*'$¥ ft **, M ^,^M '/:m . '".ml sN 398 SPORTING ANECDOTES, Original and .^Select, with a Description of the Animals of the Chase and of every other subject con- nected with the Field, frontispiece and engraved title, cr. 8vo, half rich red morocco, gilt extra, gilt edges (scarce), (1807) «%i HARRYWORCESTER SMITH fl Qg a ;£j ^? © ^ co cS 75 OO * g q g £h CD ej_| -+J >"" «*< ciu4 ^"n^/z •%» ** • ^.. •-•<* .*&*«• v* si SPO ANECDOTES; ORIGINAL AND SELECT; INCLUDING CHARACTERISTIC SKETCHES OF eminent persons WHO HAVE APPEARED ON THE TURF : "With an interesting Selection of the VOST EXTRAORDINARY EVENTS WHICH HAVE TRANSPIRED IN THE SPORTING WORLD j A Corral Description of THE ANIMALS OF CHASE; ASD OF EVERY OTHER SUBJECT CONNECTED WITH THE VARIOUS DIVERSIONS OP THE ^JELD, BY AN AMATEUR SPORTSMAN, ALB IOW PRESS PRINTED, FOR J.CUNDEE, IVY-LANE, PATERNOSTER-ROW; AND J. HARRIS, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH-YARD. PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION, Ji O concentrate the scattered rays of knowledge,, ivit, and humour, though one of the humble, is not among the least useful tasks of literature. Many irradiations of excellence, and many sallies of genius, are often to be found amidst pages of sterile loqua- city, and volumes of unimportant matter: they are confounded with that which no one reads, or which is read only to be forgotten ; and then sink into un- merited oblivion, overcome by the torpid lethargy and tasteless inanity of those parts among which they are destined to appear. In every multifarious work there must be variety of excellence ; and amid much that merits forget- fulness, there is always something to be found that deserves perpetuity, by being rescued from its perish- able part. To confer this perpetuity is the humble office of the collector ; zvho is doomed, to toil through countless volumes, ere an aggregate of comparative perfection can be presented to the zcorlcl. In offering this second edition of Sporting Anec- dotes to the public, the editor has paid particular a 2 IV PREFACE. attention to two very material points: first, in the selection of a numerous variety of modern articles, and to the peculiar interest and value of them, care- fully excluding all those which appeared to be in the least degree irrelevant to the complexion of the work. In the boundless variety of anecdotes, which al- most every work presents that is at all devoted to this peculiar subject, the only, and indeed the great- est difficulty, was to select with a degree of discrimi- nation such articles as might be deemed worthy a place in this collection, particularly those anecdotes which commemorate and record those numerous sin- gularities, and astonishing events, which the ever-va- rying annals of the sporting world present ; so that the reader will find himself in possession of facts, at once important and striking, which have hitherto remained scattered through an immensity of works. Much attention has been paid in procuring inte- resting and authentic particulars respecting every animal that is at all connected zoith the chase ; nar- ratives that tend to display either their peculiar sa- gacity, extraordinary exertion, or instinctive pheno- mena. In doing this, recourse has been had to al- most every production that could furnish precise or characteristic details ; and many instances will be found noticed in the subsequent sheets, that have hi- therto been very little known, or totally neglected. It has also been a material object to concentrate, in nearly one point of view, the principal of those descriptions that relate to circumstances and things PREFACE. which possess a greater or less proximity of connexion zoith the general subject. ~Sot confined to one par- ticular spot of the globe, our researches have been carried to wherever it zoas thought probable advan- tage might be derived : and by presenting particu- lars of those performances that cannot happen un- der our own immediate inspection, it is presumed the important advantage zcill be gained, of at once gratifying curiosity and enlarging knowledge. These may be considered as forming the principal outline of the following work ; and, it is presumed, that no apology need be offered for the work itself When books multiply, and opportunities for reading become comparatively rare, it may be deemed an acceptable service to facilitate the means of acquiring knowledge. Those gentlemen, whose ardour leads them to the boisterous, but healthful, sports of the field, can hardly be considered as possessing much time for extensive or laborious study: yet, that they are anxious to be well acquainted with every minutia of the pleasures they so cordially enter into, is cer- tainly not an unfair deduction: to enable them, therefore, to acquire that information, is the pro- fessed object of the following work; and to the Sporting World in general, either in the closet, or as a travelling companion, it will certainly prove a source of amusement, instruction, and advantage. LONDON, SEPTEMBER, 1807. a3 CONTENTS. Pag* A A CASSOCKED huntsman - - - 45 Another Sampson - - ■ - 48 A tyger - - - - -54- Ancient and modern coursing - - -84 An old sportsman - - - • 10S Anecdote of Lord Spencer Hamilton - - 11'* Affecting fidelity of a dog r I 17 A singular rencontre - - - 120 Artifices of animals of the chase - 129 A monkey cured of hunting ... 148 A humorous revenge .... 149 A characteristic epitaph - - - - - 151 A curious case ----- 155 Anecdote of P of W - - - 157 A sporting general's dispatches - 167 A facetious enquiry - » - 185 A critical juncture ... - 212 A good shot ----- 214 A receipt to make a jockey - - - ib. A horse and a galloway • 218 A fashionable sportsman and his friend - - 219 A singular anecdote - 220 An extraordinary stag hunt - 224 Anecdotes of the late Lord Orford - 241 A just reply ----- 259 A rational dog ----- 264 An ancient angling anecdote - 299 Amiable sagacity of a dog - - - 301 a 4 vhb CONTENTS. An epistle from Eclipse -to King Fergus A n ingenious morality on chess Apparel necessary for an accomplished sportsman An ingenious parody A canine epistle An epitaph on a sportsman A characteristic epitaph Astonishing occurrence An epilaph A celebrated roarkswoman Animal courage Anecdote of the deer A lion hunt A fox chase Amusements of the Palais-Royal A tame pig mistaken for a wild boar Arguments a posteriori A parable, addressed to report-catchers All his faults 30'J 303 305 306 308 510 329 343 347 554 359 393 m 4.5 1 493 503 569 570 67S B Broughton the bruiser Broad bints to city sportsmen BiogTaphy parodied Bromley, the cock-feeder - Badger-hunting - 142 170 230 408 441 Character of the late Samuel Chifney - - 61 Colonel Thornton - - - - 68 Curious account of an Asiatic hunting party - - 106 Character of a Siberian dog - - 138 Characteristic sketch .... 146 Curious estimate resulting from Sunday amusements - 24 Clerical friendship of canine contraction - - 156 Cherubim shooting • 174, CONTENTS. Conjugal sporting Concise consolation • Canine ingratitude sagacity and gratitude Coffee-house conversation - Curious bond ■ ' instances of affection Canine fidelity « Cyprian hunting ■ Curious wager - Cautions tor the 1st of September Chloe's vexation Czarina Connubial tenderness Curious map of a sportsman Character of the blood-hounds Canine adoption Cape Buffalo - - Page eo5 214 215 240 247 262 273 279 231 *Q$ 324 325 325 327 329 332 368 404 Description of Newmarket in the reign of Queen Anne - 56 Deer hunting - - - - - 85 Dead game - • - - - 155 Debut of a young sportsman - 202 Diary of a sporting Oxonian - 207 Dr. Franklin's advice to a young sportsman - - 216 Death of Tom Moody - - - - 317 Deep play ..... 556 E Extraordinary steeple-race ■ feat of a draught-horse • fox chase Epitaph on a favorite fox-hound Elegy on the death of a sportsman Epitaph on a huntsman Extraordinary chase 18 21 44 198 239 258 261 X CONTENTS, Page Epitaph on a horse - 331 - - - - - 334 Extraordinary fox-chase - - - ib. ■ 1 equestrian performances - - 335 pike - - - - 36a ■ ■ ■■ - slaughter - -. ' - 460 Epitaph on Highflyer .... 362 . - . - - 438 ■ on an old sportsman , . .671 Farmer's man and the dog - - - - 32 Fox-hunting - - » - 61 Ferocious Scotch bull ■ 133 Fatal rencontre ----- 145 Fox-chase with Mr. Panton's hounds - - 361 Falconry among the ancients - 397 Facetious instructions » - - - 419 Female intrepidity , . ► .561 Gigantic challenge • ^ - 2S Good hounds • 121 Generosity rewarded • 181 Gaming anecdote -> - - - 183 General character of the fox - - " - 349 hare - - - 387 H His Majesty as a sportsman • - 1 Humourous specimen of sporting biography - 26 Horse races on the continent - - 64 Hawking - - - - -67 Hunting adventure of Henry IV. - 369 His royal highness the Duke of Cumberland - - 433 CONTENTS. XI Horse chase upon the frozen sea Hug of friendship ; or, the cordiality of a bear I J Jockeyship ... Instance of surprising speed Johnson and his black horse Intrepidity of Henry IV. - John Gilpin the second J. J. Rousseau - Instance of extraordinary affection in a badger Inscription on a favourite dog Interesting narrative of sagacity in a dog Instances of affection in spaniels Interested condolence Instructions to Cockney sportsmen Jealousy and revenge of a cock Journal of '. imothy Tape - Incongruous adoption Journal of a gamester John Tall, the huntsman « ■ Page 549 578 52 too 144 164 193 200 221 229 243 254 280 290 oQ7 S10 322 380 533 London fox chase Laconic rejoinders Ludicrous meterasychosis - ■ comparisons - angling anecdotes L — d Ca — v — sh Leap from Egremont-bridge Lord C and the Weird Sisters 218 241 261 285 297 366 427 436 M Major Topham - Monastic sportsmen Method of fishing with fox-hounds 3 4 50 9? Xll CONTENTS. Fagi Memoirs of a celebrated sporting lady - 269 Misfortunes of Christopher Cockney - - 312 Mr. Richard Knight . 374 — Foster Powell . 415 Manner of hunting the bear in North America . 377 Major Leeson - . 382 Mr. Phillidor * . 428 Major Baggs «• « « * 452 Mr. Daniel Lambert • . , , 532 Mirtiiiuiuui sickle . * i 560 N Natural history of tjie puppy * * o t)wen Carrot . * , • 318 55* Place-hunting and Ticket-hunting . £ 8 16t Pugilistic lingo . . „ » .195 Play upon words . , f 218 Prompt course of Francis I. . » . 331 Punish menl of the stag ..... 348 Prori)_r us leap . .... . 377 Peculiar winter diversions of the Russians . .411 FMUis in love. I sporting Jtate . . . 572 Parallel b^cween a Newmarket groom and a minister of -state , .. . , . 575 R Robert Shaw Russian gaming anecdote Reynard's sagacity Repartee on Louis XV. Remarkable leap 53 260 331 36* CONTENTS, X1U Richard Fairbrother Remnrkable abstinence of a dog Reynard's sagacity Page 445 454 574 Soutb American sporting Sympathetic sensibility at the card table Singular method of dispensing justice . Sagacity of a fox Singular fox chase ■ stratagem of a fox Sporting by act of parliament ■ ardor Spirit of a greyhound Sporting anecdote of James I. Surprising courage of a cat . Strong reasons for breaking the sabbath Sporting portrait of the P of W Sketch of a sportsman of the last age Singular race ■ sagacity of an English mastiff property in dogs pension . * accident . ■ boat match ■ hare hunting character . Sporting retort Sir J. Hamilton's dog Sufferings of the post-horse 19 25 GO 43 55 122 152 159 ib. 173 174 200 225 235 257 284 289 323 339 370 414 458 368 371 The stoat The old English huntsman and mole catcher The three and the dace The venerable huntsman 31 33 96 102 SPORTJXG ANECDOTES. HIS MAJESTY AS. A SPORTSMAN". A Retrospect of the sporting career of this illus- trious character, renowned for bis personal worth, in- trinsic merit, and transcendent greatness, must be highly gratifying to all the lovers of the chase, parti- cularly as it must call to their recollection, that, a few years ago, the FiFvST max in the kingdom, was to the sporting world in general, a complete model for imitation. Innately superior to $11 the little arts of affectation and fashionable duplicity, he personally entered into, and for a length of time happily enjoyed ail the pleasures of rationality, all the comforts of so- ciety, without a prostitution of judgment, or a degra- dation of dignity. The most distinguishing trait in his Majesty's cha- racter, as a sportsman, was an invariable attachment to the chase, in which " he bora his blushing honours thick about him j M and held out to many of the osten- tatious sprigs of aristocracy who surrounded him* a 1 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. most glorious and ineffable example of affability, po- liteness, and paternal affection. In the field he was more than a king, by giving the most condescending and unequivocal proofs that his wish was then to be considered only as a 7nan; and by fostering under every proper and respectful distinction (that suboidination could dictate, and unsullied loyalty happily feel) the truly extatic sensation of personal equalization with his own subjects, of whose affection he had continual proofs, and from whom he was conscientiously and exultingly convinced he had nothing to fear. Before and after, as well as during the chase, he entered into all its varieties with the great number of private gen- tlemen who constantly attended, and to each individual of whom he paid the most marked civilities. Innu- merable proofs of this distinguishing trait might be ad- duced, but a few will suffice upon the present occa- sion. During the indisposition of the late Lord Spencer Hamilton, it was his M 's custom to enquire of his surgeon (who" constantly hunted) the state of his lord- ship's health ; when, being informed " that it was thought somewhat improved by Dr. Blenkinsop, of Reading, who had been with him all night," his M— expressed himself highly pleased with' the kind atten- tion of the doctor to his patient, adding, at the same time, in the hearing of the whole field, that his con- duct was very different to the London physicians, whose constant practice it was to alight from their chariots, ask a few trifling questions, write their pre- scriptions, receive their fee, and then bid you good morning. This observation was thought the more ex- traordinary, as it was made immediately a r ter his own SPORTING ANECDOTES. 3 personal experience, and a certain eminent M.D. was then in actual attendance, and positively in the line of hearers, when the remark was so emphatically made* On another occasion, when a Mr. Parry, of ' Bea- consfield, sustained a very severe injury by a most dreadful fall from his horse, almost at the very mo- ment the hounds were seizing the stag, near Hanni- kin's Lodge, and was for many moments supposed to be dead, his M , with a tenderness so peculiarly evident to him, sat on his horse at a few yards dis- tance, during the operation of bleeding upon the open heath ; the present Lord Sandwich (then Lord Hin- chinbroke) bringing repeated injunctions to the sur- geon from his M , that Mr. P. should be taken home to the house of the practitioner, without ad- verting at all to the expence, which should be amply compensated, under the instructions of the master of the stag-hounds ; a matter that was afterwards oblite- rated with the most princely liberality. It is much to be lamented (and by the sporting world in particular) that a calamitous affliction — an affliction which, of all others, places those who are the victims to it, in a situation truly pitiable — has now denied his Majesty the pursuit of those innocent plea- sures and salutary gratifications. After his first ill- ness, it was fondly hoped, by a grateful nation, that this beloved monarch would again resume ihose diver- sions, in which he was fitted to shine with peculiar lustre— but, alas! he resumed them for only a short time; being, from the repeated attacks of his calamity, obliged to decline them altogether. Still his Majesty keeps two packs of hounds, with a noble establishment S 2 4 SPORTING ANECDOTES. of old and faithful dependents, as well as a very exten- sive stud of the best hunters in the kingdom. Although no attachment to the pleasures of the turf were discernible, his Majesty never, till indisposition obliged him, omitted the honour of his annual visit (with his whole family) to the races at Ascot Heath, at which place he gives a plate of 100 guineas, to be run for on the first day, by such horses as have regu- larly hunted with his own hounds the preceding win- ter; and this race he was always observed more par- ticularly to enjoy, as he was known not only to be at- tentive to the perfections of each horse, but to analize minutely their qualifications during their exertions in the chase. Though the last races were deprived of the presence of his Majesty, for the reason above assigned, they were, honoured by a visit from the Royal Family. • Such has been the sporting character of this illus- trious Monarch, whose many other qualifications have long been the'theme of general admiration, and whose numerous virtues have not only attracted special no- tice, but will render his name and memory dear to posterity — " To arts, as arms, thy genius led the way, " And the glad olive mingle with the bay :' " Of social life too — thine the faultless plan, '*.. Foes warmed to friends, and man acknowledg'd man: " Fair times ! when monarchy is happiness ; " When rule is freedom, and when power can bless !" MAJOR TOPHAM, OF THE WOLD COTTAGE, YORKSHIRE. Every public character, who has in the least de- gree contributed towards the well being of society, SPORTING ANECDOTES. $ Gierits some notice to posterity ; and few are there to be found who have performed a more active part than the subject of the present memoir, either in fashionable life, or in the more healthful and invigorating pursuits of the sports of the field. Major Edward Topham is the son of Francis Top- ham, Esq. L.L. D. who was master of the faculties and judge of the prerogative court of York, at which place he resided. He was reckoned one of the most emi- nent civilians of his day ; and it was in a great mea- sure owing to the number of unfortunate cases that came before him as a judge, which he so strongly re- presented in a pamphlet addressed to the then Lord Hardwicke, that the act which put an end to the Fleet marriages passed. It was on this gentleman that Law- rence Sterne better known under the name of Tristram Shandy, made his first essay m a little pamphlet which he called ** The Adventures of a Watebcoat." Here Major Topham, who was then a boy at Eton, was first ushered into the world of literary warfare, from having it stated that his father,, who was there held forth as a watchman, " wanted to cut the parish watch-coat into a dress for his wife, and a pair of small clothes for his son." The subject of all this originated, says the biogra- pher of " Public Characters," in a dispute with Dr. Fountain, the late Deau of York, who having ne- glected to fulfil an engagement made with Dr. Top- ham, engaged Tristram Shandy to endeavour to turn his breach of promise into ridicule. The best result •was, that it became the means of first bringing forth into public notice, and afterwards into public admira- tion, Lawrence Sterne as an author, who was at that b3 O SPORTING ANECDOTES. perfod a curat© in the country, and till then totally unknown. Major Topham passed eleven years at Eton, where he was fortunate enough to be distinguished by fre- quently having his verses publicly read by the master in school, or, as it is there termed, by being " sent up for good." He afterwards formed one of the nume- rous band of upper boys, who were very severely pu- nished for being engaged in the great rebellion that took place under Dr. Forster, then master, so highly distinguished for his classical knowledge, yet, in the ways of the world, a very Parson Adams, and of course not well qualified to govern the greatest public semi- nary in the kingdom, which at one time boasted fiv« hundred and fifty students ! After leaving Eton, Major Topham went as a fellow commoner to Trinity College, Cambridge. — About this time his father died, and in a few months after- wards he lost his mother. His father — which is somewhat singular — although presiding over the very depository of wills, died intestate, and Major Topham had thus a good opportunity of beginning life well for a young man, for he executed all that his father had in- tended to have done ; a circumstance not a little advan- tageous to his eldest sister Charlotte, who married Sir Griffith Boynton, Bart, now nearly the oldest baro- netage in England, and died in child-birth at Burton Agnes, in Yorkshire. At Cambridge, Major T. remained four years, long enough to put on what is there called " an Harry Soph's gown," which many people would think was ex- changing a good for a bad gown ; that of the fellow- commoner being purple and silver, and the Harry Sopfc black silk. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 7 From Cambridge he went abroad for a year and a half, and afterwards travelled through Scotland. This little tour became better known, as he afterwards gave an account of it " in Letters from Edinburgh/' pub- lished by Dodsley. As the work of a stripling, they were so well received, that the first edition was soon out of print. Thence he removed to the seat of all human joy, in the eyes of a young man, London, and entered into the first regiment of life guards, which in the hey-day of the blood may be thought to make that still greater. There is a principle about some men that never allows them to be quiet or inactive. This ope- rated upon Major Topham in full force. He was soon appointed adjutant of that corps, and shortly after ex- hibited as a character in the windows of all the print- shops under the title of " The Tip- top Adjutant/' In truth he was a Martinette of his day, and shortly con- verted a very heavy ill- disciplined regiment into a ve- ry good one. In consequence of this he received seve- ral commendatory notices from the King, and the old general officers of the time. The Major, however, was not so absolutely absorbed in military tactics, as even then totally to estrange himself from literary pursuits. In the midst of his various avocations, he wrote many prologues and epi- logues to the dramatic pieces of his friends; and to these the wits of the day were pleased to attach so much more fashion than falls to the share of fugitive pieces in general, that few plays were brought out that did not produce a request of this kind. To some of Mr. Cumberland's dramatic pieces, and to all those com- posed by his friend Mr. Andrews, he gave the last word in the shape of an epilogue. Amongst those B 4 8 SPORTIKG ANECDOTE that produced the greatest applause on the stage, was a prologue spoken by Mr. Lee Lewis, in the character of Moliere's old woman, which had the effect of bring- ing for many nights together a full house before the beginning of the play — a circumstance in dramatic story somewhat singular ; and an epilogue that was af- terwards delivered by Miss Parren, now Countess of Derby, The managers of Drury-lane, who had protracted their season to great length, at the close of it, to add to ttteir profits, let their theatre for a few nights to a party, collected heaven knows how! of people who fancied they had great stage talents. Hamlet's advice to actors formed no part of their tragedy. Amongst the rest was the father of Lawrence the painter, who having been unsuccessful in the wine trade, as an inn- keeper, fancied that he had at least all the spirit neces* sary for a tragedian. The tragedy too was new, as well as the performers. Horace has observed — Si vis roe flere, dolendura est Priraum ipsi tibi : but this rule, for the first time, was known to be falla- cious ; for nothing could be more mournful than the performers, as they cried almost from the beginning to the end of the piece. One character, in fact, never ap- peared without a white handkerchief to be in readiness for his grief. The result was, that before half the play was over, the audience^ which was very numerous, were in a state of convulsion : as the actors roared, the spectators roared with merriment, and every tear of the performer was accompanied with the laughter of the whole audience. Such a tragedy was certainly ne- ver performed before, and never has been performed SPORTIXe ANECDOTES. 