ORIGIN OF HACKNEY-CARRIAGES. 193 



every horse ridden with the same justice ; from whence 

 it became a proverb, when what ought to be your 

 election was forced upon you, to say, ' Hobson's 

 choice.' This memorable man stands in fresco, at 

 the ' Bull Inn' (which he used) in Bishopsgate Street, 

 and a hundred pound bag under his arm, with this 

 inscription upon the bag, ' The fruitful mother of a 

 hundred more.' " 



Hobson, it will be observed, let out horses and not 

 carriages ; but as I have before explained, the term 

 " hackney " related to horses and not to carriages, and 

 it was only by a transition that it afterwards became 

 adapted to vehicles. Hobson died at the time of the 

 Plague in 1630, in the eighty-fifth year of his age. 

 Milton wrote two epitaphs on him. There is also a 

 poem called " Hobson's Choice," which was printed in 

 a folio pamphlet entitled " The Choice," by Pomfret. 



Hackney-coaches were first established at Edin- 

 burgh in 1673. (Arnot's " History of Edinburgh," 

 page 597.) 



In 1679, at the Rebellion, the hackney-coach 

 horses of Edinburgh were employed to draw the 

 Royal Artillery (" Maitland's History," page '^Z'^)^ thus 

 acting in the service of the King as stipulated. 



Hackney-carriages were first introduced into War- 

 saw, in Russia, in 1778. In Copenhagen, about the 

 same time, there were about one hundred hackney- 

 coaches. In Madrid were a large number; and also 

 in Vienna there w^ere two hundred hackney-coaches. 

 In 1663 coaches with wheels were forbidden in 

 Amsterdam, being considered destructive to the pave- 

 ment ; but in 1775 their number had increased so 

 much that there were twenty-five thousand coach- 

 horses in the seven united provinces. Charles Vilerme 

 paid into the treasury of the King of France fifteen 



o 



