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THE BATH ROAD

    *       *       *       *       *


WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR.


THE BRIGHTON ROAD: Old Times and New on a Classic Highway.

THE PORTSMOUTH ROAD, and its Tributaries, To-day, and in Days of Old.

THE DOVER ROAD: Annals of an Ancient Turnpike.

THE EXETER ROAD: The Story of the West of England Highway. [_In the
Press._

    *       *       *       *       *


[Illustration: GEORGE THE THIRD TRAVELLING FROM WINDSOR TO LONDON, 1806.
(_After R. B. Davis._)]


THE BATH ROAD

History, Fashion, & Frivolity on an Old Highway

by

CHARLES G. HARPER

Author of "The Brighton Road," "The Portsmouth Road,"
"The Dover Road," &c. &c.


[Illustration]


Illustrated by the Author, and from Old Prints and Pictures







London: Chapman & Hall, Limited
1899
(_All Rights Reserved_)




Printed by
William Clowes and Sons, Limited,
London and Beccles.




TO E. T. COOK, ESQ.


_Dear Mr. Cook,_

_It was by your favour, as Editor of the_ DAILY NEWS, _that the very gist
of this book first saw the light, in the form of two articles in the
columns of that paper. It seems, then, peculiarly appropriate that these
pages--representing, in the measurements common to journalists and
authors, a growth from four thousand to some sixty thousand words--should
be inscribed to yourself._

  _Sincerely yours_,
  CHARLES G. HARPER.




_Preface_


_This, the fourth volume in a series of books having for its object the
preservation of so much of the Story of the Roads as may be interesting to
the reading public, has been completed after considerable delay. The_
DOVER ROAD, _which preceded the present work, was published so long ago as
the close of 1895, and in that book the_ BATH ROAD _was (prematurely, it
should seem, indeed) described as "In the Press." Attention is drawn to
the fact, partly in order to point out how quickly and how surely the
old-time aspects of the roads are disappearing; for, since the_ BATH ROAD
_has been in progress, no fewer than four of the old inns pictured in
these pages have disappeared, while great stretches of the road, once
rural, have become suburban, and suburban streets have been so altered
that they are in no wise distinguishable from those of town. It is because
they will preserve the appearance and the memory of buildings that have
had their day and are now being swept off the face of the earth, that it
is hoped these volumes will find a welcome with those who care to cherish
something of the records of a day that is done._

CHARLES G. HARPER.

  PETERSHAM, SURREY,
  _February, 1899_.




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS


SEPARATE PLATES

                                                                    PAGE

   1. GEORGE THE THIRD TRAVELLING FROM WINDSOR TO LONDON,
      1806. (_After R. B. Davis_)                          Frontispiece.

   2. COACHING MISERIES. (_After Rowlandson_)                          7

   3. PASSENGERS REFRESHED AFTER A LONG DAY'S JOURNEY.
      (_After Rowlandson_)                                            13

   4. THE "WHITE BEAR," PICCADILLY                                    23

   5. ALLEN'S STALL AT HYDE PARK CORNER, ABOUT 1756                   35

   6. HYDE PARK CORNER, 1797                                          41

   7. KENSINGTON HIGH STREET, SUMMER SUNSET                           47

   8. COLNBROOK, A DECAYED COACHING TOWN                             101

   9. AN ENGLISH ROAD                                                125

  10. MAIDENHEAD THICKET                                             131

  11. THE STAGE WAGGON. (_After Rowlandson_)                         139

  12. THEALE                                                         143

  13. WOOLHAMPTON                                                    147

  14. RAIL AND RIVER: THE KENNET AND THE GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY       151

  15. AT THE 55TH