Of all celebrations in the North of England there was never the like of
the centenary of the birth-day of George Stephenson, June 9th, 1881. The
enthusiastic crowds of people assembled to honour the occasion were never
before so numerous on any public holiday. Sir William Armstrong, C.B.,
in his speech at the great banquet remarked:—“The memory of a great man
now dead is a solemn subject for a toast, and I approach the task of
proposing it with a full sense of its gravity. We are met to celebrate
the birth of George Stephenson, which took place just 100 years ago—a
date which nearly coincides with that at which the genius of Watt first
gave practical importance to the steam-engine. Up to that time the
inventive faculties of man had lain almost dormant, but with the advent
of the steam-engine there commenced that splendid series of discoveries
and inventions which have since, to use the words of Dr. Bruce,
revolutionised the state of the world. Amongst these the most momentous
in its consequences to the human race is the railway system—(cheers)—and
with that system including the locomotive engine as its essential
element, the name of George Stephenson will ever be pre-eminently
associated. In saying this, I do not mean to ignore the important parts
played by others in the development of the railway system; but it is not
my duty on this occasion to review the history of that system and to
assign to each person concerned his proper share of the general credit.
To do this would be an invidious task, and out of place at a festival
held in honour of George Stephenson only. I shall, therefore, pass over
all names but his, not even making an exception in favour of his
distinguished son. (Cheers.) It seldom or never happens that any great
invention can be exclusively attributed to any one man; but it is
generally the case that amongst those who contribute to the ultimate
success there is one conspicuous figure that towers above all the rest,
and such is the figure which George Stephenson presents in relation to
the railway system. (Cheers.) To be sensible of the benefits we have
derived from railways and locomotives let us consider for a moment what
would be our position if they were taken from us. The present business
of the country could not be carried on, the present population could not
be maintained, property would sink to half its value—(hear, hear)—and
instead of prosperity and progress we should have collapse and
retrogression on all sides. (Cheers.) What would Newcastle be if it
ceased to be a focus of railways? How would London be supplied if it had
to fall back upon turnpike roads and horse traffic? In short, England as
it is could not exist without railways and locomotives; and it is only
our familiarity with them that blunts our sense of their prodigious
importance. As to the future effects of railways, it is easy to see that
they are destined to diffuse industrial populations over those vast
unoccupied areas of the globe that abound in natural resources, and only
wait for facilities of access and transport to become available for the
wants of man. There is yet scope for an enormous extension of railways
all over the world, and the fame of Stephenson will continue to grow as
railways continue to spread. (Loud cheers.) But I should do scant
justice to the memory of George Stephenson if I dwelt only on the results
of his achievements. Many a great reputation has been marred by faults
of character, but this was not the case with George Stephenson. His
manly simplicity and frankness, and his kindly nature won for him the
respect and esteem of all who knew him both in the earlier and later
periods of his career—(cheers)—but the prominent feature in his character
was his indomitable perseverance, which broke down all obstacles, and
converted even his failures and disappointments into stepping stones to
success. It was not the desire for wealth that actuated him in the
pursuit of his objects, but it was a noble enthusiasm, far more conducive
to great ends than the hope of gain, that carried him forward to his
goal. Unselfish enthusiasm such as his always gives a tone of heroism to
a character, and heroism above all things commands the homage of mankind.
Newcastle may well be proud of its connection with George Stephenson, and
the proceedings of this day testify how much his memory is cherished in
this his native district. Any memorial dedicated to him would be
appropriate to this occasion, and if such memorial were connected with
scientific instruction it would be in harmony with his well-known
appreciation of the value of scientific education, and of the sacrifices
he made to give his son the advantage of such an education. (Cheers.) I
now, gentlemen, have to propose to you the toast which has been committed
to me, and which is ‘Honour to the memory of George Stephenson, and may
the college to be erected to his memory prove worthy of his fame.’ I
must ask you to drink this toast standing; and consider that the birth of
Stephenson is a subject of jubilation. I think that although he is dead
we may drink that toast with hearty cheering. (Hear, hear, and loud
cheers.)
