ROBERT STEPHENSON'S CAREER--THE STEPHENSONS AND BRUNEL--EAST COAST ROUTE
TO SCOTLAND--ROYAL BORDER BRIDGE, BERWICK--HIGH LEVEL BRIDGE, NEWCASTLE.
The career of George Stephenson was drawing to a close. He had for some
time been gradually retiring from the more active pursuit of railway
engineering, and confining himself to the promotion of only a few
undertakings in which he took a more than ordinary personal interest. In
1840, when the extensive main lines in the Midland districts had been
finished and opened for traffic, he publicly expressed his intention of
withdrawing from the profession. He had reached sixty, and, having spent
the greater part of his life in very hard work, he naturally desired rest
and retirement in his old age. There was the less necessity for his
continuing "in harness," as Robert Stephenson was now in full career as a
leading railway engineer, and his father had pleasure in handing over to
him, with the sanction of the companies concerned, nearly all the railway
appointments which he held.
Robert Stephenson amply repaid his father's care. The sound education of
which he had laid the foundations at school, improved by his subsequent
culture, but more than all by his father's example of application,
industry, and thoroughness in all that he undertook, told powerfully in
the formation of his character, not less than in the discipline of his
intellect. His father had early implanted in him habits of mental
activity, familiarized him with the laws of mechanics, and carefully
trained and stimulated his inventive faculties, the first great fruits of
which, as we have seen, were exhibited in the triumph of the "Rocket" at
Rainhill. "I am fully conscious in my own mind," said the son at a
meeting of the Mechanical Engineers at Newcastle, in 1858, "how greatly
my civil engineering has been regulated and influenced by the mechanical
knowledge which I derived directly from my father; and the more my
experience has advanced, the more convinced I have become that it is
necessary to educate an engineer in the workshop. That is, emphatically,
the education which will render the engineer most intelligent, most
useful, and the fullest of resources in times of difficulty."
Robert Stephenson was but twenty-six years old when the performances of
the "Rocket" established the practicability of steam locomotion on
railways. He was shortly after appointed engineer of the Leicester and
Swannington Railway; after which, at his father's request, he was made
joint engineer with himself in laying out the London and Birmingham
Railway, and the execution of that line was afterwards entrusted to him
as sole engineer. The stability and excellence of the works of that
railway, the difficulties which had been successfully overcome in the
course of its construction, and the judgment which was displayed by
Robert Stephenson throughout the whole conduct of the undertaking to its
completion, established his reputation as an engineer; and his father
could now look with confidence and with pride upon his son's
achievements. From that time forward, father and son worked together as
one man, each jealous of the other's honour; and on the father's
retirement, it was generally recognized that, in the sphere of railways,
Robert Stephenson was the foremost man, the safest guide, and the most
active worker.
Robert Stephenson was subsequently appointed engineer of the Eastern
Counties, the Northern and Eastern, and the Blackwall railways, besides
many lines in the midland and southern districts. When the speculation
of 1844 set in, his services were, of course, greatly in request. Thus,
in one session, we find him engaged as engineer for not fewer than 33 new
schemes. Projectors thought themselves fortunate who could secure his
name, and he had only to propose his terms to obtain them. The work
which he performed at this period of his life was indeed enormous, and
his income was large beyond any previous instance of engineering gain.
But much of his labour was heavy hackwork of a very uninteresting
character. During the sittings of the committees of Parliament, almost
every moment of his time was occupied in consultations, and in preparing
evidence or in giving it. The crowded, low-roofed committee-rooms of the
old Houses of Parliament were altogether inadequate to accommodate the
rush of perspiring projectors of bills, and even the lobbies were
sometimes choked with them. To have borne that noisome atmosphere and
heat would have tested the constitutions of salamanders, and engineers
were only human. With brains kept in a state of excitement during the
entire day, no wonder their nervous systems became unstrung. Their only
chance of refreshment was during an occasional rush to the bun and
sandwich stand in the lobby, though sometimes even that resource failed
them. Then, with mind and body jaded--probably after undergoing a series
of consultations upon many bills after the rising of the committees--the
exhausted engineers would seek to stimulate nature by a late, perhaps a
heavy, dinner. What chance had any ordinary constitution of surviving
such an ordeal? The consequence was, that stomach, brain, and liver were
alike irretrievably injured; and hence the men who bore the brunt of
those struggles--Stephenson, Brunel, Locke, and Errington--have already
all died, comparatively young men.
