which in 1860 only amounted to 1,911,757, and yielded a gross revenue of considerably over half a million (594,956l.), equivalent to 6s. 2 d. per passenger, and nearly 18. 8d. per train mile, in 1875 reached a maximum of 3,288,661 passengers, with a gross revenue of 729,6471., which, although amounting to only 4s. 54d. per passenger, and 11d. per train mile, still left a profit of over 327,000l., dr just 35 per cent. of the gross receipts. (Table J, Appendix.)

The decadence of the London and North Western first class traffic, however, from the period of the great reduction of fares in 1875, has been exceedingly rapid and continuous, the number of passengers and annual gross receipts in 1894 being considerably less than in 1860, with this great difference, that whereas thirtyfive years ago the first class working expenses amounted to only about 44 per cent. of the gross receipts, and left the fair balance of profit already referred to, the working expenses in 1894, although apportioned in precisely the same way, approximate very closely to the gross revenue, only a nominal balance of profit of 59,533. remaining out of a total gross revenue of 480,323.1

There appears to be very little doubt that when in 1875 the Midland Company abolished its second class passenger traffic, and at the same time reduced its first class fares to the level of those hitherto charged for the second class, Sir James Allport fully anticipated that the effect of this large reduction in the first class fares would result in a more rapid development of the first class passenger traffic, which, although up to this time showing no signs of decrease, was always of slow growth.

It is needless to say these anticipations of Sir James Allport have never been realised; on the contrary, the result of the abolition of the Midland Company's second class passenger traffic, as experience has shown, has only led to the continued depletion of the first class carriages, a large number of the first and of those who hitherto had occupied the second class carriages preferring to travel more cheaply in the comfortable and well upholstered carriages of the third class. It is not a little remarkable to find that it is the Midland Company's first class passenger traffic-the company responsible for the general reduction of first class railway fares in this country-which has apparently suffered most from its effects; the number of its first class passengers, which in 1874 (the year preceding the reduction of fares) amounted to 1,204,377, and produced a gross revenue of 227,050l., having in 1894 become reduced to 1,134,332 in numbers, and to 200,1871. in gross receipts; the working expenses attributable to this branch of passenger traffic (apportioned in the ratio of the number of carriages, as in the case of the London and North Western) exceeding the

! Table 5.

gross receipts in that year by as much as 111,0917., entailing an annual loss of that amount to the company, equivalent to nearly 28. (18. 11d.) per passenger and 1d. per train mile. (Table 6.)

Second Class Passenger Traffic.

It is said that one of the causes which led to the Midland Company's abolishing their second class passenger traffic was the exceedingly rapid increase of the third class, resulting from running third class carriages by all trains, and the inadequacy of the third class carriage stock to meet the increased accommodation required; it is probable that this, coupled with the great exodus of first and second class passengers into the third class carriages, may have had something to do with it; however that may be, from that period down to the present time the decadence of the second class passenger traffic, more especially of the long journey traffic of the other principal railways north of the Thames, has continued at even a more rapid rate than in the case of the first class passenger traffic. The number of London and North Western second class passengers which in 1871 amounted to 8,281,000, and yielded a gross revenue of 867,099l., or 28. 1d. per passenger, decreased in 1875 to 7,017,000, and the gross revenue to 549,295., or to Is. 6d. per passenger. Since then there has been a rapid and continuous decrease, both in the number of passengers and receipts, the number in 1894 being reduced to 2,928,939, and the gross receipts to 240,300l. Although the gross receipts per passenger in that year appear to have slightly increased to 18. 73d. per passenger, the working expenses attributable to the second class traffic, exceeded the gross receipts by so much as 77,5187., representing a direct loss to the company of 63d. per passenger and o 86d. per train mile.'

Third Class Passenger Traffic.

That the radical changes in railway policy initiated by the Midland Company in 1873 and 1875, to which allusion has already been made, are mainly accountable for the present disorganised state and unremunerative character of the first and second class passenger traffic of the principal railways north of the Thames, there can be little doubt, but after all these minor evils (for which, no doubt, some adequate remedy will be found by the better adjustment of long journey fares and their closer approximation to those of the third class) count as nothing in comparison with the immense gain to the railway companies and to the public, resulting from the extraordinary development of the third class passenger traffic, which up to the period of these changes

2 Table 5.

constituted a relatively small portion of the revenue of the railways
in this country, but which has since become the chief, if not
the only profitable part of the passenger traffic.

The following figures, obtained from the Board of Trade returns,
enable some idea to be formed of the completely altered character
of the present passenger traffic, the rapid growth of the third
class and of the decadence of the first and second class, during
the period in question.

Railway Passenger Traffic, England and Wales.

TABLE 1.-NUMBER OF PASSENGERS.

[Board of Trade Returns.]

First
Second
Third...

16,889,022 12231
43,202,202

3154

32,015,513 8.60 37,136,435
64,963,939 17'44 63,036,442

76,897,680

8°23 24,307,559 3702 13798 55,911,550 6'95 56 15 275,470,771 7396 350,859,764 77 79 723,920,899 90'03 All classes 136,958,904 100'00 372,450,223 100'00 451,032,641 100'00 804,140,008 100'00

* Third class added to all trains.

+ Abolition of second class and reduction of first class fares.

It will be noticed that the number of first class passengers, which
had nearly doubled in the twelve years 1860 to 1872, and reached
a maximum of over 37 millions in 1875 (the year which witnessed
the reduction of first class fares and the abolition of the second
class passenger traffic by the Midland), had declined in 1894 to
roundly 24,300,000, and at present only constitutes 3 per cent. of
the total number of passengers of all classes; while the first class
receipts, which in 1875 reached a maximum of nearly 4 millions,
have since dwindled down to less than 2 millions sterling.

Second Class Passenger Traffic.

The decrease, both as regards the number of, and gross receipts from, the second class passenger traffic has been still more remarkable; the former, which in 1860 constituted over 31 per cent., now representing only about 7 per cent. of the total number of all classes of passengers; while the receipts, which in 1860 amounted to as much as 36 per cent., have since become reduced to just 7 per cent. of the purely passenger traffic receipts of the railways in England and Wales.