The second, the Railway Fires Act, 1905, was an Act to give compensation for damage by fires caused by sparks or cinders from railway engines, and increased the liability of railway companies. It inter alia, enacted that the fact that the offending engine was used under statutory powers should not affect liability in any action for damage.

Next came the Trades Disputes Act, 1906, a short measure of five clauses, but none the less of great importance; a democratic law with a vengeance! It is one of the four Acts which A. A. Baumann, in his recent book, describes as being "in themselves a revolution," and of this particular Act he says it "placed the Trade Unions beyond the reach of the laws of contract and of tort." It also legalised peaceful picketing, that particular form of persuasion with which a democratic age has become only too familiar.

Lastly, the Workmen's Compensation Act, of 1906, an Act to consolidate and amend the law with respect to compensation to workmen for injuries suffered in the course of their employment, is on the whole a beneficial and useful measure, to which we have grown accustomed.

In these years I had other holiday trips abroad; some with my family to France and Switzerland, and two with my friend, John Kilkelly. One of these two was to Denmark and Germany; the other to Monte Carlo and the Riviera. In Germany, at Altona, we saw the Kaiser "in shining armour," fresh from the autumnal review of his troops, though indeed I should scarcely say fresh, for he looked tired and pale, altogether different to the stern bronzed warrior depicted in his authorised photographic presentments which confronted us at every turn. Kilkelly was a busy, but never seemed an overworked man, due I suppose to some constitutional quality he enjoyed. Added to a good professional business of his own, he was Solicitor to the Midland, Crown Solicitor for County Armagh, Solicitor to the Galway County Council, and, in his leisure hours, farmed successfully some seven or eight hundred acres. He had a fine portly presence, and though modesty itself, could not help looking as if he were somebody, like the stranger in London, accosted by Theodore Hook in the Strand, who was of such imposing appearance that the wit stopped him and said: "I beg your pardon, sir, but, may I ask, are you anybody in particular?"

At Monte Carlo we both lost money but revelled in abundant sunshine, and contemplated phases of humanity that to us were new and strange. Soon we grew tired of the gaming table and its glittering surroundings, bade it adieu, and explored other parts of the Riviera, moving at our ease from scene to scene and from place to place.

Kilkelly was an excellent travelling companion, readily pleased, and taking things as they came with easy philosophy. But never more shall we travel together, at home or abroad. A year ago, at the age of 82, he passed from among us on the last long journey which we all must take.

Requiescat in pace!



CHAPTER XXVIII. VICE-REGAL COMMISSION ON IRISH RAILWAYS, 1906-1910, AND THE FUTURE OF RAILWAYS

In previous pages I have spoken of the manner in which the railways of Ireland had long been abused. This abuse, as the years went on, instead of diminishing grew in strength if not in grace. The Companies were strangling the country, stifling industry, thwarting enterprise; were extortionate, grasping, greedy, inefficient. These were the things that were said of them, and this in face of what the railways were accomplishing, of which I have previously spoken. Politics were largely at the bottom of it all, I am sure, and certain newspapers joined in the noisy chorus. At length the House of Commons, during the Session of 1905, rewarded the agitators by adopting the following resolution:—

"That in the opinion of this House, excessive railway rates and defective transit facilities, generally, constitute a serious bar to the advancement of Ireland and should receive immediate attention from the Government with a view to providing a remedy therefor."

This Resolution bore fruit, for in the ensuing year (1906), in the month of July, a Vice-Regal Commission was appointed to inquire into the subject, and the Terms of Reference to the Commission included these words:—

"What causes have retarded the expansion of traffic upon the Irish lines and their full utilization for the development of the agricultural and industrial resources of the country; and, generally, by what methods the economical, efficient, and harmonious working of the Irish Railways can best be secured."

As the newspapers said, the Irish Railway Companies were put upon their trial. As soon as the Commission was appointed the Companies (19 in number) assembled at the Railway Clearing House in Dublin to discuss the situation, and decide upon a course of action. Unanimously it was resolved to act together and to make a common defence. A Committee, consisting of the Chairman and General Managers of the seven principal companies, was appointed and invested with full power to act in the interest of all, as they should find desirable. The Right Honourable Sir William (then Sir William) Goulding, Baronet, Chairman of the Great Southern and Western Railway, was appointed Chairman of the Committee. I was appointed its Secretary, and Mr. Croker Barrington its Solicitor. It was further decided that one general case for the associated railways should be prepared and presented to the Commission by one person, who should also (under the direction of the Committee) have charge of all proceedings connected with the Inquiry. I, to my delight, was unanimously selected as that person, and to enable me to do the work properly, I was allowed to select three assistants. My choice fell upon G. E. Smyth, John Quirey, and Joseph Ingram, and I could not have chosen better. We were allotted an office in the Railway Clearing House; my assistants gave their whole time to the work, and I gravitated between Broadstone and Kildare Street, for of course I had to look after the Midland Great Western as well as the Commission business. That I could not, like Sir Boyle Roche's bird, be in two places at once, was my greatest disappointment. I may record here that each of my assistants has since, to borrow an Americanism, "made good." Smyth is now Traffic Manager of the Great Southern and Western Railway; Quirey is Chief Accountant of the Midland Railway of England, and Ingram became Secretary of the Irish Clearing House, from which be has been recently promoted to an important position under the Ministry of Transport (Ireland).

The way in which the seven Companies worked together, and the success they attained was, I think, something to be proud of. Sir William Goulding was an excellent Chairman. There was just one little rift in the lute. One of the seven Companies showed a disposition, at times, to play off its own bat, but this was, after all, only a small matter, and the general harmony, cohesion and unanimity that prevailed were admirable, and unquestionably productive of good. We had as Counsel, to guide and assist the Committee, and to represent the Companies before the tribunal, Mr. Balfour Browne, K.C.; Mr. Jas. Campbell, K.C. (now the Rt. Hon. Sir James Campbell, Baronet, Lord Chancellor of Ireland); Mr. T. M. Healy, K.C.; Mr. Vesey Knox, K.C.; and Mr. G. Fitzgibbon. They served us well, and were all required. During the proceedings, prolonged as they were, each could not of course always appear, and it was important to have Counsel invariably at hand.

Sir Charles Scotter was appointed Chairman of the Commission. He was Chairman of the London and South Western Railway; had risen from the ranks in the railway service; had been a general manager, and was unquestionably a man of great ability; but he was handicapped by his age, which even then exceeded the Psalmist's allotted span. His health moreover was not good, and in less than six months after the completion of the work of the Commission, he departed this life at the age of 75.

Mr. George Shanahan, Assistant Secretary of the Board of Works, was the capable Secretary of the Commission. He had the advantage of being a railwayman. From the service of the Great Northern Railway, Robertson took him with him to the Board of Works in the year 1896.

Before the Commission began its public sittings it issued and freely circulated a printed paper entitled "Draft Heads of Evidence for Traders, Industrial Associations, Commercial and Public Bodies, etc." This paper invited complaints under various set headings and concluded with these words:—

"Whether there is any other question that might be usefully considered in determining the causes that have retarded the expansion of traffic upon the Irish lines, and their full utilization for the development of the agricultural and industrial resources of the country."

The italics are mine. We, rightly or wrongly, looked upon this paragraph as assuming the case against the Companies to have some foundation in fact and likely to bias neutral opinion against us, and when (after the hearing was concluded) three of the seven Commissioners reported that the evidence "led them to doubt whether expansion of traffic had been retarded," we felt that our view was not without justification. But I am anticipating the findings of the Commission, and perhaps, after all, the peculiar Terms of the Reference largely dictated the course of procedure which the Commission adopted.

The first public sitting was held in Dublin on the 12th of October, 1906, and the last in the same city on the 29th of January, 1909. There were 95 public sittings in all; and 293 witnesses were examined, 29 of whom appeared on behalf of the Railway Companies. The Reports of the Commissioners (for there were two—a Majority and a Minority Report) did not appear till the 4th of July, 1910, so from the time of its appointment until the conclusion of its work the Commission covered a period of four years, all but fourteen days.

During the course of this Inquiry I passed through a crisis in my life. From more than a year before the Commission was appointed I had been in most indifferent health, the cause of which doctors both in Dublin and in London were unable to discover. As time went on I became worse. Recurring attacks of intense internal pain and constant loss of sleep worked havoc with my strength; but I held on grimly to my work, and few there were who knew how I suffered. One day, indeed, at the close of a sitting of the Commission, Sir John (then Mr.) Aspinall came over to where I sat, and said: "How ill you have looked all day, Tatlow; what is wrong?" By the time March, 1907 came round, finding I could go on no longer, I went to London and saw three medical men, one of whom was the eminent surgeon, Sir Mayo (then Mr.) Robson. He, happily, discovered the cause of my trouble, and forthwith operated upon me. It was a severe and prolonged operation, but saved my life and re-established my health. Not until late in July was I able to resume work—an enforced absence from duty of four long months. In this absence my three assistants carried on the Commission work with great efficiency. It was a trying experience that I passed through, but from it I gathered some knowledge of what a man can endure and still perform his daily task, and what the value of true and sympathetic friendship means to one in a time of suffering. It was during this illness that my friend, F. K. shewed what a true friend he was. He, and my dear kinsman Harry, devoted themselves to me, especially during my convalescence, giving up their time ungrudgingly and accompanying me to the Mediterranean and elsewhere.

