of the Strata of England. SS'5 



iViem, so that before the commenceinent of the present centurVy 

 many copies of a list got into private circulation, which cs- 

 pUiined the chief rcsidto of Mr. b's arduous labours. 



Soon after this period, Mr. S. printed and widely circulated 

 a Prospectus, which further and pretty fully explaiiied his dis- 

 coveries and results, and the modes of their beneficial application 

 to the concerns and interests of the Land and Mineral owners: 

 but these appeals to the Public, failing to produce an adequate 

 list of Subscribers to Mr. S's proposed Maj) and Work, and 

 having received no Money on account thereof, hut from two In- 

 dividuals, he found himself compelled to lay the same aside, and 

 apply very assiduously to his Engiueery and other Business, for 

 retrieving his pecuniary affairs, from the embarrassments tliat a 

 too ardent zeal in the prosecution of this great ahd truly national 

 undertaking, had brought on him ! 



la this dilemma of my Friend, and instructor in his new art of 

 Mineral Surveying, and after I had fully a-^cortained the ori- 

 ginality, as well as verified the truth and importance, of his dis- 

 Goveries relating to the mineral structure of Britain, of thesoutli- 

 «ast and east of England in particular, I saw with the utmost 

 regret, persons starring up on every side, who had evidently either 

 <Jirectly, or more indirectly, although not less certainly, cc^z^iw^^^ 

 theinselves luith Mr. Smith's ideas and leading facts, who were 

 preparing to profit by them, and who yet appeared little dis- 

 posed to acknowledge their obligations. 



These circumstances, occasioned me almost incessantly to 

 •ur^e Mr. S, as others did wliose advice ought to have had more 

 weight, to bring out a publication on the subject, however short 

 and in outline: but failing in accomplishing this, I determined 

 to let no opportunity slip, of bringing Mr. S's discoveries and 

 new professional practice sufficiently before the Public, to secure 

 him the credit of them at least ; and I began, in '1805, by shew- 

 ing at some length, their application to the important concerns 

 of the Civil Engineer, in the article Canal, v/hich I undertook 

 to prepare for Dr. Rees's Cyclopaedia*, and followed the same 



up, 



* By a sort of fatality which attended my connection with this Work, 

 it happened, that the Editor rejected nearly all this part of the manuscript, 

 in hi^ hasty and indiscreet mode oi" shortening my communication : I con- 

 tinued, however, to emVnace the numerous opportunities that offered as a 

 contributor to that work, for introducing the mention of Mr. Smith and 

 iiis discoveries, and of making reference to future articles on other points, 

 from the aiticle Clu;i Strata, to that on Joints or fissures in the strata, in- 

 fliisive: in the course of which communications, [ prepared for the article 

 Gcolo^i/, a brief summary view of the theoretical results that appeared lo 

 mc dcduciblc, from ."!//-. !S,mtl,.'$ discoveries and jriy own verj'katiuas there- 

 of. 



