THE new republican Government sorely needed iron, and Oliver Cromwell ordered his trusted Sergeant Buck to devise a smelting process fired by coke rather than charcoal.
But Parliament soon discovered that industrial progress depends on individual genius, not on Government policy.
Cromwell’s men sought Dud out in Bristol, but he resolutely refused to give up his secret process to those who had assassinated his King.
He managed to hold out until the Restoration in 1660, but if he expected his old employer’s son, Charles II, to remember his father’s friends, he was disappointed.
Dud’s iron-smelting licence was not renewed, despite repeated applications to the King. Lucrative patents were however granted to others, such as one Colonel Prodger.
But the Colonel Prodgers had as little success as the Sergeant Bucks, and it would be several years before Dud’s process was matched, and bettered, by Abraham Darby - the great-grandson of his sister Jane.
The End
Archive
Word Games
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Colonel. Devise. Dud.
2 Buck. Capture. Favor.
3 Forest. Low. Soon.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Homonyms Find in Think and Speak
Each of the words below has more than one possible meaning. Compose your own sentences to show what those different meanings are.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1. Fire. 2. Refuse. 3. Left. 4. Match. 5. Import. 6. Hold. 7. Lead. 8. Serve. 9. Man.
Homophones Find in Think and Speak
In each group below, you will find words that sound the same, but differ in spelling and also in meaning. Compose your own sentences to bring out the differences between them.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
High Tiles Find in Think and Speak
Make words (three letters or more) from the seven letters showing below, using any letter once only. Each letter carries a score. What is the highest-scoring word you can make?
Your Words ()
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