December, 1905.] 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



313 



were covered with this turmoil. Houses of all sorts, 

 from the humblest cottages to the most magnificent 

 villas, had fallen a prey to the Act of Parliament sanc- 

 tioning the great work. Even whole villages had been 

 swept away by the remorseless hand of the now cele- 

 brated Tush. 



At various points the train stopped, while Tush got 

 out to interview the officials or inspect some new piece 

 of work, and then on he would go again. Now the 

 distant form of the Crystal Palace, with Its two towers 

 so familiar to suburban /labi/nes, came In view as the 

 little train rattled along near the south end of its 

 grounds. Even further was the great ditch continued 

 through Beckenham and right on towards Greenwich, 

 where new docks were to be constructed, with great 

 locks to cut off the tide. 



In some places, where land was not so precious, the 

 spare earth was piled up Into small mountains, instead 

 of being carried all the way round to the City, and these 

 would, in the future, form picturesque little hills over- 

 looking the river. 



One of the greatest difficulties proved to be the many 

 railroads connecting the Metropolis with the south. 

 Either there would be required a large number of long 

 bridges, or they would need to be so altered and 

 arranged that a number of them could utilise the same 

 bridge, which was more economical In many ways. 

 Some, on a low level, could tunnel beneath the New 

 River. 



Tush, satisfied with his tour of Inspection, now took 

 the ordinary train to convey him to the City, where he 

 was to attend a meeting of the company, and troublous 

 times were beginning to overshadow its peace and 

 prosperity. 



The " Thames Deviation Construction Company," 

 with its capital of _;^'5o,ooo,ooo, was one of the biggest 

 commercial concerns ever undertaken, and was not the 

 chairman also one of the biggest financiers the world 

 had seen ? Yet discontent was rife among the share- 

 holders. They wanted to know more. They asked 

 this and they asked that, but they were always put off 

 with vague replies. " Mr. Tush has arranged that," 

 was considered a sufficient answer to allay all despond- 

 ency and doubt as to certain possible difficulties. Then 

 more sinister rumours began to get about; one of them, 

 for Instance, was to this effect : — • 



A certain gentleman in business in the City owned a 

 small villa and a few acres of land near Carshalton. 

 About three years ago^ a stranger, giving the name of 

 Jones, called to see him and asked whether he was 

 willing to sell the freehold of his little property. In 

 due course the transaction was completed, and Mr. 

 Jones became owner of the land on very favourable 

 terms. .Since then the land had Ijeen purchased by the 

 Deviation Company for a very handsome sum; those 

 knowing its true value being much surprised at the 

 magnanimity of the great company. Well, all this 

 might not have seemed a matter of any Importance had 

 not the worthy City merchant one day chanced to have 

 pointed out to him the great Tush. "That Tush! " 

 he said, " why I could swear that that is the man 

 Jones, who bought my house at Carshalton." And 

 then other stories of a very similar nature got about. 

 It transpired that about the time the company was 

 first formed. Tush had become a very large shareholder 

 In the " Conrad R. Pickle Steam Digger and Excava- 

 tor Company," of Pittsburg, U.S.A., and that this 

 firm, though not the lowest contractors, had supplied 

 nearly all the machines used by the company for 

 excavating. So, too, a certain architect, to whom 



much work had been entrusted, was found to be " sub- 

 sidised " by Tush. Either under his own name, or 

 that of his agent Bateson, he seemed to be interested 

 In many different concerns connected with the great 

 undertaking. 



Thus it gradually began to leak out that the great 

 capitalist was making money " hand over fist " in a 

 number of different lines, quite apart from the main 

 company. Indeed, It was suggested by some of the 

 more pessimistic that he had already got rid of the 

 greater part of his " Deviation " shares during the 

 great boom of a year ago, and that he was now running 

 the thing so as to suit his own interests rather than 

 those of the shareholders. 



Still all these awkward rumours were explained away 

 by the co-directors and officials of the company, and 

 things went on smoothly enough for some years. As 

 the completion of the works began to become manifest, 

 hopes rose in people's minds, and the shareholders 

 cared not what Tush did, only so long as the great work 

 should be satisfactorily completed. 



CHAPTER VH. 



The Opening. 



At last all was ready. The huge cutting of the 

 " New Thames " was complete; all except the dam 

 which still held the waters, and bade them flow on In 

 the path they had pursued for centuries. Once the 

 dam was cut all would be changed, and the waters, 

 rushing wildly over fields and pastures new, would dash 

 onward to find their new course to the sea. 



This, then, should be a most eventful occasion, and a 

 fitting ceremony was arranged to take place. Large 

 wooden stands were erected for the accommodation of 

 the thousands of spectators. Royalty itself was to 

 honour the proceedings with its august presence and 

 support. All the big wigs in England had expressed 

 their Intention of attending. Cornelius had decided, 

 in his usual personally ambitious manner, that this great 

 occasion was not only to be the opening up of the new 

 river, but that It would Incidentally form the ceremony 

 of exonerating him personally from all the wicked 

 slanders that had been circulating more and more 

 freely. He had made numerous plausible stories which 

 ought, he thought, to explain away any harmful inten- 

 tions on his part. But, unfortunately, as soon as one 

 was disposed of, dark tales sprung into life about some 

 other enormity that he was supposed to have com- 

 mitted. Now at last he hoped they were all satisfac- 

 torily explained, and that his pure and straightforward 

 patriotism would be proclaimed to the whole world. 



Then the day arrived ! Wandsworth, the town which 

 was now to be cut clean in two by a vast abyss, while 

 a large portion of it had disappeared into that abyss, 

 was en fete. The river beyond swarmed with boats of 

 all kinds (for the rush of water was not to be so sudden 

 as to cause any serious difference to the river that day). 

 Flags flew from every suitable point. Strains of music 

 and joyous voices rose from all around. The only 

 sombre-looking spot was the vast brown excavation ex- 

 tending southward as far as the eye could see, on which 

 all the interest hinged. 



As the church bells slowly boomed forth the mid- 

 day hour, bands struck up the National Anthem, and 

 the roaring of thousands of throats rose in their loyal 

 greetings to the occupants of a Royal carriage as it 

 raced Into the great enclosure surrounding the spot 

 where the puny work was about to take place which 



