JAMES BRINDLEY

チと

AND

THE EARLY
EARLY ENGINEERS.

By SAMUEL SMILES.

AUTHOR OF SELF-HELP,' ETC.

"Lord Bacon hath said truly, there be three things which make a nation great
and prosperous,-a fertile soil, busy workshops, and easy conveyance for men and
commodities from one place to another; to which let me add, knowledge and
freedom."-BISHOP HALL.

"The ineloquent Brindley, behold he has chained seas together; his ships do
visibly float over valleys, invisibly through the heart of mountains; and the
Mersey and the Thames, the Humber and the Severn have shaken hands."-
CARLYLE, Past and Present.

Library

та

1-40

376

364

WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR.

STORY OF THE LIFE OF GEORGE STEPHENSON: A NEW
EDITION THOROUGHLY REVISED, INCLUDING A MEMOIR OF ROBERT STEPHENSON.
With Illustrations. Post 8vo. 68.

INDUSTRIAL BIOGRAPHY: IRON-WORKERS AND TOOL-MAKERS.
Post 8vo. 68.

SELF-HELP; WITH ILLUSTRATIONS OF CHARACTER AND CONDUCT.
Post 8vo. 68.

LIVES OF THE ENGINEERS; comprising a HISTORY OF INLAND
COMMUNICATION IN BRITAIN.

First Series. 2 vols. 8vo. 42s. With Portraits and 200 Woodcuts.

Vol. I. SIR CORNELIUS VERMUYDEN-SIR HUGH MYDDELTON-JAMES BRINDLEY.

Vol. II. JOHN SMEATON-JOHN RENNIE-THOMAS TELFORD.

Second Series. 1 vol. 8vo. 21s. With Portraits and 70 Woodcuts

Vol. III. GEORGE AND ROBERT STEPHENSON.

WORKMEN'S EARNINGS, SAVINGS,-AND STRIKES; reprinted from the Quarterly Review.' Post 8vo. 18. 61.

LONDON: PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET,

AND CHARING CROSS.

7-21-53 W

Specialty 19-15-398 Transpo

PREFACE.

THE present book is for the most part a reproduction, in a cheaper and more compact form, of the Life of James Brindley originally published in the 'Lives of the Engineers.' It is offered to the public as a companion volume to the Story of the Life of George Stephenson,'-the characters and achievements of the two men being in many respects alike, the one having accomplished for Canals in England what the other did for Railways.

6

The volume also includes memoirs of the earlier engineers, more particularly Sir Cornelius Vermuyden, Sir Hugh Myddelton, and Captain Perry; whose works of drainage, water supply, and embankment, were amongst the wonders of their time.

The memoir of Pierre-Paul Riquet-by some styled "The French Brindley"-constructor of the Grand Canal of Languedoc, is appended, as prepared for the French edition of 'Self-Help.'

LONDON, October, 1864.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY.

Labour and skill have made modern England - Early settlement of

Britain-Early works of embankment and draining - Reclamation

of Romney Marsh-Early embankments of the Thames - Great Level

of the Fens-Laws for preserving the reclaimed lands - Destructive

floods - James I. encourages drainage works - Cornelius Vermuyden,

the Dutch engineer, employed by king James-England's dependence

upon foreigners in former times-England's progress in engineering

and manufacturing skill ..
Page 1-18

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CHAPTER II.

SIR CORNELIUS VERMUYDEN-DRAINAGE OF THE FENS.

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Vermuyden's embankment and drainage works at Dagenham and Windsor

- The Isle of Axholme Reclamation of Hatfield Chase - The

works carried out by foreign capital and foreign labour - Opposition

of the native population — The embankments broken by the Parlia-

mentarians-Vermuyden undertakes the drainage of the Great Fen

Level-Francis Earl of Bedford becomes chief undertaker - Oppo-

sition of the Fen-men and of the town population - Satirical songs

and ballads against the Fen-drainers-"The Powte's Complaint".

Oliver Cromwell heads an agitation against the Fen-drainers — The

Fen-men destroy the works and property at Lindsey Level and other

Fen districts-Vermuyden's "discourse" on the drainage of the Fens,

1649-Works completed, 1652 - Public thanksgiving — Vermuyden's

labours, personal sacrifices, and death - Progressive improvements in

the Fen district - Salubrity of the Fens

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