Mr. George Robert Stephenson, who was warmly cheered on rising to respond
to the toast, said: “Mr. Mayor and gentlemen,—Let me, in the first place
thank Sir William Armstrong for the many kind words he has uttered in
honour of the memory of George Stephenson. It is true that he was, as
Sir William said, one of the most kind-hearted and unselfish men that
ever lived; but I suppose that no man has had a more up-hill struggle
during the present century. (Cheers). I have now in my possession
documents that would show in his early life the extraordinary and
peculiar nature of the opposition that was brought against him as a poor
man. He was opposed by many of the leading engineers of the day; some of
these men using language which, it is not incorrect to say, was not only
injurious but wicked. This is not the proper occasion to weary you with
a long speech, but with the view of showing the peculiar mode of
engineers reporting against each other, I could very much wish, with your
permission, to read a few sentences from documents that I have in my
possession, dating back to 1823. (Hear, hear). This, gentlemen, will
clearly show the sort of opposition I have alluded to. It occurs at the
end of a report by an opponent upon some projected work on which the four
brothers were engaged:—‘But we cannot conclude without saying that such a
mechanic as Mr. Stephenson, who can neither calculate, nor lay his
designs on paper, or distinguish the effect from the cause, may do very
well for repairing engines when they are constructed, but for building
new ones, he must be at great loss to his employers, from the many
alterations that will take place in engine-building, when he goes by what
we call the rule of thumb.’ In a preceding sentence he is taunted with
being like the fly going round on a crank axle, and shouting ‘What a dust
I am kicking up.’ Gentlemen, the dust that George Stephenson kicked up
formed itself into a cloud, and in every part of the globe to which it
reached it carried with it and planted the seeds of civilization and
wealth. Notwithstanding the hard and illiberal treatment to which he was
exposed, he was not beaten; on the contrary, by his genius and his
never-failing spirit, he raised himself above the level of the very men
who opposed every effort he made towards the advancement of engineering
science—efforts which have resulted in a vast improvement of our means
for extracting the valuable products of the earth, and also of our means
of conveying them at a cheap rate to distant markets. It is not too much
to say that George Stephenson headed a movement by which alone could
employment have been found for an ever-increasing population.”
In the town of Chesterfield the Centenary was celebrated most
befittingly. It was there the father of railways spent his latter days,
and there he died. Although there was not such a flood of oratory as at
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, many interesting speeches were delivered in
connection with the event. We give some extracts from an address
delivered by the Rev. Samuel C. Sarjant, B.A., Curate-in-Charge at that
time—delivered at Holy Trinity Church, Chesterfield. An address which,
for ability, nice discrimination of thought, and true appreciation of the
subject, would not disgrace any pulpit in Christendom:—
“We meet to-day for the highest of all purposes, the worship of Almighty
God. But we also meet to show our regard for the memory of one of the
great and gifted dead. It is no small distinction of this town that the
last days of George Stephenson were spent in it. And it adds to the
interest of this church that it contains his mortal remains. With little
internally to appeal to the eye, or to gratify taste, this church has yet
a spell which will draw visitors from every part of the world. Men will
come hither from all lands to look with reverence upon the simple resting
place of him who was the father of the Locomotive and of the Railway
system. And perhaps the naked simplicity which marks that spot is in
keeping with a life, the grandeur of which was due solely to the man
himself, and not to outward helps and circumstances . . .
“Toil has its roll of heroes, but few, if any, of them are greater than
he whose birth we commemorate to-day. He was pre-eminently a self-made
man, one who ‘achieved’ greatness by his own exertions. Granting that he
was gifted with powers of body and mind above the average, these were his
only advantages. The rest was due to hard work, patient, persistent
effort. He had neither wealth, schooling, patrons, nor favouring
circumstances. He comes into the arena like a naked athlete to wrestle
in his own strength with the difficulties before him. And these were
many and great!
