STA GECOA CH, PA CKE T, AND RAIL IVA V. 43 7 



cutt, who kept the office for thirty-one years, 1806-37, 

 in his little cobbler shop on the north side of Elm Street, 

 now the C. F. Bennett estate. 



This postmaster records in his diary, December 30, 

 1820: " Came from Boston in the Hingham stage." As 

 early as the year 1815 the Hingham stage from Boston 

 had been advertised to leave Dock Square Monday, 

 Thursday, and Saturday at four p.m. If this stage 

 brought the postmaster through to Cohasset instead of 

 leaving him to walk from Hingham, our earliest date of 

 a stagecoach was perhaps 1815. Two months later than 

 that return trip from Boston, his diary says: "Feb 18* 

 1 82 1 Sunday; The mail, due yesterday arrived this day 

 at I P.M." 



In 1828, seven years after this, the " Scituate & Boston 

 Accommodation Stage " was instituted. It was owned 

 by Jedidiah Little & Co., of Scituate, and made three 

 trips a week with the Marshfield, Scituate, Cohasset, and 

 Hingham mails. The growth of this enterprise may be 

 more clearly understood from the following reminiscence 

 spoken by Loring Lothrop at the town's centennial cele- 

 bration in 1870: — 



Some of you recollect when old Father Little carried the mail 

 and two passengers beside himself in a square-top chaise to Bos- 

 ton, and when he came to a decent sort of a hill he used to push 

 behind and help his jaded animals all he could. One morning 

 the town was surprised at the appearance of a stagecoach, drawn 

 by two horses, one very large and one very small. It took some 

 weeks of observation and reflection to settle in my mind why he 

 selected horses so differing in size, one so large and one so small ; 

 and the conclusion at last was, that he did it on true philosophical 

 principles — in perfect harmony with the operation of the laws 

 of the mind. The large horse was an indication of strength and 

 power and of high aspirations ; the small one, of weakness and 

 humility ; so that, as he looked upon them. Father Little was sure 

 to preserve the medium of thought and feeling, and keep on in 



