the construction of railroads by means calculated
to entail ruin on hundreds of those concerned in
them. People are slow to believe that they may
have too much of a good thing. Railroads and the
locomotives had wrought such wonders, that it be-
came a very general impression that nothing was
impossible to them, and that the powers of the
engine might be developed ad infinitutn. Because
some of the great railways had succeeded so trium-
phantly, persons argued it followed that there could
be no such advantageous investment for money as
in railway shares. There were plenty of acute,
clever, unprincipled men ready to take advantage
of the popular delusion. Railways were projected
to towns and places where it was quite impos-
sible, from the very nature of the country, that there
could be any traffic which would hold out any
The Railway Mania. 2 1 7
reasonable hope of a profitable return for the
capital to be expended. The most fascinating pro-
spectuses were issued ; the more alluring, the less
were they true. The shares were eagerly bought
up. Rogues prospered and grew rich ; the simple
and honest were duped and ruined. Against all
such malpractices Mr. Stephenson steadily set his
face. If he was asked to take the superintendence
of any new line, his first care was to ascertain
whether it was really wanted, and whether, when
it was made, there was any reasonable hope of its
remunerating the shareholders. If he thought that
this was not the case, nothing would induce him to
have anything to do with it. In the same man-
ner, when he was requested to make the estimates
for a new line, he invariably did so at what, to
the best of his judgment, appeared to him the
amount which the construction of the railroad
would cost. These estimates were, consequently,
frequently very much larger than those which the
original proposers of the line had led the unwary
shareholders to expect; and they would do their
best to make Mr. Stephenson reconsider his cal-
culations, urging the impolicy of raising so large
a sum at the outset. But Mr. Stephenson held
that " honesty at all times was the best policy ;
he felt certain that the works could not be well
executed for a sum less than the one he had
named. If they did not like it," he said, "they
2 1 8 The Triumphs of Steam.
could seek an engineer elsewhere ; he would be no
party to a fraud by which he was to be benefited and
the company ruined. He could not prevent other
men being rogues, but at least the taint of dishonour-
able conduct should never attach to his own name."
' It was the same honourable, truthful spirit that
made Mr. Stephenson oppose all the wild specula-
tions that were now being broached about the pos-
sibility of employing atmospheric pressure as a
substitute for locomotives, by which instrumentality
we were to fly through the air as readily as birds,
and be propelled over the ground with a rapidity
hitherto unknown. When our own South Devon
line was projected, Mr. Stephenson said from the
first it would not do : it was a very pretty, ingenious
toy, but for a great working line of road, a medium
of traffic, it was wholly unfitted ; it was too costly
in its mechanism. Unfortunately, people thought
that his advice was only dictated by his jealousy
for the well-being of his own beloved locomotive :
they told him so, adding, " Why, the Council of the
Institute of Civil Engineers has pronounced in favour
of this new atmospheric line : they must be right"
' " It won't do," was Mr. Stephenson's quiet re-
joinder ; " it will never pay."
' A very few years passed away before the unfor-
tunate shareholders of the South Devon line had
cause to repent deeply that they had not listened to
the words of the shrewd, straightforward engineer
The Atmospheric Railway. 219
when he had sought to warn them from embarking
in an enterprise which could only end in disappoint-
ment The atmospheric tubes half ruined the com-
pany, and then they were removed, and the loco-
motives substituted in their place. But even to this
day we rue the experiment ; for the peculiar con-
struction of the line, the gradients being so much
steeper than in those built originally for the use of
the locomotives, is the cause of the constant delays
and stoppages which make our South Devon branch
a very by-word amongst railways ; and often when
I have been to fetch papa from the station, I have
been very painfully reminded of Mr. Stephenson's
prophecy, "It won't do ; wait a little and you will
see that I am right." I have waited so long and so
often, that I at least am perfectly convinced of the
fact.
' But perhaps one of the most curious positions
in which Mr. Stephenson was placed by the wild
speculations of others, was when he found himself
called upon to check their daring assertions that
there was no limit to the speed which the locomo-
tive might attain. That might be all very true, he
himself had told them so long ago, and had been
laughed at as a fool and a madman for so saying.