In mentioning the name of Brunel, we are reminded of him as the principal
rival and competitor of Robert Stephenson. Both were the sons of
distinguished men, and both inherited the fame and followed in the
footsteps of their fathers. The Stephensons were inventive, practical,
and sagacious; the Brunels ingenious, imaginative, and daring. The
former were as thoroughly English in their characteristics as the latter
were perhaps as thoroughly French. The fathers and the sons were alike
successful in their works, though not in the same degree. Measured by
practical and profitable results, the Stephensons were unquestionably the
safer men to follow.
Robert Stephenson and Isambard Kingdom Brunel were destined often to come
into collision in the course of their professional life. Their
respective railway districts "marched" with each other, and it became
their business to invade or defend those districts, according as the
policy of their respective boards might direct. The gauge of 7 feet
fixed by Mr. Brunel for the Great Western Railway, so entirely different
from that of 4ft. 8.5in. adopted by the Stephensons on the Northern and
Midland lines, was from the first a great cause of contention. But Mr.
Brunel had always an aversion to follow any man's lead; and that another
engineer had fixed the gauge of a railway, or built a bridge, or designed
an engine, in one way, was of itself often a sufficient reason with him
for adopting an altogether different course. Robert Stephenson, on his
part, though less bold, was more practical, preferring to follow the old
routes, and to tread in the safe steps of his father.
Mr. Brunel, however, determined that the Great Western should be a
giant's road, and that travelling should be conducted upon it at double
speed. His ambition was to make the _best_ road that imagination could
devise; whereas the main object of the Stephensons, both father and son,
was to make a road that would _pay_. Although, tried by the Stephenson
test, Brunel's magnificent road was a failure so far as the shareholders
in the Great Western Company were concerned, the stimulus which his
ambitious designs gave to mechanical invention at the time proved a
general good. The narrow-gauge engineers exerted themselves to quicken
their locomotives to the utmost. They improved and re-improved them; the
machinery was simplified and perfected; outside cylinders gave place to
inside; the steadier and more rapid and effective action of the engine
was secured; and in a few years the highest speed on the narrow-gauge
lines went up from 30 to about 50 miles an hour. For this rapidity of
progress we are in no small degree indebted to the stimulus imparted to
the narrow-gauge engineers by Mr. Brunel. And it is well for a country
that it should possess men such as he, ready to dare the untried, and to
venture boldly into new paths. Individuals may suffer from the cost of
the experiments; but the nation, which is an aggregate of individuals,
gains, and so does the world at large.
It was one of the characteristics of Brunel to believe in the success of
the schemes for which he was professionally engaged as engineer; and he
proved this by investing his savings largely in the Great Western
Railway, in the South Devon atmospheric line, and in the Great Eastern
steamship, with what results are well known. Robert Stephenson, on the
contrary, with characteristic caution, towards the latter years of his
life avoided holding unguaranteed railway shares; and though he might
execute magnificent structures, such as the Victoria Bridge across the
St. Lawrence, he was careful not to embark any portion of his own fortune
in the ordinary capital of these concerns. In 1845, he shrewdly foresaw
the inevitable crash that was about to follow the mania of that year; and
while shares were still at a premium he took the opportunity of selling
out all that he had. He urged his father to do the same thing, but
George's reply was characteristic. "No," said he; "I took my shares for
an investment, and not to speculate with, and I am not going to sell them
now because folks have gone mad about railways." The consequence was,
that he continued to hold the 60,000 pounds which he had invested in the
shares of various railways until his death, when they were at once sold
out by his son, though at a great depreciation on their original cost.
One of the hardest battles fought between the Stephensons and Brunel was
for the railway between Newcastle and Berwick, forming part of the great
East Coast route to Scotland. As early as 1836, George Stephenson had
surveyed two lines to connect Edinburgh with Newcastle: one by Berwick
and Dunbar along the coast, and the other, more inland, by Carter Fell,
up the vale of the Gala, to the northern capital; but both projects lay
dormant for several years longer, until the completion of the Midland and
other main lines as far north as Newcastle, had the effect of again
reviving the subject of the extension of the route as far as Edinburgh.
