§ Order of the Day for the Second Reading read.
LORD DENMANsaid, he had known many narrow escapes from accidents in agricultural districts in Scotland. He might observe that the alteration by Clause 4 of this Bill of the paragraph numbered "Secondly" of Section 3 of the Locomotive Act, 1865, was likely to be useful, as there would be no necessity for anyone to go in advance with a flag in order to give warning of the approach of a locomotive; because paragraph 5 of the same section required it to be stopped immediately on any person holding up his hand—of course, this only applied to day travelling—whilst, if any accident should happen, the 12th clause of the same Act especially reserved the right to damages in respect of any injury in consequence of the use of a locomotive. He believed, however, that their Lordships would agree with him that prevention was better than cure, and he would venture to suggest that the road 1499 authorities should have power, not only to stop locomotives on highways for eight consecutive hours, but for such number of hours in summer as would make it necessary for the locomotive to travel almost entirely by night, and at other seasons of the year according to the duration of the night.
§ Motion agreed to; Bill read 2a accordingly, and committed to a Committee of the whole House To-morrow.