FIRST EXPRESS RAN SEVENTY YEARS AGO

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25592, 6 September 1948, Page 6

FIRST EXPRESS RAN SEVENTY YEARS AGO

CHRISTCHURCH TO DUNEDIN

(Specially Written for "The Press.”)

[By R. T. BRITTENDEN]

When the celebrations to mark the completion of the first 100 years in the history of Canterbury are held the prominent part of the railway system in opening up and developing the new land will certainly not be overlooked. Canterbury had the first railway in New Zealand—the line from Christchurch to Ferrymead, opened in Only 15 years later, such was the energy of those responsible for railway development, the line from Christchurch to Dunedin was opened, a magnificent achievement. Seventy years ago to-dav. the first “south express left Christcnurch for Dunedin, and tne railways had taken an impotent step forward, almost before they had begun. A little later, the express service through to Invercargill was also started. . , Provincial Beginnings The first step in planning the Canterbury railways was taken by the Superintendent of the province, W. b. Moorhouse, in 1859, when he set up a commission to report on the possible use of a railwy asystem in the province. Moorhouse planned, however, on a provincial basis. The country as a whole has to thank Sir Julius Vogel for the development of its railway system. He saw the progress made in Canterbury, and the beginnings of the railways at Dunedin and Invercargill and planned a railway linking the whole of each island. His bold policy made quick progress possible. • The first sod in the great south line was turned on May 24, 1865, and by October. 1866, the line had reached Rolleston. A year later it went as far as the Selwyn, but it took almost six years more before it extended to Rakaia/ At the southern end, the line from Dunedin to Sawyer’s Bay was opened in December, 1872. In August, 1874, the section between Rakaia and Ashburton was opened, and in the following year the Temuka-Timaru and Waitaki south-Oamaru lines were finished. In the next two years, progress was rapid, and the last spike was driven, at Goodwood, near the end of August, 1878. Two American locomotives were imported in 1877. in readiness for the completion of the line. They were the “Washington” and the “Lincoln,” and were of the 2-4-2 (Columbia) type; that is. with two leading wheels, four coupled driving wheels, and two trailing wheels. They were the first engines of such a design ever built, the first tender engines in New. Zealand, and the first American engines imported into New Zealand.

The First Express The first express through to Dunedin left Christchurch at 6 a m. on September 6, 1878, and the occasion was a gala one for the whole province. The station—smaller, but much the same in appearance as it is now—was crowded on that cold September morning. The station lamps shed an indifferent light on the bushy beards and wide skirts of the period; railway travel was still a novelty, and the journey provoked widespread interest. The “Washington” was chosen for the first trip, but even its whistlelikened to the roar of an infuriated bull, a peculiar low note which has not been equalled in New Zealand since—failed to get everyone on board before the train started. The engine had flags flying from the poles on either side of the cowcatcher; and as the train drew, out the Railway Band, taking perhaps an overcautious view of the occasion, played “Auld Lang Syne.” On board, in the small carriages with their wooden seats, the Dunedin Glee Club made merry, with the assistance of a . harmonium. Among the distinguished passengers was the Governor of the Colony, the Marquis of Normanby. The train, with its 10 carriages and two vans, made a brief stop at Rakaia for water and reached Ashburton soon after 8 a.m. The town was gaily decorated, there were addresses of welcome, and the official party drove by waggonette to the Town Hall for breakfast.

Speeches, Banquets, All the Way At Teinuka there were more loyal addresses, and at 10 a.m. the train reached Timaru, where a close holiday was being observed. The Volunteers and Fire Brigade were on parade; there were more speeches and another banquet,’ and the train pulled out of the station to the accompaniment of lusty cheering and a salute from the Timaru artillery. At Oamaru. where another big crowd waited for the train, the inevitable addresses and replies were followed by the equally inevitable meal. By this time the speeches and banquets were evidently taking effect, for when the train left more people were left behind. At 3.35 p.m. the train reached Palmerston, where the American engine was replaced by a double bogie Fairlie (class B). While the change w’as being made, the train’s company took the opportunity of replying to more loyal addresses and having another lavish meal. The train stopped at Waikouaiti at 4.30 p.m., and at the Maori Kaik further down the line a deputation of Maoris appeared on a high bank and danced a welcome. Soon after this, the colza oil lamps in the carriages were lit: and’ as the train passed through Port Chalmers the red flashes of ax\ artillery salute lit up the dusk. Destination According to a report in “The Press,” Dunedin was ablaze with coloured electric lights, there was a huge crowd on the station, there was another artillery salute, and volunteers lined the platform. The reference to the electric lights seems a little overdrawn—there were only four—but there is little doubt that the significance of the occasion did not escape the public, which gave the train and its passengers a tremendous welcome. The journey had ended at 6.37 p.m.; and when the demands made on the oratorical and gastronomical powers of the company are remembered, it will be conceded that the time for the journey was remarkably good. New Zealand's first express train had reached its destination.

