Memoirs of the Distinguished Men of Science of Great Britain Living in the Years 1807-8Walker, William
History
Memoirs of the Distinguished Men of Science of Great Britain Living in the Years 1807-8
Walker, William
Scientists -- Great Britain -- Biography
Perhaps no class of men have deserved more of their country and
of mankind than the great inventors and discoverers in astronomy,
chemistry, engineering and other departments of science; yet very
little is known of many of them in proportion to the acknowledged
good which has resulted from their labours. We possess works of art
commemorating the achievements of heroes in the field, and of statesmen
in parliament, but until now no work of any magnitude has ever been
executed in honour of men whose doings have laid the foundation
of our commercial prosperity. We are, however, able to state that
this can no longer be said, as Mr. Walker, of 64, Margaret-street,
Cavendish-square, has, after an extended period of labour, produced
an engraving which must remain an enduring record of our greatest era
in science--the early part of the present century. At that epoch of
time, steam, under the hands of Watt, Symington, and Trevithick, was
commencing its marvellous career; astronomy and chemistry began to
reveal their long-hidden secrets; while the discovery of vaccination,
by Jenner, had already rescued thousands from death to enjoy the
blessings left as a legacy by many a silent worker in science....
We may fairly state that we have never seen so large a body of men
arranged in a group, where it is necessary that all should, in a
measure, present their faces turned towards the spectator, so free from
that stiffness which is the general fault of works of this class. For
this, great praise is due to John Gilbert, by whom the original picture
(drawn by J. F. Skill and W. Walker) was designed. The engraving has
been executed by W. Walker and George Zobel; while in order to render
the work complete, a series of memoirs have been drawn up by Mr. W.
Walker, Jun., and furnished with a short introduction by Mr. Robert
Hunt, F.R.S., keeper of the Mining Records. We can only now say of the
book, that while many of the memoirs are necessarily brief, one, that
of Trevithick, contains the most information yet published regarding
that eminent engineer.
BUILDING NEWS.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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