HOW A LAME BOY BECAME THE WORLD'S GREATEST POTTER.
In the summer of 1730 a little lad was born at Burslem in
Staffordshire, England. There was no fear of the little fellow being
lonely for he came into a family where there were already twelve boys
and girls. Josiah Wedgewood, for that was the boy's name, was number
thirteen. Was he unlucky? Well, in some ways he was, but in others
he was not. His mother had her hands full with so large a family,
but she taught Josiah to read and write and then sent him to a dame's
school. Later he was sent to a school in Newcastle-under-Lyme. This
school was three and a half miles from where he lived, but the little
fellow was keen to get an education and cheerfully trudged the seven
miles to and from school each day. He was a lively boy, fond of all
kinds of sports and a general favourite at school. He showed a
remarkable faculty for making paper designs. With pen and scissors
he cut out designs of an army in combat, a fleet of ships at sea, a
house and gardens, and many other interesting things. This gift of
Josiah's gave great pleasure to his little friends, but the
schoolmaster took a very different view and rather severely
admonished the budding designer. Josiah was also fond of collecting
fossils, shells and beautiful things which he found around the
country lanes. He was constantly bringing these things home, and at
last he fitted up a disused workshop of his father's and it served
the purpose of a miniature museum.
When Josiah was nine years of age his father died. It was a great
blow to the family, for while the father had never been more than an
ordinary workingman, he had kept his family in fairly good
circumstances. Josiah was taken from school at once and sent to help
in the factory, where his eldest brother, Thomas, was in charge. For
several generations the Wedgewoods had been potters and the whole
countryside was famous as the chief centre of the industry in
England. It was a proud day for Josiah when first he began to work
at the trade in which he was destined to become so great. He was too
young to understand what a serious handicap it is to be sent out into
the world with little education, and besides, in those days,
comparatively few received a thorough training in school. Several of
his brothers and sisters never learned to read or write, and after
they became men and women, they had to sign their names with a mark,
for they had never learned to write even their own names.
When he was eleven a serious misfortune befell Josiah; one which
darkened his whole life. The terrible scourge of small-pox swept
over England, as it did over all European countries from time to
time, and he suffered a severe attack. In those days medical skill
had not developed very much, and the doctors were quite unequal to
the task of dealing with the dreadful disease. Besides that, the
utter lack of sanitation, and the conditions under which most of the
people lived, were such that it seemed as though plagues must just
run their course. Severe cases of small-pox were almost regarded as
hopeless, and recovery was very rare. For a time it seemed as though
Josiah could not live, but at last he rallied. His right knee,
however, was seriously affected, and for the remainder of his life he
was a cripple.
When only fourteen years of age Josiah was formally apprenticed to
his brother. He had, like other apprentices, to sign an agreement
that he would not gamble, frequent taverns, or indulge in any of the
prevailing vices. Many boys, of course, signed such agreements
without really intending to live up to their vows, but Josiah lived
up to his pledge. Throughout the years of his apprenticeship he
devoted himself with amazing concentration to his trade. There was a
great deal of drunkenness and gambling and other vices at that time,
but Josiah's record was beyond reproach. He loved his work and gave
himself fully to it. Everything connected with the potter's trade he
found interesting. He did not know what dull moments were.
Josiah soon showed a desire to do things in his own way. He was
constantly striving after new effects and attempting new designs.
Many of those working with him marvelled at his wonderful skill, but
his brother Thomas did not like it. Thomas was making a fair living
by doing the same old things in the same old way and he did not want
any changes introduced. It seemed to him that Josiah was simply
wasting his time with his new-fangled ideas. When Josiah had served
his apprenticeship he offered to go into partnership with Thomas, but
the elder brother was not willing, so Josiah had to look elsewhere
for work.
For a while he became associated with other men and he was at liberty
to make his experiments to his heart's content. But soon Josiah
discovered that his associates were simply taking advantage of his
good nature and profiting by his skill. In 1759, when he was
twenty-nine years of age, he started in business for himself. His
beginning was in a very humble way, for he had very little money; but
he rejoiced in being his own master, and resolved to work away at
carrying out some of the ideas he had cherished for so long.
About this time he suffered very great pain from his injured leg. At
times he had to work away with his leg resting on a stool in front of
him. On one occasion he injured his leg and was laid up in bed for
several months. During this period he did a good deal of reading and
tried to make up for his lack of early training. He also had time to
think out many new plans for his work, and he solemnly resolved to
become the greatest potter of his time. His mother had died some
years previously and his outlook in some ways was not very bright.
He wrote in his diary: "I have my trade, a lame leg, the marks of
small-pox, and I never was good-looking anyway."
