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■ ••^

MR. SWISYARD'JS MPORf S

OH TBE

FRIMCE EDWARD ISLAND RAILWAY,

JOHN EDWARD BOYD,

Chief Engineer.

Printedby Order 'of the Govsrr;nent of Prince
Edward Is'iand*

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OHARLOTTETOWN :

J' B. V'MTCaKR, PRIIfTCR, QUEKN STKXST,

1875:

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MB. S WIHYIRD^JS REPORTS

ON THl

PRINCE EDfARD KLAM RAILWAY,

JOHN EDWARD BOYD,

Chief Engineer.

CHA.RLOTTETOWN
1876:

'fif-

Ottawa, 19th April, 1875.

The Honorable

The President of the Executive Council,

Prince Edward Island. ',

Sir:—

I have the honor to submit the following explanatory
remarks on Mr. Swinyard's " Report on the Prince Edward
Island Railway" addressed to the Hon. the Minister of
Public Works of Canada, and referred to me by your letter of
13th April, 1875.

Although there are some points in the Report of 25th June,
1874, which it may be necessary for me to notice, it must be
remembered that, at that time "the work had not been finally
examined by the Engineer, nor had it been regarded by him
as finished." 1 had been frequently over the work that sea-
son, was perfectly aware of its " exact condition," and had
never represented it, oiaficially or unofficially, to any one, as
ready for final inspection, nor had any one connected with the
work, so far as I am aware, claimed that any part of it was
completed according to contract. The division between Char-
lottetown and Summerside was, nevertheless, in a much
better condition than were most of the lines in New Bruns-
wick or Nova Scotia when first opened for traffic.

LOCATION.

In order to place the whole subject in a proper light, it is
necessary j give a short sketch of the proceedings from the
inception of the works.

The Act, 34 Vic. Cap 4, authorizing the construction of
the Trunk Line between Cascumpec and Georgetown, was
passed in April 1871.

I was appointed Chief Engineer on the Ist May 1871, and
arrived ii!i Charlottetown on the 10th of that month.

4 REPLY TO

I found tl)f Government atixious to have actual operations
commenced that season ; I informed them that I could not
undertake to make surveys, locate the line, furnish quantities
of work, drawings of structures, &c., in time to meet their
wiehes in this respect. After some deliberation they decided
to put the line under contract as soon as possible, without
waiting for surveys, or giving any information to ContractofB,
further than could be afforded by a speciBcatiob of the works,
and u rough definition of the route which the line was to fol-
low. The General Specification was mnde as full as possible
as a guard against extra claims, and the control of the loca-
tion kept, as much as it could be, under that mode of letting,
in the hands of the Government.

In June twc parties of Engineers were sent out to make
preliminary surveys, so as to ascertain whether the routes
desired by the Government were practicable, as well as to
enable comparisons to ba made, where opinions differed, as to
thfe best route, but no attempt at a final location was made at
this time nr prior to thp letting of the "'^ntract.

Tenders were advertised for on 23rd May, and on the 11th
3eptember, 1871, the contract for the Trunk Line was signed.

The Railway Act states that the length of line to be
constructed would be "about 120 miles." How this was
arrived at does not appear, but 'air lines joining the several
objective points, afterwards named in the orders in Council,
^pould make the whole distance 130 miles.

I had no means of knowing this at the time the Genera!
Specification was written, but supposed the distance given in
the Act to be correct, and inserted it merely as an intimation
^0 Contractor;? of the probable extent of the works.

The specification states that ''the jgeneral route of the
Railway will be defined by the Commissioner*!, and the Con-
tractors will be required to locate the line as nearly on that
route as the nature of the country will permit." Grading was
not to be commenced until the Contractor had received notice
in writing from the Engineer that the location had been ap-
proved by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

As sopn as possible I submitted for the consideration of the
Government several routes surveyed under their orders and
practicable within the limitation of the Act, which expressly
provides that " no contract shall be entered into for the con-
9b*uctioci of ihe said 'Railroad, conditioned on the payment of
any greater Bum than £5000 currency ($16,222) per mite for

MR. SWINTARD 8 REPORT. ||

the whole dii^tance, including all surveys, and locating the
line and all suitable Stations, vStation houses, Sidings, Turii-
tabk'fl, Rolling Stork, Fences, and all the necesbary appliances
suitable for a first class Railroad, and the construction ot suit-
able wharves at Cascumpec, Summerjiide, Charloftetowu and
Geor<?etown." After due consideration, the (jrovernment
selected the route which they deemed best, and it was formally
defined by orders in Council, October 5Ui and 9th, and
November 22nd, 1871.

The location made on this route
submitted to and approved by the

Council, after correction, where

by the Contractors wap

Lieutenant Governor in

praclicuble, by thu Chief

Engineer.

The contract length of t e line is not, therefore, 120 miles,
but the length of the line located by the Contractors in accoid-
ance with the terras of the Specification on the route defined
by the Goirernraent.

Considerable discussion having arit^en over this and ot'ier
matters, and a chanoe of Government having taken ()l!ice,
Messrs. Newton and Median, Civil Engineers, of New York,
were employed to make an examiaation of, and report on
the Railway. Thet^e gentlt-men arrived in Charlottetown on
8th July, 1872, and went over the whole Road, aecompHtiied
by several members of the Government, They mud*' a
thorough examination of the line with the plans and profiles.
in their handt;, and had trial lines and levels run at any points
where they thorght there was a chance of improving the
location. Their report on this subject is as follows: —

""Under this head are embraced the most prominent points in
our instructions, naniely : the curves, and 'he question lespect-
ingthe length of the line as laid out. compared with thelength
it was thought in the beginning would be required to traverse
tiie distance between Alberton and Georgetown '

"This Act among other things, directs that th" total cost ot
the Railway, including Rolling Stock, Stations, &c., in fact
eveiy thing needed to operate the road, shall not exceed £50U0
currency per mile. "V^ith the view, also, of keeping the cost
within this limit, so it appears to us. the Act further directs
that the guage shall be 3 feet 6 inches.''

