The life of George Stephenson, railway engineer - Lighthouse ...

CHAP. XVI.] VISIT TO MR. PEASE. I75
of the undertaking, with the view of being employed to carry it
out. He had brought with him his friend Nicholas Wood, for
the purpose at the same time of relieving his diffidence and sup-
porting his application.
Mr. Pease liked the appearance of his visitor.
" There was,"
as he afterwards remarked, in speaking of Stephenson, " such an
honest, sensible look about him, and he seemed so modest and
unpretending. He spoke in the strong Northumbrian dialect of
his district, and described himself as ' only the engine-wright at
Killingworth ; that's what he was.'
Mr. "Pease very soon saw that his visitor was the man for his
purpose. The whole plans of the railway being still in an un-
determined state, Mr. Pease was glad to have the opportunity
of gathering from Mr. Stephenson the results of his experience.
The latter strongly recommended a railway in preference to a
tramroad, in -which Mr. Pease was disposed to concur with him.
The conversation next turned on the tractive power which the
company intended to employ, and Mr. Pease said that they had
based their whole calculations on the employment of horse
power. "I was so satisfied," said he afterwards, " that a horse
upon an iron road would draw^ ten tons for one ton on a common
road, that I felt sure that before long the railway would become
the King's Highway."
But Mr. Pease was scarcely prepared for the bold assertion
made by his visitor, that the locomotive engine with which he
had been working the Killingworth Railway for many years
past was worth fifty horses, and that engines made after a similar
plan would yet entirely supersede all horse power upon railroads.
Mr. Stephenson was daily becoming more positive as to the
superiority of his locomotive ; and on this, as on all subsequent
occasions, he strongly urged Mr. Pease to adopt it. " Come
over to Killingworth," said he, " and see what my Blutcher can
do ; seeing is believing, sir." And Mr. Pease promised that on
some early day he would go over to Killingworth with his friend
Thomas Richardson, and take a look at this wonderful machine
that was to supersede horses.
On Mr. Pease referring to the difficulties and the opposition
which the projectors of the railway had had to encounter, and
"