A FIX. 199 



It is no uncommon thing for a gentleman to desire 

 his coachman to look out for a pair of horses for his 

 carriage. Should he be peremptorily ordered to go 

 to some specified dealer, the thing is easy enough : he 

 bargains to get hi. 101. or 15^. for himself: the dealer 

 must add this to the price he would otherwise be 

 enabled to take for his horses, and there is no further 

 harm done than the purchaser paying in fact for his 

 own servant the additional price put on to satisfy his 

 cupidity. Now should the purchaser offer to buy the 

 horses at a price about as much less as the sum the 

 dealer knows he must give to the servant, what is he 

 to do ? He 1ms the choice of three alternatives — to pay 

 the servant out of his own pocket, lose the sale of his 

 horses, or sell them knowing they will be abused, and 

 consequently bring him into discredit with his cus- 

 tomer. They will be made, in short, a lasting source 

 of annoyance to the master, be a theme of constant 

 abuse of the coachman from the first day, who will take 

 care they lose condition, go badly, and have always 

 something the matter with one or both whenever 

 they are wanted ; and finally the master in his own 

 defence will be obliged to sell them : he loses really a 

 good pair of horses and the dealer a good customer. 



Should the master or mistress leave it to their 

 coachman to get horses from any person he pleases, 

 then the case will be this, or something very like it. 

 He will go to different places and different dealers, 

 not to find where or of whom he can purchase the 

 horses on the best terms, or such as are best suited 

 to the purpose of his employer, but to find where and 

 of whom he is likely to make the most for himself in 

 the shape of bribe. If he sees a pair of really good 

 sound horses, and finds he is only to expect a couple 



o 4 



