v William Smiths Observations 229 



familiar. He had likewise ample notes of local sections, 

 and complete evidence of a recognizable succession among 

 the rocks. Not only could he identify the strata by their 

 fossils, but he could point out to the surveyors, contractors, 

 and other practical men with whom he came in contact 

 how useful in many kinds of undertakings was the detailed 

 knowledge which he had now acquired. In agriculture, 

 in mining, in road-making, in draining, in the construction 

 of canals, in questions of water-supply, and in many other 

 affairs of everyday life, he was able to prove that his 

 system of observation possessed great practical utility. 



In the year 1799, his connection with the Canal Com- 

 pany came to an end. He was thereafter compelled to 

 put his geological knowledge to commercial use, and to 

 undertake the laborious duties of an engineer and surveyor 

 on his own account. Eventually he found considerable 

 employment over the whole length and breadth of Eng- 

 land, and showed singular shrewdness and originality in 

 dealing with the engineering questions which came before 

 him. He was a close observer of nature, and his know- 

 ledge of natural processes stood him in good stead in his 

 professional calling. If he had to keep out the sea from 

 low ground, he constructed his barrier as nearly as possible 

 like those which the waves themselves had thrown up. 

 If he was asked to prevent a succession of landslips, he 

 studied the geological structure of the district and the 

 underground drainage, and drove his tunnels so as to inter- 

 cept the springs underneath. His nephew and biographer 

 tells us that his engagements in connection with drainage 

 and irrigation involved journeys of sometimes 10,000 miles 

 in a year. 



