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COACHES were introduced into
Britain in the sixteenth century, and the event is thus recorded by Taylor,
the "water poet," who wrote in 1623:—"In the yeare 1564, one William Boomen,
a Dutchman, brought first the use of coaches hither, and the said Boomen was
Queen Elizabeth's coachman. A coach was a strange monster in those days, and
the sight of them put both horse and man to amazement; some said it was a
great crab-shell brought out of China, and some imagined it to be one of the
Pagan temples in which the cannibals adore the devil. The mischiefs that
hath been done by them are not to be numbered, as breaking of legges and
armes, overthrown downe hills, over bridges, running over children, lame and
old people." A great obstacle to the use of coaches was the want of suitable
roads; but we find that, so early as 1605, covered waggons were employed for
the conveyance of passengers and goods between London, Canterbury, and other
large towns.
The first public coaches in
Scotland were placed on the road between Edinburgh and Leith in 1610, by Mr
Henry Anderson, a native of Stralsund, in Pomerania—who, on condition of
obtaining a royal patent conferring on him the exclusive privilege of
running coaches between the two places for a period of fifteen years,
brought from his native country coaches and waggons, with horses to draw,
and servants to attend them. The fare was fixed at twopence for each
passenger.
At the close of the
seventeenth century, coaches and chariots had become fashionable with the
Scotch nobility, but were chiefly used in town. When the Duke of Queensberry
came to Edinburgh as King's Commissioner in 1700, he was met by a train of
forty coaches, most of which were drawn by six horses. In 1673 there were
twenty hackney coaches in Edinburgh; but these were not managed in a way to
make them popular, and the number gradually decreased, until in 1778 there
were only nine registered hackney coaches in the city. The sedan chairs were
formidable opponents of the coaches; and at the last-mentioned date there
were 188 chairs for hire in Edinburgh, besides fifty private ones. In the
course of time, however, hackney coaches became popular, and the number of
chairs gradually decreased, until, about twenty years ago, they went
entirely out of use. A fine sedan chair is preserved in the Edinburgh
Antiquarian Museum. It is simply a box about two and a-half feet square and
five feet high, fitted with a seat and a glass front. Two poles, attached to
the sides, formed handles by which the chair could be carried by one man
walking before and another behind. The chairs were usually borne by stout
Highlanders. The use of a chair could be obtained for a day, from ten in the
morning till twelve at night, for 7s. 6d.; but the fares for short journeys
were higher than the cab fares of the present day.
Stage-coaches were introduced
into England in 1658—at least the earliest public notification of that mode
of travelling was made in that year. Twenty years later, the Provost and
Magistrates of Glasgow entered into an arrangement with Mr William Hume of
Edinburgh, that he should run a coach once a-week between the two cities.
This was the first stage-coach in Scotland, for the Edinburgh and Leith
coaches scarcely came under that designation. It is not stated how long the
coach between Edinburgh and Glasgow continued; but prior to 1763 it had
ceased to run, and in that year a heavy coach, drawn by four horses in good
weather, and six in bad, ran three times a-week between the two places.
Subsequently the coach was run daily, and took from eleven to twelve hours
on the road. Lighter vehicles were afterwards introduced, and the journey
came to be accomplished in six hours.
Up till the middle of last
century there was no stage-coach on the route from Edinburgh to London. When
a traveller wished to make the journey, it was no uncommon thing for him to
advertise for a companion to share a post-chaise. In 1753 a stage-coach was
running between the two capitals, and next year the following advertisement
regarding it appeared in one of the Edinburgh newspapers:
"The Edinburgh stage-coach,
for the better accommodation of passengers, will be altered to a new genteel
two-end glass coach machine, hung on steel springs, exceeding light and
easy, to go in. ten days in summer and twelve in winter, to set out the
first Tuesday in March, and continue it from Hosea Eastgate's, the Coach and
Horses, in Dean Street, Soho, London, and from John Somerville's, in the
Canongate, Edinburgh, every other Tuesday, and meet at Burrowbridge on
Saturday night, and set out from thence on Monday morning, and get to London
and Edinburgh on Friday. In winter to set out from London and Edinburgh
every other Monday, and to go to Burrowbridge on Saturday night; and to get
out from thence on Monday morning, and get to London and Edinburgh on
Saturday night. Performed, if God permits, by your dutiful servant, HOSEA.
EASTGATE."