The presentation of the Railway case and the rebutting evidence did not begin till all the public witnesses had been heard. My evidence, on behalf of the associated companies, occupied five days. Other railway managers followed with evidence specially affecting their own railways, and one Chairman (Mr. F. W. Pim, Dublin and South-Eastern Railway) also appeared in the witness box. We had also as a witness Mr. E. A. Pratt, the well-known journalist and author of works on railways and commercial subjects, who gave evidence for us regarding Continental railway rates and conditions of transit abroad, in answer to evidence which had been given on the subject by an official of the Department of Agriculture. An extraordinary amount of importance had been attached to Continental railway rates as compared with rates in Ireland, and the Department had sent their representative abroad to gather all the information he could. He returned, armed with figures, and submitted lengthy evidence and numerous tables. A great outcry had been made for years in the Press and on the platform that rates in Ireland were exorbitant compared with Continental rates; and now, it was thought, this will be brought home to the Irish Companies. Mr. Pratt was well informed, having investigated the subject thoroughly in various countries, and written and published books and articles thereon. Between us we were able to show the unfairness of the comparisons, the dissimilarity of the circumstances of each country, and the varied conditions and nature of the services rendered in each, and the Commissioners in the Majority Report confessed that after a full consideration of the evidence, they did not think any useful purpose would be served by attempting to make particular and detailed comparisons between Continental and Irish rates.

I could write much that would be interesting about the proceedings and the evidence given against and for the Companies; how reckless were many of the charges brought against them, how easily they were disproved; how subtle and disingenuous other charges were and what skill was required to refute them; how some of the witnesses were up in the clouds and had to be brought down to common earth; how conclusively the Companies proved that the railways had done their best to encourage and help every industry and that their efforts had not been unsuccessful; but I will resist the temptation, and proceed to the Reports which the Commissioners presented to His Excellency the Lord Lieutenant. As I have said, there were two reports, one signed by four, the other by three Commissioners. The Majority Report bore the signatures of the Chairman, the Rt. Hon. Lord Pirrie, Colonel (now Sir) Hutcheson Poe, and Mr. Thomas Sexton, while the Minority Report was signed by Sir Herbert Jekyll, Mr. W. M. Acworth, and Mr. (now Sir) John Aspinall. The first-mentioned Report was not so favourable to the railways as the other, yet the worst thing it said of the Companies was that they were commercial bodies conducted on commercial principles and ran the railways for profit, and it admitted that Irish railway managers neglected few opportunities for developing traffic. In a sort of way it apologised for the evidence-seeking printed papers to which I have already referred, and admitted that had the Commissioners been in possession of the statistics of trade and industry published in 1906 by the Department of Agriculture (which seemed to have surprised them by the facts and figures they contained of Ireland's progress) these circulars might have been framed differently. The Report also said that the complaints the Commissioners received would have been fewer in number if some of the public witnesses had been better informed and had taken pains to verify their statements. The Commissioners further reported that they were satisfied that it was impracticable for the Railway Companies, as commercial undertakings, to make such reduction in rates as was desired, and, "as the economic condition of the country required," but it was not mentioned that no inquiry had been made as to the economic condition alluded to. In regard to this question of economic condition the Minority Report took a more modest view. It expressed the opinion that regarding the causes which had retarded the expansion of traffic upon the Irish lines, "A complete answer would involve an inquiry ranging over the whole field of agriculture and industry in all its aspects," and that this the Commissioners had not made. It also added that the statistics of Irish trade which had been published by the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction since the commencement of the Inquiry led them (the Minority Commissioners) to doubt whether the expansion of traffic had been retarded.

To return to the Majority Report. The Commissioners who signed it were of opinion that Ireland needed special treatment in regard to her railways and that public acquisition (not State acquisition) and public control of a unified railway system was the consummation to be desired. In their view, if only this were accomplished blessings innumerable would ensue and all complaints would for ever cease. As to the way in which this unification and public control were to be carried out, they recommended that an Irish Authority should be instituted to acquire the Irish Railways and work them as a single system, that this Authority should be a railway Board of twenty Directors, four nominated and sixteen elected; that the general terms of purchase be those prescribed by the Regulation of Railways Act of 1844; that the financial medium be a Railway Stock; and that such Stock be charged upon (1) The Consolidated Fund; (2) the net revenues of the unified railway system; (3) an annual grant from the Imperial Exchequer; and (4) a general rate to be struck by the Irish Railway Authority if and when required.

The Commissioners who signed the Minority Report said the evidence, as a whole, had not produced the same general effect upon their minds as upon the minds of their colleagues, and they were inclined to attach less importance than their colleagues did to the evidence given against the Irish Railway Companies, and more importance to the evidence given in their favour. In their opinion the result of the evidence was, that if the Companies were to be considered as having been on their trial, they were entitled to a verdict of acquittal, and that no case had been made out for the reversal of railway policy which their colleagues advocated. They added that it would hardly be disputed that the Railways had on the whole conferred great benefits upon Ireland.

On the question of reductions in rates (reductions which the Majority Report strongly urged as necessary), they did not think that reductions were more likely to occur under public than under private ownership. They suggested, further, that the official statistics of various countries showed that the fall in the average rate had been much greater on the privately owned railways of France and the United States than on the State-owned railways of Prussia, which were universally accepted as the most favourable example of State managed railways in the world. They came to the conclusion, after hearing all the evidence, that the management of the principal Irish Companies was not inferior to that of similar companies in England and Scotland. They narrated the many improvements (with which they seemed much impressed) that Irish Companies had in recent years effected for the benefit of the public and the good of the country, and said "they had spent money, and not always profitably, in endeavouring to promote the development of new industries." They considered the principle of private ownership should be maintained, believing that railways are better and more economically managed by directors responsible to their own shareholders than they would be under any form of State or popular control, and that administration on commercial principles was the best in the public interest.

In their opinion, however, the Irish railway system was faulty by reason of its sub-division into so many independent companies, and they recommended a policy of amalgamation, with the ultimate object of including the principal railways in one single system, and also, that certain lines classed as railways, but which were really tramways serving purely local interests, need not be incorporated with the general railway system. Such amalgamation, they considered, need not be effected at one time, but should be accomplished gradually. Failing amalgamation by voluntary effort within three years, compulsion should be resorted to.

On the whole the Reports were highly satisfactory to the Irish railways. They showed that the Companies had done their duty to the country honestly and well, and that they had been unjustifiably attacked. The good character of the Irish railways was thus re-established, and they again held their rightful place in public esteem.

Of the two I much preferred the Minority Report. The working of the Irish railways (in accordance with its Recommendations) as business concerns on commercial principles, seemed to me both sound and sensible and the policy best calculated to serve the interests of the country. I cannot, however, say that I concurred in that part of the Minority Report which proposed the welding of all the railways of Ireland into one great system. In my humble opinion, the formation of three large systems—a Northern, a Midland and a Southern—was the desirable course to adopt. This course would, at any rate, keep alive the spirit of emulation which, in itself, is a wholesome stimulant to enterprise and endeavour, as well as to economy.

The Majority Report, which amongst other things said, "We consider it obvious that Irish development will not be fully served by the railways until they cease to be commercial undertakings," found favour mostly, I think, with those who looked upon Ireland as an exceptional country requiring eleemosynary treatment, and whose railways ought, in their view, to be placed beyond the ordinary healthy necessity of paying their way. Our Chairman, the Honourable Richard Nugent, addressing his shareholders at the time, put the matter rather neatly. He said: "The case, as recommended by the Majority Report, stands thus—the Government to find the money for purchasing the railways; the Government to guarantee the interest on the capital cost; the County Councils to work the railways on uncommercial lines; the Government to pay to the extent of 250,000 pounds a year any deficiency incurred by uncommercial management; and any further annual losses to be paid by the County Councils striking a general rate, which you and I and all of us would be required to pay." He added, "Does this seem a businesslike proposal?"

The Government took no steps towards carrying out the Recommendations of either Report. Perhaps they thought them so nearly divided, and so almost evenly balanced, that the one neutralised the other. They may also have thought that each Report made it clear that the Irish railways were well managed, not lacking in enterprise or energy, were doing well for the country; and that, therefore, the wisest course was to "let well alone."

Were we living in ordinary times, had there been no world-wide war, with its vast upheavals and colossal changes, it would be both interesting and profitable to further discuss the Reports, their conclusions and recommendations; but the war has altered the whole railway situation, and it would be idle to do so now. Victor Hugo says: "Great events have incalculable consequences," which is unquestionably true in respect of the railways and the war. The vital question now in regard, not only to the railways of Ireland, but to the railways of the whole United Kingdom, is as to their future. It is, however, with the Irish railways I am specially concerned, and of them I may pretend to have a little knowledge, which must be my excuse for saying a few words more on the subject.

