268 ANNALS OF THE ROAD. 



Being immediately under Mr. Kenyon's eye — long before 

 Mr. M'Adam was heard of in those parts — he set about 

 improving it. He had the water-courses covered over, 

 and, by degrees, the sandy part was all faced with hard 

 materials, and made nearly as good for a coach as it is 

 now. Neither is this all. As I said before, the inter- 

 course that has lately been carried on between proprietors 

 of inns and of coaches, and gentlemen fond of road-work, 

 has greatly tended to direct the attention of the former 

 to the accommodation and comforts of travellers : and 

 the notice taken by gentlemen of coachmen who conduct 

 themselves well, has worked the reformation we have of 

 late years witnessed in that useful part of the community. 

 I shall return to this subject presently. 



Generally speaking, coachmen are clean and neat in 

 their persons. They plume themselves, as Geoffrey 

 Crayon says, on having a good bit of broad cloth, a clean 

 pair of boots, a well brushed hat, and good tie to the 

 cravat. This attention to their appearance never fails to 

 have its reward, and particularly among the female part 

 of the creation, who, I think, are generally well disposed 

 towards coachmen — probably on account of the hardships 

 and risks they endure on the road. Coach-proprietors also 

 are well aware how much a well-dressed and civil servant 

 adds to the amount of the wav-bill. 



To such perfection is coaching advanced, that not 

 only are noblemen and gentlemen of the first respectability 

 now to be met with on the outside 1 of our fast coaches, 



1 Despite of the alarms of Mr. John Lawrence that the market will be 

 overstocked with anecdote, I promise to introduce one if I think it may 



