestion as to how the landed 
 projirietary are to be benefiited. They may tell u s of 
 numerous advantages that will appertain to their own 
 domains along the sea coast; but in a national point 
 of view, will they have the effronterv to stand forward 
 and say that the Eastern lAne of Railway should be 
 adopted. We observe that they have advertised a 
 notice to the effect of applying to Parliament. This 
 is mere moonshine. In point of directness of route, 
 population through which the line may pass,* &c., 
 &c., the Midland decidedly predominates over the 
 Eastern. We copy from undoubted documents. Re- 
 ferring to the last census of the population taken in 
 1831, we find that the Midland Line passes directly 
 through towns containing a greater amount of popula- 
 tion than what exists upon the Eastern line, besides 
 those which are intended to be connected by branches. 
 Taking from Newcastle to Berwick and a correspond- 
 ing length of the Midland lane across the country, it 
 would give the Midland Line a surplus of 1048. 
 
 The question of population of the country through 
 which the respective lines of Railroad had to jiass 
 being thus settled, the next objection urged was, that 
 the line was not a practicable one — that the mountain 
 (the Carter) could not be tunnelled, and that, there- 
 fore, the project must be given up. We need not 
 remind our readers of the triumphant manner in which 
 Mr. Richardson rebutted this. It seemed to ourselves 
 'an insurmountable obstacle. We have, however, faith 
 in his judgment, and have little doubt but that our 
 opponents are in the wrong. 
 
 “• A line of Railroad so extensive could not be unac- 
 companied with difficulties in its formation; but he 
 would say that there had been no line of equal magnitude 
 and importance where the difficulties were fewer. While 
 on this suoject he would quote the opinion of Mr. Ste- 
 phenson, in bis evidence on the Brighton and Ijoiidoii 
 line. He was asked this question, — ‘ In respect to a com- 
 munication between London and Brighton, do you 
 believe that there is any line that will alford less natural 
 difficulties than the line through the Dorking valley and 
 Adur valley to Brighton ? I believe not — Chalk is a 
 very favourable soil, is it not, for the execution of those 
 sort of works ? Ves ; hut 1 like to have clay just as well 
 
 as chalk for tunnel ling Do you appreliend that there 
 
 will he any peculiar difficulty in tunnelling through the 
 chalk ? No, 1 do not apprehend any. What is the 
 length of that tunnel ? About !)00 yards, I think. He 
 was also asked, — ‘ Describing that line generally, and 
 
 * The following is a coniijarative view of the ?p«ipnlatioii on 
 the two different Lines: — 
 
 nilULAND LINK. 
 Newcastle & Gateshead 
 Stamfordham, Matfen.J 
 
 iiTirl V • •.•••*•■ 1 
 
 ■ 1,2(10 
 3ii0 
 1.500 
 ;!M5 
 
 EASTIOIIN line. 
 Newcastle & Gateshead 
 Morpeth 
 
 57,037 
 • 4,707 
 (too 
 . (),7!i« 
 . 1 ,;{00 
 
 East & West Woodburn 
 H li t) (1)11 
 
 I>csl)ijry ••••• ••••. ... 
 
 Almvick 
 
 Otterburn 
 
 . . . 
 
 Herwiek 
 
 Dunbur 
 
 Anerum 
 
 . l,0(»0l 
 
 Maddingtoii 
 
 . 5.0H3 
 
 
 
 
 a,(!'20 
 
 I lawiek 
 
 • 4!o70 
 
 Musselburgh 
 
 ft.iHil 
 
 Selkirk 
 
 . 2,)i;i;i 
 
 Porfobello 
 
 • 2,7)11 
 
 Melrose 
 
 • 4, .•);(!» 
 
 Edinburgh 
 
 )(!2,1.5(r 
 
 Gattonside 
 
 • 1,000 
 
 Leith • 
 
 • 25,(1.55 
 
 
 . 2,100 
 
 
 
 Ijfildnniclh •••• 
 
 
 
 Innerleithen 
 
 !tl0 
 
 
 204,.5;i3 
 
 Peebles 
 
 . 2,7.50 
 
 
 — 
 
 Pennyeuiek 
 
 • I, .542 
 
 
 
 Edinburgh 
 
 .]()2, 1.5(1 
 
 
 
 Leith 
 
 . 2.5,}|5.5 
 
 
 
 Hronghton 
 
 .‘too 
 
 
 
 niggar 
 
 . 2, .500 
 
 
 
 Lanark 
 
 1dm 
 
 
 
 I lamiltoii 
 
 ■ !),.5ia 
 
 
 
 Untherglcn 
 
 . .5,.5o;i 
 
 Midland Lino 
 
 ..500,177 
 
 Glasgow 
 
 ■ 202,-12() 
 
 Eastern l.ine 
 
 .204,.5:i;( 
 
 
 .500,177 
 
 Difference • ••• 
 
 • 214,(144 
 
6 
 
 consi(leriii|? tlie experience yon li.'ive li.id in making rail- 
 roads, which, I presume, you never ex|)ected to make 
 without some natural difliculties, in yonr jiidgitient is or 
 is not that a line opposing to yon less natural dilliculties 
 than you ordinarily meet with? I think so decidedly.’ 
 Now, the line at present in contemplation j)resented 
 much less ditliculties than those on which JVI r. Stephen- 
 son was examined, ^\’a8 there even a necessity for a 
 tunnel a mile in length, any ditlii-ulties attending it could 
 he easily surmounted. The parties who vei-e opi)osed 
 to this scheme said that the tunnel proposed very mate- 
 rially affected it.” 
 
 At a subsequent meeting on the subject of the 
 Kailroad, held in Lanark, Mr. Richardson stated the 
 opinions of JMessrs. Clrainger and Miller, corrobo- 
 rating his own views and went on to observe: — 
 
 ‘•He would now heg to direct the attention of the 
 meeting to that of two eminent geologists, viz. JMessrs. 
 Pfiillips and Smith. On their geological map it was dis- 
 tinctly shown that the Carter Fell consisted of shale and 
 millstone grit, and according to their opinion, the whin- 
 stone dyke, which has been conjured up by their oppo- 
 nents, to fright them from the undertaking, passed con- 
 siderably to the south of the Carter. But even sup- 
 posing that the Carter did consist of whinstone, he 
 maintained there would he no difficulty in perforating 
 that substance. In Phillips’ geological map, it is stated 
 that near Newcastle coal formation is general ; from 
 thence to the borders of Northumberland, millstone grit 
 and Limestone shale prevail ; from thence grey waik 
 and clay slate extend all the way to Peebles, excepting 
 near Selkirk the millstone grit and limestone shale in- 
 tervene. From this map, it did not appear that basalt 
 formed any part of the strata through which the pro- 
 posed line passed. Near Selkirk there was also a part, 
 of coloured sienite and trap, there is also near Kelso a 
 largish track of the same, hut along the coast there was 
 a deal of basalt. Phillips says, in page 445 of his works, 
 that basaltic eminences form a striking feature in the 
 country between Alnwick and Berwick. At Wrait- 
 chiff Craig, near Alnwick, basalt occurs ; at Duustan- 
 borough, the cliffs are of columnar basalt, on which the 
 castle is built ; Barnbro’ Castle is also built upon the 
 same formations. Basaltic dykes traverse alike the sub- 
 jacent formations of limestone, millstone grit, and coal. 
 Th,e phenomena accompanying these dykes, are thus 
 stated by JMr. Winch: — Limestone is often rendered 
 highly chrystalline and unfit for lime as at Wraitchiff 
 Craig ; slate clay or shale is turned into a substance 
 like flintslate or porcelain jasper; coke is invariably 
 charred by it and becomes exactly like cod. In Phillips’ 
 Geology, page 391, he found it stated as the opinion of 
 Bakewell, that millstone grit formed the summit of 
 Blackstoiie Edge, Pale JMoss, and the higher hills in 
 Yorkshire. A perforation of three miles was lately made 
 through Pale J\Ioss, 750 feet below the summit of the 
 hill, to form a tunnel for a canal from Huddersfield to 
 Manchester. The tunnel appears to have been princi- 
 pally carried through the shale which lies immediately 
 upon the limestone, the strata are elevated and inclined 
 in an opposite direction, and are intersected by a large 
 dyke containing a vein said to be limestone. Now, he 
 had distinctly pi’oved that the tunnel would not pass 
 through whinstone but through limestone grit, and 
 hence the difficulty of perforating the formation is en^ 
 tirely removed. The tunnel which he proposed to make, 
 Avould be about 7-8ths of a mile, but the exact height 
 and depth must be determined by future surveys. On 
 the Eastern Line, they had more difficulties to surmount, 
 inasmuch, as they have the whinstone rock, traversing 
 a great portion of the line. 
 
