DO TOO NEAR THE POLE. 



ears, my toe-board nearly coming on tlieir rumps. 

 I now found somethinir was uU wrono;, and jruessed 

 the cause. A moment, and a milling bout must 

 have been the consequence. I struck them both 

 sharply ; off they went like two startled antelo])es, 

 down the hill at about eighteen miles an hour, 

 feather-edging every thing we passed, I expecting to 

 give something an insider : but we escaped ; the 

 opposite liill ascending enabled me to pull up, 

 when I found, sure enough, the pole-pin had been 

 left out. Which looked the most frightened when 

 we stopped I know not, myself, the man behind, or 

 the horses : I only know that I felt frightened 

 enough for all four, and, judging by the screams 

 as we came along, a good many others were frightened 

 too. 



I have hitherto merely confined my observations 

 to amateur drivers : let us now look a little to those 

 who engage themselves as hired coachmen. Among 

 these, the mail and fast-coach coachman takes (or I 

 ought to say took), and deservedly, the first place. 

 Among these, from the year (we will say about) 1790 

 to 1840, we could j^oint out many men, who, ranking 

 in point of family and education as unquestionable gen- 

 tlemen, have been induced, some by adverse circum- 

 stances, and many by imprudence, to seek a livelihood 

 by driving coaches. And here let me make some 

 remarks on this subject. That the situation of a 

 stage-coachman cannot in any way be consonant with 

 the feelings of a gentleman, is a matter upon which 

 there cannot be two opinions among rational men. 

 The greater, then, the merit in the few who have 

 had resolution enough to adop)t this mode of pro- 

 viding for themselves or families, in preference to 



