242 HEROES OF SCIENCE. 



down in an eastern direction and sunk below the 

 level, and yielded place to the next in succession. 



But at the same time it was known to Mr. Smith 

 that the position of the strata of coal in Somerset- 

 shire was not generally conformed to that of the 

 " re<d earth " " lias," and other beds above ; the 

 same thing was proved to him by an inspection of 

 the colliery at Bucklechurch, in Gloucestershire ; he 

 knew besides that the great faults which divide all 

 the coal strata underground, were in general found 

 not to divide any of the superincumbent rocks 

 which formed the surface. 



Geologists who, at the present time, notwith- 

 standing the devoted attention which has been paid 

 to the phenomena of local displacement, find a 

 difficulty in understanding the causes, may imagine 

 the perplexity in the mind of a discoverer. Mr. 

 Smith felt this perplexity severely, but not long. 

 The Canal Bill, on which he was engaged, received 

 the sanction of Parliament in 1794; and one of 

 the first steps taken by the judicious committee of 

 management was to depute two members of their 

 body to accompany Mr. Smith, "their engineer," 

 on a tour of inquiry and observation regarding the 

 construction, management, and trade of other 

 navigations in England and Wales. 



The tour extended altogether nine hundred miles, 

 and occupied between one and two months ; by 

 one route the party reached Newcastle, and by 

 another returned, through Shropshire and Wales to 

 Bath. Mr. Palmer and Mr. Perkins were gentle- 