9 *ince. It was this subject, luckiiy occurring at the time, that Major Topham selected for an epilogue, which was most admirably delivered by Miss Farren^ The effect was such, that the elder Colman often de- clared that it brought five hundred pounds to the Hay- market theatre during that season. The author re- ceived from the manager in return, a very handsome letter, with the perpetual freedom of the theatre. Major Topham remained adjutant of the second life- guards about seven years, during which period he suc- ceeded in making it the pattern regiment of the king- dom, and therefore, in some measure, actually merited the appellation of the Tip-top Adjutant. After this, in the regular course of purchase and promotion, he rose to be a captain, in consequence of which the du- ties of adjutant devolved upon another. What to many men would have been a recommendation, a life of less activity and trouble, was not a life of ease to him. Nunquam minus solus, guam cum solus, was ap- plied to a character of old; and an active mind is cer- tainly never less at ease than when it has nothing to do. At this time he first became acquainted with old Mr„ Elwes, who frequently used to dine with him on guard,, when he was not engaged in the house of commons. The son of Mr. Elwes was at that time in the same re- giment; and it was from this circumstance that Major Topham became enabled to confer on that son those es- sential benefits which he afterwards performed. — Hav- ing great influence with old Elwes, he had often been solicited by his friend to take an opportunity of speak- ing to the father on the subject of making a will, as from being a natural son he could not have inherited: without it. The repugnance to talking about his pro- S. 5 10 SPORTING ANECDOTES. perty, much more to disponing of it, was in IMr. El wet inconceivable ; and therefore it was a matter of the ut- most delicacy and difficulty. Major Topham, how-* ever, was fortunate enough to choose a moment, and to find a way to overcome this difficulty, and the two sons owe entirely to him the whole of the immens^ property they now possess ; and when perhaps this property may be estimated at seven hundred thousand pounds, it must be considered as a service in point of importance, that has seldom been performed by one person to another. , From being more of a literary man than in general falls to the lot of officers, he had frequently at his dinner-parties on guard men not usually seen in a mi- litary mess. Home Tooke, the elder Colman, M. P. -Andrews, John Wilkes, and many other characters then well known, were in the habits of visiting him there. But although London is a scene which even In its very streets can never appear to want bustle and ac- tivity, yet when jthose streets have been paced over till every stone of them is become familiar employment, for an active mind may still be wanting, and " Still that something unpossess'd Corrodes and leavens all the rest." The life of a captain of horse-guards, except when on duty, which was only four days in every month, was at that time a life of perfect inactivity, and therefore soon became irksome to Major Topham. The late Sir George Metham used to say, " that a man who does not feel his blood galloping as he gallops up Highgate- hill," has no further business in London, and with the some kind of business he may be thus engaged. But all business may become familiar, and thus cease to have its allurements. SPORTING ANECDOTES. M A circumstance happened about this time to the ma- jor, which, as has been said, gave a sort of distin- guishing colour to his future life. Mrs. Wells, of Dru- ry-lane theatre, confessedly one of the most beautiful women of the day in which she lived, through the me- dium of a friend, sent to request him to write her an epilogue for her benefit. He naturally did not deny $er request, and of course the reading and instructing her in the delivery produced interviews which the com- pany of a woman so beautiful must always make dan- gerous. There are, as Sterne says, " certain chords, and vibrations, and notes that are correspondent in the human feelings, which frequent interviews awaken into harmony/' and— if puns did not require spelling — fre- quently produce a consort. What did occur may be easily supposed : a mutual intercourse, in consequence of mutual affection in pro- gress of fcfme took place betwixt them. It may also be naturally supposed,, that in return for the greatest gift a man can receive, the heart of a most beautiful wo- man, that he would devise every method to become ser- viceable to her interests and dramatic character, and think his time and talents never better employed than in advancing the reputation of her he loved. This de- sire, indeed, gave a new spur to his mind, and a fresh activity to his genius. It was this idea that first in- spired the thought of establishing a public print. It has been said more than metaphorically, that" love first created The World." Here it was realised. Gal- lantry began what literature supported, and politics finished. It was thus, a6 we understand, from a wish to assist Mrs. Wells in her dramatic life, that the pa- per of the World first originated, and which, begiuning *6 12 SPORTING ANECDOTES. from the passion for a fine woman, attracted to itself shortly afterwards as much public notice as ever fell to- the share of a daily, and constantly a very fugitive pub- lication. Mr. John Bell, who was then one of the most popu- lar booksellers of the time, having by some accident, heard of this intention, proposed himself, under the condition of a third share, and the advantages result- ing from printing and publishing the paper. . No one was better experienced in this department of a public print. He had been an original proprietor of the . Morning Post, and was as well acquainted as any man •with the nature and taste of London itself. From the dispositions he made, together with his unexampled dexterity and perseverance, perhaps, more from the conversation which was generally held that such a pub- lication was about to come forth, in one week the de- mand for The World exceeded that which had been made in the same time for any other newspaper.. With the exception of the Anti-jacobin, no public print ever went upon the same ground ; not depending so much on the immediate occurrence or scandal of the day, as upon the style of writing and the pleasantries that appeared there. In truth, some of the most in- genious men contributed towards it;, and when the. names of Merry, Jerningham, Andrews, Mrs. Cow- ley, Mrs. Robinson, Jekyll, and Sheridan are men- tioned as having frequently appeared in this print, the remark will not be doubted. The poetry of The World was afterwards collected into four volumes. Merry and Mrs. Cowley were the Delia Crusca and Anna Matilda, who were so long admired, and who, during the whole writing of those very beautiful poems^, *vere perfectly unknown to each other. SPORTING ANECDOTES. IS But admired as these productions, and many others were, that appeared in the paper of the World, it is a singular fact that the correspondence of two boxers, Humphries and Mendoza, raised the sale of the paper to a higher degree than all the contributions of the most ingenious writers. It was the fashion of that time for the pugilists to send open challenges to each other, and thus publicly announce their days of fighting. This they chose to do through The World, as considering it the most fashionable paper; and their writing beat Sheridan all to pieces. What shall we say to this ? Does it not realise the worlds of Johnson on the sub- ject of the stage ? " But still reflect, our fate is not our choice, The stage but echoes back the people's voice ; The Drama's laws, the Drama's patrons give, For they who live to please, must please to live. ,J In a short time Mrs. Wells by her own intrinsic me- rit, added to a little instruction, rose to be one of the first actresses of her time. They who remember her and Edwifi for four years, drawing crowded audiences to the Haymarket theatre, to the self-same perform- ances, willjudge whether this must not have been true; and they who have seen others repeat the same charac- ters, may, perhaps, observe in the language of Shakes- pear — u Alack the day ! seeing what we have seen,. Seeing what we see I" Major Topham's wishes,, therefore were fully gra- tified. The paper of The World, of which he was. editor, had extended itself beyond his utmost expecta- tions. It was looked to as a repository for all the best writers of the day; it gave the tone to politics, and 14 SPORTING ANECDOTES. what to him was still dearer, it contributed to the fame of the woman he loved. But alas! the dearest and most sanguine of our hopes are but as breath. Mrs. Wells, in her eagerness to appear in a particular part, to oblige the manager of Covent-garden, too soon after a lying-in of her last child, produced a revolution of her milk, which after- wards flew to her head, and occasionally disordered her brain. It can only be they who once knew her as ehe really was, that will join with us in exclaiming — " Oh ! what a noble mind was there o'erthrown !" On this melancholy event taking place, the paper of The World, at which Major Topham had incessantly laboured for nearly five years, and which had now at- tained an unrivalled degree of eminence, lost in his eyes all its charms. He first determined to let it, reserv- ing a certain profit from its sale; and in a short time he resolved to dispose of it altogether. Reynolds, the dramatist, on this occasion alluding to the name of the paper, quoted not unaptly the following phrase:-— « Who was it lost Mark Anthony the World ?. A woman." They who have known what the daily supply, the daily toil, the daily difficulty, the hourly danger, and the incessant tumult of a morning paper is, can alone know that chaos of the brain in which a man lives who has all this to undergo. Terror walks before him — fatigue bears him down — libels encompass him, and distraction attacks him on every side. He must be a literary man, and a commercial man ; he must be a political man, and a theatrical man ; and must run through all the changes from a pantomime to a prime gunister. What every man is pursuing, he must be SPORTING ANECDOTES. 15 engaged in; and from the very nature and " front of his offence," he must be acquainted with all the wants, the weaknesses, and wickedness, from one end of Lon- don to the other. To view all this might gratify curiosity for the mo- ment: to live in it is to guide a little boat in a storm under a battery of great guns firing at him every mo- ment ; but even this has an advantage; it may endear retirement or make seclusion pleasant. In fact, and without a pun, on quitting The World, Major Topham retired to his native county, and has lived two hun- dred miles from the metropolis, without once visiting it during the space of six whole years. Who could have done this ? Who could have thought that remote hills, solitary plains, and, what is worse, country conversation, would have found charms suffi- cient to detain a town made man from the streets of London ? The physicians would answer, " cooling scenes are the lenitives of fever." After the long la- bours of a sultry day, where can the weary fly better than to the shade ? The man thus circumstanced will naturally say — " rus! quando ego, te aspiciam, quandoque licibit Ducere solicitse jucunda oblivia vitae !" Major Topham, we understand, has not found, eveji in retirement, time hang heavy upon his hands. The duties of a country magistrate, in a large county, are very great, and very incessant. He has a considerable farm of some hundred acres under his own manage- ment, and his occasional hours he is dedicating to the compilation of a history of his own life. He has along with him, those who in his retirement have proved his fecst solace, three daughters, who are said to be nearly 16 SPORTING ANECDOTES. as beautiful as their mother, and whose manners and understandings are reported by those who bave seen them, to be equal to all that might be expected. Major Topham, living in the Wolds of Yorkshire, has not been insensible to the pleasure derived from rural sports. Among other country amusements, he has founded many coursing establishments. He was the possessor of the celebrated greyhound Snowball, bro- ther to Major, the property of Colonel. Thornton — whose breed is so well known, and so highly esteemed in the sporting world. The daughters of Major Top- ham are greatly distinguished for their superior skill in, horsemanship. - One of the last of his literary works * was the Life of Mr. Elwes. If wide-spread circulation be any test of merit, it certainly had this to boast, ft was originr ally published in numbers in The World, which it raised * Amongst his dramatic productions are to be reckoned a farce, produced, under the management of Mr. Sheridan at Drury^lane, called " Deaf Indeed," respecting which the audi- ence fully justified the title, by not hearing above half of it. To that succeeded, at the same theatre, a farce called " The Fool," first produced for the benefit of Mrs. Wells, and afterwards re- peated for many nights. The fame which Mrs. Wells had ac- quired in her performance of Becky Cadwallader,. suggested the Jdea of the latter production, and she realised all the expecta- tions that had been. formed upon this occasion. His next was entitled '" Bonds without Judgment," performed for many successive nights at Covent-garden. His last farce re- ceived the appellation of ** The Westminster Boy ;" and being brought out for the benefit of Mrs. Wells, proved so in reality. — not a Westminster boy being absent who could procure money to purchase admittance. For them, the very name was sufficient ; and concluding there must be something hostile in it, they began, by signal, their, operations against, it, as Mr, Holman com- SPORTING ANECDOTES. \7 m sale about one thousand papers. It was thence co- pied into all the different provincial ones, and after- wards, with some revisions, collected and published in a volume. It is now passing through an eleventh edi- tion.'' The late Horace Walpole used to say of it, " that it was the best collection of genuine anecdote he knew." Nor has this author been less distinguished for his knowledge and experience as a sportsman, having very handsomely contributed his assistance in writing an in- teresting account of " ancient and modern coursing, v for an elegant and popular work, entitled, " The Spa '> man's Cabinet." In the last place, we find his pen employed in the production of many interesting notes to a new and beautiful edition of Somervile's Chase, illustrated with engravings by that ingenious artist Mr. John Scott, No man has more of the manners of a gentleman, or more of the ease and elegance of fashionable life, than Major Topham ; though fond of retirement, he com- municates himself through a large circle of acquaint- ance, and is of a temper so easy and companionable, that those who see him once, know him; and those who know him have a pleasing acquaintance : and, if services are required, a warm and zealous friend. His knowledge of life and manners, enlivens his conversa- tion with a perpetual novelty, while his love of humour ■ ■ • . -*. roenced the prologue. The fact we understand to be, that the name was merely taken to introduce Mrs. Wells, who was a beautiful figure in boy's clothes, in the dress of a Westminster boy. But this, among a thousand others in Stage History, will re- wain to prove how the fate of many pieces have beea determined an ideas totally mistaken. 18 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and ridicule, always restrained within the bounds of benevolence and good-nature, add to the pleasures of the social table, and animate the jocundity of the fes- tive board. EXTRAORDINARY STEEPLE-RACE. A match, which had excited much interest in the sporting world, and which amongst that community is denominated a steeple-race — the parties undertaking to surmount all obstructions, and to pursue in their progress as straight a line as possible. The contest lay between Mr. Bullivant of Sproxton, Mr. Day of Wymondham, and Mr. Frisby of Waltham, and was for a sweepstakes of 100 guineas staked by each. They started from Womack's Lodge, at half-past twelve o'clock, (the riders attired in handsome jockey dresses of orange, crimson, and sky-blue, respectively worn by the gentlemen in the order we have named them above) to run round Woodal-head and back again— a distance somewhat exceeding eight miles. They con- tinued nearly together, until they came within a mile and a half of the goal, when Mr. Bullivant— on his well-known horse, Sentinel — took the lead, and ap- pearances promised a fine race between him and Mr. Day ; but unfortunately in passing through a hand- gate, owing partly to a slip, Mr. Day's horse's shoulder came in full contact with the gate-post; the rider was thrown with great violence, and, as well as the horse, was much hurt. Nevertheless, Mr. Day remounted in an instant, and continued his course. Mr. Bulli- vant, however, during the interruption, made such progress as enabled him to win the race easily. The contest for a second place uow became extrernely- SPORTING ANECDOTES. l£ severe between Mr. Day and Mr. Frisby : the last half mile was run neck and neck, and Mr. Day only beat his opponent by half a neck. The race was performed in 25 minutes 32 seconds. SOUTH AMERICAN SPORTING. At Lima the diversion of cock-fighting is followed with great avidity, where it was not under any regu- lation till 1 76*2, the duties of society were not only neg- lected by many individuals, but there were continual disputes among the amateurs. At length the little square of St. Catherine, near the walls of the city, was fixed upon for this amusement only. It is observed that the brook running here, and the gardens which almost surround this spot, the goodness of air, &c. render the situation most delightful. The building in which the sport is carried on, forms a kind of amphi- theatre: the seats naturally ascend, leaving nine open spaces between them for the spectators, who stand. On the outside of the amphitheatre is a very commo- dious stair-case, which leads to the upper galleries, twenty-nine in number, not including that of the judge, which is distinguished by its decorations and its mag- nitude. Here this amusement is permitted not only two days in the week, but on Saint's days and on Sun- days ; the seats in the corridors are let at different prices, but the spectators who stand in the nine open spaces between the area and the galleries, are admitted gratis. Notwithstanding the crowd is often immense, no disorders occur, as the judge, who decrees the. prizes to the winners, has always a guard with him to enforce his authority. Tennis is a game which is free to every one, and is tO SPORTING ANECDOTES. also a very wholesome recreation : the plays are un- der no other restriction, excepting that of confining the sums they play for within four piastres. The bull-fights here, are regulated both as to time and place; and when the combatants want an oc- casion to shew their valour, they excite admiratioi* by their activity. The cruel custom of ham-stringing the animals that are b ward in resenting all other provocation, is extrer ely blameable, and growing much out of repute. During the whole time, how- ever, the spectators are perpetually teased by the sellers of a kind of punch, which the Spaniards call agu de berros; but so strongly impregnated with brandy, that it would be fatal to drink it in a country less tempe- rate than Peru ; in fine, the bull fights are attended with much less* cruelty than they were, only six years ago. The most fashionable walk, or promenade, is that of Jllameda, which is most frequented on Sundays, New Year's Day, and Twelfth Day, (when. the judges, or alcaides are elected,) and the 2d of August. The, horse-races between the mountains in the environs of Lima, commence on St. John's Day, June 24-th, and continue till the end of September. The dew that falls during those months, covering the shrubs and flowers in the sandy plains which terminate the valley, render the season truly delightful; but nothing is so fatal in this climate, as for Europeans to remain out late at night, exposed to the air, or, as they sometimes do^ when they sleep in the slender huts belonging to the native Indians. Here the number of carriages of all descriptions, the variety of their forms and colours, the elegance of the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 21 liveries and the persons of rank that frequent the course, with the magnificent dress of the ladies who grace the scene, render the spectacle indescribably pleasing: however, there is a stiffness and formality among people of fashion, in their manner of saluting each other, which, as it has been long looked upon as ridiculous, is now beginning] >B wear off apace. The promenade of La Piedr^Lisa, is formed for the lovers of tranquillity and meditation. The foliage of the tr^es by which it is circumscribed, the agreeable umbrage, and the proximity of the river, with the ex- tensive views of the valley oi" Lurigonehu, the cultiva- ted state of the country, and the beautiful landscape which it offers to the eye, fill the mind with the most grateful conceptions. In every other respect, the amusements of the city are daily, as it were, approxi- mating nearer to the taste of the great cities of Europe, if we make allowance for some customs, manners, and