*'His Honor the Lieuteoju-t Governor in Council ordered the
Gov. Ch'ef En/ii jeer to make the preliminary survey, and
directed him, at the same time, to run the. line so that it

t REPLY to

would pass through eertain points between the termini, AlbertoD
and Georgetown. ' . . • • •

In view of these instructions, and with the Railway Act
before him, wo are of cpinioo, that it was the duty of the Chief
Engineer to stake out a line running throuiih the joints named
by the Government on which the | roponed Railway could be
constructed, if po^^sible, at a cost lerraile. within the limit
fixed by law. To have ooinmensod Kurroying o| erationa on a
basis other than this, to have cl oseii a line on which jeihupH a
more direct road, but ut a ooi-t ozctediDg the legal limit might
be built, would not have been in accordanco with the intentions
of the Government, when the ordorH in Council above men-
tioned were handed to the Chief Engineer To have kept this
important provision of the law out of sight, would have caused
the survey to be practically valueless, as co contract condition-
ed for a greater price than this limit could be legally entered
into. * * * . * • In other words,

we think it was the duty of the Engineer to locate a railway that could
be constructed for £5000 currency per mile, or failing in this, to state
that this could not be done.^*

•'This examination of the location of the Line, was made not
with the view of pointing out a new general location, but to see
whether the line ought to have been placed diflFerently, within
a reasonable limit of the general location, It is proper, how-
ever, we should state, that from our observations of the char-
acter of the country, no evidence was brought to light which
/ leads us to believe that a new survey could materially improve
the prerent general location of the line ; keeping in sight the
fact, that there are many places through which it is imperative
the railway should pass, so that it might be of the greatest
utility to the country. The tables piesented, in our
opinion, show that while it was possible to have so run the
Railway, that its total length between the termini, would
have been, say in the neighborhood of five miles less than it
is, yet that this could not have been done, without increasing
the cost per mile to a sum greater than the limit fixed by the
Railway Act:' * * *

*• We believe that the Government Chief Engineer has confined
the contractor within reasonable limits. We have given much
thought to this subject, and have endeavored to keep
constantly in view the relative positions of the Government, the
Gevernment Engineer, and the Contractor, To repeat in part
what has been before stated, the Government — in our opinion
— really directed its Engineer, to so locate the line, that the
proposed railway could be constructed for the amount fixed
by law ; if he had done otherwise his work would have been
!!£ ess, the intentions of the Government and of ihe law would

MB. swintard's bepobt. 7

have been made nugatory. The contraotor, we suppose, endeavor-
ed to secure a location as advantageoas as would oe allowed, but
we do not think the Government Engineer has permitted a
location which conflicts with his duty.'*

• • • • • • •

"Our attention has been called to the fact that • • • the total
length of the road between the termini, Alberton andGeorgetown'5
is spoken of as *' about 120 miles," We do not know on what
data, this distance was estimated , it seems clear, however, on
an inspection of the map, that a line but 120 miles in length
cannot be run between these places, intersecting the points the
Government directed it should intersect, even if it was quite
straight, without a curve, other than such as would be needed
for changes of dir3ction."

This portion of the report appears to have been unsatis-
factory to the Government, and on 14th October, 1872 a
letter was'' addressed to the Inspecting Engineers, requesting
some further explanations." On November 9th, they reply as
follows:— ■ ':}^'' .'''^ :

'' We beg to leave to say^ that we fully appreciated the im
portance of this questiojo of looation-that it w as the most promi-
nent feature connect^ with the examination. Accordingly,
we gave it great atiention ; and, as need scarcely be stated,
devoted upwards of one half of our report to a statement re-
specting the alignment of the railway. In doing this, as you
doubtless observed,; Ua.: line was divided into some forty sec-
tions, and the more jprpn^iDent points respecting each of these
divisions, were meDtione4*^|

The Report was aceompatiied by maps and particulars of the
principal curves ; indeed, of every one which had caused
remark, • • * * Now the question is

asked why is the total length of the railway more than ' about
120 miles ? ' To this interrogatory we beg leave to answer,
that it is because it cannot be materially less than it is, and
intersect the points named in the orders of ♦^^e Government of
Prince Edward Island to the Government : agineer, who had
charge of locating the line ; neither do our observations point
out to us that the rrMin line could, under any circumstances^
he much less in length than it is ; certainly not y unless at a
greater expenditure than thatjixedhy the Railway AcX."

Regarding the construction and the mode of letting the
contracts they say : —

"This method, as we stated while on the Island, places wide
discretionary powers in the hands cf the Government Engineer ;
and to speak with a frankness that the spirit of your letter

-^.BPLT TOrw« jm

requires, we feel bound to say, that we know of nothing which
impugns the professional conduct of this gentleman."

The location of the Branch Lines was made in 1872, pre- ^
vious to th>5 letting of the contracts, by Engineers directly '
under my control, the general route being Hxed by the Gov-
ernment. Mr. Cox, ihe Engineer in charge of those surveys^
bap had great experience in 3uch work, and his ability in that;
branch of the profession is undoubted. IJ^'iT'!:^'^

I considered it necessay, in order that the cost of the whole;
work might not exceed the limit fixed by the Statute to keep>
the quantities of earth down down to 8,000 cubic yards per
mi'e, but Mr. Cox had instructions to spare no time or trouble'
to* get the oest line possible within these prescribed limits, and-
this I believe has been done. Yet, in gradients and curves
*' the utmost limits given in the first contract " wer«i found)
necessary, and between Harmony and Souris ^9^, to .be cXtI
ceeded. • ,.?;.;■ .^^

The Eastern F-xtension has been slightly reduced in length;
by the change of Station at Souris. The increase of two
miles and a half in the length of the Western Extension, was
caused by an entire change of route. The line on which th©
contract was based (order in Council 20ih Dec, 1872,) raa,
within a short distance of the N. E. coast. Before any work
had been done a change of Government took place, and the-
present route running more inland (order in Council 7th June,
1874) was adopted, the Contractors receiving the same rate per
mile, but deducting $11,586.75, the price of a bridge across
the Kildare River and adding $2,080 for extra clearing.

The whole Railway has been carefully rechained, and a
stake driven and marked at each mile. Mile posts are not
mcluded in the contracts.

Prince Edward Island, with the exception of the District
west of Summerside, is not, by any means, an eas', country in
which to build a cheap line of Railway There are no regur
lar ranges of bills, but the surface is broken into wide, deep,
and abrupt hollows by the numerous streams which, owing to
the soft nature of the formatior, have cut down almost to the
sea level soon after leaving their sources. *

In the 44 miles between Summerside and Royalty Junction,
two summits, 301 and 307 feet above the sea respectively,
Lave to be crossed. Thesa summits are eight miles apart,
and between them the line descends to within 65 feet of the
sea level. Several minor summits between 160 and 190 feet

* '

MR. SWINTARD S REPORT.

high, are encountered on this and the Easter ii Division, while
the line, in several places, falls to within a few feet of high
wai-er. In the first five niiles out of Souris, the line rises 220
feet.

The frequent and abrupt changes in the natural surface
necessitated constant curves and ejradients, unless works were
undertaken which would be considered excepaonally heavy-
on any line, and such as were quite out of the question under
a, limitation of $16,222 per mile.

p. It will be seen by Mr. Swiriyard''.. synopsis that after all
132 miles, or two thirds of the length, consist.-* of. straight
lines. If a large proportion is on gradients, this was unavoid-
able except by increasing the quantities of work or lengthen-
ing the liue. The legal limitation in cost per mile prevented
thefiratjthe total costof tlie Railway would have been increased
by the second alternative. The elevation of the Road bed
above the natural surface, is, in my opinion, a point of sufficient
importance to warrant an increase of gradient in special cases ;
this was kept in ?iew, and has been effected; 140 miles of
the line being on embankment and only 60 in cutting. It
should also be borne in mind that this is a narrow guage Rail-
way, and that it is claimed by the advocates of that system
that the small cost of construction is arrived at by adapting
the alignment to the natural surface of the country, by the
use of sharper and more frequent curves than are admissible,
or at least expedient, on a broader guage.

