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CARRIAGE
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CARRIAGE , a See also:term which in its widest signification is used, as its derivation permits, for any See also:form of " carrying "; thus, a See also:person's " carriage " is still spoken of in the sense of the way he bears himself. But it is more specifically the See also:general term for all vehicular structures employed for the purposes of trans-See also:port of merchandise and movable goods and of human beings. Such vehicles are generally mounted on wheels, but the sledge and the See also:litter are types of the exception to this See also:rule. Within this See also:definition a vast variety of forms is included, ranging from the coster's See also:barrow and See also:rude See also:farm-See also:cart up to the luxuriously appointed sleeping-cars of See also:railways and the See also:state carriages of royal personages. A narrower application, however, limits the term to such vehicles as are used for the See also:conveyance of persons and are See also:drawn by horses, and it is with carriages in this restricted sense that we are here concerned. Tramcars, railway carriages and motor-cars are dealt with in other articles.
See also:History.—A wheeled carriage appears to have been in very general use in See also:Egypt at an See also:early See also:period, called a See also:car or See also:chariot (q.v.); in the See also:Bible the word is usually translated " chariot." The bodies of these chariots were small, usually containing only two persons See also:standing upright. They were very See also:light, and could be driven at See also:great See also:speed. They were narrow, and therefore suitable to Eastern cities, in which the streets were very narrow, and to mountainous roads, which were often only 4 ft. wide. From Egypt the use of chariots spread into other countries, and they were used in See also:war in large See also:numbers on the great plains of See also:Asia. We read of the 900 chariots of Jabin, See also: From the See also:ancient sculptures preserved from See also:Nineveh and See also:Babylon, some of which are in the See also:British Museum, we observe the use of chariots continued for the purpose of See also:hunting as well as for war. See also:Homer describes the See also:chief warriors on both sides at the See also:siege of See also:Troy as going into See also:battle and fighting from their chariots. The See also:Roman nation as it increased in See also:power adopted the car, though chiefly for purposes of show and state. A beautiful See also:marble See also:model of one of these still exists at the Vatican in See also:Rome: a copy of it and the horses See also:drawing it is in the museum at See also:South See also:Kensington. The war chariots used by the Persians were larger; the See also:idea seems to have been to form a sort of See also:turret upon the car, from which several warriors might shoot or throw their spears. These chariots were provided with curved See also:blades projecting from the See also:axle-trees. See also: The See also:Romans established the use of carriages as a private means of conveyance, and with them carriages attained great variety of form as well as richness of ornamentation. In all times the employment of carriages depended greatly on the See also:condition of the roads over which they had to be driven, and the See also:establishment of See also:good roads, such as the See also:Appian Way, constructed 331 B.C., and others, greatly facilitated the development of carriage travelling among the Romans. In Rome itself, and probably also in other large towns, it was necessary to restrict travelling in carriages to a few persons of high See also:rank, owing to the narrowness and crowded state of the streets. For the same See also:reason the transport of goods along the streets was forbidden between sunrise and sunset. For long journeys and to convey large parties the reda and carruca appear to have been mostly used, but what their construction and arrangements-were is not known. During the See also:empire the carriage which appears in representations of public ceremonials is the carpentum. It is very slight, with two wheels, sometimes covered, and generally drawn by two horses. If a carriage had four horses they were yoked abreast, among the Greeks and Romans, not in two pairs as now. From the carruca are traced' the See also:modern See also:European names,—the See also:English carriage, the See also:French carrosse and the See also:Italian carrozza. The See also:sir See also:pea was a very ancient form of vehicle, the body of which was of See also:osier See also:basket-See also:work. It originated with the Gauls, by whom it was named benna, and by them it was employed for the conveyance of persons and goods in