 The advantages which the Midland line of railway 
 possessed over both the Eastern and Western line in 
 point of distance, are obvious — but considering the 
 immense expence of constructing a railroad, even one 
 mile is a material item. Now there is a saving on the 
 Midland line, when compared with the Western line, 
 of seventeen miles ; and when compared with the 
 Eastern line, of thirty-five ! ! miles. 
 
 In fine, we may remark, that in point of population, 
 distance, profitable speculation, and facility of execu- 
 tion, the Midland line has a decided predominance. 
 Mr. Stephenson has received a lashing from Mr. 
 
 Richardson for having made mis-statement.s to the 
 contrary, which he is bound as a j)rofessional man to 
 meet. JMr. Richardson’s strictures, as j)ublished in 
 our last impression, are bold and emphatically ex- 
 ])ressed. 
 
 All the towns in which public meetings have been 
 held upon this subject are unanimous in their opinion. 
 It only re(iLiires a little activity to secure to this j>art 
 of the empire the advantages of a railway communica- 
 tion. The landlord would be benefitted by the in- 
 creased rental he would command — the tenant would 
 be advantaged by the increased means of transit af- 
 forded him — the manufacturer would be immeasur- 
 ably assisted, and all classes would receive an impulse 
 — the face of the country would become in a manner 
 changed. Villages would rise into towns, and towns 
 into cities. From Berwick to Hawick — from New- 
 castle to Glasgow, the people should in fact bestir 
 themselves. Let every man come forward with his 
 subscription to set agoing so great a national work. 
 ‘‘ It is their interest." 
 
 A public meeting took place, we believe, in Edin- 
 burgh on Wednesday last, and for which see our ad- 
 vertising columns. We shall furnish our readers with 
 a report of the proceedings in our next. 
 
 Since writing the above, the following has reached 
 us, through the Caledonian Mercury of Thursday : — 
 Yesterday a public meeting, called by a Deputation 
 from Northumberland, was held in the Royal Ex- 
 change Coffee-house, to consider the practicability of 
 a line, continuing the London Railway from Newcastle 
 tjia Carterfell, Jedburgh, Galashiels, Peebles, to Edin- 
 burgh, with a branch from Peebles to Glasgow, and 
 branches to Hawick and other places. The discussion, 
 which lasted from one to near five o’clock, principally 
 resolved into the merits of this line, and the Eastern 
 line by Berwick and the coast ; and we understand a 
 detailed report of the same will be immediately pub- 
 lished. 
 
 Resolutions were moved in favour of the Midland 
 line, by Mr. Roger Aytoun, seconded by Mr. AY. 
 Bell, W. S. Dr. Browne moved counter resolutions, 
 which were seconded by Mr. D. Milne, advocate — 
 [Has Mr. Milne and his father. Sir David, no personal 
 interest at stake ? Ed. K. C.]« 
 
 Mr. Richardson then replied at length, and said, 
 that although he had made no survey, having merely 
 had an eye examination, still he was quite satisfied of 
 the practicability of the scheme, and of the decided 
 advantage it possessed over the Eastern line. He 
 was also assured, and could prove from documents, 
 that it passed through the most populous country. 
 
 The vote was then taken, when 22 voted for the re- 
 solutions of Mr. Aytoun, and 18 for those of Dr 
 Browne. 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 {From the Kelso Chronicle of Nov. 11, 1836.) 
 
 In the midst of the conflicting statements which 
 are put forward in support of the Eastern and Mid- 
 land Lines of Railway, it must be difficult for the 
 public to arrive at a definite conclusion as to which is 
 the most eligible. Mr. George Stephenson, engineer, 
 has already expressed his decided opinion in favour of 
 the Eastern Line, by way of Morpeth, Alnwick, and 
 Berwick. We have ever been of opinion, that a lane 
 of Railway passing through the midland part of the 
 country, was decidedly i)referable to one running along 
 the sea coast, the object of a Railway bein^, to for- 
 ward an easy communication from the inland parts of 
 the country "^towards the sea-coast. Mr. Richardson, 
 it will be observed from our advertising columns, has 
 written an able answer to Mr. Stephenson, and shown 
 
7 
 
 that the Carter, “ a favourite theme with his Eastern 
 opponents,” is not an insuperable obstacle. In point 
 of levels and geological stratification, he clearly de- 
 monstrates that the Midland Line of Railway con- 
 templated, could be carried out with the utmost 
 facility. Mi', llichardson states, that a more unfair 
 and exaggerated I'eport, as produced by Mr. Stejrhen- 
 son, could not well have been written, and concludes 
 thus : — “ I cannot refrain from again expressing my 
 surprise and regret, that an engineer so justly cele- 
 bi'ated as Mr. Stephensorr is, should have so far lent 
 himself to a party as to do such great injustice to the 
 jmblic.” 
 
 The fervour and unanimity which have been dis- 
 played, in all parts of the country through which the 
 lane by Jedburgh would run, justify us in believing 
 that the Midland Line will be ultimately adopted. 
 In addition to the immense benefits, in a national 
 point of view, that will be conferred on the country, 
 we shall then derive the advantage of having the long 
 projected Railway carried into effect, as a Branch 
 lane from Jedburgh to the Town of Berwick — Mr. 
 Richardson having pledged himself that such would 
 form ])art of the general scheme. A Public IMeeting 
 is to be shortly held in Edinburgh, connected Avith 
 this undertaking, the proceedings of which will duly 
 appear. 
 
 TvEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 {From the Keiso Chronicle^ Nov. 18, 1836.) 
 
 In another part of our columns will be found a full 
 report, taken specially for this journal, of a public 
 meeting, held in Edinburgh, to inquire as to the pro- 
 jwiety of surveying the proposed Midland lane of 
 Railway communication between England and Scot- 
 land, with a view of ascertaining its practicability, 
 and whether it is not tire best Line that has been 
 projected. 
 
 Since Mr. Stephen Reed, the projector of this Mid- 
 land Line, and Mr. Joshua Richardson, the engineer, 
 appeared in Kelso, as a deputation from the Committee 
 in Northumberiand, apjrointed to carry the measure 
 into effect, and publicly entered into the details, and 
 exhibited plans of the proposed scheme, we have 
 watched over the j.roceedings of the various public 
 meetings, called by these gentlemen, in all the towns 
 through, or near which the projected line is to pass, 
 Avith increasing interest; and it is gratifying to us to 
 state that they have, with one exception — a deter- 
 mined but abortive attempt to put them down in 
 Edinburgh — been received with the greatest cordiality. 
 The details of the scheme have been listened to with 
 the utmost attention, and resolutions entered into ex- 
 pressing the opinion of each meeting unanimously, 
 that the Midland Line appeared to be the best, and, 
 if carried into effect, would be most advantageous to 
 the country at large, and agreeing to a voluntary sub- 
 scription to defray the expence of a survey to ascer- 
 tain its practicability. 
 
