... And I must now Give Some little history of my life since I Came to London. I Brought not more than 40 Guineas to England and was set down in a strange Country without a friend and only one letter of Introduction to Mr. West—here I had an art to learn by which I was to earn my bread but little to support whilst I was doing it And numbers of Eminent Men of the same profession which I must Excell before I Could hope to live—, Many Many a Silant solitary hour have I spent in the most unnerved Studdy Anxiously pondering how to make funds to support me till the fruits of my labours should sifficant to repay them. Thus I went on for near four years—happily beloved by all who knew me or I had long ear now been Crushed by Poverties Cold wind—and Freezing Rain—till last Summer I was Invited by Lord Courtney down to his Country seat to paint a picture of him which gave his Lordship so much pleasure that he has introduced me to all his Friends—And it is but just now that I am beginning to get a little money and pay some debtt which I was obliged to Contract so I hope in about 6 months to be clear with the world or in other words out of debt and then start fair to Make all I Can. In 1793, when he was on the very threshold of a successful career as an artist, he suddenly, and without any explanation that is known, gave up the art of painting and turned to the science of engineering as his life’s vocation. It is an interesting fact that two great American engineers—Fulton who made steam navigation practical, and Morse who did the same for the electric telegraph—were both artists before they became engineers. The only hint as to the cause of his change of occupation is given by himself in the introduction to his first and greatest literary production, “A Treatise on the Improvement of Canal Navigation,” which appeared in 1796. In this introduction he said: “On perusing a paper descriptive of a canal projected by the Earl of Stanhope in 1793, where many difficulties seem to arise, my thoughts were first awakened to this subject.” But Fulton in 1796 was something more than an author and investigator of canals. He was at that date actually in the field as a practicing engineer as is shown by a printed report, dated London, November 24th, 1796, addressed to “Sir Francis Buller, Bart. and the Gentlemen interested in the Helston Canal.” This report is of particular interest in that it is not recorded in any Fulton bibliography and no copy is to be found in the British Museum, or in the Congressional or other American public libraries. Perhaps the copy lying before the writer is the sole survivor. The edition was undoubtedly very small and the few copies, as soon as immediate interest was lost, were likely to be thrown aside as of no value. The title page is reproduced in facsimile on the opposite page.