 Many trains arrived at Exeter from the Bristol and Exeter Railway very late.Because the South Devon line was only equipped with a telegraph that linked the stations, the engines had to start pumping for when the timetable said that the trains were due to enter their section and then keep pumping until the train eventually passed.This meant that the engines pumped for twice as long as was necessary and meant that much more coke was consumed than would have been the case if pumping had only been undertaken when the train was actually ready to be run.