Herdic
A herdic was a type of horse-drawn carriage, which was frequently used as an omnibus during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
The earliest herdics were painted bright yellow in order to be easily identified and quickly acquired the nickname "canary".
[28] Cab interiors were described by Washington, D.C.'S Evening Star newspaper as "boxlike compartments with glass doors, nicely cushioned and elegantly finished in a rich olive green.
"[29] Peter Herdic found surprisingly rapid success with his cab design when it was quickly adopted in the cities of Boston,[30][31][32] Chicago,[33] Philadelphia, New York, Washington, D.C.,[34][35][36] and numerous other locations.
[51] A hotel proprietor in Denver, Colorado and other entrepreneurs from a wider range of companies also began purchasing Herdics for their own operations.
[53] The first of Herdic's coaches to operate in San Francisco, California began rolling down Montgomery Street on New Year's Day in 1884.
A special rate of two cents per trip was charged by herdics for the route which took passengers down Fourteenth Street to the United States Department of the Treasury's monument and printing bureau, and another special rate of three cents per trip was charged by herdics traveling the two-mile route down Eighteenth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue to the wing of the United States House of Representatives at the U.S.
After achieving millionaire status within a few years of his having introduced the horse-drawn cab that bore his name and made him famous as an inventor, Herdic slipped on an icy walkway in Pennsylvania while inspecting another of his business ventures, the Huntingdon waterworks, in late January 1888.
In 1889, a group of civic leaders in Saint Paul, Minnesota established a committee which oversaw the promotion of stock sales to fund the purchase of new coaches in order to launch a new transit service for their city.
[71] Edward F. Barker subsequently purchased the company and its equipment in July, and promised, via newspaper notices, to "continue the business at the same stand.
And the said lessee hereby covenants and agrees that he has inspected said cab, horses and harness, at the time of their delivery to him, and that they are each and all in good condition and fit for the purpose for which he hires them, and properly adjusted.
And the said lessee hereby assumes the entire responsibility of said horses, cab and harness during the term of this lease, and guarantees the lessor against all loss or damage that shall in any way arise therefrom during their use by him.
[75] As herdic use increased, newspapers across the United States began carrying reports of the physical harm done to the horses that pulled this particular style of cab.
[77][78] Newspaper editors also urged their readers to "refuse to ride in any cab, herdic or carriage drawn by a docked horse, and tell the driver why.
"[79] The process involved amputating a portion of the horse's tail to prevent it from becoming entangled with the harness and carriage equipment, a procedure which has fallen out of favor with multiple present-day veterinary and animal protection groups.