On the 18th of June, 1844, the Newcastle and Darlington line--an
important link of the great main highway to the north--was completed and
publicly opened, thus connecting the Thames and the Tyne by a continuous
line of railway. On that day the Stephensons, with a distinguished party
of railway men, travelled by express train from London to Newcastle in
about nine hours. It was a great event, and was worthily celebrated.
The population of Newcastle held holiday; and a banquet given in the
Assembly Rooms the same evening assumed the form of an ovation to George
Stephenson and his son. Thirty years before, in the capacity of a
workman, he had been labouring at the construction of his first
locomotive in the immediate neighbourhood. By slow and laborious steps
he had worked his way on, dragging the locomotive into notice, and
raising himself in public estimation; until at length he had victoriously
established the railway system, and went back amongst his townsmen to
receive their greeting.
After the opening of this railway, the project of the East Coast line
from Newcastle to Berwick was revived; and George Stephenson, who had
already identified himself with the question, and was intimately
acquainted with every foot of the ground, was called upon to assist the
promoters with his judgment and experience. He again recommended as
strongly as before the line he had previously surveyed; and on its being
adopted by the local committee, the necessary steps were taken to have
the scheme brought before Parliament in the ensuing session. The East
Coast line was not, however, to be allowed to pass without a fight. On
the contrary, it had to encounter as stout an opposition as the
Stephensons had ever experienced.
We have already stated that about this time the plan of substituting
atmospheric pressure for locomotive steam-power in the working of
railways, had become very popular. Many eminent engineers supported the
atmospheric system, and a strong party in Parliament, headed by the Prime
Minister, were greatly disposed in its favour. Mr. Brunel warmly
espoused the atmospheric principle, and his persuasive manner, as well as
his admitted scientific ability, unquestionably exercised considerable
influence in determining the views of many leading members of both
Houses. Amongst others, Lord Howick, one of the members for
Northumberland, adopted the new principle, and, possessing great local
influence, he succeeded in forming a powerful confederacy of the landed
gentry in favour of Brunel's atmospheric railway through that county.
George Stephenson could not brook the idea of seeing the locomotive, for
which he had fought so many stout battles, pushed to one side, and that
in the very county in which its great powers had been first developed.
Nor did he relish the appearance of Mr. Brunel as the engineer of Lord
Howick's scheme, in opposition to the line which had occupied his
thoughts and been the object of his strenuous advocacy for so many years.
When Stephenson first met Brunel in Newcastle, he good-naturedly shook
him by the collar, and asked "What business he had north of the Tyne?"
George gave him to understand that they were to have a fair stand-up
fight for the ground, and, shaking hands before the battle like
Englishmen, they parted in good humour. A public meeting was held at
Newcastle in the following December, when, after a full discussion of the
merits of the respective plans, Stephenson's line was almost unanimously
adopted as the best.
The rival projects went before Parliament in 1845, and a severe contest
ensued. The display of ability and tactics on both sides was great.
Robert Stephenson was examined at great length as to the merits of the
locomotive line, and Brunel at equally great length as to the merits of
the atmospheric system. Mr. Brunel, in his evidence, said that after
numerous experiments, he had arrived at the conclusion that the
mechanical contrivance of the atmospheric system was perfectly
applicable, and he believed that it would likewise be more economical in
most cases than locomotive power. "In short," said he, "rapidity,
comfort, safety, and economy, are its chief recommendations."
But the locomotive again triumphed. The Stephenson Coast Line secured
the approval of Parliament; and the shareholders in the Atmospheric
Company were happily prevented investing their capital in what would
unquestionably have proved a gigantic blunder. For, less than three
years later, the whole of the atmospheric tubes which had been laid down
on other lines were pulled up and the materials sold--including Mr.
Brunel's immense tube on the South Devon Railway--to make way for the
working of the locomotive engine. George Stephenson's first verdict of
"It won't do," was thus conclusively confirmed.
