Part 17

In slow work, the average duration of coaching stock may be from six to seven years, provided they are at first fresh, and firm on their legs. In fast work, their time may be from three to four years, or scarcely perhaps so much. Coach proprietors on a large scale should have a break for their young horses, previous to going into regular work. The practice of putting a young horse unaccustomed to harness into a coach laden with passengers is most reprehensible; and when injury is sustained by it, it should be visited by the severest penalties the law can inflict.

HARNESS.

In the manufacture of harness we have arrived at a degree of perfection, to which the invention of the patent shining leather has mainly contributed. A handsome horse well harnessed is a noble sight; yet in no country, except England, is the art of putting a horse into harness at all understood. If, however, our road horses were put to their coaches in the loose awkward fashion of the continental people, we could not travel at the rate we do. It is the command given over the coach-horse that enables us to do it.

In regard to mails, it should be observed that the proprietors who horse them are not sufficiently attentive to the state of the harness on the ground worked by night; whereas it should in reality be the best. If anything break by daylight, it is instantly observed; but it is not so in the night, as lamp-light is uncertain and treacherous. In speaking of particulars, it may be observed, that bearing-reins are a relief to the arm of the driver, but by no means to the horses. Indeed, they materially lessen the power of horses in drawing, become insufferable to them in a long journey, and fatigue them much sooner than they would otherwise be. Not only do these reins by no means serve to keep horses up; but they prevent their rising after having fallen.

When a wheel-horse has the habit of throwing up his head, which greatly annoys the mouth of the leader before him, a nose-martingale should be used. This, however, is rarely sufficient. Indeed, it is a bad custom to run the leader’s reins through terrets over the heads of the wheelers; for then every movement which the wheelers make with their heads, acts powerfully on the mouths of the leaders, whether they be good or bad. If the former, it is sometimes attended with danger: thus, a wheeler throws up his head, suddenly and powerfully shortens the rein of the leader, who is checked, and as the wheeler goes on, he brings the bar with force against the hocks of the leader, which instantly flies forward, and mischief ensues.

This, perhaps, does not last long; but one evil only takes the place of another: leaders soon learn to be, from custom, equally heedless of this check and of their driver’s hand: and their mouths become steeled by the constant tossing of the wheeler’s heads. It is thus that we sometimes hear of leaders choosing their own road in spite of the best efforts of good coachmen; and so it will always be till terrets are totally abolished. This may easily be done by conducting the leader’s rein through the rosette in which the wheeler’s outside bearing-rein, of which we have just disapproved, at present passes, and thus supersede the terret.

Terrets, however, are supposed to look well, and to have the advantage of keeping the head steady. To obviate their disadvantages, therefore, in some measure, rollers are placed in the bottom of each terret, over which the rein passes. This, in some degree, obviates the evil, as the rein no longer holds in the terret, but slides easily, giving the wheeler’s head more freedom. In all kinds of work, a tool-box is a necessary appendage to the coach. It should contain a strong screw-wrench, wheel and spring clips, a spring shackle or two, with bolts and nuts, and two chains--one for a trace, and the other shorter, with a ring at one end and hook at the other, in case of a tug giving way. In his pocket the coachman should have a short strap with a buckle at each end, as in case of almost any part of the reins, or indeed most parts of the harness breaking, it comes into use in a moment.

The following are interesting extracts on this subject, from an article in a late number of the _Quarterly Review_; and the work quoted and referred to in the article is intitled Bubbles from the Brunnens of Nassau. “With regard to the management of horses in harness, perhaps the most striking feature to English eyes is, that the Germans intrust these sensible animals with the free use of their eyes. ‘As soon as, getting tired, or, as we are often apt to term it, lazy, they see the postilion threaten them with his whip, they know perfectly well the limits of his patience, and that after eight, ten, or twelve threats, there will come a blow. As they travel along, one eye is always shrewdly watching the driver; the moment he begins his slow operation of lighting his pipe, they immediately slacken their pace, knowing as well as Archimedes could have proved, that he cannot strike fire and them at the same time: every movement in the carriage they remark; and to any accurate observer who meets a German vehicle, it must often be perfectly evident that the poor horses know and feel, even better than himself, that they are drawing a coachman, three bulky baronesses, their man and their maid, and that to do this on a hot summer’s day is no joke.’

