A. D. 1760. 331 



reigns, though they were not entirely loft fight of, they were not much 

 attended to, till the reign of George IT. In the year 1755 the com- 

 mercial and enterprifing inhabitants of Liverpool began to turn their 

 attention to this moft important object:. For the benefit of an eafier 

 conveyance of coals from the pits at St. Helen's near Prefcot, they ob- 

 tained an a(5l of parliament for rendering navigable Sankey brook, which 

 runs near St. Helen's, and falls into the Merfea belov,' Warrington : 

 But when they came to examine the ground more attentively, they 

 found it would be better to make an entire new canal with proper 

 locks, which would be exempted from the inconveniencies of land- 

 floods, &c. ; and it was accordingly executed on that more judicious 

 plan, the brook being only ufed to feed the canal, which is twelve miles 

 long, with a fall of ninety feet ; and it is, if I miftake not, the firft canal 

 with locks that ever was conftrucled in Great Britain. In the fame 

 year, they employed two furveyors to examine the ground for a pro- 

 pofedjundion of the Merfea with the Trent on the oppofite fide of 

 the country ; a grand idea, which however was not carried into execu- 

 tion till feveral years after, as will be obferved in proper time. 



But the liift important work of this nature in Great Britain was 

 planned and happily accomplifhed by the duke of Bridgewater, who 

 may truely be faid to have the real honour, if not of introducing inland 

 navigation, at leaft of rendering it an object of univerfal attention, which 

 lias been attended with the happy effecl of diffufing that moft capital 

 fpccics of improvement throughout the whole kingdom. The duke had 

 a large mountain of coal upoa his eftate at Worfley in LancalTiire, which 

 the great expenfc of carriage to a market rendered an ufelefs potrellion 

 to him. He therefor conceived the idea of procuring a cheap convey- 

 ance by water to the large and populous manufacturing town of Man- 

 chefter , for which purpofe he obtained two acts of parliament in the 

 years 1758 and 1759*. While he was concerting his plan, he per- 

 ceived, encouraged, and availed hlmlelf of, the wonderful talents of the 

 uneducated, but heaven-taught engineer, Brindley ; by whole ingenuity, 

 with the abundant iupplv of materials from his own land<, and a vaft 

 expenditure of money for labour, he completed a navigable canal ot 

 twenty-nine miles in length, with about four feet and a half of depth of 

 water, without any locks ; the inequalitiesof the ground, and the inter- 

 vention of rivers and public roads, being furmounted by ftupendous 

 mounds of earth ; by a tunnel cut through a Inll fifty teet under the 

 furfice, and in fome places hewed out of the folid rock ; by aquedud 

 bridges over the public roads ; and by, what even profellional men then 



All aA had been oboiiicd in the year 1736, nalcly for t!ic prcfcnt aj^c, iiot'ii.15 \vai ever done 



t"i)i iL.iki.ij; Wurllcy bruok n.ivi^tfble to its juuc- in it, a:iJ room wm llurtby l.Tt Jcr t'lc d. ke of 



lion uiili the Irncll by the old nutliud of <lam- lJiiLlj<.'.va:er's i^raiid undertaking, 

 icnii^ up tlic water to make Itvcls. Ijut, furtu- 



Tt 2 



