128 MEMOIRS. he was seized with giddiness, followed by bleeding at the nose, an (l other serious symptoms, and withintwo hours he expired, at the house of the British vice-consul, at Maghill, near Bussorah, where he had only arrived five days previously. The immediate cause of death was ascribed to a suffusion of blood on the brain, during an apoplectic fit. Onthe following day his remains were buried in the garden behind the Residency. His premature decease at the age of thirty-four, was deeply regretted by his friends, as well as by all those Engineers with whom he had been associated, his cheerfulness andready co-operation rendering him a general favourite. He joined the Institution, as a Member, in the year. 1855, but hisprovincial and foreign engagements preventedhis taking any active part in the proceedings at the Meetings.

MR.JOHN URPETH RASTRICK was born at Morpeth, in the county of Northumberland, on the 26th day of ,Januzry, 1780. He was the eldest son of Mr. John Rastrick, who was an engineer and machinist of great ingenuity, principally employed in the con- struction of weirs, mills, and bridges, on the mountain streams of the neighbourhood. He claimed the invention of the treadwheel for prisons, and it is possible, that he may have designed a similar machine, before it was introduced by Mr. (now Sir William) Cubitt, to whom the invention is with strict justice ascribed. At the age of fifteen,young Rastrick was articledto his Father. At this period he was remarked among his associates, for the possession of patenergy of purpose, untiring perseverance, clearness of intellect, and sound mechanical and mathematical knowledge. At about the age oftwenty-one he went southward, to gain experience as a machinist and millwright, particularly in the introduction of cast iron for machiner t.henalmost in its infancy. He remained for some time at the getley Iron Works, in Shropshire, and soon after entered into partnership with Mr. Hazeldine, of Bridgnorth, as a mechanical engineer, taking special charge of the iron foundry. During this partnership, Mr. Rastrick continued to practise, on his own account, as a Civil Engineer, and in the years 1815 and 1816, he built the cast-iron bridge over the river Wye, at Chep- stow, which was opened on the 24th July, 1816. The centre arch of this bridge had a span of 112 feet, and a versed sine of 13 feet ; the arches on each side of the centre arch were 70 feet span and 10 feet 9 inches rise ; and the two side arches had each a span of 34 feet, with a versed sine of 7 feet 3 inches. Economical consider- ations necessitated the we of part of the foundations of a former bridge, which somewhat interfered with t.he general symmetry of the appearance of the new bridge ; and the immense rise of tide, (48 feet,) and its great rapidity, rendered it a work of no ordinary

Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved. MEMOIRS. 12s class. The extreme lightness of the cast-iron work of this bridge, and its general details, are remarkable, and rival those of works of more recent construction. Several smaller bridges werealso cast and erected in Shropshire under his direction. On the death of Mr. Hazeldine,about the year 1817, Mr. Rastrick became the managingpartner in the firm of Bradley, Foster, Rastrick, and Co., iron-founders and manufacturers of ma- chinery, at Stourbridge, Worcestershire, taking the principal en- gineeringpart in thedesign and construction of rolling-mills, steam-engines, and other large works. At this time he designed and executed many extensive iron works in the Midland Counties, particularly those at Chillington, nearWolverhampton, andat Shut End,near Stourbridge. He was also consulted as to the alteration and extension of many works in Wales. In January, 1825, Mr. Rastrick was engaged by the promoters of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, along with Mr. George Stephenson, Mr. Sylvester, Mr. Brunton, Mr. Philip Taylor, Mr. W. (now Sir W.) Cubitt, Mr. James Walker, Mr. Nicholas Wood and others, to visit the different collieries in the North of England, with a view of experimenting andreporting upon the tramroads,and engines at work upon them. For this purpose a series of experi- ments was made with the locomotive engines on the colliery tram- ways at Killingworth and Hetton. In the following April, when the Bill for the Liverpool andManchester Railway wasbefore Parliament,he was the first engineering witness called by the Company, in support of their case, which, it will be remembered, was most vehemently opposed by the Canal Companies. On that occasion he stated, that, ten, or twelve years previously,he had made a locomotive engine, for Mr. Trevithick, torun upon a circular railway, but that it was quite capable of being.applied on an ordinary railroad ; also, that two years before, in 1823, he had seenone at work at the Middleton Colliery, near Leeds, which had a cog wheel, working into a rack rail, at the side, on Blenkin- sop’s system. The evidence he gave, to show the powers, advan- tages, and safety of the locomotive engine, contributed materially to t.he ultimate successfulissue of that remarkable case. The clear and scientific character of his evidence firmly established his professional reputation, and from thattime he was employed to design, or to support in Parliament, a large proportion of the, principal lines of railway in the United Kingdom. In the years 1826 and 1827, he constructed a line of railway, about sixteen miles in length, between Stratford-on-Avonand Moreton in theMarsh. This line is believedto have been the first that was laid withwrought-iron rails, manufactured under the patent of Mr. Birkenshaw, of the Bedlington Iron Works, in Northumberland. Horse poweronly was used,which is the case. [1856-57. N.S.] K Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved. 130 MEMOIRS. tothis da . In 1828-29,he constructed the Shut End Colliery xiway, from Kingswinford to the Staffordshire and Worcester- shire canal, a distance of three miles and an eighth. This line was opened on the 2nd of June, 1829,' with a locomotive engine, built.under Mr. Rastrick'ssuperintendence. Thisengine had two, or three flues inthe boiler, and, in economy,speed, and accuracy of workmanship, equalled, if it did not excel, any engine thathad been hitherto produced. He also constructed one of the very early locomotives sent from this country to the United States. When the Liverpool and Manchester Railway was approaching completion, the Directors had to take into consideration the power to be employed upon it, and they soon arrived at the convmtion, that horse power was totally inapplicable. The real question was thus reduced to the relative merits and capabilities of fixed and locomotive engines, both of which systems were in use at the time. To determine this point Mr. Rastrick and Mr. James Walker were requested to proceed to Ilarlington,and the neighbourhood of Newcastle, to inspect the different railways in those districts, and to ascertain, by athorough investigation into the powerof the engines, the cost of working them, and their actual performance, the conlparative merits of the two descriptions of moving power. Theymade separate reports,2 but both agreedin the opinion, that the locomotive engine, as then known, was not equal to the stationary system, which they recommended the Directors to adopt. As, however,some of theDirectors had a feeling in favour of the locomotive, in April, 1829, a premium of $500 wasoffered for the bestlocomotive engine, subject to certain conditions and stipulations. The -6th of October of the same year was fixed upon for the trial, and the judges appointed were Mr. Rastrick, with Mr. N. Wood and Mr. Kennedy. The reward, as is well known, was in favour of the 'Rocket,' constructed by Mr. Stephenson, in whichwere first combined Mr. H. Booth's multitubular boiler, with the exhausting action of the blast-pipe.Subsequently, Mr. Rastrick, in conjulaction with Mr. Hartley, made experiments on three descriptions of carriages, with a viewof ascertaining their comparative amount of friction with outside bearings. About this time he constructed the short branch of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, from Kenyon to Leigh. In theyear 1830, he was engaged with the lateMr. George

