20 Dec 1892 - CROSSING THE BLUE MOUNTAINS.

Su	Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa
				1	2	3
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28	29	30	31

Image size: 6656x7680 Scale: 55.00000000000001% - PanoJS3

Fix this text

Why are there text errors?

Original
Corrected

Line Above	{LINE ABOVE}
Current Line	{CURRENT LINE} Remove Insert line below Insert line above Duplicate this line Move line up Move line down
Line below	{LINE BELOW}

Tue 20 Dec 1892 - The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954)
Page 5 - CROSSING THE BLUE MOUNTAINS.

CROSSING THE BLUE MOUN-

TAINS.

A NEW ROUTE.

THE LAPSTONE DEVIATION.

(BY OUR SPECIAL REPORTER.)

Line 2.0.0Sunday afternoon was a busy one for those en-
Line 2.0.1gaged at the foot of the great mountain barrier
Line 2.0.2which rises precipitately from the Emu Plains. Men
Line 2.0.3have been toiling for many months, certainly, dig-
Line 2.0.4ging out cuttings and delving through tunnels, but
Line 2.0.5their work had been little noticed till Sunday, when
Line 2.0.6it received tho crown of successful achievement. In
Line 2.0.7the morning the last train crawled slowly over the
Line 2.0.8Lapstone zigzag, and in the afternoon, just
Line 2.0.9as the dusk of a wet day was clos-
Line 2.0.10ing in, the first train passed through the
Line 2.0.11deviating tunnel, and, without once reversing its
Line 2.0.12course, ran straight on to Glenbrook, where it joined
Line 2.0.13the original Western line. Sunday, it will be remem-
Line 2.0.14bered, was particularly damp, and the task of con-
Line 2.0.15necting the rails was surrounded by exceptional diffi-
Line 2.0.16culties. Impatient engineers and rain-sodden
Line 2.0.17platelayers blessed Mr. Russell's weather, but never-
Line 2.0.18theless the thing, as Americans say, had to go, and
Line 2.0.19by 5 o'clock in the afternoon the connection was
Line 2.0.20accomplished, and a heavily-laden goods train made
Line 2.0.21a successful trial trip through the steamy tunnel.
Line 2.0.22Lovers of the picturesque will probably regret the
Line 2.0.23change of route, which is distinctly utilitarian
Line 2.0.24in its character. The chief attraction of the
Line 2.0.25Western line, from a tourist's point of new,
Line 2.0.26had been the two zigzags, once, in the days when
Line 2.0.27the science of road construction was less advanced,
Line 2.0.28looked upon as triumphs of mountain engineering.
Line 2.0.29To-day the St. Gothard line entirely eclipses the
Line 2.0.30work accomplished here in the sixties, but, neverthe-
Line 2.0.31less, it was very creditable to a young colony, and
Line 2.0.32has drawn admiration from thousands of globe-trot-
Line 2.0.33ting sightseers. The magnificent view of the Emu
Line 2.0.34Plains, stretching away without a break right to the
Line 2.0.35seaboard, with farmhouses and cottages, tilled land
Line 2.0.36and meadow, centring round the cluster of white
Line 2.0.37houses which make up the sleepy little Penrith, was
Line 2.0.38the great attraction of the first or lesser zigzag.
Line 2.0.39Travellers were wont to crane their necks danger-
Line 2.0.40ously far out of the carriage windows in order to
Line 2.0.41make the most of the beautiful scene before the
Line 2.0.42mountain cuttings shut it out from view. As to the
Line 2.0.43Lithgow zigzag, I need say nothing here-it is still
Line 2.0.44left to us ; and as no practicable way has been dis-
Line 2.0.45covered of avoiding it, we are likely to enjoy its
Line 2.0.46attractive views for a long time to come. In the
Line 2.0.47case of the Lapstone zigzag, however, the matter is
Line 2.0.48different ; its avoidance has proved simple and com-
Line 2.0.49paratively inexpensive, and the only wonder is that
Line 2.0.50the engineers who first surveyed the track did not
Line 2.0.51discover this easy route.

