Engineers and Mechanics Encyclopedia 1839: Railways: Mr. Scott of Ormiston

In the fourth volume of the Transactions of the Highland Society, are some very interesting papers by Mr. Scott of Ormiston, which are descriptive of several ingenious methods of overcoming ascents on railroads by means of animal power; they are, for the most part, unsuited to the scale of operations contemplated in the great lines of public railroad now forming in all parts of the kingdom; but in branch communications from one line to another, and for facilitating the traffic and intercourse of adjacent towns and villages with the main lines, as well as the formation of private railroads, where economy of construction is of primary importance, some of the suggestions of Mr. Scott appear to be deserving of attentive consideration. Under these impressions we shall make a few extracts from those papers, for the information of our readers.

In the first plan which we shall notice, waggons or carriages of any kind, as also boats on carriages, having wheels to correspond with the breadth of the railways, will continue as horizontal in passing up and down inclined planes, even of 45 degrees of elevation, as if travelling upon a level railway. The first idea of this was to construct waggons on purpose for ascending and descending upon these steep inclined photons; but an improvement was afterwards thought of, by which carriages of almost every description may pass up and down these inclined planes, provided that their wheels be fitted to the railways.

All public lines of railway will require two distinct sets of railway tracks, and, consequently, the inclined planes upon it must be fitted up with machinery that will take up carriages upon the ascending plane, either empty or loaded, at the same time that empty or loaded carriages are passing down the descending plane; and, in like manner, let down on the descending plane either empty or loaded carriages, when there are neither empty nor loaded carriages to pass up the ascending plane: all such properties are requisite for general service on a public line of railway. Inclined planes that have upon them ascending and descending tracks, tree called double inclined planes; but those about to be described may be called double-railed inclined planes, as both the ascending and descending planes have two sets of rails.

The first step to be taken towards the formation of these inclined planes, is to commence at the foot of the acclivities that are proposed to be ascended and descended, and to cut forward a level roadway, of a necessary breadth for a double railway, not having less than four feet in breadth between the two railways, until a perpendicular height is gained of from eight to ten feet. This face is not to be left perpendicular, as in the last proposed method, but is to be sloped away towards the rise of the acclivity with a uniform regular shape, until it forms an angle of 45 degrees with the horizon, or an outward angle of 135 degrees with the level line of the railway.

At the top of this inclined plane we again commence and cut forward a similar roadway, until the face of the cut be such as will admit being formed into another inclined plane, like to the first; and, in like manner, continue to cut forward roadways and form inclined planes, all the way to the top of the acclivity, or else to a height where it may be judged proper to strike off with a level railway. All these steep slopes are to be carefully flagged with well-dressed durable stones, laid in; and the sides of the roadways are to be properly built with a face-building, until it reach near to the foot of the paved slopes.

Strong walls are also to be built on each side of the slopes with large hewn stones: the tops of these walls are to be carried up parallel with the slope of the pavement; and the height of each of these walls, measuring at right angles with the pavement, may be three feet; and they are to be carried up to a level with the upper roadway. A middle wall of strong mason-work, of four feet in thickness, is to be built exactly up the middle of the paved slopes, corresponding precisely as to height and slope with the side walls, and which are also to be carried to a level with the upper roadway.

Matters being thus far arranged, the next step is to lay all the level roadways with rails, so as to form railways of about four feet three inches between the tracks. Rails are not only to be laid along level roadways, but they are also to be laid up along the inclined paved planes, in a secure and substantial manner. There is, likewise, a rail to be laid upon the top of each of the side walls of the inclined planes, in a parallel manner to those upon the pavement, and which are to be securely fixed within three inches of the face of the walls. The length of a horizontal line between the rails that are upon the pavement, and those that are upon the top of the side walls, will be found to be it the height that these walls are proposed to be built) four feet three inches, nearly.

Now, if a carriage be made with two pair of wheels, all of the same diameter, having its fore-wheels to correspond with the railway-tracks that are upon the pavement, and its hind-wheels with a longer axis, to correspond with the distance between the rail-tracks that are fixed upon the top of the side walls., and the axles of the two pair of wheels placed at the calculated distance of four feet three inches from each other, - then will the body of such a carriage, when passing up and down these inclined planes, remain equally level as if travelling along level railways.

