seeking the guarantee shall have precedence over it. Mr. Ayrton, M.P., whose opinion is entitled to much consideration, from his knowledge of India, is decidedly adverse to its construction at all; whilst, on the other hand, Mr. Laing, M.P., laments that the Governor in Council has come to the determination of not recommending the work to be proceeded with at once. As these three railways progress, they will add to the guaranteed capital about £18,000,000, making its total £106,000,000, and the amount of interest for which the Government of India will be annually responsible, £5,300,000, against which will be the net incomes of the railway companies up to 5 per cent. on the capital invested in each. We have just seen, that even with increased responsibility in the shape of guaranteed interest for the present year, the net amount will be less by £200,000 than it was last year. Nevertheless, on the £88,000,000 guarantee, when it shall have all been expended, the Government may, we think, look to being liable on balance for at least a million per annum for some years to come, and to still more during the construction, and subsequent to the opening of the lines likely to obtain the guarantee that is to raise its total amount to about £106,000,000. We now come to speak of the very important subject of working expenses. On these working expenses depends, in fact, the fate of the Indian railway system, and in considering them we must bear in mind that there are three elements of outlay of a character to which railways are, at most, very partially subjected in England—terrific inundations, destruction of materials, and cost of fuel. As regards the first, it would almost seem as if scarcely any provision that the engineer may make is sufficient to counteract their devastating effects upon the railway. Nor can this be wondered at when we read of rivers rising twenty—thirty—fifty feet in a few hours, as also that in places where there was a dry river bed one afternoon there is an impetuous torrent, hurling villages along in its devastating course next morning. On the Indus at Attock, on the high road between Lahore and Peshawer, the floods of 1858 appear to have risen 80 feet above the usual cold weather level of the river. In 1841 they were 92 feet above it, and from the nature of the river at this time it is possible that they may rise even higher. It is the same, though not to the same degree, at other places, and even if railway bridges and viaducts be not carried away, the ordinary permanent road suffers to an extent such as we know nothing of in this country.[100] No doubt experience will in process of time suggest means of protection as regards both construction and maintenance. Still, let man do what he may, there is no foe that he has ever faced on earth, or that he is likely to face, equal to the elements in anger. It is God’s will that they should be so, and although He places in our hands means to resist them, He has never