1 An account of the opening of this railway, and of some experiments to test the power of the locomotive engine, is given inthe " Mechanics'Magazine," vol. xi. (1829), p. 301. * Vide '' Liverpool and Manchester Railway.-Reports to the Directors on the Comparative Merits of Locomotive and Fixed Engines, as a Moving Power." By Jmes Walker and J. U. RastriJr, Esqrs. Svo.Liverpool, 1829.

Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved. MEMOIRS. 131 Stephenson, in surveying and determining the course of the line from Birmingham to join the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, afterwards called the Grand Junction, and in selecting a line from Manchester to Cbewe. In all the different applications madeto Parliament for these lines, Mr. Rastrick was generally associated with Messrs. Stephenson and Locke, until, in 1833, they together succeeded, in carrying the Acts for their respective portions, after a lengthened contest with the Canal Companiee andthe land- owners. Mr. Rastrick waa always consistent in laying down, and advocating, a line of railway direct as circumstances and the nature of a district wouldadmit. In the me of this particular railway, he took no part in the application made to Parliament in the following year, to vary the line, by which the cost was some- what diminished, by increasing the length. In the year 1835, the Manchester and Cheshire Junction Rail- waywas brought forward, and Mr. R&rick was appointed En- gineer. This line was opposed by a competing project, called the South Union Railwa , which led to one of the longest and most expensivecontests t K en on record. After two years of parlia- mentary inquiry, the Act was obtained for the original line, with those which have since been made in conjunction, under the names of the North Staffordshire, and the Trent Valley Railways. As the advocate of direct railway communication, Mr. Rastrick's aid was sought, in 1836, b the promoters of the direct Brighton line ; and co-operating wit{ Sir John Rennie, they together suc- ceeded in carrying that line, against several conflicting projects, in the session of 1837. Towards the close of that year, the active superintendence of the line, including a branch to Shoreham, vas confided to him ; and the numerous heavy works, comprising the Merstham, Balcombe, and Clayton tunnels, and the Ouse viaduct, near Cuckfield, consisting of thirty-seven arches, and crossing the river at an elevation of 100 feet, were completed by the autumn of 1840. Shortly afterwards heconstructed extension lines to Lewes and Hastings, on which the Brighton viaduct is situated, and from Shoreham to Portsmouth, onwhich, perhaps, the most remarkable work is the drawbridge over the river Arun; also a series of branch lines toHorsham, Newhaven, East Grinstead, Epsom, and other aces,which together nowform the series of lines known as the E'ondon, Brighton, and South Coast Railway. The other principal railways executedb Mr. Rastrick, were the Khgswinford, the Bolton and Preston, t e original Gravesend and Rochester, (a single line along the towing-pathK of the canal,) and the Ambergate, Nottingham, and Boston, and Eastern Junc- tion line, from the Midland Kailway at Colwich to Grantham. Among the many projects with which he was connected during his long professional career, but which, from various causes, were Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved.K2 132 MEMOIRS. not carried out, though the surveys were made, and deposited for application to Parliament, a few of the more important may be named :- In 1835, a railway from Stourbridge, by Dudley, to Birmingham. In 1838, a ship canal from Lewes to Newhaven ; a railway from the London and Brighton Railway, at London Bridge, to West- minster Bridge,called the South Metropolitan ; and the West Cum- berland Railway,from Lancaster, crossing the Morecambe Bay and Duddon Sands, by Whitehaven, to the Maryport and Carlisle Railway at Maryport. In 1839, a railwayfrom Manchester to Derby. In 1840, railwa S from Stockport to Macclesfield, and from Leek to Stoke-upon-%rent, and the Birmingham and Stour- bridgeJunction Canal. In 1841, the East AnglianRailway, fromBishops Stortford, by Cambridge, Newmarket, Mildenhall, andThetford, to Norwich and Yarmouth. In 1842, a railway from the BrightonRailway, at Croydon, to the South-Western Railway, at Vauxhall.And in 1845-6 the direct Londonand