Robert Stephenson used afterwards to describe with great gusto an
interview which took place between Lord Howick and his father, at his
office in Great George Street, during the progress of the bill in
Parliament. His father was in the outer office, where he used to spend a
good deal of his spare time; occasionally taking a quiet wrestle with a
friend when nothing else was stirring. {309} On the day in question,
George was standing with his back to the fire, when Lord Howick called to
see Robert. Oh! thought George, he has come to try and talk Robert over
about that atmospheric gimcrack; but I'll tackle his Lordship. "Come in,
my Lord," said he, "Robert's busy; but I'll answer your purpose quite as
well; sit down here, if you please." George began, "Now, my Lord, I know
very well what you have come about: it's that atmospheric line in the
north; I will show you in less than five minutes that it can never
answer." "If Mr. Robert Stephenson is not at liberty, I can call again,"
said his Lordship. "He's certainly occupied on important business just
at present," was George's answer; "but I can tell you far better than he
can what nonsense the atmospheric system is: Robert's good-natured, you
see, and if your Lordship were to get alongside of him you might talk him
over; so you have been quite lucky in meeting with me. Now, just look at
the question of expense,"--and then he proceeded in his strong Doric to
explain his views in detail, until Lord Howick could stand it no longer,
and he rose and walked towards the door. George followed him down
stairs, to finish his demolition of the atmospheric system, and his
parting words were, "You may take my word for it, my Lord, it will never
answer." George afterwards told his son with glee of "the settler" he
had given Lord Howick.
So closely were the Stephensons identified with this measure, and so
great was the personal interest which they were both known to take in its
success, that, on the news of the triumph of the bill reaching Newcastle,
a sort of general holiday took place, and the workmen belonging to the
Stephenson Locomotive Factory, upwards of 800 in number, walked in
procession through the principal streets of the town, accompanied with
music and banners.
It is unnecessary to enter into any description of the works on the
Newcastle and Berwick Railway. There are no fewer than 110 bridges of
all sorts on the line--some under and some over it. But by far the most
formidable piece of masonry work on this railway is at its northern
extremity, where it passes across the Tweed into Scotland, immediately
opposite the formerly redoubtable castle of Berwick. Not many centuries
had passed since the district amidst which this bridge stands was the
scene of almost constant warfare. Berwick was regarded as the key of
Scotland, and was fiercely fought for, sometimes held by a Scotch and
sometimes by an English garrison. Though strongly fortified, it was
repeatedly taken by assault. On its capture by Edward I., Boetius says
17,000 persons were slain, so that its streets "ran with blood like a
river." Within sight of the ramparts, a little to the west, is Halidon
Hill, where a famous victory was gained by Edward III., over the Scottish
army under Douglas; and there is scarcely a foot of ground in the
neighbourhood but has been the scene of contention in days long past. In
the reigns of James I. and Charles I., a bridge of 15 arches was built
across the Tweed at Berwick; and in our own day a railway-bridge of 28
arches has been built a little above the old one, but at a much higher
level. The bridge built by the Kings, out of the national resources,
cost 15,000 pounds, and occupied 24 years and 4 months in the building;
the bridge built by the Railway Company, with funds drawn from private
resources, cost 120,000 pounds, and was finished in 3 years and 4 months
from the day of laying the foundation-stone.
[Picture: The Royal Border Bridge, Berwick-upon-Tweed]
This important viaduct, built after the design of Robert Stephenson,
consists of a series of 28 semicircular arches, each 61 feet 6 inches in
span, the greatest height above the bed of the river being 126 feet. The
whole is built of ashlar, with a hearting of rubble; excepting the river
parts of the arches, which are constructed with bricks laid in cement.
The total length of the work is 2160 feet. The foundations of the piers
were got in by coffer-dams in the ordinary way, Nasmyth's steam-hammer
being extensively used in driving the piles. The bearing piles, from
which the foundations of the piers were built up, were each capable of
carrying 70 tons.
