396 THE COACHING AGE. 



man to me, ' and had a young swell on the box, who 

 offered me a cigar; on my declining it just then, 

 he told me to take off my hat, when he filled it 

 with cigars, and I put it on again. In another 

 instance a passenger of a similar description was 

 travelling by the Leeds mail, which with others got 

 snowed up at St. Albans. The passenger stood 

 divers glasses of brandy and water to the coachman 

 and guard ; and on their explaining the impossibility 

 of proceeding, he said : " Oh, I thought Her Majesty's 

 mail must go." ' 



Quite a romantic event occurred in connection with 

 a coach up from Exeter one night. It happened on 

 what was called ' market - night,' when there was 

 always extra loading with passengers and their 

 parcels ; and the guard, on going into the booking- 

 office preparatory to loading his coach, saw three 

 huge black boxes, each weighing nearly a hundred- 

 weight, and with a large white letter, say ' A,' on it. 

 He was struck with astonishment, and asked the 

 book-keeper how he could have engaged to take them, 

 and where were they to be put on the coach ? in 

 answer to which the book-keeper told him they 

 belonged to a lady who was going by the coach, 

 and said they were her luggage and must go. Just 

 at that moment the guard was touched on the shoulder 

 by some one, and on turning round, saw the lady, who, 