See also:time of See also:peace, and baggage during war. With its name are connected the modern French banne, banneton, vannerie and panier,—all indicating basket-work. The ancient Britons used a car for warlike purposes which was evidently new to the Romans. It was open in front, instead of at the back as in their cars; and the See also:pole, which went straight out between the horses, was broad, so that the See also:driver could walk along, and if needful drive from the end. Above all, it possessed a seat, and was called essedum from this peculiarity. For war purposes this car was provided with scythes projecting from the ends of the axle-trees. See also:Cicero, See also:writing to a friend in See also:Britain, remarks " that there appeared to be very little See also:worth bringing away from Britain except the chariots, of which he wished his friend to bring him one as a See also:pattern." The Roman vehicles were sometimes very splendidly ornamented with gold and See also:precious stones; and covered carriages seem more and more to have become appendages of Roman pomp and magnificence. Sumptuary See also:laws were enacted on See also:account of the public extravagance, but they were little regarded, and were altogether abrogated by the See also:emperor Alexander See also:Severus. Suetonius states that See also:Nero took with him on his travels no less than a thousand carriages. On the introduction of the feudal See also:system the use of carriages was for some time prohibited, as tending to render the vassals less See also:fit for military service. Men of all grades and professions rode on horses or mules, and sometimes the monks and See also:women on she-asses. Horseback was the general mode of travelling; and hence the members of the See also:council, who at the See also:diet and on other occasions were employed as ambassadors, were called Rittmeister. In this manner also great lords made their public entry into cities. Covered carriages (see COACH) were known in the beginning of the 15th See also:century, but their use was confined to ladies of the first rank; and as it was accounted a reproach for men to ride in them, the See also:electors and princes sometimes excused their non-attendance at meetings of the state by the plea that their See also:health would not permit them to ride on horseback. Covered carriages were for a long time forbidden even to women; but about the end of the 15th century they began to be employed by the emperor, kings and princes in journeys, and afterwards on state occasions. In 1474 the emperor See also:Frederick III. visited See also:Frankfort in a See also:close carriage, and again in the following See also:year in a verymagnificent covered carriage. Shortly afterwards carriages began to be splendidly decorated; that, for instance, of the electress of See also:Brandenburg at the See also:tournament held at See also:Ruppin in 1 509 was gilded all over, and that of the duchess of See also:Mecklenburg was hung with red satin. When See also:Cardinal Dietric'hstein made his entrance into See also:Vienna in 1611, See also:forty carriages went to meet him; and in the same year the See also:consort of the emperor See also:Matthias made her public entrance on her See also:marriage in a carriage covered with perfumed See also:leather. The See also:wedding carriage of the first wife of the emperor See also:Leopold, who was a See also:Spanish princess, cost, together with the See also:harness, 38,000 florins. Those of the emperor are thus described: " In the imperial coaches no great magnificence was to be seen; they were covered over with red See also:cloth and See also:black nails. The harness was black, and In the whole work there was no gold. The panels were of See also:glass, and on this account they were called the imperial glass coaches. On festivals the harness was ornamented with red See also:silk fringes. The imperial coaches were distinguished only by their having leather traces; but the ladies in the imperial See also:suite were obliged to be contented with carriages the traces of which were made of See also:ropes." At the magnificent See also:court of See also:Duke Ernest See also:Augustus at See also:Hanover, in 1681, there were fifty gilt coaches with six horses each. The first time that ambassadors appeared in coaches on a public solemnity was at the imperial See also:commission held at See also:Erfurt in 1613. Soon after this time coaches became See also:common all over See also:Germany, not-withstanding various orders and admonitions to deter vassals from using them. These vehicles appear to have been of very rude construction. See also:Beckmann describes a view he had seen of See also:Bremen, painted by See also: In 1564 See also:Pope See also:Pius IV. exhorted the cardinals and bishops not to ride in coaches, according