When he was able to get about again he resumed his work with more
enthusiasm than ever. Instead of doing as his brother Thomas and
other potters were doing--simply making plain butter-crocks, brown
jugs and such like, he spent a great deal of time experimenting in
glazes, in a semi-transparent green color which he had made for
himself. Soon his wonderfully artistic designs began to attract
attention, and his reputation extended throughout England.
Up till this time practically all the really beautiful pottery in
England had been imported from other countries. Because of the great
distance and of the difficulties of transportation, this pottery was
very expensive. An aristocratic Burnham family, who possessed some
very fine rare specimens, had the misfortune to have their largest
plate broken. They sought the assistance of all the leading potters
to help them get a duplicate, but failed. Then they were directed to
Josiah Wedgewood. He succeeded where others had failed and to the
amazement of all he produced a perfect facsimile of the broken plate.
The news of this achievement soon spread and he received orders for
more work than he could carry out.
Some years before this, Josiah had seen Sarah Wedgewood and had
become deeply attached to her. Sarah's father and his own were
cousins, but whereas his father had been a humble workman, Richard
Wedgewood was considered a wealthy man. By dint of hard work Josiah
saved a hundred pounds, which in those days was considered quite a
sum of money. He wrote to Sarah and told her of his success, and she
wrote back and congratulated him, telling him how proud they were of
his achievements in artistic pottery. Josiah was greatly encouraged
by this letter, and on the strength of it he visited her home and
asked her hand in marriage. Sarah seems to have been quite willing,
but her father was very angry. He had taken a friendly interest in
his distant relative, and was glad to know of the wonderful things he
was doing in artistic pottery, but after all Josiah was still poor,
lame, and disfigured by small-pox. He had no intention of allowing
his daughter to marry such a man. He had some one else in view whom
he considered would be a much better match.
It was a very painful experience for the lame man, but its bitterness
was offset by one thing: Sarah herself hastened to make it clear to
Josiah that she loved him and did not want to marry any one else.
Encouraged by this he resolved to work harder than ever. He wrote to
Sarah telling her that he would yet be the best potter that England
had ever seen.
This was no idle boast. Orders for his work came so fast that he had
to extend his workshop from time to time and take on more workmen.
He had often noticed how untidy and slovenly the men were in the
various workshops and he determined to have things done differently
in his factory. Some of the men keenly resented his particular ways,
but he reasoned with them, and showed them the wisdom of his methods.
Soon the workmen caught the enthusiasm of their master and fell
heartily in with his plans.
He determined that not one bit of poor pottery should leave his
workshop. Sometimes he would look very carefully at some piece, then
say, "It is good--but not good enough for Josiah Wedgewood." Then it
would be destroyed. Day after day he sat with his workmen, going
from one to another, rendering assistance and seeking to give to each
one a very high ideal for work. He had to face great difficulties.
Many of the tools in use were of no service whatever in his porcelain
ware. He had often to greatly improve the tools, and in many cases
invent new ones altogether. But he was not easily daunted, and his
marvellous perseverance overcame all difficulties.
He was married to Sarah Wedgewood in 1764, when he was thirty-four
years of age and she was twenty-nine. For many years she had been a
great inspiration to him in his work and she continued to be
throughout his life.
Four years after this his leg, which had seldom allowed him to have
one day without pain for twenty-two years, became worse. After
consultation with several doctors it was decided to have the limb
amputated. There were no anæsthetics in those days by which the
patient in such a severe operation could be made unconscious, and so
without anything to alleviate the pain he suffered the operation. He
did not shrink but bore the pain with magnificent courage. It was
not his way to complain. During the twenty-two years of suffering he
had very seldom said a word about his agony.
By this time Josiah Wedgewood was known throughout England and in
many lands far beyond. There was great interest taken when his leg
was amputated and many of the leading people of England, including
the King and Queen, were greatly relieved when it was known that the
operation had been a success. When he regained his strength he soon
returned to the work he loved so much and sought to make his products
more perfect.
Probably there has never been a more skilled potter than Josiah
Wedgewood. There have been other skilful men, but they have almost
always copied one from another. He followed out his own ideas. When
a boy, walking several miles to and from school each day over the
wide moorland, he had noticed the exquisite tints of the wild
flowers. When he became a potter he copied out those same flowers in
his marvellous designs. He did not copy the works of other men; he
followed as his ideal the things which God had made. He was by far
the most original potter that the world has ever seen. His business
became one of the great industries of England and he and Sarah built
an ideal village called Etruria, where they lived with their daughter
Susannah, who became the mother of the famous scientist, Charles
Darwin.
And so it was that the crippled boy, who left school at nine, and for
long years was hardly ever a day without violent pain, became the
greatest potter the world has ever known.