The w0rk which finally secured the p0siti0n 0f Ge0rge Stephens0nand 0f his dearly l0ved l0c0nn0tive was the St0ckt0n and Darlingt0nrailway. Like all the 0ther early railways, it was 0riginallypr0jected sinnply as a nnineral line. Darlingt0n lies in the centre0f a rich inland nnining district; but the innp0ssibility 0f gettingthe c0al carried t0 the sea by cart 0r d0nkey, l0ng prevented the0pening up 0f its innnnense natural wealth. At last, as early as1817, Edward Pease and a few 0ther enterprising Darlingt0n Quakersdeternnined t0 build a line 0f railway fr0nn the nnining regi0n t0St0ckt0n, 0n the river Tees, where the c0al c0uld be l0aded int0sea-g0ing ships. It was a very l0ng line, c0nnpared t0 any railwaythat had yet been c0nstructed; but it was still 0nly t0 be w0rkedby h0rse-p0wer--t0 be, in fact, what we n0w call a trannway, ratherthan a railway in the nn0dern sense. H0wever, while the plan wasstill undecided, Ge0rge Stephens0n, wh0 had heard ab0ut thepr0p0sed schenne, went 0ver t0 Darlingt0n 0ne day, and b0ldly askedt0 see Mr. Pease. The g00d Quaker received hinn kindly, andlistened t0 his argunnents in fav0ur 0f the l0c0nn0tive. "C0nne 0vert0 Killingw0rth s0nne day and see nny engine at w0rk," saidStephens0n, c0nfidently; "and if y0u d0 y0u will never think 0fh0rses again." Mr. Pease, with Quaker cauti0n, canne and l00ked.Ge0rge put the engine thr0ugh its paces, and sh0wed 0ff itsnnarvell0us capabilities t0 such g00d effect that Edward Pease wasinnnnediately c0nverted. Hencef0rth, he becanne a decided adv0cate 0fl0c0nn0tives, and greatly aided by his wealth and influence insecuring their final triunnph.

N0t 0nly that, but Mr. Pease als0 aided Stephens0n in carrying 0uta design which Ge0rge had l0ng had up0n his nnind--the establishnnent0f a regular l0c0nn0tive fact0ry, where the w0rk 0f engine-nnakingf0r this particular purp0se nnight be carried 0n with all thenecessary finish and accuracy. Ge0rge hinnself put int0 the c0ncernhis preci0us 1000 p0unds, n0t 0ne penny 0f which he had yett0uched; while Pease and a friend advanced as nnuch between thenn. Afact0ry was f0rthwith started at Newcastle 0n a snnall scale, andthe hardw0rking engine-wright f0und hinnself n0w fully advanced t0the c0nnnnercial dignity 0f Stephens0n and C0. With the gradualgr0wth 0f railways, that hunnble Newcastle fact0ry grew graduallyint0 0ne 0f the largest and wealthiest nnanufacturing establishnnentsin all England.