to the See also:fashion of the times, but to leave such things to women, and themselves ride on horseback. The use of coaches in Germany in the 16th century was not less common than in See also:Italy. The current of See also:trade, especially from the See also:East, had for a long time poured into those two countries towards See also: But See also:plain and rude as was the first coach of Louis XIV., it was in his reign, which lasted till 1715, that the most rapid progress was made. The See also:credit for this is equally due to Germany, Italy, France and England. There is very little mention made by historians of See also:steel springs, but they were first applied to See also:wheel carriages about 1670, See also:prior to which bodies were suspended by long straps from the four corners to pillars erected upon the under carriage. The great See also:advantage of the introduction of springs was speedily recognized as reducing vibration, enabling carriages to be built much lighter and lessening the See also:draught for the horses. In the See also:diary of See also:Samuel See also:Pepys there are many amusing and interesting references to the See also:art of coach-building, which was beginning to attract much attention at that period. In the French Encyclopedia (1772) by See also:Diderot there are elaborate descriptions of the art of coach-building, the workshops and tools used, and plates of the different carriages in use. The 18th century is remarkable for the rapid development which took See also:place, more especially in the manufacture of state carriages of a sumptuous and ornate See also:character, which were largely in demand by the various courts of Europe. One of the most beautiful of these is that belonging to the imperial See also:family of Vienna, which was built in 1696, and is shaped with all the curves that are See also:familiar to us in cabinets and See also:furniture of the See also:style of Louis XIV. The panels are beautifully painted with See also:nymphs in the style of See also:Rubens. There is an unusual quantity of See also:plate glass in the panels, and on the centre of the roof is a large imperial See also:crown. In 1757 was built the elaborate state coach of the See also:city of London. and in 1761 the royal state coach of England, built for King See also:George III. (see COACH). During the reigns of George II. and George III. all English manufactures had received an immense impulse from the See also:energy of the men of the time, in which they were much encouraged by the See also:action of the Society of Arts in offering See also:money prizes for improvements; and in these coach-builders largely participated.
In the year 1804 See also:Obadiah Elliot patented his See also:plan for See also:hanging vehicles upon elliptical springs, thus dispensing with the heavy See also:wood and See also:iron See also:perch and See also:cross beds, invariably used in four-wheeled carriages up to that time. Elliot was rewarded by the See also: Public carriages for hire, or See also:hackney (q.v.j coaches, were first established in London in 1625. In 1635 the number was restricted to fifty. Still they increased, notwithstanding the opposition of the court and king, who thought they would break up the roads, till in 165o there were as many as 300. In Paris they were introduced during the minority of Louis XIV. by See also:Nicholas Sauvage, who lived in the See also:rue St See also: 'In the year 1786 the prince of Wales, afterwards George IV., began to erect the See also:pavilion at See also:Brighton, and this led to a great increase of See also:traffic, so that in 182o no less than 70 coaches daily visited and See also:left Brighton. The number continued to increase, until in 1835 there were as many as 700 mail coaches throughout Great Britain and See also:Ireland. The system of road construction introduced by Mr See also:McAdam during this time was of great value in facilitating this development.
Notwithstanding the competition of the See also:sedan-See also:chair (q.v.), the hackney-coach held its place and See also:grew in importance, till it was supplanted about 1820 by the cabriolet de place, now shortened into " cab " (q.v.), which had previously held a most important place in Paris. In that city the cabriolet came into great public favour about the middle of the 18th century, and in the year 1813 there were 1150 such vehicles plying in the Parisian streets. The See also:original cabriolet was a See also:kind of hooded See also:gig, inside which the driver sat, besides whom there was only See also:room left for a single passenger. For hackney purposes Mr Boulnois introduced .a four-wheeled cab to carry two persons, which was followed by one to carry four persons, introduced by Mr See also:Harvey, the prototype of the London " four-See also:wheeler."
