281
the velocity of the engine can be made toaverage six miles an hour, that its performancewill reach this maximum effect ; the minimumeffect being that when their velocity is reducedto the lowest in the Table. It is rather againstthese engines that they have hitherto been usedon stages not exceeding more than four orfive miles, where, from the nature of their em-ployment, and the unavoidable stops of shortstages, their initial velocity has been reducedto nearly that of horses ;—as yet, 3-feet wheelsare almost the largest that have been used,furnishing a speed of from four to five miles anhour, which, from the above causes, has beenreduced to little more than an average of twoor three miles ; and their performance, in com-parison with horses, has been correspondinglydiminished, and, except in few instances, havenot exceeded that represented in column six ;still even with the speed that the wheels on whichthey have hitherto been placed permit them toaccomplish, their performance has been by nomeans despicable. Upon a Rail-road, nearNewcastle, a loco-motive engine in fifty-fourweeks conveyed 53.823 carriages of coals,each weighing 9438 lbs., 2541 yards, and re-turned with the same number of empty car-riages, each weighing 3472lbs. This was in