“I need not dwell upon the details of a life which is so well known to
most, and to some present so vividly, from personal intercourse and
friendship. We all know what a battle he fought, how nobly and well,
first striving by patient plodding effort to remove his own ignorance,
cheerfully bending himself to every kind of work that came in his way,
and seeking to gain not only manual expertness, but a mastery of
principles. We know how he went on toiling, observing, experimenting,
saying little—for he was never given to the ‘talk of the lips’—but doing
much, letting slip no chance of getting knowledge, and of turning it to
practical account. He was one of those, who
While his companions slept
Was toiling upwards in the night.
And in due time his quiet work bore fruit. He invented a safety-lamp
which alone should have entitled him to the gratitude of posterity. He
then set himself to improve the locomotive, and fit it for the future
which his prescient mind discerned, and on a fair field he vanquished all
competitors. He then sought to adapt the roadway to the engine and make
it fit for its new work. And then, hardest task of all, he had to
convince the public that railway travelling was a possible thing; that it
could he made safe, cheap, and rapid. In doing this he was compelled to
design, plan, and execute almost everything with his own mind and hand.
All classes and interests were against him, the engineers, the land
owners, the legislature, and the public. He had to encounter the
phantoms of ignorance and fear, the solid resistance of vested interests,
and the bottomless quagmires of Chat Moss. But he triumphed! And it was
a well-earned reward as he looked down from his pleasant retreat at
Tapton upon the iron bands which glistened below, to know that they were
part of a network which was spreading over the whole land and becoming
the one highway of transit and commerce. Nor was this all his
satisfaction. He knew that Europe and America were welcoming the
railway, and that it was promising to link together the whole civilized
world.
“Of the ‘profit’ of his labours to humanity I scarcely venture to speak,
since it cannot possibly be told in a few words. The railway system has
revolutionised society. It has powerfully affected every class, every
interest and department of life. It has given an incredible impulse to
commerce, quickened human thought, created a new language, new habits,
tastes and pleasures. It has opened up fields of industry and enterprise
inaccessible and unknown before. It has cheapened the necessaries and
comforts of life, enhanced the value of property, promoted the fellowship
of class with class, and brought unnumbered benefits and advantages
within the reach of all. And it is yet, as to the world at large, but in
the infancy of its development.
“How much, then, do we owe, under God, to George Stephenson. How much,
not merely to his energy and diligence, but to his courage, patience, and
uprightness? For these qualities, quite as much as gifts of genius and
insight, contributed to his final success. He was crowned because he
strove ‘lawfully.’ His patience was as great in waiting as his energy in
working. He did not work from greed or self-glorification; and therefore
the hour of success, when it came, found him the same modest,
self-restrained man as before. He neither overrated the value of the
system which he had set up, nor made it a means of speculation and
gambling. He was a man of sterling honesty and uprightness—of
self-control, simple in his habits and tastes, given to plain living and
high thinking. And yet he was most kindly, genial, and cheery, of strong
affections, considerate of his workpeople, tender to his family, full of
love to little children and pet animals, brimming with fun and good
humour. He had the gentleness of all noble natures, the largeness of
mind and heart which could recognise ability and worth in others, and
give rivals their due. For the young inventor, or for such of his
helpers as showed marked diligence or promise, he had ready sympathy and
aid. Nor ought we to pass unnoticed his love of nature and of natural
beauty. Strong throughout his whole life, this was especially
conspicuous at its close. Such leisure as his last days brought was
spent amidst flowers and fruits, gardens and greeneries which he had
planned and filled, and from the midst of whose treasures he could look
forth over venerable trees and green fields upon a wide and varied
landscape. And yet, even in this relaxation, the old energy and
earnestness of purpose asserted themselves. He toiled and experimented,
watching the growth of his plants and flowers with more than professional
pains. Nor is it improbable that the ardour which led him to confine
himself for hours together in a heated and unhealthy atmosphere led to
his fatal illness.
“We are bound, then, to mark and admit how much the moral element in the
worker contributed to his success, and to the freshness of the regard
which is felt for his memory and name. England is proud of his works,
but prouder still of the man who did them. Far different would have been
the result if impatience, ungenerousness, and love of greed had marred
his life and work. The tributes of respect which we gladly lay upon his
tomb to-day, would probably have been placed elsewhere.”