The Irish railways, like those of Great Britain, are at present controlled by the Government, under the Regulation of the Forces Act, 1871—a war arrangement which is to be continued, under the powers of the Ministry of Transport Act, for a further period of two years, "with a view to affording time for the consideration and formulation of the policy to be pursued as to the future position" of the railways. This arrangement, temporary in its nature, provides, as is pretty generally known, that during its continuance, the railway companies shall be guaranteed the same net income as they earned in the year preceding the war, viz., 1913. So far so good. But two years will quickly pass; and what then? It is also generally known that the Government control of the railways, during the war and since, has resulted in enormous additions to the working expenses. Perhaps these additions were inevitable. The cost of coal, and of all materials used in the working of railways, advanced by leaps and bounds; but the biggest increase has been in the wages bill. The Government granted these increases of wages, and also conceded shorter hours of labour, involving an immensity of expense, on their own responsibility, without consultation with the Irish railway companies. Upon the Irish railway companies, for the present position of affairs no responsibility, therefore, rests. Again I say, the course which the Government adopted was, perhaps, inevitable. They had to win the war. Labour was clamorous and insistent, and serious trouble threatened. High reasons of State may be presumed to have dictated the Government policy. Anyhow the thing is done, and the hard fact remains that the Irish railways have been brought to such a financial condition that, if they were handed back to the companies, many of them not only could not pay any dividends but would be unable to meet their fixed charges whilst some would not be able to even pay their working expenses.

In England the opinion is held that a proper balance between receipts and expenditure can be restored by increased charges and reduced expenditure. This may be so in England, with its teeming population and its almost illimitable industrial resources. As to that I venture no opinion, but Ireland is very differently situated. It is mainly an agricultural country, and for most of its railways no such promising prospect can, it seems to me, be discerned. To unduly increase rates would diminish traffic and induce competition by road and sea. Past experience teaches this.

It used to be said that railway companies asserted, in justification of their rates, that they were fixed on the principle of "what the traffic could bear," and the companies were reproached on the ground that the principle involved an injustice, but a principle which involved the imposition of rates beyond what the traffic could bear, could hardly be said to be either sound or just. However that may be, the Government have imposed upon the Irish railways a burden of working expenses which they cannot bear. What is the remedy? Whatever course is adopted, it is devoutly to be hoped that it will be fair and just to the proprietors of a railway system, which has done so much for Ireland, and in respect of which the proprietors have received on their capital an annual return averaging less than 4 per cent.! No bloated capitalists these. Irish railway shareholders largely consist of people of moderate means, and their individual holdings, on the Midland Great-Western, for example, average only 570 pounds per shareholder.

Whilst I am by nature optimistic, I must confess that in these latter days my optimism occasionally receives a shock. Nevertheless, I believe that the spirit of justice still animates the British people and Parliament; that fair treatment will be accorded to the owners of Irish railways, and that they shall not suffer by the policy which the Government, under the stress of war, have pursued. Railway directors are alive to the seriousness of the position, and may I think be trusted to see that no precaution will be neglected to secure for their companies fair terms from the Government. Shareholders also I am glad to observe are banding themselves together for the protection of their interests.



CHAPTER XXIX. THE GENERAL MANAGERS' CONFERENCE, GOODAY'S DINNER, AND DIVERS MATTERS

Soon after the Vice-Regal Commission had concluded its public sittings, and long before its Reports were issued, I had the pleasure of receiving from the associated companies a cordial minute of appreciation of the work I had done, accompanied by a handsome cheque. Nor was this mark of appreciation confined to me. My friend, Croker Barrington, Solicitor to the Committee, who had given yeoman service, and my capable assistants, were not overlooked.

Sir William Goulding was proud of his chairmanship, and well he might be, for during the long and trying period of the Inquiry he kept his team well together and (no easy task) discharged the duties of Chairman with admirable tact and ability. He was well entitled to the Resolution of cordial thanks which the associated companies accorded to him. I should, I feel, be lacking in gratitude if I failed to acknowledge also the invaluable help afforded me by my brother managers, help ungrudgingly and unstintingly given.

The Irish railways did not stand still. Their march along the path of progress and improvement continued sans interruption. From 1906 to 1910 (the Commission period) railway business, measured by receipts, advanced in Ireland by seven per cent., compared with six per cent. in England and three per cent. in Scotland!

In November, 1909, as was my habit unless prevented by other important duties, I attended the General Managers' Conference at the Railway Clearing House in London, and to my surprise and delight was unanimously elected Chairman of the Conference for the ensuing year, the first and only occasion on which the Manager of an Irish railway has been selected to fill that office.

The Conference consists of the General Managers of all railways who are parties to the London Clearing House, which means all the principal railways of the United Kingdom. Other Conferences there were such as the Goods Managers', the Superintendents', the Claims Conference, etc., but it was the General Managers' Conference that dealt with the most important matters.

I remember that, in returning thanks for my election, I ventured on a few remarks which I thought appropriate to the occasion. Amongst other things I said it was breaking new ground for the Conference to look to Ireland for a Pope, but that in doing so they exhibited a catholicity of outlook which did them honor; and I added that, in filling the high office to which they had elected me, though I should certainly never pretend to the infallibility of His Holiness, I should no doubt find it necessary at times to exercise his authority. At ten o'clock in the morning this little attempt at pleasantry seemed to be rather unexpected, but it raised a laugh, which, of course, was something to the good. The Conference was a businesslike assembly that prided itself on getting through much work with little talk—an accomplishment uncommon at any time, and particularly uncommon in these latter days. In these restless days when—

"What this troubled old world needs, Is fewer words and better deeds."

My year of office quickly passed and I got through it without discredit, indeed my successor to the chair, Sir (then Mr.) Sam Fay, writing me just after his election, said that I "had won golden opinions," and expressed the hope that he would do as well. Of course he did better, for he was far more experienced than I in British railway affairs, and this was only his modesty. My friend Sir William (then Mr.) Forbes was my immediate predecessor as Chairman, and to him I was indebted for the suggestion to the Conference that I should succeed him in the occupancy of the chair.

Early in the year 1910 a delightful duty devolved upon me, the duty of presiding at a farewell dinner to J. F. S. Gooday, General Manager of the Great Eastern Railway, to celebrate his retirement from that position, and his accession to the Board of Directors. For some years it had been the custom, when a General Manager retired, for his colleagues to entertain him to dinner, and for the Chairman of the Conference to officiate as Chairman at the dinner. Gooday's brother Managers flocked to London from all parts of the kingdom to do him honor, for whilst he was esteemed for his ability as a manager, he was loved for his qualities as a man. Of refined tastes, including a penchant for blue china, being a thriving bachelor, he was able to gratify them. We were so fond of him that the best of dinners was not enough, in our estimation, to worthily mark the occasion and to give him the pleasure he wished, and we presented to him some rare blue vases which Cousin Pons himself would have been proud to possess.

By virtue of my office of Chairman of the Conference, I also, during 1910, sat as a member of the Council of the Railway Companies' Association. This Association, of which I have not yet spoken, merits a word or two. As described by its present Secretary, Mr. Arthur B. Cane, it is "a voluntary Association of railway companies, established for the purpose of mutual consultation upon matters affecting their common interests, and is the result of a gradual development." It dates back as far as the year 1854, when a meeting of Railway Directors was held in London to consider certain legislative proposals which resulted in the Railway and Canal Traffic Act of that year. In its present form it consists of all the principal railway companies of the United Kingdom, each Company being represented by its Chairman, Deputy Chairman, General Manager and Solicitor. A Director of any so associated Company, who is a Member of Parliament, is also ex officio a member of the Association. As its membership increased it was found that the Association was inconveniently large for executive purposes, and some twenty years or so ago a Council was formed with power to represent the Association on all questions affecting general railway interests. At this moment this Council is engaged in looking after the interests of the railway companies in the matter of the great Ways and Communications Bill. By the suffrages and goodwill of my colleagues in Ireland, who had the election of one member, I remained on the Council till the end of the year 1912. Mr. Cane states that "The Association has always preserved its original character of a purely voluntary association, and has been most careful to safeguard the independence of its individual members." Also, that it has "been expressly provided by its constitution that no action shall be taken by the Council unless the members are unanimous." For many years Sir Henry Oakley was its honorary secretary, performing con amore the duties which were by no means light, but in 1898 it was resolved to appoint a paid secretary and to establish permanent offices, which now are located in Parliament Street, Westminster. Mr. (now Sir Guy) Granet was the first paid secretary, Mr. Temple Franks succeeded him, and Mr. Cane, as I have already mentioned, is the present occupant of the office.

In the autumn of 1910 I visited the English Lakes and spent a fortnight in that beautiful district, in the company, for the first few days, of Walter Bailey; and during the latter part of the fortnight, with E. A. Pratt as a companion. It was the last holiday Bailey and I spent together, though happily at various intervals we afterwards met and dined together in London, and our letters to each other only ended with his lamented death.

In the year 1913 a new form of Railway Accounts came into operation. This new form became compulsory for all railways by the passing, in 1911, of the Railway Companies (Accounts and Returns) Act. This Act is the last general railway enactment that I shall have to mention, for no legislation of importance affecting railways was passed between 1911 and 1913; and since the war began no such legislation has even been attempted, excepting always the Ways and Communications Bill which, as I write, is pursuing its course through the House of Commons.

