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Practical
GraphQL
Learning Full-Stack GraphQL
Development with Projects
—
Nabendu Biswas
 Practical GraphQL
Learning Full-Stack GraphQL
Development with Projects

Nabendu Biswas
Practical GraphQL: Learning Full-Stack GraphQL Development with
Projects
Nabendu Biswas
Bhopal, India

ISBN-13 (pbk): 978-1-4842-9620-2 ISBN-13 (electronic): 978-1-4842-9621-9

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-9621-9

Copyright © 2023 by Nabendu Biswas

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This book is affectionately dedicated to my wife and kid.
Table of Contents
About the Author���������������������������������������������������������������������������������ix

About the Technical Reviewer�������������������������������������������������������������xi

Introduction���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������xiii

Chapter 1: Getting Started��������������������������������������������������������������������1

Initial Setup������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������1
Summary����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������3
Chapter 2: Queries��������������������������������������������������������������������������������5
Setting Up the GraphQL Server������������������������������������������������������������������5
Scalar Types���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������10
Array Types�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������15
Array of Objects����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������19
Querying a Single Object��������������������������������������������������������������������������22
Queries for Genres�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������24
Relating Genre to Courses������������������������������������������������������������������������27
Relating Courses to Genre������������������������������������������������������������������������30
Reorganizing the Code�����������������������������������������������������������������������������32
Using Context�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������36

v
Table of Contents

Adding Reviews����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������39
Adding Filtering����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������42
Filter by Average Rating���������������������������������������������������������������������������46
Summary��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������48
Chapter 3: Mutations��������������������������������������������������������������������������49
Creating Data�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������49
Deleting Data��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������57
Updating Data�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������68
Summary��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������75
Chapter 4: Full-Stack GraphQL�����������������������������������������������������������77
The Setup�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������77
Create an Express Server�������������������������������������������������������������������������78
Set Up GraphQL����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������80
Client Queries�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������82
Project Queries�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������85
Cloud MongoDB����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������89
Mongoose Models and Fetching Data����������������������������������������������������100
Client Mutations�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������104
Project Mutations�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������107
Client with React������������������������������������������������������������������������������������114
Apollo Setup for the Client���������������������������������������������������������������������120
Adding the deleteClient and addClient Mutations����������������������������������125
Displaying Projects and the React Router����������������������������������������������133

vi
 Table of Contents

Displaying a Single Project���������������������������������������������������������������������140

Creating the addProject and deleteProject Mutations����������������������������144
Updating the Project and Cascade Delete����������������������������������������������154
Summary������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������161
Chapter 5: Creating an App with Prisma������������������������������������������163
The Setup�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������163
ElephantSQL Setup���������������������������������������������������������������������������������168
Configuring Prisma���������������������������������������������������������������������������������172
Creating the Schema and First Mutation������������������������������������������������176
More Queries and Mutations������������������������������������������������������������������183
Creating the postDelete and postSignup Mutations�������������������������������188
Adding Validators�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������191
Password Encrypting�����������������������������������������������������������������������������194
Implementing JWT���������������������������������������������������������������������������������195
Creating the Sign-in Mutation����������������������������������������������������������������199
Authorized User��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������202
Publishing and Unpublishing Posts��������������������������������������������������������209
Other Queries�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������212
Summary������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������220
Chapter 6: Connecting with the Front End����������������������������������������221
The Setup�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������221
Connecting the Client to the Server and the First Query������������������������223
Querying with Variables�������������������������������������������������������������������������227
Rendering Based on the User Profile�����������������������������������������������������231

vii
Table of Contents

Adding an Auth Token�����������������������������������������������������������������������������234

Publishing and Unpublishing Mutations�������������������������������������������������241
Creating the SignIn and SignUp Mutations���������������������������������������������245
Adding a Post Mutation��������������������������������������������������������������������������252
Summary������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������256

Index�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������257

viii
About the Author
Nabendu Biswas is a full-stack JavaScript
developer and has been working in the IT
industry for the past 16 years for some of
world’s top development firms and investment
banks. He is a passionate tech blogger and
YouTuber and currently works as an Architect
in an IT firm. He is also the author of six Apress
books focusing on topics such as Gatsby,
MERN, TypeScript and React Firebase, all of
which can be found on Amazon.

ix
About the Technical Reviewer
Preethi Vasudev is an Oracle Certified Java
programmer with more than 20 years of
industry experience in investment banking,
healthcare, and other domains. She has a
master’s degree from Auburn University,
Alabama, and enjoys participating in coding
competitions.

xi
Introduction
GraphQL is revolutionizing how we develop and build websites. Seen
as an alternative to REST APIs, this query language has become popular
among developers and engineers who are looking for a query language
to help them quickly develop and deploy applications and features with
minimal fuss.
Starting with the basics, this book will teach you how to set up
GraphQL and key details regarding queries and mutations, before moving
on to more advanced, practical topics and projects.
You will gain a full understanding of the full web development
ecosystem from front end to back end, by learning to build React
applications using Prisma Apollo Client and MongoDB. Using a project-­
based approach, this book will equip you with all the practical knowledge
needed to tackle full enterprise projects and turbocharge your skills and
projects.

xiii
CHAPTER 1

Getting Started
In this book, you will learn about GraphQL. GraphQL is a new way to
create APIs. Traditional APIs were created with REST. The problem with
REST is that even when you need a subset of data, the endpoint gives all
the data from the databases.
This is a waste of precious network resources. So, in this book, you will
learn all about GraphQL. Here, you will learn to create APIs in a new way
in NodeJS. You will also learn to connect them to the front end.

Initial Setup
In this first chapter, you will learn how to install GraphQL on your system.
Also, you will learn to add extensions for GraphQL on VS Code to help you
in the development process.
To start using GraphQL, you need to have NodeJS installed on
your system. You will be using VS Code in your project. After that, you
should also install an extension called GraphQL, which will be helpful in
highlighting GraphQL in VS Code (Figure 1-1).

