THE WONDERFUL CENTURY. 



various kinds of goods and produce, and saddle horses 

 for riding. All journeys were then made on horseback, 

 and it was in comparatively recent times that wheeled 

 vehicles for travelling in came into general use in Eng- 

 land. The very first carriage was made for Queen 

 Elizabeth in 1568; the first that plied for hire in London 

 were in 1625, and the first stage coaches in 1659. 



But chariots drawn by horses were used, both in war 

 and. peace, by all the early civilized peoples. Pharaoh 

 made Joseph ride in a chariot, and he sent wagons to 

 bring Jacob, with his children and household goods, to 

 Egypt. A little later chariots were sent by the Syrians 

 as tribute to Pharaoh. Homer describes Telemachus as 

 travelling from Pylos to Sparta in a chariot provided for 

 him by Nestor : 



" The rage of thirst and hunger now suppress'd, 

 The monarch turns him to his royal guest; 

 And for the promis'd journey bids prepare 

 The smooth-haired horses, and the rapid car." 



It is clear, therefore, that in the earliest historic times 

 all the various types of wheeled vehicles were used for 

 war, for racing, for travelling, and for the conveyance of 

 merchandise. They must also have been used through- 

 out a large part of Europe, since Cresar found our Brit- 

 ish ancestors possessed of war-chariots, which they man- 

 aged with great skill, implying a long previous acquaint- 

 ance with the domesticated horse and its use in humbler 

 wheeled vehicles. 



Thus, throughout all past history the modes of travel- 

 ling were essentially the same, and an ancient Greek or 

 Eoman, Egyptian, or Assyrian, could travel as quickly 



