232 BIGHIVAYS AND HORSES. 



consequence of its having to stop so frequently on its 

 way. The same writer goes on to say that the great 

 difficulty was want of capital. Most of the inventors 

 and advocates of road locomotion were poor men, 

 although a few capitalists spent considerable sums 

 of money in perfecting their ideas ; for instance, 

 Mr. Gurney spent ^100,000, and Mr. Ogle ^60,000. 



Colonel Maceroni performed some good journeys 

 on the road ; for instance, he ran his locomotive 

 for eighteen months from London to Harrow, and 

 also to Edgeware, mounting Harrow Pi ill, which is 

 said to be one of the steepest hills between London 

 and York, besides being of soft yielding material ; 

 and yet Colonel Maceroni's engine went up it at 

 the rate of eight miles an hour, which is far faster 

 than any horses could have travelled up such a 

 steep ascent. He frequently travelled from Regent 

 Circus to Watford, and went four times a day up 

 and down Oxford Street. A steam carriage also 

 ran from London to Hastings. 



Locomotive carriages, it was said, were perfectly 

 safe on the common road. However safe they may 

 have been, in my opinion there must have been one 

 serious drawback to the use of steam-eno^ines on 

 the road ; they must have caused driving and riding 

 on the road to be attended with great danger, as 

 there are few horses now that will meet a traction 

 engine without being seriously alarmed. I see no 

 reason to suppose that the horses in those days were 

 more courageous or less susceptible to fright. It is 

 said that these engines did not frighten horses when 

 working in London ; but I cannot understand this. 

 Had the boiler had a good head of steam, it would 



