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Men of Invention and Industry-Part40_Samuel Smiles(1812-1904)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

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the accumulations of capital. The first end of all labour is

security,--security to person, possession, and property, so that



all may enjoy in peace the fruits of their industry. For no

liberty, no freedom, can really exist which does not include the



first liberty of all--the right of public and private safety.

To show what energy and industry can do in Ireland, it is only



necessary to point to Belfast, one of the most prosperous and

enterprising towns in the British Islands. The land is the same,



the climate is the same, and the laws are the same, as those

which prevail in other parts of Ireland. Belfast is the great



centre of Irish manufactures and commerce, and what she has been

able to do might be done elsewhere, with the same amount of



energy and enterprise. But it is not land, or climate, or

altered laws that are wanted. It is men to lead and direct, and



men to follow with anxious and persevering industry. It is

always the Man society wants.



The influence of Belfast extends far out into the country. As

you approach it from Sligo, you begin to see that you are nearing



a place where industry has accumulated capital, and where it has

been invested in cultivating and beautifying the land. After you



pass Enniskillen, the fields become more highly cultivated. The

drill-rows are more regular; the hedges are clipped; the weeds no



longer hide the crops, as they sometimes do in the far west. The

country is also adorned with copses, woods, and avenues. A new



crop begins to appear in the fields--a crop almost peculiar to

the neighbourhood of Belfast. It is a plant with a very slender



erect green stem, which, when full grown, branches at the top

into a loose corymb of blue flowers. This is the flax plant, the



cultivation and preparation of which gives employment to a great

number of persons, and is to a large extent the foundation of the



prosperity of Belfast.

The first appearance of the linen industry of Ireland, as we



approach Belfast from the west, is observed at Portadown. Its

position on the Bann, with its water power, has enabled this



town, as well as the other places on the river, to secure and

maintain their due share in the linen manufacture. Factories



with their long chimneys begin to appear. The fields are richly

cultivated, and a general air of well-being pervades the



district. Lurgan is reached, so celebrated for its diapers; and

the fields there about are used as bleaching-greens. Then comes



Lisburn, a populous and thriving town, the inhabitants of which

are mostly engaged in their staple trade, the manufacture of



damasks. This was really the first centre of the linen trade.

Though Lord Strafford, during his government of Ireland,



encouraged the flax industry, by sending to Holland for

flax-seed, and inviting Flemish and French artisans to settle in



Ireland, it was not until the Huguenots, who had been banished

from France by the persecutions of Louis XIV., settled in Ireland



in such large numbers, that the manufacture became firmly

established. The Crommelins, the Goyers, and the Dupres, were



the real founders of this great branch of industry.[18]

As the traveller approaches Belfast, groups of houses, factories,



and works of various kinds, appear closer and closer; long

chimneys over boilers and steam-engines, and brick buildings



three or four stories high; large yards full of workmen, carts,

and lorries; and at length we are landed in the midst of a large



manufacturing town. As we enter the streets, everybody seems to

be alive. What struck William Hutton when he first saw



Birmingham, might be said of Belfast: "I was surprised at the

place, but more at the people. They possessed a vivacity I had



never before beheld. I had been among dreamers, but now I saw

men awake. Their very step along the street showed alacrity.



Every man seemed to know what he was about. The town was large,

and full of inhabitants, and these inhabitants full of industry.



The faces of other men seemed tinctured with an idle gloom; but

here with a pleasing alertness. Their appearance was strongly



marked with the modes of civil life."

Some people do not like manufacturing towns: they prefer old



castles and ruins. They will find plenty of these in other parts

of Ireland. But to found industries that give employment to



large numbers of persons, and enable them to maintain themselves




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