© Nabendu Biswas 2023 1

N. Biswas, Practical GraphQL, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-9621-9_1
Chapter 1 Getting Started

Figure 1-1. GraphQL

2
 Chapter 1 Getting Started

After that, create a folder named ecomm-app-graphql from the

terminal. Inside it give the command npm init -y to create an empty
node project. Next, give the following command to add graphql and
apollo- server in the project:

1   npm i apollo-server graphql

There are different ways to use graphql, and apollo is the most
popular one (Figure 1-2).

Figure 1-2. npm install

S
 ummary
In this chapter, you installed the packages apollo-server and graphql
in your system, through the terminal. You installed the official GraphQL
extension in VS Code, which will help you in the development process.
In the next chapter, you will learn about queries in GraphQL, which are
similar to GET APIs in RESTful endpoints and are used to get the data from
the database.

3
CHAPTER 2

Queries
In this chapter, we will start creating an e-commerce app and learn how to
use GraphQL with it.

Setting Up the GraphQL Server

First, we will create an index.js file in our e-commerce app. Here, we
import ApolloServer and gql first. With gql, we define the structure of the
query. The query itself is given in resolvers.
After the resolvers, we create a server through an instance of
ApolloServer, by passing typeDefs and resolvers. Lastly, we listen to this
server on a predefined URL. See Listing 2-1.

Listing 2-1. index.js

const { ApolloServer, gql } = require("apollo-server");

const typeDefs = gql`

    type Query {
        welcome: String
    }
`

© Nabendu Biswas 2023 5

N. Biswas, Practical GraphQL, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-9621-9_2
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
 “How exceedingly elegant fitted, inside,
With mahogany polished—soft cushions—beside
Bright brass ventilators at each end appear,
The latest improvements in the new Shillibeer.

“Here no draughts of air cause a crick in the neck,

Or huge bursting boiler blows all to a wreck,
But as safe as at home you from all danger steer,
While you travel abroad in the gay Shillibeer.

“Then of the exterior I safely may say

There never was yet any carriage more gay,
While the round-tire wheels make it plainly appear
That there’s none run so light as the smart Shillibeer.

“His conductors are famous for being polite,

Obliging and civil, they always act right,
For if just complaint only comes to his ear,
They are not long conductors for George Shillibeer.

“It was meant that they all should wear dresses alike,
But bad luck has prompted the tailors to strike.
When they go to their work, his men will appear
À la Française, Conducteur à Mons. Shillibeer.

“Unlike the conductors by tailors opprest,

His horses have all in new harness been drest:
The cattle are good, the men’s orders are clear,
Not to gallop or race—so says Shillibeer.

“That the beauties of Greenwich and Deptford may ride

In his elegant omni is the height of his pride—
So the plan for a railroad must soon disappear
While the public approve of the new Shillibeer.”

But, unfortunately for Shillibeer, the plan for the Greenwich railway
did not disappear. It was carried out, and when, in 1835, the railway
was opened, the earnings of Shillibeer’s omnibuses began to
decrease ominously. For a time Shillibeer struggled on manfully, but
the fight with the railway was an expensive one, and getting into
arrears with his payments to the Stamp and Taxes Office, his
omnibuses were seized and not permitted to be worked until the
money was paid. This unreasonable action on the part of the Stamp
Office was repeated three or four times, and the heavy expenses
and hindrance to business caused thereby brought about Shillibeer’s
failure.
Acting on the advice of his many sympathisers, Shillibeer appealed,
in 1838, to the Lords of the Treasury for compensation for the
injustice done to him, with the result that, shortly after, he was
offered the position of Assistant Registrar of Licences, created by the
Bill just passed for the better regulation of omnibuses in and near
the Metropolis. This Act, the second one dealing with omnibuses,
made it compulsory that the words “Metropolitan Stage Carriage,”
the Stamp Office number, and the number of passengers that each
vehicle was licensed to carry should be painted, in a conspicuous
manner, both on the inside and outside of every omnibus. Drivers
and conductors were compelled to wear numbered badges, so as to
afford means of identification in case of misconduct. Licences were
not to be transferred or lent under a penalty of £5, and the omnibus
proprietors were forbidden, under a penalty of £10, to allow any
unlicensed person to act as driver or conductor, except in the case of
sudden illness of the licensed man.
Shillibeer had been led to believe that he would receive the
appointment of Registrar of Licences, and was, therefore, greatly
disappointed when the Assistant Registrarship was offered him. He
declined it, and renewed his applications to the Lords of the Treasury
for compensation for the loss he had suffered through the almost
criminal stupidity of the Stamp and Taxes Office.
At length their Lordships appointed their Financial Secretary, Mr.
Gordon, to inquire into his case, and that gentleman’s investigation
of the facts proved to their complete satisfaction that Shillibeer had
been cruelly wronged by the Stamp and Taxes Office. Thereupon,
they promised Shillibeer that he should receive a Government
appointment, or a sum of money, that would compensate him for
the loss he had suffered. Mr. Gordon was then instructed to apply to
the Marquis of Normanby and the Right Hon. Henry Labouchere, the
heads of two Government departments, to appoint Shillibeer
Inspector-General of Public Carriages, or to give him an appointment
on the Railway Department at the Board of Trade. Unfortunately
both of these applications were unsuccessful. Mr. Gordon then
applied for and obtained for Shillibeer the promise of one of the
twenty-five appointments of Receiver-General of County Courts,
which were just then being established. But once again Shillibeer
was doomed to disappointment. Mr. Gordon resigned his position of
Secretary to the Lords of the Treasury, but, before ceasing his
duties, he told Shillibeer that, if the Miscellaneous Estimates for the
year had not been made up, his name would have been placed in
them for a grant of £5000. Moreover, he promised to impress upon
his successor the necessity of seeing that Shillibeer received his
appointment and grant. He received neither. His claims were not
disputed, but unjustly ignored.
At last Shillibeer came to the conclusion that it was useless to place
reliance in Government promises. He, therefore, started business as
an undertaker, in premises adjoining Bunhill Fields Burial-ground,
and the following advertisement appeared continually in the daily
papers and elsewhere:—
“Aux Étrangers. Pompes.
“Funèbres sur le systeme de la Compagnie Générale des Inhumations
et Pompes Funèbres à Paris. Shillibeer’s, City Road, near Finsbury
Square, où l’on parle Français. Every description of funerals, from the
most costly to the most humble, performed much lower than any
other funeral establishment. Catholic fittings from Paris. Gentlemen’s
funerals from 10 guineas. Tradesmen’s and artisans’, £8, £6, and £4.”