 The friends of the eastern or coast line, mustered, 
 it would apjrear, their main strength at the meeting 
 in Edinburgh, to o])))ose the scheme, and carry a series 
 of residutions of their own, in favour of the eastern 
 line. Mr. Ramsay, Editor of the Berwick Warder*, 
 appeai’ed at the meeting as one of a deputation sent 
 Ji-om Berwick for this purpose, and with him a special 
 j)leader. Dr. Browne, advocate, fully charged with all 
 the points of attack with which he could be supplied 
 by Mr. Ramsay and his party, or by Mr. George 
 Stephenson’s “ Report on the Midland Tune of Rail- 
 Avay.” Mr. Ramsay commenced the battle, but he 
 left the attack princijrallyffo the learned Doctor*, Avho, 
 it must be admitted, Avith much ingenuity and talent, 
 rnagnilied alleged engineering dilliculties into ijh^^sical 
 impossibilities; and |)roduced a series of levels to give 
 
 an appearance of consistency to his statements, but 
 which, unfortunately for the learned gentleman’s 
 argument, Avent a little too far, and afforded TMi*. 
 Rrchardson, in his reply, an opportunity of levelling 
 his levels so completely, that, Ave believe, they never 
 will be levelled against the Midland Line again. The 
 only other point in the learned doctor’s argument, is 
 little else than a mere begging of the question. He 
 relied entirely on the report of Mr*. Stephenson, some 
 portion of which, it, will be recollected, appeared in 
 the Newcastle and Berwick newspapers ; and from 
 this report he read such garbled statements as suited 
 his jmrpose, and concluded that because Mr. Stephen- 
 son reported unfavourably of some portion of the pro- 
 jected line, and this Avithout examination, that Mr. 
 Stephenson must be right, and that Mr. Richardson, 
 who had examined the whole line as minutely and as 
 accurately as could be done without an actual survey, 
 must be wrong; — and Avhy ? Because his standing as 
 an engineer, the learned gentleman alleged not to be 
 equal to that of Mr. George Stephenson, under Avhose 
 tuition Mr. Richardson had had the advantage of 
 acquiring the rudiments of his profession. The learned 
 gentleman exultingiy exhibited the signature of Mr. 
 George Stephenson affixed to the rejiort, from Avhich 
 he selected a few sentences, and Avent far enough to 
 show that Mr. Stephenson’s report, as pubiislied in 
 the neAA'spapers, had not been fully nor fairly given. 
 Why do not the friends of the eastern line publish 
 the whole of this much-spoken-of report ? Is ic that 
 they are prohibited by Mr. Stephenson from doing so, 
 or is it that it would not bear them out in their oppo- 
 sition to a survey being made of the midland line? 
 For what does the Avhole of their opjiosition amount 
 to, but resistance to a survey Avhich Avill cost them 
 nothing; but Avhich, they are a*.vare, in the event of 
 its accomplishment, will prove the midland to be the 
 best and cheapest line ? Our opinion is, that if this 
 report were, on the whole, favourable to their view of 
 the question, they Avould have given it publicit}^ from 
 the beginning to the end, long ago. It is not Mr. 
 Richardson Avho detracts from the professional rejiu- 
 tation of this distinguished engineer, ’oy showing in- 
 consistencies in that part of his report Avhich has been 
 published, but those Avho withhold the full report, and 
 give merely such garbled quotations from it as may 
 suit their own purposes, without considering that they 
 may, in this way, be doing an injury to w'ell-earned 
 professional reputation. Who knows but, like the 
 Ijatin bard of old, he may have cause to exclaim, 
 “ Poll ! me occidislis, amici." The learned doctor Avas 
 followed by Mr. David Milne, advocate, younger, of 
 Milnegraden, Avho honestly confessed that, in o})j)osing 
 the resolutions founded on the address of Mr. Richard- 
 son, he had not heard a Avord of that gentleman’s 
 statements. He had heard Dr. BroAvne, however, 
 and upon the doctor’s arguments he founded his; and, 
 Avith singular consistency, seconded the resolutions 
 moved by Dr. Browne. 
 
 The only other part of the proceedings of this meet- 
 ing that we think it necessary to notice is the dis- 
 courteous and unjustifiable attempt to j)ut down ]Mr. 
 Richardson in his rejdy, by a string of questions im- 
 periously j)ut successively by interested parties, 
 without giving him time to rei)ly to one. 'fhe ruse, 
 however, had not the desired effect anticipated, of 
 overpowering Mr. Richardson, who, although not a 
 “ practised speaker,” had the merit of silencing his 
 opponents, and carrying the object he had in Anew. 
 
 N E WC A S'l’I.E-U I’ON- r Y N E, EDI NBURGH, 
 AND (il.ASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 To the Editor of the Edinhuryh Evcmuii Conrant. 
 
 Sir, — I am led to make the following remarks, from 
 having read in your j)aper an account of a meeting 
 held in Edinburgh, conveyed by the promoters of the 
 
8 
 
 above Railway, in which the Advocates of the Eastern 
 Jiine, under the ))retence ot acting a most disinterested 
 l>art to the public, obtruded themselves, and used 
 every ellort ih tlieir jMiwer (happily unsuccessfully), 
 to (luash the proceedings of the ]\Iidland party, and 
 then foist their own project on the Meeting. 1 shall 
 not attempt to dilate on the unwarrantable means 
 they used, farther than saying, that instead of en- 
 liglitening the public, as they professed, their evident 
 intention was to bias and mislead. As to the report 
 of Mr. George Stephenson, upon which they ])rinci- 
 lally founded their arguments, some of them must 
 rave been well aware that the data on which he re- 
 jrorted, was not tenable, as regards a Railway com- 
 munication. The Turnpike Road from the levels of 
 which he infers that a Tunnel at the Carter of eight 
 or nine miles, will be required, winds up the hill in a 
 very circuitous course^ in order to obtain a more gradual 
 ascent. When I first read Mr. Stephenson’s state- 
 ment, that the ascent of the Carter was only at the 
 rate of 180 feet per mile, it ap]reared to me that a 
 tunnel very much longer than that contemplated by - 
 Mr. Richardson was inevitable — that it would r*equire 
 a much more abrupt ascent than 180 feet per mile to 
 come to anything like near to the shortness of the 
 Tunnel proposed by that gentleman. I have, how- 
 ever, had my doubts completely removed on that score, 
 and that from a source I least expected, from a pam- 
 phlet, the production of one of the most obstinate 
 supporters of the Eastern Line, I mean Mr. Ramsay, 
 the Editor of the Berwick Warder. In allusion to 
 some remarks of Mr. Richardson, in reference to the 
 Tunnel which Messrs. Grainger and Millar, in 1831, 
 proposed to make for improving the Turnpike Road, 
 and in which they express their opinion that the Car- 
 ter was of coal formation, Mr. Ramsay thus continues, 
 
 “ Those engineers, in order to avoid a very circuitous 
 course" (that very course from which I suppose Mr. 
 Stephenson took his levels, when he proposed his eight 
 or nine miles Tunnel), “ in order to avoid this very 
 circuitous course, and get an inclination of 1 in 30 or 
 174 feet per mile, found it necessary to propose a 
 Tunnel 1150 yards in length ;this, however, was only 
 2G0 feet below the summit of the ridge.” These are 
 Mr. Ramsay’s own words, — now, calculating from the 
 middle of the Tunnel to the highest surface point, 
 and allowing for the rise of 174 feet per mile, we have 
 317 feet rise for 575 yards, or a rise at the rate of up- 
 wards of 970 feet, instead of Mr. Stephenson’s 180 feet 
 per mile ; now, allowing for the open cutting u^ual 
 at each end of a Tunnel, it is evident, from the above 
 data, that a Tunnel 500 feet below the summit of the 
 ridge, (the depth Mr. Richardson proposes to go), 
 need not exceed one mile in length ; 
 
