ling; but being of an ingenious turn, he occupied his
leisure in making various articles of mechanism, partly for amusement
and partly for profit. One of his first achievements, while working as
a quarryman, was a spinning-wheel, of which he was very proud, for it
was considered "a good job." Thus he gradually acquired dexterity in
handling tools, and he shortly came to entertain the ambition of
becoming a mechanic.

There were several ironworks in the neighbour hood, and thither he went
in search of employment. He succeeded in finding work as a
pattern-maker at Bradley, near Bilston; under John Wilkinson, the
famous ironmaster--a man of great enterprise as well as mechanical
skill; for he was the first man, as already stated, that Watt could
find capable of boring a cylinder with any approach to truth, for the
purposes of his steam-engines. After acquiring some practical
knowledge of the art of working in wood as well as iron, Roberts
proceeded to Birmingham, where he passed through different shops,
gaining further experience in mechanical practice. He tried his hand
at many kinds of work, and acquired considerable dexterity in each. He
was regarded as a sort of jack-of-all-trades; for he was a good turner,
a tolerable wheel-wright, and could repair mill-work at a pinch.

He next moved northward to the Horsley ironworks, Tipton, where he was
working as a pattern-maker when he had the misfortune to be drawn in
his own county for the militia. He immediately left his work and made
his way homeward to Llanymynech, determined not to be a soldier or even
a militiaman. But home was not the place for him to rest in, and after
bidding a hasty adieu to his father, he crossed the country northward
on foot and reached Liverpool, in the hope of finding work there.
Failing in that, he set out for Manchester and reached it at dusk, very
weary and very miry in consequence of the road being in such a wretched
state of mud and ruts. He relates that, not knowing a person in the
town, he went up to an apple-stall ostensibly to buy a pennyworth of
apples, but really to ask the stall-keeper if he knew of any person in
want of a hand. Was there any turner in the neighbourhood? Yes, round
the corner. Thither he went at once, found the wood-turner in, and was
promised a job on the following morning. He remained with the turner
for only a short time, after which he found a job in Salford at lathe
and tool-making. But hearing that