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to in this sense in the general acts. The Companies being assumed to be familiar with their own acts, provisions of the kind alluded to will readily present themselves to parties concerned.

Statistics,

and Finan

It may not be out of place here to present a few addicial results. tional facts, illustrating the statistical and financial working and results of Railways in the United Kingdom, abstracted, for the most part, from official reports and returns presented to Parliament, or other authentic sources.

Extent of
Railways:
Mileage.

The following statement shows the extent of Railway lines authorized and constructed up to the end of the years 1856 and 1857, respectively:

Authorized by Parliament,

Of which had been abandoned,

1856. 1857.

Private
Lines.

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Leaving in course of construction, or for which Parliament-
ary powers remained in force,

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In addition to the lines authorized by Parliament, some lines appear to have been constructed without special Parliamentary authority:

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The Railways in the United Kingdom had already been Guage. constructed of different Guages, in the earlier years, before the passing of the act of 1846 for regulating the guage of future Railways." The general guage is now the narrow guage of 4 feet 8 inches, prescribed for Great Britain by that act. The Irish guage of 5 feet 3 inches, now universal in Ireland", is next in extent. The extent of the broad guage, of 7 feet, is much smaller; and that of lines of mixed guage, or of the narrow and broad guage combined, is the smallest,-this double guage existing only on a few lines in England, used by different companies, whose own lines are of different guages, and whose carriages therefore could not run interchangeably without the double guage. The following table shows the extent of each kind of guage on Railways open at 31st December, 1857; and also the extent of Railways laid down as Single Lines :—

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Employés.

The number of Officers and Servants employed on Railways Numbers of in the United Kingdom (exclusive of Directors and Auditors), on 30th June, 1856, was as follows; but the number of miles then open being only 8,506, the number of persons employed

9 & 10 Vic. c. 57, (X.)

The only exceptions heretofore to the 5 ft. 3 in. guage in Ireland were the Dublin and Kingstown line (6 miles, already referred to as the first-constructed railway in Ireland), and the late Atmospheric line from Kingstown to Dalkey

on the opened lines has since been increased in proportion to the additional extent since opened *:

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Passengers.

The number of Passengers conveyed by Railway in the United Kingdom, in the year ended 31st December, 1857, was 139,008,888; or in other words, so many journeys were travelled by passengers, each journey being reckoned as one passenger, whether the same person travelled once or more than once. They are classified as follows:

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The preceding tables show how much greater in England than in the other portions of the United Kingdom is the

(1 mile and in length), which were of the narrow or 4ft. 8in. guage; and the Ulster Railway, which was originally of 6ft. 2in. guage. These lines have since been altered and made uniform with the general Irish guage, the rails having been taken up and relaid on the 5 ft. 3 in. guage; and the portion of atmospheric line above named has been altered to an ordinary locomotive line.

a The numbers on 30th June, 1857, since published, were, on 8,942 miles of Railway then open, 109,660 persons employed; on 1,004 miles in course of construction, 44,037; total, 153,697 persons employed.

proportionate extent of Railway accommodation, as well the extent to which it is used. The following table may further illustrate this, and shows that much remains to be done before those portions of it, and especially Ireland, can be considered to be equally provided with and availing themselves of Railway communication :

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20,314,150 31,741 6,552,386 1,070 8,416,579 1 to 30 1 to 6,124 1

Ireland,

United Kingdom,

77,686,527 121,485 27,368,737 9,019 139,008,888 1 to 14 1 to 3,035 51b)

The following tables exhibit the general Financial Results of all the Railways in the United Kingdom from which Returns are given, including 8,901 miles out of 9,019 open at the end of 1857.

The total Receipts from Traffic of the Railways in the Returns for the year 1857 were as follows:

Journeys for 1 of

Population.

Receipts.

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Passenger
Receipts.

The Traffic Receipts may be further analyzed, in reference to passengers and goods, &c., respectively.

The Receipts for Passengers may be stated in Classes, as in the following Table :

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Receipts from Goods

The Receipts from Goods, Cattle, Minerals, and all traffic

Traffic, &c. other than passenger traffic (but including Passengers' Luggage, Carriages, Mails, &c.), were in the same year as follows:

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