 Now, Mr. Editor, I am no Engineer, neither am I 
 a Lawyer, capable, like Dr. Browme, of twisting the 
 truth — making the worse appear the better cause — 
 but I flatter myself I have sufficient common sense 
 to judge between truth and error, and I may acknow- 
 ledge I am thoroughly convinced myself, and I hope 
 I may convince others, that Mr. Richardson, with his 
 Tunnel of one mile in length, is eight or nine times 
 nearer the truth, than Mr. Stephenson with his eight 
 or nine miles Tunnel. Indeed, an experienced Sur- 
 veyor, who has minutely examined the ground, in- 
 forms me that the Carter Fell at the base is little 
 more than a mile and a half through. Regarding its 
 structure, I have it as the opinion of a partisan of the 
 Eastern Line, who has been employed for some time 
 erecting machinery at the Coal field at the side of the 
 Carter, that it is composed principally of mountain 
 limestone, and that in making the Tunnel, the lime- 
 stone would probably pay the expense of the work, — 
 other points I might with propriety advert to, but as 
 these have been already noticed by more able' indi- 
 viduals than myself, I forbear. 
 
 Before concluding, I must, however, notice an in - 
 consistency in the conduct of our Eastern friends, 
 which I find it difficult to reconcile. AVTiy, 1 would 
 enquire, do they watch with such jealous anxiety the 
 j)roceedings of the Midland party — they even send 
 sj)ies, meeting after meeting, for the avow'ed j)urj)ose 
 of“keej)ing an eye on their proceedings.” If they 
 have nothing to apprehend from them, w'hy do they 
 strive and contend against them. 'Ihej' would fain 
 jiersuade the public that the Midland scheme is 
 “ visionary and impracticable it does not appear as 
 if they thought so, otherwise, why should they fight 
 with a shadow ? why from town to town thus pursue 
 a mere j)hantom ? why be afraid of that which exists 
 merelv in the imagination ? They know too well 
 that the project is feasible ; they know too well that 
 the Midland scheme has both strength, and ‘sinew’s, 
 and healthful circulation — that every day it is gaining 
 power and importance. For my own part I may con- 
 fess that at first I was inclined to favour the Eastern 
 Idne ; but the more I have investigated the claims of 
 the Midland Line to public support, the more 
 thoroughly I am convinced of its superiority, its 
 utility, and its practicability. 
 
 I am. Sir, 
 
 Your most obedient ser vant, 
 
 * NON-PROFESSIONAL. 
 
 Newcastle, Nov. 20th, 1836. 
 
 N E WC A ST L E-U PO N -T YN E , EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAIL-ROAD. 
 
 At Glasgoiv, and within the Tontine Hotel, the ^Oth of 
 November, 1836. 
 
 At a Meeting of the Committee for carrying into 
 effect the proposed Rail-road betwixt Edinburgh and 
 Glasgow^ and Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The Hon. AYil- 
 liain Mills, of Sandyford, Lord Provost, in the chair. 
 On the motion of His Grace the Duke of Hamilton 
 and Bramlon, it was unanimously resolved, 
 
 1st. That a Subscription be entered into to defray 
 'the expence of a Survey of the intended Line of Rail- 
 way, and that Charles Tennant and James Lumsden, 
 Esqrs., be appointed Joint-Treasurers to receive the 
 Subscriptions. 
 
 2d. That no Subscriber shall be liable beyond his 
 Subscription. 
 
 3d. That a Deputation of one Member from all the 
 I.ocal Committees, be requested to meet together at 
 some centrical place, to travel along the Line between 
 Edinburgh, Glasgow, and New’castle, as soon as the 
 weather will permit, to collect information, and to re- 
 port to a General Meeting to be called for the purpose. 
 
 4th. That the other Local Committees be requested 
 to act upon Resolutions similar to these ; and to use 
 every exertion to obtain Subscriptions, and to report 
 the amount as early as possible to the Centrical Com- 
 mittee, so that the extent of the Subscriptions here 
 and elsewhere may be ascertained. 
 
 (Si^yned) A¥M. MILLS, Chairman. 
 RICHD. HALL, 
 
 Clerk to the Committee. 
 
 LANARK. 
 
 ( From the Glasgow Chronicle of December 21, 1836 . ) 
 
 On Monday evening a large meeting was held in the 
 old County Hall, Lanark, for the purpose of hearing Mr. 
 Richardson’s statements connected with the proposed 
 Midland Line of Railway, and appointing a Committee, 
 exclusively belonging to the town, to assist in raising 
 subscriptions to forward the preliminary survey. Mr. 
 Buchanan, the Provost, was in the chair, and stated 
 the object of the meeting ; after which the resolutions 
 of the Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Hamilton Committees 
 being read, Mr. R. said, before entering upon the direct 
 business of the meeting, I may explain that the reason 
 why I have been induced to addrgss the inhabitants 
 
9 
 
 of r.anark again is, that the former meeting here was 
 held at a very inconvenient time for the great majority 
 of tlie operative tradesmen and others who might feel 
 an interest, and who should feel a deep interest, in the 
 success of our scheme ; for, if you only take into con- 
 sideration the saving in the price of coal, which is 
 brought an average of seven miles, at an expense of 
 ,‘is. Gd. at least, per ton, and which, in the event of the 
 Kail way being successful, of which I have not the 
 slightest doubt, will then be brought the same distance 
 for less than the fourth of that sum, you must be feel- 
 ingly alive to some of the advantages of the under- 
 taking which I have the honour to I'ecommend. He 
 then, with the assistance of maps, descidbed the different 
 routes proposed. Eastern, Western, and Midland, with 
 their i-elative advantages and disadvantages, and con- 
 cluded his address by thanking the meeting for the 
 kind attentioji with which they had heard him. Mr. 
 Marr, in rising to propose some resolutions in reference 
 to the appointment of a committee, &c., said that for 
 him to attempt to say anything of a nature calculated 
 to make them think more highly of the general scheme, 
 after what had been so ably advanced by Mr. 11. him- 
 self, must be quite superfluous. But there is one point 
 upon which the inhabitants of this town and neigh- 
 bourhood are bound, for their own interest, to support 
 the Lineof Hail way proposed by Mr. II. For, although 
 either or both of the other proposed Lines are success- 
 ful, what advantages could we derive from them ? 
 wdrat could they add to our comfort or prosperity ? 
 nothing. It would sink us still farther, in comparison 
 with towns of the same description, in consequence of 
 their increased facilities and connections with the 
 j)rincipal seats of manufacture and commerce. For I 
 hold that we will never be able to make a Hail way for 
 ourselves, possessing one-tenth of the advantages, and, 
 therefore, although it might be a question at Berwick 
 or Kilmarnock, it can never be a question with us which 
 is the preferable Line. Mr. Marr’s remarks appeared 
 to give general satisfaction, and, after the committee 
 was appointed, the meeting broke up, evidently highly 
 satisfied with the whole proceedings. 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDIN BURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 C From the Kelso Chronicle of Friday^ January 6, 1837-; 
 
 The importance of a railway communication betwixt 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne and our Scottish Metrojjolis, 
 and the great commercial and manufacturing city of 
 Glasgow, has, our leaders are aware, for some time, 
 occupied public attention. Various schemes have 
 been set afloat for carrying into effect this great desi- 
 deratum. In a commercial point of view, the advaa- 
 tages will be enormous; these would not be confined 
 to the increase of the aggrandisement and opulence 
 of the chief seats of commerce, that at present exist. 
 Judging from what has taken place among our more 
 favoured brethren in the southern jiartsof this island, 
 commerce and manufactures would receive an impulse, 
 the results of which it is impossible to calculate. To 
 our agricultural population, the benefits to be derived 
 are great ; for, whether we look to the saving of 
 labour in the conveyance of agricultural produce — 
 the various species of manure that would be brought 
 within the immediate reach of every farmer, residing 
 in the most inland part of the country — to the jiosses- 
 sion of coal, which, in this part of the district, and 
 further towards the west, is only obtained at an ex- 
 orbitant price — it must be evident to every one, that 
 the state of our agricultural population would be 
 materially altered for the better. Means and appli- 
 ances, of which they cannot now avail themselves, 
 would be placed within their reach. To the working 
 classes the accomplishment of a Inne of Railway would 
 bo of incalculable importance. It would call caj)ital 
 