TVio limits adopted on other lines of the same class, have
not been exceeded or even arrived at. The Australian h ail-J
ways have curves of 330 feet radios uud grades of 132 Jfeet
per mile; the Norwegian Railways, curves of 750 feet radius,
and grades of 11^5 feet per mile; the Ontario Railways,
curves of 400 feet radius, and grades of 105 fe^t per mile ;
and the South American Railways, curves of 1 87 and 235
feet radius, and grades of 169 feet per mile, Gradients of
70 and 75 feet per mile are not uncommon in the neighboring
Provinces.

On the P. E, Island Railway, the j teepest gradient is 66
feet per mile, with the exception of one near Souris of 74 feet
per mile, and the radius of the sharpest cur\e 604 feet, with
the exception of one curve of 300 feet radius at Harmony, and
one of 573 feet radius near Charlottetown The exceptional
cirve and gradient on the Eastern Extension are necessitated
by the natural formation, and are unavoidab.e. The curve

REPLY TO

near Charlottetown was put in to lessen the land damages
which are paid by Government.

Ab regards the general route, Mr. Swinyard admits in his
first Report, page 21, that '^ although the line is very circuit-
ons, it is undoubtedly well laid out to serve the general inter-
ests of the country." With this I have nothing to do, bu< I
maintain that the details of locaiion are in accordance with
the recognized principles of the narrow guage system ; any
excessive application of those principles being forced on mo
by its being made imperative that the Rnilway should pass
through certain fixed points. As regards safety, the Road
has been run over by construction and other trains for nearly
two years, at much higher rates of speed than the ordinary
traffic will require, without any accident, which was attribut-
able to either the alignment or construction. If the subject
of location has been dwelt on at greater length than the re-
marks in Mr. Swinyard's Report may seem to warrant, it is
because this has been made a constant ground of attack, not
only by those who, knowing ncthing of the features of the
country, the restrictions of the Act, or the nature of the con-
tracts, are totaly unqualified to pass an opinion, but by those
who have a full knowledge of the circumstances, and from
whom, therefore, a more impartial judgment might be expected*

CLEARING.

.■??j;)

I do not claim that the clearing is completed according to
contract. I have constantly urged upon the Contractors the
necessity of 6nishing this part of the work, and they have
repeatedly promised that it should be done. They claim, how-
ever, that, owing to some failure on the part of the Govern-
ment to put them in legal possession of the land the first
season, they could not burn the brush as soon as it was cut,
and that, after becoming soaked with water by lying on the
ground, it would not burn.

This excuse I declined to admit, and I have stopped $300
in the final settlement. As the rubbish is nearly all piled and
ready for burning, I think this amount will be found sufficient
to pay for the work. The greater part of the clearing is very
well done. The cutting of standing timber outside the Railway
fence was not included in the contract, but all trees whica
seemed in danger of falling were cut by my orders.

MS. swintard's report.

ges

FENCING.

The contract for the trunk line provided for board fencing
throughout. This was changed to wire fencing by order of
Council, 12th December, 1871, on the ground that the kiter
was better adapted for Railway purposes, especially in a coun-
try where the snow drifts so much as in Prince Edward
Island. riufcui. r.iH

Mr. Swinyard has dealt so thoroughly, and, I may add, so
fairly with the merils and defects of the Fence in his prelimi-,,
nary report, pages 18 to 21, that it is only necessary for me to
explain a few points.

Although the posts were inspected and marked by in-
spectors appointed by the Government, and the Fence built
under the supervision of men similarly appointed, much of the
work is done in a very slovenly and ineflficient manner, I
voluntarily pointed this out to Mr. Swinyavd, as he states at
page 4 ot his report, and told him of the difficulties that had
arisen. His experiments were, I believe, the result of our
conversation. I approved fully of his suggestion for the im-
provement of the fence, and would willingly have adopted it,
but the contractors declined to do so, without extra remunera-
tion, which it was not in my power to give, I was, therefore,
obliged to fall back upon the next best method of having a
post driven in the centre of each panel, wherever the small
size of the original post enabled me to demand the improve-
ment.

The fence was a source of great trouble from the begin-
ning. No doubt, much of the prejudice against it arose from
the way in which it was at first built, but this was much in-
creased by other conditions quite distinct from the question of
defects in the fence, which appeared to be regarded by many
as a fair object for the exercis<? of their destructive propensi-
ties. The wire was continually stripped off, and carried away,
or 80 twisted together that it could not be used again, and hun-
dreds of the straining bolts and nut? were broken or removed.
In accordance with my instructions, the fen<!e was all repaired
during last summer, but, in many cases, especially near road
crossings, fencing, which had been put in good order, was
found, twenty-four hours afterwards, completely wrecked with
much of the material missing.

To meet these peculiar circumstances, I made the following
Jigreement with the contractors : — " AH return fcinces to

RKPLT TO

cattle guards* and to station grounds, are to be of posts and
battens. All gate posts at crossings are to be braced as per
accompanying plan.

" Between Cbarlottetown and Summerside, the lacing
must be as specified in order in Council of stolid wire.

" On Eastern and Western Divisions it may be as follows :

' In clearings take off the bottona wire, and drive the stakes
firmly. Remove the present half lacing, and use the lower
wire, removed for making tioo complete lacings in each panel
from top to bottom. j^

' In vjoods remove the lower wire, and drive the stakes
firmly, and continue the half lacing to the top wire.' "

Under this agreement board fencing was sui)3tituted, with-
out ('Xtra charge, at all the points nicst exposed to destruc-
tion, and the fence through clearings made more efficient by
additional lacing.

The plan of gates referred to by Mr. Swinyard, page 19,
and showing posts mortised irio a cross sill, was originally in-
tende*d for the -board fence, but, when the wire fence was adopt-
ed, it was thought better to substitute to posts sank 4^ feet into
the ground. There is nothing in the contract requiring the
adoption of either plan.

The fencing atid gates were put in good order before the
completion of the contract, but it is quite likely, as Mr. Swin-
yard says, '' the wholo will require overhauling in the spring
of the year."

This it will require every year, and the cost of doing it is
chargeable to maintenance.

The contract for the Western Extension provided for board
fencing, which has been built somewhat roughly, but iri a
substantial manner, and in comp'iance with the specification.

On ihe Eastern Extension the contract provided for wire
fence in cleared lands, and board fence in the woods. Mr.
Swinyard says th(5 latter is " very satisfactorily done, and fully
up to specification." It is quite probable that from causes
mentioned above, some of the straining bolts are missing in
the wire fence, but I believe it was built in such a manner as
to meet the requirements of the specification.

