OLD COACHING DAYS. 199 



The Belle Sauvage, Ludgate Hill, fifty-eight years ago was 

 the property of Robert Nelson, son of Ann Nelson, of the 

 Bull Inn, Aldgate, and was justly celebrated for being one of 

 the most extensive and popular establishments of its kind in 

 the metropolis. Among the most noted of the fast coaches 

 was the Defiance, which ran from London to Oxford, and the 

 honour of driving it was divided by two very well known coach- 

 men, Adams and Foreman. It was horsed out of Oxford by 

 Christopher Holmes, who had for some years strongly opposed 

 a wealthy firm of that town, by name Coster and Waddall. 

 Mr. Nelson was at the same time proprietor of the fastest and 

 most popular mail in England, the Devonport Mail, commonly 

 called the Quicksilver. In 1828 Mr. R. Nelson instructed 

 one of his coachmen to give young Carter all possible advice 

 and information that he might go to work as soon as 'he was 

 capable, and after a few weeks Carter drove the Leeds Courier 

 out of and into London from the Belle Sauvage. 



On his first day out with him, his mentor took the-oppor- 

 tunity of having him 'sworn at Highgate,' stating it was a 

 very essential form to go through in order to become a quali- 

 fied coachman. His curiosity to know the nature of such an 

 oath induced him at once to assent. He immediately pulled 

 up at the Wellington Hotel at Highgate, where he was duly 

 sworn, ' not to drink small beer when he could get strong ; not 

 to kiss the maid when he could kiss the mistress, and never 

 to pass that house without calling to have a bottle of cham- 

 pagne,' and the landlord was bound to give him credit if he 

 had not the wherewithal to discharge his liability. Carter 

 continued on this coach until 1829, and next drove the Stroud 

 Water mail as far as Benson in Oxon ; he was then fortunate 

 enough to be appointed to drive the Red Rover to Brighton, 

 a coach started conjointly by Messrs. Nelson and Holmes, 

 the latter having sold his business at Oxford. It began to run 

 at the time of the proclamation of William IV., whose resi- 

 dence was at the Pavilion in Brighton, and in consequence of 

 performing the journey in half an hour less time than any other 



