Part 18
To gentlemen who wish to drive, and are really capable of doing so, the following is recommended as not a very bad way of doing business:--“When travelling with a coachman I do not know,” says an amateur, “I always adopt the following plan--that is, if I wish to work. In the first place, I never got upon a coach-box yet with any thing like half-pay about me; such as a black handkerchief around my neck, or in blue pantaloons; neither do I think I ever shall. I always take care to have a good deal of drag about me:--a neat pair of boots, and knee-caps, if cold weather: a good drab surtout--if not a poodle; a benjamin or two about the coach, and a little of the spot about the neck. For the first mile, I always observe a strict silence, unless broken by coachee; but at this time he generally runs mute. He is perhaps but just awake, or is considering about his way-bill--reckoning his passengers, thinking what he has to do on the road, and, if a workman, looking over his team to see if all is right. Leave him alone for a short time, and when his mind is at ease, he will look you over as you sit beside him. He will begin with your boots, proceeding upwards to the crown of your hat, and if he like you, and you make a remark or two that please him, and show you to be a judge of the art, the first time he stops he will say--‘Now, sir, have you got your driving gloves on; would you like to take ’em?’--I am here alluding to country work, and not to the roads near London.”
Coachmen’s expenses on the road being heavy, should be taken into consideration by passengers. They have their horse-keepers to pay every week, or they will not do their best for them; and the wear and tear of their clothes is a heavy tax on their pockets. They are satisfied, however, with one shilling under, and two shillings for anything over, thirty miles; and they are well entitled to that sum--more especially when we recollect that they are liable to have empty coaches. No man, certainly, should give them less than a shilling, and if he often travel the same road, his money is not ill bestowed. In respectable coaches, no great difference is now made between the fees given by in and outside passengers, as it often happens that the latter are best able to pay.
Guards on mail coaches are necessary appendages to the establishment; and, that they may be equal to their duty, they go only moderate distances--as from sixty to eighty miles, when they are relieved by others. Those on the long stages, however, are imposed upon by their masters; and, by being made to do more than they are equal to--many of them two nights up for one in bed, are half their time asleep. Some go from London to Exeter, Shrewsbury, and other places equally distant, without stopping more than three quarters of an hour on the road, which, in bad weather, is hard enough. Indeed, it is wonderful how with their means they always contrive to live.
Guards are by no means useless appendages to stage coaches; for no coach, running a long distance and in the night, should be without one; but such guards should be provided with fire-arms in good repair. Setting aside the idea of highway robbery, it is impossible that, in the night, a coachman can see to the luggage on his coach,--nor indeed, can the guard, if he be asleep, and asleep he must be a great part of his time, if worked in the way above stated. He should not go more than one hundred miles, and he should be paid by the proprietors. But if the public should not be left to pay an armed guard, it is monstrous that they should pay an unarmed one. As to mail-guards, government allows them only a mere pittance of a few shillings a week, leaving the public to pay them; whereas the public have nothing to do with them, and it is the most impudent imposition that these servants of government should be paid by persons travelling. That they carry fire-arms is true; but it is to protect the letter-bags--property which government is paid to protect--that they would use these arms, and not on account of passengers. Strictly speaking, they have nothing to do with the passengers, nor their luggage; their sole duty being to protect the mail. As, therefore, government is paid for carrying the mails, government, and not the public, should pay the persons who actually do protect them.
MOUNTING AND DISMOUNTING.
Before getting upon the box, a coachman should walk round his horses’ heads, to see that his curb-chains and coupling reins are right, and, above all, that the tongues of his billet-buckles are secure in their holes. Many accidents have arisen from the want of this precaution. No man is a safe coachman who does not see to these things. Of mounting and dismounting, there is nothing particular to be said; except that, in the former, the reins are to be taken in the right hand, and transferred to the left as soon as the seat is reached.
THE SEAT.
The driver should sit in the middle of the box, quite straight towards his horses, rather upright or backward, than forward, with his knees nearly straight, and with his feet together, toward the edge of the footboard. With the exception of a pliant motion of his loins, on any jolting of the coach, his body should be quite at rest, and particularly so when he hits a horse. Independently of appearance, a firm seat on a box is very necessary for safety to a coachman and his passengers, for a trifle will otherwise displace him.
STARTING.
Before starting, four horses should stand clear, or at their proper length from each other. They should have some notice--a click, or a whistle given them to move. If the whip is used, the wheelers should be touched, as generally the ablest horses.
It is with coach-horses as with mankind--that where the physical strength is in the governed, they must be humoured a little. When starting, the coachman must not pull at their heads, but feel their mouths lightly, or they may bolt, throw themselves down, or break through their harness. If they are old, and the stage commences with a descent, they should be allowed to go a couple of hundred yards before they are put to their usual pace. A young horse should be started very quietly, making the old horse take collar first. This is especially necessary if the young one is inclined to be hot, as it will prevent his plunging.