peculiarities, which in all countries, like the idioms of a language, are transferrable. EXTRAOPvDINARY FEAT OF A DRAUGHT HORSE, An unparalleled instance of the power of a horse, when assisted by art, was shewn near Croydon. The Surry Iron Rail-way, being completed, and opened for the carriage of goods all the way from Wandsworth to Merstham, a bet was made between two gentlemen, that a common horse could draw 36 tons for six miles along the road, and that he should draw his weight from a dead pull, as well as turn it round the occasional^windings of the road. 3 22 SPORTING ANECDOTES. A number of gentlemen assembled near Merstham to see this extraordinary triumph of art. Twelve waggons loaded with stones, each waggon weighing above three tons, were chained together, and a horse taken pro- miscuously from the timber cart of Mr. Harwood, was yoked into the team. He started from near the Fox public-house, and drew the immense chain of waggons with apparent ease to near the turnpike at Croydon, a distance of six miles, in one hour and forty-one mi- nutes, which is nearly at the rate of four miles an hour. In the course of this time he stopped four times, to shew that it was not by the impetus of the descent that the power was acquired — and after each stoppage he drew off the chain of waggons from a dead rest. Hav- ing gained his wager, Mr. Banks, the gentleman who laid the bet, directed four more loaded waggons to be added to the cavalcade, with which the same horse again set off with undiminished power. And still fur- ther to shew the effect of the rail-way in facilitating motion, he directed the attending workmen, to the number of about fifty, to mount on the waggons, and the horse proceeded without the least distress; and in truth, there appeared to be scarcely any limitation to the power of his draught. After the trial, the wag- gons were taken to the weighing machine, and it ap- peared that the whole weight was as follows :— Ton. Cwt. Q. 12 Waggons, first linked together weighed 38 4 2. A> Ditto, afterwards attached - - 13 2 Supposed weight of fifty labourers - 4 Tons 55 6 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 23 GIGANTIC CHALLENGE. A RUSSIAN ANECDOTE, During his reign, Wladimir bad many wars to sustain, particularly against the Petchenegians. In one of the incursions of these people, the two armies were on the eve of a battle, being only separated by the waters of Troubeje, when their prince advanced and proposed to terminate the difference by single com- bat between two champions ; the people whose com- batant should be overcome, not to take up arms against the other nation for three years. The Russian sovereign accepted the proposal, and they reciprocally engaged to produce their champions. Among the troops of the Petchenegians was a man of an athletic make and colossal stature, who, vain of his strength, paced the bank of the river, loading the Russians with every species of insult, and provoking them by threatening gestures to enter the lists with him, at the same time ridiculing their timidity. The soldiers of Wladimir long submitted to these insults ; no one offered himself to the encounter, the gigantic figure of their adversary terrifying the whole of them. The day of combat being arrived, they were obliged to supplicate for longer time. At length an old man approached Wladimir ; — " My lord," said he, " I have five sons, four of whom are in the army ; as valiant as they are, none of them is equal to the fifth, who possesses prodigious strength/' The young man was immediately sent for. Being brought before the prince, he asked permission to make a public trial of bjs strength. A vigorous bull was ir- 1 *4 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ritaled with red hot irons: the young Russian stopped the furious animal in his course, threw him to the ground, and tore his skin and flesh. This proof in- spired the greatest confidence. The hour of battle ar- rives; the two champions advance between the camps, and the Petchenegian could not restrain a contemp- tuous smile when he observed the apparent weakness of his adversary, who was yet without a beard: but being quickly attacked with as much impetuosity as vigour, crushed between the arms of the young Rus- sian, he is stretched expiring on the dust, The Petche- negians, seized with terror, took to flight ; the Rus- sians pursued, and completely overthrew them. The sovereign loaded the conqueror, who was only a simple currier, with honours and distinctions. He was raised, as well as his father, to the rank of the grandees, and to preserve the remembrance of this action, the prince founded the city of Pereisaslavle on the field of battle, which still holds a distinguished rank among those of the government of Kiof. CURIOUS ESTIMATE RESULTING FROM SUNDAY AMUSEMENTS. An able calculator estimates the number of persons belonging to the metropolis, who spend the Sunday in the adjacent villages, inns, tea-houses, gardens, &c. at two hundred thousands. These, he calculates, will spend each half-a-crown, amounting in the whole to twenty-five thousand pounds. This sum, he thinks, cannot be thought ex- aggerated, when it is considered that he has taken the numbers 60 low us two hundred thousand, and the sunn spent by each at balf-a-crown. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 25 Twenty-five thousand pounds, multiplied by the number of Sundays in a year, give, as the annual con~ sumption of that day of rest, the immense sum of one million three hundred thousand pounds. Of these two hundred thousand persons, he calcu- lates the returning situations as follow : — Sober 50,000 In high glee -.-90,300 D runkish - 30,000 Staggering tipsy 1 0,000 Muzzy 1 5,000 Dead drunk- - 5,000 200,000 N.B. In the above calculation we think the num- bers exaggerated, but the sum is, perhaps, under the truth. Much, however, will depend on weather. SYMPATHETIC SENSIBILITY AT THE CARD-TABLE. So, Miss Hectic died this morning of a consump- tion. She was .10 more than seventeen — a sweet girl [ Ah me ! is she dead r Poor thing what's trumps r The man is dead, my dear, whom we employed to clear the mouth of the well behind our house, and which he fell into. Is he ? I thought he could not re- cover. — Play a spade, madam. There were upwards of four thousand killed in the last engagement. How many childless parents are now in sorrow ! Ah! how many indeed ! — The odd trick. The Captain is now reduced to such poverty, that { am told it would be a charity to send a joint of meat c £6 SPOUTING ANECDOTES. to his family. That's hard — I have not a heart in- deed, Sir. He fell on his head, and has been delirious ever* since ; and the physicians have no hopes that he will ever recover the use of his reason. Oh ! I recollect that he rode against somebody — Play a spade if you please. The prospect to the poor, this winter, is dreadful in- deed. There will be a powerful appeal to the feelings of the rich. Yes — one really gives so much in cha- rity 1 will bet you a guinea on the game. Pray, Lady , have you heard of the dreadful accident which has happened to Mrs. r What! her son drowned ? O yes — Mind we are eight, partner. George, madam, George — I am sorry to say it- put an end to his life last Tuesday. You don't say so? — I had two honours in my own hand. Yes ; and as misfortunes never come alone, his mo- ther and sister are in a state of distraction. Dear me, that's bad Single, double, and the rub. HUMOROUS SPECIMEN OF SPORTING BIOGRAPHY. A. B. was born in the year — no matter what : big parents were — no matter who : he had a pleasani chub- by countenance, frisked about in his nurse's arms, said fa when he was bid, and every body pronounced him to be— a sucet baby. After thi?, he began to walk alone : went from one end of the room to the other ; spoke pa and ma, and several other words, distinctly; and looked so charm- ing, that every body declared he was— a pretty bey. Jie was now sent to school, where he learned his SPORTING. ANECDOTES. 27 letters so well, that in a year or two he could read a lesson in the spelling-book, and repeat it to his papa and mamma by heart, on condition of receiving a slice of plumb-cake; and was always desired to walk in and be admired by the company, who agreed that he was— a charming child. In his progress, by listening to the conversation of those about him, he acquired a perfect memory, as well as the prompt and proper application of common- phrases in common speech ; which he delivered with such a pleasing accent, and unblushing countenance, that he universally acquired the character of — a won* derful boy for his years. He was now sent to a superior school, and began to study Latin, arithmetic, &c. Here he equalled at least, if not excelled, his fellow scholars in his pro- ficiency in learning, as well as at cricket, marbles, tops, &c. and played so many droll tricks at the ex- pence of his ushers and school-fellows, that they had no scruple in pronouncing him — a clever lad. He was next sent to college, where he out-did all his competitors in the midnight frolic ; played an excel- lent hand at whist; learned to drink his bottle ; and was so pleasant in singing a catch or a glee, that they all agreed in bestowing upon him, the epithet of — a promising fellow . Here, too, he distinguished himself in certain amours, rather of the expensive kind, though they did not ex- tend to higher game than his bed-maker, or his laun- dress's daughter. When his acquaintances heard of his gallantries, they cried out in extacy, that he was — a wild dog. His term being over, he was sent to London, and c 2 28 SPORTING ANECDOTES. placed in one of the inns of court, as the proper place to study law, and see the world. Here he formed a new set of acquaintances, with whom he ate, drank, and gamed. He was the life and soul of his company ; for he knew more, and had more ready money, as well as wit, than any of them ; and the sly old benchers of the inns, shook their heads, and declared he was— a fine dashing fellow. In his anxiety to see the world, he frequented all kinds of company, from the clubs in St. James's, to the cellars in St. Giles's ; and made such droll re- marks on what he saw, and seemed to enter so hear- tily into every kind of conviviality, that although some thought him mad, yet the majority pronounced him — a queer dog, and no fool. He now began to dress in style, dine in style, give dinners in style, and keep women in style. He was a great man at the coffee-houses ; in the box-lobbies of the theatres his person was an object, his opinion a law : and from his many transactions of public noto- riety, people began to consider him as — a man of the •world. In the process of time, he learned to judge of horse- flesh; frequented the races; betted considerably ; and won large sums. Lords now shook hands with him, ' and grave senators asked his opinion, not on state, but stable affairs; and he was known in the Turf Coffee- house, as one of the fraternity. In a word, he was considered to be— a knowing one. But, somehow or other, his fortune, which had for some time been in his own hands, began to decrease ; lie was less successful in his bets ; his bills remained unpaid for months; tradesmen began to be clamorous ; SPORTING ANECDOTES. 2$ money must be had ; and to get it, he ventured to lay a plant, slip a card, cog a die, and practise many schemes which the world does not approve of, nor think quite consistent with honesty; and became — a complete black leg. Amidst all this, he never was an apostate to the cause of the fail sex, but pursued his amours with in- constant constancy ; and, with the advantages of a good person, some art, and more assurance, he was set down for — a devil among the women. By degrees, however, be found his affairs so much deranged, that he came to the resolution to sell the remainder of what he possessed, buy an annuity, and retire from public business, and life. In managing this matter, he made so good a bargain, that even the Jews shook their heads, stroked their beards, and swore — Ash Got's my judge, he is no Chreshtian / After this, he enjoyed himself to a pretty advanced age ; having gone through, beside the characters above- mentioned, several others, such as, an odd fellow, buck, hearty cock, pleasant dog, &c. At length, his whole course being run, he died at his lodgings, at a hair-dresser's in Chancery-lane, leaving his moveable and personal effects to an old woman who swept his room, made his bed, and tucked him up; which oc- casioned people to say — he was still the old man. There was not enough left, however, to bury him, and the parish took this expence off the shoulders of his wealthy old friends, who signified their concern at his death, by the tenderest exclamation, " Poor devil ! What ! is he dead ! — well, 1 knew him once— a fine fellow r c 3 50 SPORTING ANECDOTES, SINGULAR METHOD OF DISPENSING JUSTICE. The Rev. Mr. H. a gentleman of singular humouiy and brother to a no less singular law-peer, retired to east' and independence, as the Rector of — — , in the county of Kent. Being a justice of the peace, he was frequently teazed with some idle differences among the inhabitants of the. place. Not being willing to be bro- ken in upon by such frivolous complaints, when appli- cation was made to him for redress of some imaginary injury, his custom was to dismiss them, with saying, " He would send for them when he had leisure to at- tend to their business/'--- The first rainy day that next happened, be took care to mad for the parties and re- ceived them sitting in the porch of the door, which just provided shelter for himself and his clerk, whilst the complainants were obliged to stand exposed to the in- clement sky, all the while uncovered, to pay proper re- spect to the king's justice of the peace. By this means he entirely cured the country folks in the neighbour- hood of litigious dispositions. His blunt manner of en- forcing wholesome truths as a clergyman, was as re- markable as his peculiarity in the commission of the peace. One Sunday he was preaching on moral duties from these words: — Render therefore unto all their due." — In explaining his text, he observed, that there were duties which a man owed to himself as well as to others. " And," added he, " when they are not at- tended to, I never have a good opinion of that man. For this reason," he proceeds, turning himself to a particular part of the church, " I have never had a good opinion of you John Trott, since you sold me SPORTING ANECDOTES. ol those sheep six months ago, and have never called for the money." THE 8TOAT. The stoat, from its size, is as little regarded by the farmer as the common rat, but our more experienced, vermin catchers, acquainted with their destructive ha- bits among the poultry, and in the warrens, contrive every means to take them, but for all their ingenuity this is but seldom effected. — The character of this creature is greatly to be dreaded : to the ferocity of the wolf, he unites the craftiness of the fox; and were his powers equal to his courage, when he seizes his prey, our larger animals would not be able to resist his attack. In a small lawn where there was a peacock, with several hens about him, a stoat was seen creeping from .under an old vine towards them, and in an instant it seized on the neck of the male bird, pinning his head to the ground, while with its sharp nails, it was tearing away the feathers to come better at the throat of the peacock, whose screams brought a labouring man to its assistance, and notwithstanding his hasty approach, the stoat would not quit his hold till the man had broken his loins with a blow from his shovel. The difference in shape between the stoat and the weasel is so small, that they have frequently been de- scribed under the same denomination. Its length is about ten inches ; the tail about five inches and a half, very hairy, sometimes tipped with white at the end, but generally black ; the edge of the ears, and tips of the toes are of a yellowish white. I* C 4 32 SPORTING ANECDOTES. other respects it resembles the weasel in colour as well as form. The stoat is found white in Britain during the win- ter seasons; its fur, however, among us is of little value. Its courage at all times makes it a formidable enemy to the farmers, and of course particularly to be guarded FARMERS MAN AND THE FOX. In the course of last winter L— d Y — s's foxhounds, of B — y had many fine runs. In one of them they had pursued a fox nearly three hours, and were gaining on him, when it happened that a man thrashing in a barn, at the village of H y, heard the hounds' cry ; he ran out, and seeing poor reynard coming towards the barn, the fellow returned and fetched a fowling piece, which he kept for shooting sparrows, and with which he shot the fox, and afterwards took him into the barn, covered him up, and commenced thrashing. The hounds shortly came up, and were in course at fault. A person near, who saw the transaction, communicated it to J. U y, Esq. of W n, who was up first with the hounds. He, with the true spirit of a sportsman, instantly dismounted, entered the barn and demanded of the rustic their game. The fellow stood for some time speechless with apprehension, and, fearing to swallow half his teeth from the fist of Mr. U y, he pointed to where poor reynard lay under the straw. Mr. U y took him by the hind legs, and so thrashed the fellow about the head and face, that he was forced to make his escape from the barn. Had not this straight for- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 33 ward rustic put an end to the fox in this way, it would have been one of the finest runs those hounds had during the season, as he was making for the clays, a very strong country, and where it is presumed few would have been in at the death. THE OLD ENGLISH HUNTSMAN, AND MOLE- CATCHER. BY MR. PRATT. I must now beg you to accompany me to the hu$ of an ancient man; nor shall I make an apology for the liberty I take with you, since you liberally allow, I have more than once convinced you that places the least productive of scenic beauty, and the least distin- guished in the map of the world, are the most favour- able to the lover of his kind, and to the examiner of human nature. If it be true, that Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, It is the business of the moral florist; or, shall we ra- ther say, of the mental botanist, to take care that every specimen of Nature's noblest blooms and plants, shall not to Waste their sweetness in the desert air. Instead, then, of asking your pardon, let me de- mand your thanks for now leading you over the un- sheltered heath and open fields from Woodhurst to Warboys. There, passing a hamlet, let me conduct you along the dreary moor, cold and comfortless as it is, but which supplies with many a warm sensation — the peasant's hearth with peat, turf, and other cottage- fuel of the fenland poor. c 5 SJ. SPORTING ANECDOTES. Reared of those turfs, on a few poles by way of pillars, and here and there a rude lath to fence the sides, and to foim the door-way, behold a soit of her- mit-seeming hovel. Yet it is not the abode of an an- choret : it is the daily retirement of a social old man, aged ninety-three years, whose name is John Grounds. He has followed the occupation of a mole-catcher forty of those years, gaining from the parish the sum of two- pence for the capture of each mole; and, so uninter- rupted has been his health, that he has not been pre- vented in his employment more than thrice in the whole of that long space of time, though the walk from his cottage at Warboys to his turf hovel on the moor, is a full English league, and most of his time passed upon marshy land, amidst humidity and vapours. Yet how few people who live in the air of a palace, and in the bosom of luxury, can vie with our poor fen- lander, in all that makes life desirable — health, spirits, and content. But having shewn you his place of business by day, I will re-conduct you to the hut where he has passed the nights of those forty years in unbroken repose ; and as we bend our way to the spot, I will present you with a true portrait of the man, and a brief sketch of his family, and of his adventures. John Grounds, about sixty years preceding the date of this letter, had been a follower of my father's hounds, and distinguished himself as a lover of the sport ; to partake of which, he would bound over the interposing fields, hedges, and ditches, with almost the speed, and more of the spirit, than the hounds them- selves, upon the first summons of the bugle-horn. This early activity recommended him to the notice of SPORTING ANECDOTES. o3 the huntsman, who preferred him to the whipper-in- ship then vacant ; and having, in this office, acquitted himself much to the satisfaction of the squire, and of the pack, which, as he used to say, " all loved him to a dog," he was elevated, on the removal of his first patron, to another appointment, even to the entire command of the kennel; a situation which be rilled for many years with great dignity and reputation. And although it was not till late in his reign, I was of sufficient age to form any personal opinion of those achievements, which to the enthusiasts of the field- sports are reckoned as important as any which are ap- preciated by heroes of another description, in the field of battle — and perhaps with more reason, certainly with less criminality, considering the general causes of war. I was old enough before he resigned the camns sceptre, to attest that his government exhibited that happy mixture of fortitude and moderation, encou- raging the true, correcting the false, paying honor to the sagacious, and rearing up the young and thought- less to steady excellence, at the same time punishing, the babbler, and teaching the ignorant. — And I re- member, I even then thought that poor John Grounds might furnish no mean model, whereby to form those who are destined to rule a more disorganized and ex- tensive empire; and how often has this idea since oc- curred to me, as I traced back the events of my boyish days ! That simple monarch of my father's kennel, thought I, might come forth in the blameless majesty of dominion, and dictate wisdom to ministers and kings. The only poetical work which my father seemed truly to enjoy, was Somervilie's fine poem of the Chase, crj 2>6 SPOKTING ANECDOTES. and often meeting it in my way, I perused and re- perused it with avidity ; not so much from any love of its glorious subject, as my father often called it, nor because I caught any thing of the spirit which the music of hounds and of the horn is said to inspire, for I was extremely degenerate in that respect; but because I seemed to be led over hills and dales, and scoured the plains, and followed the echoes through their woods, and brushed the dew, and passed the stream in com- pany and under the muses. These appeared to show me the hare, her velocity and her energy, without worrying her. In numbers more harmonious than the sounds which were reverberated from the hills or thickets, these tuneful associates brought every thing of beauty and of sense to my mind's eye: and in re- citing aloud different passages, that painted the love- liness of early morn, the fragrance of nature, the sa- gacity of the dog, and the pride of the horse, I was not seldom praised by my dear father, who thought me at length a convert to the joys and honours of the chase, when in effect I was only animated by the charms of verse; and 1 was complimented for my feelings being congenial with the sportsman, when in truth I was in raptures only with the poet. As time warned my father of the necessity of relin- quishing the vehement exercise connected with these diversions, John Grounds passed with a fair character mto the service of Lady St. John of Bletsoe, as her Ladyship's gamekeeper, in which office he remained, *in " goodly favour and liking," as he expressed it, til} the sorrowful day of her death. After this he mar- . ried, and lived well pleased till his first wife's decease r but he found 'the holy estate so happy, that he entered SPORTING ANECDOTES. 