Locomotive records are among the most changeable of railway data. Only a few months ago there was announced in these letters the introduction of the “Lord Nelson” type of express passenger engine on the Southern Railway of England, ranking as the most powerful locomotive in Britain. Now comes a new type of fast passenger engine (the creation of the Great Western shops at Swindon), known as the “King” class, to oust the “Lord Nelson” from its place of honour at the head of the Home locomotive list.

The “King” Class.

“King George V.” is the apt title given to the first locomotive of the new series. There are many outstanding features in the machine, but the most noteworthy fact is that its tractive effort is no less than 40,300lbs., a figure greatly in excess of any other British express locomotive. The “King George V.” is a four cylinder 4–6–0 type engine. Distribution of the adhesion weight is effected by an equalising arrangement on the six coupled wheels, the aggregate being 67 tons 10 cwt., while the weight at the bogie is 21½ tons. The total weight of the engine in working order (without tender) is 89 tons. The tender is of standard six-wheeled pattern. It weighs, when full, 46½ tons, has a coal capacity of 6 tons, and water capacity of 4,000 gallons. The combined weight of engine and tender in working order is therefore 135½ tons.

Interesting features are presented by the bogie, which is spring controlled and of unique design. Outside bearings are provided on the leading axle, and inside bearings on the trailing axle, this arrangement being necessary in order to secure clearance between the bogie and the cylinders. The four cylinders are not placed in line across the engine, but the inside pair are set well forward in the frames, and drive on to the leading coupled axle, and the outside pair drive on to the middle coupled wheels.

Steam is supplied to the inside cylinders of the “King” class engine by piston valves operated direct from Walschaert valve gear placed between the frames, the valves for the outside cylinders being operated by rocking levers from the inside gear. The high-pressure superheater boiler has a pressure of 250lbs. per square inch, and is built with a conical barrel and Belpaire firebox, without a dome. The principal dimensions are as follows: Cylinders, 16¼ inches diameter by 28 inch stroke; bogie wheels, 3 feet diameter; coupled wheels, 6 feet 6 inches diameter; total heating surface, 2,514 square feet; grate area, 34.3 sq. ft. The finished locomotive presents a remarkably spick and span appearance, and it is of especial interest to learn that this latest giant of the Home railway workshops is, this autumn, to feature at Baltimore, U. S. A., in the centenary celebrations of the Baltimore and Ohio Railway. Of the British locomotive builder's art no more striking example than this could have been selected for so signal an honour.

What's in a Name?

In giving to each of the new class of express passenger locomotives distinctive names, the Great Western Railway is following a custom for long favoured on this system. As a general rule, Home railway engines carry distinctive numbers instead of names, but the Great Western adheres to the happy practice of naming each of its main-line passenger locomotives, and recently several of the bigger engines utilised by the London, Midland and Scottish, London and North Eastern, and Southern lines, have been given appropriate names of their own. In connection with the christening of locomotives, it is worthy of note that on the Great Western system, several engines until recently bore the names of certain towns on the line. On numerous occasions passengers have assumed that a train was going to the station indicated by the engine name plate, and it has now been decided to remove many of these names in cases where they have proved misleading.

Following the lead set by the London and North Eastern Railway, the London, Midland and Scottish Company has this year embarked upon an ambitious plan of train-naming. In the summer passenger time-tables, all the leading expresses carry distinctive names, among which are the “Royal Scot,” “The Welshman,” “The Ulster Express,” “The Lakes Express” and the “Manxman.” Train-naming had its origin many years ago in the United States, and to-day all the Home railways make use of this valuable aid to passenger publicity. The Southern Company (or rather its predecesor page 19 the old London, Brighton and South Coast line) were the pioneers of train-naming in Britain. The “Southern Belle,” operating between London and Brighton, was one of the earliest and most famous of all named trains, and the selection of this romantic title has proved of immense utility in attracting travellers.

Non-stop Runs and Water Troughs.