GRADING.

Mr. Swinyard says, page 45, " The grading throughout,
as far as the Road bed is concerned, has, as far as we could
judge, been well done. The width at formation is generally up

.."'«

& '■

MR. swinyard's report.

to the specification, and the slopes properly formed, and, from
the nature of the material, they will, no doubt, remain in good
condition. The ditching and drainage of the Road has been, on-
the whole, carefully carried out, but the enobankments, at some
places in lf>w lands, should, in our opinion, have been, at least,
one foot higher, in order to have kept the Road bed well abave
any accumulation of water that may take place during the
spring or very wet weather." The grading of the line was
modt carefully attended to. Gangs were put on to trim and
finish in advance of the ballasting. The rounding up of the
Road bed is a point to which I attacii great importance, and
I gave the matter my personal attention. The drainage was
made as complete as possible ; water was not allowed to lodge
any where if it could be by any means drained off. There is
no ground for apprehending any drainage from the accummu-
lation of water in low lands. With the experience of two
seasons as a guide, the embankments were raised wherever
they appeared too low. The making up of embankments at
the ends of bridges and over culverts, is very generally done
in the later stages of the work, and additional filling is almost
always required at such points, but this is surely part of the
cosi of maintenance.

The statement that " absolutely nothing has been done," in
the grading of the station grounds, is an exaggeration. As
much has been done as will answer for the present require-
ments of the line. I do not consider that I could, under the
contract, compel the Contractors to grade the whole area
taken, amounting, in some cases, to several acres. ■'**;5i

Roads from the highways to the station grounds are not in
eluded in the contract, and, in some cases, the land for them
was not appropriated, the Government intending to take it
under the Highway, and uot under the Railway, Act.

CULVERTS AND DRAINS. iv<,.?^ ,lmf

* * -

ir. Swinyard says page 46 "The culverts ' ^ftd draitrt
(323 in number) throughout have been well and substantially
constructed. The culverts, with five exceptions, which are
of timber, have been built in masonry, with stone of large and
good quality, and compare most favorably with culverts of a
similar character on other Railways. We were not person-
ally enabled to judge of their eufiiciency in size for the passage
of water during heavy fres^-iLs, but, from the care and atten-
tion bestowed, we believe suflScient water way has been giren."

REPLY TO

Messrs. Newton and Mechan, who examined the work
wh'Ie in progress, say, in their Report, page 25, " the charao^
ter of the masonry is very good * * * The masonry in
the abutments in process ot construction was well executed ;.
it is evident those in charge were taking pains to do good
work. * * * The drainage of the Road appears to have
been carefully considered ; we think it will be found to be
ample"

Wherever it appeared from observations made during the
progress of the works, and extending over three years, that
the original water ways were insufficient, they were ea-j
larged or additional culverts were built. ; .;j-j,g« f

BRIDGING.

t:ii,. ':J'

iCi

Mr. Swinyard says, *• The general character of the bridges
is good, having stone ' foundations ' and abutments with tim-
ber * superstructures.' There are forty-six bridges of spans
ranging from 20 up to 100 feet, ot which lattter there is now
only one."

In order to make the structures as durable as possible,,
care was taken to keep all timber from contact with the
earth. "Where trestle^are used, they stand on stone piers,
and the ends of the strmgers rest on masonry built on piles
driven into the embankments.

I think Mr. Switiyard over wtes the objections to the
situation of Midgell Bridge, the location of which is unavoid-
able, as can be seen on the ground. The construction trains
have be'^n run over it, without accident, during the past sea-
son, in every possible way, and at high rates of speed. It
will be quite unnecessary *' for safety to bring the trains to a
stand before passing on to this structure in either direction."v

It would be more correct to say that the bridges are '' near
to " than " at " the foot of gradients, a position they neces-
sarily occupy in spanning streams which run in valleys. The
Bridge is either on the grade or on a " piece of leveL? Two
descending gradients never meet on a bridge* Speaking
from memory, for I have now no plans in my possession, only
six out of the forty-six bridges are on curves and this will
hardly warrant the assertion that " in many cases bridges are
placed on curves."

PUBLIC CROSSINGS.
The public crossings, all of which are provided with cattle

.*,'

._, .\

MR. 8WINTABD S REPORT.

guards, nnd which average one at every mile and two-thirds
in the length of the line, are, as Mr. Swinyard agrees, '^ all
fairly up to specification,"

PRIVATE OR FARM CROSSINGS.

sWnr

. The law enables land owners to demand one private cross-
ing on every farm, and two on farms exceeding thirty chains
in width. The consequence is thai no less than 759 private
crossings or nearly four to the mile were required. Mr.
Swinyard is right in supposing that they '' will be a source of
much inconvenience and expense," especially if stringent rules,
obliging proprietors to keep the gates shut, are not enacted
and strictly enforced. Under the provisions of the law the
number could not be lessened.

. . .. SLEEPERS OR TIES, ^''t'^'^^,,^

As regards the size of the sleepers, I bad, long prior to Mr.
Swinyard's first visit, drawn Mr. Gregory's attention, both
verbally a»id by letter, to their deficiency in this respect. I
pointed them out to Mr. Swinyard myself, and informed him
of my iotention to have the matter put right, before the line
wasiakenoff the contractors' hands. Owing to disputes about
the Government inspection, the nature ol which I reported to
you in my letter of 6th October last, there was some difficulty
in getting the contractors to carry out my orders, but in the
end most of the small sleepers were removed or supplement-
ed by an extra number. To cover any remaining deficiency,
I required the contractors to deliver 1600 additional sleepers,
and have deducted $400.00 from the final eslnizate to cover
jthe cost of putting them into the t.rack. n

In respect to the number per mile, I must re-iterate the
statement already made, that, when I wrote the specifica-
tion for the trunk line, I intended the number *' about 2500 "
to include an allowance for sidings. To cover the want of
fall information and to avoid any chance of extra claims, I
deemed it prudent to make all allowances as full as possiblCr
The clause was so explained to parties who asked for informa-
tion and thoroughly understood. The drawing of the track
showing 2200 ties to the mile, was subsequently prepared in
my office, and sent to the contractors, and that number was
used as the b^sis ot the schedule quantity. I never had any
inteDtion of requiring 2500 ties per mile in the main line, i^.;

In the specification for the Branch Lines^ . drawing pre*

1 RErLT TC

vioualy prepared was referred to. and tho nuffibeir 2200 per mile
showD by that drawing, was therefore given. About this
there could be ao misunderstanding.

The cases aiC quite dissimilar, and will not bear the
analogy Mr. Swinyard seeks to establish between them.
Apart from the fair presumption that I know the meaning,
I intended the disputed clause to convey, the contract makes
my decision final " on all questions in dispute with regard to
the meaning or interpretation of plans and specifications." I
do not admit any deficiency in the number of sleepers, beyond
that provided for by the stoppage in the final estimate, --'p

>^i&vfiuci yJir-iriJa htm ■

BALLASTING.