But though an engine might be constructed with
such powers, it did not follow that good judgment
or sound sense would approve of their being brought
into daily use. This could serve no purpose but to add
22O The Triumphs of Steam.
greatly to the expense of working the line from the in-
creased wear and tear, and to court the presence of
that very danger which did riot exist as long as people
would act by the dictates of common prudence.
Forty miles an hour was surely fast enough for
those who had once laughed at the idea of travelling
twelve : this was a safe pace and a remunerative pace,
and both these points ought to be thought of and
secured, the one for the sake of the passengers, and
the other for the sake of the company itself ; and to
neglect the interests of either, merely for the sake
of astonishing the world and performing what was
thought to be an impossibility, was, in his opinion,
neither honest nor honourable. In spite, however,
of all that he could say on the subject, the rivalry
then existing between the principal engineers, sup-
ported on the part of the public by a sort of craving
for the perpetual excitement of ever-increasing speed,
prevented Mr. Stephenson's wise counsel from being
listened to with the deference it deserved. Even
Mr. Robert Stephenson was carried away with the
general enthusiasm ; he could not endure the
thought that any one's engines were to surpass his
own : if others increased their speed and power, he
must perforce do likewise. The consequence was,
that in 1845 he turned out of the Newcastle manu-
factory an engine which travelled forty-five miles
in forty-seven minutes. They have attained to
even a greater speed since then, but at that time
Increased Speed of the Locomotive. 2 2 1
it seemed stupendous ; and however much Mr. Ste-
phenson might have condemned the practice in
theory, I have no doubt that in his heart he rejoiced
at this new achievement of his son/
'Aunt Helen/ exclaimed Charles, 'do you remem-
ber the last time we went up to London ? '
' Yes, perfectly/
' Did not we go a glorious pace from Didcot,
making up for lost time ? Why, we must have gone
sixty miles an hour then/
' 1 should think we did for a short distance/
' Oh ! I remember it was such fun how I did
like it ; only I wanted to go just twice as fast ; and
that lady, aunt, who sat in the corner and shrieked,
and made such a fool of herself oh, it was famous P
and Charles laughed heartily at the bare recollection
of his enjoyment.
' You seem to forget what was sport to you was
pain to another/ replied Mrs. Grenville.
' But then, Aunt Helen, it was so foolish of her/
'All have not your high health and spirits, my
dear boy/
' Oh ! Aunt Helen, what would you have said if
we had screamed ? '
' I should have been very annoyed, for this very
reason, that you would have had no excuse whatever
for such absurd conduct. But look, whilst we have
been so busily engaged with Mr. Stephenson and his
plans, we have quite forgotten the weather ; and I
222 The Triumphs of Steam.
think it is really clearing up now. The sun seems
to me to be trying to break through the clouds. I
hardly think that it rains at all. Run to the win-
dow and see/
The boys were glad enough to comply with this
request, and joyfully announced there was no doubt
that the weather was gradually taking up. ' The wind
has quite gone round, mamma ! ' exclaimed Ernest.
' And there is a large patch of blue sky/ added
Charles, 'real blue sky this time, Aunt Helen, and
no effect of my imagination ; and there is not one drop
of rain. And look, there is Donny running across the
lawn ; that is the best sign of all. He hates the wet
so, nothing ever induces him to go out in the rain.
May we run and order the ponies, Aunt Helen ?'
Hardly waiting for the permission to be given, off
scampered the boys to get ready for their ride, losing
so little time afterwards upon the road, that Charles
declared that the pace at which they put their ponies
was only to be equalled by Mr. Stephenson's express
engine. On their arrival at Helmstead, they found,
to their great delight, that Danvers was so far re-
covered as to be allowed to see them ; and his plea-
sure at the meeting was only to be equalled by their
own. Indeed, so mutually were they pleased with
each other, that when the boys said good-bye to their
new friend, it was with the understanding that their
visit was to be speedily repeated, and a very cordial
desire on both sides to cultivate a closer intimacy.
CHAPTER X.
Mr. George Stephenson in old age ; honoured ; beloved His death
Conclusion.
5AMMA, there is only one reason/ said
Arthur, ' why I do not like biography :
it always ends so sadly/
' Ends sadly ! ' exclaimed Ernest.
