AMATEUR COACHMEN. 173 



SO, to witness the consternation of the inside 

 passengers when some amateur on the box 

 " bandied the ribbons." Except with a very 

 fast team, the coachman would turn to his com- 

 panion and say, 



" If you have your driving-gloves on, and 

 would like to take the reins over the 

 next ten miles, you are welcome to do 

 so." 



Of course the reply was in the affirmative. 

 If a tyro accepted the offer, it was very easy to 

 discover the difference between the profes- 

 sional and the unprofessional, which the horses 

 themselves seemed to feel. They became slug- 

 gish ; not all the "gee upping " and "go 

 alonging," and the harmless use of the whip, 

 the lash of which usually got entangled in the 

 lamp or harness, could keep them up to their 

 work. 



This was so apparent that some inside pas- 

 senger would put his head out of the window 

 and inquire the cause of the creeping pace they 

 were proceeding at. 



" A heavy piece of road. Sir," responded the 

 coachman, who thought more of the guinea or 

 half-guinea he expected to receive than of the 

 loss of time. 



