Agnes, Ruth, Lucy, Jemima and Beatrice

Agnes, Ruth, Lucy, Jemima and Beatrice
Numbers: 1 Built: 1866 Builder: Brown, Marshalls & Co. Configuration: 4 wheel

Agnes, Ruth, Lucy and Jemima are the Skarloey Railway's first four coaches, while Beatrice is their brake van.

Biography

The coaches have been part of the Skarloey Railway ever since the beginning. When Skarloey was to take them out for the first time to take the directors' train, Agnes was very suspicious and warned the other coaches to "be on their guard". She warned Skarloey that they would keep a sharp eye on him, but after Skarloey began to bounce when Mr. Mack shut his regulator too quickly, they thought he bumped them on purpose and bumped him back, causing Mr. Mack to fall into a set of bushes. He was so cross that he rode in Beatrice for the rest of the journey. However, when Skarloey was given a pair of trailing wheels and a cab, the coaches, even Agnes, could not help but feel impressed by it.

When the railway was facing hard times, the coaches were so full, that passengers had to travel in Beatrice on occasions. During this time, they lacked regular maintenance and commonly complain, though Skarloey and Rheneas would always remind them they were receiving the same treatment.

In 1955, when Sir Handel and Peter Sam came to the Skarloey Railway, they immediately began to dislike Sir Handel for calling them "cattle trucks", so they decided to seek revenge by holding him back on the hill. When Peter Sam had to take the coaches out, they preferred him over Sir Handel, given his good nature, despite a small incident where they told him that he left the Refreshment Lady behind after Henry jokingly threatened to leave their passengers behind. They still held a grudge against Sir Handel when he had to take them out for Market Day and when Sir Handel had to stop for sheep that strayed onto the line, the coaches thought he bumped them on purpose and derailed him by bumping him onto a set of points. Skarloey was the only engine left and he scolded the coaches severely for their bad behaviour and warned them not to play tricks on him. They were left feeling ashamed of themselves. Since then, especially after Skarloey went away to be mended, they never play tricks on Sir Handel that involve derailing him and they all got along with him. Despite this, they can still be awkward on occasions and act in a way that only Skarloey and Rheneas know how to handle.

One summer, the railway had so many visitors that there were not enough coaches to supply the passengers, not even Agnes, Ruth, Lucy, Jemima and Beatrice could carry them all. Beatrice was built with a buzzer and when more tourists travelled in her, Sir Handel was so impatient that he accidentally left his guard behind. Luckily, one of the passengers was able to push Beatrice's buzzer to alert Sir Handel's crew.

Persona

The coaches like all the engines, except Sir Handel who referrs to them as "cattle trucks". They were also mistrustful of Skarloey at first for being bouncy.

Agnes is a deep-voiced first-class carriage who looks down on the others, who are third-class and is the leader of the five. All four coaches look down on Beatrice and claim that she "smells of fish and cheese". Beatrice is, however, very useful. She has a ticket booth and an emergency buzzer and sometimes even carries passengers when the coaches are full. Jemima is somewhat death nowadays, while Lucy is short of sight.

The coaches are genuinely nice and quiet like many other coaches, but can be rude and pushy if an engine does not treat them properly. They can occasionally be silly and awkward and play tricks on the engines by pushing them down a hill without thinking about what they are doing, something that Sir Handel and Duncan struggle with. However, Skarloey and Rheneas, given their many years of experience, always know when to be stern with them when they misbehave and put them in their place.

Livery

Agnes, Ruth, Lucy and Jemima are painted blue with cream window surrounds. Beatrice is painted entirely blue.

Trivia

Skarloey Railway

---