The Book
The first chapter concisely describes narrations by eminent personnel - 19th & 20th century authors Messrs. Henry Marshall in 1844, James Emerson Tennant Britisher in 1859, Ernest Haeckel a German in 1883, John Ferguson of Ceylon Observer fame in 1884, Constance Fredrika Gordon Cummings in 1893, Arnold Wright in 1907, Fredrick Lewis in 1926, Lenox A Mills in 1932, W.T.Keble in 1939, had to say on Ceylon, it’s people, modes of transport and on its Railways.
2nd Chapter is on the Birth of Railways in England and the rest of the world; Rainhill Trials, inauguration of Manchester - Liverpool Railway and how it extended internationally and reached Ceylon.
Chapters 3 – 10 deals with British Engineering feats in Ceylon, on route selection and construction of the line to Kandy.
Exposes the proceedings of an inquiry conducted on the Peradeniya Navalapitiya Branch in its entirety word to word; on route selection, gauge problem, and decision making. Explains the chronological order of events, correspondence that followed between the Engineering Division in Ceylon, Colonial Secretary and the British Foreign office on construction of the Uva Railway.
A chapter is allotted on to the Southern Railway. The two routes selected one through Galle Face and the other through interior from Colombo Terminus station through Captains Gardens, DeSoyza Circle, and a direct line from there to Moratuwa. How the planners failed to realize the absurdity of (a) road and rail running parallel to one another; (b) rail feeding only one side of the land and most important of all (c) track being exposed to erosion and corrosion leading to future maintenance difficulties. Furthermore, in order to please the protesters for going over Galle Face Green several checked curves which were to be permanent speed restrictions from March 1st 1877 to date, were introduced commencing at Fort, Slave Island and Colpetty; the existence of 67 permanent speed restrictions from inception to date between Fort and Matara.
and continues.......