Et dire que maintenant, voilà tous les voyageurs qui nous passent devant le nez!..

Trustman, Benjamin A., Trustman, Julia M. · 1843

The print is referring to a situation, which changed drastically the old 'poste aux chevaux'. Once the trains started servicing the longer distances between Paris and Orléans in 1837, the more than 2000 horse service stations became obsolete. Passengers preferred the faster and more secure trains to the horse driven carriages. The coachmen shown in this print lost their jobs and were looking on "with long noses".(Information kindly provided by J.-C. Bastian in “Relais” n°103, Sept. 2008, p.31)