Engineering Wonders of the World
Volume I

114 ENGINEERING WONDERS OF THE WORLD. Railway, two divisional engineers, and their technical assistants. Each gang was respon- sible for converting about 1| miles of line. The permanent way on the Great Western line was as distinctive in char- Altering- acter as the gauge. Brunel had „ so designed his road as to se- Gauge. & cure a maximum of support under each rail, and instead of the now uni- versal (in the British Isles) cross-sleeper and these operations to minimum proportions, the ballast had previously been partially removed to admit of one sleeper being brought in to- wards the other, and alternate transoms had been cut through, the intermediate ones being cut half through. One section of each gang completed the cutting, a second slewed the sleeper into position, and a third bolted to- gether the timbers and packed up the ballast. A witness of the scene has recorded that BOLTING UP THE TRANSOMS AFTER CONVERSION. chair method, he adopted what was known as the “ longitudinal ” track. This consisted of large timber baulks placed under and running in the same direction as the rails, connected at intervals by cross-timbers termed transoms, and firmly secured with iron tie-bolts. To alter this type of permanent way involved cutting the transoms, slewing one of the sleepers and the rail upon it to the 4 feet 81 inches gauge, inserting new tie-bolts, and reballasting the track. In order to reduce usually three men cut off the ends of the tran- soms; then some ten or twelve others, armed with gigantic crowbars, sta- tioned themselves alongside a Methodical length of rail, and by a series Work, of rhythmic lifts and heaves moved the longitudinal sleepers, with the rails upon them, some 6 or 8 inches, continuing this to the end of their stretch of line. Afterwards they returned and repeated the operation, closing up the sleepers another few inches,