' What do you mean, Arthur ? '
' Why, just when you get so fond of a person, and
so interested in all they are doing, then it all comes
to an end, and they die, and you feel just as un-
happy as if you had lost a friend.'
' I used to have the same feeling very strongly
when I was young/ replied Mrs. Grenville ; ' but I
do not think it is a right one ; for, supposing that
those in whose earthly career we have been deeply
interested have employed their talents to God's
glory, and for the good of their fellow-creatures, we
ought not to feel that they are lost to us, simply
that they are removed to another and a wider sphere
of happiness and usefulness, where we may ourselves
224 The Triumphs of Steam.
look forward to joining in their work. It has often
struck me that it may be one source of our happi-
ness in heaven, to know that our example whilst on
earth has drawn others to righteousness and to God.
If so, the sadness of which you complain, Arthur,
would at once lose all its sting. 1
' But then, mamma, I am so sorry that they are
gone from amongst us. I always long so to have
known them myself/
'That is rather a selfish sorrow, is it not, my
love ? '
4 Well, perhaps it is, mamma/
'But, Arthur/ said Charles, 'what put this into
your head just now ? '
' I was thinking of Mr. Stephenson, and how sorry
I should be when mamma came to his death. I
know it cannot be very far off, for mamma has told
us what happened in 1845 ; and as he has been dead
some years, he could not have lived very long after
that/
'He died in 1848,' replied Mrs. Grenville.
' But you have got something more you can tell
us about him, mamma, have you not?' inquired
Ernest.
' I am afraid there is not very much more to tell/
replied Mrs. Grenville. ' Prosperity is always more
or less monotonous ; and Mr. Stephenson's time
and thoughts in later life became so absorbed with
attending to the various details of his profession,
Mr. Stephenson goes to Belgium. 225
that one day was very like another ; and I do not
suppose that you would care to hear of all the dis-
putes and squabbles in which he was perpetually
involved, first with one set of parliamentary agents,
and then with another, in carrying through the
different railway bills for the lines of which he was
appointed engineer. From about 1840, however, Mr.
Stephenson gradually withdrew from the worries of
business. He needed rest, and determined to spend
the remainder of his life in the enjoyment of those
country pursuits which had been so dear to him
even from his childhood. He was always, however,
ready and delighted to give his advice whenever it
was needed ; and not only in England but on the
Continent it was eagerly sought, whenever any new
line was projected, or any unforeseen difficulty was
to be overcome. Amongst those who thus asked
his assistance was the King of the Belgians ; and, at
His Majesty's invitation, Mr. Stephenson went over
to Belgium in 1837, to give his opinion on the rail-
roads projected in that country. He repeated his
visit in 1845, when his opinion was again asked on
a new line about to be formed through the Forest of
Ardennes into the French territory. Mr. Stephen-
son undertook to survey the ground, and entered
on the undertaking with as much energy as if he
had been still quite a young man, going over the
whole line himself, making his own observations,
and charming the peasantry of Belgium with the
P
226 The Triumphs of Steam.
cordiality and genial kindliness of his manner, just
as years before he had won the hearts of his own
sturdy Northumbrian countrymen.
' To Mr. Stephenson, the weeks which he spent in
surveying this new line were weeks of real enjoy-
ment. He liked the novelty of everything around
him, and thoroughly enjoyed being able to study, at
his leisure, the aspect of a country entirely new to
him, and to amuse himself with the peculiarities of
its population. On his return to Brussels, he found
an invitation awaiting him to a grand banq uet to be
given in his honour by all the principal engineers in
that part of the Continent, who were anxious to
take this opportunity of showing the respect and
admiration in which they held both his talents and
his character. This was most gratifying to Mr. Ste-
phenson ; but a still greater pleasure was in store
for him. Hardly was he placed at the head of the
elegantly arranged table, round which were seated
some of the most distinguished men of Europe,
amongst whom he proudly recognised his son, than
his eye was caught by a model in the centre of the
table. He looked : could it be ? again he looked,
this time more intently. Yes ; there could be no
doubt about it, and he exclaimed in joyful surprise
to a friend who was sitting by him, " Look, look,
P , there is the ' Rocket ! ' " And so it was.