Glasgow did not possess means
of direct communication with London until 1788, when a coach was started to
carry the mails and passengers. The arrival of the first coach from London
was an event of much interest in Glasgow, and a large number of the citizens
turned out on horseback to welcome it. So little were people disposed to
travel in those days, that for many years there was not a sufficient number
of passengers to make the coach remunerative to the contractors. The coach
accomplished the journey in sixty-three hours. After Glasgow and Edinburgh
bad been placed in communication by coaches, vehicles were run to places in
the neighbourhood of both cities; and the journeys of these were gradually
lengthened, and the number of coaches increased, until in the beginning of
the present century regular communication was maintained between all parts
of the country with a frequency proportioned to the importance of the
respective towns. Macadam and Telford came opportunely on the scene, and, by
improving and extending the roads, gave a great impetus to traffic. In 1825
eight royal mail-coaches, and upwards of fifty stage-coaches, started from
Edinburgh every day. Of the stage-coaches, ten ran to Glasgow and six to
London. There were in addition local coaches to such places as Newhaven,
Leith, and Portobello, and carriers to every town and village of any
consequence between Wigtown and Nairn.
Now that the surface of
Scotland is traversed by a network of roads of the best kind, the
difficulties of travelling in the early days of coaches are apt to be
under-estimated. As a specimen of the troubles arising from bad roads, may
be mentioned the case of the Marquis of Downshire, who, in travelling
through Galloway in the middle of last century, took with him what was then
considered to be a necessary part of his retinue—namely, a staff of
labourers with their tools to smooth the way and get the coach out of ruts.
Yet such was the nature of the road, that when the coach got to the Carse of
Slakes, a hill three miles from the village of Creetown, it came to a dead
halt; his lordship had to send his servants away, and he and his family
passed the night in their coach on the hillside So late as 1780, it was
necessary, in some quarters, to have the carriage attendants provided with
axes with which to clear a way through the woods. For other reasons than the
absence or badness of roads, travelling in the early days of coaching was
far from being a pleasant thing. The vehicles were clumsy, badly
constructed, and without springs. Accidents were of frequent occurrence; and
the number of persons killed or injured was much greater, in proportion to
the number of travellers, than is the case in the present day,
notwithstanding the popular notion as to the dangers of railways. Upwards of
twenty-three millions of passengers travelled on the Scotch railways alone
in the year 1866; and of these only five were killed—two of them while
incautiously crossing the rails in front of advancing trains, and two while
getting out of trains before they had been brought to a stand.. In 1806, a
parliamentary committee was appointed to consider, among other things, the
act limiting the number of passengers to be carried by stage-coaches. It was
stated in evidence before the committee, that " accidents are continually
happening in one part of the kingdom or another—indeed, scarce a week passes
without some of the coaches breaking down, and often killing the unfortunate
passengers."
The first coach-making
establishment in Scotland was set up in Edinburgh about the year 1696; but
for a considerable time the only work done, beyond repairing the coaches
brought from London, was the making of a few clumsy carriages. In 1738 Mr
John Home, who had carried on the business of coachmaker for several years
previously, went to London, and received instruction in the trade. On
returning to Edinburgh ho brought with him a supply of tools, and set about
conducting his business in a new style. There had hitherto been no division
of labour in making a coach; but Mr Home allotted to different workmen the
fashioning of the various parts of a carriage. Thus the men became expert at
their parts, and the result was a great improvement in their productions,
while the Scotch nobility and gentry, with whom chaises had become
fashionable, instead of bringing their vehicles from London or Paris, as
formerly, had them made in Edinburgh.
A letter on the progress of
Edinburgh, published in 1783, says: - "Coaches and chaises are constructed
as elegantly in Edinburgh as anywhere in Europe. Many are yearly exported to
St Petersburg and the cities in the Baltic; and there was lately an order
from Paris to one coachmaker in Edinburgh for 1000 crane-necked carriages,
to be executed in three years." A number of carriages were exported from
Leith to the West Indies in 1766, and in subsequent years there was also a
large exportation to Holland, Russia, France, and Poland. The annual value
of the carriages exported from Leith was stated in 1778 to be L.2200. As the
manufactures and commerce of the country increased, and wealthy people
became more numerous, the use of carriages, of course, became more common,
and stage-coaches also increased in number. Though railways have superseded
stage travelling except in a few remote districts, they have not acted
unfavourably on the coachmaking trade; rather the contrary, for, with other
causes adding-to the prosperity of the community, they have helped to
multiply the persons who can afford to keep carriages, while for their own
service a large number of vehicles are required.