“Now, what is our method? ‘In order to break-in the animal to draught, we put a collar round his neck, a crupper under his tail, a pad on his back, a strap round his belly, with traces at his sides; and, lest he should see that, though these things tickle and pinch, they have not power to do more, the poor intelligent creature is blinded with blinkers, and in this fearful state of ignorance, with a groom or two at his head, and another at his side, he is, without his knowledge, fixed to the pole and splinter-bar of a carriage. If he kick, even at a fly, he suddenly receives a heavy punishment which he does not comprehend; something has struck him, and has hurt him severely; but, as fear magnifies all danger, so, for aught we know or care, he may fancy that the splinter-bar which has cut him is some hostile animal, and expects, when the pole bumps against his legs, to be again assailed in that direction. Admitting that in time he gets accustomed to these phenomena--becoming, what we term, steady in harness, still, to the last hour of his existence, he does not clearly understand what it is that is hampering him, or what is that rattling noise which is always at his heels;--the sudden sting of the whip is a pain with which he gets but too well acquainted, yet the _unde derivatur_ of the sensation he cannot explain--he neither knows when it is coming, nor what it comes from. If any trifling accident or even irregularity occurs--if any little harmless strap which ought to rest upon his back happens to fall to his side, the unfortunate animal, deprived of his eyesight, the natural lanterns of the mind, is instantly alarmed; and, though from constant heavy draught he may literally, without metaphor, be on his last legs, yet if his blinkers should happen to fall off, the sight of his own dozing master, of his own pretty mistress, and of his own fine yellow chariot in motion, would scare him so dreadfully, that off he would probably start, and the more they all pursued him the faster would he fly!’”

DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XLIII.

1. Face-strap. 2. Terret for the leader’s rein. 3. Leader’s rein. 4. Head-piece. 5. Hame-strap. 6. Bearing-rein hook. 7. Winker. 8. Cheek-strap. 9. Nose-strap. 10. Rosette. 11. Throat-lash. 12. Bearing-rein roller. 13. Front piece, or fore-top. 14. Bearing-rein. 15. Hames. 16. Hame-tug. 17. Collar. 18. Hame-terret. 19. Wheeler’s rein. 20. Crupper. 21. Pad. 22. Terret for wheeler’s rein. 23. Belly-band. 24. Trace-bearer. 25. Trace-buckle. 26. Trace. 27. False belly-band. 28. Bit. 29. Swivel-hook. 30. Pole-hook. 31. Pole-chain. 32. Pole. 33. Shackle or swing-bars. 34. Tug. 35. Splinter-bar.

RELATIVE PLACES OF HORSES.

In placing horses in a team, we speak of near and off horses. The term of “near” is probably a borrowed one. In a waggon, the near horse is the one which is nearest the driver, who always walks with the horses to his right hand; and the other, running abreast of him, is called the off or far horse, because he is the farthest from the driver. This term indeed does not refer to coaching so well as to waggoning, as the coachman does not walk by the side of his horses; but many of the terms of coachmanship are drawn from the same source, and the expression “near” horse seems to be among the number.

The word “near” having been thus made use of in its original acceptation, has, in some counties, gradually superseded the word left, in contradistinction to right; as we hear occasionally of the “near side of the road,” the “near wheel of a carriage,” the “near leg of a horse;” in short, it is substituted for the word left. Or the term may have arisen intermediately from this: that on the first introduction of carriages into this country there was no driving on the box, but on the saddle, and that hence the term “near” was used to distinguish the saddle-horse, and the term “off,” of course, the other horse. These terms were afterwards applied to the road, where, in meeting carriages, according to the adage, “If you go to the left, you are sure to go right;--if you go to the right you are wrong.”

Wheel-horses have the hardest place, as they are at work up hill and down. Nevertheless, if favour be shown, it must be to the leaders, because a tired wheeler may be dragged home; but, in the road phrase, if a leader cuts it, you are planted. It is a rule always to put the freest leader on the near side, as he is better in hand than on the other. If a leader be weak, and cannot take his bar, the wheeler that follows him must be tied up, and this will place him by the side of his partner. Leaders should be fast trotters for fast coaches; for, if they gallop, the bars are never at rest, and consequently much of the draught is lost in the angles described. To a coach-horse in fast work, wind is almost as essential as to a hunter. Many high-blowers, however, keep their time very well, with a little attention on the part of the driver. If he see them distressed, he ought to keep them off their collar, and let them only carry their harness for a hundred yards or so, when they will recover, if their condition be good. They work best as night-horses; and, if driven in the heat of the sun, they ought to be out of the throat-lash. Indeed, a leader should never be throat-lashed in very hot weather, if he can be driven without it. Many horses pull, and are unpleasant in it, but go temperately out of it.

In coach-horses, temper is much to be regarded. Some contend that a horse should never know his place,--should go either wheeler or leader, and on either side. If, however, a horse working constantly in a coach prefer any place, he should have it, and he will generally pay for the indulgence. Some horses, indeed, care not where they are put--working equally well or ill in all places. As to the mode of putting young horses in harness, the best way is to put one, for the first time, with only one other, which ought to be steady, good-collared, and quick. A great deal of room should be given his head, and he should be driven at the cheek of an easy bit, with his pole-piece rather slack. There is great want of judgment in throat-lashing a young horse--either wheeler or leader.

