PETO, Sir Samuel Morton, bart., English engineer, born in Woking, Surrey, England, 4 August, 1809. He served an apprenticeship of seven years with his uncle, who was a builder, became a partner in the firm, and was subsequently engaged in the construction of a large number of railroads in England, on the continent, and in Canada. He was made a baronet in 1855 for building a railroad from Balaklava to Sebastopol at his own expense. His most important work in Canada was the construction of the Grand Trunk railway, with the tubular bridge near Montreal. He subsequently served several terms in parliament, but retired in 1868 in consequence of the failure of his firm, Peto, Betts and Crampton, with liabilities of more than £7,000,000. He published " Taxation, its Levy and Expenditure" (London, 1863), and, after visiting the United States in 1865, "Resources and Prospects of America" (1866).