 .into the field, increase the demand for labour, and 
 thus redound to the happiness and prosperity of all 
 classe.-. , 
 
 To us, we can assure our readers, the ultimate com- 
 pletion of a line of Railway through this part of the 
 country has been a matter of anxiety ; convinced, as 
 we are, of the advantages which the public generally 
 would derive ; and we are accordingly glad to find 
 that the exertions of Mr. Richardson, Civil-Engineer, 
 Newcastle, to carry this object into effect, the talent 
 he has displayed, and his indefatigable perseverance, 
 have been rewarded by the flattering state of the Sub- 
 scription Lists in most of the Cities and Towns which 
 he has visited. In the city of Edinburgh even, where 
 such a party opposition was so ungenerously mani- 
 fested at a late public meeting to consider the expe- 
 diency of surveying the line of Railroad in question, 
 the subscription lists are filling rapidly. Mr. Richard- 
 son need not, however, have been surprised at the 
 mode in which his statements were met by the learned 
 orators on that occasion ; and our friend Duncan 
 M‘Alpin,'has hit the nail on the head in this respect, 
 when he states that “ he knew nol. of one acre of 
 ground that he (Dr. Browne) possessed, or was heir 
 to ! Houses and Lands he had not to be advantaged, 
 or periled by the adoption of one scheme or another.” 
 Mr. David Milne, who followed Dr. Browne, is the 
 son of Sir David Milne of Milne-Graden, whose Es- 
 tates in the County of Berwick, and possessions at 
 Prestonpans, he considers would be more benefitted 
 by the adoption of the Eastern than the Midland 
 Line of Railwai'. There is no selfishness here — the 
 preference purely rests on public grounds. We have 
 heard it rumoured that many of the friends and late 
 supporters of the Eastern Line in Newcastle, have 
 latterly grown a little lukewarm. 
 
 The advantages of the Midland Line, when com- 
 pared with the Eastern, have been so repeatedly 
 pointed out by us, that it is unnecessary to recapitu- 
 late them. Lee any one who has any doubts on the 
 subject, sit down with a map of the country before 
 him, and' he will be convinced by even a cursory ex- 
 amination of the districts through which the respective 
 lines are to pass. The one runs along the coast, and 
 connects some few towns, between which there is 
 already a natural railway. The other opens up an 
 immense tract of land, and some large manufacturing 
 towns, to which there is both an expensive and tedi- 
 ous access from the seaports. 
 
 Since writing the above, we have stumbled upon the 
 following paragraphs relating to the Snow upon the 
 Carter, about which so much has been said ; and would 
 also wish our opponents to peruse the extracts which 
 follow : — 
 
 Notwithstanding the great fall of snow, the Chevy 
 Chase coach from Newcastle passed through .Jedburgh 
 from Newcastle on Thursday week, within half an hour 
 of the usual time. There is less snow lying upon the 
 roads over the Carter Fell than any other road in the 
 neighbourhood Kelso Mail of Monday. 
 
 It appears to be now an established fact that snow 
 offers no impediment to Railway Travelling. During the 
 past week the trains on the Greenwich Railway continued 
 running without interruption, while the coaches and 
 omnibuses from Greenwich were almost abandoned and 
 much delayed, though furnished with extra horses, by 
 the heaviness of the roads — Globe of Tuesday. 
 
 The Railway It was matter of some curiosity 
 
 whether or not the engines could continue to work upon 
 the Railway during the continuance of the snow upon 
 the road. The possibility of so working was fairly put 
 to the test on Monday last, and the utility of Railways 
 demonstrated in a most striking manner. In the deep 
 cutting through the Cowran Hills, the snow had drifted 
 to the depth of four or five feet ; and when the Hercules 
 camedowu on Monday morning, great numbers ofco»intry 
 people had assembled to see how she would act in such an 
 
10 
 
 emergency, and to render any assistance which niiglit he 
 'iiecessary. On arriving at the spot, the engine man nnide 
 no bones of the matter, hnt dasheci riglit into the drilt, 
 clearing his way tlu-ongh, apparently w ithont thesliglitest 
 difficulty, the snow Hying over the toj) of the engine 
 chimney, like foam from the broken waves of a violent 
 sea; and notwithstanding this and other similar ol)- 
 strnctions, the train came down from Greenhead (twenty 
 miles) in an hour and a quarter. 'J.'lie trains have con- 
 tinued regularly to keep their time wliile all cotnnmni- 
 cation l>y common roads has been more or less most 
 seriously obstructed, if not entirely cut olF for a time — 
 Carlisle Journal, 
 
 We shall not at jn'esent refer farther to the proceed- 
 ings of the meeting at Edinburgh, as we observe that 
 our friend Duncan M‘Alpin intends to put the 
 learned Doctor through his facings. The first letter, 
 which appears to. day, we regret has lain so long by us; 
 the others shall, if possible, appear as they are sent to 
 us. AVe shall only allude to the statements that have 
 been made in the Warder^ that the reports of the Edin- 
 burgh meeting4n the Edinburgh Evening C our ant, 
 in this Journal, were unfair, nay, reported by Messrs. 
 Richardson and Reed. Now, we know these gentle- 
 men had no chance of even correcting thes'e reports. 
 The opposite party had two reporters present, and Mr. 
 Ramsay was there himself ; why did they not publish 
 tlieir own version ? This Journal was the first which 
 some time back aroused public attention to the subject 
 of the Berwick and Kelso Railway. As that project 
 is now, however, virtually defunct, we think that our 
 contemporaries in Kelso and Berwick, would render 
 the public a greater service by_considerately discussing 
 the merits of their respective Lines, than by carping 
 at or taking advantage of every little flaw of which 
 they can avail themselves. 
 
 We would refer to a meeting of the working classes 
 at Lanark, inserted in this impression. The utmost 
 spirit was manifested, and a considerable amount sub- 
 scribed, according to their respective means. 
 
 AVe understand that a public meeting at Newcastle 
 will shortly take place, and that a regular survey will 
 be commenced about the beginning of March. 
 
 AVe shall only add, that we sincerely hope those in- 
 habitants of this district who have not yet come for- 
 ward, will be aroused into fresh activity, and contribute 
 to the completion of a work ivhich we view as a national 
 undertaking, and which would in particular confer 
 immeasureable benefits on the inhabitants of the 
 border counties. 
 
 THE EASTERN RAILAA^AY. 
 
