Dr. Cleghorn, Conservator of Forests, Madras Presidency, India, considers the decay of sleepers to arise in a great measure from the inferior description of wood used. Mr. Bryce McMaster, Resident Engineer, Salem, considers that the native wood sleepers in India have hitherto been found for the most part to fail on the Madras Railway, between 30 and 40 per cent. requiring to be renewed annually. Mr. McMaster undertook an investigation with a view of ascertaining the causes of this deterioration, and whether those causes could be overcome so as to render available the vast resources of India. Thirteen hundred sleepers of sixteen different woods were submitted to careful examination and scrutiny twice at an interval of one year. The sleepers were variously placed, both on embankments and in cuttings; in some cases they were entirely covered with ballast to a depth of 4 inches; while in others they were as much as possible uncovered, and completely so from the rails to the ends--the ballast being only raised 2 inches in the middle of the way, and sloped off so as to carry away the water under the rails. From these observations it appeared that only five woods, Chella wungé, Kara mardá, Palai, Karúvalem, and Ilupé, were sound at the end of two years, the other eleven not lasting even that time. Also, that when the sleepers were uncovered, decay was less rapid than when they were buried in the ballast. The plan of leaving the sleepers partially uncovered had many advantages; it effected a saving of the ballast, allowed the defects to be more quickly detected, and kept the sleepers drier. It had been urged that the heat of the sun would split the sleepers and cause the keys and treenails to shrink; but from experience it was found that while among the “uncovered” sleepers there was a large proportion “beginning to split,” or “useless from being split,” there was on the other hand, among the “covered” sleepers, a still larger proportion “beginning to rot,” or “useless from being rotten.” It was also noticed that of the sleepers “beginning to rot,” 19 per cent. had commenced under one or both chairs. This was due to the retention of moisture under them, and might be remedied by tarring the seats of the chairs. As regarded the treenails where the sleepers were rotten, the treenails were invariably found to be in the same state; while, when the heads were exposed to the sun, they were not loosened by shrinking. Another objection was, that the road would be more likely to buckle and twist, but this was not found in practice to be the case. Treenails made in India cost 2_l._ 10_s._ to 4_l._ per 1000, and the woods generally used for the purpose are Vengé, Kara mardá, Erul, Porasa, or satin wood, and Trincomalee. The three woods first named are also extensively employed for keys, but teak keys seem to be the best, and their cost does not exceed 6_l._ per 1000. From the experience of the Indian engineers it appears that Teak, Saul, Sisso,