Genre:

News-Commentary

Subjects:

Government, Patronage, Engineers, Railways, Nationalism, Status

    Responding to Robert Stephenson's refusal of a knighthood, attacks the English reward system for giving peerages to bankers and only a knighthood to 'an Engineer, who occupies the first rank in his noble profession in England'. This reward is only suitable for such accomplishments as being the 'Complete Letter-Writer of some grateful minister'. Glad that Stephenson has, by his action, prevented the 'science he honours' from being 'looked down upon'.