>One final question for the group. Nepal is a fairly poor country as you know. Would
>it be right to 1. take a working loco from their stock if it can't be replaced? &
>2. Would scrap value be the right price to pay, or should we pay a premium in
>recognition of the wealth imbalance of our respective countries?
Jim Guthrie wrote:
Graham,Against this is also the reality that the locos have been seen in steam and working one of the mountain passes as late as the day before yesterday. So if they are meant to be in mothballs, why are they out there doing with steam engines do best?
There will be no need for such considerations. The items are
actually Australia's strategic reserve of steam locomotives - an idea
copied from British Rail who have stored a large amount of steam locos
in a siding off Box Tunnel. The Australian government of the day
took the term "cold storage" quite literally and, since you don't
have much indigenous snow and ice, looked for the closest place to
store them.Therefore there are no financial considerations except for storage
costs incurred.
One could believe this if even the British Government had done what you think they have done, but the "reserved for emergencies" old wives tale is just that. I understand that Sweden did that for a few years but ended up scrapping the locos or selling them off. But Britan was so keen to remove all traces of steam (like Australia) that keeping a few against the evil day didn't even enter what passed for their brains.
BTW, there is a little known clause in a UN agreement which requiresS7 Dabbling at www.netcomuk.co.uk/~sprocket/index.html
Australia to have at least one year's notice of any hostile action to
allow retrieval of the locos.Jim.
That'd be right. If you want to fight us, write to us and ask for the appropriate form. We'll get back to you after your application has been considered by the appropriate committee.--