Many horses go perfectly quiet as leaders, that would never go as wheelers, because they will not bear being confined by the pole-piece. All ought to have their sides frequently changed, particularly young ones. As to horses’ mouths, some will not bear a curb-chain at all, while the bars and chins of others are so hard, that it is difficult to make an impression upon them; the latter being most prevalent.

It is difficult, however, to handle a coach-horse, particularly a leader, whose mouth is very tender. A snaffle is not safe, as, in case of his dropping or bolting, it has not sufficient power to catch him up quickly, at such a distance from the driver’s hand. Fora gig-horse, it may occasionally answer. The usual plan then is to “cheek him,” as it is technically called, that is, to put his coupling-rein to the cheek instead of the bottom of the bit. Should this be severe for him, and he swing his head too much towards his partner, his draught-rein should be put down to the bit, which will bring him straight. He should have liberty in his bearing-rein, and his curb-chain should not be tight. A check-rein to a nose-martingale is often of service in this case, as it keeps his head steady, and makes him face his work. Such horses in general work more pleasantly out of the throat-lash.

Horses with very hard mouths require the bit with double port, the Chiffney bit, or the plan of putting the curb-chain over the tongue instead of under the chin, which in some prevents what is termed a dead mouth. Letting out the head of the bridle in the middle of a stage, has also considerable effect, as causing the bit and curb-chain to take hold in a fresh place. A check-rein likewise is sometimes put to the middle link of the curb-chain, to retain the bit in the middle of the mouth, and to keep it alive, as it is termed. In hard pullers, moreover, putting the bearing-rein to the _top_, and the coupling-rein to the lowest loop in the bit, creates a counter-action, not only making the bit more severe, but keeping the mouth in play. A hard puller is generally safest, and more in place before the bars than at wheel; for, with a good pair of wheel-horses, leaders are soon checked, and he pulls less with a free than with a slack partner.

A coach-horse, if obedient to the hand, cannot well carry his head too high, while a horse that goes with his head down has a mean appearance in harness. The horse, however, that carries his head higher than his partner, should have his coupling-rein uppermost. A coach-horse should not be broken in a fast coach, as in fast work there is no time to try his temper, and to humour him. By being put at first into quick work, many horses get into a habit of cantering, and never trot well afterwards.

A kicking wheel-horse should be put on the near side, where he is less liable to be touched by any thing that might annoy him; for, on the off side, throwing the reins on his back, or touching his tail when getting any thing out of the boot, may set him off, and cause mischief.--A kicking leader should have a ring on the reins, for many accidents arise by a leader’s getting a rein under his tail, owing to the want of this. With first-rate coachmen, however, this precaution is the less essential, that they generally have their horses better in hand. With horses very fresh in condition it sometimes happens, especially in a turn, that a wheeler kicks over his trace, and an accident is sometimes the consequence. A light hip-strap prevents this, by taking the trace up with him when he rises. In London, this is particularly useful; for, when horses are turning short, or in a crowd, they frequently have their traces slack, and therefore more easily kicked over. The hip-strap looks slow, but it is safe.

COACHMEN.

Of late years, a superior class of men form our coachmen; and for this we are mainly indebted, first, to the driving clubs, and the notice taken of coachmen by men of fortune; and, secondly, to the boxes being placed on springs. The latter renders it a common practice for passengers to pay an extra shilling for the box-place, whereas formerly a man would have given something to be any where else. We are told that good coachmen are becoming, in proportion to their number, more scarce every year, because, owing to the fine state of the roads, the condition of the cattle, and the improved method of road-work, coach-horses are so above their work, that the assistance of the driver is seldom required. When in town, says a writer in the _Sporting Magazine_, “I sometimes take a peep at the mails coming up to the Gloucester Coffee-house; and such a set of spoons are, I should hope, difficult to be found: they are all legs and wings; not one of them has his horses in hand; and they sit on their boxes--as if they were sitting on something else.”

Certain it is that coach-work in perfection is not to be seen a hundred miles from the metropolis--seldom so far. The build of coaches, the manufacture of harness, and the stamp and condition of horses are greatly inferior in the northern counties; and as to the coachmen, few that at all deserve the appellation. There are few things in which knowledge of an art without execution is of less value than in driving four-in-hand; for, although a coachman may have knowledge, it is possible that, from natural awkwardness, he may be unable to put it into practical effect with a neat and appropriate movement of his arms and hands; and seldom is a certain propriety and neatness more required than in handling the reins and whip. To make a man a good driver, there is one requisite, and that is, what are called on the roads “hands”--a nice faculty of touch. No man with a hard, heavy hand can ever make a good horseman or driver. Neither will a nervous man ever be safe on a coach-box, for presence of mind and strong nerve are there very often called into action.

