e fore-wheels, a stop is discovered, which renders the
process easy. It is difficult to say which is the more remarkable, the
lightness of the waggon, or the lightness of the harness; either is
sufficient to give a nervous feeling of insufficiency to a stranger who
trusts himself to them for the first time; but experience proves both
their sufficiency and their advantage. In due time, we reached the outer
limits of the town; struggling competitors soon appeared, and, in spite
of dust as plentiful as a plague of locusts, every challenge was
accepted; a fair pass once made, the victor was satisfied, and resumed a
more moderate pace. We had already given one or two the go-by, when we
heard a clattering of hoofs close behind us, and the well-known cry,
"G'lang." My friend let out his three-minuters, but ere they reached
their speed, the foe was well on our bow, and there he kept, bidding us
defiance. It is, doubtless, very exciting to drive at the rate of twenty
miles an hour, and though the horses' hoofs throw more gravel down your
throat in five minutes than would suffice a poultry-yard for a week, one
does not think of it at the time.

On we flew; our foe on two wheels and single harness every now and then
letting us get abreast of him, and then shooting ahead like an arrow
from a bow. A few trials showed us the struggle was useless: we had to
deal with a regular "pacer," and--as I have elsewhere remarked--their
speed is greater than that of any fair trotter, although so fatiguing
that they are unable to keep it up for any great distance; but as we had
already turned the bottom of the car into a gravel-pit, we did not think
it worth while to continue the amusement. The reason may be asked why
these waggons have such low splashboards as to admit all the gravel? The
reason is simple. Go-ahead is the great desideratum, and they are kept
low to enable you to watch the horses' hind legs; by doing which, a
knowing Jehu can discover when they are about to break into a gallop,
and can handle "the ribands" accordingly.

A tremendous storm brewing to windward, cut short our intended drive;
and, putting the nags to their best pace, we barely succeeded in
obtaining shelter ere it burst upon us; and such a pelter as it came
down, who ever saw? It seemed as though the countless hosts of heaven
had been mustered with barrels, not buckets, of water, and as they upset
them on the poor devoted earth, a regular hurricane came to the rescue