that small charge, the Railway will be able to make a further grant from its revenue for additional loans from time to time as the traffic continues to develop.

8. I feel confident that it would be well worth while for any line thus to spend a portion of its revenue in order to open up the districts through which it runs, and draw to itself the adjacent traffic, which is now often unable to move to it. And by waiting until the interest on the first loan had been entirely recovered in the shape of increased traffic, the amount of money risked by the Railway would be very small.

9. To show what is approximately required in the case of the line mentioned above-from Lahore to Ghaziabad -the Railway may be said to serve a strip of country, approximately eighty miles wide, or forty miles on each side of the line; by which I mean that there is no present likelihood of any parallel line of railway being made at a less distance from the main line than that. In order to develop its traffic properly, it may therefore be fairly reckoned that that length of cross road would be required, at least at twenty miles intervals, or 1,360 miles of road altogether, in addition to the few miles already made.

10. Of course I do not propose to rule the country with parallel lines of road at fixed intervals independent of existing towns and villages. I am only giving an idea of the total length that will be required at the most moderate computation. If, for instance, we had a road only twenty miles long on each side of the line from the thirty-six stations still without any, this would give us 1,440 miles, while, from some stations, it might be preferable to make three or four diverging roads of ten

miles each. The calculation in any case will show that some 1,400 miles of road are needed.

11. It will be seen, therefore, that something like 70 lakhs of rupees would eventually be required to meet the wants of this particular line, in the shape of feeder roads a large sum, but still only about two years' purchase of its present net revenue, and which I am convinced would be more than fully repaid to it, if expended gradually and judiciously as above proposed.

12. A difficulty will, of course, present itself as to the cost of maintaining these roads. It would seem fair that if the whole cost of construction is defrayed by the Railway, the Local and District Funds should be charged with the cost of maintaining them, the amount being assessed on the land to the value of which their construction will obviously add very largely. Whether this is practicable or not, I cannot say. The construction of these feeder roads is of such vital importance to the Railway, that, rather than be without them, it would, I am sure, be worth while, if necessary, to maintain as well as make them out of its own revenues.

13. But a preferable course would doubtless be to do what has often been suggested, viz. after raising and bridging the roads to substitute a light steel tramway for the metalling, on which goods could be carried in trucks or wagons at a rate sufficient to cover the working expenses and repairs, if not a fair interest on the Capital. Even if no interest were obtained, we should still be better off than with metalled roads, which cost a considerable yearly sum to maintain without any tolls being received.

14. It may easily be shown that such tramways can, at the present price of steel, be laid down at the same cost as road metal; and if bullock draught were at first employed until the increased traffic demanded steam power, we should avoid committing ourselves to a heavy expenditure and secure economical results.

15. For such a roadway I should advocate a 2 ft. gauge and a rail weighing 19 lbs. per yard, which would do either for cattle or steam draught. Specimens of such rails were shown in the Calcutta Exhibition, and full particulars as to prices, &c., can easily be obtained.

16. If the traffic on any particular road developed sufficiently to warrant the construction of a regular Railway, on the metre or broad gauge, the tramway could be easily removed and laid down elsewhere. It may be said, generally, that such short branches would not pay to work with steam power if they involved a break of gauge. With long branches the case is different, and the break of gauge, though a nuisance in the case of a heavy traffic, at any rate is an improvement on a break between a cart track and the railway, as at present.

17. The question as to who is to work such cattle tramways is one merely of detail. The new Local Boards or Road Fund Committees should be able to arrange for this, and might be permitted to do so under supervision of the Railway or the Provincial Government; I will not anticipate any friction between these two authorities. My object has been to insist on the heavy stake that the Railways have in the matter and the propriety of applying a portion of their revenues to make the roads in question rather than wait for the action of the Local

Governments who are not specially interested in the matter at all. The particular machinery by which the roads should be made and maintained is a matter to be settled by competent authority when the principle has been accepted. To postpone their construction until the resources of the Local Governments are adequate for the purpose, under existing rules, is virtually to prevent the railways from earning a fair return on their capital, and so to retard the construction of other lines.

J. G. MEDLEY, COLONEL. R.E.,

Consulting Engineer.

Lahore, 27th February 1884.

MEMO. BY MR. J. LIGHTFOOT, AUDITOR, SIND, PUNJAB AND DELHI RAILWAY, LAHORE, ON THE SUBJECT OF THE IMPROVEMENT OF TRADE IN INDIA.

As it has been thought expedient to make a special Parliamentary enquiry into the question of increased Railway facilities in India, it may be useful to bring forward a few points which, in the interest of trade, require Capital expenditure and consideration as much as the construction of new Railways; indeed, some existing Railways can scarcely hope to be thoroughly productive until these points have been settled :

I.-Improve Harbours and other natural outlets

of traffic.

II. Reduce to a minimum Cartage, handling, and intermediate Agencies at the seaboard by the erection of Landing along shore" Ware

Wharves and 66

houses.

III.-Increase available Shipping at the sea-board by establishing regular lines of steamers from England for Government Stores, Troops, and Mails to all Depôts and Stations connected with Railways, and thereby seriously reduce sea freights from such ports.