232 THE ADDRESSES, LECTURES, ETC., OF 



This gave rise to another mighty impulse, which tended to 

 make this country the workshop of the world. It was pro- 

 bably the greatest of all the mighty impulses to which he could 

 allude. He alluded to what was done by Newcomen, also a 

 man of this neighbourhood, and after him came Watt, who 

 completed the steam engine, which revolutionised the whole 

 civilised world. 



To the three great inventions already mentioned, might be 

 added that by Cort, of converting cast iron into wrought iron 

 by the quick process of puddling and rolling instead of by the 

 slow process of flushing fires and hammers. This produced an 

 outlet and great development to the system introduced by 

 Dudley. 



It was through these inventions that England became the 

 greatest industrial producing country of the world ; but another 

 race of men were required to give application to these great dis- 

 coveries. These were Fletcher and Bell, who first placed a steam 

 engine on a ship and propelled that ship over the ocean to all parts 

 of the world ; and next came a man whose name would be known 

 to the end of the world George Stephenson, a colliery workman 

 who saw that this steam engine could be put on wheels, and carry 

 loads ou wheels from one end of the country to the other. These 

 were the two inventions which had given us the steam engine in a 

 praptical form, and had so developed it that it passed goods and 

 passengers from place to place in much less time and with much 

 less expenditure of labour and money than could be done under 

 the systems previously in vogue. 



Now it might be said that the men he had mentioned were none 

 of them scientific men, that they were men who had risen from 

 the ranks, who by their indomitable perseverance, their genius, and 

 their self-tuition had accomplished these extraordinary results, and 

 it might be asked why should we then trouble ourselves much about 

 technical education when, without it, such results had been pro- 

 duced ; and it might be said that surely without it we might go on 

 prospering and keep our foremost position among nations. Such 

 arguments would be very fallacious. A man of genius made his way 

 in whatever position he might be placed, and the very difficulties he 

 had to encounter in early life were the hard discipline and educa- 

 tion of mind, which enabled him to battle with and conquer the 