The number of carriages
assessed under schedule D in Scotland is over 25,000, and the gross amount
of duty charged is L.33,000. In addition to these, there are about 2500
licensed hackney coaches, 400 stage-coaches, and 1800 other vehicles, which
are exempted from taxation. Drawn up in a continuous line, with eight yards
allowed to each, the whole of the carriages, with the horses employed to
draw them, would form a procession about 136 miles in length. Time has come
to be so valuable with people in business, that few journeys of more than a
mile or two are made on foot. The main thoroughfares of Edinburgh and
Glasgow are traversed at frequent intervals by splendid omnibuses, which for
an almost nominal sum convey passengers from or to any part of a route
extending to two or three miles. Then there are hundreds of hackney coaches,
or "cabs," stationed in convenient localities. In making and maintaining
these vehicles many- men are employed. There are fourteen coachmaking
establishments in Edinburgh, several of them of considerable extent, and all
turning out work of the best description. Indeed, no coachmakers in the
world produce carriages which for comfort, strength, or elegance, surpass
those made in that city. The "cabs" of Edinburgh are superior to any to be
found elsewhere, while the city omnibuses are extremely comfortable in all
their appointments.
The coachmakers of Edinburgh
are chiefly engaged in constructing private carriages; but at the same time
they turn out a large number of vehicles which do not fall under that
designation. They have customers in all quarters of the world, and their
handiwork is admired wherever it is seen. The coachmaking trade of Scotland
employs upwards of 2000 persons. The largest establishment in Edinburgh is
that of Messrs J. & W. Croall, York Lane, in which about 100 workmen are
employed; but Messrs James Macnee & Co.'s works at Fountainbridge are also
of considerable extent. These firms have always splendid carriages on
exhibition in their show-saloons. Conspicuous by their size and richness of
style are the four-in-hand "drags," much in fashion among the members of the
upper ten thousand who attend race meetings. Gaudily painted and expensively
equipped carriages, such as young noblemen delight to possess, next arrest
the eye; and in the glitter of these, the quiet but genteel " brougham " of
the professional man looks excessively grave. Then there are the " landau
sociable," which has to some extent supplanted the "phaeton;" the clarence,
with its glass front and sides, which afford shelter while they do not
interrupt the view; elegant pony carriages for fair charioteers; and a host
of other vehicles adapted to all requirements, and suited to all ranks. The
prices usually range from L. 60 to L.300; but there is practically no limit
to the amount that may be expended on the fittings and decorations of a
carriage. Pro¬bably the most costly ever constructed is Her Majesty's
state-coach, which was made for George III. in 1762. The cost of the coach
was L.7562, of which sum the coachmaker received L.1673; the carver, L.2500;
gilder, L.933; painter, L.315; laceman, L.737; chaser, L.665; and
harnessmaker, L.385. Some alterations have been made on the coach during Her
Majesty's reign, but, in the main, it retains its original character.
Strength, lightness, and
elegance, combined with suitable accommodation and easy springs, are the
objects to which the coachmakers have to pay chief attention, so that the
material used must be carefully selected and judiciously combined. In the
construction of a carriage six distinct trades are directly concerned, and
contributions from as many more are required. Take a "brougham," for
instance, and trace it through the various stages of construction. As in
building a house or a ship, the first thing to be done is to prepare a
design. That is usually done by the foreman of the establishment, who makes
a full-sized chalk drawing of the proposed vehicle on a black board. The
different kinds of carriages derive their names from some peculiar
arrangement of the more important parts, but carriages of the same
designation may differ widely in their details. Persons ordering carriages
are allowed an opportunity of inspecting the design and suggesting
alterations thereon, and the result is that it is rare to find two carriages
exactly alike. After the chalk drawing has been approved of, operations are
commenced. The body-makers take measurements of the upper or principal parts
of the drawing, and forthwith begin to make that part, to which their
attention is exclusively confined. Equally distinct are the occupations of
the carriage-makers, the wheelwrights, and the smiths. The carriage- makers
construct the framework on which the body of the carriage rests, and the
pole or shafts. The wheelwrights are solely occupied in making the wheels.
The amount of smith work required for a carriage is considerable, and some
of the pieces are exceedingly complicated in shape. The woods chiefly
employed in coachmaking are ash, mahogany, and oak, and these must be
thoroughly " sea¬soned." Ash strengthened with iron is used in the framework
of the "body." Straight lines are avoided as much as possible in the
construction of carriages, and the consequence is that the body- maker has
to bend and shape his wood to a great variety of curves. After the framework
is completed, the sides and ends, except the spaces for the doors and glass
front, are boarded in by panels of mahogany, which are brought to the
required curve by being damped on one side and exposed to heat on the other.
