Many people found Bradshaw's Guide difficult to understand. In 1869, Anthony Trollope complained "At what hour I shall get to Glasgow I cannot learn without an amount of continued study of Bradshaw for which I have neither strength or mental ability"
Reference:
Simmonds, Jack - The Victorian Railway (Thames & Hudson, 1995) p183
None of the places mentioned in the chorus was on the Midland Counties line.
Reference:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midland_Counties_Railway (accessed 16Apr20)
The Brighton railway did not open until 1840 [i] so the reference must be to a steam coach. This is supported by "all the baiting a coach will require" later in the verse.
The Era was an 18-seater built in 1832 for the London and Brighton Steam Carriage Co
References:
[i] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brighton_railway_station (accessed 23May21)
[ii] Graces Guide to British Industrial History https://gracesguide.co.uk/London_and_Brighton_Steam_Carriage_Co (accessed 23May21)
The Midland Counties' Railway Company existed between 1839 and 1844, connecting Nottingham, Leicester and Derby with Rugby and thence, via the London and Birmingham Railway, to London [i]. Given that the Author was born in 1844; it seems that the line continued to be known as the "Midland Counties" after the company was incorporated into the Midland Railway in 1844
Reference:
[i] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midland_Counties_Railway accessed (16Apr20)