Mr. Swinyard says, page 49, " While we found that the
quality of the ballast used was fairly up to specification, it
was my duty to report that the result of the tests we made
showed a considerable deficiency in quantity, particularly
between Hunter River and the Western terminus of the line,
Tignish, a distance of 96|^ miles. From the notes taken at
each mile, we estimate that the deficiency will not be less
than 30,000 cubic yards which, at the prices fixed in the
schedule, would amount to a loss in value of about $15,000."
The drawin of the track show the centre depth of the
ballast to be 12 inches, the rounding of the grading bringing
up the average cross section depth to 15 inches, which, with an
average width of 9 feet (8 feet top and 10 feet bottom) gives
the contract quantity of 2200 cubic yards per mile. Over
96^ miles, Mr. Swinyard makes a moan centre depth of 10^
inches, which would give an average depth of 13^ inches'*
By Mr. Swinyard's own measurement the average width of
the ballast on this part of the line is 9^ feet, instea-d of 9 feet,
and this, multiplied by 13|- Inches, will give 2090 cubic yardfii
per mile, or a total deficiency of 10,587 cubic yairds, instead of
30,000, and the value of which at the schedule prices, woul^
be less than $5,000,instead of ''about $15,000." Three quarters
of an inch in depth would make up this deficiency, and I do
not believe that, with the best intentions, the depths could bd
measured as closely as that. In many cases, the ballast dif-
fers but little in appearance from the material in the cutting Of
enbankment. In others^ inorder to save the best ballast as
much as possible for the top lift I had a shallow bottoiA lift
of somewhat inferior material run on.

MR. SWINY4IW>'e> HBPORT.

17.

I offered these facts in explanation, but as Mr. Ridout de-
clined to receive thcui, I did not press the matter, feeling con-
fident that the contract quantity of ballast had been put on
the line. The pit measure nnents show a large excess, an4^,
though part of this may liave been used to " make up '* en^,,
bankments the margin is still ample. On the remaining disr.,
tance of 102 miles, Mr. Swinyard's measurements would
show an excess of about 36,000 cubic yards over the contract,,
quantity. This, to my mind, only proves how impossible it;
was for him to arrive at a correct estimate of the quan^|tj|.,
ac^vjally on the line. ••

W -^ifi&iti

RAILS, &c,

The contractors were furnished with a ppeciQcation for the
mai^ufacture and testing of the rails, 6sh plates, bolts an^
spikes. The rails were insp.^cted by Mr.Heory Caerth, C.E., of
Londop, 9nd stamped on the ends with his branjd, each cargo
being also accompanied by bis certificate. The spikes wej:<e
made chiefly in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. --*

Mr. Swinyard speaks favorably of the iron in both Reportisi^-

The Rails have been carefully straightened wherever they,
had been bent daring construction, and the alignment had ^
been made true on both curves and tangents.

STATION BUILDING;S,_.

In his Rffport of 25th June, page 24, Mr. Swinyt^rd, after ,
describing the station houses, says : ^' It will be observed that a
very considerable reduction of buildings has beep made at all
places except Charlottetown; that dwelling rooms at every
station have been cut out; and that at Charlottetown smaller
offices have been provided in lieu of the roomy offices originally
designed. The changes so made w^re under an agreement'
between the Govemifi^nt and the Uontractors, the reason
giyen being to provide lor the more expensive diversion of (he .
line through the town of Summerside, which was recommend-
ed by the New York Engineers, and also to provid,^ fpr
cov<Qr$d ^heds at all germinal stations in ^j^ic^ to receive th§;r,
pas^l^ger trains. I regard this alteratiopas a piistake."

In his seoQiui Report, pAg« 4r9» he s^y^: "Tbia depairtum i
from the Qriginf4,de»jl^iii8, made ;by,Qrd«r. pf the Provinouil!

REPLY TO

Government, will now involve an expenditure of about
$4,500.'^

As I have previously explained, there was no time given,
before the letting of thu contract for the trunk line, to prepare
plar 8 of any kind. I was, Itierefore, obliged, in order to give
parties tendering some idtaof the work required, as well as to
bind Contractors to some efficient designs to specify approxim*
at<-ly iho dimensions and description of the station buildings
I intended to erect. The contract provided that the plans
flliould be furnished as the work progressed; as soon as pos-
sible after the letlii g of the contract the plans were prepared.
They were nearly completed in accordance with the desicrip-
tiou given in the specification, and tracings of n^any of them
bad been sent to the Contractors. It appears that, about this
tfnie, (February 1872) the Government were pressed to pro-
Tide covered Stations at the principal towns, and after some
negociation, the Contractors were requested to state on what
terms they would m^ke the proposed change in the buildings.

- Ou 13th March, 1872, 1 received a roll of plans, accom-
panied by the following order : — ^^

*^The Lieutenant Governor in Council bas referred to you
for your Report, with such suggestions as you may think
proper to make all the plans submitted by the Railway Con-
tractors, with a view of t>upplying covered sheds at the Sta-
tions in Charlottetown, Summerside, Alberto n and George-
town, in the stead oi those provided for in the contract be-
tween the Government of this Island and Mr. Schreiber, the
Contractor."

I accordingly made such alterations in, and additions to, the-
plans as seemed absolutely necessary, and the designs, thus
ameuded, were approved by the Lieutenant Governor in
Council, April 9th, 1872, and were regarded thenceforth as
tbe contract plans.

They were submitted to the Consulting Engineers in July
1872, and, by them, approved as "adequate for the buaioeBS oi
the Road." ^^ mii li^iumfUimll

Without giving any opinion in the matter, I submit that I
cannot be held accountable, in any way, for the change in de^'^
sign which has caused the deficiency in living room and ofiSe^ '
aecommodktiou, of which Mr. Swinyard complains. The
ak^atien was made contrary to my expressed wiiftfaes, and

HB. 8WINYARD 8 REPORT.

1»

solely to meet the views of the Government with reaped to
the coveted Stationfl.

The question of the der vision of the line at Summettilo WM
not connected with the chantre in the buildings, and did not
come up until t>ome months af'terwards.

The Siation houses on the br>in(;h lines are built in accord-
nnce with the contract plans, which are copies of those adopted
by the Government for the trunk line.

Mr. Swinyard says, page 8, that '*the sites of the way
Stations have not, in all cases, been very judiciously selected,
having regard to the easy stopping and starting of trains.
Most ot them are on inclines."

Messrs, Newton and Mechan say, page 29, of their Report,

" Looking at the maps with reference to the popuUtion, and

the number, and direction of the highways in the neiglibor-

hood of the general location of these Stations, they appear to

. us to be properly placed."

The Stations are necessarily situated near the points where
tha public roads cross the Railway, and though some of them
are not perhaps in desirabk- positions with respect to the
gradients, I do not eee (low they could well be differentiy
located.

They are more numerous than on most Railways, being 64
in number, or at the rate of one every three miles.