As the strength of the carriage does not depend on the panels, and as
lightness is a great point in carriage-building, they are made quite thin.
The roof is composed of the same material, and the floor is planked with
fir. The "carriage," or that part of the vehicle which unites the fore and
hind wheels, and on which the "body" is supported, is made of a combination
of ash, elm, and iron. The carriage-maker shapes and fits together all the
pieces of wood for the "carriage," and hands them over to the smith, who
makes and fixes on the iron parts. Meantime the wheelwright has been busy
with the wheels, in which three kinds of wood are used. The nave, or centre,
is made of elm, the spokes of oak, and the felloes or rim of ash; and all
are firmly bound together by a stout hoop of iron. Beneath the carriage and
the body the springs are introduced. These are delicately fashioned in fine
steel, and are used in a variety of forms.
When the operations above
described are completed, the painters and trimmers execute their part of the
work. In the best class of broughams, however, a piece of currying work has
to be done before painting can be proceeded with. The roof and upper part of
the back and sides are covered with a hide of leather, which is so
manipulated, that without a seam it covers the parts mentioned, imparting
strength and rendering the carriage waterproof. A less expensive and more
common mode of effecting this object is to use fustian, or "moleskin,"
instead of leather. The fustian makes a good ground for painting upon, and
is very durable—while it does not, as some hides have been found to do,
exude oil, which, finding its way through the paint and varnish, ,spoils the
appearance of the carriage. After several coats of "priming," a number of
coats of "filling" are laid on. Each coat is allowed to dry thoroughly
before another is added. Five or six coats of paint of the colour which the
coach is ultimately to have are next applied, the entire surface being
smoothed and polished from time to time, until a beautiful finish is
obtained. Half a dozen coats of copal varnish are then laid over all. The
varnishing has to be done in an apartment from which dust and flies are
carefully excluded. In all, twenty-five coats of paint and varnish are
required. Most carriages are decorated on the wheels, shafts, and other
parts, by fine lines of a light colour. These are executed before the
varnishing is done, and so are the armorial bearings or monograms, which few
carriages are without now-a-days. The heraldic painting is done by a
superior tradesman, and some specimens of this kind of work are remarkable
for clearness of outline and vividness of colour. When the painting is
completed, the carriage is put together and passed to the trimmers, of whom
there are two classes—one doing the upholstery work for the interior, and
the other the "blackwork" or leather fittings. In connection with a
"brougham" little service is required from the black-trimmers; but in the
case of a " landau sociable," or other kind of hooded carriage, they have a
good deal to do. The trimmings of the inside are composed of various
materials, according to the price to be paid for the carriage—Spanish
cloths, plain and embossed silks, embossed leather, lace of various kinds,
&c. The metallic beading, door-handles, and other decorations of the kind,
are obtained from manufacturers who devote special attention to their
production.
Omnibuses and stage-coaches
are fashioned much in the same manner as carriages, only they are made
heavier and stronger. The principal builders of these in Edinburgh are
Messrs J. Croall & Sons and Messrs Carse & Co. Carts, waggons, and the like,
are made by a distinct class of workmen. Cartwrights are to be found in
nearly all the towns and villages in the country, but a considerable
proportion of the county towns even are without a coachmaker. Edinburgh,
Glasgow, Aberdeen, Perth, and Stirling, are the chief seats of the
coachmaking trade in Scotland, and from these towns a large number of
carriages are annually exported.
Trade-unions have not
interposed to produce disagreements between employers and employed in the
coachmaking trade, and probably in no other branch of industry are the
merits and remuneration of the men so nicely adjusted. In all departments
the wages, on the average, are equal to the highest paid to workers in wood
and iron; but then some men, by exercising greater skill and expertness, are
able to make nearly twice as much money as others. There is, consequently, a
considerable difference between the highest and the lowest wages earned in
each department. So much of the work is done by "piece" as can be
satisfactorily reckoned, and the remainder according to a time-scale. The
following are the current rates of wages, earned by piece-work and
otherwise, in the shops of the leading firms in Edinburgh:—Bodymakers, 20s.
to 40s. a-week; carriage makers, 20s. to 27s.; smiths, 17s. to 40s.;
wheelwrights, 24s. to 28s.; painters, 19s. to 27s.; trimmers, 20s. to 27s. |
