Q) I’m doing a bit of research regarding the Brougham carriage and am wondering if you could answer a question for me? How would passengers get the attention of the driver in an enclosed Brougham? Would they knock on the glass or was there some mechanism built in? And is the glass separating the passenger from the driver called a windshield?
A) There were the following different ways of communicating with the driver from inside a Brougham:
1) A cord passed through a hole in the framework of the front window and tied round the left arm of the driver.
2) A flexible “speaking” tube; the passenger could blow into this tube to sound a whistle. The driver then could take out the whistle and put the tube to his ear.
3) A similar tube arrangement which could be used with a code, e.g., take the left turn; two whistles: right turn; three whistles: stop.
The front glass would not be called a windshield: it would simply be called a front glass.
– Tom Ryder