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The Life of Thomas Telford-Part20_Samuel Smiles(1812-1904)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

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The hamlet stands on a green hill-side, a little below the entrance

to the valley of the Meggat. It consists of the kirk, the minister's



manse, the parish-school, and a few cottages, every occupant of

which was known to Telford. It is backed by the purple moors,



up which he loved to wander in his leisure hours and read the poems

of Fergusson and Burns. The river Esk gurgles along its rocky bed



in the bottom of the dale, separated from the kirkyard by a steep

bank, covered with natural wood; while near at hand, behind the



manse, stretch the fine woods of Wester Hall, where Telford was

often wont to roam.



[Image] Valley of Eskdale, Westerkirk in the distance.

We can scarcely therefore wonder that, amidst such pastoral



scenery, and reading such books as he did, the poeticfaculty of

the country mason should have become so decidedly developed.



It was while working at Westerkirk manse that he sketched the first

draft of his descriptive poem entitled 'Eskdale,' which was published



in the 'Poetical Museum' in 1784.*[2] These early poetical efforts

were at least useful in stimulating his self-education. For the



practice of poetical composition, while it cultivates the

sentiment of beauty in thought and feeling, is probably the best of



all exercises in the art of writingcorrectly, grammatically,

and expressively. By drawing a man out of his ordinary calling, too,



it often furnishes him with a power of happy thinking which may in

after life become a source of the purest pleasure; and this, we



believe, proved to be the case with Telford, even though he ceased

in later years to pursue the special cultivation of the art.



Shortly after, when work became slack in the district, Telford

undertook to do small jobs on his own account such as the hewing of



grave-stones and ornamental doorheads. He prided himself especially

upon his hewing, and from the specimens of his workmanship which



are still to be seen in the churchyards of Langholm and Westerkirk,

he had evidently attained considerable skill. On some of these



pieces of masonry the year is carved--1779, or 1780. One of the

most ornamental is that set into the wall of Westerkirk church,



being a monumental slab, with an inscription and moulding,

surmounted by a coat of arms, to the memory of James Pasley of Craig.



He had now learnt all that his native valley could teach him of the

art of masonry; and, bent upon self-improvement and gaining a



larger experience of life, as well as knowledge of his trade, he

determined to seek employmentelsewhere. He accordingly left



Eskdale for the first time, in 1780, and sought work in Edinburgh,

where the New Town was then in course of erection on the elevated



land, formerly green fields, extending along the north bank of the

"Nor' Loch." A bridge had been thrown across the Loch in 1769,



the stagnant pond or marsh in the hollow had been filled up,

and Princes Street was rising as if by magic. Skilled masons were



in great demand for the purpose of carrying out these and the numerous

other architectural improvements which were in progress, and



Telford had no difficulty in obtaining employment.

Our stone-mason remained at Edinburgh for about two years, during



which he had the advantage of taking part in first-rate work and

maintaining himself comfortably, while he devoted much of his spare



time to drawing, in its application to architecture. He took the

opportunity of visiting and carefully studying the fine specimens



of ancient work at Holyrood House and Chapel, the Castle, Heriot's

Hospital, and the numerous curious illustrations of middle age



domesticarchitecture with which the Old Town abounds. He also made

several journeys to the beautiful old chapel of Rosslyn, situated



some miles to the south of Edinburgh, making careful drawings of

the more important parts of that building.



When he had thus improved himself, "and studied all that was to be

seen in Edinburgh, in returning to the western border," he says,



"I visited the justlycelebrated Abbey of Melrose." There he was

charmed by the delicate and perfect workmanship still visible even



in the ruins of that fine old Abbey; and with his folio filled with




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