The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1870-09-21
The TWO Thinkers.

the humble dwelling Of yer,
humble man. The little, old. fashion
ed kitchen was the home and stud,
Of 4 very poor man, Of whom th
world then knew nothing, but ha
since known q great deal. II
worked in cOal-pit. lie nevc
learned to read or write till h,
WAS eighteen, and then went t
school three evenings in the %eek
But he had eyes. and what nc say
with his eyes be thought upon
IIe carried it home, worked it owe
in his mind, and when occasion
called, could uso it in a msnue,
that astouishcd his neiyhbors.
will give You an Instance.
One Of the coal-pits Was flooded
with water. Tho engine had beer
ira'tlcssly pumping for nearly
twelve months, aud camo to be re
gardcd as Il total tuilurc. The
pit twas drowned out"
On Saturday afternoon he went
over 10 examine the engine more
carefully than he had done before
One of the men asked Lim. "Weel
George, what Go you max Of her?'
"Man," said George, in reply, a
could alter her and make her draw
in a weeks time from this | coulc
send you to the bottom"
"What do you know about en-
gines % cried the man scorufully
But the superintendent, hearing
Of it, determined to give George 5
skill a trial. In three days he had
altered the engine, and in two
days more the pit was cleared OF
water and tho workmcn sent to
the bottom.
How did he do it? lie was not
bred an engineer. He had no
books to teach him. 1t was be.
cause he was a thinker. lie had
seen engines just as the other men
had but he did what the rest did
not. In his spare moments he set
his mind to work about how they
were built, and all the why's and
wherefores. In this way he saw
the cause Of the difficulty and how
to remedy it.
Look at him. lie is planning,
and drawing and studying, instead
of spending his time at alc-Shops
and cock-fghts. See the wheels,
and cogs, and axlcs, and bits of
machinery about tho room. lie
has no books to guide him. The
knowledge Of other mon was be-
yond his reach.
His little son is interested iu all
that interests his fnthcr, and his
father explains to him pretty much
oil be knows. Robert goes to
school. At thirteen his father
sends him to the academy at Now
castle. Bob hunts up all the looks
which tell about machinery. If
be could only carry them home to
bis fatherI But that is against
the rules. What did he do? He
took the pains to copy all the pic
lures and diagrams Of machinery
which ho thought would interest
and help his father, and when he
went home on Saturday he OK
planned them to him. While Rob
ert was still ut school, his tather
proposed to him during tho holi-
lays that he should construct
sun-dial to be placed over their
cottage door. II eXpostulated
with him at first" said Robert, ac
when he had become fa.
nous, "that | had not learned suf-
icient astronomy and mathematics
% enable me to make the neccssa-
y calculations. But he would have
10 denial. 'The thing is TO be
lone said he SO just set about it
It once Well, we got Ferguson's
Astronomy. and studied the sub
Get together. Many sore head
had while making the caIcuIa.
ions necessary to adapt the dial
o the latitude of Killingworth.
But at last it was done, and we
made a very respectable dial Of it t.;
md there it is, you sec," pointing
o it over the cottage door, "still
quietly numbering the hours when
he sun shines" The date CARED
lpon the dial is, "August llth,
Would you know what all this
cd to? It laid the track of the |
irst railroad and built the first To-
The mans namc is
1corge Stephenson, who drove the
irst steam horse the world ever !
aw and his son is Robert Sto-
,hcnson, who planned the largest
fridge in North Am erica, that over
he St. Lawrence River at Non
real, called the Victoria Bridge
wo names that the world will not
oon let die.
No beginning cosid have been
ess promising than that Of George
Born in q poor con
ition, yet rich in spirit, he was
rom the first compelled to rely
pom himself: Whether working
$ q brakeman or an engineer, his
lind was always full Of the work
/ hand. When 4 workman, he
ut bis brains and labor into his
'ork and when q master he put
baracter and conscience into it.