BEGINNING OF STAGE COACHES 235 



while the great horses, as we are told, were 

 relegated to the coach, the waggon and the 

 plough. 



Among those who adhered longest to the 

 theory that England must inevitably lose her 

 prestige if the great horse were ousted from her 

 army for good and all was the Duke of Newcastle 

 of that period. Laughed at for his pains, and 

 spoken of by the younger generation as a man 

 not able to see ahead of the times, he yet stood 

 firmly by his opinion almost to the last. As the 

 years went on, and the younger generation in 

 their turn grew retrospective and pessimistic, no 

 doubt they too were laughed at by their sons, and 

 thus history continues to repeat itself even to the 

 present day. 



At about this period many of the " good " roads 

 in England were in reality little better than broad 

 cart tracks, so that heavy horses were largely in 

 demand. In consequence of this the prices paid 

 for a good team of horses were in many instances 

 out of all proportion to the animals' true worth. 

 By this time, too, public stages were already 

 being started on the highroads, and the com- 

 petition this gave rise to soon sent up by leaps 

 and bounds the value of great horses well broken 

 to harness. 



