Comments on: Fridays with General Friend Palmer: “Convenience itself”

By: amy

amy — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:06:32 +0000

Oh my goodness, I love this.

“The town of Detroit was founded as early as the city of Philadelphia, but, favourably as it is situated, it never until lately rose to any thing more than, properly speaking, a large village. There is not a paved street in it, or even a foot-path for a pedestrian. In winter, in rainy weather you are up to your knees in mud; in summer, invisible from dust; indeed, until lately, there was not a practicable road for thirty miles round Detroit.”

Gripes about Detroit’s transportation infrastructure + accusations of inferiority/backwardness/lag go back a while, huh?

I had to look up “caleche,” and after sifting through the perfume ads, it looks about right.

By: Belle Isle

Belle Isle — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:23:00 +0000

There is another entertaining account of this two wheeled cart from an Englishman, Captain Marryat Diary, here:

http://clarke.cmich.edu/detroit/marryat1837.htm

It seems to perhaps be a type of cart called a “caleche”, do you agree?

By: amy

amy — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:32:43 +0000

and yes, I think he meant single horse, two-wheeled cart.

By: amy

amy — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:32:02 +0000

I know, it’s a little hard to visualize. I spent a while looking for a good picture, although once I saw a horse with a dairy cart I kind of had the idea: http://www.jobsdairy.co.uk/picts/Electric%20Vehicles/horse_drawn_cart_02.jpg

By: Joan Ginsberg

Joan Ginsberg — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 20:29:30 +0000

How you can have a single two anything was beyond my comprehension. He meant one horse, right?

“Single two wheeled horsecart” confused the shit out of me and I am so glad you included a picture or I would NEVER have understood it.