OLD COACHING TIMES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16846, 23 September 1922, Page 17

OLD COACHING TIMES.

ON THE NORTH ROAD. THE LATE W. SANSOM. (Contributed by J.L.'W .) With the passing of so well reputed a firm that accomplished so much for the travelling public in the Great North Road over that section between Christchurch and Nelson, some recognition is due to the memory of Mr W . Sansom, the most active partner of the firm of Sansom and Lee, which made coaching a very fine system indeed, one that lias not- been excelled in many respects by the railway. T-s it- possible to convey a true idea of the manner in which the older generation were catered tor with public conveyances in the sixties, and give a good story of the deserving men who set Canterbury interests in motion on the roads, across the dangerous rivers by ferries and defied the dangers of floods or imperfect roads? That story is in preparation, hut this sketch of mine will only concern the part played by Mi W. Sansom from 180-1 to 1872. It deals with the days when he was pushing to the full a public means of getting from place to place in the quickest time with comfort and economy. I was aiming to establish a name and a circulation for the first daily newspaper. There was no concerted action between us, b xl t we were the greatest of friends, and helped oue another in many respects. His coachng ambitions assisted the newspaper enterprise. and my pen and. pencil were at bis service to advocate suggestions for improving the delivery of mails, newspapers and parcels, advance the facilities for travelling, and promote the settlement of the thousands of immigrants pouring into the country at the time stated. Up to the sixties there were various vehicles put on short distances, but 1 am safe in saying that the coach which was the pioneer of the coaching days ba-cl not arrived. It is not necessary to talk about the pioneers here. They had decided to surrender to KingOobb. the magnate from Australia, and a Cobb and Co.’s service started on the North Road in 1864. Mr Sansom and Mr Samuel Lee devised a more popular system, and bought out Cobb’s interests in North Canterbury. Mr Sansom had been in the butchery business, and Mr had been a coachman. They had some capital and a good backing, and took hold of the reins with a determination to succeed, first running between the city and Kaiapoi for passengers and tna-ite. with a, good subsidy from the newspaper proprietors. Besides a large stabling of horse? at Christchurch, the principal stables and headquarters wore at Kaiapoi to meet the extension to Leith field North, Rangiora and Oxford West. When the West Coast diggings broke out the first rush of hundreds of men wa« from the Port and Christchurch through the Weka Pas? and "Waitohi to the Tereme.kau saddle of the mountain range. Coaches and other vehicles helper! the. diggers to the Waitohi on Lance’s Horsier Downs Station. Butin settled times there was a constant local traffic, managed by Sansom and Lee. The firm and its well paid drivers and grooms were a kind of cooperative society, with the object of transporting persons, mails and parcels with the utmost expedition. For instance. the baekblocks settler had merely to send a message by driver or groom that a town plumber was wanted. or that a, dozen shearers would be taken at a given date, or if the “ boss” of a big run wanted his fifty guinea watch repaired by Coates and Co., perhaps only a key fitted-—all these multifarious matters were attended to. The driver of the coach would deliver the watch with whatever suggestions the watchmaker had to offer, and if it fail ed it could be sent for and regulated etc. These details are mentioned to show how the coaching firm got it? hold on the public by making itself indispensable. Jbe. mails were never lost, and - another point no one ever saw the bags

“ chucked ” out as thev see them on the railway. When mails were carried in the “ boot ” of the coach no pas-

senger was allowed to “ yank ” a bag out to get at hi* luggage. The driver had control, and the mail bag? all seemed to be full of glass vessels that were to be carefully handled! Mr San sora, having met with an accident t:> his right hand, seldom drove, but the lour horse teams were tooled by Messrs Miles, Stobo, Greening, Chamberlain and other experts. All horses and vehicles were subject to daily inspection. and a horse looking seedy o’-

lame was forthwith given a spell. If shoes were worn or lost the horse was sent to the farrier, at once. The grooming and washing down of the teams wasa real operation, and the feed and fodder was an undertaking never neglected. At Kaiapoi from forty to sixty horses were stabled in a large building behind Oram’s Pier Hotel, and besides the regular coaches from Christchurch to Kaiapoi, and Kaiapoi to Leithlield, Leith field had a large stable at Paget’s Royal Hotel for the line from Leith - field to Hurunui (at Hastie and Dron' -» Hotel). Then there were the twice-a-day service Kaiapoi to Rangiora. and

once-a-day Rangiora to Oxford and re- j turn. The whole of the direction was i practically in the hands of Mr Sansom, j who not only knew if a particular ■ horse hard a shoe loose, or if some j newspaper subscriber bad not received ! his paper, but also was aware of every J commission that had been given to ;t i driver by a settler to pay money to -i firm or bank in the city, an if Mrs Blank’s bonnet had been called for at Miss Skillicorn’s millinery slxop. For many years the popular seat for the men of influence was the box seat, next to the driver. It was quite the usual thing for persons on the look-out for a coach to make a mental note a? to the box seat passengers. Sometimes it might be Sir F. A. Wild, or his Honor Mr Justice Gresson. or Bishop Harper, or some other person of eminence. The young ladies frequently obtained < distinction by getting to the box seat, and the pleasure of a drive behind four J spanking uorses, with a driver gifted j with palaver, would form a topic for a nont’i's talk, and perhaps be the j event of a lifetime. Ladies who could i influence the reservation of the box seat not only wore the best frocks and hats to impress the local gossips, but j also obtained distinction as the Christchurch coach swung round to the office at the Triangle now occupied by the j D I.C. In times of necessity, such as j when the foundation of Christchurch ! Cathedral was laid, all'the horses that \ could be spared on the side lines and : all the coache* available were put on to \ convey the visitors to town, although j the rain and mud did not favour the j event. The first visit of a member of j the Royal Family, Prince Alfred, Duke j of Edinburgh, was likewise a notable | event. i At times the coaches were overcrowded beyond the seats licensed, and once, only once I believe, Mr Sansom was fined. He took the change out of the “ beak.” Some weeks later the Magistrate who inflicted the fin,? had occasion _to go north, and he boarded Sansom’s coach, which was very well filled. Nothing happened till within, a mile of Kaiapoi, when Mr

ESansom called the driver to pull up while ho counted the passengers. He counted up to the number of his license, and told the rest to get off’, ".’be Magistrate was outside of the rtouut with three others, and they were fold to leave the vehicle, because at Kaiapoi it might be met by a sergeant of police. There was nothing for it but for the ” beak ” to get down and walk into Kaiapoi, in time to be too late for the connecting coach which should have taken him forward that evening to Lelthfield. Many a time when the coach had room it was not uncommon for the driver to pick up and give him a* lift. Thus in many ways the business of the firm was always very strong All wages and charges were paid up on Saturdays before any laoour Apts were thought of to compel regularity. At the close of the coaching period I'll* Sansom was one of a dozen who each put £IOOO into the purchase of the W oollen Company’s property, v.hen the first company was wound up. He invested in Kaiapoi Building Society shares, and was a director. Later ho bought a very' good farm at Southbrook and retired from it to live at, Christchurch, and from his residence for .several years he was to bo seen regularly walking into the Woollen Company’s offices in Manchester Street. There he was one of the directors who could be always found in ” during business hours.