A young horse should first be started in a wide space, so that he may get off without a check. If he be alarmed, and inclined to bounce, he should not be held hard, and still less stopped; for, if so, he may not like, particularly if high mettled, to start again. The old horse will prevent his running far. If a young horse be shy of his collar, he should not at first be pressed to it; as he may thereby take a dislike to it, and become a jibber.
A young horse, when first put to a coach, should be turned to the pole very carefully, to prevent its touching his hind quarter, which might make him kick. When he has been driven long enough to be steady, he should be taken up in his bearing-rein, put down lower on his bit, and driven in a wide circle, or figure eight--keeping the inner horse well up to his collar and bit. In breaking, he should be frequently stopped, but not held after being pulled up, as, if high mettled, it will make him restless, and if dull, he does not require it. If, on the contrary, a young horse is heavy, and not ready to start when the command is given, he should be whipped till he answer it.
THE PACES.
These, in driving, must always be a walk or a trot--never a canter, which, owing to the draught, would be equally injurious to the horse and to the carriage. Either of these paces, moreover, should be suited to the nature of the road. Rapid driving, on the stones especially, exposes a carriage to injury, both from shocks against others, and from those which attend its own motion. However, it is sometimes for a moment necessary, in order to get out of the way of carts, waggons, &c.
In public coaches, the pace is often too rapid; and, should any passenger plead for the horses, on the score of the excessive heat, the coachman with the utmost _sang froid_ replies that he must keep his time, although the probability sometimes is, that one or more of them may drop, by which considerable time may be lost, as well as reduction in force ensue for the rest of the stage. Horses should be more frequently watered during hot weather than they generally are; increased perspiration renders it necessary.
However well pleased thoughtless people may be at going at an accelerated rate, it is certainly hard that other passengers should be obliged to hazard their existence at the pleasure of a reckless driver, who, in answer to all remonstrance, coolly answers, he must “keep his time.” Something should certainly be done to prevent the cantering system[76]; for no coach, be it ever so well built, can preserve its equilibrium so well when the horses are in the canter or gallop, as when in the trot. At the same time, it is to be borne in mind, that, at the rate our coaches now travel, some slight degree of it may sometimes be unavoidable, owing to horses trotting so variably, and its being very difficult to obtain teams every individual of which shall be able to trot through the distance at the required rate.
[76] There is an act which requires that all four shall not gallop together; and many teams, especially in the neighbourhood of town, have one good trotter to defeat the informer, known as the “Act of Parliament horse.”--ED. Fifth Edition.
In driving four-in-hand, it is not every man who knows when a coach-horse is at work, as a horse may keep a tight trace, and yet be doing little. There is, however, an increased tension of the horse’s frame when taking weight with him, which is the surest test, and which never escapes a quick and experienced eye. As already observed, those called lobbing-goers take greater weight with them than horses of finer action, provided they are equally close workers. Heavy draught shortens the stride of horses, after they have been a few years at work.
THE TIME.
In short distances, to know precisely at what time it is necessary to start, to arrive at any place at a certain hour, the driver has only to ascertain the distance, and to regulate the pace by the following table:--
4 miles an hour, 1 mile in 15 minutes. 5 ditto ditto 12 ditto 6 ditto ditto 10 ditto 7 ditto ditto 8½ ditto 8 ditto ditto 7½ ditto 9 ditto ditto 6½ ditto 10 ditto ditto 6 ditto
In the streets of London, ten minutes at least, in every hour, must be allowed for stoppages.
THE WHIP.
“We are too apt,” said the late Lord Erskine, “to consider animals under the domination of man in no view but that of property. We should never forget that the animal over which we exercise our power has all the organs which render it susceptible of pleasure and pain. It sees, it hears, it smells, it tastes, it feels with acuteness. How mercifully, then, ought we to exercise the dominion intrusted to our care!”
Speaking to coach-horses from the box is now considered slow, but it is not without its effect. Whipping, however, is sometimes indispensable. The manufacture of four-horse whips has arrived at great perfection, and affords employment to many hundred hands.
Refined management of the whip is not of many years’ birth; and even now there are but few who execute this effectually and with grace. There are as many ways of whipping coach-horses, says a clever writer in the _Sporting Magazine_, as there are horses in the coach; and, as there is a right and a wrong way of doing most things, a young beginner may observe the following directions, beginning with the wheel-horses:--
Before a coachman hits a wheel-horse, he should twist his thong three times round the crop of his whip, holding the crop at that moment somewhat horizontally, by which means the thong will twist towards the thin end of the crop, when the thong, being doubled, will not exceed the length of a pair-horse thong, and in some measure resemble it. Being double renders it of course more severe, as it falls more heavily on the horse; and by the two ends of the thong not being spread, but close together at the time of the blow, it falls with increased force.