The sites of the principal stations demand particular notice.

With Tignisb, I believe, no fault can be found : the statioD
yard is large and well arranged.

Alberton station was located first by the Pope-Governraent
in 1871, changed, in 1872, by the Haythorne-Government, on
the recommendation of Messrs. Newton and Mechan, and,
finally removed to its present site, near the junction of the
Tignish branch, on the change of Government in 1873. "fhere
IB ample room in the station yard for all time to come.

When the extension to Tignish was decided on, Alberton
was no longer a terminal station, and the engine and car
sheds provided for in the contract became unnecessary. Aii my
request the contractors erected instead six extra tanks and
tank houses at different points on the line.

The station at Summerside was located in 1871, by the
Pope-Government, The site chosen was nearly a mile^aok

RKPLT TO

from the water front, and was connected with the wharf by a
branch. In 1872 the matter was referred, by the Haythorne
Government, to the Consulting Engineers.

They say '' dispensing with the branch at this place, running
the road along the water front, on or about the preliminary
line staked out while we were on the Island, with the main
depot near the railroad wharf, would be a better location than
the present one for the businejs of the town, and the com-
munity generally. In considering this suggestion it is ex-
pected that the additional cost will be duly considered and
balanced with the advantages that may be anticipated from
the change*"

, lay order in Council, 2ndf August 1872, I was •* directed to
proceed to Summerside and make an exact survey and esti-
mate of the cost of the route leading to the Railway wharf at
that place, also of the part ot the shore required for the station
as recommended by Messrs. Newton and Mechan, and to re-
port in detail to the Lieutenant Governor in Council, specify-
,ing the kinds and quaiitities of materials required, their value
aiid the cost of labor."

The contractors claimed $60,000 extra as compensation for
work done on the first location, and for additional work on the
new lice, but fitiaily consented to take $40,000, the amount of
my estimate of thd difference in cost.

Mr. Swinyard, speaking of this new line, sa^y, page d of his
rdport : '' A worse location it could hardly be po()gible to con-
oeive," and proceeds to give, at sonie length, his reasons for
holding that opinion.

I ,],,Iii May 1873, a 'V petition from, the inhabitants of Sum-
. fiqiersidei praying for the lemoval of the Railway Station," to a
: Ihird site at the back of the town was referred to me by
'^^ Government. I accordingly made a i>urvey and estimate
of the CQSt of a line through the proposed site. This line is
shown on the plan referred to by Mr. Swinyard, page 6. I'his
lilkt), with a few additions to fit it for his u^e, is a copy of one
flijlbmitted by me to the Government, 2l8t May 1873. As
tnV work on the shbre line was, by that tln^e, far advauced, it
Wis decided to lie^ the station r6hiaiii' whebe if h'eW is.

^ Mr* Swinyard says, " The station yard is much too limited
and insdfi&cieiit for the requireinaents of (he tramc."

The land for the statioa was taken and laid 08" by the Com-

I >

MR. SWINTARU'S REI-ORT.

{I >

•

miflpionpra. I remonstrated at the tirnn, point in{]; ont tlio in-
sufficiency of the area, and rfCoinmendinL' ih** piircliH-je of the
corner lot referred to I y Mr. SwinvHid. Ir wn*, with «<>me
difficulty that the engine and car sheds M'ere fi ted on to the
grotitjd tHken, as thfir positioti > roves. Th«' en' tmoiis AhvcI's
ages awarded for all prop^ry n this nei}»hbtii iiood hwd. no
doubt, great weight in limiting the qnHntity H|»propriated.

Tha station at Chwrlottetown was locHted in accordance
with an order from the Commissioners, duted 18th March,
1872. The conveninnc ■ of the site for business purposes is
indisputable, and, if my design for the extension of the yard
were carried out, the whole arran^zement would be extremely
commodious.

Much of the ground which now forms the station yard is
'• made >&nd." The contractors remonstrated very stronjrly
against the site as an expensive one for them and considerable
discusHion ensued. An agreement was finally come to and
all the work included in the contract under that agreement Las
been performed.

I always contemplated extending the area of the yard as an
extra work, and prepared a pla»i showing my design, a copy
of which I gave Mr. Swinyard on his first visit to the works.
This extension has nothing to do with the contract.

In the spring of 1872, 1 wa« sent to Georgetown to try and
arrive at some rnderstanding as to the most convenient site
for the station. I mm directed to call on the leading men of
the place, and ascertain their views on the subject. This I
did, and the result of the matter was that the public square,
which is Government property, was selected as the site. The
inconvenience on having to detach the engine before running
the train into the passenger station I foresaw, but after all
this will not be a very great matter at a station, where the
the arrivals will not exceed two trains a day. It can b^
avoided, if necessary, by extending the track across the street,
the property on the east side of which also belongs to the Gov-
ernment. The passenger house could not be moved back or
west, as suggested by Mr. Swinyard, without being thrown
on to a curve.

But, while disapproving of the present arraniements, Mr.
Swinyard admits that the necessity for any change *' is likely
to arise only in the far future." The room at the west end of
^he station is a mere baggage room, about 16 feet square, and

REPLY TO

was not designed for a freight room. The line first located
ran straight to the shore. Had this line been retained, the
paasenger station might have heen near the wharf, hut it
wcuid have been immediately at the foot of a steep gradient.

On account of the gh land to the north of th^ town, Souris
is dii?iculi of approacn. The station was originally located on
the upland in the village of East Sonris, but subsequently chang-
ed to the beach in boih cases by order of the Government. It is
quite possible that the whole plnn may be found to require re-
arrangenjent, when the site of the breakwater i« d'termined.
The present location, which carries the Railwaj' to the only
harbor that now exists, is probably as good as any that could
bo {'lade for the time. In his preliminary report, page 35,
Mr, Swinyard says : — " There is one matter of great import-
ance which requires immediate consideration, namely, the
necessity there is for establishing repair rhcps at C'.iarlotte-
town, no provision for which has been made, I beg to submit
a plan prepared by Mr. Boyd showing the accommodation re-
quired."

I am fully alive to the importance of providing well furnish-
ed repair shops, but as they were not mentioned in the Act,
it appeared they could not be included in *he contracts. 1
kept the matter constantly in view, hov7ever, and had draw-
ings of the shops prepared, and estimates made of the cost of
the buildings and tools.

In June li573, I brought the subject to the notice of the
Government by letter, and submitted a plan showing the shops,
and an extension of the station yard at CLarlottetown. This
plan was a!so laid before the Minister of Public Works io
October 1873, and led to an order to build the breastwork
between the Ferry and Rall-vay wharves, as an extra work.
No further steps were, however, taken in the matter. I gave
Mr. Swinyard copies of these plans and estimates on his first
visit to the Island.

Tliis matter is net, in any way, connected with the contract,
and I refer to it merely because Mr. Swiny.ird has done so,
and to show that the absence of repair shops is not due to anj
neglect or want of forethought on my part.