 Fellow Toavnsmen, — Beware how you sanction 
 any Railway from Berwick to New^castle ! At present 
 Morpeth is the great Northern Mart for Cattle, where 
 the supplies are brought to from the North, and are 
 there sold to the Butchers from Newcastle, Shields; 
 Sunderland, and many other Towns in the County of 
 Durham ; hence, thousands of pounds are vyeekly 
 turned over in Morpeth, and considerable sums weekly 
 expended there by parties, both buyers and sellers, 
 who frequent the Markets. From this source the 
 Town of Morpeth is sustained Establish a Railway 
 from Berwick to Newcastle, and you immediately take 
 away the wealth that is circulated there. It is evident, 
 and beyond contradiction, that the Cattle coming from 
 the North will not'stop at Morpeth; the Stock w’ill 
 be sent clean through to Newcastle, and save the But- 
 chers the trouble and expence of coming fourteen 
 miles to seek it. The Farmers in the neighbourhood 
 of Morpeth, will never bring their Goods there, when 
 they can send them from che Station near Morpeth 
 direct to Newcastle. Take the Railway from New- 
 castle as far as Felton or Alnwick, and it will have the 
 same injurious effect upon the Trade of Morpeth ; all 
 the Goods will be sent past the Town ; the same will 
 
 be the case witli Passengers — they will never stojj at 
 Morpeth when they can get so readily to Newcastle. 
 Even this wished-for Railway will not so greatly con- 
 ,venience the Inhabitantsof Morpeth as it is pretended, 
 for it does not appear the Line will approach the 
 Town nearer than two or three miles ; and people 
 wishing to go either North or South ujion it, must 
 find the means, at some expense, of being conveyed 
 from Morpeth to the Station House, or trudge through 
 the mire to the Train. It is well known that Cattle 
 driven any distance to market lose at least 25 per Cent, 
 in value ; is it probable that farmers will risque this, 
 if they have the convenience of a Railway, which will 
 lake their Stock both cheaply, expeditiously, and with- 
 out deterioration to Newcastle, and the other towns 
 they are intended for, and prefer driving them to 
 Morpeth ? Or, will the Butchers come there to meet 
 the Cattle, when they^can have them delivered in 
 better condition at their own door ? Sometime since a 
 weekly Cattle Market was established at Newcastle, 
 the Morpeth people considered this an infringement 
 on their monopoly, and in return established a Horse 
 Fair at Morpeth, which has very greatly injured that 
 at Newcastle. The'Newcastle people will, therefore, 
 very gladly retaliate, and nothing will please them 
 more than removing the Cattle Market entirely from 
 Morpeth to their own town. Such, fellow-townsmen, 
 will be the result of a Railway from Berwick to New- 
 castle ; accomplish that, and you destroy the prospe- 
 rity of Morpeth. AEill the Coaches and Passengers — 
 will the Posting, be continued at Morpeth ? Are 
 there any Inns and Public-houses dependent upon 
 these sources of income ? Be not deceived by such a 
 specious project ; — it is a very fine thing to talk about 
 a Railway between these places; but what w'illfit do 
 for Morpeth ? It is only the twm ends of the Railway 
 that will be benefited. Let them make you a Rail- 
 way from Morpeth — actually from the Town of Mor- 
 peth to Newcastle, and it will be a very different thing ; 
 but not an inch further than Morpeth. Enquire what 
 the Railway has done for Hexham ! Passengers that 
 used to come there by the Coaches, and other convey- 
 ances, now go past the place without stopping; the 
 Coaches have ceased to run, and the Innkeepers have 
 sold their Post Horses^ Such will ever be the fate of 
 minor towns lying intermediately between the ends 
 of a Railway. 
 
 Fellow Towmsmen, take warning in time; — repair in 
 a body to the County Hall on AV'ednesday next, and 
 opppose a Railway from Berwdck to Neivcastle, or 
 Morueth is ruined for ever. 
 
 A BURGESS. 
 
 Morpeth, \Tth January, lo37* 
 
 RAILAVAY FROxM NEAA^CASTLK NORTH- 
 AVARDS. 
 
 ( From the Kelso Chronicle, of January 27, 1837.^ 
 
 A full report of the proceedings at the Countv 
 Meeting at Morpeth, connected with this important 
 subject, will be found in another column. It has 
 proved a complete failure, although called by the 
 Eastern party under false pretences — that is, under 
 the pretence that it was for the best line, when in fact 
 it was for the Eastern Line — yet, neither Mr. Ram- 
 say nor any of that party were prepared to address 
 the meeting. There never was a worse got up thing. 
 After the Sheriff had read the requisition, the meet- 
 ing remained for about ten minutes staring at each 
 other, and wondering why the county had been called 
 together. This silence was broken by Mr Bigge, 
 stating how he had been tricked into being a requisi- 
 tionist. Sir C. Monck followed, moving an adjourn- 
 ment, after which there was another long pause, until 
 Mr. Hodgson Hinde stepped into the breach. The 
 result, as '"will be seen, was a defeat of the Seaside 
 
11 
 
 Line, inasmuch as, instead of getting a resolution in 
 their favour, one was passed which has thrown them 
 into the mire, and' elicited sti'ong' expressions in 
 favour of the Midland Line. We consider the reso- 
 lution inoperative as there is no chance of raising the 
 casli required for the purposes mentioned. The Sea- 
 skiers evidently think so, and are sadly out of spirits. 
 They had lots of plans and papers, not one of which 
 was opened or exhibited. This County Meeting, if 
 we mistake not, will be found to be a death-blow. 
 
 We would request attention to an able letter, 
 signed “ A Registered Voter,” which will be found in 
 our advertising columns. 
 
 NEWCASTT.E-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. . 
 
 To the Editor of the Kelso Chronicle. 
 
 Sir, — In the Berwick Warder of the 28th ult., 
 there is a letter addressed to you by Mr. Matthias 
 Dunn, “ one of the Engineers of the Eastern Line of 
 Railway,” in which he has been pleased to make fre- 
 quent allusions to me in connexion with the Midland 
 Line of Railway. Without anticipating anythingthat 
 you may be pleased to say in reply to his' sophistical 
 letter, you ivill perhaps allow me to make a few ob- 
 servations on the extraordinary statements which it 
 contains, and attempt to expose the fallacies in which 
 it abounds. Had Mr. Dunn contented himself with 
 alluding to your paragraph, and not publicly misre- 
 presented a private and confidential conversation, I 
 should have left him to your tender mercies ; but as 
 he has violated the trust imprudently reposed in him, 
 with the view of prejudicing the public against the 
 IMidland Line, therefore he cannot be surprised, if, in 
 replying to him, I unwillingly avail mvself of a simi- 
 lar source of information. It is with great reluctance 
 that I recur to anything which passed at the inter- 
 views of the two parties, and which were sought, for 
 by them, inasmuch as I considered the conferences 
 which have taken place, as private and confidential ; 
 but as Mr. Dunn has not observed the good faith and 
 courtesy usual on such occasions, justice to the public 
 requires, and common fairness sanctions, the course 
 which I am compelled to pursue. 
 
 Mr. Dunn charges you with “ intentional misrepre- 
 sentation^''' whilst with greater art than honest v, he 
 attempts to delude the public into a belief that wlien 
 you said “ that a small portion of the ( Eastern ) Line 
 only could have been surveyed., and that very imper- 
 fectly^" you were stating what you knew to be, and 
 which is untrue. He does not expressly say that it 
 has been carefully and properly surveyed, but at- 
 tempts to induce you to believe that “ sufficient had 
 been done to enable them to go with confidence before the 
 public." It may be some satisfaction to you if 1 repeat 
 your expressions, and challenge Mr. Dunn to disprove 
 them if he can ; nay more, I not only say “ that a 
 small portion of the Line only has been surveyed,” 
 but, I assert on Mr. Dunn’s own authority, that not 
 one mile of it has been surveyed ! “ The portion from 
 Berwick to Dunbar,” you say, and I now repeat, 
 “ remains unsurveyed to this day." It is true that this 
 part of the Line has been levelled, or to use your hap- 
 pier and more appropriate expression “ imperfectly 
 looked over.” For although I am aware a Section 
 was made of it by a very able Surveyor, in the pre- 
 sence of, and with the assistance of, the triumvirate 
 Engineers, yet Mr. Dunn himself told me at Morpeth 
 that this Section, made under such august superin- 
 tendence, “ could not be relied on !" Mr. Dunn seems 
 to plume himself no little on this great achievement, 
 and not only calls it an “ actual Survey" ( ! ) but be- 
 cause I have hot followed the illustrious cxamj)le set 
 me by levelling the Carter, “ he calls upon you to 
 justily this conduct and your own consistency." 1 am 
 
 as much at a loss to conceive what my “ conduct" has 
 to do with “ your consistency," as I am unable to com- 
 prehend the value or utility of Mr. Dunn’s gratuitous 
 reprehension. 
 
