CHAP. IV. MANAGEMENT OF FELONS. 323 



when the corn was on the ground, and after harvest to 

 dig down, sure of finding the store of stones which they 

 wanted for walls, cottages, or farm-houses. In fact, the 

 place came to be regarded in the light of a quarry, rich 

 in ready-worked materials for building purposes. About 

 this time a quantity of stone was wanted for the purpose 

 of erecting a blacksmith's shop, and on digging down 

 upon one of the marked places, the labourers came 

 upon some ancient works of a more perfect appearance 

 than usual. Curiosity was excited antiquarians made 

 their way to the spot rand lo ! they pronounced the ruins 

 to be neither more nor less than a Roman bath, in a 

 remarkably perfect state of preservation. Mr. Telford 

 was requested to apply to Mr. Pulteney, the lord of the 

 manor, to prevent the destruction of these interesting 

 remains, and also to permit the excavations to proceed, 

 with a view to the buildings being completely explored. 

 Tin's was readily granted, and Mr. Pulteney authorised 

 Telford himself to conduct the necessary excavations 

 at his expense. This he promptly proceeded to do, 

 and the result was, that an extensive hypocaust apart- 

 ment was brought to light, with baths, sudatorium, 

 dressing-room, and a number of tile pillars all forming 

 parts of a Roman floor sufficiently perfect to show 

 the manner in which they had been constructed and 

 used. 1 



Among Telford' s less agreeable duties about the same 

 time was that of keeping the felons at work. He had 

 to devise the ways and means of employing them without 

 risk of their escaping, which gave him much trouble 

 and anxiety. " Really," he says, " my felons are a very 

 troublesome family. I have had a great deal of plague 

 from them, and I have not yet got things quite in the 

 train that I could wish. I have had a dress made for 



1 The discovery formed the subject 

 of a paper read before the Society of 

 Antiquaries in London on the 7th of 



May, 1789, published in the ' Archa> 

 ologia,' together with a drawing of the 

 remains supplied by Mr. Telford. 



Y 2 