Placed upon a raised pedestal, with a wreath of
laurel suspended over it, stood a beautiful and per-
Model of the i Rocket' 227
feet model of the engine which years- before had
won for Mr. Stephenson his present fame and
fortune/
' Oh, I am so glad ! ' exclaimed Arthur. ' How
delighted Mr. Stephenson must have been ! And
that was the engine that was thought nothing of
in England.'
' Yes ; I am afraid we often sacrifice the courte-
sies of life/ replied Mrs. Grenville, 'to our love of
practical money-making. We might take a few
lessons with advantage on this subject from our con-
tinental neighbours. They understand the ameni-
ties of life far better than we do. We are so apt
to think that they are beneath the notice of a grand,
hard-working, energetic people like ourselves, that
we talk of them as if they were something degrad-
ing, all very well for women and fools, but quite
unworthy the attention of earnest, intellectual men.
But this seems to me a great mistake : nothing that
softens the heart, calls forth the affections, or adds
to the happiness of mankind, ought to be considered
as below the regard of those who bear the name of
Him who, beyond all who ever lived, sympathized
with the lowliest, as well as inspired the noblest
affections of which our nature is capable. And
besides, to take a much lower ground, by neglecting
these trifling courtesies we throw away numberless
opportunities of giving pleasure, and of brightening
up the path of life ; and surely we are not justified
228 The Triumphs of Steam.
in doing this, when a trifling exertion of thought,
or a few kind words, are all-sufficient to attain the
object. The Belgian engineers, at any rate, were
wholly successful in their purpose, for Mr. Stephen-
son - used often afterwards to say that he never re-
membered a pleasanter or a prouder moment in his
life, than when, in the midst of the banqueting hall
in Brussels, he suddenly espied the model of his own
triumphant locomotive.'
' What a change, mamma/ said Ernest, ( since the
days when, as a child, he made his clay models at
Callerton!'
'Yes; but remember it was the same character
which then enabled him to continue, week by week,
working out every new idea that occurred to him
never disheartened by failure, never elated by suc-
cess which now placed him amongst the most dis-
tinguished men of Europe, and gave him that place
as his own undisputed right. But prosperity could
not spoil George Stephenson. His love of truth
would have made him despise himself had he pre-
tended to be other than exactly what he was. In
a palace, as in a cottage, he was still himself, the
simple, unaffected man of genius. But though his
natural self-respect made him equally at ease,
whether in the presence of royalty or amongst the
miners, companions of his early days, yet, when he
could choose, he preferred the society of his equals
to that of persons very much raised above him in
Mr. Stephenson at Tamworik. 229
rank. And it was not until Sir Robert Peel had
repeatedly requested him to pay him a visit, that he
could be prevailed upon to stay even at a house
where he was sure of being received with marked
distinction, and where he would meet with those
who would be congenial to him in tastes and
pursuits.
' At length, however, on Sir Robert telling him he
had invited a party expressly to meet him, Mr.
Stephenson was induced to promise that he would
make one of the guests at Tamworth. Mr. Smiles
tells an amusing story of what took place during
this visit. I have heard the same anecdote from Mr.
Robert Stephenson myself, and it is one curiously
characteristic of his father. From the want of an
early classical education, Mr. Stephenson had not
the power of expressing his ideas which is generally
to be found in men of his great ability, especially
if they have had the advantages of a university
training. What Mr. Robert Stephenson once said
to me, in speaking of his father, must have been
strictly true : " He had an instinctive perception of
truth bright flashes of genius. He saw the whole
bearing of a subject in a moment He could not
indeed reason it out, fill in the interstices, but he
grasped truth instinctively in its native simplicity.
His words were like a bright flash of lightning illu-
minating a dark night : for a moment the whole
landscape was before you, and you caught every
230 The Triumphs of Steam.
lineament." Great, however, as this power unques-
tionably was, yet his want of facility in expressing
his ideas placed Mr. Stephenson in an unfair posi-
tion when he was brought in contact with men ac-
customed from their earliest days to clothe their
thoughts in fluent and appropriate language. It
was not every one whose mind was quick enough
to take in the detail of the landscape during the
moment it was lit up by Mr. Stephenson's flashes
of genius, and the great engineer often regretted
bitterly that he was silenced by those whom he felt
to be not only inaccurate in their statements, but
inferior to himself in understanding.
