from this class were gradually increasing; the fact being that the companies about that time commenced to extend the practice of attaching third class carriages to some important trains—other than express trains—while the receipts per train mile from the first and second class had begun to fall off. For instance, in 1868 the first class earnings were 16·05d. per train mile, and the second class 18·05d., while in 1872 they were only 13·21d. and 10·82d. respectively. On the other hand, the third class receipts, which in 1868 were only 16·99d. per train mile, in 1872 had risen to 24·63d. The same causes, however, had led to an increase in the train mileage, which had the effect of reducing the average earnings per train mile, from all classes combined, from 51·09d. in 1868 to 48·66d. in 1872.
In April, 1872, the Midland Company adopted the practice (immediately and necessarily followed by all the other leading railway companies) of conveying third class passengers by all the trains, while nearly three years afterwards—viz., on the 1st January, 1875—they introduced the further innovation of abolishing second class in their trains altogether, and running only two classes, which they termed, rather paradoxically, perhaps, first and third, at the same time reducing the first class fares to about 1½d. per mile. The London and North Western Company did not follow the Midland Company's policy as regards abolishing second class, for the reasons which have been already set forth (see page 125), nor with one or two exceptions, and then only to a limited extent, have any of the other leading railway companies done so, but all were compelled by the exigencies of competition to place themselves on an equality with the Midland Company so far as regarded the re-adjustment