37 upon it again ; and jocosely now advises, bis second dame not to give him another opportunity, for fear the third time should not be so favourable. This-mole catching is united with the occupation of bird frighter, in those parts of the year when the fea- thered plunderers assault the corn or fruits; or when, as their poetical advocate observed, " the birds of heaven assert their right to, and vindicate their grain." But, u poor fools/' would Grounds often say, " I sometimes think they have as good a right to a plumb, or a cherry, or a wheat-ear, as any Christian person; and so I seldom pop at them with any thing but pow- der ; and that more for the pleasure of hearing the noise of the gun, than to do any execution : except now and then, indeed, I let fly at a rascally old kite, who would pounce upon cherry and bird too, and carry off one of my chicks into the bargain, if it lay in his way." " And when do I try my hand at a thief, I am not often wide of my mark, cried the old man in a late in- terview ; " I can still give him a leaden luncheon when I have a mind to it. Now and then, too, a carrion crow, with a murrain to him, and a long-necked heron, with a fish in his mouth, goes to pot : but, somehow I don't relish fixing my trap for these poor soft crea- tures \" taking one from the mole-bag slung across his shoulders ; " they look so comfortable, and feel so soft and silky; and when they lay snugly under the earth, little think, poor souls ! what a bait 1 have laid for them,, seeing I cover the mumble-stick with fresh sod so slyly, there seems to be no trap at all. Though they turn up the ground to be sure, and rootle like so many little hogs ; and for that matter do a power of 38 SPORTING ANECDOTES. mischief: and as for blindness, ' none are so blind as those who wont see,* your Honour. These fellows know a trap as well as J do, and can see my tricks a& plain as I can see theirs : and sometimes they lead me a fine dance from hillock to hedge, with a murrain to them ! pass through my traps, and after turning up an acre of ground, sometimes in a single night, give me the slip at last." But it is time to look at the portrait of the man. And, lo! seated on a brown bench cut in the wall, within the chimney-place, in a corner of yon rude cot- tage, he presents himself to your view. Behold his still ruddy cheeks, his milk-white locks, partly curled and partly straight— see how correctly they are parted in the middle, almost to the division of a hair — a short pipe in his mouth — his dame's hand folded in his own — a jug of smiling beer warming in the wood-ashes — a cheerful blaze shining upon two happy old counte- nances, in which, though you behold the indent of many furrows, they have been ma'ie by age, not sor- row — the good sound age of health, without the usual infirmities of long life, exhibiting precisely the unper- ceived decay so devoutly to be wished. On the ma- tron's knee sits a purring cat: at the veteran's foot, on the warm hearth, sleeps an aged hound of my fa- ther's breed, in the direct line of unpolluted descent; or, " a true chip of the old block," as John phrased it; and who, by its frequent and quick-iepeated whaffle or de mi-bark, seems to be dreaming of the chase. An antique gun is pendant over the cliinmey : a spinning- wheel occupies the vacant coiner by the second brown bench: and a magpie, with closed eyes, and his bill nestled under his wing, is at profound rest in his wicket SPORTING ANECDOTES. 39 cage. To close the picture, the mole-bag, half filled with the captives of the day, thrown into a chair, en which observe a kitten has clambered, and is in the act of playing with one of the soft victims, which it has contrived to purloin from the bag, for its pastime : while the frugal but sprightly light, from the well- stirred faggot, displays on the mud but clean walls, many a lime-embrowned ditty, as well moral as pro- fessional: such as — " God rest you, merry gentlemen" — " The morning is up, and the cry of the hounds"-—* " The sportsman's delight" — Chevy Chase" — and, " The jolly huntsman." Such exactly were persons and place, as in one of my visits of unfading remembrance to the good old- folks, whom I had known in early days. I walked to Warboys, and surveyed its famous wood and fen. But would you have a yet closer view of this happy, healthy, and innocent creature, who has passed near a century in blameless discharge of various employ- ments, without having heaved one sigh of envy, or, as he told me, " shed one tear of sorrow, but when his parents died, or a friend and neighbour was taken away." You must suppose you see him in his best array, when he walked three miles after having before walked three to his mole-traps, " purposely and in pure love" as he assured me, " to return my kind goodness with goodness in kind."" This happened at Woodhurst, and at the house of John Hills, from which my heart has already so suc- cessfully, as you tell me, addressed yours. The pen- cil of a painter from Nature could never had a happier opportunity of sketching from the life, an old sports- 2 40 SPORTING ANECDOTES. man of England, in the habit of his country and his calling. It was no longer the little mole-catcher in his worsted gaiters and leathern deep-tanned jacket, sitting on his oak bench in a jut of the chimney, with a short pipe in his mouth, and his torn round hat (till he recollected his guest) fixed side-ways on his head, like a Dutch peasant; it was an ancient domestic of the old English gentleman, dressed cap-a-pee for the field. A painter, faithful to the apparel of other times, would have noticed the specific articles that formed this kind of character : the short green coat, the black velvet cap, with its appropriate gold band and tassel, _ the buck-skin gloves and breeches, the belt with its de- pendent whistle, and the all-commanding whip. Let your fancy assist you in placing these upon the person above described, and the exterior of John Grounds will figure before you. But this will be doing the good old man but half justice. O ! the heart, the heart ! what is the painting of the man, without a portrait of the heart ? Represent, I pray you, to your mind*s eye this ve- nerable personage running into my arms the moment he observed me, exclaiming in tones which nature never gave the hypocrite — " I beg pardon, Sir,, for my bold- ness, but I thought you would like to see me in my old dress, which I have kept ever since in a drawer by itself, and never take it out but now and then of a sab- bath, in a summer, and to put an old friend — as your honour, begging your pardon — in mind of old times. 1 know well enough it don't become me to take such, a gentleman by the hand, and hold him so long in my arms, only seeing I have carried you in them, from one- SPORTING ANECDOTES. ^V place to another all about the premises of the squire's old house and gardens, years upon vears " After a pause, he adverted to the particulars of his dress; assuring me they were the very same things he wore the last year at my father's, except the plush waiscoat, which was a part of my Lady St. John's livery. " To be sure, your honour," said he, gaily, " they are, like myself, a little the worse for wear; the old coat, you see, (turning it about) has changed colour a bit, from green to yellow; the cap is not al- together what it was; and this fine piece of gold round the crown is pretty much faded; but we are all mor- tal, your honour knows ; but old friends must not be despised." During this converse, John and Dame Hills may be truly said to have " devoured up his discourse." Every word he had said had reference to my family or my- self—a magnet which had power to draw their atten- tions and affections at any time. Nor did they neglect the dues of hospitality, which, on my account, and their own, were doubled ; and they placed before their guest, with whom they had always lived in good neigh- bourhood, whatever the farm, its pantry, and its cel- lar, could afford. " A flow of soul" soon followed this feast of friendship. Grounds had before forgot his fa- tigue, his long walks, and his new trades ; and soon remembered only his fine days of youth, his masters, his kennel, and his former self. " You was too much of a youngling, I suppose," said Grounds, " to recol- lect the many times I carried you to see my hounds fed, and told you the names of every one of them, and, as I gave my signs, bade you hark to Ringwood, and Rockwood, and Finder, and Echo; then put you be~ V42 SPORTING ANECDOTES. /nan ;^re me upon Poppet, your father's favourite huntfng mare. But I think you can't forget my stealing you out from old Mrs. Margaret, the housekeeper's room, to shew you a thing you had so often wished to see — puss in her form — and your bidding me take it up gently, that you might carry it home and bring it up tame: then, on my telling you, laughing, it would not ]et me, your creeping on tip-toe to catch it yourself; upon which it jumped up and set off, and you after it as fast as you could run ; and your coming back to me, crying—- when it took the headland got out of sight — 1 you should have had it, if I, like an old fool, had not made so much noise ;' and when I told you you stood a good chance to see it again, and smoaking on the squire's table — after giving us a good morning's sport -—which, by the bye, was the case, for we had her the very next hunt— you said, you did not want to eat, but keep her alive, and make her know you.' And when I offered to stick her scut in your hat you threw it at me; and Mrs. Margaret says you would not touch a morsel of it, for spite :" ha! ha! ha! After some hours, passed in these and in other re- marks, which, while they delineate character, and de- scribe the present time and circumstances, renew, and give, as it were, a second life to the past, Grounds took leave of the party with tears, that spoke the sin- cerity of an apprehension, that he was looking at and embracing me for the last time; and then hurried over the fields, which gave me sight of him near a mile. And, when his figure became diminished, I did not quit the window, till an interposing hedge shut him wholly from my view. P. 6'. The portrait of this laborious, grateful, long* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 43 lived, and blessed old man, will be rendered doubly acceptable to the public by the pencil of the elder Bar- ker, as that excellent painter has perpetuated the ve- teran, with his family and cottage, on canvas; whose figures genius will long preserve. This is a most exquisite performance, and it is to be seen at Mr. Barker's house, Sion Hill, Bath. SAGACITY OF A FOX. From Maw man's Excursion to the Highlands. Near the falls in the vicinity of Lanark, we were shewn a particular spot, upon the top of an immense precipice, where a fox is said once to have exhibited an extraordinary degree of cunning. Being hard preised in the chasa, be kid hold with his teeth of some shrubs growing at the edge of the rock, and let his body hang down its side; he then drew himself back, and leaped as far as possible from the place into a contiguous thicket. Four of the leading hounds, eager in pursuit of their prey, flew over the edge of the precipice, and were dashed to pieces. — This anecdote, will be readily believed by sportsmen, and by those who have read the natural history of this crafty animal. Amongst many extraordinary proofs of its sagacity, Button states, that he is afraid of the hedgehog when rolled up, but forces it to extend itself by trampling upon it with his feet, and as soon as the head appears, seizes it by the snout, and thus accomplishes his purpose of making it his prey. 44 SPORTING ANECDOTES, EXTRAORDINARY FOX CHASE. Some months since the pack belonging to the More- land Hunt turned off on the Wind Mill Common, in pursuit of a fine ferocious bag fox. The hounds pur- sued within a mile and a half of Leek, where their for- mer impetuous and uninterrupted career was stopped by an unfortunate check. This difficulty was not sur- mounted for near a quarter of an hour; but as good luck at length would have it, the pack regained the true scent, and scoured the extended plain with asto- nishing and renewed swiftness, buoyed up apparently with the animating conviction of revenging them- selves upon the insidious and crafty animal. They swept along the champaign country for twelve miles, in fine style, till we came in sight of Ashbourn. Here the wily reynard, wheeling round his course, di- rected his steps towards a ridge of wild hills on the left, distinguished with the appellation of Fairbourgh Cliffs. This chain of mountains is full of inequalities, loose paving stones, and treacherous hollows, so grown up with ling, as to deceive the most wary and penetrating eye. Guided by headlong fatality, the persecuted, hard-set fox, took refuge in this rugged spot. The in- dignant pack, with reveberating cries evincing their in- trepidity, and careless of the perils that awaited them, quicken their steps, and enter the fateful desert. We hunters, regardless — and perhaps unconscious— of the calamities that were imminent, pushed on, and only fallaciously anticipated the future pleasures of the chase. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 45 We had not advanced more than half a mile, before one horse broke his knee, by slipping into a cavity con- cealed by heath from the view; another slipped his shoulder by a fall : and, before the chase was finished, one gentleman, urged on by unexampled temerity, took a foolish leap on the hard and rigid rock?, by which he was overthrown, and broke his arm. The rest of us, however, pursued our course with more caution, and kept up with the hounds pretty well ; not, however, without frequent hazards, and numerous stumbles. At length reynard, being hard pressed, and arriving at a steep precipice, where, if he turned back, he must inevitably have been caught, to our great surprise and astonishment, was reduced to such a state of despera- tion and perplexity, that he took the amazing leap, and precipated himself to the bottom of the drear abyss. Many of the pack, impelled by inherent revenge and animosity, pursued his fatal example, before the hunts- man could dispel the pernicious delusion by which they were actuated. More than thirty hounds, the best, most courageous, and fleetest of the pack, were dashed to pieces by the fall, and reynard was found buried under a heap of his unfortunate enemies. A CASSOCKED HUNTSMAN. The Rev. Ephraim Dandelion was a boyish divine, a cassocked huntsman, and a clerical buck. His vi- sits to the metropolis were not so uninterrupted as he desired, owing to his father, an opulent rector, residing in the vicinity of , and also to the Bishop of that 46 SPORTING ANECDOTES. diocese, who, as lie observed, was " a blockhead of the old school." Indeed, this Bishop was by no means of fashion; he bore a most religious antipathy towards all those young clergymen who were in full possession of a plurality of livings, and who escaped from thera all to reside in the metropolis, and to dress their hair as they thought proper. Ephraim was the hope of his family, because he was the eldest son ; he had therefore been his father's fa- vourite in his cradle; in which place the sacerdotal in- fant may be said to have felt a simoniacal propensity, for indeed simony was a constitutional vice in that fa- mily. There, by some ingenuity of his pious father, the Rector, he was inducted into two good advow- sons, so that, ere the young gentleman issued from his pupillage, he presented himself to his own livings, -and piously undertook the cure of the souls of several parishes. He was a young man of modest disposi- tions, and held in veneration the holy profession; and as he was at once a Nimrod in the field, and a Narcis- sus within doors, he decently procured two persons to perform his own duties. For this purpose, he found two fathers of large families, at the market-price of JL.40 a year. He was also a rigid observer of the utmost solem- nity in the performance of all church services, and tes- tified an uncommon zeal for ecclesiastical rights; the former consisted in the personal appearance of his cu- rates; and whenever he heard the slightest complaint of a nasal twang, or a guttural digestion of words, or of a brownish black coat, such a curate was discharged at a week's notice ; and his zeal for ecclesiastical rights was evidently exhibited in his seizure of all bands, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 47 black gloves, white favours, funeral scarfs, and the christening or marriage guinea. On the whole, he was a most orthodox supporter of the Church ; under- standing by this word a certain ancient building, en- circled by burying-ground, and the interior furnished with a certain water-bason, vulgarly denominated the baptismal fount; burials and christenings, therefore, producing no inconsiderable income, he most zealously supported the aforesaid Church. But although a sturdy advocate for church subor- dination, he could not consent to grant to his Bishop. Too active in field sports during the summer, and quite exhausted in town dissipations during the winter, he most justly complained of the incessant and per- sonal attacks of his said Bishop; who, particularly at one of his annual dinners given to his assembled bre- thren, did most indelicately reprimand our fashionable Rector, Vicar, and Prebendary ; for all these honours and their appurtenances were united in young Ephraim. He resolved to throw off the yoke of ecclesiastical juris- diction; and to the great comfort of our sacerdotal bucks, they may enjoy the revenues of an ecclesiastic, without the borish performance of the functions. . Ephraim had great interest with a great man, for two reasons : in a drunken frolic at Brighton, he had received the honour of being thrown into a gravel-pit, by which means he broke his leg ; but as his neck was entire, he did not much lament the fracture, since it was a kind of claim on patronage ; and the other rea- son was, that the Reverend Ephraim Dandelion was a person of inimitable talent, iu imitating the bray of an ass, and the whine of a pig. 48 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The ass and the pig, with the above-mentioned dash into the gravel-pit, procured him an honorary place in the army of Chaplains. This honour brings with it the useful privilege of enabling the possessor to hold as many livings as he can get, while it comfortably relieves him of the tedious duty of residence; so the happy Ephraim, aspiring now to a Bishopric, he never more entered the palace of his Bishop. Although we know of no facts that might tend to ac- cuse him of any venial liberalities to his miserable cu- rates, yet he was well enabled to commit such follies ; for he now held, in livings and ceteras, above two thousand a year, according to his own frequent avow- al, and little less he expected from the worthy Rector his father, who was of a most plethoric habit, was a Gargantua in point of stomach, one of the most ortho- dox venison eaters in his county, and had been twice touched by an apoplexy. ANOTHER SAMPSON. The " Gazette de la Sante," a French publication,, contains the following extraordinary particulars of a man named Lemaitre, born in Switzerland, but now residing in Chateaudun, aged 80 years. This second Milo carried on his shoulders, in the market-place of Chartres, a horse belonging to the heavy cavalry, to a considerable distance. Like his rival of Crotona, he checked in its career a carriage drawn by two horses, advancing at a smart trot; he drew after him, with one finger, twelve grenadiers, one holding the other by a handkerchief, and remained Ua- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 49 movable, notwithstanding their united efforts, to throw him down. As active as he is strong and valiant* having been once called on to assist as one of the bo- dy guards, the suppression of a riot at Versailles, h& pursued one of the French guards, who was reputed the most active man in the regiment, and having over- taken him, he killed him by merely laying his iron hand on him, for the purpose of stopping him. — It was this event which established him at Chateaudun, as he was obliged to carry the taper of St. Lauzarus to Vendome, before he could obtain his pardon. During the revo- lution he was thrown into prison, when this modern Sampson obtained his liberty, by carrying the doors of the prison to the revolutionary committee: ardent and generous iu his friendship, he solicited the freedom of his companions in misfortune. Bentabole at that time traversed the department of Eure and Loire, invested with unlimited power; Lemaitre informed of it, fol- lowed him post haste, and overtook him on the road; his carriage being stuck fast in a slough up to the axle- tree, he creeps under it, raises it up, frees it from the slough; and as a reward fcr his services, obtains the liberty of Ins fellow-prisoners. A fire took place at Chateaudun, horses harnessed to grapplings, tugged in v.iin in every direction : he unharnesses them, seizes the ropes himself, and immediately the wall gives wav, and the fire is stopped. In an insurrection on account of the high price of corn, the rioters attempted to eeize the municipality, of which body he was a member, he coolly stepped forward and swimming through the tumultuous waves, he brought dozens of them to the ground. He was insulted at his own door by some na- tional guards, who drew their sabres against him; he D 6$ SPOUTING ANECDOTES. Jaid hold of one of the most impertinent among them, and wielding him as he would a club, lie soon brought the whole party to their senses. About eight years ago ,he supported three