The form of half-yearly accounts prescribed by the Regulation of Railways Act, 1868, admirable as they were, in course of time were found to be insufficient and unsatisfactory. They failed to secure, in practice, such uniformity as was necessary to enable comparisons to be made between the various companies, and in 1903 a Committee of Railway Accountants was appointed by the Railway Companies' Association to study the subject, with the view of securing uniformity of practice amongst British railways in preparing and publishing their accounts. This Committee, after an expenditure of much time and trouble, prepared a revised form, but the companies failed to agree to their general adoption, and without legislation, compulsion could not of course be applied. This led to the Board of Trade, who were keen on uniformity, appointing, in 1906, a Departmental Committee on the subject. On this Committee sat my friend Walter Bailey. The Committee heard much evidence, considered the subject very thoroughly, and recommended new forms of Accounts and Statistical Returns, which were (practically as drawn up) embodied in the Act of 1911, and are now the law of the land. From the shareholders' point of view the most important changes are the substitution of annual accounts for half-yearly ones, and the adoption of a uniform date for the close of the financial year. In addition to the many improvements in the direction of clearness and simplicity which the new form of accounts effected, the following two important changes were made:—

(1) All information relating to the subsidiary enterprises of a company to be shown separately to that relating to the railway itself

(2) A strict separation to be made of the financial statements from those which were of a purely statistical character

The first of these alterations had become desirable from the fact that practically all the larger railway companies had, in the course of years, added to their railway business proper such outside enterprises as steamships, docks, wharves, harbours, hotels, etc.

One bright morning, in the autumn of 1911, I was summoned to the telephone by my friend the Right Honorable Laurence A. Waldron, then a Director of the Dublin and Kingstown Railway, and now its Chairman. He said there was a vacancy on the Kingstown Board; and, supposing the seat was offered to me, would I be free to accept it? As everybody knows, it is not usual for a railway manager, so long as he remains a manager, to be a director of his own or of any other company; so, "I must consult my Chairman," said I. The Dublin and Kingstown being a worked, not a working line, the duties of its directors, though important are not onerous, and my Chairman and Board readily accorded their consent. Such was my first happy start as a railway director.

[The Gresham Salver: salver.jpg]

The Dublin and Kingstown has the distinction of being the first railway to be constructed in Ireland. Indeed, for five years it was the only railway in that country. Opened as far back as 1834, it was amongst the earliest of the railway lines of the whole United Kingdom. The Stockton and Darlington (1825), the Manchester and Liverpool (1830), and the Dundee and Newtyle (1831), were its only predecessors. Soon after its construction it was extended from Kingstown to Dalkey, a distance of 1.75 miles. This extension was constructed and worked on the atmospheric system, a method of working railways which failed to fulfil expectations, with the result that the Dalkey branch was, in 1856, changed to an ordinary locomotive line.

The atmospheric system of working railways found favour for a time, and was tried on the West London Railway, on the South Devon system, and in other parts of Great Britain, also in France, but nowhere was it permanently successful. The reason of the failure of the system on the Dalkey extension, Mr. Waldron tells me (and he knows all about his railway, as a Chairman should) was due to the impossibility of keeping the metal disc airtight. The disc, shaped like a griddle, was edged with leather which had to be heavily greased to enable it to be drawn through the pipe from which the air was pumped out, in order to create a vacuum, and the rats, like nature, abhorring a vacuum, gnawed the greasy leather, letting in the air, and bringing the train to a standstill!

The Kingstown Railway was also interesting in another respect, as illustrating the opposition which confronted railways in those early days. There was a Mr. Thomas Michael Gresham, who was the owner of the well-known Gresham Hotel in Dublin, and largely interested in house property in Kingstown—Gresham Terrace there is called after him. He organised a successful opposition to the Dublin and Kingstown Railway being allowed—though authorised by Parliament—to go into Kingstown, and its terminus was for some years Salthill Station (Monkstown) a mile away. Mr. Gresham's action was so highly appreciated—incredible as it now appears—that he was presented with a testimonial and a piece of plate for his "spirited and patriotic action." I have adorned this book with a photograph of the salver which, with the inscription it bears, will I think, in these days, be not uninteresting.

The year 1911 was darkened for me by the shadow of death. During its course I lost my wife, who succumbed to an illness which had lasted for several years, an illness accompanied with much pain and suffering borne with great courage and endurance.



CHAPTER XXX. FROM MANAGER TO DIRECTOR

I had long cherished the hope that when, in the course of time, I sought to retire from the active duties of railway management, I might, perhaps, be promoted to a seat on the Board of the Company. Presumptuous though the thought may have been, I had the justification that it was not discouraged by some of my Directors, to whom, in the intimacy of after dinner talk, I sometimes broached the subject. But I little imagined the change would come as soon as it did. I had fancied that my managerial activities would continue until I attained the usual age for retirement—three score years and five. On this I had more or less reckoned, but

"There's a divinity that shapes our ends Rough hew them how we will,"

and it came to pass that at sixty-one I exchanged my busy life for a life of comparative ease. And this is how it came about. A vacancy on the Board of Directors unexpectedly occurred in October, 1912, while I was in Paris on my way home from a holiday in Switzerland and Italy. I there received a letter informing me that the Board would offer me the vacant seat if it really was my wish to retire so soon. Not a moment did I hesitate. Such an opportunity might never come again; so like a prudent man, I "grasped the skirts of happy chance," and the 5th day of November, 1912, saw me duly installed as a Director of the Company which I had served as Manager for close upon twenty-two years. It was an early age, perhaps, to retire from that active life to which I had been accustomed, but as Doctor Johnson says, "No man is obliged to do as much as he can do. A man is to have a part of his life to himself." I made the plunge and have never since regretted it. It has given me more leisure for pursuits I love, and time has never hung heavy on my hands. On the contrary, I have found the days and hours all too short. Coincident with this change came a piece of good fortune of which I could not have availed myself had not this alteration in my circumstances taken place. Whilst in Paris I heard that Mr. Lewis Harcourt (now Viscount Harcourt), then Colonial Secretary, had expressed a wish to see me as I passed through London, and on the 28th of October, I had an interview with him at his office in the House of Commons. There was a vacancy, he informed me, on the recently appointed Dominions' Royal Commission, occasioned by the resignation of Sir Charles Owens, late General Manager of the London and South-Western Railway, and a railway man was wanted to fill his place. I had been mentioned to him; would I accept the position? It involved, he said, a good deal of work and much travelling—voyages to Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and Newfoundland. Two years, he expected, would enable the whole of the work to be done, and about twelve months' absence from England, perhaps rather more, but not in continuous months, would be necessary. It was a great honor to be asked, and I had no hesitation in telling him that as I was on the eve of being freed from regular active work, I would be more than happy to undertake the duty, but—"But what?" he inquired. I was but very recently married, I said, and how could I leave my wife to go to the other side of the globe alone? No need to do that, said he; your wife can accompany you; other ladies are going too. Then I gratefully accepted the offer, and with high delight, for would I not see more of the great world, and accomplish useful public work at the same time. Duty and pleasure would go hand in hand. I need not hide the fact that it was one of my then Directors, now my colleague, and always my friend, Sir Walter Nugent, Baronet (then a Member of Parliament), who, having been spoken to on the subject, was the first to mention my name to Mr. Harcourt.

Soon after my retirement from the position of Manager of the Midland, my colleagues of the Irish railway service, joined by the Managers of certain steamship companies that were closely associated with the railways of Ireland, entertained me to a farewell dinner. Mr. James Cowie, Secretary and Manager of the Belfast and Northern Counties Section of the Midland Railway of England (Edward John Cotton's old line), presided at the banquet, which took place in Dublin on the 9th of January, 1913. It was a large gathering, a happy occasion, though tinged inevitably with regrets. Warm-hearted friends surrounded me, glad that one of their number, having elected to retire, should be able to do so in health and strength, and with such a smiling prospect before him.

When I became a Midland Director, Mr. Nugent was no longer Chairman of the Board. He had been called hence, after only a few days' illness at the Company's Hotel at Mallaranny, near Achill Island, where, in January, 1912, he had gone for a change. In him the company lost a faithful guardian and I a valued friend. He was succeeded by Major H. C. Cusack (the Deputy Chairman), who is still the Chairman of the Company. A country gentleman of simple tastes and studious habits, Major Cusack, though fond of country life, devotes the greater part of his time to business, especially to the affairs of the Midland and of an important Bank of which he is the Deputy-Chairman. The happy possessor of an equable temperament and great assiduity he accomplishes a considerable amount of work with remarkable ease. For his many estimable qualities he is greatly liked.

On the 14th of November I made my debut as a Dominions' Royal Commissioner, at the then headquarters of the Commission, Scotland House, Westminster. Soon the Commissioners were to start on their travels, and were at that time holding public sittings and taking evidence.

This is a narrative of railway life at home, not of Imperial matters abroad, and it is therefore clearly my duty not to wander too far from my theme; nevertheless my readers will perhaps forgive me if in my next chapter I give some account of the Commission and its doings. The fact that I was placed on the Commission chiefly because I was a railway man is, after all, some excuse for my doing so.



