a boy to herd the cows, to keep them out of
the way of the waggons, and prevent their straying or trespassing on the
neighbours' "liberties;" the boy's duty was also to bar the gates at
night after all the waggons had passed. George petitioned for this post,
and, to his great joy, he was appointed at the wage of twopence a day.

It was light employment, and he had plenty of spare time on his hands,
which he spent in birdnesting, making whistles out of reeds and scrannel
straws, and erecting Lilliputian mills in the little water-streams that
ran into the Dewley bog. But his favourite amusement at this early age
was erecting clay engines in conjunction with his chosen playmate, Bill
Thirlwall. The place is still pointed out where the future engineers
made their first essays in modelling. The boys found the clay for their
engines in the adjoining bog, and the hemlocks which grew about supplied
them with imaginary steam-pipes. They even proceeded to make a miniature
winding-machine in connexion with their engine, and the apparatus was
erected upon a bench in front of the Thirlwalls' cottage. The corves
were made out of hollowed corks; the ropes were supplied by twine; and a
few bits of wood gleaned from the refuse of the carpenter's shop
completed their materials. With this apparatus the boys made a show of
sending the corves down the pit and drawing them up again, much to the
marvel of the pitmen. But some mischievous person about the place seized
the opportunity early one morning of smashing the fragile machinery, much
to the grief of the young engineers.

As Stephenson grew older and abler to work, he was set to lead the horses
when ploughing, though scarce big enough to stride across the furrows;
and he used afterwards to say that he rode to his work in the mornings at
an hour when most other children of his age were asleep in their beds.
He was also employed to hoe turnips, and do similar farm-work, for which
he was paid the advanced wage of fourpence a day. But his highest
ambition was to be taken on at the colliery where his father worked; and
he shortly joined his elder brother James there as a "corf-bitter," or
"picker," to clear the coal of stones, bats, and dross. His wages were
then advanced to sixpence a day, and afterwards to eightpence when he was
set to drive the gin-horse.

Shortly after, George went to Black Callerton to drive the gin there; and
as that colliery lies about two miles across the