324 DRIVING. 



Supposing a traveller had landed at Calais and was going right 

 through to Marseilles. When the carriage was brought ashore 

 from the steam-packet and the horses were put to, off went the 

 courier, on a little horse provided by the maitre de poste^ but 

 always on his (the courier's) own saddle, with his cloak rolled 

 on it ; and he made such haste as to get to the change in time 

 to have the horses out ready to be put to on the arrival of the 

 carriage, a fresh bidet being provided at each change. He paid 

 for the horses, and started generally as they were being put 

 to; but if there were any altercation about payment or -any 

 other cause of delay, he passed the carriage at a gallop and got 

 on to have the next change of horses ready. The courier rode 

 all the way from Calais to Marseilles. The writer has known 

 three couriers who have ridden from Rome to Calais night and 

 day without stopping, and to the best of his recollection it took 

 nine or ten days and nights to do the journey. It sounds in- 

 credible, but it is an actual fact that it has been done several 

 times, and no stoppage of more than two hours ever occurred. 

 This, considering the inevitable wranglings and quarrels with 

 post-masters, postilions, and douaniers, is a very extraordinary 

 feat. Many of these couriers were big heavy men. In some 

 ways it was an advantage to a courier to be light, but he could 

 not do the ' work if he were not strong in constitution and in 

 body ; and when it came, as it sometimes did, to a rough and 

 tumble, a bit of fight, or a good swinging soufflet to an insolent 

 maitre de paste or a refractory postilion, a little weight was of 

 advantage. The couriers had a very good idea of their own 

 importance, and got themselves up very smartly. They wore 

 a blue jacket with short tails, like the postilions, with red 

 facings, leather tights, jackboots and spurs, and jackets much 

 bedecked with gold lace ; a hard stiff glazed cap, with a gold- 

 laced band, a chin-strap for windy weather, and a fall-down to 

 go over their ears and keep their necks dry in rain. They 

 usually carried a whip like the postilions, and a good warm 

 waterproof cloak rolled on the front of the saddle. 



A dormeusei.e. a travelling chariot with a long boot in front 