In a few years Shillibeer was well known as an undertaker, and gave

evidence before the Board of Health on the subject of the scheme
for extra-mural sepulture. But his success as an undertaker, which
must have been very gratifying to him after losing many thousands
of pounds as an omnibus proprietor, robbed him of posthumous
fame by preventing his name becoming as much a household word
as is Hansom’s. For several years after his pecuniary interest in
omnibuses had ceased the vehicles which he had introduced into
England were called “Shillibeers” more frequently than “Omnibuses,”
but as soon as his “Shillibeer Funeral Coaches” became well
advertised, people did not like to say that they were going for a ride
in a Shillibeer, in case they might be misunderstood. So the word
“Shillibeer,” which would in time have superseded “Omnibus,” and
been spelt with a small “s,” was discarded, and is now almost
forgotten.
Shillibeer was also associated with Mr. G. A. Thrupp, the author of
“The History of the Art of Coachbuilding,” Mr. John Peters, Mr.
Robson, and Mr. Lewis Leslie in efforts to obtain a reduction of the
heavy taxes on carriages. Mr. Thrupp has described Shillibeer to me
as a big, energetic man, with a florid complexion, and brisk both in
his movements and his speech.
Shillibeer died at Brighton on August 22, 1866, aged sixty-nine, and
it is not to our credit that we have done nothing to perpetuate the
memory of one to whom we owe as delightful a form of cheap riding
as could be desired.
 CHAPTER IV
Introduction of steam omnibuses—The “Autopsy,” the “Era,” and the
“Automaton”—Steam omnibuses a failure.

Some years before Shillibeer introduced omnibuses into England, a

number of experienced engineers had devoted themselves to the
invention of steam carriages, and so satisfied were they with their
achievements that they felt justified in predicting that horse-drawn
vehicles were doomed. Once more, however, we see the truth of the
saying that threatened institutions live long for the elimination of the
horse is still an event of the distant future. Sir Charles Dance, Dr.
Church, Colonel Maceroni, Messrs. Frazer, Goldsworthy Gurney,
Hancock, Heaton, Maudsley, Ogle, Redmond, John Scott Russell,
Squire, and Summers were the leading men interested in the
building of steam carriages, but few of them produced vehicles
which are deserving of being remembered. Mr. (afterwards Sir)
Goldsworthy Gurney was the first to invent a steam carriage that ran
with anything like success. His “Improved Steam Carriage”—an
ordinary barouche drawn by an engine instead of horses—
accomplished some very creditable journeys, including a run from
London to Bath and back at the rate of fifteen miles an hour.
 GURNEY’S STEAM CARRIAGE.

The first real steam omnibuses, the “Era” and “Autopsy,” were
invented by Walter Hancock, of Stratford, and placed on the London
roads in 1833. Hancock had invented steam carriages before
Shillibeer’s omnibuses were introduced, but the “Autopsy” and the
“Era” were the first which he constructed with the idea of entering
into competition with the popular horse-drawn vehicles. The “Era”
was the better omnibus of the two, and the most flattering things
were said and predicted of it. Enthusiasts declared that omnibuses of
the “Era” type would enable passengers to be carried at a cheaper
rate and greater speed than by Shillibeer’s vehicles.
 THE “AUTOPSY” STEAM OMNIBUS.

The “Era” ran from Paddington to the Bank, the same route as the
horse-drawn omnibuses, and carried fourteen passengers, the fare
being sixpence all the way. It travelled at the rate of ten miles an
hour, and consumed from 8 to 12 lbs. of coke, and 100 lbs. of water
per mile. But, in spite of what the enthusiasts of the day wrote, the
“Era” was by no means a success, for it broke down continually, and
frequently a considerable time elapsed before it could resume the
journey. Our grandfathers, who took life more leisurely than we, did
not appear to be greatly annoyed at these collapses. An hour’s delay
in reaching their destination was of little consequence to those who
could afford to live in the suburbs, and as the steam omnibuses—
when they did run—were guided easily and escaped collisions, they
were perfectly satisfied, assuring themselves that in a few years, at
the most, some means would be found for making the vehicles stop
only when required. Moreover, they were a novelty, and as such
were patronised for a time. Unfortunately for Hancock, the
eccentricities of the “Autopsy” and “Era” increased as the months
went on, although the two vehicles continued to run after all the
steam omnibuses by other makers had been taken off the roads.
Nevertheless, Hancock was not dispirited, and in July, 1835, started
his last, and best, steam omnibus—the “Automaton.” This was a
larger vehicle than his previous ones, being built to carry twenty-two
passengers, and to travel at an average speed of thirteen miles an
hour. On its trial trip to Romford and back, it did not, however,
succeed in attaining a better average than eleven miles an hour.
Certainly faster travelling was not desirable in London streets, but on
one occasion the “Automaton” was driven at full speed along the
Bow Road, and covered a mile at the rate of twenty-one miles an
hour. And that record run was the more remarkable as, when it was
made, the omnibus carried twenty passengers.

THE “ERA” STEAM OMNIBUS.