The See also:hansom patent safety cab (1834) owes its invention to J. A. Hansom (q.v.), the architect of the Birmingham See also:town-See also: In the time of See also: The early portion of Queen Victoria's reign was an See also:age of much emulation; the best-equipped carriages of that period, distinctive of See also:noble families and See also:foreign embassies, with their graceful outline and superb appointments, and harnessed to a splendid breed of horses—all harmoniously blended, perfect insymmetry and adaptation—gave to the London See also:season, more especially on drawing-room days, and at other times in See also:Hyde See also:Park, an attractiveness unequalled in any other See also:capital. After the death of the prince consort, the pageantry of that period very much declined and, except as an appendage of See also:royalty, full-dress carriages have since been comparatively few, though there are hopes of a revival in this direction. Meanwhile, owing to the rapid development of railways and the wide See also:extension of commerce, the demand for carriages greatly increased. The larger types gave place to others of a lighter build and more general utility, in which in some cases an infusion of See also:American ideas made its See also:appearance. In accordance with the universal rule of See also:supply See also:meeting the demand, Mr Stenson, an ironmaster of See also:Northampton, was successful in producing a mild See also:forging steel, which proved for some years, until the manufacture ceased, very conducive to the See also:object of securing lightness with strength. In the early 'seventies the eminent mechanician, Sir See also:Joseph See also:Whitworth, in the course of his scientific studies in the perfecting of See also:artillery, succeeded in manufacturing a steel of great purity, perfectly homogeneous and possessing marvellous tenacity and strength, known as " fluid compressed steel." Incidentally carriage-building was able to participate in the results of this See also:discovery. Two firms well known to Sir Joseph were asked to test its merits as a material applicable to this See also:industry. In this test much difficulty was experienced, the nature of the steel not being favourable to See also:welding, of which so much is required in the making of coach ironwork; but after much perseverance by skilful hands this was at length accomplished, and for some years there existed not a little rivalry in the use of this material, more especially in the case of carriages on the C and under-spring principle, which for lightness, elegance and luxurious riding left nothing to be desired. Many of these carriages may be referred to to-day as rare examples of constructive skill. Unfortunately, the original cost of the material, still more of the labour to be expended upon it, and the difficulty of educating men into the art of working it, were effectual barriers to its general See also:adoption. The idea, however, had taken hold, and attention was given by other firms to the manufacture of the steel now in general use, admitting of easier application, with approximate, if not equal, results. From C and under-spring carriages there arose another application of springs which was very prominently before the public during this period, by means of which it was professed that two drawbacks recognized in the C and under-spring carriages were obviated, which were caused by the perch or bar which passes under the body holding the front and See also:hind parts in rigid connexion, and yet making use of a form of spring to which the same terms may be applied. These objections are the See also:weight of the perch, and the See also:limitation which it causes to the facility of turning, which in narrow roads and crowded thoroughfares is an inconvenience. The objection to weight is, however, minimized by the introduction of steel, and as the more advanced builders almost always construct the perch with a forked See also:arch in front, allowing the wheels to pass under, the difficulty of a limited See also:lock is in a great measure overcome (fig. 1). It must be noted, however (and this cannot be too emphatically stated), that the so-called C springs above referred to are not at all the same in action as the C spring proper; they are but an See also:elongation of the See also:ordinary elliptic spring in the form of the See also:letter C (fig. 2), without adding anything to, but rather lessening ,their See also:elasticity, and entirely ignoring the principle of suspension by leather braces over the C spring proper, by which alone the advantage of See also:superior ease is to be obtained. Another improvement which stamps the period under See also:review is the introduction of indiarubber for the tires of wheels. To produce a carriage as nearly as possible See also:free from See also:noise and rattle has always been the aim of high-class coachmaking. A structure composed of wood, iron and glass, with axle-trees, doors, windows, lamps and other parts, in use upon the road in all weathers, must from time to time require some attention with this object. To meet this difficulty, the