The Lehi banner. [volume] (Lehi, Utah) 1891-1917, 1894-05-17
SKILLED WHIPS.
Something About the London Cab
mon and Their WayA
The Army OF Hardy Men Upon vhssA
tho People Of tho Great Casv
Depend FOR Con-

That "Cabby knows his fare,s h o
truiem. Al the same time. sdnitte1
that our London Jehus are perfectly
well able TO look after themselves. q
will also be granted that they arc an
exceedingly useful body Of public ser
wants, popular with prince and plcbeian
alike, says AN English paper.
A hundred thousand "fares." by n.
moderate computation, are daily taken
wherever they please In London; in
deed, we should not be surprised by the
calculation that $4,000 q day is spent
for this convenience. A recent report
OF the Metropolitan commissioner OF
police put the number Of licensed chan
sons" wo-wheeled cabs, at 1906, and
of "clnrcnccs," OF four-whcelers, at
4.0l3, while there was an increase Of
i,i36-mostly hansoms-in the year 1888.
The number OF cab drivers was 49,
5ii, some of them probably doing night
duty with cabs driven by other men
In the day time. IL In usunl, in such
cases, to put In fresh horses In the after
noon.
Here is an army of skilled whips,
everyone OF whom must pass an official
otlOfG kttt u itttnrSt
and most of whom previously belonged
10 the classes Of persons accustomed 70
manage horses; they were coachmen,
carmen, grooms, or stablemen. Part
of their examination relates TO their,
knowledge of the principal streets OF
London, the railway stations and the
public buildings; they are not required.
we believe, TO learn the table of dis
tances and rates of fares. Differences
OF opinion sometimes arise upon such
points as these, especially with passeur
gers who seem TO be strangers TO the
locality; but the experienced Londoner
knows how to consult an Official table.
and can guess by the time and pace
how far he has travelled In the cab. -,.
In the streets of London, exclusive of
the city, there are about elk hundred
public cab ranks besides those at tina
railway stations, with an average of
nearly ten standings for cabs ut each
place, but these are seldom entirely oc-
cupied. Considering the enforced idle
ness Of the many long hours spent In
waiting for fares, the behavior Of the
men ON these ranks is generally ~ good
az could reasonably be. expected.
A wise and kindly movement, which
deserves greater public support, hss
been sixteen years In progress. 70 or
Cnnize the institution of "cabmcn's
Shelters" with wholesome refresh
ments sold at a fair price, and with Z
little supply Of books and papers 10
read at the cab ranls where these mea
arc detained in sufficient numbers to
make IL worth while. : J.
"Cabmen's shelters" are of different
models and sizes; but those of later
construction are decidedly ornamental
TO the streets, being elegant in design
and often prcttily decorated. They are
OF light wood, yellow deal, with oalsen
| corner posts and oaken curb around tho
bottom. for strength and durability. and
properly fitted In the interior. which IL
divided into two compartments, with
| shelves, tables, seats and lockers, with
a cooking stove, an iron coke bin or
| coal bin, n lead lined or galvanized iro9
sink for washing, place for keeping
| provisions, and a dresser for crockery
and utensils, will cost about one hun;
hundred and seventy 'iivc pounds. The
stove, the hardware and utensils, TWEEN
W UT twenty-five pouhuS hofc.
The Dimensions OF tho new model
eabmcn's shelter are eighteen feet or
eighteen feet elk inches in length. scveu
feet, or seven feet six inches In width,
and ten feetsix inches height; but the
old pattern was seventeen feet long by
six feet or six feet Blk inches wide,
There is room for eight or ten pcrsonS
10 sit comfortably at the table, whils
the attendant in charge has his sepa-
rate compartment and kitchen At the
| end ---'.&A r~
None but cab drivers on the stand arg
admitted, TO the number. IN some In
stancca, Of hundred or moro Ia tho
day, forty or fifty being common sv-
crage number served. They. have tea
or coffee, bread and butter. meat or
eggs or bacon OF the best quality and
wolT cooked, at prices regulated by an
official tariff. Newspapers, popular
magazines. and a few books amuse
their leisure half hours; IL they want
To smoke pipe they can go outside TO
| the cabstand.