The Story of the Cambrian: A Biography of a RailwayGasquoine, C. P. (Charles Penrhyn)
History
The Story of the Cambrian: A Biography of a Railway
Gasquoine, C. P. (Charles Penrhyn)
Cambrian Railway
And a wonderful service it appears to have been! Old inhabitants still
tell tales of how goods trains would pull up at remote wayside spots
while driver and guard went trapping hares that made good prices in the
neighbouring markets, where no inconvenient questions were asked
concerning their capture. Or it might be that, now and again, a waggon
load of beer barrels was consigned to some village inn. It was then the
business of those in charge so to marshal the train that the "stuff" was
placed in convenient proximity to the engine, and, in the seclusion of
some cutting, a halt would be made for some mysterious reason. To
clamber over the tender into the adjacent waggon was a simple matter.
Still simpler, in expert hands, was the process of forcing up the hoop of
one of the barrels, tapping it and drawing it till the engine bucket
foamed alluringly, then plugging it up again, and drawing back the hoop
into its original position. On delivery the consignee might complain of
short weight, but that it was a question for the brewer and the company
to settle as best they could. None of the running staff knew anything
about it; and, as for the lateness of the train, well, was any train ever
punctual in those days, and who bothered about half an hour's delay?
Besides, there was something more important to bother about. Actions in
Chancery had begun to distract the attention of worried directors, and
these retarded progress with the construction of the line. So it was not
until June 1869 that the Cambrian continued beyond Penmaenpool, and, even
when Dolgelley was eventually approached, passengers had to alight at a
platform some little distance from the town. Only when the Great Western
Railway from Ruabon was completed did the trains from Barmouth Junction
run into Dolgelley station proper.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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