Page:Report from the Select Committee on Steam Carriages.pdf/109



John Farey, Esq. 10 August, 1831. for going quick when tanning a Steam Coach, as its power is quite controllable, in which respect it has a great advantage over a common Carriage; for four! horses at the moment of turning, are very little, under: the control of the reins, particularly the leaders, and, it depends upon their good will.whether they choose to go slow or go quick when turning. In a Steam: Carriage the conductor has such a perfect, control of the power, that he can never fail in, checking the speed at the moment of turning. I observed that Mr. Han, cock's Carriage is steered with the greatest ease and will turn round in a very short space: I have seen him turn round in the New Road to return without backing the Carriage at all, although he was in the middle of the road when he began to turn.

If you had turned a sharp corner, could you have stopped immediately on meeting a Carriage?—Yes; the power of stoppage is most remarkable; that is one of the great advantages of a Steam Coach. I have steered Mr. Hancock's Carriage myself, and found it to be most completely under control.

The Carriage may be turned in the smallest space that the wheels will permit it to go round.in?—Yes, in a much smaller space than a Carriage with horses can turn, because it is so much shorter in the total length, and the power being completely under control, there is no danger in turning quite short; whereas no prudent driver will turn a four-horse coach round in a road, without the guard getting down and holding the leaders' heads; for they are not sufficiently under the control of the reins in turning to do it with safety.

Did you ever see a Steam Carriage going down a hill?—Yes, down the hill of the New Road at Islington; and it was done with more safety than with any Carriage with four horses; but I do not contemplate the descent of Steam Coaches down very steep hills, for that supposes their getting up such hills, which is not likely to be accomplished soon, and the present Coaches seem to me to be only fit for our most improved lines of roads, where all very steep hills have been reduced to moderate slopes.

Have you turned your attention particularly to the