Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1876-02-12
COACHING.

tNeW YORK correspondence Odnbu7y NelUS
have in the coming warm season is that of
coaching. A club of enthusiastic New York
gentlemen have already started q club In
year the club did considerable driving from
the city 10 Jerome Park, but it merely ex-
cited curiosity. The idea to the American
mind is strange one. 1t is simply the revival
OF the old passenger and mail coach drawn
by four horses. OF course, since the revi val
is for sport the coach is rather a fine affair,
and the horses something better in breed
than those that formerly drew the mail.
For the time was Ia this country when we
too had mail coaches. No doubt the efforts
OF The coaching club Will result in the estab.
lishment of Gveries for coaches, and that
stablemen will during the summer start
coach excursions. This is being done in
England, where the old coach has gone out
OF fashion and new ones for popular plea Su re
are coming in. We cannot compete with
the English In roads adapted for coaching
nor are our Villages as close together as thJs
OF the other country. Moreover the sun
is hotter and the roads are more
dusty. Nevertheless, IL there were no
Lard times among the very class that would
patonize the public coach the sport would
necone very popular mere, and we should
nave Tie iOnkerS coach, the Green wich
coach, the NJack coach and the Paterson
coach. TO be sure IL is hard to get into Jer-
sey on account of the salt meadows and the
sand, but once Ia you find very fine drives
After striking the PaSsaic river al auy moi Mt
there are as good roads as any one wishes to
flom Orange to Paterson, the scenery is yery
grand. But really, the only available drives
out OF New YORK are DOrthward on the ISL
and; but doubt If there are sufficient inn
accommodations in that direction to make
coaching comfortable. There needs. TO be a
succession OF surprises To make the sport
really eXhilaratiDg. Yet If the sport could
be pOpularized, ii would be very romantic,
Dickens seems TO eXult over the coach. No
man has SO hung IL round with romance. Re-
member that long coach ride in the snow
storm In "HOlly Tree Inn" 1t is the finest
piece OF description l have ever read. In
"Bleak House" he describes the scenery Of the
country road with It's windmills, rick yards
hay, swinging signs and horse trOughs. In the
"Fickwiek Papers" where Mr.. Pickwick is
perched upon the outside OF q coach
the destruction OF women and children work.
ing In the fields is pleasant, but 1T is not
likely That the young bucks OF onr country
are going to be pleased with any such sights.
The sport Is not really gay one, and dOubt
That the average New York American is one
who appreciates the homely pleasures of
county county, riding. There are plenty Of people,
ENJOY excursions occupying more than one
days time, II they could be cheapiy applied.
For instance, ride from New York to the
Jersey Highlands, distance OF forty miles,
country, would be patr0nized. The English
post-coaches make ten miles An hour, aud,
II our excursion coaches make no worse
time, the whole distance could be made in
nve hours, allowing time for changing ho, SEES
at the foot. hills. The Highlands can Already
be reached In a two hours ride on the MID
land RAILROAD, but Of course there can be in
the cars no delightful glimpses of scenery
such as one would get from the top of coach.
/! nave frequently been on an excursion of
this Kind In barouche, and 1t is q wonder
TO me that the Highlands are not more pat
ronized.