贝壳电子书 > 英文原著电子书 > the life of thomas telford >

第36章

the life of thomas telford-第36章

小说: the life of thomas telford 字数: 每页4000字

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!




one leg。  Their allowance in food is a penny loaf and a halfpenny

worth of cheese for breakfast; a penny loaf; a quart of soup; and

half a pound of meat for dinner; and a penny loaf and a halfpenny

worth of cheese for supper; so that they have meat and clothes at

all events。  I employ them in removing earth; serving masons or

bricklayers; or in any common labouring work on which they can be

employed; during which time; of course; I have them strictly

watched。〃



Much more pleasant was his first sight of Mrs。 Jordan at the

Shrewsbury theatre; where he seems to have been worked up to a

pitch of rapturous enjoyment。  She played for six nights there at

the race time; during which there were various other'

entertainments。  On the second day there was what was called an

Infirmary Meeting; or an assemblage of the principal county

gentlemen in the infirmary; at which; as county surveyor; Telford

was present。  They proceeded thence to church to hear a sermon

preached for the occasion; after which there was a dinner; followed

by a concert。  He attended all。  The sermon was preached in the new

pulpit; which had just been finished after his design; in the

Gothic style; and he confidentially informed his Langholm

correspondent that he believed the pulpit secured greater

admiration than the sermon; With the concert he was completely

disappointed; and he then became convinced that he had no ear for

music。  Other people seemed very much pleased; but for the life of

him he could make nothing of it。  The only difference that he

recognised between one tune and another was that there was a

difference in the noise。  〃It was all very fine;〃 he said; 〃I have

no doubt; but I would not give a song of Jock Stewart *'10' for the

whole of them。  The melody of sound is thrown away upon me。  One

look; one word of Mrs。 Jordan; has more effect upon me than all the

fiddlers in England。  Yet I sat down and tried to be as attentive as

any mortal could be。  I endeavoured; if possible; to get up an

interest in what was going on; but it was all of no use。  I felt no

emotion whatever; excepting only a strong inclination to go to

sleep。  It must be a defect; but it is a fact; and I cannot help it。

I suppose my ignorance of the subject; and the want of musical

experience in my youth; may be the cause of it。〃*'11'  Telford's

mother was still living in her old cottage at The Crooks。  Since he

had parted from her; he had written many printed letters to keep

her informed of his progress; and he never wrote to any of his

friends in the dale without including some message or other to his

mother。  Like a good and dutiful son; he had taken care out of his

means to provide for her comfort in her declining years。  〃She has

been a good mother to me;〃 he said; 〃and I will try and be a good

son to her。〃  In a letter written from Shrewsbury about this time;

enclosing a ten pound note; seven pounds of which were to be given

to his mother; he said; 〃I have from time to time written William

Jackson 'his cousin' and told him to furnish her with whatever she

wants to make her comfortable; but there may be many little things

she may wish to have; and yet not like to ask him for。  You will

therefore agree with me that it is right she should have a little

cash to dispose of in her own way。。。。  I am not rich yet; but it

will ease my mind to set my mother above the fear of want。  That has

always been my first object; and next to that; to be the somebody

which you have always encouraged me to believe I might aspire to

become。  Perhaps after all there may be something in it!〃 *'12'

He now seems to have occupied much of his leisure hours in

miscellaneous reading。  Among the numerous books which he read; he

expressed the highest admiration for Sheridan's 'Life of Swift。'

But his Langholm friend; who was a great politician; having invited

his attention to politics; Telford's reading gradually extended in

that direction。  Indeed the exciting events of the French

Revolution then tended to make all men more or less politicians。

The capture of the Bastille by the people of Paris in 1789 passed

like an electric thrill through Europe。  Then followed the

Declaration of Rights; after which; in the course of six months;

all the institutions which had before existed in France were swept

away; and the reign of justice was fairly inaugurated upon earth!



In the spring of 1791 the first part of Paine's 'Rights of Man'

appeared; and Telford; like many others; read it; and was at once

carried away by it。  Only a short time before; he had admitted with

truth that he knew nothing of politics; but no sooner had he read

Paine than he felt completely enlightened。  He now suddenly

discovered how much reason he and everybody else in England had for

being miserable。  While residing at Portsmouth; he had quoted to his

Langholm friend the lines from Cowper's 'Task;' then just

published; beginning 〃Slaves cannot breathe in England;〃 but lo!

Mr。 Paine had filled his imagination with the idea that England was

nothing but a nation of bondmen and aristocrats。  To his natural

mind; the kingdom had appeared to be one in which a man had pretty

fair play; could think and speak; and do the thing he would;

tolerably happy; tolerably prosperous; and enjoying many blessings。

He himself had felt free to labour; to prosper; and to rise from

manual to head work。  No one had hindered him; his personal liberty

had never been interfered with; and he had freely employed his

earnings as he thought proper。  But now the whole thing appeared a

delusion。  Those rosy…cheeked old country gentlemen who came riding

into Shrewsbury to quarter sessions; and were so fond of their

young Scotch surveyor occupying themselves in building bridges;

maintaining infirmaries; making roads; and regulating gaols

those county magistrates and members of parliament; aristocrats all;

were the very men who; according to Paine; were carrying the

country headlong to ruin!



If Telford could not offer an opinion on politics before; because

he 〃knew nothing about them;〃 he had now no such difficulty。  Had

his advice been asked about the foundations of a bridge; or the

security of an arch; he would have read and studied much before

giving it; he would have carefully inquired into the chemical

qualities of different kinds of limeinto the mechanical

principles of weight and resistance; and such like; but he had no

such hesitation in giving an opinion about the foundations of a

constitution of more than a thousand years' growth。  Here; like

other young politicians; with Paine's book before him; he felt

competent to pronounce a decisive judgment at once。  〃I am

convinced;〃 said he; writing to his Langholm friend; 〃that the

situation of Great Britain is such; that nothing short of some

signal revolution can prevent her from sinking into bankruptcy;

slavery; and insignificancy。〃  He held that the national expenditure

was so enormous;*'13' arising from the corrupt administration of

the country; that it was impossible the 〃bloated mass〃 could hold

together any longer; and as he could not expect that 〃a hundred

Pulteneys;〃 such as his employer; could be found to restore it to

health; the conclusion he arrived at was that ruin was

〃inevitable。〃*'14'  Notwithstanding the theoretical ruin of England

which pressed so heavy on his mind at this time; we find Telford

strongly recommending his correspondent to send any good wrights he

could find in his neighbourhood to Bath; where they would be

enabled to earn twenty shillings or a guinea a week at piece…work

the wages paid at Langholm for similar work being only about half

those amounts。



In the same letter in which these observations occur; Telford

alluded to the disgraceful riots at Birmingham; in the course of

which Dr。 Priestley's house and library were destroyed。  As the

outrages were the work of the mob; Telford could not charge the

aristocracy with them; but wit

返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0

你可能喜欢的