The consideration given by the Home railways to the operation of new non-stop runs between London and Scotland has previously been recorded in these pages. Speeding up on the Anglo-Scottish main-lines has since resulted in the setting up of new records for non-stop working. The world's longest non-stop run -the 226½ miles non-stop journey of the “Cornish Riviera” daily express from Paddington Station, London, to Plymouth-has now been eclipsed by a new non-stop train introduced by the London and North Eastern Railway between King's Cross Station, London, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne. This latest record breaking flier gives a non-stop run of 5½ hours for 268 miles journey, and the train forms a relief to the well-known “Flying Scotsman.” On the London, Midland and Scottish Company's route to the north, a non-stop run of 236½ miles has been introduced. The 10. a.m. Scotch Express out of Euston Station, London, now ceases to pick up passengers at any point en route, and makes only one stop, exclusively for locomotive changing, at Carnforth, 236½ miles from London.

It is by the use of track water-troughs that these non-stop runs have become possible. These troughs were the invention of Mr. John Ramsbottom, one-time locomotive superintendent of the old London and North Western Line. To-day these appliances are employed on all the British main-lines. The troughs are usually 18 inches wide and 6 inches deep, and the larger troughs run as long as 1,800 feet. They are made of galvanised steel plate, and the top edges of the troughs are turned inwards to form a lip, thereby preventing waste of water. At each end of the troughs the rails are laid for a short distance on a down gradient towards trough centre. This permits the scoop on the locomotive to be lowered just before reaching the trough, until it is about two inches below water level.

As the end of the trough is reached, the gradient lifts the scoop clear. The troughs usually are arranged on the main lines about fifty miles apart. Between London and Plymouth, the non-stop trains pick up water at four points of the journey, while running at speed. High speed is essential in passing over the troughs, for practically no water can be picked up when the speed falls below twenty miles an hour.

Railway Manufacturers and Ancillary Services.

Railways are not usually regarded as manufacturing undertakings. The modern railway, however, engages in a hundred-and-one manufacturing activities, and appreciation of the activities of the Home lines in this direction is afforded by the recently published fourteenth preliminary report of the Census of Production. During 1924, permanent way

Britain's Most Powerful Passenger Locomotive.
The “King George V.” 4–6–0 four-cylinder locomotive is the first of twenty new “King” class machines recently turned out of the Great Western Shops at Swindon.

page 20 equipment to the value of £1,600,000 was manufactured by the Home railways. In the same year there were built in the Home railway workshops no fewer than 223 main-line locomotives, 1,192 passenger carriages and 26,232 freight vehicles. Repair work to permanent way equipment cost £430,000, the cost of locomotive repairs totalled £11,468,000, carriage repairs £5,146,000, and repairs to freight rolling-stock £4,538,000. Some 249,425 workers were employed by the Home railways on manufacturing activities in the year 1924, among whom there were included 3,261 female workers.

How numerous are the side lines engaged in by the modern railway undertaking is rarely realised, even by the railway employee himself. The manufacture and sale of transportation calls for the conduct of many activities which at first sight appear far removed from railway working, but it is only by steadily building up these ancillary services that efficient rail transportation can be given the public.

Typical of the outside activities which bring grist to the railway mill are the hotels and refreshment rooms, dock systems and steamship services, road-carrying fleets, and similar subsidiary services of the Home lines. Taking a leaf out of Britain's book, there is now proceeding in Germany a marked move towards the development of a nation-wide railway hotels business, as part of the extensive improvement plan of the vast railway undertaking, conducted on commercial lines, which has been evolved out of the State Railways of Germany.

German Post-War Recovery.

The first hotel to be constructed and operated by the German Railways Company is located alongside the newly-built passenger terminal in Stuttgart. This hotel possesses 125 bedrooms, equipped with luxurious bathrooms, telephones, and all the amenities beloved by the Marco Polo of to-day. A special feature is made of an exhibition room for the display of commercial travellers' samples, while an added convenience is the provision of direct covered access between the platforms of the terminal and the hotel reception room.