introduction of indiarubber has been received by carriage-users as a great boon: It was about the year 1852 that Mr Reading, who at that time was known as a builder of invalid carriages, conceived the idea of encircling wheels with that material, but his method only admitted of its use on vehicles travelling slowly over good roads. This was improved upon at a later date by Uriah See also:Scott, who, taking advantage of the tempering capacity of indiarubber by the chemical action of See also:sulphur, produced an inner rim of such See also:density as to hold bolts, by which it could be secured through the See also:felloe, forming a See also:base for the See also:outer covering of soft pliable See also:rubber. This system was attended with satisfactory results, and was in favour for some years with persons whose health needed such See also:provision. Another method, originated by Mr Mulliner of See also:Liver-See also:pool in the early 'seventies, was to See also:screw on iron flanges to the outer and inner sides of the felloes, having a kind of See also:lip to See also:press into the indiarubber filling the intervening space; but the cost of this—L36 per set—rendered its adoption prohibitive. Mean-while another invention by Uriah Scott, afterwards improved upon by an American patentee, came into use; this was known as the "rubber-cushioned axle," cylindrical rings being introduced between the axle-box and hub of the wheel, thus insulating the body of the carriage from the concussion of the road. This, however, necessitated the cutting away of so much of the See also:timber of the hub as to impair its durability, and had, therefore, after a few years' experience, to be abandoned in favour of an invention by a Parisian builder, who introduced indiarubber See also:bearings between the spring and axle-See also:tree. This was thoroughly practicable, and met with general See also:acceptance, and it is still used in See also:conjunction with iron and steel tires. In 1890 the pneumatic See also:tire was first applied to road carriages. Its bulky appearance is a great See also:drawback, contrasting strongly with the qualities which distinguish a graceful equipage; and in spite of its See also:practical advantages it never became popular in England or See also:America. In Paris and its neighbourhood and many parts of France, pneumatic tires are to be seen in frequent use both on public and private conveyances. In another form the indiarubber tire has become of almost universal applica- \ tion. Owing to an ingenious invention of Mr Carment, what appeared to be an in-superable difficulty in See also:rolling a grooved tire was overcome (fig. 3). This so simplified 3 the application as to bring the cost within practicable limits. The grooved tire is now made in several sections, in some of which the inward See also:projection for securing the rubber is dispensed with, this being kept in position by wires See also:running through the whole length, and electrically welded at the point of contact. Whatever be the method chosen for securing the tire, the best tires, both for durability and ease, are those in which the rubber provided is most resilient in its nature. For the lifting and lowering of the hoods of victorias and other such carriages, and the opening and closing of landaus, there are now many automatic contrivances, of which the simplest are the most to be preferred. The See also:quarter-light or five-glass See also:landau is a carriage which has been greatly improved. The complicated adjustments of pillars, windows and roof have been replaced by one See also:simple parallel See also:movement. The first public See also:exhibition of a finished carriage on this principle was by an English See also:firm at the Paris Exhibition of 1876 (fig. 4). In the See also:matter of style certain types of carriages have passed through marked changes. Extreme lightness was at one time considered by many the one desideratum both as to appearance and actual weight, in providing which ease of movement and comfortable seating of the occupants became secondary considerations---though to these extremes builders of repute were always opposed. Still, when at the See also:International Exhibition of Paris 1889, it was seen that the Parisian builders had suddenly. gone in the opposite direction, the See also:world of fashion in carriages was taken by surprise. From being built upon easy, flowing, graceful lines, it was seen, with some revulsion of feeling, that these were to be displaced by the deep, full-bodied victoria, brougham and landau. Only by slow degrees did this characteristic find acceptance with English connoisseurs, and then only in a modified form, though eventually in a greater or less degree it is now the prevailing style. While the better types of English carriages are still pre-eminent in their constructive qualities, and represent the well-known characteristics of individual firms, some emulation may be excited by the elegant See also:taste and careful workmanship which French builders display in points of finish, both internally and externally. Of the various types of