On the very day I was assured of my appointment as general manager for
the County Down Railway I discarded the tall silk hat and the black
morning coat, which for some time had been my usual business garb, as it
was of many serious-minded aspiring young business men in Glasgow. Mr.
Galloway asked me the reason of the change, which he was quick to
observe. "Well," said I, "I have secured my position, so it's all right
now." Never since, except in London, have I renounced the liberty I then
assumed; the bowler and the jacket suit became my regular business wear,
and the other habiliments of severe respectability were relegated to
churchgoing, weddings, christenings, and funerals and other formal
occasions.




CHAPTER XV.
FURTHER RAILWAY LEGISLATION


In Chapter IX., at the outset of my Glasgow and South-Western service, I
reviewed the public Acts of Parliament passed since the beginning of
railways down to the year 1875, and it may not be amiss to notice now the
further railway legislation enacted up to 1885.

The first measure of importance was the _Railway Returns (Continuous
Brakes) Act_, 1878. The travelling public had for some years been
sensitive regarding railway accidents which, though infrequent,
nevertheless occurred much oftener then than now, and were more serious
in their results. The matter of their reduction began to receive the
serious attention of railway engineers and inventors, and among many