CHAPTER XXXI. THE DOMINIONS' ROYAL COMMISSION, THE RAILWAYS OF THE DOMINIONS AND EMPIRE DEVELOPMENT

For the first time in the history of the British Empire a Royal Commission was appointed on which sat representatives of the United Kingdom side by side with representatives of the self-governing Dominions. This Commission consisted of eleven members—six representing Great Britain and Ireland and five (one each) the Dominions of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, and Newfoundland. The Commission came into being in April, 1912. It was the outcome of a Resolution of the Imperial Conference of 1911. The members of that Conference and of others which preceded it had warmly expressed the opinion that the time had arrived for drawing closer the bonds of Empire; that with the increase in facilities for communication and intercourse there had developed a deepened sense of common aims and ideals and a recognition of common interests and purposes; and that questions were arising affecting not only Imperial trade and commerce but also the many other inter-relations of the Dominions and the Mother Country which clamantly called for closer attention and consideration. The time at the command of the Conference was found to be too short for such a purpose, and it was to study problems thus arising, and to make practical recommendations that our Commission was appointed.

The individuals forming the Commission were, first and foremost, Lord D'Abernon (then Sir Edgar Vincent). He was our Chairman, the biggest man of us all; ex-banker, financial expert, accomplished linguist; a sportsman whose horse last year won the Irish St. Leger; an Admirable Crichton; an excellent Chairman. Then came Sir Alfred Bateman, retired high official of the Board of Trade, a master of statistics and unequalled in experience of Commissions and Conferences. He was our Chairman in Canada and Newfoundland and a most capable Chairman he made. Sir Rider Haggard, novelist, ranked third; a master of fact as well as of fiction; a high Imperialist, and versed both theoretically and practically in agriculture and forestry. Next came Sir William (then Mr.) Lorimer of Glasgow, a man of great business experience, an expert authority in all matters appertaining to iron and steel and in fact all metals and minerals. He was Chairman of the North British Locomotive Company and of the Steel Company of Scotland, also a Director of my old company, the Glasgow and South-Western Railway. Then Mr. Tom Garnett (christened Tom), an expert in the textile trade of Lancashire, owning and operating a spinning mill in Clitheroe; a good business man as well as a student of "high politics," a scholar and a gentleman. Of the last and least, my humble self, I need not speak, as with him the reader is well acquainted.

Canada's representative was the Right Honorable Sir George Foster, Minister of Trade and Commerce, steeped in matters of State, experienced in affairs, a keen politician and a gifted orator.

Australia selected as her representative Mr. Donald Campbell, a clever man, well read and of varied attainments, sometime journalist, editor, lawyer, Member of Parliament, and I don't know what else.

The Honorable Sir (then Mr.) J. R. Sinclair was New Zealand's excellent choice. A barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of his country, he had retired from practice but was actively engaged in various commercial and educational concerns and was a member of the Legislative Council of New Zealand.

South Africa's member was, first, Sir Richard Solomon, High Commissioner for the Union of South Africa in London. He died in November, 1913, when Sir Jan Langerman took his place. Sir Jan was an expert in mining, ex- President of the Rand Chamber of Mines, and ex-Managing Director of the Robinson Group, also a Member of the Legislative Assembly of South Africa. Keen and clever in business and a polished man of the world, he was a valuable addition to the Commission.

Lastly, Newfoundland was represented by the Honorable Edgar (now Sir Edgar) Bowring, President and Managing Director of a large firm of steamship owners. He was experienced in the North Atlantic trade, in seal, whale and cod fishing and other Newfoundland industries. He was also a member of the Newfoundland Legislative Council.

Such were the members of the Commission. All endowed with sound common sense and some gifted with imagination.

Shortly stated the main business of the Commission was to inquire into and report upon:—

(a) The natural resources of the five self-governing Dominions and the best means of developing these resources

(b) The trade of these parts of the Empire with the United Kingdom, each other, and the rest of the world

(c) Their requirements, and those of the United Kingdom, in the matter of food and raw materials, together with the available sources of supply

The Commission was also empowered to make recommendations and suggest methods, consistent with then existing fiscal policy, by which the trade of each of the self-governing Dominions with the others, and with the United Kingdom, could be improved and extended.

Mr. E. J. Harding, C.M.G., was our Secretary. An Oxford man of distinction, a member of the permanent staff of the Colonial Office, studious, enthusiastic, energetic, of rare temper, tact and patience, he was all such a Commission could desire. He and three or four assistants, with local officers selected by the Governments in each of the Dominions, one and all most capable men, formed a Secretariat that served us well.

The Commission started operations by taking evidence in London in the autumn of 1912, but its main work lay in the Dominions, and on the 10th of January, 1913, we sailed for Australia and New Zealand, touching at Fremantle (Western Australia), Adelaide (South Australia), Melbourne (Victoria), and Hobart (Tasmania) on our way.

In New Zealand we travelled through the island from south to north, staying in that beautiful country for nearly a month, and holding sittings in the principal cities. One sitting we held in the train—a record surely for a Royal Commission. Easter intervening, we indulged in a few days' holiday in the wonderful Rotorua district, where we enjoyed its hot springs, its geysers, its rivers, its lakes and its Maori villages. Returning to Sydney, we travelled northwards to Queensland and there entered seriously upon our Australian duties, holding sittings at Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Hobart and Perth. In Queensland we penetrated north as far as Bundaberg, Gladstone, Rockhampton and Mount Morgan. In the other States tours were made through the irrigation areas of New South Wales and Victoria, and visits paid to the mines at Broken Hill (New South Wales), the Zeehan district and Mount Lyall (Tasmania); Iron Knob (South Australia), and Kalgoorlie (Western Australia). Some of our party penetrated to remoter parts of Australia such as Cairns (Northern Queensland), Condobolin (west of New South Wales), and Oodnadatta (Central Australia), still the furthest point of railway extension toward the great Northern Territory.

To Tasmania we were able to devote a few days, taking evidence and enjoying its wonderful beauty.

Finally, we left Australia on the 9th of June, four months after our first landing on its sunny shores.

On arriving home it was determined that for the remainder of the year 1913 we should remain in England and take further evidence in London.

We resumed our travels in January, 1914, when we left for South Africa. There we held a number of sittings, taking evidence at Capetown, Oudtshoorn, Port Elizabeth, East London, Kimberley, Bloemfontein, Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Pretoria and Johannesburg. Our journeys to these various places were so planned as to involve our travelling over most of the principal railway lines of the Union, so that we were able to see a considerable portion of its beautiful scenery as well as its great mining and pastoral industries. Our work finished, most of us returned direct to England, but some were able to penetrate northwards into Rhodesia, and return by way of the East Coast of Africa.

It was our intention, after taking further evidence in London, to proceed to Canada and Newfoundland, and to return home before the winter began, when we looked forward to making our Final Report. This intention we partially fulfilled, as in July, 1914, we sailed from Liverpool, and after exchanging steamers at Rimouski, landed at St. John's, Newfoundland. There we stayed for a few days whilst the crisis in Europe deepened. We then travelled through the island by railway and crossed to the Maritime Provinces of Canada. On that fatal day in August on which war broke out we were in Nova Scotia. A few days after, the British Government, considering that under such conditions we could not finish our work in Canada, called us home. In common with many of our countrymen we indulged in the hope that the duration of the war would be a matter of months and not of years, and that we should be able to resume our work in Canada in the autumn of 1915. But this was not to be. However, in 1916, the Governments represented on the Commission came to the conclusion that the completion of our work ought not to be longer delayed, and accordingly, in August, 1916, we sailed again to Canada.

In the Maritime Provinces of Canada, in 1914, we visited Sydney, Cape Breton, Halifax, the Annapolis Valley and Digby in Nova Scotia; St. John, Fredericton and Moncton in New Brunswick, and Charlottetown in Prince Edward Island.

In 1916 the resumption of our Canadian work began at Montreal. Thereafter, the great mining districts of Northern Ontario engaged our attention, where, amongst other valuable products of the earth, nickel, silver and gold abound. From Ontario we travelled westward to Prince Rupert on the British Columbian coast, holding sittings at Saskatoon, Edmonton and Prince Rupert. We then proceeded by steamer, through glorious scenery, southward to Victoria, Vancouver Island. At Victoria and also at Vancouver we took evidence. From Vancouver we journeyed eastwards by the Canadian Pacific Railway over the Rockies, breaking our journey and holding sittings at Vernon, in the Okanagan Valley, at Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec, devoting several days each to many of these places. Whilst in British Columbia we also visited the lower part of the Okanagan Valley, and whilst in the prairie provinces stopped at Medicine Hat (where the gas lamps burn day and night because it would cost more in wages than the cost of the gas to employ a man to turn them out). In Ontario we visited North Bay, Fort William, Port Arthur, Guelph and Niagara Falls. In addition some of us travelled through the mining districts of British Columbia, and also inspected the asbestos mines at Thetford, in the Province of Quebec.

This is the bald outline of our long and interesting journeys, which by land and sea comprehended some 70,000 miles. How bald it is I keenly feel, and it would afford me more pleasure than I can tell to give some account of our wonderful experiences—of the delight of sailing in southern seas; of the vast regions of the mainland of Australia; of the marvels of its tropical parts; of the entrancing beauty of New Zealand and Tasmania; of the wonders of Canada, the variety of its natural productions, its magnificent wheat-growing areas; of the charm of South Africa with its glorious climate and its beautiful rolling veldt. What a memory it all is! Tranquil seas, starlit nights, the Southern Cross, noble forests, glorious mountains, mighty rivers, boundless plains; young vigorous communities under sunny skies, with limitless space in which to expand. I should love to enlarge on these things, but a sense of proportion and propriety restrains my pen.