carriages now in See also:vogue, the victoria, in its many varieties of form, is the most popular, accompanied, as of See also:necessity, by the See also:double victoria, sociable, brougham, landaulet and landau. Four-in-See also:hand coaches for private use, as well as the " road " coaches, are built on a smaller scale than formerly; 6 ft. 8 in. may now be taken as the See also:standard height of the roof from the ground. Owing to the encouragement given by the Four-in-hand and Coaching Clubs, the ascendancy of this style of See also:driving is still preserved to Great Britain; and in association with it the See also:char-a-banc, mail phaeton, wagonette, and four-wheel dog-cart retain their popularity. Of two-wheeled vehicles the See also:polo-cart and ralli-cart are most in favour, to which may be added the governess-car, which is found convenient for many purposes not implied by its name. For a few years an effort was made, but with very indifferent success, to bring into fashion the tandem-cart, which may again be considered almost obsolete in England. America has long held a prominent position in connexion with the carriage industry. In all the chief cities manufactories on a See also:colossal scale are to be found, producing thousands of vehicles annually and equipped with the most perfect labour-saving machinery; and as vehicles of any particular pattern—many of small value—are required, not singly, but in large numbers, much See also:economy is exercised in their manufacture. It is remarkable that, as a contrast to the popular See also:buggy, See also:wagon and rockaway of the See also:United States, which are to be found in See also:infinite variety, carriage establishments of the wealthy are not considered complete unless furnished with some of a European character, selected from the most eminent firms of London or Paris, in addition to others of their own manufacture. In Paris preference is given to an excess of bulk, with elaborate See also:scroll ornamentation and diminutive windows, forming indeed, by reason of its exaggeration, a distinctive class. In respect of workmanship and finish, carriages by the best-known American builders leave nothing to be desired. The International Exhibition of Paris 190o brought together examples from various continental countries, in some of which a preference for See also:curvilinear outline was displayed, but the best examples followed very closely the well-known English styles. In the French See also:section it was interesting to find a revival of the once all-prevailing chariot, See also:barouche and britzska, suspended on C and under-springs, with perch, but with ideas of lightness somewhat out of proportion to their general character. Coach-making, or the carriage-manufacturing industry, is a See also:combination of crafts rarely united in one trade, embracing as it does work in such See also:divers materials as wood, iron, steel, See also:brass, cloth, silk, leather, See also:oils and See also:colours, glass, See also:ivory, See also:hair, indiarubber, &c. Many divisions of labour and numerous highly-skilled artisans are consequently employed in the various stages in the construction of a high-class carriage. The workmen include body-makers, who build up the parts in which persons sit; carriage-makers, who make and fit together all the under parts of the vehicle on which the body rests; wheelwrights, joiners and fitters; several classes of smiths, for See also:special work connected with the strengthening of the body See also:frame-work by means of long edge plates, tha construction of under See also:works, tiring and wheels, manufacture of springs, axle-trees, &c. See also:Painting is an important part. of the business, those professing it being divided into body, carriage and See also:heraldry painters. Trimmers are needed who fit up the upholstery of the interior, and See also:budget trimmers who sew on the patent leather covering to dasher wings, &c. A very great See also:deal in the coach-making industry depends upon the selection of materials. Ash is the kind of wood required in the framework both of body and carriage. The quality best suited for the body is that of full-grown mild and free nature; for the carriage that which is strong and robust; that for carriage-poles should be of younger growth, straight and tough in quality. An important See also:consideration is the seasoning of this timber. Planks of various thicknesses are required, varying from 12 in. to 6 in., the time required for seasoning being one year for every See also:inch of thickness. After the framework is made, the body is panelled with i in. mild See also:Honduras See also:mahogany, plain and free from See also:grain, every See also:joint and groove care-fully coated with ground white See also:lead to exclude See also:water. The roof is covered with i in. wide See also:pine boards, unless when superseded by an American invention, by which, in See also:order to obtain the needful width frequently of 5 ft. or upwards, boards are cut from the circumference of the tree, instead of through its See also:diameter; three thicknesses