When the off-side wheeler is struck, the coachman’s right arm should be put out from his body in the same position in which he presents it to his tailor to measure him for a coat, but the blow should proceed entirely from the wrist. The part on which the horse should be struck is about four inches behind his false belly-band, or somewhere near the short rib on his right side. The stinging part of the blow is then felt under the belly; and, unless he is quite beaten, or of a sulky and bad disposition, he seldom fails to answer it. If he do not answer it here, he must be struck before the belly-band, when the blow falls just behind the fore-arm, on a part on which the skin is very thin. In hitting a near-wheeler, the coachman brings his right hand exactly opposite to his face, and, turning the crop three times around, as before directed, he lets the thong fall sharply across the horse’s loins three times in succession, if he do not answer sooner,--observing that, after the third blow, he draws the thong obliquely across the horse’s back, by which means his arm returns to a state of rest, and the crop falls gently across his reins, just about his left hand, the crop pointing a little upwards to prevent the thong getting under or touching the near wheel-horse’s tail. Should the latter be the case, if the driver lower his crop, the thong will almost always get released; but should it not, he must let the thong loose, and draw it out from the point. When it comes up from the tail, let the coachman throw back his crop a little to his right hand, and the point of the thong will fall across his fingers, when he catches it, and puts it back into his hand. It must be observed, that, in striking the near wheel horse, the wrist only, as in sword exercise, is at work: the body must be quite at rest; and, after the whip is brought to bear, the arm must be quiet also, until the third blow is struck.
There is only one other method of hitting a wheel-horse, which is called pointing him. This is done by hitting him with the point of the thong, when loose, just behind his shoulders, but it is not considered neat execution. If there should be a free leader before the bars it causes him to fret, and is only to be had recourse to in emergencies--as, for instance, in turning round a corner, or into a gateway, when a leader is to be hit, and before the coachman can recover his thong a wheel-horse requires whipping also.
If a wheel-horse show symptoms of vice, as a disposition to kick, &c., or, in short, if he refuse to answer either of the other calls upon his exertions, a blow with the double thong on his ears generally brings him to his senses. Without great necessity, however, it is very reprehensible to strike a coach-horse over the ears, the parts being very sensible.
It is generally supposed it is in whipping a leader that neatness of execution is more especially displayed. It is, however, quite a mistake to suppose that it is in the power of a coachman to punish a leader with the single, as he can a wheel-horse with the double thong. No doubt, however, the blow from the loose thong falls very sharp, as it falls on a tender part--the inside of the thigh.
As the off-leader presents himself more fully to the right hand of the coachman than his partner does, the horse that is the less free of the two is generally put on that side. There are but two ways of hitting an off-leader: one, by letting the thong fall gently over his neck, or just behind his pad, when his driver merely wishes to refresh his memory, and let him know that he has a whip in his hand; and the other, when he wants to hit him sharply, by striking him with the point of the thong just under his bar. The hard hitters of the old school never conceived they had done the latter effectually, unless they struck their horse twice at least, if not three times, the last stroke always ending in a draw.
As this word “draw” is peculiar to the road, it must be explained to such as may not exactly comprehend it. Suppose a coachman to hit his off-leader three times. The first two blows are given, as it were, under-handed--that is to say, the hand is lowered so as to admit of the thong going under the bar the first two strokes. When the third or last is given, the point of the elbow is thrown outwards, so as to incline the thong inwards, which brings it up to the coachman’s hand after the stroke, it generally falling across his breast, which would not be the case were it not for the draw. Another advantage also attends the draw: a thong so thrown very seldom hangs in the bars, and nothing is more uncoachman-like than to hit a leader above his bar. A horse’s mouth should always be felt before his coachman hits him.
Hitting the near leader with neatness and effect is the most difficult part of the use of the whip. There are two ways of doing it: one, by two common strokes and the draw; and the other by a sort of back-handed stroke, which is a very neat one, and sufficiently severe, but it does not bring the thong so immediately up to the coachman’s hand as the drawn stroke does. In the back-handed stroke, the wrist describes an exact figure of eight, and the arm cannot be kept, as before, quite still. In the other method of hitting, the coachman’s arm is brought about opposite his chin, the first two blows proceeding from the wrist alone; but in the third, or the draw, the hand descends, the elbow is thrown outwards, and by two jerks of the arm, which it is difficult to describe on paper, the draw is effected, and the thong comes, as before stated, across the coachman’s breast, so as to enable him to catch it instantly.
