12 -
42
6,000 per mile. Trees are also being planted which it is
hoped will be available for the production of sleepers in
25 years.
29. The technical standards adopted for Construction
are on a far grander scale than those in vogue on the two
terminal sections, and unification will become a pressing
problem if the traffic develops at anything like the rate
anticipated. This scale may be judged from the fact that
all new locomotives designed for through use are of a
4-8-4 type with a tractive effort of nearly 40,000 lbs.
capable of attaining a speed of 50 miles per hour on level
track and of hauling 1,000 tons at a speed of 15 miles per
hour up a 1 in 100 grade.
30. The northern section of the Railway from uchang
to Chuchow is, I am given to understand, in a very bad
state and requires urgent rehabilitation.
Sleepers are
particularly bad, but I believe a grant of $600,000 has
been made by the Ministry of Railways to enable defective
sleepers to be renewed. The distance by rail from Chang sha
to Wuchang is 228 miles and, as the timing by the present
express is 14 hours (16.3 miles per hour start to stop),
the necessity for track strengthening to enable a
competitive speed to be obtained against the river boats
is obvious.
31. All the new covered, high-side, and flat wagons
are steel of 40 tons capacity. New passenger cars are
similar to those of the Tientsin-Pukow Railway with slight
modifications. The rolling stock ordered in London for the
completion of the Canton-Hankow Railway comprises 28 Lo como-
tives, 160 Covered Wagons, 175 High-side Fagons, 90 Flat
Wagons and 50 Carriages.