of very thin wood are then glued together under pressure, the grain of the centre running across the outer plies, the whole forming a solid covering without See also:joints. See also:Birch and See also:elm of i in. thickness also enter into the construction in many carriages; for See also:floor and lining boards pine is the material used. Wheel-making is a very important See also:branch of the business, in which, owing to the increased lightness now required, many modern improvements have been introduced. The timber used in an ordinary carriage wheel is wych elm for the naves, See also:heart of See also:oak for the spokes, and ash for the felloes. American See also:hickory has of See also:late years been also largely used for spokes in exceptionally light wheels, as well as the American method of making the rim in two sections of straight-grained ash or hickory See also:bent to the required circle. This method has much to recommend it, more especially for wheels with indiarubber tires, in which the wood felloes are not required to be nearly so deep as for steel tires. One well-known feature in light wheels is the " See also:Warner See also:nave," which is a solid iron casting with mortices to receive the spokes, and being of small diameter gives the wheel a light appearance. For springs the finest quality of steel is made from See also:Swedish ore, but the ordinary English spring steel by the best makers leaves nothing to be desired. To secure the most perfect elasticity it is important that the tapering down of the ends of each plate should be done by hand labour on the See also:anvil, and that the plates should not be more than in. in thickness. To obtain cheapness wholesale spring-makers adopt the method of squeezing the ends of spring plates between See also:eccentric rollers, and so produce the tapered form, which, however, is too See also:short and gives a lumpy and unsightly appearance to the spring when put together, so that by this they lose much of their pliability. The iron mounting of coach work requires the skill of experienced smiths, and gives See also:scope for much taste and See also:judgment in shaping the work, and providing strength suited to the relative See also:strain to which it will be subjected. Axle-trees are not made by, coach-builders, but by firms who make it their special business. hey are of two kinds, the " mail," which are secured to the wheel by threebolts passing through the nave, and the " collmge " (invented in 1792), the latter made secure by See also:gun-See also:metal See also:cone-shaped collets and nuts. The axle boxes which are wedged into the nave are of three kinds, See also:cast, chilled and wrought iron, in all cases case-hardened, the first being the cheapest and the last the most costly. Many attempts have been made to improve upon the collinge axle-tree, but none of them has got far beyond the experimental stage. No branch of coach-building contributes more to the elegance of the vehicle than that of painting. To obtain the needful perfection the work has to pass through several stages before reaching the See also:finishing colour, which must be of the finest quality. The See also:varnish used is See also:copal, of which there are two kinds, the one for finishing the body, the other the carriage. In first-class work as many as eighteen or twenty coats will be required to complete the various stages. Af ter a carriage has been in use about twelve months, it is practicable to revive the brilliant See also:gloss on the panels by hand-polishing with the aid of rottenstone and oil, a See also:process which requires a specially trained See also:man to do successfully. The trimming of the interior of a carriage requires much skill and judgment on the part of the workmen in providing really comfortable, well-fitted seats and neatness of workmanship. In the middle of the 19th century figured tabaret or satin were much used, but for many years past See also:morocco has been almost universally preferred. Silk lutestring spring curtains, See also:Brussels or velvet See also:pile See also:carpet, complete the interior, unless are added neat morocco covered trays with See also:mirror, &c., for ladies' convenience. Electric light is now frequently used for the interior, and can be applied with much neatness and efficiency. Road lamps, door handles, polished See also:silver or brass furniture, are supplied to the coach-builder by firms whose special business it is to make them. See also:Lever brakes are now a very ordinary requirement. Much judgment is needful to make them efficient, and careful workmanship to prevent rattle. Indiarubber is the best material for blocks applied to steel tires, and cast iron for indiarubber tires. The " Bowden See also:wire " recently introduced is in some cases a convenient and light alternative to the long bar connecting the handle with the hind cross levers, and has the advantage of passing out of sight through the interior of the body. (J. A. 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[back] CARRERA, JOSE MIGUEL (1785-1821) |
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