RAIL SPEED EXPERT

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 89, Issue 262, 6 November 1945, Page 4

RAIL SPEED EXPERT

LATE MR. ROUS-MARTEN WANGANUI ASSOCIATIONS The name of the late Mr. Rous-Mar-ten, printed on a programme of a concert given in the Theatre Royal, Wellington, in 1878, which was found recently, recalls that he was the eldest son of the late Mr. William Marten, J.P., of Nelson, and elder brother of the late Mrs. John Powle, of Wanganui. Apart from being very interested in the New Zealand railway system in the early days, Mr. Rous-Marten was well-known in railway circles in Great Britain in the early part of the present century because of his hobby of timing the speeds of express trains, at which he became an expert. It was he who revealed the fact that during a run made by a special train on the Great Western system from Plymouth to London conveying Atlantic Ocean mail from America, a momentous figure of 102.8 m.p.n. was reached, which was the first authenticated statement that a locomotive drawing a train had travelled at 100 miles an hour or more.

Mr. Rous-Marten had the distinction of having free passes on English and continental railways. He was offered the French Order of Merit, but declined the award.

In New Zealand perhaps the best known of Mr. Rous-Marten’s detailed train-speed recordings occurred on July 20 1892, when the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company ran a special train from Wellington to Longburn in 1 hour 58 minutes running time, the overall time being 2 hours 6 minutes. Before reaching Kereru, now Koputaroa, a speed of 61 m.p.h. was recorded r.nd,' after passing Shannon, an average speed of 60 m.p.h. was maintained for 15 consecutive miles on the level. The fastest mile was run in 56.2 seconds, and the fastest quarter-mile in 14 seconds—a speed of 64.4 m.p.h. At that time thia was the highest speed which had ever been reached on the 3ft. 6in. gauge and it was a world record which stood for some years.