Which skills were prized among engineers?

Engineers needed to read with their own eyes the face of nature[1]. They were to be greedy of occupation and knowledge, and be assiduous readers and writers[1].

An engineer’s duty was twofold: design the work and see the work done[1]. The engineer must deal with the unpredictable and those forces that 'are subject to no calculation;' they still must predict and calculate them at their peril[1].