Newcastle-upon-Tyne Railway Station in 1960, viewed from the castle at the east end. The famous diamond crossing was made even more complex at this time by third-rail electrification for the North Tyneside line, which has since then become the Tyne and Wear Metro. What it would have been like if Brunel’s atmospheric tubes had been installed beggars imagination. Here we see one of the Tyneside EMUs (electric multiple units) setting off in the centre; a goods train headed by a British railways 9F 2-10-0 waits in the station behind; and on the right, former North Eastern Railway J71 0-6-0T station pilot gets on with a little shunting.
Introduction
When a line from London to Newcastle was first planned in the 1840s, Brunel recommended an atmospheric railway, which pulls carriages along with vacuum tubes laid between the rails instead of locomotives. The decision lay with the Government’s chief engineer, Robert Stephenson, but his father George made sure the idea got no further than Robert’s outer office.
GEORGE [Stephenson] was standing with his back to the fire, when Lord Howick called to see Robert.* 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.”
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. “You may take my word for it, my Lord, it will never answer.”*
Abridged
From ‘The Lives of the Engineers’ by Samuel Smiles (1812-1904).
George’s visitor was Henry George Grey (1802-1894), 3rd Earl Grey, styled Viscount Howick from 1807 to 1845. His father had been Prime Minister from 1830 to 1834.
Doric was a dialect of ancient Greek spoken around Sparta, deemed uncultured by Attic speakers in Athens. In Smiles’s Edinburgh, Doric was used as a humorous term for the accent of Scots from the rural lowlands, as opposed to educated ‘Athenians’ from the capital city. He is implying that Stephenson was the rough-and-ready Spartan beside the polished Athenian, Earl Grey.
The atmospheric system was championed by the eminent engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859). He and George were rivals, and according to Smiles, “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 was actually quite right, though: atmospheric traction, which sucked carriages along using air pressure in a tube between the rails, was expensive and prone to breakdown, and steam locomotives were a far more robust solution.
Questions for Critics
1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?
2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?
3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?
Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.
Précis
When former Prime Minister Earl Grey came to see Robert Stephenson about a so-called atmospheric railway from London to Newcastle, Robert’s father George stepped in. He steered the statesman away from the more persuadable Robert, and explained that the scheme was quite impractical, indeed imprudent. His lordship eventually admitted defeat, and went away without ever seeing Robert. (57 / 60 words)
When former Prime Minister Earl Grey came to see Robert Stephenson about a so-called atmospheric railway from London to Newcastle, Robert’s father George stepped in. He steered the statesman away from the more persuadable Robert, and explained that the scheme was quite impractical, indeed imprudent. His lordship eventually admitted defeat, and went away without ever seeing Robert.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 60 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 50 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: besides, despite, just, not, otherwise, ought, since, whether.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Jigsaws Based on this passage
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Business. If. Say.
2 Alongside. May. Word.
3 Demolition. Lord. Nonsense.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
High Tiles Find in Think and Speak
Make words (three letters or more) from the seven letters showing below, using any letter once only. Each letter carries a score. What is the highest-scoring word you can make?
x
0
Add
Your Words ()
Post Box : Ask Nicholas
Grok : Ask Grok
You are welcome to share your creativity with me, or ask for help with any of the exercises on Clay Lane. Write to me at this address:
See more at Post Box.
If you like what I’m doing here on Clay Lane, from time to time you could buy me a coffee.
Buy Me a Coffee is a crowdfunding website, used by over a million people. It is designed to help content creators like me make a living from their work. ‘Buy Me a Coffee’ prides itself on its security, and there is no need to register.
Related Posts
The more that pioneering engineer George Stephenson understood of the world around him, the more his sense of wonder grew.
Picture: © Luca Baggio, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.. Source.
Posted March 12 2018
George Stephenson won the admiration of French navvies by showing them how a Geordie works a shovel.
Picture: © Velvet, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.. Source.
Posted September 18 2017