Mr. Hancock was delighted with the working of the “Automaton,”

and, on the strength of its performance, forgot all his previous
failures and wrote light-heartedly: “Years of practice have now put
all doubts of the economy, safety, and superiority of steam travelling
on common roads at rest, when compared with horse travelling; and
I have now in preparation calculations founded upon actual practice,
which, when published, will prove that steam locomotion on
common roads is not unworthy the attention of the capitalist, though
the reverse has been disseminated rather widely of late by parties
who do not desire that this branch of improvement should prosper
against the interests of themselves.”
The “parties” referred to were the London horse-drawn omnibus
proprietors, who, according to the steam omnibus owners, indulged
in various tricks for making their rivals’ vehicles come to grief. Their
chief offence was said to be covering the roads with loose stones
some inches deep, a proceeding well calculated to injure the steam
omnibuses. Unfortunately for the steam omnibus people’s story,
there is no explanation given of how it was that their rivals were
permitted to interfere with the public roads. But how the rumour
arose is easily explained. The inventors of steam carriages had
proclaimed loudly that their vehicles would not wear out the road as
quickly as ordinary carriages, for they had wide tyres and, of course,
no horses’ hoofs. But, before long, the local authorities came to the
conclusion that the reverse was the case—that the steam carriages
damaged the roads much more quickly than horse-drawn ones did—
and grew anxious to put a stop to the increase of such vehicles.
Gloucester had shown them in 1831 how that could be done. A
steam carriage ran between Gloucester and Cheltenham twice a day
for three months, but when the local authorities discovered that it
was cutting up the roads, they came to the conclusion that strong
measures would have to be adopted to put an end to the nuisance.
So they strewed with loose stones nearly two feet deep the road
which the horseless vehicle traversed, and in trying to pass over this
obstruction the steam carriage was disabled.
Other towns in England and Scotland hastened to follow the
example of Gloucester, and in a few months the number of steam
carriages in Great Britain was reduced considerably. Then Parliament
passed a sheaf of local Turnpike Bills, imposing exceedingly heavy
tolls upon steam carriages, with the result that soon all such vehicles
had ceased to run in the provinces.
But no such thing as strewing the roads with loose stones was ever
adopted in London, and Hancock’s omnibuses had as fair a trial as
any reasonable being could desire. The “Automaton,” the best steam
omnibus ever built, was, unmistakably a failure, although Hancock,
by publishing some statistics of its first five months at work, gave
people the impression that it was a great success. In the 712
journeys which it made it carried 12,761 passengers—not a
remarkable number, considering that it ran under favourable
circumstances. That is to say, that when it was found that the
interest in the “Automaton” was waning on one route, it was put
immediately to another. The majority of journeys were from the City
to Islington and back, but on some days the omnibus ran to
Paddington, and on others to Stratford. One morning, on its way to
the Bank, it came into collision with a waggon at Aldgate, and
Hancock, in his report of its performances, declared that to be the
only accident worth mentioning. Apparently occasional break-downs
did not count.

THE “AUTOMATON” STEAM OMNIBUS.

But the public’s patronage of the “Automaton” grew less as time
went on. People soon found that riding in horse omnibuses was far
more enjoyable. Moreover, they discovered that they were much
more reliable, the falling of a horse and a minute or two’s delay
caused thereby, being the worst that ever happened to them. The
“Automaton,” however, could not even be relied upon to start when
desired.
In spite of loss of patronage, the “Automaton” dragged on its
existence until 1840, when the Turnpike Acts were enforced in
London, and gave Hancock the opportunity of discontinuing his
steam omnibus and posing as an ill-used man.
And so came to an end the first attempt to run horseless omnibuses
in London.
 CHAPTER V
Some old omnibus names—Story of the “Royal Blues”—Omnibus
racing—Complaints against conductors—Passengers’ behaviour—The
well-conducted conductor—The ill-conducted conductor—The
“Equirotal Omnibus.”

