Page:Report from the Select Committee on Steam Carriages.pdf/160



Mr. Nathaniel Ogle. 17 August, 1831. that portion of the road which has been cut up by the action of the horses' feet.

Is it of the same breadth as the two hind ones?—It is broader, being four inches and a half.

Is the centre wheel a guiding wheel?—It is.

What portion of weight is upon that as compared with the others?—That must vary a little, but generally about one-third.

Is yours a coach?—No, it is a treble-bodied phæton.

How many passengers have you carried when you have gone at the rates you have described?—I think I have seen nineteen; weight is of no importance to a steamer.

Taking the weight of your Carriage, with the Engine, at three tons; what weight do you suppose that you could carry at the rates you have spoken of?—Between three and four tons, very well.

Besides its own weight?—Yes.

Doubling its own weight?—Yes; twenty people will weigh more than a ton and a half.

For what distance do you travel without taking in water?—We can increase our capability to a great extent; at present, we carry about seven hundred weight of water; it lasts about forty minutes; that depends on the quality of the road.

How much coke?—The quantity we carry as according to the distance we wish to go.

What weight of fuel would you think it necessary to take in, to go one of your average stages?—Three bushels.

How much does a bushel weigh?—That is difficult to answer, coke differs in its weight; the average weight is about forty pounds a bushel.

What proportion of injury do you think one of your Steam Carriages does to the road in comparison with the injury done by a Coach drawn by horses proceeding with the same velocity?—Not one-half; first of all they receive no injury from the feet of the horses; a horse must have something to hold by, and the action of a horse's foot is to scrape and dig up the ground. Vehicles drawn by horses of equal weight, have