Scientific Road-Making 107 



to his own impoverishment (until Parliament voted him re- 

 compense), that led to the conspicuous and world- wide 

 success his system eventually attained. 



Writing in 1826, " Nimrod " said : " Roads may be called 

 the veins and arteries of a country, through which channels 

 every improvement circulates. I really consider Mr Me Adam 

 as being, next to Dr Jenner, the greatest contributor to the 

 welfare of mankind that this country has ever produced." 



This may seem, to-day, to be exaggerated praise ; but if the 

 reader looks at the matter from the point of view from which 

 " Nimrod " himself must have regarded it, and tries to realise 

 how greatly the deplorable state of the roads before McAdam 

 began to repair them was hampering social life, travel, trade, 

 commerce and national industries, he will probably conclude 

 that such praise, at such a period, and in such circumstances, 

 was far from being undeserved. 



The turnpike system lasted well into the railway period, 

 and the story of its gradual decline and the causes that led 

 thereto has still to be told. Before, however, dealing further 

 with these aspects of the general question I propose to revert 

 to the subject of rivers and river navigation ; to show, next, 

 how canals and canal transport were developed ; and then to 

 give an account of the rise of that railway system which was 

 so materially to affect alike rivers, canals and turnpike roads 

 as well. 