While Hancock’s steam omnibuses were endeavouring to win public

support, horse omnibuses were in a very flourishing condition, and
their proprietors were opening new lines in all the chief parts of
London.
In 1837 there were fourteen omnibuses running from Blackheath to
Charing Cross; twenty-seven from Chelsea to Mile End Gate; forty-
one from Piccadilly to Blackwall; nineteen from Hampstead to
Holborn, Charing Cross, and the Bank; seventeen from the Angel,
Islington, to the Elephant and Castle; and twenty-five from Edgware
Road (the spot where Sutherland Avenue now joins Maida Vale) to
the Bank. There were also many omnibuses running into the City
from Putney, Kew, Richmond, Deptford, Greenwich, Lewisham,
Holloway, Highbury, Hornsey, Highgate, Hackney, Homerton,
Clapton, Enfield, Edmonton, Peckham, Brixton, Norwood,
Kennington, Dulwich, Streatham, and elsewhere.
At that time it was the fashion to give each omnibus line a distinctive
name, and people soon understood that a “Favorite” went to
Islington, an “Eagle” to Pimlico, and so on. The chief lines were the
“Favorites,” the “Eagles,” the “Wellingtons,” the “King Williams,” the
“Napoleons,” the “Victorias,” the “Nelsons,” the “Marlboroughs,” the
“Hopes,” “Les Dames Blanches,” the “Citizens,” the “Emperors,” the
“Venuses,” and the “Marquess of Westminsters.” At the present day
the “Atlases,” the “Favorites,” the “Paragons,” the “Royal Blues,” and
the “Times,” are the only omnibuses which have names.
The “Eagles” were green omnibuses, and ran from the “Compasses,”
at Pimlico, to Blackwall, viâ Piccadilly. They belonged to a Mr. John
Clark, and old ’busmen declare that one day, as an “Eagle” was
passing Hyde Park Corner, Her Majesty Queen Victoria, then
unmarried, overtook it, and by some means or other her long habit
was caught by the handle of the open door. Clark, who, so the story
runs, was acting as conductor on that occasion, released it instantly,
and Her Majesty graciously thanked him for his promptitude. In
commemoration of this incident, Clark had the omnibus painted
blue, and substituted for the word “Eagle” on the panels, the words
“Royal Blue.” Moreover, he had a picture of Her Majesty on
horseback painted on the panel of the door. After a time he called all
his omnibuses on that line “Royal Blues,” but the original “Royal
Blue” was the only one that bore a picture of the Queen.
But the first half of the above story is not correct. What really
happened is as follows:—Clark was driving one of his omnibuses by
Hyde Park Corner, when suddenly Her Majesty approached on
horseback. He endeavoured to pull out of the way, but, as the road
was partially blocked, it was not an easy thing to do. However, being
an excellent whip, he succeeded, and the Queen, who had witnessed
his efforts, most graciously bowed to him as she rode by.
For many years the picture of the Queen painted on the Royal Blue
omnibus was one of the sights pointed out to visitors to London.
Eventually, wishing to preserve the picture, Clark had it cut out of
the omnibus door and framed, and it is now in the possession of his
daughter.
The “Royal Blues,” which were among the first omnibuses sold to the
London General Omnibus Company, now run from Victoria to King’s
Cross viâ Piccadilly and Bond Street.
The “Favorites” were named after a Parisian line of omnibuses called
Les Favorites. The drivers and conductors wore dark blue suits with
brass buttons. These omnibuses had, as at present, the word
“Favorite” painted in large letters along the panels, and an
opposition proprietor imitated them as closely as he dared by having
“Favor me” painted on the sides of his omnibus. But the most
formidable rivals of the “Favorites” were the “Hopes,” and the racing
between these omnibuses became decidedly exciting. A “Favorite”
and a “Hope” would start together from the corner opposite the
Angel, and race madly down the City Road to the Bank. But the
accidents which they caused in their wild career became so
appallingly numerous that the Islington Vestry offered a reward to
any one giving such information as would lead to the conviction of
any driver. This action certainly checked the racing proclivities of the
Islington omnibus drivers, but in other parts of London racing
flourished for many years. Down the Haymarket from Coventry
Street was a favourite racing-ground. Then, as now, there was a
cab-rank in the centre of the road, and two omnibuses would race
down, one each side of it and frequently come into collision with
each other at the end. Many passengers encouraged the coachmen
to race, and when accidents occurred to the horses or omnibuses,
frequently subscribed to pay for the damage.
Some of the omnibus proprietors possessed very inferior stock, and
the horses to be seen pulling their vehicles were a disgrace to
London. A story is told of a coachman out of work who applied to
one of these proprietors for a job.
“Ever driven a ’bus before?” the proprietor asked.
“Yes, sir. I drove a Kingsland ’bus.”
“H’m. Discharged, I suppose.”
“No, sir. I left because I wanted a change.”
“How many accidents have you had?”
“None at all, sir.”
“Smart coachman! Have you let many horses down?”
“Never let one down, sir.”
“Get out of my yard,” shouted the proprietor, fiercely; “you’re no
good to me. I want a man who’s had plenty of practice at getting
horses up. Mine are always falling down.”
About this time, the latter part of the thirties, omnibus conductors
began to fall into disrepute. The chief complaints against them,
apart from their ordinary rudeness to passengers, were that when
they were wanted to stop the omnibus they were always busy
talking to the coachman along the roof, and that they banged the
doors too violently whenever a person entered or got out. Others
complained of their shouting unnecessarily, and of standing at the
door gazing in at the passengers, thereby preventing fresh air from
coming in, and polluting the atmosphere with their foul breath.
Moreover, the “cads,” as the conductors were now called, were not
at all careful to keep objectionable people out of their omnibuses,
and one passenger, an old lady, had an exciting experience. She
entered an omnibus, and the door was banged behind her in the
usual nerve-shattering way. “Right away, Bill!” the conductor
shouted, and before the poor old lady had recovered from the shock
of the door slamming, the omnibus started, and she was pitched into
the far dark corner, and fell against some men sitting there, who
answered her timid apologies with an outburst of the vilest language
imaginable. The old lady, horrified at their abuse, began to rebuke
them, but stopped short, terrified, when she discovered that her
fellow-passengers were three villainous-looking convicts, chained
together and in charge of a warder. She screamed to the conductor
to stop the omnibus, but the conductor was, as usual, talking to the
driver, and did not heed her cries. Then she opened the door to get
out, and, in her excitement, fell into the road. The conductor jumped
down, picked her up, demanded the fare, and got it. “Right away,
Bill!” he shouted, and the omnibus drove on, leaving the old lady,
bruised and trembling, in the middle of the road.
While many people were complaining of the omnibus conductors’
behaviour, a large number of regular riders declared that it was but
little worse than that of many passengers, and in January, 1836, the
Times published the following guide to behaviour in omnibuses:—
Omnibus Law.
 1. Keep your feet off the seats.
2. Do not get into a snug corner yourself, and then open the windows
to admit a northwester upon the neck of your neighbour.
3. Have your money ready when you desire to alight. If your time is
not valuable, that of others may be.
4. Do not impose on the conductor the necessity of finding you
change; he is not a banker.
5. Sit with your limbs straight, and do not let your legs describe an
angle of forty-five, thereby occupying the room of two persons.
6. Do not spit upon the straw. You are not in a hog-sty, but in an
omnibus, travelling in a country which boasts of its refinement.
7. Behave respectfully to females, and put not an unprotected lass to
the blush because she cannot escape from your brutality.
8. If you bring a dog, let him be small and confined by a string.
9. Do not introduce large parcels; an omnibus is not a van.
10. Reserve bickerings and disputes for the open field. The sound of
your own voice may be music to your own ears—not so, perhaps, to
those of your companions.
11. If you will broach politics or religion, speak with moderation; all
have an equal right to their opinions, and all have an equal right not
to have them wantonly shocked.
12. Refrain from affectation and conceited airs. Remember you are
riding a distance for sixpence which, if made in a hackney-coach,
would cost you as many shillings; and that should your pride elevate
you above plebeian accommodations, your purse should enable you to
command aristocratic indulgences.

