The Coachmaster 



interest in the manner of telling. He could 

 tell you, so as to make you creep again, the 

 story of that lone farmhouse over there, 

 with its solitary inhabitant, and show you 

 the exact spot where, forty years ago, a 

 highway robbery was committed and the 

 postillion shot. He could give you a very 

 pretty and amusing account of the old post- 

 chaise times and the early coaches and the 

 " flying machines " and the crawling fore- 

 runners of such vehicles as his own. And 

 he had an excellent store of fine old jokes, 

 gathered in the course of many apprecia- 

 tive years passed on the road, and would 

 often set his box-seat traveller laughing 

 aloud with the telling. 



" What's it all about ? " somebody would 

 ask, and then our friend on the box-seat 

 retails it over his shoulder, and friend two 

 delivers it to the rest of the company, and 

 the fun and interest of it, as it goes the 

 round, bring them all into kindly touch 

 with one another like a glass of good 

 wine. 



Then, too, there were certain interest- 

 ing persons who not infrequently visited 

 Brighton, and who invariably travelled by 

 my Father's coach on these occasions. 

 Happy they who found themselves travel- 

 ling with Emery, Russell, Mimic Matthews, 

 58 