 He states that they “ carefully levelled every inch 
 of the ground between these two points (Berwick and 
 Dunbar) from which they have prepared a Section.” 
 
 Now, Sir, I ask Mr. Dunn, whether in carefully pre- 
 paring this Section, if one mile of this ground was 
 measured ? If in “ levelling between the two points” 
 a chain was ever used ? This is an important question, 
 for if a chain was not used their Section is not worth 
 the paper upon which it is drawn. I trust Mr. Dunn 
 will have the manliness, at once, to give a clear and 
 immediate answer to this question, that the public 
 may be enabled to “ correct their judgment if erro- 
 neous,” and ascertain whether “ sufficient has been 
 done,” fairly and clearl}q to exhibit the feasibility of 
 what you happily term the seaside scheme. This 
 query is the more important, as I find, in a Report 
 addressed to the Requisitionists for the late County 
 Meeting signed by Messrs. Dunn, Hawthorn, and 
 Dobson, the following remarkable statement : — “ We 
 have taken such a series of levels as to enable us, with 
 the greatest confidence, to lay before the County 
 Meeting of Northumberland, a Section from actual 
 admeasurement." Without entering upon the merits 
 of the Line between Berwick and Newcastle, which 
 is the object of Mr. Dunn’s eulogy, and which, he 
 says, “ is now determined on," because a better Line 
 could not be found, and this too in the absence of all 
 Sections and Surveys, you will, perhaps, allow me again 
 to revert to the Line between Berwick and Dunbar, 
 against which he says, “ I threw out charges” with 
 “ a confidence which might have argued a knowledge 
 of the facts.” How far “ confidence” is an argument, 
 I leave Mr. Dunn to determine, and am content with 
 the fact stated in the official Report, signed by him- 
 self and his colleagues, that for eight miles and a half 
 there ii a gradient of 1 in 173, or a rise of upwards of 
 thirty feet six inches per mile. This fact tells more 
 against their scheme than any thing I have said, or 
 you have written ; still Mr. Dunn is dissatisfied and 
 wonders you did not read the Berwick Warder of tiie 
 17 th of September last, in which it appears this im- 
 portant fact was first announced to the world, for he 
 says, “ and yet you have the effrontery to pretend you 
 never heard of it 
 
 Whilst on this subject you will, perhaps, allow me 
 to enquire how it is that in the Report of Mr. Geo. 
 Stephenson this/acHs studiously omitted, and whether 
 this omissiorTwas on Mr. Ste})henson’s part, or on the 
 part of those who published his report ? .Tustice, 
 alike to the jmblic and Mi\ Stephenson, absolutely 
 requires an elucidation as to how far the public has 
 been manfully put in j)ossession” of this Report. 
 You are aware a degree of mystery and doubt still 
 hangs over this Report — its entire publication has 
 been repeatedly called for — and yet neither Mr. Ram- 
 say nor his friends have thought fit to publish it en- 
 tire, or attempted to clear up the mystery which 
 envelopes it. 
 
 Mr. Dunn piques himself and his colleagues on the 
 fact that, “ upon re-examination, they have had rea- 
 son to adhere most remarkably near to the original 
 lane.” If he can find reasons for self-congratulation 
 in this adherence to a lane ivhich has been neither Sur- 
 veyed nor Ijcvelled, but yet “ determined on," I, for one, 
 shall not envy him the ])ossession of his professional 
 knowledge, or atteinj)t to disturb his comj)lacency. 
 
 Not satisfied with exj;atiating on the Coast Line, 
 Mr. Dunn attempts to inform the public on tiic Mid- 
 land lane also, and in doing so lias been guilty of 
 gross rnisrojiresentation. Whether our dilliculties 
 were “ unheard" of or unseen, 1 must jiositively deny 
 that any friend or friends of mine jiointed out, as lu' 
 
12 
 
 states, “ tlie utter impracticability ol’ passiiw by a 
 liocomotive Line over the sourceonhe Ciala Water,” 
 and I deny as positively that I ever “ owned it.” He 
 asks you if the public has ever been enabled, by 
 ])lans or statements, either of exjiense or revenue, to 
 form any judgment of the correctness of Mr. Kichard- 
 - son’s views ?” I can scarcely believe Mr. Dunn 
 serious in asking this question, for if he has read tlie 
 proceedings of our meetings at Lanark, Hamilton, 
 Glasgow, or Edinburgh, which were published in the 
 newspapers, he must have known that plans were ex- 
 hibited, and conjectural estimates of expense and 
 revenue stated. It is true we have issued no pros- 
 pectus, or definitely fixed the amount of capital that 
 may be required, or attempted to estimate the con- 
 tents and cost of cuttings and embankments on a line 
 which has never been surveyed or levelled ; neither 
 have we quadrupled the poj)ulation, or estimated, as 
 they have done, 3^d. and 4d. per ton per mile on the 
 traffic, in order to make it appear that our scheme will 
 pay £5, £10, or £12\ per cent. But, Sir, we have 
 done more. We have called county, district, and 
 city meetings in Scotland, and when assembled, 
 unlike the friends of the “ Grand Eastern Union,” 
 we unfolded our plans and detailed our scheme, 
 openly, ^fearlessly, and honestly. The almost uni- 
 versal approbation with which the development of 
 our views was received, as can be shown by the 
 lists of our committees and subscribers, sufficiently 
 evince the estimation in which our straightfor- 
 ward course is held in Scotland ; nor will we now 
 submit to be insinuated out of the advantages we 
 have gained. Notwithstanding the great length 
 of this letter, you must permit me to expose another 
 fallacy which has been most industriously propagated 
 by the “ Grand Union” party, and relates to the rela- 
 tive levels of the Carter and the Teviot. On this sub- 
 ject Messrs. Grainger and Millar have been referred 
 to as an authority, and therefore it is but fair the public 
 should be informed that those gentlemen are the Engi- 
 neers of the Edinburgh, Haddington, and Dunbar Rail- 
 way, and therefore deeply interested in the “Grand 
 Union.” It unfortunately happens that no two Sections 
 or Statements ofour opponents agree. AVithout enter- 
 ing into all the particulars, I shall content myself by 
 naming one instance of erroneous calculation, and 
 another of extreme physical improbability. Our 
 opponents, in their ardent wish to communicate in- 
 formation to us, have stated that the Carter was 1,370 
 feet above the sea. Mr. I’elford (whose accuracy is 
 unquestioned and unquestionable) says that the 
 Tweed, near the junction with the Gala VTater, is 
 304 feet above the level of the Broomielaw Quay, at 
 Glasgow. Mr. George Stephenson, in his extra- 
 ordinary report upon the comjTeting lines, says that 
 from the Tweed, (at the point already mentioned) to 
 the foot of the Carter, we may obtain 20 miles of 
 Railway, at a rise of 20 feet a mile, which is equal to 
 400 feet more, and that from the foot of the Carter to 
 its summit there is a rise for five miles at 180 feet per 
 mile, which is equal to 900 feet — thus making the 
 total height of the Carter above the Broomielaw 
 Quay, at Glasgow, 1,604 feet, instead of 1,370 feet 
 above the sea, leaving 234 feet, and the height of the 
 Broomielaw Quay above the sea totally unaccounted 
 for. Now as to the extreme improbability, Mr. 
 Grainger has stated that the Teviot Water, at An- 
 crum Bridge, is 180 feet above the sea, which, as it is 
 there about forty miles from the sea, makes it fall 4J 
 feet per mile ; while the Jed, which flows into the 
 Teviot, at about ten miles from its source, is made to 
 fall upwards of seventy feet per mile ! Thus, you see, 
 in one instance we have a positive contradiction in 
 figures, and in the other almost as positive a one in 
 nature ! Probabilities as to the practicability of our 
 line are strongly in our favour ; and, I am happy to 
 