Excellent advice, undoubtedly, and some of it might be taken to

heart, with good results, by hundreds of omnibus passengers of to-
day.
As time passed, the behaviour of the conductors grew worse. This
was due chiefly to the indifference of the omnibus proprietors. If
their conductors paid in a certain amount daily, they were quite
satisfied with them, and by no means thankful to passengers who
complained of their misbehaviour. The omnibus proprietor of this
period was a much lower class of man than George Shillibeer. In
most cases he himself had been a driver or conductor, and, on
becoming an employer, his chief anxiety was to prevent his men
growing rich at his expense. Knowing from experience what an
omnibus could earn in various seasons and weather, he took every
precaution possible to guard against his men retaining as large a
portion of the earnings as he himself had pocketed when a
conductor. The men who paid daily the sum he demanded were the
conductors he preferred, and these usually were the passenger-
swindling, bullying specimens, and thoroughly deserved their name
—“cads.”
In January, 1841, the Times printed the following description of two
classes of conductors:—
The Well-conducted Conductor
1. Never bawls out “Bank—Bank—City—Bank!” because he knows that
passengers are always as much on the look-out for him as he is for
them, so that these loud and hideous shouts are quite unnecessary.
2. Never bangs the omnibus door after he has let a passenger in or
out, but makes it a rule to shut it as quietly as possible.
3. Always takes care that there are two check strings or straps
running along the roof of the omnibus, on the inside, and
communicating with the arms of the driver by two large wooden or
other rings which are easily slipped on and off.
4. Is careful also to have a direction conspicuously placed inside the
omnibus, announcing to the passengers that if they wish to be set
down on the right hand they will pull the right-hand check-string or
strap, and if they wish to be set down on the left hand they will pull
the left-hand check-string. By this arrangement the passenger is set
down exactly where he wishes to be, and all the bawling is prevented.
5. Never stands at the omnibus door staring in upon the passengers,
but sits down upon the seat provided for him outside. In this way he
knows that he gains a double advantage: he is saved the fatigue of
standing during a whole journey, and by looking backwards as the
driver looks forwards, persons who wish to ride are more easily seen
than if the driver and conductor are both looking the same way.
6. Never allows the driver to go on till the passengers are safely
seated, and always directs him to pull up close either to the right or
 left hand of the street or road.
The Ill-conducted Conductor
1. Always bawls out “Bank—Bank—City—Bank—Bank—Bank—City—
City—Bank—Bank—Bank!” by which disgusting noise his own lungs
are injured, the public peace is disturbed, and not any advantage
gained.
2. Always bangs the door so violently that if you are sitting next the
door you are likely to be deafened for life.
3. Never provides any check-string, but compels the passengers who
want to be set down to use their sticks, canes, and umbrellas, and
loud shouts into the bargain, thereby creating a most intolerable
nuisance.
4. Always takes up and sets down his passengers in the middle of the
street; by which rudeness they are sometimes bespattered with mud
and always exposed to danger.
5. Always stands at the door of the omnibus staring in upon the
passengers, particularly after he has been eating his dinner of
beefsteak, strong onions, and stale beer; and generally has some cad
or other crony standing and talking with him. The air that would
otherwise circulate through the omnibus, in the way of ventilation, is
obstructed and poisoned.
6. Always bawls out “All right!” before the passengers have taken their
seats, by which gross carelessness great inconvenience and even
danger are often occasioned.

But it was not only of the drivers and conductors that the public
complained. The officials at the inquiry offices stationed at the
starting-point of each line, were denounced as being utterly unfitted
for the positions they occupied. All were rude, and most of them
possessed but little intelligence. One afternoon, about twenty
minutes past four, a gentleman entered the omnibus office at the
George and Blue Boar, Holborn, and inquired of the clerk whether
omnibuses started from there to a certain railway-station.
“Yes,” was the reply.
“At what hours?”
“One hour before each train.”
“Then I’m just in time to catch the 5.30 one.”
“It’s all down in writing on that there board.”
The traveller turned to the board, and, finding the 5.30 train entered
upon it, went out into the street to await the arrival of the omnibus.
But after pacing up and down for a quarter of an hour, and seeing
no sign of a conveyance, he returned to the office and enquired
when it would arrive.
“It’s gone,” the official said.
“Then it didn’t start from here,” the traveller declared. “I’ve been
waiting outside since twenty past four.”
“What train do you want to catch?”
“The half-past five, to be sure. I told you so.”
“Oh, we ain’t got no omnibus to catch that train.”
“But, man, you said that you had one to each train.”
“I told you it was all down in writing on that there board, and you
ought to have seen for yourself there ain’t no omnibus for the half-
past five.”
The traveller again turned to the board, and after glancing at it,
declared angrily, “There’s nothing of the kind stated here!”
The official pointed to a small cross against the 5.30 train, and said
triumphantly, “This here mark means there ain’t no omnibus.”
“Well, how was I to know that?”
“Most gentlemen, when they sees it, asks me what the deuce it
means, and I tells them.”
“But what do the others do?”
The clerk did not condescend to answer, but took out his pocket-
knife and busied himself in peeling an apple.
While the public was busily denouncing the behaviour of ’busmen, a
quaint vehicle, named the “equirotal omnibus,” was placed on the
streets. The inventor, Mr. W. B. Adams, maintained that all vehicles
should have four large wheels, instead of two large and two small,
and his omnibus was constructed on that principle. It was built in
two parts, which were joined together in the middle by a flexible
leather passage, to enable it to turn easily. “It will turn with facility in
the narrowest streets, without impeding the passage along the
interior,” Mr. Adams declared, “as the flexible sides move in a circle.
With this omnibus two horses will do the work of three; there will be
great facility of access and egress; perfect command over the
horses; increased ease to the passengers; greater head-room and
more perfect ventilation; greater general durability and absence of
the usual rattling noise, accompanied by entire safety against
overturning.”
In spite of Mr. Adams’s recommendation, the “equirotal omnibus” did
not become popular, and had but a short career.

Adams’s Equirotal Omnibus.

 CHAPTER VI
Twopenny fares introduced—The first omnibus with advertisements—
Penny fares tried—Omnibus improvements—Longitudinal seats
objected to by the police—Omnibus associations—Newspapers on the
“Favorites”—Foreigners in omnibuses—Fat and thin passengers—
Thomas Tilling starts the “Times” omnibuses—Mr. Tilling at the Derby
—Tilling’s gallery of photographs.