Manchester Railway. The Lynnand Ely, andLynn and East Dereham, Railways (now called the East Anglian), were surveyed under Mr. Rastrick’s direction, and the Act of Parliament fort.hese lines was passed whilst he was the Engineer.After the Acts were obtained, he was appointed Consulting Engineer, but shortly afterwards Mr. J. S. Valentine (M. Inst. C.E.) was appointed to carry out the works, which were executed under his sole direction. As a witness Mr. Rashick always displayed the greatest shrewd- ness, as well as coolness, and no amount of cross-examination would induce him to give a hasty, or unconsideredanswer. When the Bill for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway was before Parlia- ment, the late Mr. Baron Alderson, then the leading counsel, had baflled many of the railway witnesses, by cross-examination, on the effect that locomotive engines would produce onhorses on the public roads. This was before the multitubular boiler was intro- duced, and it had been admitted, that the chimney might some- times become red hot. Similar questions were addressed to Mr. Rastrick, and were thus answered, in a manner to set at rest that style of examination. Q. ‘‘ Is not this tube (meaning the chimney)sometimes red hot ?-A. Yes. Q. “ Would not that frighten a horse ?-A. I do not think it would, for how is a horse to know it was red hot. Q. ‘‘ Then you think if they were to put a red-hot poker to a horse’s nose he could not know whether it was red hot or not ?- A. If it was put so near as to burn him, he would be frightened at it ; but if you were to take a thing painted red, and another red hot, he would not know the difference.”

Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved. MEMOIRS. l33 Mr. Rastrick Gessed great vigour and strong determination of character ; opposition anti difficulties only roused him togreater efforts. He was a manof unremitting application, and he has been known to devote whole nights, as well as days, to the careful consideration of the details of his works, with an energy and mi- nuteness that would have worn out many of his juniors, upon whom his example produced excellent effect, and he was always regarded by his principal assistants with feelings of the highest regard and respect. He joined the Institution as a Member in the year 1827, and was also a Fellow of the Royal Society, and a Member of the Society of Arts. He retired from the active duties of the profession about the end of the year 1847, and died on the 1st day of November, 1856, at his residence, Sayes Court, near Chertsey, Surrey, in the 77th -year of his age, and was buried in the new cemetery at Brighton. Although old age had enfeebled his bodily frame, yet he evinced, even up to the last moment of his existence, the same indomitable energy and clearness of intellect, for which he had always been so remarkable.

Mr. JAMES MEADOWS RENDEL was born in the winter of the year 1799, near Oakhampton, on the borders of Dartmoor, in Devonshire. He was the on1son of acountry surveyor and farmer, and the grandson of dr. Meadows, F.R.S., a well-known architect of his day. His Father was a man of more than ordinary stature and massive frame, with a very intelligent face; plain in manners, and reserved in conversation, but conveying the impres- sion, that he possessed an excellent judgment and a well-regulated mind; whilst to his mother, who was a womanof considerable acquirements, he owed the rudiments of his early education. He passed his youth in the neighbourhood of Teignmouth, receiving his education at a country school, andbeing initiated into the practical operations of a millwright, with his Uncle, who resided there, whilstfrom his Father, who hadcharge of a. district of roads, &C., he obtained a certain degree of familiarity witht.he rudiments of Civil Engineering. At an early age he went to London, and obtained an engage- ment, as a surveyor, under the late Mr. Telford, by whom he was employed on the surveys and experiments for the proposed suspen- sion bridge across the Mersey, at Runcorn. About the year 1822, he settled at Plymouth, and commenced practice on his own account, being then chiefly em loyed in the construction of roads, inthe north of Devon. In i!ept,ember of that year, havingde- signed a suspension bridge for crossing the Tamar, at Saltash, he

Downloaded by [] on [12/09/16]. Copyright © ICE Publishing, all rights reserved.