Another bridge, of still greater importance, necessary to complete the
continuity of the East Coast route, was the masterwork erected by Robert
Stephenson between the north and south banks of the Tyne at Newcastle,
commonly known as the High Level Bridge. Mr. R. W. Brandling, George
Stephenson's early friend, is entitled to the merit of originating the
idea of this bridge as it was eventually carried out, with a central
terminus for the northern railways in the Castle Garth. The plan was
first promulgated by him in 1841; and in the following year it was
resolved that George Stephenson should be consulted as to the most
advisable site for the proposed structure. A prospectus of a High Level
Bridge Company was issued in 1843, the names of George Stephenson and
George Hudson appearing on the committee of management, Robert Stephenson
being the consulting engineer. The project was eventually taken up by
the Newcastle and Darlington Railway Company, and an Act for the
construction of the bridge was obtained in 1845.
The rapid extension of railways had given an extraordinary stimulus to
the art of bridge-building; the number of such structures erected in
Great Britain alone, since 1830, having been above 25,000, or more than
all that had before existed in the country. Instead of the erection a
single large bridge constituting, as formerly, an epoch in engineering,
hundreds of extensive bridges of novel design were simultaneously
constructed. The necessity which existed for carrying rigid roads,
capable of bearing heavy railway trains at high speeds, over extensive
gaps free of support, rendered it obvious that the methods which had up
to that time been employed for bridging space were altogether
insufficient. The railway engineer could not, like the ordinary road
engineer, divert his road and make choice of the best point for crossing
a river or a valley. He must take such ground as lay in the line of his
railway, be it bog, or mud, or shifting sand. Navigable rivers and
crowded thoroughfares had to be crossed without interruption to the
existing traffic, sometimes by bridges at right angles to the river or
road, sometimes by arches more or less oblique. In many cases great
difficulty arose from the limited nature of the headway; but, as the
level of the original road must generally be preserved, and that of the
railway was in a measure fixed and determined, it was necessary to modify
the form and structure of the bridge, in almost every case, in order to
comply with the public requirements. Novel conditions were met by fresh
inventions, and difficulties of the most unusual character were one after
another successfully surmounted. In executing these extraordinary works,
iron has been throughout the sheet-anchor of the engineer. In its
different forms of cast or wrought iron, it offered a valuable resource,
where rapidity of execution, great strength, and cheapness of
construction in the first instance, were elements of prime importance;
and by its skilful use, the railway architect was enabled to achieve
results which thirty years ago would scarcely have been thought possible.
In many of the early cast-iron bridges the old form of the arch was
adopted, the stability of the structure depending wholly on compression,
the only novel feature being the use of iron instead of stone. But in a
large proportion of cases, the arch, with the railroad over it, was found
inapplicable in consequence of the limited headway which it provided.
Hence it early occurred to George Stephenson, when constructing the
Liverpool and Manchester Railway, to adopt the simple cast-iron beam for
the crossing of several roads and canals along that line--this beam
resembling in some measure the lintel of the early temples--the pressure
on the abutments being purely vertical. One of the earliest instances of
this kind of bridge was that erected over Water Street, Manchester, in
1829; after which, cast-iron girders, with their lower webs considerably
larger than their upper, were ordinarily employed where the span was
moderate; and wrought-iron tie rods below were added to give increased
strength where the span was greater.
The next step was the contrivance of arched beams or bowstring girders,
firmly held together by horizontal ties to resist the thrust, instead of
abutments. Numerous excellent specimens of this description of bridge
were erected by Robert Stephenson on the original London and Birmingham
Railway; but by far the grandest work of the kind--perfect as a specimen
of modern constructive skill--was the High Level Bridge, which we owe to
the genius of the same engineer.
The problem was, to throw a railway bridge across the deep ravine which
lies between the towns of Newcastle and Gateshead, at the bottom of which
flows the navigable river Tyne. Along and up the sides of the valley--on
the Newcastle bank especially--run streets of old-fashioned houses,
clustered together in the strange forms peculiar to the older cities.
