Pages 1 and 2 of Alfred Kitching's diary

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Directors Meeting S & D Ry.

10 Month 27 Met at the usual hour – six directors present. T Meynell Jr. in the Chair. In my notes of the 18/8mo last I mentioned that the Engineer he [struck through] made an offer in writing to the Directors to contract for maintaining and upholding the Railway and Works connected therewith, from the Dock Gates at Middlesbro to the terminus of the Auckland and Weardale railway at Crook – the last named line being leased to the Stockton and Darlington Railway Co.
In consequence of this communication the Directors engaged the Services of John Dixon Civil engineer, and instructed him to walk over

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the whole lines of Railway – to report the state and condition thereof: also to furnish an estimate of the probable cost of maintenance of said railways and works connected therewith to the best of his judgement, with a specification for letting the lines for a period of ten years.
An elaborate and lengthy report, with detailed estimate of cost of maintaining the railway together with a Specification were this day received and read, the Report on the works generally, was satisfactory – but dwelt on the non-Spring mounted coal waggons as a source of great injury to the rails, producing a much larger amount of laminated rails than upon any Railway in the Kingdom – and urged the Directors as