A WONDERFUL RACE.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 200, 25 September 1888, Page 3

A WONDERFUL RACE.

THE " FLYING SCOTCHMAN ” BEATEN SEVENTY-FIVE MILES AN HOUR. Edinburgh, August 7The “ Flying Scotchman ” has been beaten by the “West Co*st Flyer.” Whe* the London .nd North-Western, or West Coast, expre s ran into Edinburgh Station at eight minute- to six t 1 is evening it broke the record of high -peed, n>t only for England but the railway woild .in general. This was the ti<st day of the great 400 mile race between the two big Euglish companies, and the winning train ravers* d the greater part of that distance at a speed of a mile a minute. The competition between the Great Northern and West Coast companies began to grow lively a year ago, when the former, by adding third class compartments to its Edin burgh Limited Express, TOOK aW*Y THE THIRD-CLASS PASSENGERS which the West Coast had bither'o carried on trains going st somewhat slower speed. Since that time the contest for the Edinburgh traffic has been active. For the summer travel, which is always very large, the Great Northern in June reduced its schedule time to 84 hours, the West Coast meeting this figure on 1 July. Two weeks ago the Great Northern made a further out to eight hours, and its rival followed suit, the first of the former trains starting last Wednesday and the first of the latter to-day. In company with Assistant-superintendent Turnbull and another railway expert, I entered a first-class railway compartment at Euston this morning shortly before ten o’clock. All three of us flourished stop watches, for though we could not time our ■Kral train, wb-ch pulled out at ten also, we ■-were content to take the -peed of our own iron horse, as it was destined to be THE HIGHEST EVEB KNOWS on a continuous run. The engine had a sing'e pair of driving wheels 7ft. Gin in diameter, weighed 27 tons, and burned 241 b. of coal to the mile throughout the run. The tender loaded weighed 24 tons, and the four carriages 20 tons each, a total of 80. We started slowly The run to Tring was up grade, the steepest portion being a rise of one foot iu 70. This distance, 314 miles, was covered in 40 minutes. Once over the hill the engineer woke up, and b-gan to show his mettle The speed increased steadily until we fairly seemed to fly. Telegraph poles began to seem like fence posts and the roadside a medly of objects hard to distinguish. We knew we were going over Go miles an hour, but were not prepared for the announcement that WE WERE COING 72. Milepost after milepost was registered at 50 seconds by the stop watches, and the 15 miles to Bletchley took exactly 12min. 30seo With speed varying between 72 and GO we flew over the flat land, the spirits of the paity naturally heightened by the novel experience. Fean now began to be entertained that we were going to stop at Rugby, as is usual with this tnin. General desire was to keep straight on to Crewe, 158 miles without a halt, according to schedule, and fean of Rugby stop arose only from the fact that we were SEVERAL MINUTES AHEAD OF TIME. Rugby was passed without a halt, however, the 82J miles from Ruston having been done in 92 minutes. The same speed was kept up, and Tamworth (110 miles) was passed in two hours. The run of 80 miles from Tring to Tamworth was made in 100 minutes, which was considered pretty good. From Tamworth to Crewe took 53 minutes tor 48 miles, and we Tan into the latter at two minutes to one, two minutes ahead of schedule. This run of 158 MILES WITHOUT A HALT is the longest known to any schedule, being 12 miles longer than Fort Wayne and Chicago. At Crewe, we spent five minutes exchanging our single wheeidriver for a 32-ton engine with two pairs of driving wheels. The moment we pulled out of the station it became evident that this engineer proposed to show what he co ;Id do. The landscape began to fly by us at an unprecedented rate, and the watches began to register from 48sese. to 48? for the following miles. This meant from 75 to 73$ miles per hour. This speed was kept up for eight or 10 miles, sod the engineer, contented with his spurt, EASED DOWN TO SIXTY. From Hartford to Warrington we ran 12$ miles in 11$ minutes. Warrington to Wigan 12 miles, we did iu 11 minutes. The engineer was allowed 58 minutes to make the run of 57 miles from Crewe to Preston, but cut under schedule and ran into Preston in exactly 51 minutes, an average of a mile a minute from platform to platform. VVe spent 20 minutes at Preston for luncheon, leaving at seventeen minutes past two. Once out of town we clapped spurs to our animals, and rose to 73 miles per hour. Run from Preston to Oxenholme, 40 miles, was made in 42 mins., the last 10 miles being upgrade. Heavy grade of lin 75 was met at Teebay Junction, bus we did the 54 to Shap summit in 81 minutes, this being at the altogether miserable rate of 374 miles per hour. Once over the Bhap we began to do 72 MILES AS HOVE AGAIN, and flew along down grade at thia rate for 10 miles, when we slowed down and strolled along at the comfortable rate of 60. A little rise caused further diminution, but 31 mi-es from Shap to Cat lisle was done in 31 minutes. At Carlisle 10 minutes were spent, and the engine changed for another, with one pair of large diivers as before, a specially-constructed |Eagine which was exhibited in tne Ediuburgh ■Exhibition of 1886. With this we went to 39, miles, in 39 minutes, now 1 h.»i .grain against us and a wet track. From Beattuck the 10 miles climb to the summit, grade one iu 80, was done at the rate of 44j miles per hour. Over the summit the speed rose to 07$, and the next 13$ miles took only 12 minutes. The 24 miles from the summit to Carstiirs was doue in 22 minutes, aud at slightly less than a mi e a minute We finished the 274 miles to Edinburgh. We ran .—into the Station at e-ght minu es to six, eight minutes under schedule. The 101 miles from Carlisle had been covered in 104 miuutes, over a pass 1,015 feet high, a run which is probably UNPRECEDENTED IN RAILWAY ANNALS. The entire distance covered was 400 miles, and actual time, excluding stops, 7 hours 25 minutes, This is an average of 53 53 89 miles per hour. This has never been equalled before for so long a run. Tne fastest continuous record in England hitherto was the special train which took the Prince of Wales from Live pool to Loudon, 200 mi es in 3 hours 59min., an average of over 50. This schedule, which will be maintained hereafter, beats the Great Northern, or ** Scotchman,” run on West Coast line. It is eight miles longer than the other, and is covered iu the same time. Despite the fearful speed, the journey was nit at all unpleasant. Jostling and lateral motion seemed no greater than if goiog at ordinary speed. The sight from windows was very unusual however. Trains coming at full speed from opposite direction went by with a cra-h like a volley of musketry, and were indistinguishable brown colored maaaes seen only for a moment. A SHORT TUNNEL was like a gas jet suddenly extinguished and suddenly relighted, the eye not having time to accustom itself to darkness. Long tunnels were passed through with a booming roar and a continuous shower of sparks against blackness—quite like an effect in fireworks There was nu mure danger in the trip than at o dinar? speed, and the on y notiMMile difference was a slight shakiness of legs upon getting oat All the passengers bore the trip well except one lady.