Vast progress has been made on the German lines in every field of activity. In the fifth annual report of the Commissioner for the German Railways, covering the financial year ended December 31st, 1926, this progress is everywhere reflected. During the year the railways paid out some 575 million gold marks for the service of reparation bonds, and in the current year the liabilities of the system under this head should also be fully met. Owing to the serious economic situation at the beginning of the year 1926, the total receipts showed a reduction of three per cent. as compared with 1925, but business has now reached higher levels, and the receipts for the first four months of the present year were 18 per cent. higher than those for the corresponding period of 1926. The German railway system covers 53,000 route kilometres, and in the year 1926 the trains of the German Railway Company ran some 570,000,000 kilometres, or 1,600,000 kilometres per day. This makes the daily activities of the system equivalent to the running of a train forty times round the Equator, a truly remarkable performance unequalled by any single railway system the world over.

The Safety Movement.

The Great Western Railway has always played a prominent part among Home lines in the furtherance of the Safety Movement. This year the Great Western is embarking upon a “Freedom from Accident” competition, in which every employee is invited to participate, in the effort to wipe out preventable personal injuries. After the present year the competition will be an annual one between the several divisions of the line, and a challenge shield will be awarded to the division making the best record.

Any Great Western employee who desires to take a leading part in the safety competition is being invited to enlist a number of other employees, and thus form a “team,” of which he should be the “captain,” and in his name the “team” will be registered. It will be the duty of the captain to do all he can, with the co-operation of the members of his team, to encourage every means of avoiding and preventing personal injuries, and the records of the best teams in each division will be compared, to decide the winning division. A team may consist of any number of members from three to twenty. Every team will be given its own “risk value” according to the number and occupation of the men who compose it, for it is recognised that in some grades the liability to accidents is greater than in others. The “risk values” are based upon past records of the frequency of accidents among the several grades in all departments of the service. In addition to the challenge shield awarded to the winning division, a gold watch will be presented to the captain, and gold medals to the members of the team having the best all-line record. This safety contest is quite an innovation, and its conduct will be watched with much interest by all.

Car and Train Standards.

Compartment cars are by degrees completely taking the place of the saloon coach in suburban passenger service. This reversion to the compartment design is very noticeable at Home. Not long ago the London, Midland and Scottish Company decided to adopt the compartment design as standard for suburban working, and now a similar decision has been arrived at by the Metropolitan Railway.

The new standard trains on the Metropolitan line accommodate 482 passengers, as compared with 372 passengers in the existing open type of carriage. The trains are formed of two motor and five trailer cars, having a total length of 382 feet and a total weight of 225 tons. The motor equipment is of 2,500 horse power, exerting a tractive effort on starting of 30,600lbs., and having a rate of acceleration of 1.2 miles per hour per second. The open type of passenger carriage is still employed on the London Underground lines, and on many suburban routes of the mainline systems in London and the provinces, but the gradual replacement of this class of vehicle by compartment stock is likely in the future.

A Thoughtful Action.

Homing pigeons sent by rail from Invercargill to Mosgiel for release there, were detrained in wet foggy weather, and the Mosgiel stationmaster held them till the weather cleared. The birds were fed, watered, and liberated for exercise in a spare shed for three days. As a result of this thoughtful action, he received the following letter from Mr. S. Robson, Secretary of the Invercargill Homing Society:—

I wish to thank you very much for your kindness in looking after the birds as you did. The club members were surprised at the way the birds came home, especially after the time they had been away. One bird actually flew the distance in eightyfive minutes and it was unfortunate for the owner that it was no race as he would have held the record.

Nothing in the world is single,
All things by a law divine
In one another's being mingle.

Shelley.

King Edward Bridge, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.
This bridge carries the four-track Anglo-Scottish main line of the London and North Eastern Railway over the River Tyne. The bridge is a masterpiece of engineering science and accommodates a heavier traffic than any other British railway bridge outside London. It was opened in 1906 by King Edward. From the car windows of the “Flying Scotsman” and other trains using the bridge a wonderful panoramic view is obtained of the stately Tyne and the enormous industrial plants that line its banks.