Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1931-11-06
/ STAGE COACH
/ sa5 pa. TALES aaE
/ BY E. c.. TAYL OR


j DRESIDENT ZACHARY TAYLOR,
& 40 cold Zach" who had led the
American army that chased Santa An
ma through northern Mexico In the
war with Mexico, ignored the dangers
Of travel by stage coach over the old
National pike while he reyeled In the
beauties of the scenery. h8aaI q
With party of statesmen, politi-
clans and office-seekers, President Tay-
Tor rode over the road In 1S49, be-
tween Cumberland and the Ohio river.
The party rode in, many specially
chartered coaches. The identity Of
their drivers has never been clearly es-
tablished, but they we're the pick OF
the drivers then operating on the road
west Of Cumberland, and probably in
cluded such famous reinsmen as Henry
Farwell, Archie Mcneil and Alfred
Wolf.
The Presidential party was under
the marshalship of Thomas Shriver Of
Cumberland. that ardent Wing. In
cluded in the party was Colonel Bull
let, famous editor Of New Orleans,
who was the Colonel House" Of the
Taylor administration.
The road was glare of Ice; every
thing above ground was heavily coated
with sleet that had been falling for
hours before President Taylor and his
party left Cumberland.
To a southerner like President Tay-
lor, who had never seen the like, 1t
was phenomenon. .a g
Going down spur Of the road from
Meadow mountain, the Presidential
coach, along with all the others,
danced and waltzed on the polished
road, first to one side and then to
the other, every moment threatening
to overturn. But 1t remained upright
under the capable handling of the
driver.
Shriver was In one of the rear
coaches, and was greatly in fear for
the safety of the President. AS the
mountain his bare head could be seen
protruding through the window Of his
coach to discover II the Presidents
coach was still upon its wheels.
The iron-gray head Of Zachary Tay-
lor with almost the same frequency
could be seen outside the window of
the Presidential coach. But Zachary
Taylor was not trying to see after any
body's safety. He was enjoying what
seemed to him an Arctic panama.
After the party had skldded and
lurched along many hills and down
many slopes, and everything was safe,
they finally reached the Narrows, two
miles west Of Cumberland, at twilight.
At the Narrows is one of the most
sublime views along the Atlantic coast.
There Zachary Taylor assumed COM
mand and ordered halt. He got out
in the snow and sleet and looked and
looked at the giddy heights on both
sides Of Wills creek, every twig Of
vegetation and every Inch Of ground
covered with glistening ice.
He had beheld nothing like 1t in his
life before, not even in the beautiful
mountains of northern Mexico when
he was on the trail of the elusive
Santa Anna. .t
It was more than an hour before
the President would permit Shrlver
and the rest of the frightened party
to proceed on their journey.
It was known along the road that
the President and his retinue Of dig
nitaries were making the trip, and
great alarm was felt when they failed
to reach Cumberland at the time they
were due. Every precaution had been
taken. Of course, to insure the Presl-
dents safety, but the people Of Cum.
berland stood about awaiting "Old
Zach" with many misgivlngs.
When President Taylor and his
party finally pulled into Cumberland
they were rendered a huge reception
and the unperturbed general and his
shaken companies dlned, rested, ant
set out the next morning to continue
their Journey to Washington.
President Taylor was only one OF
the nations leaders who Travelled ovel
the famous old pike before the rail
roads had pushed across the ALLIE
ghenies.
Jackson, Van Buren,, Monroe. Har
rison, Polk and Tyler were other chile
executives who rode the stage coaches
over the old National road. a
Others were Henry Clay champion
Of the road In congress, and grea
favorlte with all the stage coach driv
ers; Benton and Cass. Lafayette, tn
Mexican general, Santa Anna, the In
dian chief Black Hawk, John Qulnc
Adams, P. 7. Barnum, and Jenn.
Lind, who returned from her first ton
of the West by stage coaches from tn
Ohio river to the east. l
| (6a 1881 Western Newspaper Union.I sl