ESTIMATE No. VIII.
JOBBING HORSES.
We think that it is quite as Cheap, and are sure it is by far the most Comfortable plan, toJob Horses:—if one of them falls sick or lame, the Hackneyman immediately furnishes you with another—and you avoid a vast deal of Inconvenience and Anxiety. This begins to be so generally understood now, that not only Coach, but Cart and Waggon Horses areJobbedby the Year,—and Carts and Waggons also.
To Job Horses, is particularly recommended to persons who are ambitious of having an elegant Equipage;—a pair of fine Horses that match exactly are always expensive to purchase; and if one of them dies, it is sometimes, to a private Gentleman, extremely difficult to find a fellow to it.
Horses cannot work equally, nor at ease tothemselves, if they are not nearly of the same Size, of the same Temper, and of the same Strength, and have the same Pace, and Step well together.
A Hackneyman or Horsedealer, who is in an extensive way of business, has so many opportunities of seeing Horses, that he can match a Horse with much less Expense, and more exactly, than any Gentleman or any Groom may hope to do: therefore, those who are particular about the match of their Horses, will find it not merely more expensive, but much more troublesome, to Buy than it is to Job.
Job Masters, in general, Sell, as well as Let Horses;—therefore, stipulate in your Agreement, that you shall, be supplied with various Horses till you are suited to your satisfaction; and then, that neither of them shall be changed without your consent:—for this, a Hackneyman may demand, and deserves, a little larger price; but it is Money paid for the purchase of Comfort,—is the only way to be well served, and prevents all disputes. If you do not make such an Agreement, and your Hackneyman happens to be offered a good price for one of your Horses, he may take it; and Your’s, like many other Carriagesin London, will be little better than a Break:—nothing is more disagreeable, nay, dangerous, than to be continually drawn by strange Horses.
While the Job is travelling in the Country, the Hackneyman is allowed what is called Night, or Hay Money,i. e.an addition of 1s.6d.per Night for each Horse, every Night the Horses are out.
This is considered as a compensation for the increased price charged for Corn at Inns, which is much more than it costs the Hackneyman at Home.
Mem.—Make some previous agreement in Writing about all these things.
Some people who wish their Horses to be in high condition, yet desire to avoid all Risk and Trouble, &c. hire Horses, and find them in Corn, &c. themselves. A good Pair of Horses, without keep, are charged about £70.per Annum.
The Old Proverb tells us, that “The Eye8of the Master makes the Horse Fat.”
“The next care a man should take, after he has found a Horse to his mind, and purchased him, should be to provide a Stable so situated, with respect to his house, that he may see him very frequently, and to have his Stall so contrived, that it may be as difficult a task to steal his Horse’s provender out of theManger, as to take his own victuals out of theLarder.”—FromZenophon’s Treatise on Horsemanship, translated in Berenger’s Entertaining and Instructive Book upon Horsemanship, 4to. 1771. p. 231.
If you have valuable Nags, do not think it time lost, occasionally to visit the Stable, and see that they are comfortably taken care of, have their proper allowance of Corn, and are well bedded, &c., and see that the Corn be not brewed.—A smart Son of the Whip says, that “some Hostlers are so clever, that they can turn Oats into Ale.”
The WordHostler, I find in the most learned Lexicon in our Language, which explains somethousands of words more than Johnson, is written Oat-stealer—which this learned lexicographer says it must be allowed appears to be the true word.
The Dictionary above alluded to is a very deep work:—instead of its containing more words by thousands than are in Johnson,—Johnson does not give us ten words that are in it—nor does it contain much above ten words that are in Johnson: this admirable and elegant Dictionary is entitled “A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, by F. Grose, Esq., F.R.S. &c.”
Some people fancy that they have made a capital Bargain, by stipulating that the Hackneyman shall let their Carriage and Horses stand in his Livery Yard, and so save part of the charge of a private Coach-house and Stable:—if Hackneymen have plenty of Room, they have sometimes no objection to this; however, you must take into the reckoning, that your Carriage, while standing in an open Coach-house, and even while being cleaned in a Public Yard, is unavoidably exposed to continual danger from being carelessly run against by other Carriages passingto and fro: moreover, it is often injured by the dirty Mops and Cloths, and by the careless manner in which it is cleaned. If you wish your Carriage to be turned out in nice condition, you must have your own Coach-house and Stable; it is much more advisable, not only for your own Advantage, but for the Comfort of your Coachman, which you will consider also, if you expect him to consider your Interest.
It is extremely desirable to have Stables, &c. adjoining your House; because a Coachman, when your Carriage is not wanted, has many spare hours in which he may be very useful in carrying Messages, &c.