be
facetious ever since our departure, and whose countenance now exhibited
the most grotesque symptoms of real terror. Never, I am convinced, will
those moments be forgotten by that individual, whose vivacity deserted
him for the remainder of the journey; and whose attitude and
expression, as his extended arms failed to recover his centre of gravity
exchanged for the supine, folded-up posture, unavoidable by the occupant
at the lowest corner of a broken-down vehicle,--while his thoughts
wandered to his absent offspring, whose fond smiles awaited him in
Toledo, but to whom perhaps he was not allowed to bid an eternal
adieu--will live likewise in the memory of his fellow-travellers.

This _denouement_ of the adventures of the first carriage rendered a
long halt necessary; during which, the postilion returned to Madrid on a
mule, and brought us out a second. This proceeding occupied four hours,
during which some entered a neighbouring _venta_, others remained on the
road, seated on heaps of stones, and all breakfasted on what provisions
they had brought with them, or could procure at the said _venta_. The
sight of the vehicle that now approached, would have been cheaply bought
at the price of twenty up-sets. Don Quixote would have charged it, had
such an apparition suddenly presented itself to his view. It was called
a phaeton, but bore no sort of resemblance to the open carriage known in
England by that name. Its form was remarkable by its length being out of
all proportion to its width,--so much so as to require three
widely-separated windows on each side. These were irregularly placed,
instead of being alike on the two sides, for the door appeared to have
been forgotten until after the completion of the fabric, and to have
taken subsequently the place of a window; which window--pursuant to a
praiseworthy sense of justice--was provided for at the expense of a
portion of deal board, and some uniformity.

The machine possessed, nevertheless, allowing for its rather exaggerated
length, somewhat of the form of an ancient landau; but the roof
describing a semicircle, gave it the appearance of having been placed
upside down by mistake, in lowering it on to the wheels. Then, with
regard to these wheels, they certainly had nothing very extraordinary
about their appearance, when motionless; but, on being subjected to a
forward or backward impulse, they assumed, respectively, and
independently of each other, such a zigzag movemen