The underground railways as a kind of city transport appeared in the second half of the 19 th century. The first underground system was proposed for London by Charles Pearson in 1843. But most people criticized the project. It was spoken of as a fantasy. Indeed, when constructed, the Metropolitan line, as it was called, was not a success. It was a short distance railway, only a few miles in length, and Londoners went on travelling by surface transport as they feared to get deep under the ground. But this situation did not last long. Wishing to attract more passengers to the underground railway Alfred Stanley, General Manager of the Metropolitan line, filled the stations with flowers and wild animals in cages. While travelling , howerever, public experienced many discomforts The tunnels were made as small as possible in order to reduce construction costs. The coaches themselves were small and narrow . No wonder that people called this underground line a "sardine-box railway ". The small windows in the trains were made in the roof so that passengers could see nothing . The oil and gas lamps used gave little light. So passengers wishing to read, while travelling , had to take candles with them. Besides, ning the steam locomotives filled the tunnels with steam and smoke. It was this discomfort that later on made engineers introduce electric traction for hauling trains on underground railways When put into service, electric trains eliminated steam and smoke and ensured a much more frequent service for passengers. Since that time the construction of great rapid subway systems in such great cities as London, New York, Berlin and Moscow has Become practicable.
A population of 374 174 persons (1 October 2015)[4]. Area — 124,538 km2.
The city is located in the Eastern part of Vitebsk region on the banks of the Western Dvina river. The second most ancient city in Belarus after Polotsk. Fourth by population (after Minsk, Gomel and Mogilev) city in the country.
The town was founded on the high banks of the Western Dvina and Vitba, which gave him the name that is on the way "from the Varangians to the Greeks". As the urban legend of the 18th century it was founded by the Saint equal to the apostles Princess Olga. The city was formed as one of the centres of the Association of Slavic Krivichi, and a convenient geographical position at the crossroads of major trade routes contributed to the growth and prosperity over the next centuries
Russia
23 October
Thank you for the letter. I'm writing to tell you about animals at our zoo.
I go to the zoo every summer. I can see a lot of animals there. There are lots of different kinds of animals. There are African savannah animals, like lions or giraffes in the east of the zoo, they usually sleep or eat in the zoo, because they are very tired of humans. The absolute opposite of them, Arctic and Antarctic animals in the west. For example, there are some penguins and polar bears. They don't like sunny weather, so they often become ill in the summer. So, just swim in the cold water or lay in the aviary. What animals do you have at your town's zoo? I hope to see them as soon as possible!
I have to go. Write back soon.
Love,
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