Line 2.1.0Still, when we remember that for years after New
Line 2.1.1South Wales was a settled colony the Blue Moun-
Line 2.1.2tains were looked upon as an unsurmountable
Line 2.1.3barrier, beyond which no man could pass and live, it
Line 2.1.4does not seem so wonderful. The early colonists,
Line 2.1.5who, whether free or in chains, were not deficient in
Line 2.1.6courage, made many fruitless efforts, commencing
Line 2.1.7with Lieutenant Dawes' endeavour in 1789. Paterson,
Line 2.1.8Hacking, Wilson, and other nameless explorers,
Line 2.1.9some in search of glory and some in search of freedom,
Line 2.1.10followed suit, and the bones of many a luckless convict
Line 2.1.11bleached for years in the deep mountain gullies. It
Line 2.1.12was left for Wentworth, Blaxland, and Lawson-
Line 2.1.13names memorable in the history of this
Line 2.1.14colony-to make a success out of other men's
Line 2.1.15failures, and to discover a track where all had
Line 2.1.16seemed trackless. Soon after Governor Macquarie,
Line 2.1.17energetic gentleman as he was, set his people to
Line 2.1.18work making practicable roads, and ere long the
Line 2.1.19passage across the mountains was much in request by
Line 2.1.20settlers, who desired to remove their flocks and herds
Line 2.1.21to tho fertile and untouched Bathurst Plains. The
Line 2.1.22road, indeed, soon became so widely known that in
Line 2.1.231815 a military guard had to be set there in order to
Line 2.1.24provent unauthorised persons from winning their
Line 2.1.25freedom in the unexplored back country. When we
Line 2.1.26remember all those things, and see how the progress
Line 2.1.27of civilisation has made the impassable easy, it is not
Line 2.1.28hard to understand the difficulties under which the
Line 2.1.29first surveyors, early in the sixties, laboured, and to
Line 2.1.30excuse the mistakes which they possibly made.

Line 2.2.0There are those ready to say that the surveyors
Line 2.2.1who laid out the Blue Mountain line aimed more at
Line 2.2.2picturesque effect than at providing an easy method
Line 2.2.3of transit ; the line is spoken of as having been most
Line 2.2.4artistically designed, so as to look well on
Line 2.2.5paper. Beautifully symmetrical curves take
Line 2.2.6the place of straight lines, steep gradients

Line 2.3.0are looked upon rather as ornamental -
Line 2.3.1additions, with the result that the working of the
Line 2.3.2Western line has been a constant thorn in the sides of
Line 2.3.3our business-like Railway Commissioners. Another
Line 2.3.4authority has it that the route now chosen for the
Line 2.3.5deviation was selected by the surveyor who originally
Line 2.3.6pegged out the line ; but the rulers of the day, pre-
Line 2.3.7ferring the picturesque zigzag, refused their sanction.
Line 2.3.8Be this as it may, the result is the same, and for more
Line 2.3.9than 25 years heavily-laden goods trains have had to
Line 2.3.10toil back and forwards up the line. As the traffic
Line 2.3.11grew in extent the larger trains had often to be
Line 2.3.12divided to get them past the ascent, and sometimes
Line 2.3.13recalcitrant freight trains refused to go over at all and
Line 2.3.14blocked the way for hours. The working of a line
Line 2.3.15on this system, as every railway man knows, is always
Line 2.3.16troublesome, and even dangerous. The stoppage of
Line 2.3.17the train at each turning-place involves a great loss
Line 2.3.18of power, and the propulsion of the train backwards
Line 2.3.19is by no means safe. The rear carriages, being
Line 2.3.20much lighter than the engine, have a tendency to go
Line 2.3.21off the line, and great care has to be observed in
Line 2.3.22order to prevent this disagreeable occurrence. Hence
Line 2.3.23the idea of escaping the annoying zigzag has been in
Line 2.3.24men's minds for years, and many ambitious schemes
Line 2.3.25have been brought forward. Some have proposed a
Line 2.3.26line up the Colo Valley, others favoured the Cox
Line 2.3.27River, but these plans, which involved practically
Line 2.3.28the construction of a new railway, were too costly
Line 2.3.29for adoption under present circumstances. At
Line 2.3.30last the surveyors discovered a simple means of
Line 2.3.31deviation, without, indeed, altering the gradient of
Line 2.3.321 in 33, though avoiding the turn-about style of line

hitherto in use.

Line 3.0.0The new line, which starts right at the foot of the
Line 3.0.1former zigzag, branches off to the southward through
Line 3.0.2a deep cutting, and eventually enters a tunnel half a
Line 3.0.3mile in length, from which it emerges close to Glen-
Line 3.0.4Fix this textbrook station. The whole length is only one mile
Line 3.0.533 chains, as compared with two miles three chains,
Line 3.0.6the length of the old line. This in itself is a saving
Line 3.0.7in direct distance of 50 chains, to say nothing of the
Line 3.0.8greater facility in working. In fact, the Chief Com-
Line 3.0.9missioner estimates that the new line will enable from
Line 3.0.1035 to 50 thousand train miles extra to be run annu-

Line 3.1.0ally, and as the cost of the whole work is under £50,000,
Line 3.1.1the saving effected will amount to at least 12 per
Line 3.1.2cent, on the capital invested. Goods trains of any
Line 3.1.3length may now be run over the rails, the load being
Line 3.1.4limited only by the hauling power of the engines,
Line 3.1.5which, especially in the case of the new Baldwins,
Line 3.1.6is able to cope with many more trucks than have
Line 3.1.7hitherto been used in making up a train. The con-
Line 3.1.8struction, which has been in hand but 20 months,
Line 3.1.9has been carried out by Messrs. D. Proudfoot and
Line 3.1.10Co., contractors, under the supervision of Mr.
Line 3.1.11Witherby, of the Railway Department, and the
Line 3.1.12permanent way on passing over it has a particularly
Line 3.1.13solid feel. It is substantially ballasted with blue
Line 3.1.14metal and sandstone, and only ironbark sleepers and

80lb. steel rails have been used.

