no STAGE-COACH AND MAIL IN DAYS OF YORE 



road, warranted never to overturn and doing so with 

 wonderful regularity, and on tliose coaching prints 

 noticed by Charles Dickens — " coloured prints of 

 coaches starting, arriving, changing horses ; coaches 

 in the sunshine, coaches in the wind, coaches in 

 the mist and rain, coaches in all circumstances 

 compatible with their triumph and victory ; but 

 never in the act of l)reaking down, or overturning." 

 The last years of coaching Avere, in fact, even 

 more fruitful in accidents than the old days. 

 Especially pathetic were the circumstances attend- 

 ant uj)on the disaster that overtook the " Lark " 

 Leicester and Nottingham Stage on May 23rd, ISJ^O. 

 The coach Avas on its last journey when it occurred, 

 for the morroAV was to witness the opening of the 

 railway between those places. Like most of these 

 last trips, the occasion Avas marked by much 

 circumstance. Crowds assembled to Avitness the 

 old order of things visibly j^ass aAvay, and Frisby, 

 the coachman, had dolefully tied black ribbons 

 round his Avhii^stock, to mark the solemnity of 

 the event. Unfortunately, that badge of mourning 

 proved in a little Avhile to be only too aj)propriate, 

 for the Avell-loaded coach had only gone about a 

 mile and a lialf beyond Loughborough Avhen Prisby, 

 \A^ho had been driving recklessly all the Avay, 

 and had several times been remonstrated Avitli, 

 overturned it at Coates' Mill. A Mr. Pearson 

 and anotlnn" Avere killed. Pearson, avIio had 

 especially come to take part in this last drive, 

 AA'as connected Avitli the " Times " London and 

 Nottingham coach. He had been seated beside 