A carriage, such as we have described, could not travel along a railway with single rail-tracks, owing to the axles not being both of one length; and to have a railway on each side, would be attended with much additional expense; or to have small rollers on projecting ends of the hind- axles, would give the carriage an awkward appearance; therefore, the following method is proposed which is, to sink a place at the foot of the inclined planes, of a length, breadth, and depth fit to receive a platform carriage with four wheels, its fore ones to fit the rail-tracks on the pavement, and its hind wheels to fit the tracks that are on the top of the side walls. Upon this carriage two rails are to be fixed, to correspond exactly upon the level railways, and to butt against them.

A stayed iron draught-bar is to be strongly fixed to each side of this carriage, to fasten the ropes to, by which the machinery is employed to raise up or let down the carriages. The position of the draught-bars will be regulated by the centre of gravity of the weight that is to be brought up. From this arrangement it will appear, that a waggon, such as we have placed upon it, or any cart or carriage whatever, that has wheels corresponding with the railway, will readily enter upon these platform carriages, which may easily be prevented from running off, While ascending or descending upon the platform, by means of a piece of chain fixed near to its fore end.

As these platform carriages are only intended to pass alternately up and down the inclined planes for carrying the railway carriages, it is requisite that, on reaching the top or bottom, the rails shall also correspond, that the waggons may leave the platform on the chain being unhooked that is to prevent them from running prematurely off. An experiment was made upon a railway having a declivity of twelve and a half inches in 100 feet of length, with a loaded coal-waggon, whose weight, including the carriage, was two tons. A middle-sized old man pushed this waggon down the declivity, and gave it a considerable motion; the waggon was stopped when the same old man set his back against it, and brought it up to the above mentioned acclivity, without much apparent difficulty.

This is stated to show, that where the distance between the inclined planes is short, the carriages may be pushed along by one man upon a level railway; or he might be put in possession of a kind of acceleration to be wrought by treadles, by which he could employ both his weight and his strength by laying hold of two handles to give greater power to his feet. Or, in place of cutting forward a level roadway to the ascending plane, it may be cut with an easy declivity, and the railway to the descending plane with a gentle acclivity, by which the carriages, on being put in motion by hand, would run of themselves to the inclined planes.

By forming the roadways in this manner, the ascending plane would become somewhat more, and the descending plane somewhat less, in height, than they would have been had the roadways been level; but as it may be best to have both inclined planes of the same length, it will only be necessary to make the descending plane with a longer slope; for although 45 degrees is here mentioned, there is no necessity for adhering to that angle. Where the distance between them is great, the level railway, and a horse to be employed to pull the carriages between them, is to be preferred.

Although it is practicable to make inclined planes, upon the same principle as those described, to take up more than one waggon at a time, yet the power that would be required, and the several disadvantages that would attend it, are such as will much more than counterbalance any advantage or gain to be made; for which reason there need be no hesitation in recommending the taking up or letting down only single waggons at a time; and possibly it may be found that the most beneficial and eligible weight to be carried will not exceed two tons, including the weight of the carriage.

The mechanical power of all inclined plane, having 45 degrees of elevation, reduces the weight of two tons to slant of 28.284 cwt.; to which is to be added for friction, the power required to move it along a horizontal plane. The above Fig. 1, shows an acclivity cut into four inclined planes B C Dl and E, in the manner proposed; the dotted line A-E represents the original line of the surface, and the line E-F the perpendicular height gained by the four inclined planes.

A-B-C-D in Fig. 2, is a section of one of these inclined planes, showing one of the side walls built with hewn stones; the dotted figure a-b-c, one of the platform carriages at the top F-G of the inclined plane, where the waggon d-e in dotted lines, has entered upon it; f-g is another platform carriage at the bottom of the plane, with a waggon h-i upon it, the fore-wheels of which are fixed with a piece of chain to prevent its running off the platform-carriage when in the set of ascending or descending. The wheels of this waggon are upon a level with the lower line of railway H-I. The wheels of the platform-carriage are represented as travelling upon the pavement K-L, and upon the top of the side walls M-N; while k-l represents a side view of part of the frame-work of the coiling cylinders, and m an end view of one of the cylinders; n-n represents one of the ropes, and the dotted figure at o one of the stayed iron draught-bars for fastening the ropes by which the carriages are drawn up or let down.