There is one other way of hitting a leader; and that is, by what is called the chop. This is done by throwing out the right arm rather forward, and with it, of course, the thong, and then bringing it back sharply with the wrist inclined downwards. The thong falls severely on the horse’s thigh, and comes up to the hand again, as in the draw. This is a very useful blow in a narrow confined place, or when it is necessary to lose no time before a leader is hit; and, when neatly done, has a very workman-like appearance. This blow generally falls above the bar, particularly if a horse is not at work at the time.
It has been said that leaders should always be hit under their bar. This, however, cannot always be done; for if a horse hang back from his collar, his bar is so low that it may be difficult to get under it. In this case, however, the blow is made to tell smartly, as it is in the coachman’s power to throw his whip into the flank, which is a very sensible part. When a leader is well up to his collar, he always can, and always should, be hit under his bar.
Should the point of the thong catch, or, as they say on the road, “get hanged,” in the bars or the pole-pieces--neither of which it will do when properly drawn after the last stroke, as the inclination of the hand in the act of drawing enables it to clear them--no violence should be used to loosen it, or a broken crop will be the consequence. On the contrary, the arm should be thrown forward, and the thong lightly moved, when in a minute or two it will shake out. If it be fast between the eye of the main bar and the pole-hook, the leaders should be eased a little, and it will get released. Sometimes, however, on a wet day, a thong will lap round some of these things so fast as to make it necessary for the guard or some person to get down to untie it. This is technically called having a bite. The double thong will also sometimes hitch in the ends of the wheelers’ traces, as also in the point of the false belly-band. To obviate this, in gentlemen’s harness, these parts are always covered, or piped, as it is called.
A free leader should not be hit in a short turn, or he may break his bar, perhaps the pole-hook, or even the main-bar. Neither should leaders be hit in going over a small bridge which is much raised, or when the pole points upwards, as their draught on the end of it may snap it in the futchels. Some drivers perpetually whip or fan their horses, which first irritates and afterwards injures them, by rendering them insensible to the proper aids or correction. It must be observed that the whip should never be used but in case of necessity. Indeed, one of the best proofs of a good coachman is to see his right arm still; and although, for the safety of his coach, he ought to be able to punish a horse when he requires punishment, yet he should, on all accounts, be as sparing of it as he can. Horses may be whipped till they become callous to whipping, and therefore slow. In the condition in which coach-horses are now kept, a pound of Nottingham whipcord will last a good coachman his lifetime. The very act of throwing the point of the thong over the leaders’ heads, or letting it fall on their backs, as a fisherman throws his fly upon the stream, will set half the coach-horses in England, in these days, into a gallop.
THOROUGHFARES, PASSING, &c.
The driver should avoid passing through the great thoroughfares, and prefer the widest of the less frequented streets which run parallel to them. In London, he should never go into the City through the Strand, Fleet-street, and Cheapside, between twelve and five o’clock, if he can possibly avoid it, as these streets are then crowded with every kind of vehicle. He should also avoid going into the City about mid-day, on Mondays and Fridays, on account of the droves of oxen passing through the principal streets.
The middle of the road is safest, especially for a loaded coach, except under peculiar circumstances.
In driving four horses, to keep them well in hand is a most material point, both as regards their work and for the safety of the coach. The track made by a coach in descending a hill shows whether the horses are properly held together or not. Accidents from horses taking fright, and bolting across the road, happen only to clumsy fellows, of whom the list is considerable. The rules for passing and meeting carriages on the road have already been given, yet there are times when they need not be strictly adhered to, and a little accommodation becomes expedient. Thus, if one coachman has the hill in his favour--that is, if he be going down, and a loaded coach be coming up at the same time--he who is descending, if he can do it with safety, ought to give the hardest side of the road to the other coachman.
As to narrow spaces, it is evident that where the bars can go the coach can go, as they are wider than the wheels; and consequently, if they are cleared, all is safe. The swing-bar is an excellent invention, as a horse works in it from either shoulder, and therefore quite at his ease. A sharp and experienced driver may calculate exactly the space sufficient to pass between two bodies at rest, and may therefore pass with confidence and at ease. As, however, in streets, he must meet many carriages driven by inexperienced or intoxicated fellows, who do not for a moment move in any direct line, he should allow them ample room, and proceed with the utmost caution. A driver must be incessantly on the look-out, must watch every vehicle that approaches, and give it more room than it may seem to require.
ASCENDING AND DESCENDING.
In going up hill, it is in general best to trot up at first, and to walk afterwards. In going down hill, it is best to keep the wheelers tight in hand, to let the leaders just clear the bars, and to come gently down. In the latter case, a turn of the reins of the wheel-horses may be made round the little finger. (Plate XLIV. fig. 4.)