Line 3.3.0A favourable opportunity for viewing this import-
Line 3.3.1ant work was furnished yesterday, when the Railway
Line 3.3.2Commissioners, accompanied by the heads of their
Line 3.3.3departments, paid their first visit of inspection to the
Line 3.3.4new line. The party, which left Sydney by special
Line 3.3.5Pullman train at 10 in the morning, included Sir
Line 3.3.6Roderick Cameron and son, Mr. Pitt, and several re-
Line 3.3.7presentatives of the press, as well as the following
Line 3.3.8railway officials :-Messrs. Kirkcaldie, chief traffic
Line 3.3.9manager ; Richardson, outdoor superintendent ;
Line 3.3.10Foxlee, engineer-in-chief ; Nicholas, divisional
Line 3.3.11engineer ; and Henson, district superintendent. In
Line 3.3.12spite of the disagreeable day, the outing proved very
Line 3.3.13enjoyable, the visitors being treated to some
Line 3.3.14fast running. The distance between Par-
Line 3.3.15ramatta and Penrith, 21 miles, was covered
Line 3.3.16on the down journey in 25 minutes,
Line 3.3.17and in returning the train passed from Wentworth
Line 3.3.18to Sydney, 62 miles, in an hour and 55 minutes, in-
Line 3.3.19cluding all stoppages-probably the quickest time on
Line 3.3.20record. After inspecting the deviation work, and
Line 3.3.21passing through the new tunnel, the party was taken
Line 3.3.22on to Wentworth Falls, where buggies were in
Line 3.3.23waiting. In spite of the mist and rain, most of the
Line 3.3.24visitors had a glance at the magnificent waterfall,
Line 3.3.25which, after the recent wet weather, looked its best.
Line 3.3.26Luncheon was served on board, and the trip was
Line 3.3.27brought to a conclusion just after 5 o'clock, when
Line 3.3.28the train, a minute before its time, steamed into
Line 3.3.29Redfern. 

Toggle Layout

Date modified	Old Lines	New Lines
3 years agoburgessdohertyoz Rollback this correction (Will remove THIS correction, AND every correction above)	which risos precipitately from the Emu Plains. Men	which rises precipitately from the Emu Plains. Men
3 years agoburgessdohertyoz Rollback this correction (Will remove THIS correction, AND every correction above)	tho science of road construction was less advanced, the great attraction of tho first or lesser zigzag. Lithgow zigzag, I neod say nothing here-it is still South Wiles was a settled colony the Blue Moun- work making practicable roads, and ere long tha proveut unauthorised persons from winning their remember all those things, and seo how the progress tha idea of escaping the annoying zigzag has been in have been brought forward. Somo have proposed a ally, and as the cost of the wholo work is under £50,000, hitherto been used in makisg up a train. The con- spite of tho disagreeable day, the outing proved very Redfern,	the science of road construction was less advanced, the great attraction of the first or lesser zigzag. Lithgow zigzag, I need say nothing here-it is still South Wales was a settled colony the Blue Moun- work making practicable roads, and ere long the provent unauthorised persons from winning their remember all those things, and see how the progress the idea of escaping the annoying zigzag has been in have been brought forward. Some have proposed a ally, and as the cost of the whole work is under £50,000, hitherto been used in making up a train. The con- spite of the disagreeable day, the outing proved very Redfern.
6 years agomarhleet Rollback this correction (Will remove THIS correction, AND every correction above)	This data has not been loaded from the server yet
6 years agomarhleet Rollback this correction (Will remove THIS correction, AND every correction above)	This data has not been loaded from the server yet

Browse by(4)

Titles A-Z(25)

Titles S(121)

The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954)(113)

1892

The Sydney Morning H... : 20 December 1892(8)

Page 5(32)

Article text

Word position

Line position

Paragraphs

Zones

Tables

Illustrations

Metadata

Details

Download

Tags, Lists & Comments Help

Buy

Download

Share

Print

Display settings Help

Tags (0) Help

Lists (0) Help

Appears in these lists:

Comments (0) Help

Article Categories Help

Original Category

Additional Categories (0)