men on the calf of one of his legs, ..which was bent, and at arm's length lifted up a grena- dier by the waist. We should never end were we to recount all the instances of his strength; his athletic form bespeaks his extraordinary vigour ; and when na- ture shall determine to break one of the noblest of her works, science. may possibly claim possession of so fine ,a subject as a chej-d'ceutre for the study of miology. MONASTIC SPORTSMEN. The following notice of the monks of Erbach, ap- pears in Render's Tour through Germany: — " lam inadequate to the task of describing as I could wish .the life of poverty, as it is called, which the monks lead in this convent. It is the richest iu all Germany; and the travellers who visit it are astonished at the princely and luxurious life of its inhabitants. They have an excellent pack of hounds, with a stable of fine hunters; apartments magnificently furbished ; a dozen of beautiful singing girls ; and their wine-cellar excites .the utmost astonishment. A coach and four might easily drive round in the cellar, and turn in it with the greatest facility. The number of large full casks is really amazing, each being about seventeen or eighteen feet in height. They have six fine billiard-tables, which are contained in three large rooms; and, be- sides all this, an excellent band of musicians. Their }u ;pitality towards foreigners and strangers is sur- prising ; and a traveller scarcely meets with such a re- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 51 aeption in any other part of the globe. I call them fat monks, there being very few among them who do not weigh sixteen or eighteen stone, and several even ex- ceed that. But it Is at the same time equally sur* prising, how they keep the common people in igno- rance. One instance shall suffice for the many which I saw. Before the dinner was served, to which we were invited by the prelate, we had sufficient time to take a walk in an adjacent wood, where the monks pretend to work miracles, and to which thousands of the people of distant Roman Catholic countries make pilgrimages annually. The palace in the wood where these miracles are wrought, is called llulfe Gotteis, i. e. " God's Help," — it ought to be called a place for deception and blasphemy. According to the legend, a small wooden crucifix of the Saviour was carelessly stuck in a hollow cree, where it remained for a long time, crying, "Gold help me ! God help me !" At length a friar came, and removed the cause of the piteous exclamation ; since which, the crucifix has performed innumerable miracles. Every pilgrim who pays a visit to it is obliged to bestow some donation; as a compensation for which, he receives some picture or relique from the monks; by which means they ac- cumulate a very large annual revenue. On our re- turn, dinner was served. It consisted of two courses, each of about thirty-two covers; and a desert, served up in a princely style. Every monk at Erbach, has four bottles of the best wine for his daily allowance to drink ad libitum. Before we set off for Geisenheim, the prelate shewed us his private stables, magnificent carriages, and pack of hounds ; it is not in my power to describe the luxurious life of these debauched hypo- D 2 52 SPORTING ANECDOTES'. crites, suffice it to say, there are few princes able t$ vie with them." jockeyship. In November 1803, was run over Epsom Downs, a singular match, the circumstances of which created much conversation among the sporting circles. About three weeks before, one of these horses was distanced by the other, and at a dinner, inconsequence thereof, the owner of the losing horse, a young fo- reigner of large fortune, well known in Lord Derby's hunt, having got a little mellow, expressed that his horse was still the best. An eminent stable-keeper, in the neighbourhood of Croydon, proposed a match of 80 to 70 guineas, to be Tun on Thursday, the 2Qth of December, two miles, each carrying twelve stone, to start precisely at one o'clock P. M. and then to fix the riders. The stable- keeper fixed on the servant of a gentleman present, who was attending his master. The foreign gentleman mentioned his own groom. Things thus stood, till two days before the match was to be run, when the foreigner received notice that his adversary had changed his mind, and fixed on a regular well-bred jockey. Totally at a loss what to do, and giving up his match as lost, he met accidentally, on Wednesday af- ternoon, the day preceding the race, between three and four o'clock, a Yorkshire gentleman, well-known on the turf, to whom he represented his difficulties, who instantly advised him to drive down to Newmar- ket, and engage Mr. Buckle. Off they went; and the next clay, the hour charting arrived, when the win- SPORTING AXECDCTES. 53 ners of the former match were betting ten to one they would be equally successful at the present. When the well-bred rider was mounted cap-a-pee, in colours of the brightest hue, to snatch, as they thought, by superior horsemanship, the palm of victory from an ignoramus groom, out jumped, from a post-chaise, Buckle, ready equipped, and weighed at Epsom, who leaped on his horse in an instant, and, by dint of skill, in a few minutes, brought in the distanced horse just half a length before his former conqueror ! ROBERT SHAW. Robert Shaw was keeper of the forest of Bow- land, in the counties of York aud Lancaster. He was torn St otalhmore, in V/cstiTiGrclaliC 1 , in the year l/l/. His first situation in active life was that of a soldier and light-horseman, in the levies raised at the time of the rebellion. He was at the battle of Car- lisle, and saw the Pretender several times at Penrith. He was afterwards appointed game-keeper for the Forest of Bowland, by John Duke of Montague, lord of that forest and of the honour of Clithero. He served under four lords: John, Duke of Montague; the Earls of Beaulieu and Cardigan; and His Grace, Hen- ry, the present Duke of Buccleugh. He outlived aieo thret bow bearers : J. Fenwick, Esq. of Borough Hale; Edward Parker, Esq. of Brovrsholme, within the Fo- rest of Bowland ; John Parker, Esq. of the same place; and died in the year IS05, aged 88, under the present bow-bearer, Thomas Liston Parker, Esq. He was a most remarkably stout active man, though low in stature, and scarcely ever had a day of sickness till D S> 54f SPORTING ANECDOTES. "within the last five months of his life. In 1 802, he went upon the Moors, and shot his brace of grouse. The same year he shot a bare with a ball from his rifle-gun. He was a very good shot at deer, and has often killed, within the same forest, eight or nine cou- ple of Woodcocks in a day. He died in 1805, at VVhitewell, within the forest, and was buried at Wad- dington, in the county of York. Mr. Northcote had a -very fine picture of him buck-hunting, which was in the Royal Academy exhibition last year, and is now at Browshohne. A TYGER, : A party of gentlemen proceeding on horseback mm months ^nvt from Tannah, to vUit the Kanara caves, at about eleven o'clock in the morning, degcrieJ, near Tulsey, a tyger descending towards them, from a distant hill; he shortly after made bis appearance at the foot of the path leading to the caves, close to one of the gentlemen, the foremost of the party, The ty- ger evincing every appearance of preparing to spring upon a pointer dog near to him, the gentleman called out to his companions; when the animal instantly shrunk from his attempt, squatted himself upon his haunches, and fixed his eyes furiously and stediastly upon him for some seconds : and, upon the exclama- tion being repeated, growlingly turned from the foot- path into an adjoining jungle. The dog, upon which the tyger had seemingly fixed for his prey, stood petri- fied with affright, and has been ever since in a dejected state. A second pointer dog that was in the rear, roused by his masters exclamations, ran forward, and penetrated the jungle through which the tyger had pas- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 55r- sed ; in a moment after, the dog was beard to give one^ howi, and nothing more was seen of him. On the fol- lowing day, the party proceeded armed, in quest of the tyger, and on entering the jungle in question, they discovered the remains of the poor dog, distant not more than six paces from the foot path where they first' encountered this royal beast. The tyger appeared to be much pressed with hunger; and it may be deemed a most fortunate occurrence, fate had so decreed, that the preference which these animals invariably give to canine over human flesh, should have had its opportu- nity of being gratified in this instance. SINGULAR FOX-CHASS". Early one morning, m the spring of 1805, the e$c6«a of the Buckingham regiment, quartered a« s Maidstone, accompanied by several other sporting gen- tlemen in the neighbourhood, turned out a bag- fox, on Pennenden-Heath, just at the time as Captain Tyr- rell's rille corps, who were skiimishing, entered the heath in extended order from the wood adjoining tho Debtiing road. The fox, in approaching them, soon, altered bis course, frightened at the fire kept up by the riflemen; and, after passing several incisures, with tire hounds in full cry, bounded a very high garden wall and several fences, making his way into Duke's- court, Maidstone, the peaceful abode of old maids; and there leaping on a water-cask, facilitated his se- cond leap upon the roof of Mr. Alchiu's school. Not- sufficiently exalted here, reynard, with much adroit- ness, sprung upon the chimney, being double, and sagaciously viewing his pursuers, which were close at D 4 56 SPORTING ANECDOTES. hand, descended into the one that had no fire below. In the mean time, the ardor of the sportsmen was so great in the pursuit, that it could scarcely be restrained, even in his sooty progress; but Mr. John Russell, of JVJaidstone, a sportsman of celebrity, coolly dismount- ing, entered the school, and followed reynard to his dernier retreat. Pie was found sitting at the mouth of a funnel in the wash-house chimney. That gentle- man, disregarding the sharpness of his teeth and claws, though in so awkward a situation to be secured, soon dragged him from his lurking-place into a bag, but not without himself and another person having their hands anuch lacerated in the conflict. Reynard was a second time turned out the same morning on the Debjling road, below Pennenden-hesth, and taking a southern course, by Mrs. Whatman's, was killed, after avery se- T» - II */r:ll A rJnnU kavwwt orison Miko- vcxe run, near x on mm. ix wwwo., ~u«*ug ui'.*;., ....~- ther it is agreeable to the exact regulations of the chase, that a fox, after such a buffeting, should have been so immediately turned out again, several have drawn a conclusion that reynard had not a fair chance, in not being given a longer lespite; but this point is left for sportsmen to decide upon. DESCRIPTION OF NEWMARKET IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE. A gentleman who made avery extensive tour in the eastern parts of this island, in the reign of Queen Atine, and published his remarks in that of George I. speaking of Newmarket, says—" Being there in Octo- ber, I had the opportunity to see the horse races, and a great concourse of the nobility and gentry, as well SPORTING ANECDOTES. 57 from London as from all parts of England; but they were all so intent, so eager, so busy upon the sharp- ing part of the sport, their wagers and bets, :hat to me they seemed just as so many horse-coursers in Smith- field, descending, the greatest of them, from their high dignity and quality, to the picking one another's pockets, and biting one another as much as possible ; and that with so much eagerness, as it might be id they acted without respect to faith, honour, or good manners. " There was Mr. Frampton, the eldest, and, as- some say, the cunningest jockey in England ; one day he lost 1000 guineas, the next- he won 2000:$ and so alternately. He made as light of throwing away 5001. or JOOOl. at a time, as other men do of their pocket money; and was as perfectly calm, cheert'r.l, and un~ concerned, when he had lost a thousand pounds as- when he had won it.— -On the other side, there was Sir R. Fagg, of Sussex, of whom fame &ays, he has the most in him, and the least to shew for it, relating to jocke\ship, of any man there; yet he often carried the prize. His horses, they said, were all cheats, how honest soever their master was : for be scarcely ever produced a horse but he looked like what he was not, and was what nobody could expect him to be» If he was as light as the wind, and could fly like a meteor, he was sure to look as clumpy as a cart-horse, as all the cunning of his master and grooms could make him? and just in this manner he bit some of the greatest gamesters in the field. " I was so sick of the jockeying part, that I left the crowd about the posts, and pleased myself with ob- serving the horses ? how the creatures yielded to all D 5 58 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the arts and management of their masters ; how they look their airings in sport, and played with the daily heats which they ran over the course before the grand day; but how, as not knowing the difference equally with their riders, they would then exert their utmost strength, as much as at the time of the race itself, and that to such an extremity, that one or two of them died in the stable, when they came to be rubbed after the first heat* " Here I fancied myself in the Circus Maximus at Rome, seeing the ancient games, and under this de- ception was more pleased than I possibly could have been among the crowds of gentlemen at the weighing, and starting posts ; or at their meetings at the coffee- houses and gaming-tables, after the races were over,. Pray take it with you as you go, that you see no ladies at Newmarket, excepting a few of the neighbouring, gentlemen's families, who come in their carriages to* see a race, and then go home again." DEER HUNTING, FROM JANSON'S STRANGER IN AMERICA. " I was induced (says Mr. Janson) to accompany Mr. William Carter, of Edenton, in pursuit of the deer, into this swamp,* a temerity which I had reason to repent before T regained the cleared ground. This gentleman was a great sportsman, and derived infinite satisfaction from toiling the whole * The Great Dismal Swamp, SNORTING ANECDOTES. 59' day in pursuit of game. He had with him a cou- ple of dogs, which started and ran the deer till they came within shot. The sportsmen are placed at certain breaks in the underwood, through one of which the deer will pass at full speed. — They some- times bound past so suddenly, that a young sportsman is either startled, or cannot seize the moment to fire with effect. I was not put to the test, for we had started no game, when the morning lowered, and pre- sently the wind and rain rendered farther pursuit im- practicable. We had, however, penetrated far enougfr to alarm me greatly, and to puzzle my guide as to the direction to be taken, for the purpose of reaching tha open country. My fears were greatly heightened by the knowledge of the following circumstance : —My. companion loved his joke, but, like many other jes- ters, often carried it too far ; haying designedly led some of his acquaintance into the swamp, and, under pretence of following game in another direction, left- them in the labyrinth, where they were actually oblig- ed to pass such a night as that now approaching threa- tened to be. His doubts were so evident, that with- some agitation I mentioned the trick he had once play- ed his friends, and threatened him with vengeance if he dared to repeat it upon me. He assured me f was perfectly safe, but for some time appeared at a loss hv which direction to proceed; and such was the effect - produced on my mind, that I fancied ever/ nve mi- nutes we had come to the spot we had just eft, and even challenged trees by certain marks my eye had; : caught, charging Mr. Carter with having lost the way.. I observed him walk round several large trees, sur r veying them with great attention. He would thai* • d G 60 SPORTING ANECDOTES. climb one of them, and as the seaman from the main- top looks out for land, so he appeared to be looking for some known mark to guide his course. — My fears were increasing, and the tales I had heard of men pe-- rishing in the swamp, and of others being many days in extricating themselves, in which time they were nearly famished, drove me almost to a state of despe- ration. All this time my companion in silence was ap- parently employed in fixing upon our course ; at length he called out that he had discovered it. He then pointed to a large tree, the bark of which, in the direction in which we stood, was incrusted with green moss. 'This/ said he, * is the north side of the tree; 1 now know our course; I was in doubt only till I as- certained this point, and the trees we have lately passed did not fully convince me. On going round the tree, I found the other sides free from the mossy appearance. He observed that but few of them clearly shewed it in the swamp ; but 1 have since observed the effect on all trees less exposed to the air, as well upon old houses and walls. He said that he was rarely obliged to recur to this guide, as he never ventured into the swamp but when the day promised to be fair, as he could work his way by the sun. Few men will venture like Mr. Carter, but experience had made him re- gardless of being lost in the desert. , " L found in many parts of it good walking ground, the lofty trees being at some distance from each other, .id the underwood by no means so thick as to impede r road ; but after thus pioceedmg a few miles, the ursuit of game was impracticable. Sometimes we had to cress where it was knee deep, but my compa- nion had in this case generally marked a place where SPORTING ANECDOTES. 61 we could pass over on a fallen tree, I had mounted one of these, of a monstrous size, and was proceeding heedlessly along, when I suddenly found myself sunk up to the middle in dusl, the tree having become rot- ten, though it slill retained its shape. This was a good juke for my friend, but a sad disaster for me, for J had great difficulty in getting out of the hole inta which I had fallen/' FOX-HUNTING. A few months since, as the Liverpool mail-coach was changing horses at the inn at Monk's Heath, be- tween Congleton in Cheshire, and Newcastle-under- Line, the horses, which had performed the stage from Congleton, having been just taken oft' and separated, hearing Sir Peter Warburton's fox-hounds in full cry, immediately started after them, with their harness on, and followed the chace until the last. One of them, a blood mare, kept the track with the whipper-in, and gallantly followed him for about two hours, over every leap betook, until reynard had led them round a ring fence, and ran to ground in Mr. Hibbert's plantation. These spirited horses were led back to the inn at Monk's Heath, and performed their stage back to Congleton the same evening. CHARACTER OF THE LATE SAMUEL CIIIFNEJ. This popular character was one of the most emi- nent conveyancers of his time ; and more pro- 2 62 SPORTING ANECDOTES. perty has been transferred by his practice than by that of the most laborious of the profession in our Inns of Court. This was, no doubt, owing in part to the ability he displayed in his professional engage- ments, but perhaps more to the wonderful expedition with which he did the business of those gentlemen who employed him. A few minutes were with him quite sufficient to make over an immense property, which- would have cost the lawyers scores of weeks, or months, and many acres of parchment. Yet while outstripping all competition in this- way, he was never known to admit any of those flaws or errors which ren- der possession dubious or precarious. The course he took was that which generally tended most effectually to reach the main object. Amidst doubts and per- plexities, he saw his way clearly before him, and pur- sued it with an ardour which distanced all competition. Popular, however, as he was in this line, it must be allowed that his employers did not commission him to do business for them, without much circumspection. — Besides the recommendation of persons of judgment, his merits were well weighed before they intrusted him either with money, plate, or landed estates. It cannot be a matter of surprize, if such unbounded confidence sometimes made him vain. He might well Be vain of the easy familiarity with which he was treat- ed by persons of the highest rank. Jt could not but be very flattering, that he had often the eyes of half a se- nate fixed upon him, and that they who could not en- joy this happiness, read his exploits: with an impati- ence and ardour which is often denied to heroes and. statesmen. SPORTING ANECDOTES. G3 His temperance was most exemplary. He often practised abstinence to a degree that made it be- lieved that he had much to answer for. But those who knew him best, considered this rather as a matter of personal convenience than of conscience. He studied his health that he might not be burthensome to those he was most closely connected with ; and avoided every thing that had a tendency to pamper the flesh, or to lessen the weight he had attained by a punctual dis- charge of his duty. He possessed a singular acuteness of understanding. Without the parade of a long train of argument, he comprehended, as if by instinct, the instructions given him, and readily took a hint, where circumlocution might have been unnecessary, or explanation impro- per. Although of a highly animated turn, and not easily overtaken, he has been known to restrain him- self in a most wonderful manner, and to yield the su- periority while he seemed to be struggling for victory. — Like other wise men, he knew the value of delay, and the motto on some of his rings was " Cunctando restituit rem." His manners though professional, were without pe- dantry. He never affected to speak above the level of his hearers. He understood the terms of breeding perfectly, and knew how to deal with the ignorant and the knowing. _ Of his lesser accomplishments he was a master of the science of pedigrte, and the only branch of it that is now thought of any value. He was often consulted in the forming of tender connexions. In the union of 64 SPORTINO ANECDOTES. the sexes, he not only discouraged the alliance of age with youth, or debility with vigour, but was a decided enemy, to the contamination of noble blood with any mixture of the low and degenerate kind. It must be owned, indeed, that he sometimes promoted unions that had not received the sanction of the church, but his extensive usefulness in the way of his profession, and his attention to his betters, enabled him to live on pretty good terms with many of the clergy, particularly those of Cambridge and York. His charities were so extensive, that few persons have been known to convey more