Genre:

Letter, Spoof

Subjects:

Railways, Travel, Accidents, Surgery, Medical Treatment, Commerce

    Identifying himself as a former 'extensive stage-coach proprietor', laments the passing of coach travel, especially because victims of coach accidents could usually find a surgeon to deal with their injuries. Compares this with the situation illustrated by a legal trial in which a surgeon sued a railway company for his costs when he attended a victim of an accident on the company's line. The spoof letter-writer urges surgeons to 'ascertain the solvency of the sufferer by a railway accident before rendering him any assistance', and points out that when he ran stagecoaches, he was willing to pay for doctor's bills. Tries to explain why the booming railway companies cannot afford to meet medical bills.