On October 21, 1846, a line of omnibuses was started from

Paddington to Hungerford Market, Charing Cross, with twopenny
fares for short distances. Hitherto the lowest fare had been
fourpence. In the same year advertisements appeared for the first
time in an omnibus. Mr. Frederick Marriott, of 335, Strand, who
started the practice, registered an omnibus, with advertisements
displayed on the roof inside, as an article of utility with the title of a
“publicity omnibus.” Possibly Mr. Marriott—who traded under the
name of The Omnibus Publicity Company—reaped little profit from
his idea, which was scarcely one that could be protected, but
omnibus proprietors are deeply indebted to him, for advertisements
are as necessary to them as they are to newspaper and magazine
proprietors. Nevertheless, an important newspaper made an
amusing slip some years ago about omnibus advertisements. A
money-lender advertised in certain omnibuses, and the newspaper in
question, becoming aware of the fact, made some very strong
remarks concerning the proprietor’s conduct in permitting such
advertisements to appear. The omnibus proprietor wrote at once to
the Editor, pointing out the inconsistency of his paper, which
censured him on one page for publishing a money-lender’s
advertisement, and contained, on another, four advertisements of a
similar nature. This letter was not published, and nothing more was
said on either side.
Penny fares were introduced in 1849 by some omnibuses running
from the Bank to Mile End. For a penny a passenger could ride the
whole distance. These omnibuses had but a brief career.
In 1850 several attempts were made to improve the style of
omnibuses, with the result that in January, 1851, the knife-board
omnibus became general. It was not, however, like the knife-board
omnibuses which we still see occasionally, for it carried only nine
outside passengers. Two sat on either side of the coachman, and the
other five on an uncomfortable seat, about a foot high, running the
length of the omnibus. They climbed up at the back on the right-
hand side of the door, and sat with their faces to the road. There
were no seats on the near side, but occasionally, when passengers
were numerous, the conductor would permit men to sit there, with
their legs dangling down, over a little rail, in front of the windows.
But he always extracted a promise from such passengers that if they
smashed the windows they would pay for them. That was a very
necessary precaution, as the glass was not of the substantial
description now in use.

A KNIFE-BOARD OMNIBUS.
These new outside seats were very popular with the public, but the
police objected to them, on the ground that the climbing up to them
was dangerous. The police were undoubtedly in the right, as many
accidents testified later, and when they summoned Mrs. Sophia
Gaywood for having such seats on the roof of one of her Bayswater
omnibuses, they obtained a conviction. But Mrs. Gaywood, like most
ladies who have been omnibus proprietors, before and since her
time, was rather fond of litigation, and appealed against the
conviction. Mr. Wilson of Islington, and other leading omnibus
proprietors, gave evidence in her favour, and finally the appeal was
allowed and the conviction quashed.
On March 13, 1851, a new patent omnibus was placed on the
Bayswater and Charing Cross road. Each passenger had a seat
entirely to himself, and every seat was shut off and as secluded as a
private box at the theatre. But its career was short. So was that of
the London Conveyance Company, which ran omnibuses to the Bank,
viâ Holborn. This Company’s vehicles had the initials L.C.C. painted
on them, but not in such large letters as the London County Council
have on their omnibuses.
In October of the same year a meeting of London omnibus
proprietors was held at the Duke of Wellington, Bathurst Street,
Argyle Square, to consider a suggestion made by Mr. Crawford, the
originator of the Hungerford and Camden Town Association—now
known as the Camden Town Association—for choosing and working
new routes at cheap fares. The Hungerford and Camden Town
Association, and one or two similar bodies, had come into existence
a few years previously through the omnibus proprietors arriving at
the conclusion that it would be more remunerative to cease their
fierce struggles one with another, and to work harmoniously
together. They ran their omnibuses at regular intervals, and the
coachmen and conductors were strictly ordered to keep their time. It
was an excellent idea, although it afforded little satisfaction to
lawyers, many of whom had grown prosperous on the quarrels of
omnibus proprietors.
But a reduction in legal expenses was by no means the only saving
effected by the amalgamation. Office and management expenses
were reduced considerably. The conductors, instead of being
engaged by the various proprietors, were now employed and
controlled by the secretary of the Association.
At the meeting at the Duke of Wellington new lines were decided
upon, the most important one being from Bayswater to the Bank—
fourpence all the way, with intermediate twopenny fares. Twenty
omnibuses, the majority built by Messrs. Rock and Gowar, were
placed on that road, and were successful from the day of starting.
The Associations now in existence are—
Atlas and Waterloo Omnibus Association.
Camden Town ” ”
John Bull ” ”
King’s Cross and Barnsbury ” ”
King’s Cross and Victoria ” ”
Victoria Station ” ”
Westminster ” ”
Nearly all of the above were in existence before the London General
Omnibus Company was started. The Atlas and Waterloo is the
largest of the Associations, and its omnibuses run as far south as
Gipsy Hill and north as Finchley. Moreover, it claims, and its claim
cannot be disputed, to have the prettiest omnibus route in London.
That route is from Oxford Circus to Hendon, viâ Finchley Road,
Child’s Hill and Golder’s Green.
 OMNIBUS BUILT BY ROCK AND GOWAR.