SIDINGS.

The total length of sidings ^o be laid was specified to be
equal to about one tenth of the length of the main line.

• IL *

MR. 3WINYARI> S REPORT.

« M. *

This wa9 intended as a raaxi'inm) Jiipit^ and not aa, ,^n
absolute condition, and was so explained before tiie lettiug of
i'ne contract3. I anticipated a demand for a large number of
sidings, and retained power to put in as many as were neces-
•sary. * '"''^' "

At the Way vStations there are 17 tRrough sidings, 14 of
which will hold 16 cars each, or two ordinary trains, and three
of which will hold eight cars each. Several of these have a
blind siding: which will hold two or three cars in addition.
There are also 47 spur siiiings at Flag Stations, each capable
of holding four freight cars. This is at the rate of one siding
for every three miles of the line. The average distanoe
between the stations where trains can pass, is 9^ miles.

ray ^opinion,

this is a liberal allowance of siding anc6U^
inodation, and quite as much as the country will require for
several years to come, '^

Semaphore and lamp signals were not provided for by the
contract ; they" belong to outfit rather than construction. J''* *•

'*' At the time the conli^ftct for the trunk line was signed, even
the sites of the wharves bad nol been determined. But, as it
seemed desirable to give approximate lengths in the specificar
iion as a guide to partie* tendering, I measured the wharvei,
then standing in the several harbors mentioned, allowing an
additional length to carry the Railway wharf out to deep
water.

I thought the allowance made would be ample, but the sites
afterwards selected by the Government, were at some dis'taneso
from the wharves on which I had based my estimate of
length, and the length of wharfing bu'lt is nearly 950 feet in
exeeps of that anticipated by the specification.

A claim lor extra payment has been made by the con-
tractors, disallowed by me, and referred, among other matters
to arbitration.

" Mr. Swinyard may be right in saying that " the wharf at
Summerside is unnecessarily long, and too much exposed/'
but the 16 feet of water, required by the Government order,
could not be reached with less length of wharf. The end was
damaged by ice in the winter of 1873, btit has since been

ATgtttTO

'^eeted with close piling which, it is believed, will protect it
for the future.

Dredging along the sides of the wbarvep was &ot provided
for by the contract.

ROLLING STcic^.

The minor criticisms, in Mr, Stronach'a Report on the En-

^nes, I pass over as matters of opinion, on which mechanical

v^Engineers may legitiraatelv differ, and with which, I am not

!^^^pected to deal.

The English Engines were built by well established firms
and weie favorably noticed by " Engineering.'*

^ The An^eriean Engines were built at the "Baldwin"
Works in Philadelphia.

I: ' The princrpal fault found appears to be that six of the
Tank Engines are too light for winter service. On a line
which, during the summer, will have a large proportion of
light traffic, these Engines will be very useful. The ordinary
passenger trains connecting with the steamers will never con-
sist 01 more than one postal, one second class, and baggage and

,'two first class car^ Mreighing say 50 tons, or less than two-
thirds of the load the Engines have been working under,
it would eertaiuljr rot be good policy to run heavy Engines
with such trains, and I maintain, therefore, that I have been
guided by correct principles in providing the si^,,, light

'Engines.

The eight heavy Engines, wh;'^h are as powerful as the
Ijgauge of the Road will admit, will be quite sufficient to work
tpie winter traffic

The contract provides that " The Contractors shall be
allowed tc use the Engines and cars for purposes of construe-
tion, and shall return ihem at the termination of the contract
in perfect order .^nd repair, failing which, such a sum shall
be deducted fro^ the amount of the contract as shall, in the
opinion of the Tilngineer, be sufficient to pay for the necessary
irep...'8."

By Mr. Swinyard's permission, I employed Mr, Stronach,

the Mechanical Superintendent on his staff, to examine the

'Engines, and report to me what repairs were nece'>sary uiider

^'tbe above clause. Hd did so, and I forwarded a copy or hia r6-

MB. SWINtAItb'fir ftEPOBT.

pd)rt to the Odtattiaictors with instlructions to act in accordance
%ith it. When the Contractors reported to me that the Engines
wer^ ready for final inspetition, I examined them in company
with Mr. Stronaeh, and fouad that they had been repaired in
aecordance with his Report, except the turning of the tyres
of the wheels of nine of the Engines. The Contractors haT>
ing no wheel lathe could not do this, and T have, therefore,
de4ttcted from the final estimate $450, the value placed on
this work by Mr. Stronach. I do not know what else I could
%ave done to protect the interests of the Qovemment in this
matter.

MThe repairs spoken of by Mr. Stronach, in his Report to
•Mr* Swinyard, January 11th, 1875, h^^ive been rendered
necessary by damages reeeived after the liual inspection and
aoeeptauce of the Engines, and in trafiic service, a matter
'Which has no connection with the contract, and over whicb I
have no control. i'

PASSENGER SERVICE OARS.

There were no contract plans in the ordinary sen&e of either
'Engines or cars. The drawicgs for the latter were furst^hed
during the progress of tke work.

'^' The outfit, m<entioAed in Mr. Stronach's preliminary Report,
IB not part of the construction, nnd not included in the contract.

Check chains were not provided for by the contract, and
Wete not put on. It was only last year that the Master Car
Builders Association in the United States decided, after a long
debate, iA favor of check chains. Many of the members of
that Association held them to be useless or even mischievous.

The wheels at first adopted for these cars were 24: inches in
diameter, which was four inches more than the diameter of the
wheels then in use on the American Narrow Gauge Railvrayrv
tfbqy were found to jar a good deal in paasing the frogs, and
Iflie Contractors' consented to replace themi with 28 inch wheels,
without extra charge. These have been found to work satis-
factorily.

FREIGHT CARS^ &c.

Wk Swinyard attached great importance to the fact of the
^Box Cars being boarded herieontally Instead of vertioallyr

(:[' *•{

^PI.T TO

The drawing at first prepared shows vertical boardiDg. Mr.
Hunter, the Contractors' Master Car Builder, T7ho has been en-
gaged for ten yeaid to my knowledge, and probably longer, in
building and repairing cars, suggested the change to horizon-
tal boarding. As hiv<) reasons seemed to me to be sound, and the
<;ost was the same, I sanctioned the alteration, as I had a per-
fect right to do under the contract. ^...

The matter is not one of very great importance one way or
the other, and its being so prominently brought forward is
perhaps a proof of how little there really is with which fauU
can be found. in

The Platform Cars are built according to contract. Any
damages received by the cars during construction, were made
-good before they were taken off the Contractor's hands.

I visited the shops frequently while the work was in pro"
gress, and believe that all the cars were well and faithfully

When the snow ploughs were taken off the Contractors,
hands by me, they were new and in good order. For dam-
ages received afterwards in the attempts to open the Bead for
traffic, I am not accountable.

