There are few works of Art which require the aid of so many different Artists as the constructing of a Carriage; there are Wheel-wrights,—Spring,—Axle-tree,—Step,—and Tire,—Black and White Smiths,—Brass Founders,—Engravers,—Painters,—Carvers,—Carpenters,—Joiners,—Trimmers,—Lace Makers,—Lamp Makers,—Curriers,—Collar Makers,—Harness Makers, &c. &c.; and upon the quality of the Materials, and the capacity of these Workmen to execute their respective parts in a perfect manner, and upon the taste and skill of the Coachmaker in combining them, depends the Beauty and the Durability of the Carriage.
ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF CARRIAGES.
The best time to bring out a New Carriage, is about April or May, before the extreme heat comes on; moreover, the Taxes are reckoned from one 5th of April to another: and if you enter a Carriage on the 5th of March, you will have to pay for a whole Year, for only one Month’s use of it.
If you have any thing peculiar about a Carriage, it will require much more time in building, than if you are contented with merely ordering “a fashionable Vehicle.” In the former case, do not hope to get it under Three, nor be surprised if you wait Four Months for it.
However, if you have no particular desire to be disappointed, summon to your assistance the aid of those powerful refreshers of a perfunctory Memory, the Goose, the Calf, and the Bee;[9] i. e. take Mr. Jervis’s advice, and bind the Builder in a written contract, made by your Attorney, and duly Stamped, Signed, Sealed, and Witnessed, &c., to deliver the Carriage, Harness, &c. completely finished on a certain day—or that he shall forfeit, and that day shall pay to You, One Hundred Pounds, and keep his Carriage himself.
Be careful that your Contract contains a full and very particular description of every part; for
Mem.—If you order the least Alteration or Addition afterwards, it will be charged Extra, unless you discreetly insert a sweeping clause, that the Whole shall be completed to your entire satisfaction, for the Money, and at the Time agreed upon.
An Honest Man will have no more objection to sign a written Agreement than to make a Verbal Promise, and a Prudent Man will never take the latter when he can get the former:—the Expense of a written Agreement is Money expended in preventing Anxiety, which is like sacrificing a Pebble to preserve a Diamond:—those who wish to avoid disappointments and litigation, will not stir one step without a Written Agreement—’tis a pretty bit of Paper, that makes men Honest, and keeps them so.
After you have settled what is to be the price of the New Carriage—then, before you sign the Agreement respecting it, make your Bargain as to what Sum the Builder shall allow you for your Old One, provided you do not previously otherwise dispose of it.
The Money allowed for an Old Carriage, is less than a Novice will expect. I sold one Chariot, which I had in use only Five years, for only £15., nor could I get more for it, although I kept it for several Weeks.