In all the Dominions we were received with the warmest of welcomes and most generous hospitality—governments, municipalities and corporations vieing with each other in doing us honor, whilst private individuals loaded us with kindness. It was clear that our mission was popular, and clear too that affection for the old country was warm and lively. I cannot attempt to narrate all that was done for us—banquets, receptions, excursions, garden parties, concerts—time and space will not allow. But I cannot be altogether silent about the splendid special train which the South African Government placed at our disposal from the time we left Capetown until we reached Johannesburg, which (taking evidence at the various places on the way) occupied several weeks. This sumptuous train consisted of dining car, sleeping cars and parlour car, was liberally staffed and provisioned; with a skilful chef, polite and attentive waiters and attendants. It was practically our hotel during those forty days or more.

In Australia and New Zealand, more than once, the various governments provided us with special cars or special trains to visit their remoter districts with the greatest possible comfort. The same was the case in Newfoundland, whilst the Canadian Government lent to us a steamer—the Earl Grey—for our journey from Rimouski to Newfoundland, which since has done good service for the Allied cause in the war.

In Canada we travelled from Montreal to Prince Rupert, some 3,000 miles, in a handsome and most commodious car kindly lent to us by Sir Daniel Mann, one of the founders of the Canadian Northern Railway. It, too, was our home and hotel during the ten days which that journey occupied. The longest passenger vehicle I had ever seen, it had ample kitchen, dining room, sitting room, sleeping and "observation" accommodation for us all, with an excellent bathroom and the luxury of a shower bath.

On all our journeys to and from the Dominions, and in all our expeditions by sea or by land, my wife accompanied me. She was an excellent traveller. There is considerable difference in our years; but, as Dickens has said: "There can be no disparity in marriage save unsuitability of mind and purpose." The only lady who accompanied the Commission everywhere, she was sometimes called "The Lady Commissioner." One must not praise one's own, but this much I may say: Her Irish wit and bright unselfish ways made her, everywhere and always, a welcome addition to the Commission party.

After November, 1916, we held no more public sittings, took no further evidence, but sat down at Spencer House (one of the many stately London residences lent by their owners to the Government during the war) and there, in its ballroom, industriously worked out our Final Report. This, of course, reviewed the whole subject of our inquiry and embodied our final conclusions and recommendations. To the credit of the Commission be it said, these conclusions and recommendations were entirely unanimous, as also were those in each of our Interim Reports, published in connection with the Dominions separately.

In this Final Report the subject of railways was not included. Railways of course formed part of our inquiry, but they were dealt with in our Interim Reports.

To a large extent railways were more a matter of domestic than of Imperial concern, but as the development of the resources of the Dominions depended greatly upon the adequacy of railway transit, the subject came within the province of our inquiry. I will not trouble the reader with statistics (which can be readily obtained elsewhere) beyond the following statement which represented, at the time we made our investigations, the railway mileage and the population in each Dominion compared with the United Kingdom:—

Miles of Population. Number of Railway. Inhabitants per Mile of Railway. Canada 35,600 8,075,000 280 Australia 18,000 4,500,000 250 South Africa 8,800 1,300,000{207a} 150{207b} New Zealand 2,900 1,052,000{207a} 370 Newfoundland 800 250,000 320 United Kingdom 23,500 46,000,000 1,950

It is clear that railway construction has not been neglected in the Dominions, and that, measured by population, the mileage is considerable. Speaking generally, the Dominion railways are highly efficient and serve their purpose well. Extensions were being projected and many were in course of construction for the further development of natural resources and of trade and commerce.

In Australia the railways, with the exception of certain lines belonging to the Commonwealth, are owned and worked by the several States. We found them paying full interest on the cost of construction, and sound assets of the country. The cost of working was, however, greatly increasing, due mainly to increase of salaries and wages. How this stands since the war I do not know; but that expenses have further advanced goes without saying. An important railway witness whom we examined expressed the opinion that increased expenditure could be recouped by increased rates. Perhaps that is still true. If it is, the railways of Australia are happier than most of the railways in Ireland.

The railways of New Zealand belong to and are worked by the Government. For many years the Government, looking upon the railways as an adjunct to the settlement and development of the country, only expected them to return 3 per cent. interest on the capital expended. In 1909 this policy, however, was modified, 3.75 to 4 per cent. being then regarded as a proper result, and this result was accomplished. Water power in New Zealand is so abundant that the adoption of electricity for railway working has been engaging the attention of the Government. Many, well qualified to judge, were satisfied that it would prove more economical than steam locomotion.

In both Australia and New Zealand, borrowing for railway construction had been by means of general loans raised for all kinds of Government expenditure. We came to the conclusion that if loans for reproductive works, such as railways, had been segregated from others, it would have helped the raising of capital, and probably secured easier terms.

The construction of railways in Canada has, in recent years, proceeded at a rapid pace. We found that the mileage had doubled since the beginning of the present century, due, to a large extent, to the construction of two new Trans-Continental lines. The grain-growing districts of the prairie provinces, south of latitude 54 degrees, are now covered with a network of railways, and British Columbia has three through routes to Eastern Canada.

The enterprise of the principal Canadian railway companies is remarkable. They own and operate not only railways, but also hotels, ferry services, grain elevators, lake and coast steamers, as well as Trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific steamers. One company also has irrigation works, and ready- made farms for settlers in the prairie provinces. But Canada lies so near to us, and in the British Press its railways receive such constant attention, that I need not descant further upon them.

In South Africa, with the exception of about 500 miles mainly in the Cape Province, the railways are all Government owned, and are worked as one unified system. The Act of Union (1909) prescribed that the railways and the harbours (which are also Government owned and worked) were to be administered on business principles, and that the total earnings should not exceed the necessary expenditure for working and for interest on capital. Whenever they did, reductions in the rates, or the provision of greater facilities, were to restore the balance. This provision also had the effect of preventing the imposition of taxation upon the community by means of railway rates. The Act contained another practical clause, designed to block the construction of lines from political considerations. Any line constructed contrary to the advice of the Railway Board, if it resulted in loss, the loss was to be a charge, not upon the general railway revenue, but upon the Consolidated Fund—a useful "brake," which I have no doubt has often pulled up hasty and impetuous politicians.

South African railways enjoy one great advantage—cheap coal for their engines. In 1913 the average cost at the pit's mouth was 4s. 11.5d. per ton.

The railways of Newfoundland have had a chequered history. Now they are Government property, worked by a private company under a 50 years' lease, which dates from 1901, and under that lease no rent is paid. As the capital expenditure (about 3,000,000 pounds) averages less than 4,000 pounds per mile, it may be conceived that the railway system of Newfoundland is not of an extravagant character, and in my humble opinion, the country deserves something much better. In our fourth report (on Newfoundland) we stated: "It must also be said that the state of the permanent way does not conduce to speedy or comfortable travelling."

The gauges of the Dominions' railways are very varied. In Australia there are three—5ft. 3in., 4ft. 8.5in. and 3ft. 6in., with some 300 miles or so of less than 3ft. 6in. The Commonwealth has for some time been considering the conversion of the lines into one standard gauge, the British gauge of 4ft. 8.5in. being favoured. The cost of this conversion naturally increases the longer action is deferred, and in any case would be very great. It was officially estimated at the time of our visit at 37,000,000 pounds.

New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Newfoundland are each the happy possessor of one gauge only. In Canada it is the British gauge of 4ft. 8.5in., and in New Zealand, South Africa and Newfoundland, 3ft. 6in.

Our Final Report was signed on the 21st of February, 1917, and published as a Blue Book in the usual way, but, what is rarely done with any Blue Book, it was also published in handy book-form, bound in cloth, at the popular price of 1s. 6d. Blue Books do sometimes contain matter of general interest, are sometimes well written and readable, and would be more read if presented to the public in a handy form such as we succeeded in publishing.

The main purposes of the Commission I have already briefly stated. They embraced many subjects for inquiry and study, of which the following are the most important, and regarding each of which it may be appropriate to say a word or two:—



External Trade of the Self-Governing Dominions

We ascertained and compiled in detail, tables of the Imports and Exports, distinguishing Trade with (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the other parts of the Empire, and (c) with foreign countries. The figures showed the need there was for an Imperial trade policy, which should lead to British manufacturers and merchants cultivating more the Dominion markets, and utilising more the vast resources of raw materials which the Dominions possess. We found that a detailed examination of existing conditions, and practical and definite proposals for the removal of difficulties, were required.



