dingelchen:

pilferingapples:

From a French-German/ German-French travel phrasebook published in 1799:

Postilion, stop, the brakes must be attached. 
The descent is quite steep, I wish the brakes to be attached. 

The suspension has snapped.
The coach has overturned. 
The horses have just collapsed. 
The horse is badly wounded. It is dead. 

Gently remove the postilion from beneath the horses. 
 
I believe that the wheels are on fire. Look and see. 

( all translations from Graham Robb’s Discovery of France) 

#oh my god#I almost spit water all over the table at ‘I believe the wheels are on fire.’#I’m just imagining these all said perfectly calmly and with exquisite poise#by some very elegant lady sitting perfectly upright in the middle of dying horses and fire and screaming#i need a better history tag#why aren’t more travel guides/phrasebooks written like this#the horse is badly wounded. it is dead. (via beradan)

#amazing #‘i believe the wheels are on fire.  look and see.’ #HOW DOES THAT EVEN HAPPEN #is it the same thing that killed the horse?? #was it cannon fire? #i have so many questions #this reads like an assassination attempt on the most composed and well-bred lady in existance #i would read that novel (via)

same xD (via muigiel)