ON COACHMEN. 253 



from Birmingham to London in nearly the same time as 

 Jem's day-coach conveyed them from Birmingham to 

 Oxford, I know not ; but it so happened, that about ten 

 years ago, the Birmingham ' Aurora' commenced running 

 from that place to London in one day ; and, in conse- 

 quence of this, Costar's party put on the ' Courier,' in 

 opposition to the ' Aurora,' each of which, as the opposi- 

 tion was strong and the work well done, took so much of 

 the shine out of Jem Howell's day-coach, that about 

 twelve months since he left it. 



As a coachman with the short wheel-rein (and he 

 says no man can drive four horses with the long one), 

 Jem Howell stands very high, being supposed to be as 

 good a judge of what a coach horse can do as any man 

 of his day ; and as an honest servant to his employers, 

 we may put him quite in the top hole. In proof of his 

 skill in his art, it is only necessary to state, that, although 

 his pace was not slow (say at least eight miles an hour), 

 his horses were always as fat as bacon pigs, and a poor 

 one put into his coach soon got his back up. It was also 

 well worth an extra fare to travel with Jem Howell, and 

 hear his quaint remarks on the road ; for he has a talent 

 for repartee which is very seldom excelled. It happens 

 that I have a near relation at the head of one of the 

 Colleges in Oxford, and I once took the liberty of telling 

 him, that, if Jem had had as good an education as him- 

 self and the rest of the big-wigs, he would have chopped 

 logic with any of them. 



Some of my best anecdotes of this noted character 

 will not exactly bear print, but he has amused myself 