Natural Resources of the Dominions

In regard to agricultural matters we gathered and published much information, finding that in one part or other of the Dominions all animals and almost every crop flourished that are needed by man, that if the products of the more tropical parts of the Empire were taken into account, the Empire could meet more than its own needs; and that if men existed in sufficient numbers in our Dominions, there was scarcely any limit to the external trade they could do. In this part of our Inquiry we found to what a considerable extent people concentrated in large cities to the detriment of the country districts. "Back to the land" is a question there of as much if not greater moment than in the Mother Country. The mineral resources of the Dominions, like the agricultural, provided us with a big subject. In every Province or State, by oral evidence, by official statistics, by discussion with Government geologists, officials of the Mines Departments and others, we gathered a large amount of valuable information. The volumes of printed evidence give full particulars of this and other subjects. The mineral deposits of Canada especially are varied in character and large in respect both of quantity and value—gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, nickel, coal, iron, asbestos, natural gas, petroleum, peat, gypsum—all are found in unstinted quantity. Nor are the other Dominions deficient. The goldfields of Australia are historic, and the silver, lead and zinc mines of Broken Hill deserve particular mention. In South Africa gold and diamonds are plentiful; and Newfoundland has wonderful deposits of iron ore.

In forests and fish the Dominions abound, and possess enormous possibilities of extended trade.



Conservation and Development of Natural Resources in the Future

This subject received our earnest attention. We considered that the various Governments of the Empire should take steps to secure the development and utilisation of their natural wealth on a well considered scheme, and that to do this, a preliminary survey was needed of the relation between Empire production and Empire requirements. No such survey, as far as we knew, had yet been undertaken, but in the Memorandum and Tables relating to the Food and Raw Material Requirements of the United Kingdom, which we submitted to His Majesty in 1915, the Commission had made an effort, not without some measure of success, in this direction. We regarded it as vital that the Empire's supplies of raw material and commodities essential to its safety should be, as far as possible, independent of outside control, and made suggestions which aimed at effecting this object. We recommended that the survey mentioned above should be made by an Imperial Development Board, which should be entrusted with the whole subject.



Scientific Research in Relation to the Development of Natural Resources

We dwelt on the importance of securing to all parts of the Empire adequate facilities for scientific research in connection with the development of their natural resources; and, in connection with this, made certain recommendations as regards the Imperial Institute, for the purpose of increasing its efficiency and usefulness.



Migration

To this important matter we devoted much time and thought, not only in London, but in each of the Dominions as well, obtaining much valuable evidence and personally examining the circumstances and conditions that prevailed. No Imperial question, we considered, could be of greater importance than this. We made many recommendations, some of which have already been adopted, whilst the remainder are coming into great prominence now that the war is over. In the past we found no effort had been made to regulate emigration from the United Kingdom, and we proposed the establishment of a Central Emigration Authority. The surplus of females in the United Kingdom, increased unfortunately by the war, will probably result in many young women seeking their fortune overseas, and we urged increased facilities and better regulations for their migration, showing how best we considered they could be given.



Oversea Communications

To this subject, which embraced sea transport, harbours, waterways, mail communications, postal rates, freight rates, etc., we devoted considerable time, calling attention in particular to an aspect of the question never, so far as I know, investigated before, viz., the urgency of constructing deep harbours suited for the deep draught vessels which alone can carry on cheap and rapid transport. We made recommendations as to the improvements immediately necessary on the great trade routes, and urged that future schemes should be submitted to an Imperial Development Board.



Telegraphic Communications

In the far distant Dominions, cable communication is a matter of great importance to the community; and increased facilities and cheaper rates are much desired. Some of the recommendations we made to this end have since been adopted.



Improvement in Commercial Practice

This presented a large field for inquiry; and, after much investigation, we made recommendations on Trade Intelligence; Trade Commissioners and Correspondents; Consular Service; Improvements in Statistics; Conference of United Kingdom and Dominion Statisticians; and other matters, all of which we considered were of practical necessity.

Lastly, the need of creating an Imperial Development Board engaged our serious attention. Early in our Inquiry we had been impressed with the necessity for the appointment of some board or body whose constant duty it should be to consider questions affecting Imperial trade and development, from the point of view of the interests of the whole Empire. We took some evidence on the subject, discussed it with leading men in the Dominions, gave the question much thought, and finally recommended the establishment of a new Imperial Development Board, which should include not only representatives of the United Kingdom and all the Dominions, but also of India, the Crown Colonies and the Protectorates. In the course of our work we had been much impressed with the inadequacy of existing organisations to deal promptly and efficiently with such matters as the following:—

Telegraphic, cable and shipping communications between the various portions of the Empire

Inter-Imperial mail services and postal rates

The development of harbours and waterways on the great routes of commerce to meet Imperial requirements

Migration as a factor in Empire development and trade

Legislation affecting the mechanism of trade, such as that on patents, companies, copyright, weights and measures, etc.

The application and better utilisation of capital raised in the United Kingdom and other parts of the Empire, towards promoting the development of the Empire's resources

The systematic dissemination throughout the Empire of news bearing upon Imperial questions and interests

The preparation and publication of Imperial statistics

Better organisation for handling and for disposal of the produce of various parts of the Empire

These, and subjects of a similar nature, we considered should be assigned to the proposed Board as its ordinary work; and to the duty of advising the Governments on these matters would be added that of collecting the necessary particulars bearing upon them, involving research not only into the conditions prevailing in the Empire, but into the methods of rival trading countries.

To a large Board we were opposed. We suggested that members should be required to give their whole time to the work, and that representation of the various parts of the Empire might be as follows:—

United Kingdom, India, Crown Colonies and Protectorates 7 Canada 1 Australia 1 New Zealand 1 South Africa 1 Newfoundland 1 12

Such is a brief summary of our Mission, our Report, and our Recommendations.

Whilst we were impressed by the vast extent and infinite variety of the Empire domain we were also touched by the sentiment which held together its widely scattered parts. Without this sentiment, and without loyalty to the Crown and Mother Country, what, we often thought, would happen?

The war has taught us much as to the unity of the Empire. Peace, we may be sure, will bring its own lessons, perhaps its own dangers, in its train. To strengthen the bonds so loosely yet so finely drawn must henceforth be the constant duty of the Statesmen of the Empire. The governing machinery requires overhauling, demands adjustment to the needs of the various sections of the Empire, and to the throbbing anxiety of each to share in the duties and responsibilities of Empire Government and Development.



CHAPTER XXXII. CONCLUSION

The year 1917 terminated our Dominions' Commission work and brought to a close the fiftieth year of my railway life. As if to mark the occasion, Dame Fortune gave me a pleasant surprise, and what it was I will now relate.

In an earlier chapter I have spoken of the Letterkenny to Burtonport Railway (in North-West Donegal), with the early stages of which, in 1897, I had something to do. Now, in 1917, twenty years later, I was to become still more intimately acquainted with it, and, in an unexpected but practical way, concerned in its domestic affairs.

Though the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway Company, which worked the Burtonport line, was a railway of only 14.5 miles in extent, it was entrusted with the working of no less than 85 other miles, 50 of which consisted of the Burtonport railway—a condition of things quite unique: the tail wagging the dog!

The total capital expenditure on the whole of the 100 miles of line worked by the Lough Swilly Company amounted to 727,000 pounds. Of this sum about 500,000 pounds, or 68 per cent., was money provided out of Government funds. The ordinary stock of the Lough Swilly Company was the exceedingly small sum of 50,330 pounds, upon which for twenty years a dividend of 7 per cent. had been regularly paid.

The Burtonport line was opened for traffic in 1903. From the first, its management, to say the least, was faulty and illiberal. So early in its history as 1905 an inquiry into its working was found to be necessary, and I was asked by the Board of Works to undertake the inquiry. I did so, and I had to report unfavourably, for "facts are chiels that winna ding." For some time after my report things went on fairly well, but only for a time. The Board of Works were, by Act of Parliament, custodians of the public interest in the matter of this and other similar railways, and a long-suffering and patient body they were. From time to time they complained, protested, adjured, threatened; sometimes with effect, sometimes without. Years rolled on and matters grew worse. Loud public complaints arose; the patience of the Board of Works exhausted itself, and a climax was reached.

The Railways Ireland Act, 1896, provides that where any railway, constructed under that Act, or under other Irish Light Railway Act, had been aided out of moneys provided by Parliament, the Board of Works might, at any time, appoint "a fit person to inspect and report upon the condition of the undertaking and the working, maintenance and development of the same," and if such "fit person" reported that the undertaking was "not efficiently worked, maintained and developed" the Privy Council might then make an Order appointing a manager or receiver of the undertaking, with such powers as should be specified in the Order. The powers thus given are, it will be observed, certainly drastic.

In April, 1917, Sir George Stevenson, K.C.B., the Chairman of the Board of Works, asked me would I make such an inquiry for them into the Burtonport line, and, considering myself a "fit person," I gladly answered Yes. Sir George Stevenson was Tom Robertson's successor, though not his immediate successor, as another George (Sir George Holmes) came between. He (the reigning Chairman) was, in 1892, appointed a Commissioner of the Board of Works; and in 1913 he attained the position of Chairman; and the chair it is generally conceded has never been better filled. He has the advantage of continuous experience of Treasury business since 1886, and possesses an exceptional knowledge of all matters, local and otherwise, affecting the development of State Railways in Ireland.

