days of steam. Jackson, Van Buren, Monroe, Harrison, Polk, and Tyler passed in triumph over portions of the great road. The taverns at which they were fêted are remembered by the fact. Drivers who were chosen for the task of driving their coach were ever after noted men. But there were other guests than presidents-elect, though none received with more acclaim. Henry Clay, the champion of the road, was a great favorite throughout its towns and hamlets, one of which, Claysville, proudly perpetuates his name. Benton and Cass, General Lafayette, General Santa Anna, Black Hawk, Jenny Lind, P. T. Barnum, and John Quincy Adams are all mentioned in the records of the stirring days of the old road. As has been suggested elsewhere, politics entered largely into the consideration of the building and maintenance of the road. Enemies of internal improvement were not forgotten as they passed along the great road which they voted to neglect, as even Martin Van Buren once realized when the axle of his coach was sawed in two, breaking down where the mud was deepest. Many
