CHAP. ix. r,i;iM>LKVs LAST CANALS, 455 



society at large. The only ])CrsoriS who seeiu to have 

 regarded them with interest were fax-sighted men lik< i 

 Josiah Wedgwood, wlio saw in them the means not 

 only of promoting the trade of his own county, but 

 of opening up the rich natural resources of the king- 

 dom, and diffusing amongst the people the elements of 

 comfort, intelligence, and civilization. The literary and 

 scientific classes as yet took little or no interest in them. 

 The most industrious and observant literary man of the 

 age, Dr. Johnson, though he had a word to say upon 

 nearly every subject, never so much as alluded to them, 

 though all Brindley's canals were finished in Johnson's 

 lift-time, and he must have observed the works in pro- 

 gress when passing on his various journeys through the 

 midland districts. The only reference which he makes 

 to the projects set on foot for opening up the country by 

 means of better roads, was to the effect, that whereas 

 there were before cheap places and dear places, now all 

 refuges were destroyed for elegant or genteel poverty. 



Before leaving this part of the subject, it is proper to 

 state that during the latter part of Brindley's life, whilst 

 canals were being projected in various directions, he 

 was, on many occasions, called upon to give his opinion 

 as to the plans which other engineers had prepared. 

 Among the most important -of the new projects on 

 which lie was thus consulted were, the Leeds and Liver- 

 pool Canal; the improvement of the navigation of the 

 Thames to Reading; the Calder Navigation; the Forth 

 and Clyde Canal ; the Salisbury and Southampton Canal ; 

 the Lancaster Canal; and the Andover Canal. Many 

 of these schemes were of great importance in a national 

 point of view. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal, for 

 instance, opened up the whole manufacturing district 

 of Yorkshire along the valley of the Aire to Liverpool 

 and the intermediate districts of Lancashire. The advan- 

 tages of this navigation to Leeds, Bradford, Keiirhley, 

 and the neighbouring towns, are felt to this day. and 



