FARES 1 1 



satisfied, and the horses were chano-ed like horhtning.' 

 The fare, inside, was therefore practically 5d. a mile, 

 to which must be added at least fifteen shillings in tips 

 to those four coachmen and that guard, bringing the 

 cost of the smartest travelling between London and 

 Exeter up to £4 : 5s. for the single journey ; while 

 the fares by waggon and ' Fly Van ' would be at the 

 rate of a halfpenny and twopence per mile respectively, 

 something like 7s. 6d. and 29s. Gd. ; without, in those 

 cases, the necessity for tipping. 



There were, however, more degrees than these in 

 the accommodation and fares for coach travellers. 

 The proper mail coach fare was 4d. a mile, but the 

 mails were not the ne "plus ultra of speed and 

 comfort even on this road, where the ' Quicksilver ' 

 mail ran a famous course. Hence the 5d. a mile by 

 the 'Telegraph.' But it was left to the 'Waggon 

 Coach ' to present the greatest disparity of prices and 

 places. This was a vehicle which, under various 

 names, was seen for a considerable period on most of 

 the roads, and can, with a little ingenuity, be looked 

 upon as the precursor of the three classes on railways. 

 There were the first-class ' insides,' the second-class 

 ' outsides,' and those very rank outsiders indeed, the 

 occupants of the shaky wickerwork basket hung on 

 behind, called the ' crate ' or the ' rumble-tumble,' 

 who were very often noisily drunken sailors and 

 people who did not mind a little jolting more or 

 less. 



Some very fine turns-out were on this road at the 

 end of the '30's. Firstly, there was the ' Royal Mail,' 

 between the ' Swan w^ith Two Necks,' in Lad Lane, 