My inquiry I may, I am sure, without immodesty, say was thorough and complete. On the 7th of May I presented my report. The facts which I found were such that only one conclusion was possible—the line was not in good condition; was not and had not been efficiently worked, maintained or developed. I will not harrow my readers with a description of its condition. One little quotation from the summing up in my report will suffice to indicate the state of affairs, and, to the imaginative mind, present a picture of the whole. "Everything has for years past been allowed to run down; the direction and management have been characterised by extreme parsimony; and the disabled condition of the engines is undoubtedly due to lack of proper upkeep, which must have been going on for years. The state of the permanent way shows a want of proper maintenance; and the condition of the stations, buildings and of the carriages speaks of neglect."

In fairness, I ought to say that the direction and management responsible for these things are not the direction and management that exist to-day.

Mr. Henry Hunt, the present General Manager of the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Company, was appointed to that position in September, 1916. He came from the Great Central Railway. This is what I said about him in my report: "He is a good railway man, capable and experienced. He has assumed and exercises an authority which none of his predecessors possessed, and is keen to do all he can to improve matters and develop the railway." Further acquaintance with Mr. Hunt has more than confirmed my high opinion of him.

In due time my report was submitted to the Privy Council, which august body, after hearing all that was to be said on the subject by the Lough Swilly Railway Company and others, made an Order which is the first of its kind—an Order which, for a period of two years, took out of the hands of the Lough Swilly Railway Directors the management of the Burtonport Railway, and placed it in the hands of Mr. Hunt, subject to my supervision. The Order said: "Henry Hunt, at present the General Manager of the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway Company, is hereby appointed Manager of the said undertaking of the said railway under and subject to the supervision of Mr. Joseph Tatlow, Director of the Midland Great Western Railway Company of Ireland." Then followed various clauses defining the duties and authority with which Mr. Hunt, as Manager, was invested.

This appointment, to supervise, under the Privy Council, the management of the Burtonport line, was the pleasant surprise which Dame Fortune brought me in my fiftieth year of railway work.

The duties of the office began on the 1st of July, 1917, and the two years prescribed have expired; but Mr. Hunt's management and my supervision have, by Privy Council Order, been extended for a further period. My story may not go beyond fifty years, but this I may say, that what Hunt and I were able to accomplish in the first six months of our novel regime was an augury of what we have accomplished since, and that a grateful public throughout the district of North-West Donegal, which the Burtonport Railway serves, does not stint its praise. Trains are punctual now, engines do not break down, carriages are comfortable, goods traffic is well worked, and delays are exceptional. Much has been done, more would have been done but for difficulties due to the war, and a good deal still remains to be done.

In North-West Donegal, some two years ago, the idea of writing this book was conceived, and with North-West Donegal its pages close. As I lay down my pen, some words which I used in my opening chapter recur to my mind. I then expressed the hope that, in spite of all its drawbacks, my story, if faithfully told, might not be entirely devoid of interest, and now that I have finished my task, I humbly trust that the hope then expressed has been attended with some measure of success, and that my purpose has not altogether failed.



INDEX.

Accidents Compensation Act, 1846 52 Accounts, form of railway 53, 193 Acts of Parliament, general railway 49 Acworth, W M 145, 166, 183 Advertisements on railway stations 66 Alcorn, J., Great Southern & Western Railway 137 Allerton, Lord 109 Allport Commission, 1887 91, 93, 107, 109 Allport, Sir James 15, 22, 35, 39, 76, 77 Analysis of railway accounts 59 Anderson, Alexander, surfaceman poet 79 Andrews, Thomas, and the Titanic 101 Andrews, Thomas, Right Honorable 100, 109, 111 Apollo Belvidera 24 "Appeal unto Caesar" 22 Arbitration, my first case 99 Ardglass Light Railway 108 Aspinall, Sir John 181, 183 Athenry and Ennis Junction, railway rates and charges, Order Confirmation Act, 1892 138 Athenry and Ennis Railway 121, 134, 155 Atmospheric railways 195 Atock, Martin 119, 126, 127 Austria, Empress of 125

Bailey, Walter 99, 151, 193, 194 Bailie, the, Glasgow 61, 79 Baillie, G L 110 "Balfours Act"—Light railways, Ireland 107 Ballinasloe Fair 125 Barrington, Croker 179, 190 Bateman, Sir Alfred, K.C.M.G. 201 "Battle of the Gauges" 52 Beach, Sir Michael Hicks 142 Beaux 77, 98 Belfast and County Down Railway 91, 94 Belgium, a tour in 113 Benedict, a youthful 25 Benefit Society, Midland Great Western Railway 130 "Bigg's General Railway Acts" 48 Birt, Sir William 153 Block working 106 Board of Trade inquiry as to railway rates 104 Board of Trade, the 139 Bowring, the Hon Sir Edgar 202 Boyhood, pleasures and amusements 7 Boyhood, Schoolmaster "Jessie" 9 Bridge Street Station, Glasgow 47, 66 Brother to a baronet 45 Browne, Balfour, K.C 150, 155, 159, 160, 180 Buchanan Street Station, Glasgow 40 Buncrana to Carndonagh Railway 152 Burns, Mr. John (Lord Inverclyde) 73, 133 Burtonport Railway 152, 215 Bushe, Seymour 155, 159 Butterley Tunnel, the 29 Butterworth, Sir Alexander 105

Caledonian Railway Stores Superintendent 32, 44 Cambuslang, our lodgings at 42, 43 Campbell, Donald 201 Campbell, the Right Hon. Sir James, Baronet, Lord Chancellor of Ireland 180 Cane, Arthur B 192 Carlyle, Thomas 80 Carriages, four-wheeled 5 Carriages, second-class, abolition of 38 Carriers' Act, the 1830 49 "Champagne Charley" coats 19 Charles Lamb, "plumb pudding" 49 Cheap Trains Act, 1883 89 City of Dublin Junction Railway 120 City of Glasgow Bank, failure of 76 Clerks in office, Derby 23 Colhoun, R G 137, 153 Collier, Dr. 110 Committee Rooms, Westminster 135, 136 Committee, Select, 1840 50 Companies Clauses Act, 1845 51 Competitive traffic 65 Concealed bed, a 40 Connemara 129, 173 Constantinople 162 Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act, 1878 88 Continuous brakes, a trial of, at Newark 87 Continuous Brakes Act, 1878 87, 106 Conveyance of Mails, Railways, Act, 1838 50 Cook, Thomas, & Son 170 Cooper, David 68 Cork, Blackrock & Passage Railway 170 Cotton, Edward John 97, 98, 115, 122 Country walks 18, 30 Cowie, James 199 Cromford Canal and Butterley Tunnel 28 Culverwell, G P 152 Curtsey, the 18 Cusack, Major H C 175, 199 Cusack, Sir Ralph 113, 116, 117, 118, 119, 129, 136, 138, 175 Cynicus 42, 43, 78, 126

D'Abernon, Lord 200 Dan Godfrey's band 62 Dargan, William 124 Delicate health 5, 17, 21, 91, 181 Dent, Charles 174 Derby, General Manager's Office 57 Dickens, Charles 8, 17, 30 Dickie, David 65 Directors, railway 34 Directorship, my first 194 Diseases of Animals Act, 1894 144 Drudgery of the desk 29 Dublin & Kingstown Railway, opposition to 195 Dublin & South Eastern Railway 157 Dundreary whiskers 19 Dunoon, bazaar at 42

Edinburgh 41, 44 Egypt and the Nile 170 Elliott, Thomas 120 Employers' Liability Act, 1880 88 Engineer, Midland Railway 32

Family album 20 Fares, first-class, reduction of 37 Farmer, Ned 22 Fashions, Victorian days 18 Father, my 4 Fay, Sir Sam 191 Fenton, Sir Myles 76 Findlay, Sir George 131, 136, 141 "First-footin'" 40 First public speech 46 Fitzgibbon, G 180 Forbes, Sir William 191 Foster, the Right Hon. Sir George 201 Franks, Temple 193 Friends in Glasgow 78 Funeral customs 20

Galloway, Andrew 86 Galway, "City of the Tribes" 129 Galway, Trans-Atlantic Steamship Service 129 Garnett, Tom 201 Garrotters 20 Gauge of railways 51 General managers' conference 191 General managers in Ireland 90 General Manager's Office, Derby 57 General Railway Acts of Parliament 49 Gibb, Sir George 158 Gill, W R 113, 114 Gillies, F H 69 Glasgow & South-Western Railway 37 Glasgow & South-Western Railway, my removal to the 47, 57 Glasgow Bailie, the 61, 79 Glasgow, Bridge Street Station 47, 66 Glasgow, Buchanan Street Station 40 Glasgow flats 41 Glasgow landlady, our 41 Glasgow, S. Enoch Station 58, 66 Golf, its introduction in Ireland 110 Gooday, J F S 192 Goods-train-delays Clerk 22 Goulding, Right Hon. Sir William 179, 180, 190 Grand Canal, arbitration 151 Granet, Sir Guy 57, 193 Great Eastern Railway 35, Great Eastern steamer 7 Great Northern Railway to King's Cross 37 Great Southern & Western Railway 134, 156 Great Western cooking depots 44 Greene, George William 119 Gresham, Thomas Michael 195 Grierson, James 76, 83, 103 Guinness & Co., a stout resistance 139 "Gumpots" 24 Gweedore Hotel 1