Opinions differ so widely as to the proper form for snow
ploughs, that I am not surprised to find Mr. Stronanh suggest-
ing an alteration it^ the shape. Whether it will be an im-
provement or not, remains to be seen.

Mr. Stronach's pU\n of inserting a rubber spring in the bar
connecting the Ipgs of tjhftf^acgeij, is, I jitiye np^^oJAbt^j- .yejp^

'^'COOd one* ■,,*!.. !,,,!.."■•'■ ,../, „• ,, ,-... , ._. .«* „„_,»'^- rr

There is, apparently, some desire to ascribe the failure to
open the Road Jast winter to imperfections in the Engines
,imd snow ploughs.

, From all! can learn, the machinery was not handled in the
most judicious manner, but apart from this, the line had no&
the ordinary protection of snow fences, and the unusual depth
of the snow, which was far in excess of that known for many
years, .probably rendered the opening of the Railway virtuMly
impracticable under the circumstances.

!Sl

GENERAL REMAI^KS.

As regards the Trunk Line, it must be remembered that
no plans of any kind were prepared before the signing of the

MB. SWINTARD's report.

27^

■^2

contract. There are, therefore, no " contract plans " within
the ordinary meaning of the term.

The Speciflcation provided (hat plans should be furnished
from time to time, during the progress of the wor!., and these,;
could be altered in detail by the Chief Engineer as he thought;'
proper.

Any Engineer will understand that as the works proceeded ,
and the plans were drawn, various deviations from the diraen-...
sions given in the General Specification would.sviggest theppi-f
selves as necessary or expedient. . . ^ ^

The slight reduction in the sizes of the cars referred to, and«,
explained at page 28 of Mr. Swinyard's Report, and the in-,*
crease in the diameter of the wheels, are cases in point.

On the Branch Lines there were contract plans, and these
have not been deviated from except by the enlargement of
some of the water ways and the change . in the design of
Morell Bridge,

In order to avoid heavy damages, the fixed truss of 100
feet span at first proposed, was altered to a telescope bridge,
giving an opening of 40 feet for the passage of vessels. For
this change, which was forced upon the Government by the
exorbitant demands of the owners of the riparian lands, the,
Contractors were paid $22,000. |,

It might be inferred, from some remarks in Mr. Swinyard's
second Report, that I had purposely with-held from him plans
and other information with which he should have been fur-
nished.

The plans of the Station buildings have been in his hands
since June last. Besides these there were very few plans of
the structures on the Trunk Line in Fiy possession, for the
following reasons given in my letter of November 9th.

The engineering of the Trunk Line was by the terms of
the contract placed in the hands of the Contractors. Their
Engineer, therefore, submitted the plans of Structures, &c., as
they were required, and I returned them marked "approved,"'
or with orders for alteration^*, as the case might be. The
originals were consequently in the possession of the Con-
tractors.

The structures, with a few exceptions, were small and un-
important, and the plans wera general drawings which were
uodified by the Assistants to suit particular localities.

T entirely disclaim all intention of concealing anything from
Mr. Swinyardt I never disputed his right to make, nor did

REPLY to

I erer throw any obstacles in the way of hia making such
examinations as he thought proper. I spoke to him freely
about the works, showing him plans and explaining any de-
partures from the original designs. The whole tenor of his
first Report, which is based to a large ey.tent on information
given by me, proves the truth of this statement.

To such plans as I had, he was offered free access, but I
had no time to furnish him with copies, and the proper place
for the origina!s was in the Railway Offices vntil the com-
pletion of the contract.

I cannot admit any claim on Mr. Swinyard's part to control
the details of construction, nor could I, without involving the
Government in litigation, permit him to interfere with the
Contractors, even bad I been so inolined.

The contract provides that the Chief Engineer shall be the
"sole judge of work and material, in respect to both quantity
and quality, and his decision on all questions in dispute with,
regard to the works and mnterials, or to the meaning or ifiter-"
preta,tion of plans and specifications, or to points not provided
for, or not sufficiently explained in the plans or specifications,
is to be considered final."

Mr. Swinjard has no right to submit an estimate of the
cost of making the works meet his views and then claim that
they have fallen so far short of the requirements of the con-
tract.

My estimate of. deficiencies is as follows : —

Clearing and Burning,
Ties or Sleepers,
Repairs to Engines,

$300 00
400 00
450 CO

$1150 00

And this sum has been deducted from the amount g< the con-
trapt in the fiDal settlement. Discussion between Mr. Swin-
ywrd and me was useless, as such explanations as I did
o£(er were not accepted, and apparently not believed.

I do not feel that after eighteen years of uninterrupted
practice, lam open to the charges of "lack of judgment and
wgipt of Railway experience."

|n eaSjes where my judgment was free, I do not fear an
impartial examination of my work.

I hold that the Reports of Messrs, Newton and Mecihan,
and, to a great extent, tho9e of Mr. ^winyard himself, w'lll

'i>

WR swtnyard's rfport

bear me out in the assertion that, in adaptatioti to the wants
of the country — in mechanical works — and in general con-
struction, the Prince EdwQid Island Railway will compare
favorably with more costly lines in the neighbouring Fro-
▼inces.

I cannot be held responsible in cases where my opinion was
not taken, or in which my judgment was fettered by orders
which I was bound to obey.

I have purposely r jfrained, as far as possible, from express-
ing an opinion on such matters, as I do not feel called upon
to discuss the policy of my official superiors.

The inspection of the Line was not made in the inefficient
manner to be inferred from Mr. Swinyard's letter of Decem-
ber 2nd.

At the beginning of July last, I directed Mr. Cox, my prin-
cipal Assistant, to walk over the whole line and report to me
on its condition. He was occupied constantly until the middle
of October in this duty. Copies of his Reports were sent as
received to the Contractors, with orders to make good any
deficiencies therein noted. With these Reports in my hand,
besides frequent visits to special points, I went over the whole
line several times, The consequence was that, by the time
my final inspection was made, the points which it was neces-
stry to examine, were reduced to a very small number. On
the trip referred to by Mr. Swinyard, we stopped at and
examined every Bridge and Station House on the line. I
frequently asked Mr, Swinyard whether they were any other
places at which be desired to stop, and whenever he expressed
such a wish, it was attended to.

He, having previously made such a detailed Examination as
he deemed proper, had also, I presumed, noted any points
which in his opinion, required attention, I did not go over
the Georgetown section because, on my last visit, I had found
that all my instructions had been carried out. If my course,
in declining to permit Mr, Swinyard to assume complete con-
trol of the works, and to determine when and how I should
perform my duties, did become " uni^atisfactory and painful "
to him, I have at least the satisfaction of knowing that it met

BBPLT TO

with the approval of the GovernmeDt, to whom alone I was
respooBible.

11 1

I have the honor to be, Sir,

Your obedient servant,

(Signed,)

(Certified)

JOHN EDWARD BOYD.

William C. DesBrisay,

Asst. Clerk Ex. CoanciL

I A

>*>

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