Lab
Library
Journal
Shop
Sign in
to keep
Share image
1
318
The Royal Mail: Its Curiosities and Romance
·
James Wilson Hyde
58
On
the
night
of
Tuesday
the
25th
October
1808,
the
road
between
Carlisle
and
Glasgow
was
the
scene
of
a
catastrophe
which
will
serve
to
illustrate
in
a
striking
degree
one
of
the
perils
of
the
postal
service
in
the
mail-coach
era.
The
place
where
the
event
now
to
be
described
occurred,
lies
between
Beattock
and
Elvanfoot
(about
five
miles
from
the
latter
place),
where
the
highway
crosses
the
Evan
Water,
a
stream
which
takes
its
rise
near
the
sources
of
the
Clyde,
but
whose
waters
are
carried
southward
into
Dumfriesshire.
To
be
more
precise,
the
situation
is
between
two
places
called
Raecleuch
and
Howcleuch,
on
the
Carlisle
road;
and
a
bridge
which
now
spans
the
water,
in
lieu
of
a
former
bridge,
retains
by
association,
to
this
day,
the
name
of
the
"Broken
Bridge."
It
was
at
the
breaking
up
of
a
severe
storm
of
frost
and
snow,
when
the
rivers
were
flooded
to
such
an
extent
as
had
never
been
seen
by
the
oldest
people
in
the
neighbourhood.
The
bridge
had
been
but
recently
built;
and
though
it
was
afterwards
stated
that
the
materials
composing
the
mortar
must
have
been
of
bad
quality,
no
doubt
would
seem
to
have
been
entertained
as
to
the
security
of
the
bridge.
The
night
was
dark,
and
accompanied
by
both
wind
and
rain--elements
which
frequently
usher
in
a
state
of
thaw.
The
mail-coach
having
passed
the
summit,
was
speeding
along
at
a
good
round
pace,
the
"outsiders"
doubtless
making
themselves
as
comfortable
as
circumstances
would
allow,
while
the
"insides,"
as
we
might
imagine,
had
composed
themselves
into
some
semblance
of
sleep,
the
time
being
between
nine
and
ten
o'clock,
when,
suddenly
and
without
warning,
the
whole
equipage--horses,
coach,
driver,
guard,
and
passengers--on
reaching
the
middle
of
the
bridge,
went
headlong
precipitate
into
the
swollen
stream
through
a
chasm
left
by
the
collapse
of
the
arch.
It
is
by
no
means
easy
to
realise
what
the
thoughts
would
be
of
those
concerned
in
this
dreadful
experience--pitched
into
a
roaring
torrent,
in
a
most
lonely
place,
at
a
late
hour
on
such
a
night.
The
actual
results
were,
however,
very
serious.
Marker
Marker
Fine marker
White-out
Fine white-out
Circle
Paint
Unmarker
Hand
Scalpel
Dice
Sieve
Purify
Undo
Redo
Start over