 inform you, that I have received instructions to com- 
 mence the survey as soon as the weather will permit. 
 W e came before the public, not to ask sanction to an 
 ill-digested and crude scheme of Bailway communica- 
 tion, or without surveying and levelling it to deter- 
 mine its exact location, but to solicit subscri])tions, if 
 the public saw the feasibility of it, to enable us to 
 make the needful examinations as to its practicability. 
 All we have said or done amounts to this — we have 
 examined a line which we think is expedient for the 
 country to adopt, in case^ by actual survey and levels, 
 it is found to be practicable. This we are now about 
 to commence with, and, I assure you, if we find the gra- 
 dients worse than those of the Eastern Line, I shall at 
 once and immediately declare it. As to altering our 
 route a mile Northwards or Southwards, in either pass- 
 ing the Carter or any other place, is a necessary, and, 
 it appears to me, a needful provision. Mr. Dunn may 
 lay down a line on examination and re-examination, 
 and finally determine his route without the use of a 
 single instrument ; but he shall not deter me, either 
 by his sneers or misrepresentations, from pursuing 
 that course usual to my profession, and most advan- 
 tageous to the public. 
 
 If the supporters of the Midland Line have “ hurled 
 unqualified condemnation” against the Eastern Line, 
 which Mr. Dunn says we have done, it ought to be 
 remembered that it was of their own seeking. Not a 
 word was said, not a letter was written, against that 
 scheme, until after they had attacked the Midland 
 Line ; all that has been said or done by our party has 
 been purely defensive. Now that the “ Gfand Union” 
 projectors begin to smart under the lash which they 
 called into operation, tlfey complain ! Now that they 
 see the futility of their attempt to foist their scheme 
 upon the public, they find fault with the advocates of 
 the Midland Line ! — nay, even more, they call a 
 county meeting without ever consulting us, and want 
 the public to believe that it was a joint requisition. 
 Mr. Dunn would fain have you to think that this 
 meeting was called together to consider the respective 
 merits of the competing lines. A. more daring attempt 
 to juggle the county out of its propriety was never 
 made, and, as you are aware, was ably exposed by Sir 
 Charles Monc'k, Mr. Bigge, Mr. Fife, and others. 
 
 To adopt Mr. Dunn’s language, I trust “ that you 
 will in your next ‘ Chronicle’ have the candour to 
 avow that your statements regarding the Eastern 
 Line of Railway” are not “ incorrect." 
 
 I am, Sir, very truly, 
 
 JOSHUA RICHARDSON, 
 
 Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, London, &c. 
 
 Bird Hill, 2nd Feb., 18S7- 
 
 NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, EDINBURGH, 
 AND GLASGOW RAILWAY. 
 
 ( From the Kelso Chronicle of March 24, 1837 . ) 
 
 AYe have not for some time referred to this great 
 national undertaking, fraught with such immense ad- 
 vantages to this country in general, but more especially 
 with the most unspeakable benefits to this and the 
 neighbouring districts, were the object in view actually 
 realized. AV'e remember the hauteur as exhibited by 
 oxxv friends of the Eastern Line, and the petulance 
 and temper with which they demeaned themselves to- 
 wards the supporters of the Midland Line, How wo- 
 fully were they disappointed in their pretended anti- 
 cipations. Meetings were held across this county — 
 Peebles-shire, at Emnburgh, and at Glasgow. Every- 
 where were the able projector of the line, Mr. Reed, 
 and the talented Engineer, Mr. Richardson, greeted 
 with unqualified marks of approbation. Subscriptions 
 showered in upon them ; and they accordingly felt the 
 best security in the ultimate success of the enterprise 
 by uneqiiivocal acts publicly demonstrated in their 
 fiivour. This did not, however, put a stop to the cavils 
 
' IS 
 
 "of some, and the' gross misrepresentations of others. 
 
 ", They indulged in invective — laughed at the Carter 
 
 foretold the impossibility of obtaining levels along the 
 ; line proposed — and that tunnelling was out of the 
 question. What now will they think, if the report 
 • we have heard mistake us not? This rumour con- 
 'sists, we believe, wiih fact, when we state that Mr. 
 lliCHARDSON has actually levelled the line from Hors- 
 ,ley, over the Carter, by the river Jed to the Teviot 
 Water, and that there is no obstacle to the practica- 
 ' bility of the scheme. Our readers are aware that this 
 part of the Line has been frequently objected to, 'and 
 before proceeding farther, it was deemed of great im- 
 portance to ascertain, as correctly as possible, the ac- 
 'tual gradientS'which would be required to pass through 
 the Carter range of hills, with a locomotive engine 
 railway. The section, which has been carefully taken 
 is decidedly better than those of most railways now in 
 operation. Were a com.parison to be made with the 
 . Railways in projection, or which are now before Par- 
 liament, it would exhibit still more strongly the ad- 
 .. vantages of the proposed line. 
 
 t ' Where be Mr. Ramsay of Berwick, with the in- 
 : vincible eloquence of which he is so consummate a 
 :• master ? Where be our friend Browne, of special 
 pleading notoriety ? Quite — quite gone; and this, after 
 all their vain boastings — for we actually find an adver- 
 ■ tisement in the Ti/ne Mercury of Tuesday last, that a 
 ; meeting is called to take into consideration the pro- 
 '^priety of dissolving the Railway company betwixt 
 \ Edinburgh, Haddington, and Dunbar, which was the 
 . -dernier part of the Eastern scheme, and one upon 
 which they also expressed there could not be a possi- 
 bility of a doubt, and which has besides passed the 
 T standing orders of the House of Commons. Where, 
 'we must again ask, is Mr. Dunn, with his asserted 
 
 actual levels, so completely disproved by Mr. Richard- 
 son’s talented letter in answer to that gentleman ? 
 
 We may add, that it gives us the utmost gratifica- 
 tion to learn, that there is shortly to be a meeting of 
 the Deputies from the various District Committees, 
 in the view of carrying out the object of those in- 
 terested in the undertaking. This is as it should be. 
 A concentration of power ensures vigour and energy. 
 We cannot too strongly impress upon our friends in 
 Kelso and elsewhere, where subscriptions have not 
 taken place, to come forward and follow the example 
 of their enterprising neighbours. It is their own in- 
 terest, and will enhance the value of their property. 
 We need not say more than conclude, that from a 
 map, with which we shall shortly favour our readers, 
 it will be seen that the present Line from Newcastle 
 to Glasgow, following out the Great Northern Rail- 
 way from London, is the most direct and advantageous 
 continuation that could be devised. AVe heartily wish 
 success to the praiseworthy and disinterested exertions 
 of Messrs. Reed and Richardson. 
 
 It is but however due, in justice to Mr. Richardson, 
 to state that at a meeting of the Railway Committee 
 at Jedburgh, on the 15th instant — present, AV. O. 
 Rutherford, Esq. of Edgerston ; Archibald Oliver, 
 Esq. of Bush; Archibald Jerdon, Esq. of Bonjedward; 
 James Elliot, Esq. of Wolflee; John Scotland, Esq., 
 Giendouglas ; William Ogilvie, Esq. of Chesters ; 
 AVilliam Fair, Esq. of Langlee ; David Brown, Esq., 
 Hundalee; &c. &c — several resolutions were unani- 
 mously passed, of which the following is the conclud- 
 ing one : — 
 
 “ The Meeting beg to express to Mr. Richardson their 
 best thanks for his report, and their gratification at find- 
 ing the result so favourable.” 
 
 
 Newcastle: Printed by dolm llernainan, Journal OMice, Pilgriin-»Street. 
 

 I