The K class engines, of which the "Washington” was one, fill an important place in- New Zealand railway history. They were designed for light passenger work, with trains of five or six cars of the light type then in use* but when, to meet an emergency, one of them once hauled 70 waggons of grain from Ashburton to Christchurch the experts were surprised indeed’. Later, the K engines were used on express work between Gore and Kingston: but about 20 years ago the last of them was scrapped. It is unfortunate that one, at least, was not preserved as a museum piece. The South Island railways made rapid progress, and the traffic, after a few years, became too heavy for the K’s. In 1886, another set of American engines, the N class, were imported to take up the running, although the K’s continued to run extra expresses for another 12 years, and were seen assisting expresses until about 1912. The N engines, which were of the 2-6-2 “Prairie” type, ran the expresses until early in 1899, and they did excellent work. Capable of a good turn of speed, they were often sent in pursuit of express trains with the San Francisco mails. On one such occasion, an N engine covered the 53 miles from Christchurch to Ashburton in 55 minutes, excellent time when it is remembered that the running over the crossings out of Christchurch and over the Rakaia bridge had to be very slow. In 1894, the first tender to be built in New Zealand came out of the Addington workshops. Designed by Mr T. F. Rotherham, it was a great success. It was a 4-6-0 “American” type engine, and one or two of the class were put on the express service between Oamaru and Dunedin. In 1899 the N gave way to the Baldwin Ub 4-6-0 “American” engine, of which 10 were placed at Christchurch and ran as far as Oamaru. They had an unfortunate introduction to the service, however. In March, 1869, two of them were used on the first section of a picnic train from Ashburton to Christchurch. Another Baldwin was on the second section of the train, running some distance behind the first The first train had to wait at Rakaia to pass a south-bound train, which was late, and the second picnic train, expecting a clear line, ran into the back of the first one. Several persons were killed, and after the accident it was decided to Install fixed signals at all attended stations. It was also decided to equio all cars and waggons with the Westinghouse air brake, a great advance towards safe working, and a change which made faster train schedules possible. In 1891, an other set of seven Baldwins, class Q. began running the express between Oamaru and Dunedin. They were the 4-6-2 “Pacific”, type, the first of this design ever built They soon became popular in many parts of the world. At this stage, the expresses were taken as fap as Oamaru by the Ub engines and the rest of the way to Dunedin by the Q’s. Addington’s “Perfect Engine” A further advance was made in 1906. when the A class was produced, at Addington. This was a 4-6-2 "Pacific” four-cylinder balanced compound designed by Mr A. L. Beattie and noted foi' its symmetrical lines. The traffic continued to grow. In 1915 the Addington workshops again answered the problem by producing the Ab, said by engine drivers to be the perfect engine. Until very recently, it -provided greater tractive power for its weight than any other engine in the world. The Ab class, a 4-6-2 "Pacific” type, is still used between Christchurch and Oamaru, although for peak traffic the Kb, “Confederation” type is used. This locomotive was first built just before the war. The hilly country south of Oamaru set railway engineers a problem as the traffic grew with the years; and in 1927 the Ab engines, converted from a tender to a tank type and named the Wab, were Introduced to this section of the line. About eight years ago they gave way to the English class J 4-8-2 “Mountain” type engine. The Wab engines, whose heavy axle loads retricted their running to certain districts, have since been re-converted to Ab’s. It will be seen that 70 years ago, when it was expected that the express traffic would be fairly light, the first engineers set out with the idea or .using a light, fast engine. They were wise, however, to replace it with a six-wheeled coupled engine, capable of handling general traffic if necessary. In this, they acted against the advice of the American experts, who again recommended a four-wheeled coupled type. At the time the K’s were ordered, a set of sister engines, of the T, “Consolidation” typq, were also obtained to handle goods traffic. It was not, therefore, until 1898 that, with the Üb, the present policy of using an engine capable of both express and general work was begun. A clear picture of the development of locomotive design is given in the following table dealing with engines used for express work between Christchurch and Dunedin.

Canterbury’s 100 years of progress ii something of which the province may be proud; in reviewing that progress, credit should be given to the foresignt and initiative of those responsible for the planning of the railways, for tne railway system, more than an y. t “.“’ K else, has made that progress possible-

Diam.Driv. Tractive Cyl. Wheels. W’t., Eng. ins. ft. In. Tons. pcwer.lb. K . 12 x 20 4 1& 41 7.500 B . 9 x 16 3 9 32 5.981 N . 15 x 20 H 52 14,680 U . 16 x 20 4 6 63 13.650 Ub . 16 x 22 4 U 59 16.670 A . 16 x 22 . 12 x 22 4 U 69 18,350 (H.P.) 19 x 22 4 6 78 17,000 , Ab • (L.P.) . 17 x 26 4 6 85 20.000 Wab. . 17 x 26 0 6 714 22,250 . 18 x 26 4 6 108 24.960 Kb . 20 x 26 4 6 140 37.285