THE HANSOM CAB

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 219, 12 June 1933, Page 7

THE HANSOM CAB

Centenary Celebrated THE “NAUGHTY NINETIES” (Reuter —Special to “Dominion”)’ , London, April 18. , You may still sometimes see a hansom cab driving along the London streets,' relic of tile gay days of the “naughty nineties.” of young “bloods” with flowing whiskers, of the days of top hats and tight trousers. But it will be only a tiny band of hansom “cabbies” in a world of taxis who will raise their glasses to the memory of John Aloysius Hansom next mouthjust 100 years after he invented this famous type of cab. In 1886 there were more than seven thousand hansoms licensed; to-day there are four —and they are not often in evidenced except on such occasions as Boat Race night, or Cup-Final day.

It was not cabs, however, but churches .which formed Hansom's main interest in life, for he was an ecclesiastical architect and won a high reputation as a designer of Roman Catholic Churches. Plymouth Cathedral is his work. So. like many another inventor, Hansom’received little the design of his “patent safety cab.” He sold the patent to a company for £lO,OOO, but be received none of this money, for after acting ak manager of the firm for only a short time, he left to carry on with his architectural work. After his resignation the company was less successful,' and he returned to it and once more its prosperity returned with him. For this he received £3O0 — all that he made out of his invention.