' It chanced that, during his visit at Tamworth, the
conversation turned on some subject on which he
and Dr. Buckland, the celebrated Dean of West-
minster, took different views. The matter was
eagerly discussed. Stephenson was quite certain
he was right, but he could not find the words in
which to define precisely what he knew to be the
truth. The Dean, a perfect master of the English
language, charmed the party by his eloquent and
lucid explanation. Stephenson was silenced, not
convinced. He pondered over the subject all the
evening ; he thought of it as he lay awake at night ;
and early in the morning he was up and out to try
whether in the pure, fresh air he could find words to
express the truths so clearly grasped by his own
understanding. As he was walking up and down
Sir William Follett. 231
the lawn, with the puzzled, anxious look peculiar to
him when his brain was working out any difficult
problem, he was accosted by Sir William Follett,
one of the most brilliant speakers we have ever had
at the English bar.
' " Why, Stephenson, what is the matter ? You
seem to be absorbed with no very pleasant calcu-
lations."
' " I am thinking over that discussion with the
Dean last night," replied Mr. Stephenson.
'"Well, what of it?"
* " I was right, and he was wrong," answered
Stephenson ; " only I could not tell them why it
was so."
'"Are you sure you were right?" asked Sir
William.
' "Certain," was the unflinching reply.
' " Then state your case to me ; make me master
of your facts, and trust me to argue the matter for
you."
' Mr. Stephenson was only too glad to close with
such an offer ; and Follett, with that rare discrimi-
nation which distinguished him from all other advo-
cates, grasped Mr. Stephenson's meaning at once,
seizing instantly on the leading points, and making
himself master of the whole subject.
'That evening, after dinner, Sir Robert, at the
instigation of Sir William Follett, led the subject of
conversation back to the discussion of the previous
232 The Triumphs of Steam.
day. The Dean, naturally enough, adhered to the
opinions he had originally expressed. Sir William
espoused the opposite side, Mr. Stephenson mean-
while remaining perfectly silent, listening with in-
tense interest to the ably advanced argument of the
brilliant orator. It was as if a new power were sud-
denly placed within his reach. Ideas which had
been lying deep in his own mind, but which he had
been utterly unable to bring forth, were suddenly
displayed clear, sharp, sparkling truths : facts were
made available, proofs were rendered incontrover-
tible. The tables were turned, and the victor of
yesterday was the vanquished of to-day.
' " Well," exclaimed Mr. Stephenson laughingly,
as the Dean withdrew from the unequal contest,
" of all gifts ever bestowed upon man, there is
nothing, in my opinion, that equals the gift ot the
gab."
' But although, when mixing in conversation with
men of very cultivated minds, Mr. Stephenson
might to a certain degree be made to feel the dis-
advantages under which he laboured from the want
of early education, yet, whenever it was a mere
matter of business, his love of truth, his vigorous
understanding, and his clear perception of the merits
of the case, compensated for the want of mere men-
tal training. In the constant legal examinations to
which he was exposed, he was an invaluable witness
for his own side : no casuistry puzzled him, no brow-
Mr. Stephenson as a Witness. 233
beating daunted him. Clear-sighted and perfectly
self-possessed, he gave his evidence straight to the
point, though occasionally in language a little more
vigorous than is usually heard in our courts of law.
' On one particular occasion, it was life or death
to the opposing party to be able to upset Mr.
Stephenson's evidence. If any one could have ac-
complished this, it would have been Alderson, the
counsel employed against him, and I have no doubt
that Alderson went into court willing enough to
carry out the directions of his clients. But it would
not do. There was that about George Stephenson
which could not be beaten down, and still less could
he be cajoled and flattered. Alderson failed in his
purpose, but he did full justice to the character of
the man who had foiled him ; and afterwards, in
speaking of his many noble qualities, he added,
with that readiness of illustration for which he him-
self was celebrated : " Yes, Stephenson's manner may
be rough, it is but the scoriae ; all below the surface
is true metal."
' It is not surprising that Mr. Stephenson's advice
and assistance should have been eagerly sought for
on all sides ; but as years passed on, he became
anxious to withdraw from the troubles and anxieties
of his arduous profession. He had set the mighty
engine in motion, astounding was the impetus it
had in so short a time attained, and although Mr.
Stephenson's vigorous grasp might still have retained