But we are now no longer on safe and thoroughly explored territory. I
have allowed myself to found upon a basis of experimental fact, a
superstructure of practical application to the explanation of the
phenomena of nature and to the uses of man. The basis seems to me
strong enough to bear most of the superstructure, but before being
sure it will be necessary actually to put the methods into operation
and to experiment on a very large scale. I hope to do this when I can
get to a suitable place of operation. Liverpool fogs are poor affairs,
and not worth clearing off. Manchester fogs are much better and more
frequent, but there is nothing to beat the real article as found in
London, and in London if possible I intend to rig up some large
machines and to see what happens. The underground railway also offers
its suffocating murkiness as a most tempting field for experiment, and
I wish I were able already to tell you the actual result instead of
being only in a position to indicate possibilities. Whether anything
comes of it practically or not, it is an instructive example of how
the smallest and most unpromising beginnings may, if only followed up
long enough, lead to suggestions for large practical application.
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