Figure 3 is partly a cross section, but chiefly an elevation of one of these inclined planes; p-p-p-p, the rails in the bottom of the plane; q-q-q-q the rails that are upon the top of one of the side walls, and r-r the waggon upon it.

Figure 4 is an elevation of the frame-work and machinery to be placed at the top. The coiling cylinder A-A is to be placed to suit the ascending plane, and the cylinder B-B to suit the descending plane. At M a coupling-box is introduced, by which the axis of the coiling-cylinder A-A can be disengaged from that of B-B at pleasure.

Upon the axis of the cylinders C-D a screw-wheel E is to be fixed, and wrought by a double-threaded endless screw S, that is upon the axis F-F. On the lower end of this axis another screw-wheel G is fixed, to be wrought by another two-threaded endless screw H, on whose axis are two winch-handles, as represented in Fig. 5. The one end of the ropes that are upon the coiling cylinders A-A and B, is to be fastened to the stayed iron draught-bars, already described.

Upon the same axis, C-D, the cylinder I is to be fixed; one end of its rope is to pass over a pulley-wheel K, placed over a deep pit t-t, suitable to the length of the inclined planes, and to have a heavy counterbalancing weight L fixed to it, as represented in dotted lines in Fig. G. At M the same may be effected by means of wheel and pinion apparatus.

In situations where a stream of water can be brought forward to the top of a single inclined plane, an oblong pit may be sunk of a depth answerable to the length of the inclined plane, and a level mine cut to its bottom, to free it of water Over this pit is to be placed a long ceiling cylinder, having a range of buckets suspended from it by ropes; the buckets are to have valves to open upwards, when necessary, by means of small cords. The ropes that are to pull up the waggons are to pass over pulley-wheels placed in a proper position, and at a proper height, the one end of the ropes being fixed to the waggons, and the other end to the pit cylinder.

The weight of water that each bucket holds being known, will enable the engine man to know what number to fill for the weight of the waggon to be drawn up; on the necessary number being filled, they will then descend, and pull up the waggon: a brake-wheel is to be fixed on the axis of the pit-cylinder to regulate its motion. When the buckets are at the bottom of the pit, should it be required to let down a loaded waggon, the counter-weight is to be adjusted to the weight to be let down, by pulling a necessary number of the valve-cords, to permit the water to escape from the requisite number of buckets; the ascent of the buckets and descent of the waggon to be regulated as before, by the brake-wheel.

Should all the buckets be at the bottom of the pit, at a time when they are wanted to pull up another waggon, the ropes of all the valves are to be pulled, that the buckets may be all emptied; and for this purpose there is to be, besides the range of buckets already mentioned, a large bucket, with a valve in its bottom, that opens on reaching the bottom of the pit, having its rope coiled the contrary way round the pit-cylinder, to that of the range of buckets; this bucket is to be so suspended from the pit-cylinder, that, when all the other buckets are at the bottom of the pit, this shall be at the top. By filling this large bucket with water when at the top of the pit, it will descend, and occasion all the empty ones to ascend to the same place; and, when refilled, they will again be in readiness to pull up another waggon.

By thus having a range of buckets, the counter-weight can be so regulated as to answer the weight of different carriages, whether loaded or unloaded. It is unnecessary to point out the simple manner in which the water can be directed into the different buckets, and stopped when not wanted. The perpendicular height of canal-locks is very generally about eight feet. This appears also to be a suitable height, for the greater that the height is the greater will be the disproportion of cutting and mason work, between a high and low inclined plane; for, by calculation, it will be found, that, in the formation, one of sixteen feet high will contain four times the number of cubic yards of solid cutting compared with one of eight feet, and require four times more face buildings, and these of much greater strength.

At these short inclined planes the whole ropes and machinery may be roofed in, and kept dry in all kinds of weather; and, under the same roof, the engine-man and his boy may have a cabin. It is with a view to reduce the number of horses kept, that these short inclined planes are so much recommended, as also to find employment for industrious labourers."

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