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

242 LIFE OF GEORGE STEPHENSON. [chap. xx.
in the morning; and mounting him, he would ride the fifteen
miles to Sankey, putting up at a little public-house which then
stood upon the banks of the canal. There he had his breakfast
of " crowdie," which he made with his own hands. It consisted
of oatmeal stirred into a basin of hot water,—a sort of porridge,
—which was supped with cold sweet milk. After this frugal
breakfast, he would go upon the works, and remain there, riding
from point to point, for the greater part of the day. If he re-
turned home before mid-day, it would be to examine the pay-
sheets in the different departments, sent in by the assistant
engineers, or by the foremen of the workshops ;
all this he did
himself, with the greatest care, requiring a full explanation of
every item.
After a late dinner, which occupied very short time and was
always of a plain and frugal description, he would proceed to
dispose of his correspondence, or prepare sketches of drawings,
and give instructions as to their completion. He would occa-
sionally refresh himself for this evening work by a short doze,
which, however, he would never admit had exceeded the limits
of " winking," to use his own term. Mr. Frederick Swanwiek,
one of his most rising pupils, officiated as his amanuensis ; and
be then remarked—what in after years he could better appre-
ciate—the clear, terse, and vigorous style of., his dictation :
there
was nothing superfluous in it ; but it was close, direct, and to the
point,—in short, thoroughly business-like. And if, in passing .
through the pen of the amanuensis, his meaning happened in any
way to be distorted or modified, it did not fail to escape his de-
tection, though he was always tolerant of any liberties taken with
his own form of expression, so long as the words written down
conveyed his real meaning. His strong natural acumen showed
itself even in such matters as grammar and composition,—a de-
partment of knowledge in which, it might be supposed, he could
scarcely have had either time or opportunity to acquire much
information. But here, as in all other things, his shrewd common
sense came to his help ; and his simple, vigorous English
might almost be cited as a model of composition.
His letters and reports written, and his sketches of drawings
made and explained, the remainder of the evening was usually