E. S. (Edward Skelton) Bellasis

Edward Skelton Bellasis (1855–1945) was a British civil engineer and author best known for writing practical books on hydraulics, irrigation, and river engineering. His published works include Hydraulics with Working Tables (1903), Punjab Rivers and Works (1912), The Suction Caused by Ships (1912), Irrigation Works (1913), and River and Canal Engineering (1913).

His books present engineering as something observed in the field as well as calculated on paper. In River and Canal Engineering, he is identified as a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers and as a recently retired superintending engineer in the Irrigation Branch of the Public Works Department of India, which helps explain the strong focus of his writing on canals, flowing streams, and the conditions of northern India.

For modern readers, Bellasis is most interesting as a specialist who wrote from direct professional experience. His work sits at the meeting point of hydraulic science and the history of imperial-era infrastructure, making it useful both to engineers and to readers curious about how large water systems were designed and managed in the early 20th century.