THE ROAD. 
of the road, is termed " taking a hill in time." He 
may, in that case, if his harness be sound, drive his 
coach down most hills now found on our roads with 
ease ; and, when a certain way down them, may increase 
his pace, with perfect safety, to meet the opposing 
ground at the bottom. With heavily-laden coaches we 
prefer this to the drag-chain on one wheel only, by 
which hundreds of them have been pulled over on 
slippery roads ; and which is a great check to speed, too, 
as the momentum cannot be taken advantage of, in con- 
tinuing the motion of the coach when she brings the 
horses to their collars again. 
All persons who have travelled on the Continent 
have observed an appendage to the public carriages by 
which both hinder-wheels can be "dragged," as the term 
is, or their rapid rotation checked, by the conducteur, 
or guard, without his descending from his seat ; and 
which is vulgarly called " le mechanique." It is much 
to be regretted that a similar instrument is not in general 
use with our stage and mail-coaches, as it would be the 
means of preventing numerous accidents that occur 
by coaches overpowering horses when descending long 
hills, but such as are not considered sufficiently steep 
to require the drag-chain ; or, in case of horses at- 
tempting to get the better of their driver. A gentle- 
man of the name of Tongue, residing in Staffordshire, 
has obtained a patent for a machine, to answer this end, 
known as " Tongue's patent drag," and it is now used 
on several coaches out of London, as well as on various 
