Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Engineering, Animal Behaviour, Cruelty, Transport, Cultural Geography, Nationalism, Commerce, Government

    Begins by explaining the need for horses and vehicles to travel 'Gently over the stones' of London's streets, pointing out that this motion helps crush the 'rough angular pieces of granite [...] into a passable state', stones which otherwise would damage horses' feet. Accuses the Commissioners of Works of the 'hoggish brutality' of not crushing the road stones and presents an extract from the Morning Post describing the use in Paris of 'Steam scavengers' and 'macadamisers' to undertake this task. Believes the heavy steam-roller would be more effective in crushing stones than carriage wheels and horses' feet, and emphasises the fact that the technique is economical and will not scare horses.