money into the poc- kets of the poor. In this virtue, however, his system has been sometimes confined, and some writers on the subject have doubted whether he did not create as many poor as he relieved. The truth, however, was, that he had long contemplated the evils arising from unbounded wealth, and therefore was induced to fix a price upon experience, which was thought to be too high by all, except those who paid it. His race, however, is now run ; and whatever his failings, he will be long remembered as one who taught with success the uncertainty of all earthly possessions, and to whom there are few families of rank who do not owe th^ir present estimation in the opinion of the world, as well as the character they are desirous o£ handing down to posterity. HORSE RACES ON THE CONTINENT. In Italy, this charming diversion is not unfrequenU —The horses are not, in general, like ours, mounted and managed by a jockey, but are left at perfect li- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 65 berty to exert their power in the greatest degree, to attain the goal. At the time of carnival in Rome, these races are generally run in the long-street called in Italian, il Corso ; the length is nearly So" 5 toises, 01 rather more than one English mile. They are gene- rally Barbary horses that are employed in this amuse- ment. In appearance, these animals are small, and very far from handsome. They are all kept equal by a rope, against which they press with their breasts till the signal to start is given ; the rope is then dropped, and the affrighted horses start away at full speed. At Florence they endeavour to increase the speed of their horses, by fixing a large piece G» leather, not unlike the ilaps of a saddle, on the back of each horse ; ,the under side of this is armed with very sharp prickles, which keep perpetually goading them all the while they run. In order that the horses may not run out of the course, a strong railing runs along each side of the course > and a rope is fixed across at each end, to prevent them leaving the course at the extremities. The speed, however, of these Barbary horses, though considerable, is very inferior to that of the English racer. The course of 855 toises, at Rome, is run over in 151 seconds. — An English mile is about 826 toises; so that these horses run very little more than a mile in two minutes, which an ordinary racer is able to do in England ; not to mention Childers, who is said to have run a mile in one minute ; and to Lave run round the circular course at Newmarket, which is 400 yards short of four miles, in six minutes and forty seconds. — Starling is said also to have performed the first mile in a minute. Childers run the Beacon course in seven minutes and a half. The Round Course is asserted, 66 SPORTING ANECDOTES. to have, been more than once run round in six minutes and six seconds. The Barbary horses must, according to what was said above, get over thirty-seven feet in" a second ; the swiftness of tbe English horses will be found, by this mode of estimating, fur superior. Star- ling must have moved, in the performance mentioned before, eighty-two feet and a half in a second. Dr. Moty in his celebrated publication, " Le Jour- nal Brittanique," considering this subject, tells us, that every bound by the fleetest Barbary horse at Rome would cover eighteen royal feet and a half, and twenty two or twenty-three feet by the English horses ; so that the swiftness of the latter would be, to that of the former, as four to three, or nearly.* The horses that passed over a mile in a minute, would evidently go taster than the wind, lor the greatest swiftness of a^ ship at sea has never been known to exceed six marine* leagues in an hour j and if we suppose that the vessel- thus borne partakes one third of the swiftness of the wind that drives it, the latter would still be no more than eighty feet a second, which would be two feet and a half less than the quantity of ground covered by Childers and Starling in that time For this calcula- tion we are iudebted to M. de la Condamine's Journal of a Tour through Italy. Buffon in his Natural His* tory, mentions an example of the extraordinary *peed of the English horse. Mr. Thornhill, the post-master at Stilton, laid a wager, that he would ride in fifteen hours three times the road from Stilton to London, - * We are not to forget that the English race-horse carries a jpckey, and frequently weights- on his buck, the Barb nothing, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 67 the distance being 215 miles. On the 29th of April, 174-5, he set out from Stilton, and after mounting eight different horses, arrived in London in three hour3 and fifty-one minutes. Instantly leaving London again, and mounting only six horses he reached Stil- ton in three hours *md fifty-two minutes. For the third course he used seven of the same horses, and finished it in three hours and forty-nine minutes. He thus performed his undertaking in eleven hours and thirty-two' minutes.— -Buffon observes, " I suspect that no example of such fleetness was ever exhibited ac the olympic games." A horse, the property of a gentleman in Biliter Square, London, trotted, on the fourth of July, 1T8S, for a wager of thirty guineas, thirty miles in an hour and twenty minutes, though allowed an hour and a half. These instances of speed are astonishing, even by ordinary hones. The four miles for the Union Cup at Preston were run last year in very little more than seven minutes, Too much attention cannc* be paid to the breed of horses in this country, which has been capable of pro- ducing such illustrious examples of speed. HAWKING, A BALLAD. MADE AT FALCONER'S HALL, YORKSHIRE. Come Sportsmen away — the morning bow fair ! To the wolds, to the wolds, let us quickly repair : Bold Thunder* and Lightning* are made for the game. And Death* and the Devil* are both just the same. * Names of Hawks. 68 SPORTING ANECDOTES. See, Beckersf, a Kite — a mere speck in the sky — ■ Zounds ! out with the owl — lo ! he catches his eye — Down he comes with a sweep — be unhooded each hawk Very soon will they both to the gentleman stalk. They're at him — he's off— now they're o'er him again ; Ah ! — that was a stroke — see ! he drops to the plain — They rake him — they tear him — he flutters, he cries, He struggles, he turns up his talons, and dies. See, a Magpie ! let fly — how he flutters and shambles, How he chatters, poor rogue ! now he darts to the bram- bles — Out again — overtaken — his spirits no flag — Flip ! he gives up the ghost — good night, Mister Mag. Lo a Heron ! let loose — how he pokes his long neck, And darts, witn what vcugeance, but vainly, his beak i 'Egad, he shifts well — now he feels a ueaih-wounri, And with Thunder and Lightning rolls tumbling to ground, Titus we Falconers sport — now homewards we stray, To fight o'er the bottle the wars of the day : Sink sweetly to rest, with a dove in our anas.. COLONEL THORNTON. As the antiquity of a family, generally speaking, is an additional proof of its respectability in the eyes of the world, it will be necessary in the first place to re- mark, that the Thorntons have been for some centu- ries established in the county of York, where they have enjoyed the most valuable and extensive possessions; + The head falconet* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 69 and, at one period, so large were their domains, that they had the right of sixteen lordships vested in them. The most ancient bears the family name, being still called Thornton cum Bucksby, of which mention is made prior to the period of William the Conqueror. As the antiquity of a family, however, does not in many instances entail those mental perfections which render the representatives, honourable members of society, we shall dwell no longer upon that point, but proceed to give such instances of shining talents and conspicuous virtues, as will tend to convince the pub- lic that, not in name alune, is concentrated the worth of the Thornton family, but that, in the two-fold ca- pacities of statesmen and soldiers, they have rendered themselves pre-eminently conspicuous. Sir William Thornton, the grandfather of the pre- sent colonel, was a very active gentleman in support- ing the rights and privileges of Englishmen ; and such was the estimation in which bis talents were held, that he was the individual selected as best calculated to pre- sent, at the foot of the throne, the articles of the union with Scotland, during the reign of Queen Anne \ on which memorable occasion he received the honour of knighthood from her Majesty, accompanied with such demonstrations oi royal pleasure as sufficiently indi- cated that his abilities did not pass unnoticed by his sovereign. With respect to the private virtues of this gentleman, few men can boast a progenitor of such unexceptionable manners ; in short, in Sir William Thornton were concentrated the characteristics of a good christian, and affectionate husband, a tender fa- ther and a sincere friend. Colonel William Thornton, the father of the sub« 70 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ject of these memoirs, bearing all those principles instilled into his mind which had insured his universal approbation, was a ready advocate for the cause of England's rights and liberties, as ratified by the blood of our ancestors. At the period of the rebellion in Scotland, this gen- tleman, anxious to testify his loyalty to \iis sovereign, raised at his own expence, a corps of one hundred men, whom he fed, clothed, and paid, for several months. At the head of this little troop, Colonel Wil- liam Thornton marched into Scotland, where he joined' the main forces under the command of the Duke of Cumberland, and conducted himself at the battles of Falkirk and Cullorien with the most intrepid bravery ; and such was the publicity of his active conduct, that a reward of one thousand pounds was offered by the rebel commanders for his head. After the termination of that eventful struggle, Colonel William Thornton was elected member of parliament for York, in which character he signalised himserf as a statesman by re- vising the old code of the. militia laws, as instituted in the reign of Charles the second; and, bringing in a bill, framed by himself, which consisted in a total re- organization of the militia laws, which was the founda- tion of the present well-regulated system, so apparent in every department of that important military force, so conducive to the safely of the coemtry, and the sup- port of the rights and liberties of Englishmen. After a life thus spent in the service of his country, and characterized by every social refinement which adorns human nature, Colonel William Thornton died suddenly, at the early age of fifty years, his son being then a minor. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 71 The present Colonel Thorn is Thornton, was born in the neighbourhood of St. James's, and placed at a pro- per age in the Charter House, in order that he might be near h;s uncle who resided in the -vicinity of that public seminary. The progress which he made in his studies was very rapid, until a violent illness with which he was seized, impeded his continuance at the school for some months, when, upon his return, find- ing that those scholars who had formerly been his in- feriors were become better adepts than himself, pro- duced such an effect upon his young and active mind, that, during his continuance at the Charter House, he never was enabled to follow his studies with that avidity, which had, in the early period of his educa- tion, particularly characterized him. When fourteen years of age, it was determined that be should go to college, and in consequence he left the Charter House; when, accompanied by his father, he first visited the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and lastly, those of Edinburgh and Glasgow, in order that he might select that which was best suited to his ideas, on which occasion, the University of Glasgow was preferred, where he was placed by his father, after being introduced to all the leading families residing in that city and its environs. At ibis s^at of learning our young hero attended to his studies with the most indefatigable assiduity, un- dergoing the public examinations, in which he acquitted himself to the entire satisfaction of his instructors, and much to his own credit. His companions at the col- lege were Lords Rivers and beaforth, Sir Thomas Wallace, and Messrs. Windham, bheend, Kennedy, H:1K Wilson^ &c. &c. With these gentlemen he was 72 SPORTING ANECDOTES. accustomed to pursue the sports of the field during the vacations, which, however, did not so far infatuate Lis mind, as to make him relax in his course of stu- dies ; on the contrary, his time was so diversified, that pleasure never interfered with those duties which edu- cation imposed upon him, and in this happy way did lie pass his time, until the attainment of his nineteenth year* when he was deprived of the best of fathers. As the death of Colonel William Thornton left the present colonel sole possessor of his estates, it might be sup- posed that he instantly quitted Glasgow ; such, how- ever, was his good sense, that feeling a conviction how much more remained to be learned, he, on the contrary, still continued for three years at the Univer- sity, deputing his mother, whom he reverenced with true filial affection, to superintend his affairs. Previous to this period, the colonel had imbibed a strong partiality for the pastime of hawking, which he studied with eagerness, being determined to bring that sport to the height of perfection, neither being deterred by expence,nor the difficulties that intervened to prevent the accomplishing of his darling purpose. At the same period was also laid the foundation of that celebrity, which he has since acquired for his breed of horses and every species of dog, calculated for the diversions of the field. On quitting Glasgow, the colonel repaired with his hawks, dogs, &c» to his mansion at Old Thornville, where he remained for a few months ; after which, he visited London, renewed his acquaintance with many of his old college friends, and became a member of the Scavoir Vkre club, which had been very recently instituted, being originally intended, to consist of SPORTING ANECDOTES* 73 eighteen members only, the subscription being four guineas for the season, to defray the expences of the house rent, &c. while one guinea was the stipulated sum to be paid for the dinner, the member being en- titled to call for as much wine as he chose for that sum. The leading plan of the Shamir Vivre was in- tended to patronize men f genius and talents; whereas it soon became notorious as an institution, tolerating every species of licent loudness and debauchery. On one of the colonel's visits to the Scavoir Vivre, he took a seat next to the celebrated Oliver Goldsmith, who said nothing which tended to stamp him the ge- nius he really was. The late Lord Lyttleton, and the Right Honourable Charles James Fox, were then members, of that club, as well as many other celebrated characters of the day. It may be necessary to remark that, although gambling constituted one of the predo- minant features of the Sgavoir Vivre, the colonel was never led to share that diversion; and, although an idea has prevailed that he has been addicted to that destructive propensity throughout his sporting career ; it is necessary to state, that such reports are totally unfounded, as the colonel was always averse to cards or dice ; and, to such a pitch did he carry his ideas on that head, that over the chimney-piece of the library of Thornville Royal, is a marble slab, whereon are gra- ven the following lines : — " Ut'mam hanc vcris amicis impleam" " By the established rule of this house all bets are u considered to be off, if either of the parties, by letter, " or otherwise, pay into the hands of the landlord, one " guinea, by five the next day." E 74 SPORTING ANFXDOTES. On the colonel's return to Old Thornville, the neighbouring gentlemen came to a determination to keep a pack of hounds, by subscription, when Colonel Thornton took the charge of the dogs, and, for a short time, harmony subsisted among the subscribers ; but, as the payments were very incorrectly made, the co- lonel was under the necessity of demanding an arbi- tration, by which all the arrears due to him, for the keep of the hounds, &c. was paid ; after which the society was dissolved, when the colonel found him- self obliged to keep the pack at his own private charge. Having for a period followed every diversion which Yorkshire afforded in its fullest extent, Colonel Thorn- ton became desirous of witnessing the sports of the Highlands of Scotland, whither he repaired, accom- panied by Mr. P. Mosley ; and so much was the colonel enchanted with the diversity of the scenery, the variety and quantity of game of every description which the remote parts of the Highlands afforded; that he there passed the best part of seventeen years in succession, wholly occupied in the several pastimes which were gratifying to his mind. In order that the pleasures experienced by the co- lonel, during his continuance in Scotland, might not be confined to his own particular knowledge, he kept a regular diary of the sporting pursuits, &c. and em- ployed an artist to execute drawings of the antiquities and picturesque scenery of the country ; from which lie afterwards selected a few, a; caused them to be engraved in a very finished style, after which he had recourse to his journal : and thus compleated a ma- nuscript which, together with the plates, was presented as a donation, to an old schoolfellow reduced in his cir- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 75 cumstances, and by this means a literary production has been brought into the world under the title of A Sporting Tour through the Highlands of Scotland, by Colonel Thornton; which, for local information, anecdote, and sporting intelligence of every descrip- tion, is fully entitled to the ample sale which it has ex- perienced. During the colonel's continuance in Scotland he was first given to understand that Allerton Mauleverer was on the point of being sold by Lord Viscount Gal- way, to his Royal Highness the Duke of York, which sale, to the colonel's astonishment, shortly after took place; and, upon his return to old Thornville, he was introduced to the Duke of York, and constantly visited his Royal Highness until a misunderstanding took place at Boroughbridge Races, which terminated their acquaintance. Previous to Colonel Thornton's quitting the High- lands, he gave up the land there which he had received of his Grace the Duke of Gordon, where he had erect- ed a small mansion in the gothic style, which was called Thornton-Castle; the colonel was prompted to this measure on account of the great expences atten- dant on keeping up this establishment, as well as the enormous sums which were expended in travelling from England; in addition to which, the roads were scarcely passable during the rainy seasons. It is ne- cessary to state, that the strictest friendship subsisted between the then Lord Orford and himself, who kept pace with Colonel Thornton in the cultivation of every sport and particularly hawking, nor was the Marquis of Rockingham less partial to the subject of these pages, who enjoyed the confidence and friendship of E2 76 SPORTING ANECDOTES. those respective noblemen until the period of their dis- solution. At the time of his Majesty's illness, in the) ear 17S9, when debates ran high respecting a regency, very great improvements were carrying on at Allerton, Mauleve- rer, by order of the Duke of York ; but on the happy recovery of the king, these plans were almost instanta- neously stopped by the workmen being discharged; and, on the breaking out of the Spanish war, the sale of Allerton was advertised for disposal, when Colonel Thornton determined on purchasing the same, to the no small astonishment of his friends and the neigh- bouring gentlemen, who did not conceive it possible that he could accomplish such a heavy purchase ; how- ever, notwithstanding these conjectures, proposals were made and at length adjusted, when the colonel became the purchaser of the estate of Allerton Mau- leverer, (which he afterwards called Thornville Royal) for the sum of one hundred and ten thousand pounds, which was paid by instalments, according to the agree-' merit, within the twelve months. It is more necessary that this fact should be publicly known, as, among other erroneous reports, it has been stated that Colonel Thornton won this estate of the Duke of York at the gambling table. Soon after this event, the colonel, being well aware that the wolds were best calculated for the purpose of coursing and hawking, purchased of Mr. Bilby the estate of Bo} thorp, on the wolds, for the sum of ten thousand pounds, where he erected the present man- sion, known by the name of Falconer's Hall. During the sporting career of Colonel Thornton, his mansion of Thornville was always the scene of festive 1 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 77 hospitality; and it may with truth be said, that no gentleman is better calculated to preside at the board of hilarity. His diversified talents, his quickness at repartee , his facetious stories on all topics, and his good natured acquiescence with the request of his guests, have ever rendered his table the resort of the neighboring noblemen and gentlemen; nor ought we to pass unnoticed the excellence and abundance of his wines, which were always of the first quality. With respect to the works of art which adorned the mansion-house of Thornville, few dwellings had to boast a more diversified and choice collection of paint- ings ; and, with respect to sporting subjects, it is only necessary to remark, that the most celebrated pic- tures of Gilpin and Reinagle, painted under the im« mediate direction of the colonel, were there to be found. The well-known picture of the Death of the Fox, by Gilpin, an unrivalled performance, is now, vie. are informed, engraving by Scott, in his best man- ner, and from the specimens of his excellence already before the public, there is little doubt but that it will prove a great treat, not only to the sporting world, but to all admirers of tine engraving. Among other mas- ters of the Italian and Flemish schools, which charac- terized the Thornville collection, were Guido, Car- racci, Teniers, Wovermans, Rubens, Vandyke, &c. &c. With respect to the sporting animals reared by Colonel Thornton, it will be merely requisite to in- stance a few, which, from their acknowledged excel- lence, sufficiently prove the judgment of the colonel in every point relating to the breed of animals, con- nected with field-sports. E 3 78 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Horses, Icelander-- A noted racer, bred by Colonel Thorn* ton, which won twenty-six matches, and was the first foal bred by the colonel. The sire of this horse was Grey-coat and his grandsire Dismal. Jupiter — This celebrated blood-horse was of a ches- nut colour, he was got by Eclipse, dam by Tartar, grandam, by Mog: 1, Sweepstakes, &c. in 1777, he won one thousand pounds, at Lewes: two hundred at Abingdon; and one thousand at Newmarket: and, in 1771, two hundred and forty at Newmarket. Truth — A remarkable steady hunter. Stoic — A famous race-horse which won a match at Newmarket for one thousand guineas. St. Thomas — A race-horse which beat Mr. Hare's Tit Quoque, the bet being five hundred guineas, each gentleman riding his own horse. Thornville — A celebrated hunter. Esterhazy — A most remarkable blood-horse now in the colonel's possession, being master of any weight, and active in all his paces. Of which- animal a very beautiful engraving is now executing by Ward, from a picture of Chalon. DOGS. Fox- hounds. Merlin— A well-known fox-hound, bred by Colonel Thornton. Lucifer — A most remarkable fox-hound, the sire of Lounger and Mad Cap, of equal celebrity. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 79 Old Conqueror — A matchless fox-hound, sire of many well-known dogs in the annals of fox-hunting. Pointers. Dash — An acknowledged fine pointer, which sold for two hundred and fifty guineas. Pluto — A celebrated pointer. Juno — A remarkable bitch which was matched with a pointer of Lord Grantley's for ten thousand guineas, who paid forfeit. Modish — A bitch of acknowledged excellence. Lilly — A most remarkable steady bitcn. Nan — It is only necessary to state that seveaty-five guineas have been offered and refused for this bitch, Qrtyhoundi, Major— A dog of very great celebrity, and the father of Colonel Thornton's present breed of grey- hounds. — Of this animal a very beautiful engraving, from the masterly hand of Scott, is to be found in that highly finished work, The Sportsman's Cabinet; illustrated with specimens of every species of the ca- nine race. Czarina — A bitch of equal celebrity. Skyagraphina~A matchless hound. N. B. For each of these hounds the most extravagant sums have been offered but rejected. Spaniels, Dash — This a' -'unal is esteemed the ne plus ultra of this species of sporting dog, the colonel having used E 4 EO SPORTING ANECDOTES. Jhis utmost endeavours to bring the spaniel to perfec- tion. Beagles. Merryman — This celebrated dog is sire of a pack, which exceeds all others for symmetry, bottom, and pace. The beagles of Colonel Thornton will tire the strongest hunters, and return to kennel eorupam* lively fresh. Terriers, It would be necessary to notice Colonel Thornton's Terriers, if it were only on account of his justly cele- brated Pitch, from whom are descended most of the white terriers in this kingdom. This dog was in the colonel's possession about twenty years ago, since which epoch, he has assiduously attended to this breed of sporting dogs. Haulis. Sa?is Quart ier, Death, and the Devil, were thref of the most celebrated birds ever reared by Colonel Thornton during his pursuit of hawking, and were al- lowed to distance any birds of the kind which had ever been flown at the game. In speaking of the bodily activity of Colonel Thorn- ton, few men perhaps have ever given proofs of such extraordinary powers. 1 * Among various other matches of a similar nature, the following, it is conceived, will be amply sufficient to substantiate this fact : — in a walking match, which the colonel engaged to SPORTING ANECDOTES. 81 perform, he went four miles in thirty-two minutes and half a second. In leaping, Colonel Thornton cleared his own heigbth, being five feet nine inches, the bet being con- siderable. In another match it is stated, that he leaped over six five barred gates in six minutes, and then repeated the same on horseback. At Newmarket the colonel, on horseback, ran dowa. a hare, which he picked up, in the presence of an im- mense concourse of people assembled to witness this extraordinary match. With respect to shooting, either with the fowling- piece, rifle, or air-gun, Colonel Thornton faes given the most inccntestible proofs of the steadiness of his hand, aud the wonderful correctness of his sight, not only in bringing down the game, when pursuing the pastimes of the field, but also at a mark, in which his precision has never been surpassed. With regard to shooting apparatus of every description, Colonel. Thornton has not only been unmindful of expence in the procuring the best workmanship, but he has also evinced a considerable share of mechanical genius by the improvement of various kinds which he has made in the art of gunnery.. Notwithstanding the numerous pursuits of a sporting nature, which occupied the colonel's mind, he has seldom lost sight of those refinements winch charac- terize the man of literature and taste. His valuable collection of pictures at his last seat of Thornville Royal, sufficiently indicate his taste for the fine arts,., and the correct journals which he invariably kept, during all his excursions to Scotland, &c. as well as, £ 5. 8S SPORTING ANECDOTES. the artists who always attended him to make draw- ings of the scenery characteristic of the country through which he passed, are sufficient testimonies of his diversified talents and classic pursuits. Having thus dilated upon the sporting annals of Colonel Thornton, it will now be requisite to mention his conduct while Lieutenant-colonel of the West- York Militia, where he performed his duty as an offi- cer, and acquired the love of the soldiery to such a de- gree, that the regiment to a man adored him, rather as a benefactor and parent, than a chief whose com- mand they were subjected to. During the short interval of peace which occurred between this country and France, in 1802, the colonel repaired to Paris for the purpose of viewing that capi- tal; after which, he travelled through the southern provinces, and part of the conquered territory, where he pursued, with avidity, the sports which characterize that kingdom. On this occasion the colonel had an artist to accompany him, while, as in every other in- stance, he kept a journal of the events that transpired. From this diary, a very entertaining tour has been pro- duced, entitled, Colonel Thornton's Sporting Tour through France, &c. which, from the variety and ex- cellence of the picturesque illustrations with which it abounds, very justly takes precedence of almost every work of a similar description already before the public. In the course of this Tour appears a very < ntertaining and curious comparative view of the sports of the two countries, which, from the colonel's acknowledged excellence as an English sportsman, renders it not onK entertaining, but scientific and useful. These ma- terials form the subject of upwards of forty letters^. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 83 which were afterwards sent to his noble friend the Earl of Darlington, to whom this splendid work is dedicated. This gentleman is not only devoted to the pursuits of Action, and the pleasures of Bacchus, but Venus and Cupid are likewise his idols, having, in the autumn of]S0r5, led to the hymeneal altar Miss Corston, of Essex, an accomplished young lady, of some for- tune. With respect to the arcana of the law, no man has perhaps experienced more its direful effects than Co- lonel Thornton, who, for several years back, has had to struggle against its quibbles and intricacies to the injury of his pocket and the harassing of his mind; fet, notwithstanding these complicated difficulties, the pressure he experienced in pecuniary affairs, and the general opinion which prevailed that he was a ruined man, he has now completely reversed the scene, as, by the sale of a part only of his extensive possessions to Lord Stourton, he has not only falsified the clamour of report, but given incontestible proof of the acuteness of his own judgment, as few speculations in which he has embarked have ever proved abortive, but, on the con- trary, generally been productive of much profit. To enter into a particular detail of the nature of the accumulated law-suits of the colonel would be abso- lutely impossible, nor « ould it be any very easy matter to calculate the sums which he has expended in litiga- tions : the Courts of Chancery, King's Bench, and Common Picas ha\e been witnesses of his indefatiga-- ble genius, which may with justice be said never to sleep. e6 84 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Amongst the most celebrated involvements which have characterized the life of Colonel Thornton the most conspicuous was his trial before a court-martial for unsoldier-like conduct ; it would be impossible to enter at large upon this topic, but it is sufficient to state that such was the effect of the trial, that when the colonel was prompted to throw up his commission as lieutenant-colonel of the West York Militia, he was drawn into York by the soldiery, who, as a testimony of their gratitude and love, presented him with a beau- tiful medalion and splendid sword, which the colonel to the present hour esteems as the most precious badge of honour that could be bestowed. With respect to the corporeal pains incidental to hu- man nature, Colonel Thornton to all appearance is perfectly unacquainted with them, he has experienced the most trying accidents, but the hand of fate seems always to have been extended to preserve him ; rest, is generally esteemed the balm of human life, yet the colonel has copiously drank of the juice of the grape and remained with his friends till the return of. dawn; he still is awake atthe usual hour, and, while the world is buried in sleep, he frequently occupies an hour or two free from head-ach, with a mind calm and collected. It is evident the colonel has imbibed one opinion, viz.- — " Time is precious: life is but a span; we should t'-erefore make the best use of it." In fine the greatest persecution, that could be entailed on Colonel Thornton would be to condemn him to pass a, week in idleness: his mind ever on the alert, pictures some new scene lor action, and, if the object be but trivial we had better occupy the mind on that nothing- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 85 ness, than suffer the fancy to lie dormant and fix on things derogatory to our natures. ANCIENT AND MODERN COURSING. BY MAJOR TOPHAJI. (C I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips " Straining upon the start — The game's a-i'oot !" Shakespeare, Hen. Yth, The greyhound, under the ancient name of gaze- hound, formed one of the earliest dogs of the chase, and from the very nature of his first appellation was intended only to run by sight. He was the original accompaniment of royalty in the sports of the field ; and in lieu of fines and forfeitures due to the crown, King John was wont to accept of greyhounds; whe- ther, when received as a tax, he was able to obtain those of a superior description, is not to be ascertained. But the dog of that day, which under kings was the concomitant of hawking, was long-haired, and some- what resembling the one used by warreners ; and in the oldest pictures now extant on the subject, the spaniel, and sometimes the pointer accompanied the sportsman, in what was at thatptriod denominated— coursing. The greyhound then employed was probably larger than even the warren mongrel, resembling more the shaggy wolf-dog of former limes than any spoiling dog of the present day. The Wolds of Yorkshire, which like the Wealds of Kent, are a corruption of the word " Wilds/' appear, from the dates of parish books, to have been infested with wolves later than any othes 86 SPORTING ANECDOTES. part of England. In the entries at Flixton, Stackston, and Folkston, in the east riding of Yorkshire, are still to be seen memoranda of payments m ;de for the de- struction of wolves at a certain rate per bead. They used to breed in the cars below among the rushes, furze, and bogs, and in the night time come up from their dens, and unless the sheep had been previously driven into the town, or the shepherds indefatigably vigilant, great numbers of them were destroyed; it being observed of all wild animals, that when they have opportunity to depredate, they prefer the blood to the flesh of the victim, of course commit much un- necessary carnage. From the wolfs having so long remained in the parts just mentioned, it is not more than fifty years since many of the long-haired, curl-tailed greyhounds were to be traced, bred originally from the wolf-dog; and some of these, for a short distance, could run with surprising velocity. That a dog of this description should sufficiently gratify the coursing sentiment of that day, is by no means surprising; the uncultivated face of the country, covered with brakes, bushes, wood, and infinite obstacles, may readily account for it. In running their game, they had to surmount these impe- diments, and to dart through thorn hedges (in that unimproved state) which covered eighteen or twenty feet in width, and frequently to kill their object of pur- suit in the middle of them. These dogs were accustomed to lie unhoused upon? the cold ground, and to endure all hardships c( indif- ferent food', and more indifferent usage ; but when the owner (or protector) lived in the open air, unmindful of the elements, and regardless of the btorm, it can SPORTING ANECDOTES. 87 create no surprise that the faithful dog should fare no better than his master. This most likely was the ear- liest stage of the gaze or greyhound ; wild in his aspect, erect in his ears, and shaggy in his coat; but even in that unimproved state they had many good points; as straight firm legs ; round, hard, fox-hound feet; were incredibly quick at catching view, and being instanta- neously upon their legs, which modern sportsmen term * firing quickly. " In uniform progress with time, improvement pro- ceeded also; during " the merry days of good Queen Bess," when maids of honour could breakfast upon beef, and ride a-gallop for a day together, the sports of the field were objects of due attention. It was then her majesty, divested of regal dignity, would conde- scend to see a brace of deer pulled down by greyhounds after dinner; and it was then that coursing began to assume a more regulated form, and to acquire a more universal degree of emulative estimation. Instead of the wild man with his wilder dogs, taking his solitary quest for game ; the hourly enlightened sportsmen of that day, began to form themselves into more friendly congeniality, and rules were adopted by which a general confidence and mutual intercourse might be maintained. The Duke of Norfolk, who was the leading sportsman of that time, was powerfully solicited, and ultimately prevailed upon, to draw up a proper code of laws, which constitute the magna charta of the present day. These rules, though established by a duke, and re- gulated by a queen, rendered the coursing of that pe- riod but of a very sterile description. Pointers were used for the purpose of finding the game, and when 3 S8 SPORTING ANECDOTES. any of these made a point, the greyhounds were un- coupled as a necessary prelude to the sport which was to ensue. The greyhounds, even at tins time, deviated but little from the kind already described ; rough and heavy, with strength enough to overcome any difficulty it might be necessary to break through. To found the sera of improved coursing, and for introducing greyhounds of superior form, and higher blood, was reserved for the late princely owner of Houghton. If the agricultural meetings in the most distant counties feel themselves gratefully justified in drinking, as their first toast, " The Memory of Mr. Bakewell," no true and consistent coursing meeting can ever omit to give, with equal enthusiasm, " The Memory of the Earl of Orford." It is the distinguishing trait of genius to be enthu- siastically bold, and daringly courageous. Nothing in art or science ; nothing in mental, or even in manual labour, was ever achieved of superior excellence, with- out that ardent zeal, that impetuous sense of eager avidity, which to the cold, inanimate, and unimpas- sioned, bears the appearance, and sometimes the un- qualified accusation of insanity. When a monarch of this country once received the news of a most heroic action maintained against one of his own fleets, and seemed considerably chagrined at the result; the then Lord of the Admiralty endeavoured to qualify and. soften down the matter, by assuring the king that " the commander of the enemy's Meet was mad," — " Mad 1 would he were mad enough to bite one of my ad- mirals." Lord Orford had absolutely a phrenetic furor of this kind, in any thing he found himsejf disponed to- under- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 89 take ; it was a predominant trait in his character never to do any thing by halves, and coursing was his most prevalent passion beyond every other pleasurable con- sideration. In consequence of his most extensive pro- perty, and his extra-influence as lord lieutenant of the county, he not only interested numbers of opulent neighbours in the diversion, but, from the extent of his connections, could command such an immensity of private quarters for his young greyhounds, and of making such occasional selections from which, that few, if any, beside himself could possess. Tbere were times when he was knoan to have fifty brace of greyhounds ; and, as it was a fixed rule never to part from a single whelp till he had a fair and sub- stantial trial of his speed, he had evident chances (be- yond almost any other individual) of having, amongst so great a number, a collection of very superior dogs: but, so intent was he upon this peculiar object of at- tainment, that he went still farther in every possible direction to obtain perfection, and intraduced e\ery experimental cross from the English lurcher to the Italian greyhound. He had strongly indulged an idea of a successful cross with the bull dog, which he could never be divested of, and after having persevered (in opposition to every opinion) most patiently for seven removes, he found himself in possession of the best greyhounds ever yet known ; giving the small ear,, the rat-tail, and the skin almost without hair, together with that innate courage which the high-bred grey- hound should possess, retaining which instinctively he would rather die than relinquish the chase. One defect only this cross is admitted to have, which the poacher would rather know to be a truth, 90 SPORTING ANECDOTES. than the fair sportsman would come willingly forward to demonstrate. To the former it is a fact pretty well known, that no dog has the sense of smelling in a more exquisite degree than the bull dog; and, as they run mute, they, under certain crosses, best answer the midnight purposes of the poacher in driving hares to the wire or net. Greyhounds bred from this cross, have therefore some tendency to run by the nose, which, if not immediately checked by the master, they will continue for miles, and become very destructive to the game in the neighbourhood where they are kept, if not under confinement or restraint. In a short space of time after Lord Orford's decease, Lis greyhounds (with various other sporting appurte- nances) came und^r tins hammer of the auctioneer. Colonel Thornton, of Yorkshire, who had parsed much of his early life with Lurd Orion i, and hud been m ac- tive associate with him in his hawking establishments, was the purchaser of Czarina, Jupiter, and some of his best dogs, giving from thirty to fifty guineas each. It was by this circumstance the select biood of the Nor- folk dogs was transferred to Yorkshire ; and thence a 'fair trial was obtained how the fleetest greyhounds that had ever been seen on the sands of Norfolk could run over the Wolds of Yorkshire. Old Jupiter, when produced by Colonel Thornton in that country, presented to the eye of either the sportsman or the painter, as gallant and true a picture of the perfect greyhound as ever was submitted to ju- dicioils inspection. He was a dog of great size, with a very long and taper head, deep m the chest, strong in the loins, with a skin exceedingly soft and pliable, ears small, and a tail as fine as whip-cord, From this SPORTING ANECDOTES. 91 -uniformity of make and shape, a cross was much sought after by members of the different coursing meet- ings in the northern districts, and it was universally admitted that the breed in Yorkshire was considerably improved by the Norfolk acquisition. Notwithstanding these dogs were amongst the best Lord Or ford had ever bred from his experimental crosses, and were the boast of the greatest coursers the south of England ever knew; yet when they came to be started against the hares of the High Wolds, they did not altogether support the character they had pre- viously obtained. This was more particularly demon- strated when the hares turned short on the hill sides, where the greyhounds, unable to stop themselves, fre- quently rolled like barrels from the top to the bottom, while the hare went away at her leisure, and heard no more of them; it was, however, unanimously agreed by all the sportsmen present, that they run with a great deal of energetic exertion, and always at the hare; that though beaten, they did not give it in, or exhibit any symptoms of lurching, or waiting to kill. In the low flat countries below the Wolds they were ^ more successful; such gentlemen, therefore, as haW been witnesses of the Norfolk, as well as> the Berkshire coursing, and saw how the best dogs of the south were beaten by the Wold hares, were led to observe, and afterwards to acknowledge, the superiority of the Wold coursing, and the strength of the hares there. By those who have never seen it, this has been much doubted ; the good sportsmen of the south, each par- tial to his own country (from a strong small enclosure to an open marsh pasture), deny this totally, and many invitations have passed from them to the sporting gen* 92 SPORTING ANECDOTES, tlemen of Yorkshire, to have a mid may meeting of greyhounds from the respective countries. To have capital coursing, a good dog is only one part of the business; it is not only necessary to have a good hare also, but a country where nothing but speed and power to continue it can save her. Over the high wolds of Stackton, Flixton, and Sherborne, in York- shire, where hares are frequently found three or four miles from any covert or enclosure whatever; the ground the finest that can possibly be conceived, c©n- sisting chiefly of sheep-walk, including every diversity of hill, plain, and valley by which the speed and strength of a dog can be fairly brought to the test; ft will not require many words to convince the real sports- man, that such courses have been seen there, as no other part of the kingdom in its present enclosed state can possibly offer, and these necessarily require a dog to be in that high training, for which in coursing of much less severity there cannot be equal occasion. But the day is fast approaching when coursing of such de- . scription will no more be seen ; in a very few years ^ these wolds will be surrounded, and variously inter- *d(Hcted with fences, and thus equalized with other countries, the husbandman (who will then have his day of triumph over the sportsman) may justly and exultingly exclaim, Seges est, ubi Troja fuit ! The man who in any way challenges the whole world should recollect — the world is a wide place. Lord Orford once tried the experiment, and the challenge thus confidently made, was as confidently taken up by the present Duke of Queensberry (then Lord March], SPORTING ANECDOTES. 