2 Sketch of the Life of 



returned home, and remained in his father's business, that of 

 a grocer, till he settled for himself. 



During this period of eighteen years, he appears to have 

 devoted himself assiduously to literary pursuits, and to have 

 spent much time in perusing standard works upon almost 

 every subject necessary to the completion of a liberal educa- 

 tion. He neglected no opportunity of collecting portraits for 

 his illustrations of Grainger, or of purchasing scarce and valu- 

 able books ; indeed he seems then to have commenced those 

 collections which he afterwards brought to such perfection. 

 His diaries contain a minute detail of each day's employment, 

 and a list of the books which he was reading ; and in com- 

 mon-place books, of the same dates, are inserted his opinions 

 of the contents, and transcriptions of every passage which he 

 deemed worthy of preservation. I can find no diary pre- 

 ceding 1783 ; but as others are referred to, am inclined to 

 believe that he commenced writing them at a considerably 

 earlier period. 



In 1786, he seems to have given up a good deal of time in 

 concert with Mr. Isaac Hawkins Browne, late member for 

 Bridgnorth, in devising measures for the suppression of coun- 

 terfeit halfpence throughout the kingdom ; and soon after- 

 wards I find, from the Earl of Stamford's letter, accepting the 

 office of patron, that, after great labour, he succeeded in esta- 

 blishing a public library at Stourbridge, About this time, too, 

 he wrote many papers for the Gentleman's Magazine, chiefly 

 upon subjects of Theology, which was a favourite topic with 

 him in early life, and occupied a considerable portion of his 

 attention. 



The large intervals of leisure which he enjoyed during the 

 time of his residence under his father's roof, being devoted 

 exclusively to the acquisition of knowledge, laid the solid 

 foundation of those attainments, which in after-fife rendered 

 his name so eminent. 



In 1793, he settled at Stoke-upon-Trent, as a soap-maker, 

 and from this time he dated the commencement of his chemical 

 pursuits. He soon succeeded in obtaining his alkali from the 

 decomposition of the sulphates in a way very superior to any 

 which had previously been adopted, and introduced great im- 



