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__NOTOC__ A postilion (or postillion, occasionally Anglicised to "post-boy"〔) rider was the driver of a horse-drawn coach or post chaise, mounted on one of the drawing horses.〔(Definition of postillion by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. )〕 By contrast, a coachman would be mounted on the vehicle along with the passengers. Postilion riders normally rode the left (or "near") horse of a pair because horses usually were trained only to be mounted from the left.〔(Which side of the road do they drive on? ) Brian Lucas.〕〔Rogers (1900), p. 279〕 With a double team, either there would be two postilions, one for each pair,〔Rogers (1900), pp 282–283, 107〕 or one postilion would ride on the left rear horse in order to control all four horses. Postilions were typically supplied with a special rigid boot for use on their inside (right hand) leg. This appliance provided protection from possible crushing injury due to contact with the central wooden shaft (if any) and the body of the adjacent horse. ==Travel by post== This style of travel was known as "posting."〔Rogers (1900), p. 278〕 The postilions and their horses (known as "post-horses")〔Rogers (1900), p. 282〕 would be hired from a "postmaster" at a "post house."〔 The carriage would travel from one post house to the next (a journey known as a "stage"), where the postilions and/or spent (exhausted) horses could be replaced if necessary.〔 In practice unless a return hire was anticipated a postilion of a spent team frequently was also responsible for returning them to the originating post house. Posting was once common both in England and in continental Europe.〔Rogers (1900), pp. 279–280〕 In addition to a carriage's obvious advantages (a degree of safety and shelter for the inside passengers and accessibility to non-riders) on long trips it tended to be the most rapid form of passenger travel. Individually mounted riders are subject to their personal endurance limits, while posting could continue indefinitely with brief stops for fresh horses and crew. In England, posting declined once railways became an alternative method of transport,〔Rogers (1900), p. 280〕 but it remained popular in France and other countries. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「postilion」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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