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

410 LIFE OF GEOEGE STEPHENSON. [chap, xxxiii.
by volcanic forces, and the vast amount of denudation. In de-
scribing the coal-beds, he used his hat as a sort of model to illus-
trate his meaning ; and the eyes of the liing were fixed upon it
as he proceeded with his interesting description. The conversa-
tion then passed to the rise and progress of trade and manufac-
tures,—Mr. Stephenson pointing out how closely they everywhere
followed the coal, being mainly dependent upon it, as it were,
for their very existence.
The king seemed greatly pleased with the interview, and at its
close expressed himself obliged by the interesting information
which Mr. Stephenson had given him. Shaking hands cordially
with both the gentlemen, and wishing them success in all their
important undertakings, he bade them adieu. As they were
leaving the palace, Mr. Stephenson, bethinking him of the model
by which he had just been illustrating the Belgian coal-fields,
said to his friend, " By the bye, Sopwith, I was afraid the king
would see the inside of my hat; it's such a shocking bad one !
Little could George Stephenson, when brakesman at a coal-pit,
have dreamt that, in the course of his life, he should be admitted
to an interview with a monarch, and describe to him the manner
in which the geological foundations of his kingdom had been laid !
In the course of the same year Mr. Stephenson paid a second
visit to Belgium, for the purpose of examining the direction of
the proposed West Flanders Railway, and of suggesting any
alterations which his judgment might point out. The results of
his investigations were set forth in his report of August, 1845,
in which he recommended several important alterations, with a
view to facilitate the execution of the works, and to increase the
traffic of the line. The inspection of the country lasted ten
days. After the concession of this railway had been made to
the English Company, other parties appeared in the field, and
projected lines which, if carried out, would seriously affect the
success of the West Flanders project. The government of King
Leopold, however, on a representation to this effect having been
made to them, at once distinctly stated that the lines already
conceded would always be protected, and that no new lines
would be granted, however little they might affect those already
existing, without the proprietors of the latter being fully heard.
"