The air and manner of a coachman have been cleverly described by some periodical writers. Let us, say they, suppose the horses put to their coach, all ready for a start--the reins thrown across the off wheel-horse’s loins, with the ends hanging upon the middle terret of his pad, and the whip thrown across the backs of the wheelers.--The coachman makes his appearance. If he be a coachman, a judge will immediately perceive it; for, as a certain philosopher observes, “every situation in life serves for formation of character,” and none more so than a coachman’s. I was going to say--only let a judge see him come out of his office, pulling on his glove; but this I will say--let one see him walk round his horses, alter a coupling-rein, take up his whip and reins, and mount his box, and he will at once pronounce him a neat, or an awkward one.--The moment he has got his seat and made his start, you are struck with the perfect mastership of his art--the hand just over his left thigh, the arm without constraint, steady, and with a holding command, that keeps his horses like clockwork, yet, to a superficial observer, with reins quite loose. So firm and compact is he, that you seldom observe any shifting, except perhaps to take a shorter purchase for a run down hill, which he accomplishes with confidence and skill untinctured with imprudence.

In a coachman, temper is also one of the essentials to a good workman.--We are told of a great artist, that, having four “rum ones” to deal with, and being unable to make them work to please him, he threw the reins on the footboard, and exclaimed, “Now, d--n your eyes, divide it among you, for I will be troubled with you no longer.” The impertinences of passengers sometimes increase this irritability. In steam-vessels, they adopt the plan of writing in large letters on the wheel which directs the helm, “Do not talk to the helmsman.” It would be as well in some coaches to have the same rule adopted--“Do not babble to the coachman.”

It is not possible to obtain a better idea of a good coachman than from the following account of one who is said to be the first coachman in England for bad horses. “Having all his life had moderate horses--some strong and heavy, some light and blood-like, old hunters, old posters,--most of the teams going and returning,--their work at the utmost stretch, always overpowering,--having also had always, besides difference in character, weak horses to nurse,--this ordeal has worn him down to a pattern of patience. With these, and great weight upon severe ground, he is steady, easy, very economical in thong and cord, very light-handed and sometimes playful.--I observed him closely, and discovered from his remarks, as well as from what I saw, that his great secret of keeping his nags in any thing like condition, and preserving them when apparently worn out, is by putting them properly together, by constantly shifting their situations, and by the use of check-reins with remarkable judgment--by which means he brings their powers as near to equality as possible, besides preventing the evil of boring. Indeed, his horses all go light and airy; and though at times his hold of necessity becomes powerful, yet, generally speaking, he takes his load without a severe strain upon his arms.--I own it is this particular knack which always wins me. Both in driving and riding, give me the man who can accomplish his object with a light hand.”

The duty of a coachman is apt to injure the eyes--particularly in cold blowing weather. He must keep his eye forward; and it is found that the sight cannot be fixed upon any thing beyond the head of the wheel-horses (not so far as this, in short men,) without raising the eyelids, and consequently exposing the eyes to the weather. Six parts of cold spring water, to one of brandy, is a good lotion when the eyes suffer from this cause.--Coachmen should also preserve their feet and bodies from cold. In very cold weather, the chin should be protected by a shawl, and the knees by thick cloth knee-caps. In very severe weather, the breast should be protected; for which purpose hare-skins are now manufactured, and are getting into use on the road.

A coachman ought not to drive more than seventy miles a day; and, if this is done at two starts, so much the better. The wearing of the frame, under daily excitement, must tend to produce premature old age, and to shorten life; and this excitement must be very considerable when a man drives a fast coach eighty or a hundred miles a day without a stop--particularly if his coach be strongly opposed. Coachmen who wish to keep themselves light, take walking exercise in their hours of rest from road-work.

As to amateur coachmen, it has been observed, that if a diet were formed, before whom gentlemen-coachmen were to be examined previous to their being considered safe, it would not be amiss if they were put to the test of having the harness of four horses taken to pieces, strap from strap, and then requested to put it together again in the presence of the judges. There would be no hesitation in pronouncing him safe who succeeded in this, as his experience on the road must have been considerable. How these amateurs are trusted with the reins, coachmen are now obliged to be careful, owing to the speed of coaches, and the improved breed and condition of coach-horses. Hence, we see fewer amateurs at work than formerly. It would indeed be highly culpable in a coachman to trust the lives of passengers and his master’s property to any one whom he did not know to be safe, or even without reflecting that a man may be a very safe coachman with horses he knows, and a very unsafe one on some roads with horses to which he is a stranger.