The ravine is of great depth--so deep and so gloomy-looking towards dusk,
that local tradition records that when the Duke of Cumberland arrived
late in the evening at the brow of the hill overlooking the Tyne, on his
way to Culloden, he exclaimed to his attendants, on looking down into the
black gorge before him, "For God's sake, don't think of taking me down
that coal-pit at this time of night!" The road down the Gateshead High
Street is almost as steep as the roof of a house, and up the Newcastle
Side, as the street there is called, it is little better. During many
centuries the traffic north and south passed along this dangerous and
difficult route, over the old bridge which crosses the river in the
bottom of the valley. For about 30 years the Newcastle Corporation had
discussed various methods of improving the communication between the
towns; and the discussion might have gone on for 30 years more, but for
the advent of railways, when the skill and enterprise to which they gave
birth speedily solved the difficulty and bridged the ravine. The local
authorities adroitly took advantage of the opportunity, and insisted on
the provision of a road for ordinary vehicles and foot passengers in
addition to the railroad. In this circumstance originated one of the
striking peculiarities of the High Level Bridge, which serves two
purposes, being a railway above and a carriage roadway underneath.
The breadth of the river at the point of crossing is 515 feet, but the
length of the bridge and viaduct between the Gateshead station and the
terminus on the Newcastle side is about 4000 feet. It springs from
Pipewell Gate Bank, on the south, directly across to Castle Garth, where,
nearly fronting the bridge, stands the fine old Norman keep of the _New_
Castle, now nearly 800 years old, and a little beyond it is the spire of
St. Nicholas Church, with its light and graceful Gothic crown; the whole
forming a grand architectural group of unusual historic interest. The
bridge passes completely over the roofs of the houses which fill both
sides of the valley; and the extraordinary height of the upper parapet,
which is about 130 feet above the bed of the river, offers a prospect to
the passing traveller the like of which is perhaps nowhere else to be
seen. Far below are the queer chares and closes, the wynds and lanes of
old Newcastle; the water is crowded with pudgy, black, coal keels; and,
when there is a partial dispersion of the great smoke clouds which
usually obscure the sky, the funnels of steamers and the masts of
shipping may be seen far down the river. The old bridge lies so far
beneath that the passengers crossing it seem like so many bees passing to
and fro.
The first difficulty encountered in building the bridge was in securing a
solid foundation for the piers. The dimensions of the piles to be driven
were so huge, that the engineer found it necessary to employ some
extraordinary means for the purpose. He called Nasmyth's Titanic
steam-hammer to his aid--the first occasion, we believe, on which this
prodigious power was employed in bridge pile-driving. A temporary
staging was erected for the steam-engine and hammer apparatus, which
rested on two keels, and, notwithstanding the newness and stiffness of
the machinery, the first pile was driven on the 6th October, 1846, to a
depth of 32 feet, in four minutes. Two hammers of 30 cwt. each were kept
in regular use, making from 60 to 70 strokes a minute; and the results
were astounding to those who had been accustomed to the old style of
pile-driving by means of the ordinary pile-frame, consisting of slide,
ram, and monkey. By the old system, the pile was driven by a
comparatively small mass of iron descending with great velocity from a
considerable height--the velocity being in excess and the mass deficient,
and calculated, like the momentum of a cannon-ball, rather for
destructive than impulsive action. In the case of the steam pile-driver,
on the contrary, the whole weight of a heavy mass is delivered rapidly
upon a driving-block of several tons weight placed directly over the head
of the pile, the weight never ceasing, and the blows being repeated at
the rate of a blow a second, until the pile is driven home. It is a
curious fact, that the rapid strokes of the steam-hammer evolved so much
heat, that on many occasions the pile-head burst into flames during the
process of driving. The elastic force of steam is the power that lifts
the ram, the escape permitting its entire force to fall upon the head of
the driving block; while the steam above the piston on the upper part of
the cylinder, acting as a buffer or recoil-spring, materially enhances
the effect of the downward blow. As soon as one pile was driven, the
traveller, hovering overhead, presented another, and down it went into
the solid bed of the river, with almost as much ease as a lady sticks
pins into a cushion. By the aid of this powerful machine, pile-driving,
formerly among the most costly and tedious of engineering operations,
became easy, rapid, and comparatively economical.
When the piles had been driven and the coffer-dams formed and puddled,
the water within the enclosed spaces was pumped out by the aid of
powerful engines, so as, if possible, to lay bare the bed of the river.
