The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-06-03 00:00:00

GO A-HEAD!

Go a-head ! is a very expressive Jonathism frequently in
every man's mouth throughout' the states; and therein Jona-
than shows hiMself a worthy chip of the old blocka thriving
off-shoot of " the old country"—once sober, plodding, old Eng-
land; but in which of late sears every man is always trying to '
go a-head of his fellows, and "de'il tak the hindmost !" is the
cry from one end of the kingdom to the other. Time was when
your nobleman travelled in his own carriage, drawn by his own
fat cattle, and attended by his own fat out-riders, in goodly ca-
valcade, progressing at the jog-trot of some twenty or thirty
miles per day, one stage before dinner, and one stage after din-
ner, and taking their repose o' nights in comfortable ions by
the way-side--the cattle up to their bellies in clean wheaten
straw, and the men over head and ears in sheets that smelt of
lavender. Merchants and men of trade, and men and women
of every grade followed their staid example whenever by chance
either pleasure or business moved them to move from one place
to another; and thus everything went ou slowly, but surely,
and the treasures of the wealthy were duly spread about among
the people—even as the careful farmer spreadeth his manure
about his fields. But now, your nobleman leapeth into his cha-
riot,'add with one solitary fellow in his dickey, and four spur-
galled lean and lash maddened posters before him he scoureth
over a hundred miles of road like a whirlwind. His orders are
"Go a-head of everything !" and away he whirls front London
to the lands-end, leaving nothing behind bin but clouds of dust,
a trifle of horse-hire, and the profits upon one hard biscuit and
bottle of sodaloater !—Merchants and men Of trade, tailors and•
. tin men, clad-poles and costermongers, lawyers and lollypoppers,
all imitate his' lordable velocity ;—from the peer to the peasant
the universal cry is go a-head l—whilst seedy innkeepers by •the
way side sigh after them in vain. On our downs, hundreds of
thrinsand of pounds (as the Weekly Dispatch truly observes) are
daily gambled away on the interesting problem of which horse,
amone. a " rack," can first be induced, by lash and steel, to
poke his nose past some particular post ;—whilst myriads of hien
and wOmert, in all the pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious
"ihtellctuality," jbmp and gesticulate, like excited lunatics,
'and Split each other's ears with Shrieking " Go a-head !"—No-
bles and gentles, soldiers and 'civilians, make matches, and
Marnmonize upiin the physical capabilities of " favourite"
horsesT and then beehnie.joekeys for the nonce, and ride their
favourites to death in their burning desire to "Go a-head !"--
whilst other horses are ridden to death 'in conveying the
im-
portattt some evening newspaper which builds its little
fame merely' on its consumption of horse-flesh, and its desire to
'"Gon-head !" In the metropolis swarms of cabs and (mini-
buies•rnsh along the crowded streets, unmindful of the lives of
the lieges in their way, and reckless of everything but how to/
give 'everybody the'go by' and"-gti a-head !' —ln short, every
'nun, woman, and child has, some how or other, acquired the
bump of scamperAoutiveness ; the age of horseflesh has got a-
head of the age of intellect; the age of horsetlesh• will speedily
give place to the age of railways; and by and by the whole
country front Duncansby-head to the Lizard-point will be one
interminable whirl of locomotion—or rather of low commotion;
and the only sound distinguishable above the whiz, whir, and
din of machinery; will be " Go a-head—and de ii tak the hind-
most !I"—llfornirry 'Herald.