The chief proprietors having omnibuses in some, or all, of the above

Associations are: The London General Omnibus Co., Ltd.; The Star
Omnibus Co., London, Ltd.; The Associated Omnibus Co., Ltd.; The
London Omnibus Carriage Co., Ltd.; Thos. Tilling, Ltd.; Birch Bros.,
Ltd.; and Messrs. Cane, Clinch, French, Glover, and Hearn. The
Associated Omnibus Co., Ltd., was formed last year to acquire and
carry on the businesses of The Omnibus Proprietors, Ltd., Mr. John
Watkins and Mr. P. Willing Tibbs.
The London Road Car Company, Ltd., and Messrs. Balls Bros, work in
friendly opposition to the above Associations.
The “times” in these Associations are very valuable, and when any
are placed on the market—which rarely happens—they are snapped
up immediately. Until he has bought his “times,” no proprietor is
recognized in the omnibus business.
In November, 1851, newspapers were placed in the “Favorite”
omnibuses for the convenience of passengers. A rack was fixed at
the end opposite the door, with a printed notice beneath, asking
passengers to replace the papers when done with, and put a penny
in the money-box provided for that purpose. It was soon seen that
the British public had not changed, in the matter of forgetfulness,
since Shillibeer and Cloud’s omnibus days. The passengers were
continually taking papers away with them, and it was very rarely that
the money-box was found to contain anything more valuable than
buttons.
In the year of the Great Exhibition, when London was crowded with
foreigners, the number of omnibuses was increased considerably;
but there were not too many, and proprietors and conductors grew
rich in a few months. Many of the conductors fared better than their
masters, and when the Exhibition was at an end settled down to
some other business with a comfortable sum in hand to give them a
good start. Of course, the conductors did not obtain the money in a
legitimate manner. The way in which they did obtain it is, however,
no secret. Every morning, before starting work, they provided
themselves with a quantity of pence, half-pence, and small pieces of
silver, for change. Then their chief aim was to fill their omnibuses
with foreigners, and give them wrong change when they alighted. If
a foreigner gave one of those conductors half a crown for a four-
penny fare, the latter would count out two sixpences and four half-
pence, put them in the man’s hand, shout out “Right away, Bill!”
jump on the step and drive off, leaving the poor fellow puzzling his
brain to understand the change. On other occasions the conductor
would tell the foreigners that they had reached their destination
before they had gone half-way, and the unsuspecting aliens would
get out, paying the full fare without a murmur.
Quarrels among the passengers were of everyday occurrence, and
the cause of the discord was, almost invariably, the windows. There
were usually five windows on each side of the omnibus, which could
be opened or closed according to the passenger’s fancy. An
arrangement better calculated to breed discord could scarcely have
been made. The quarrels concerning them were usually somewhat
ludicrous—from the fact that the ten windows rattled fearfully,
compelling the disputants to yell at each other to make themselves
heard. One day a Frenchman and an Italian chanced to be sitting
side by side in an omnibus. The Italian pulled up a window just
behind them. The Frenchman promptly, and indignantly, lowered it.
The Italian excitedly pulled it up again, and this ding-dong
performance was continued for some little time, greatly to the
amusement of the other passengers. At last, the Frenchman grew
desperate, and shattered the glass with his elbow, exclaiming, “Now,
Monsieur, you can have ze window up if you likes!”
Many Londoners objected strongly to the overcrowding of omnibuses
during the time of the Exhibition, and some, who knew the law,
insisted upon having their proper amount of space, no matter who
suffered in consequence. The law had declared that every passenger
was entitled to sixteen inches of room on the seat; that he might
measure it, and any person hindering him from doing so was liable
to a penalty of £5. Consequently, many cantankerous people carried
yard-measures in their pockets, and insisted upon having their full
space. Certainly, sixteen inches is not much room for any man or
woman, and a large proportion of the passengers could not possibly
squeeze themselves into it; and, because of their inability to do so,
quarrels between thin and stout people were of everyday
occurrence.
In the year of the Great Exhibition was started the first of Tilling’s
omnibuses. There have been many English proprietors who have
conducted their businesses successfully and honourably, but none
came so prominently before the public as George Shillibeer and
Thomas Tilling. Both men had interesting careers, but there the
similarity ends. Shillibeer, if not a rich man, was very well-to-do
when he started his famous omnibuses, and yet he was driven at
last into the bankruptcy court, and finished his omnibus career under
a financial cloud. Tilling, however, began work without capital, and
with but one solitary horse for his stock-in-trade, yet by hard work
he achieved success and built up the large business so well known
to all Londoners. By 1851, four years after his modest start, he had
prospered to an extent which enabled him to put on the road his
first omnibus. It was called the “Times,” and ran from Peckham to
Oxford Circus. At the present day there are some twenty-four
“Times” omnibuses on that road. Tilling’s “Times” are excellently
horsed, and share with the John Bull Association’s omnibuses the
honour of being the fastest travelling omnibuses in London. Tilling’s
four-horsed “Times” doing its first morning journey to the West End
is the most picturesque omnibus sight in England.

TILLING’S FOUR-HORSE “TIMES.”

When the first “Times” had proved a success, Mr. Tilling started
omnibuses on other roads, and before many years had elapsed there
was no name better known to South Londoners than his. At that
period it was the morning custom of South London omnibuses to go
round the streets, in the district from which they started, to pick up
their regular riders at their houses; but Mr. Tilling would not conform
to this practice. He made it known that his omnibuses would not
collect passengers, but would start from a certain place at a stated
time, and people understood that if they wanted to travel by them
they would have to go to the starting-place.
Mr. Tilling was by no means an omnibus proprietor only. Before he
had been established many years he was the owner of coaches,
cabs, wedding carriages, and, in short, carried on the ordinary
business of a job master. On Derby Day he had, usually, as many as
two hundred horses on the course, and although he was present at
Epsom thirty consecutive years, he had always so much to attend to
that he never once saw the great race run. In fact, on one occasion,
when he got back to Peckham, he surprised his chief clerk, who had
been in the office all day, by asking what horse had won. After that
it need scarcely be said that Mr. Tilling did not indulge in betting.
Indeed, betting and swearing were practices which he would not
tolerate among his men, although he was one of the most
considerate employers that ever lived. Unspoiled by success,
unostentatiously charitable and simple in his tastes, he was held in
the highest esteem by every man in his employ, and when he died,
in 1893, the loss was felt by each of them to be a personal one.
There exists, at Messrs. Tilling’s chief offices, a good-sized room
containing a pleasing testimony to the interest which the founder of
the firm took in his employees. Mr. Tilling, many years ago, ordered
that a photograph should be taken, and hung in that room, of every
man who had been in his employ for twenty years. As other men
completed their twenty years’ service their photographs were taken
and added to the collection, and now—for the practice is still
maintained—the walls are covered with them.
Many of the men whose photographs adorn the room have been in
the Tillings’ employ for nearly half a century. One of their “Times”
coachmen, whose face is very familiar to frequenters of Regent
Street, has driven an omnibus through that thoroughfare for over
forty years. His brother has been in the same employ for a still
longer period. The office also has its representatives of long service,
one gentleman having been engaged there nearly forty years.
Mr. Tilling, as already stated, began business with one horse, but the
limited liability company which bears his name has now a stud of
over four thousand, and possesses one hundred and sixty
omnibuses. The horse with which Mr. Tilling started business was a
grey, and for many years, in fact until he was compelled by his
customers’ requirements to break the rule, he would purchase no
horses that were not of that colour.