Considerable difficulty was experienced in getting in the foundations of
the middle pier, in consequence of the water forcing itself through the
quicksand beneath as fast as it was removed, This fruitless labour went
on for months, and many expedients were tried. Chalk was thrown in in
large quantities outside the piling, but without effect. Cement concrete
was at last put within the coffer-dam, until it set, and the bottom was
then found to be secure. A bed of concrete was laid up to the level of
the heads of the piles, the foundation course of stone blocks being
commenced about two feet below low water, and the building proceeded
without further difficulty. It may serve to give an idea of the
magnitude of the work, when we state that 400,000 cubic feet of ashlar,
rubble, and concrete were worked up in the piers, and 450,000 cubic feet
in the land-arches and approaches.
The most novel feature of the structure is the use of cast and wrought
iron in forming the double bridge, which admirably combines the two
principles of the arch and suspension; the railway being carried over the
back of the ribbed arches in the usual manner, while the carriage-road
and footpaths, forming a long gallery or aisle, are suspended from these
arches by wrought-iron vertical rods, with horizontal tie-bars to resist
the thrust. The suspension-bolts are enclosed within spandril pillars of
cast iron, which give great stiffness to the superstructure. This system
of longitudinal and vertical bracing has been much admired, for it not
only accomplishes the primary object of securing rigidity in the roadway,
but at the same time, by its graceful arrangement, heightens the beauty
of the structure. The arches consist of four main ribs, disposed in
pairs with a clear distance between the two inner arches of 20 feet 4
inches, forming the carriage-road, while between each of the inner and
outer ribs there is a space of 6 feet 2 inches, constituting the
footpaths. Each arch is cast in five separate lengths or segments,
strongly bolted together. The ribs spring from horizontal plates of cast
iron, bedded and secured on the stone piers. All the abutting joints
were carefully executed by machinery, the fitting being of the most
perfect kind. In order to provide for the expansion and contraction of
the iron arching, and to preserve the equilibrium of the piers without
disturbance or racking of the other parts of the bridge, it was arranged
that the ribs of every two adjoining arches resting on the same pier
should be secured to the springing-plates by keys and joggles; whilst on
the next piers on either side, the ribs remained free and were at liberty
to expand or contract according to temperature--a space being left for
the purpose. Hence each arch is complete and independent in itself, the
piers having simply to sustain their vertical pressure. There are six
arches of 125 feet span each; the two approaches to the bridge being
formed of cast-iron pillars and bearers in keeping with the arches.
[Picture: High Level Bridge--Elevation of one Arch]
The result is a bridge that for massive solidity may be pronounced
unrivalled. It is perhaps the most magnificent and striking of all the
bridges to which railways have given birth, and has been worthily styled
"the King of railway structures." It is a monument of the highest
engineering skill of our time, with the impress of power grandly stamped
upon it. It will also be observed, from the drawing placed as the
frontispiece of this book, that the High Level Bridge forms a very fine
object in a picture of great interest, full of striking architectural
variety and beauty. The bridge was opened on the 15th August, 1849, and
a few days after the royal train passed over it, halting for a few
minutes to enable her Majesty to survey the wonderful scene below. In
the course of the following year the Queen opened the extensive stone
viaduct across the Tweed, above described, by which the last link was
completed of the continuous line of railway between London and Edinburgh.
Over the entrance to the Berwick station, occupying the site of the once
redoubtable Border fortress, so often the deadly battle-ground of the
ancient Scots and English, was erected an arch under which the royal
train passed, bearing in large letters of gold the appropriate words,
"_The last act of the Union_."
The warders at Berwick no longer look out from the castle walls to descry
the glitter of Southron spears. The bell-tower, from which the alarm was
sounded of old, though still standing, is deserted; the only bell heard
within the precincts of the old castle being the railway porter's bell
announcing the arrival and departure of trains. You see the Scotch
express pass along the bridge and speed southward on the wings of steam.
But no alarm spreads along the border now. Northumbrian beeves are safe.
Chevy-Chase and Otterburn are quiet sheep-pastures. The only men at arms
on the battlements of Alnwick Castle are of stone. Bamborough Castle has
become an asylum for shipwrecked mariners, and the Norman Keep at
Newcastle has been converted into a Museum of Antiquities. The railway
has indeed consummated the Union.