9S who had not a greyhound belonging to him in the world. Money will do much ; with indefatigable ex- ertion it will do more ; and it is a circumstance well known to many of the sporting world, that upon par- ticular occasions, some of the best pointers ever seen have emerged from a cellar from the metropolis, who it might be imagined had never seen a bird in the field. The duke in this instance applied to that well-known character old Mr. Elwes, who recommended him to another elderly sportsman of Berkshire (Captain Hatt), a courser of no small celebrity, who produced a grey- hound, that in a common country, beat Lord Orford's Phenomenon. This same kind of challenge was some few years- since given by Snowball, and was the only challenge of similar import, that has not been accepted ; but it is requisite, at the same time, to remark, that the match was restricted to be run only in such place where a fair and decisive trial could be obtained. Those who have seen great matches decided by short courses, and bad hares (where chance frequently in- tervenes), must know that such trials are uncertain and deceptive, and that the real superiority of either dog may still remain unknown when the match is over. Perhaps, even in the best country, should the contest be for a large sum, and between two greyhounds of equal celebrity, the most equitable mode of ascertain- ing the merit of each, would be to run three courses, and adjudge the prize to the winner of the main of the three ; it being very unlikely, that in three courses ran in an open country, the superiority of one greyhound over the other should not be evidently perceived. S4 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The excellence of Snowball, whose breed was York- shire on the side of the dam, and Norfolk on that of the sire, was acknowledged by the great number who had seen him run ; and, perhaps, taken " for all in all," he was the best greyhound that ever ran in Eng- land. All countries were nearly alike to him, though bred where fences seldom occur ; yet, when taken into the strongest enclosures, he topped hedges of any height, and in that respect equalled, if not sur- passed, every dog in his own country. They who did not think his speed so superior, all allowed, that for wind, and for powers in running up long hills without being distressed, they had never seen his equal. , On a public coursing day given to the township of Flixton, the continuance of his speed was once reduced to a certainty by the known distance, as well as the difficulty of the ground. From the bottom of Flixton Brow, where the village stands, to the top of the hill where the wold begins is a measured mile, and very steep in ascent the whole of the way. A hare was found midway, and there was started with Snowball a sister of his given to the Rev. Mr. Minithorpe, and a young dog about twelve months old of another breed. The hare came immediately up the hill, and after re- peated turns upon the wold, took down the hill again ; but finding that in the sandy bottom she was less a match for the dogs, she returned, and in the middle of the hill the whelp gave in, Snowball and his sister being left with the hare; reaching the wold a second time, she was turned at least fifty times, where for- cibly feeling the certainty of approaching death, she again went do\vn the hill, in descending which the SPORTING ANECDOTES. Q5 bitch dropped, and by immediate bleeding was reco- vered ; Snowball afterwards ran the hare into the vil- lage, where he killed her. The length of this course, by the ascertained dis- tance, was full four miles without adverting to the turns which must have much increased it; this, with a liill a mile high, twice ascended, are most indubitable proofs of continuance which few dogs could have given, and which few but Flixton hares could have .required. The people of Flixton talk of it to this day, and ac- customed as they are to courses of the richest descrip- tion in the annals of sporting, they reckon this amongst the most famous they have seen. Snowball, Major, his brother, and Sylvia, were per- haps the three best and most perfect greyhounds ever produced at one litter. They never were beaten. The shape, make, systematic uniformity, and all the characteristics of high blood were distinguishable in the three; the colour of Major and Sylvia were sin- gularly brindled, that of Snowball a jet black, and when in good running condition was as fine as black satin. Snowball won ten large pieces of silver plate, and upwards ol forty matches, having accepted every challenge, from whatever dogs of different countries were brought against him. His descendants have been equally successful: Venus, a brindled bitch; Black- smith, who died from extreme exertion in running up a steep hill; and young Snowball have beat every dog that was ever brought against them. lor the last three years Snowball has covered at three guineas, and the farmers in that, and the neigh- bouring districts, have sold crosses from his breed at ten and fifteen guineas each. Major, his brother, has g6 SPORTING ANECDOTES. displayed his powers before the gentlemen of the south as already described ; this, as a public exhibition of the dog to a few sporting amateurs, might be bearable, but could he have found a tongue, when he beheld himself brought to run a hare out of a box, in the 1 month of March, upon Epsom Downs, amidst whis- kies, buggies, and gingerbread carts, well might he. have exclaimed, " To this complexion am I come at last!" THE THREE AND THE DUCE. A few years ago a possessor of Warthell Hall, in the village of Gilcruix, in Cumberland, being a great card-player, and at one time being on the wrong side of fortune to a great amount, in order to retrieve his losses, at once determined to make a desperate stroke, and pledged Warthell Hall and the estate in a single stake at the game of Put. The story goes, that the game running nearly even at the concluding deal, he exclaimed — " Up now duce, or else a tray, " Or Warthell's gone for ever and aye." The cards came up according to his wishes, and he saved his estate; and, to perpetuate the remembrance of that event, he had sculptured on one end of his house the figure of a card duce, and a tray on th« other, which remain at the present time. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 97 METHOD OF FISHING WITH FOXHOUNDS. Described by Colonel Thornton. m Ix order to describe this mode of fishing, (says the colonel) it may be necessary to observe, that I make use of pieces of cork of a conical form, and having several of these all differently painted, and named after favourite hounds, trifling wagers are made on their success, which rather adds to the spirit of the sport. " The mode of baiting them is, by placing a live bait, which hangs at the end of a line, of one yard and a half long, fastened only so slightly, that on the pike's striking, two or three yards more may run off, to ena- ble him to gorge his bait. If more line is used, it will prevent the sport that attends his diving and carrying under water the hound ; which being thus pursued in a boat down wind, (which they always take) affords very excellent amusement ; and where pike, or large perch, or even trout are in plenty, before the hunters, if I may so term these fishers, have run down the first pike, others are seen coming towards them, with a velocity proportionable to the fish that is at them. " In a fine summer's evening, with a pleasant party, I have had excellent diversion, and it is, in fact, the most adapted of any for ladies, whose company gives & gusto to all parties." It may not be amiss to introduce in this place the Following anecdote, in illustration of this mode of fishing, as re ] ated by Colonel Thornton, in his Sport- ing Tour to Scotland. " After breakfast (says he) we went again to Loch Alva, having got a large quantity of fine trout for bait; 98 SPORTING ANECDOTES., but, for many hours could not obtain a rise. Captain Waller baited the fox- hounds, and as his boat was to be sent forward, 1 came down to him, having killed a very fine pike- of above twenty pounds, the only one I thought we had left in the loch. The captain came on board, and we trolled together, without success, for , some time, and, examining the fox-hounds, found no fish at them. At length I discovered one of them which had been missing, though anxiously sought for, from the first time of our coming here ; it was uncom- monly well baited, and I was apprehensive that s'omel pike had run it under a tree, by which means both ri h and hound would be lost. On coming nearer, 1 clear- ly saw that it was the same one which had been mis- sing, that the line was run efT, and, by its continuing fixed in the middle of the lake, I made no doubt but some monstrous fish was at it. I was desirous that Captain Waller, who had not met with any success that morning, should take it up, which he accordingly did, when, looking below the stern of the boat, I saw a im mous fellow, whose weight could not be less than be-> tween twenty and thirty pounds. But notwithstand- ing the great caution the captain observed, before the landing net could be used, he made a shoot, carrying off two yards of cord. " As soon as we had recovered from the consterna- tion this accident occasioned, 1 ordered the boat tf cruise about, for the chance of his taking me again, which I have known frequently to happen with pike, who are wonderfully bold and voracious: on the se- cond trip, I saw a very large fish come at me, and col- lecting my line, I felt I had him fairly booked ; but I feared he had run himself tight round some root, hie SPORTING ANECDOTES. 9Q weight seemed so dead : we rowed up, therefore, to the spot, when lie soon convinced me he was at liberty, by running me so far into the lake, that 1 had not one inch of line more to give him. The servants, fore- seeing the consequences of my situation, rowed with great expedition towards the fish, which now rose about seventy yards from us, an absolute wonder! I relied ©n my tackle, which I knew was in every respect ex- cellent, as I had, in consequence of the large pike kill- ed the day before, put on hooks and gimps, adjusted with great care; a precaution which would have been thought superfluous in London, as it certainly was for most lakes, though here barely equal to my fish. After playing him for some time, I gave the rod to Captain Waller, that he might have the honour of landing him ; ior I thought him quite exhausted, when, to our sur- prise, we were again constrained to follow the monster nearly across this great lake, having the wind, too, much against us. The whole party were now in high blood, and the delightful Vilie de Paris quite manage- able ; frequently he flew out of the water to such a height, that though I knew the uncommon strength of my tackle, I dreaded losing such an extraordinary fish, and the anxiety of our little crew was equal to mine. After about an hour and a quarter's play, however we thought we might safely attempt to land him, which was done in the following manner : Neumarktt, a lad so called from the place of his nativity, who had now come to assist, I ordered, with another servant, to strip and wade in asfar as possible; which they readily did. In the nieau time I took the landing-net, while Captain Wal- ler, judiciously ascending the hill above, drewhim gently towards us. He approached the shore very quietly, f 2 100 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and we thought him quite safe, when seeing himself sur- rounded by his enemies, he in an instant made a last desperate effort, shot into the deep again, and, in the exertion, threw one of the men on his back. His im- mense size was now very apparent ; we proceeded with all due caution, and being once more drawn towards land, I tried to get his head into the net, upon effecting which, the servants were ordered to seize his tail, and slide him on shore : I took all imaginable pains to ac- complish this, but in vain, and began to think myself strangely awkward, when, at length having got his snout in, I discovered that the hoop of the net, though adapted to very large pike, would admit no more than that part. He was, however, completely spent, and in a few moments we landed him, a perfect monster ! He was stabbed by my directions in the spinal marrow, with a large knife, which appeared to be the most hu- mane manner of killing him, and I then ordered all the signals with the sky-scrapers to be hoisted ; and the whoop re-echoed through the whole range of the Grampians. On opening his jaws to endeavour to take the hooks from him, which were both fast in his gorge, so dreadful a forest of teeth, or tushes 1 think I never beheld : if I had not had a double link of gimp, with two swivels, the depth between his stomach and mouth would have made the former quite useless. His measurement, accurately taken, w&s Jive feet four inches, from eye to fork. INSTANCE OF SURPRISING SPEED. Performed by a person named Giles Hoyle. This astonishing exploit is related by a sporting gentleman of great celebrity (Mr. Parker) who resides i SPORTING ANECDOTES. 101 at Marshfield, near Settle, in. Yorkshire, it was accom- plished as follows :'• — September 4, 1780. — Giles Hoyle rode from Ipswich to Tiptree, and back again for the purpose of obtaining leave of absence for Major Clayton to attend the elec- tion at Clitheroe, from General Parker, being sixty-six miles in six hours. September 5. — He rode with his master from Ips- wich to Gisburne Park ; they started at six o'clock in the morning, and arrived at Gisburne Park at two o'clock in the afternoon the day following, two hun- dred and thirty miles; this he performed in thirty-two hours. Seventh. — Dined at Browsholme, twelve miles. Eighth.— Returned to Clitheroe, five miles, and, at ten o'clock that night, he took horse for Lulworth Cas- tle, in Dorsetshire, with conveyance deeds of some bo- rough-houses in Clitheroe, for the signature of Mr. Weld. He arrived at Lulworth between nine and tea o'clock on Monday morning the 10th. Transacted his business, and returned to Clitheroe on the following evening at seven o'clock : the whole being five hundred and forty miles. This he performed in sixty-nine hours. N. B. Giles Hoyle kept an exact account of his ex- pences to a penny, during the above time. The wea- ther was very wet and stormy during the whole jour- ney. EPITAPH ON A SPANIEL. Htc follovjing Lines are intended to commemorate, one of the best of Spaniels that ever existed. Well hast thou earn'd this little space, Which barely marks the turf is heav'd ; For truest of a faithful race, Tby voice its master ne'er deceiv'd. * 3 102 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Whilst busy ranging hill and dale, The pheasant crouch'd from danger nigh, 'Till wanner felt the scented gale, Thou forc'd the brilliant prey to fly. Alike the woodcock's dreary haunt, Thou knew to find amidst the shade ; Ne'er did iliy tongue redoubled chaunt, But, mark ! quick echo'd thro' the glade! Rest then assur'd that mortals can Draw a good moral from thy story here ; Happy if so employ'd the span Of active life, within their sphere. For, search the middling world around, How few their proper parts sustain ! How rare the instance to be found, Of truth amongst the motley train ! THE VENERABLE HUNTSMAN. Joseph Man was born within the last century, at Pules Walden, in Hertfordshire, in which county he was, at an early age, employed &sa gamekeeper. When nineteen years old, a violent fever changed his hair to grey in one night ; so that at the time of being hired, in the year 1733, by Viscount Torrington, as hunts- man, he had the appearance of an elderly man. He remained in the family of three Viscount Torringtons, from the year 1733 to the year 1777, generally as huntsman; sometimes as gamekeeper. Stout and bo- ny, he continued in unwearied exercise; a perfect adept in shooting, hare-hunting, and in the art of pre- serving game. Domesticated so long in the same fa- mily, and attentive to the same sports, he. was looked SPORTING ANECDOTES. 103 upon by the neighbours as a prodigy ; was known, far and near, as old Joe Man, and was called by all the country people Daddy. He was in constant strong morning exercise ; he went to bed always by times, but never till his skin was rilled with ale. " This (he said) would do no harm to an early riser, (he was ever up at day- break) and to a man xvho pursued field-sports." At se- venty-eight Years of age he began to decline, and then lingered three years; his gun was ever upon his arm, and he still crept about, not destitute of the hope of fresh diversion. AN OLD SPORTSMAN. DELINEATED BY LOUD SHAFTESRU It Y. In the year 1 638, lived Mr. Hastings, at Woodlands, in the county of Southampton, by his quality, son, bro- ther, and uncle, to the earls of Huntingdon, lie was, pei adventure, an original in our age, or rather the co- py of our antient nobility in hunting, not in warlike times. He was very low, strong, and active, with red- dish flaxen hair: his clothes, which, when new, were never worth five pounds, were of green cloth. His house was perfectly old-fashioned, in the midst of a large park, well-stocked with deer and rabbits, many fishponds, a great store of wood and timber, a bowling- green in it, long but narrow, full of high-ridges, never having been levelled since it was ploughed ; round sand bowls were used, and it had a banqueting-house like a stand, built in a tree. Mr. H. kept all manner of hounds, that run buck, fox, hare, otter, and badger. Hawks, both long and short winded. He had all sorts of nets for fish. A 104 SPORTING ANECDOTES. walk in the New Forest, and the manor of Christ Church : this last supplied him with red deer y sea and river fish ; and, indeed, all his neighbours' grounds and royalties were free to him, who bes'towed all his time on these sports. But he borrowed to caress his neigh- bours* wives and daughters, there not being a woman in all his walks, of the degree of a yeoman's wife, and un- der the age of forty, but it was extremely her fault, if he was not intimately acquainted with her. This made him popular, always speaking kindly to the husband, brother, or father, and making them welcome at his mansion, where they found beef, pudding, and small beer, and a house not so neatly kept as to shame him or his dirty shoes ; the great hall strewed with marrow- bones, full of hawks, perches, hounds, spaniels and ter- riers; the upper side of the hall hung with the fox skins of this and the last year's killing, here and there a martin-cat intermixed, and gamekeepers and hunters' poles in abundance. The parlour was a large room, as properly furnished. On a hearth paved with brick, lay some terriers, and the choicest hounds and spaniels. Seldom less than two of the great chairs had litters of kittens on them, which were not be disturbed, he always having three or four cats attending him at dinner ; and to defend such meat as he had no mind to part with, he kept order with a short white stick that lay by him. The windows, which were very large, served for places to lay his arrows, cross-bows, and other such ac- coutrements. The corners of the rooms were full of the best chosen hunting and hawking poles. An oyg* ter table at the lower end, which was in constant use twice a day, all the year round, for he never failed to SPORTING ANECDOTES. 105 eat oysters before dinner and supper, through all sea- sons. In the upper part of the room were two small tables and a desk ; on the one side of the desk was a church bible, and on the other a book of martyrs : upon the table were hawkshoods, belts, &c. two or three old green hats, with their crowns thrust in, so as to hold ten or a dozen eggs, which were of a pheasant kind of poultry; these he took much care of, and fed himself, Tables, boxes, dice, cards were not wanting : in the holes of the desk was store of old-used tobacco-pipes. On one side of this end of the room was the door of a closet, wherein stood the strong beer and the wine, and which never came thence but in single glasses, that being the rule of the house exactly observed; for he never exceeded in drinking, nor ever permitted it. On the other side was the door into an old chapel, not used for devotion. The pulpit, as the safest place never wanted a cold chine of beef, venison pasty, gam- mon of bacon, or a great apple-pie, with a thick crust, extremely baked. His table cost him not much, though it was always well supplied. His sport furnish- ed all but beef and mutton, except Fridays, when he had the best of salt, as well as other Jish, he could get, and this was the day on which his neighbours of the first quality visited him. He never wanted a London pudding, and always sung it in with " my pert eyes therein a" — He drank a glass or two at meals, very often syrup of gilliflowers in his sack, and always a tun glass stood by him, hold- ing a pint of small beer, which he often stirred with rosemary. He was affable, but soon angry, calling, his servants bastards and cuckoldy knaves, in one of which he often spoke truth to his own knowledge, and r 5 106 SPORTING ANECDOTES. sometimes both, of the same person. He lived to be an hundred, never lost his eye-sight, but always wrote and read without spectacles, and got on horseback with- out help. Until past fourscore years old, he rode up to the death of a stag as well as any man. A portrait of this gentleman is now at Winbourn St. Giles, Dorset- shire, the seat of the Earl of Shaftesbury. CURIOUS ACCOUNT OF AN ASIATIC HUNTING PARTY. (Given in a letter from an officer resident in India, lo his friend in London.) I am just returned from a four months excursion with his Excellency the Nawab, and as a sketch of our ramble may afford you some amusement in an idle hour, I shall detail a few of the most agreeable and in- teresting circumstances which occurred. After leaving Lucknow, we directed our course towards Baraeech; our kafeela consisted of about 40,000 men, and 20,000 beasts, composed of 10,000 soldiers, 1000 cavalry, and near 150 pieces of cannon; 1500 elephants, 3000 hackeries, and an innumerable train of camels, horses, and bullocks ; great number of ruts,* filled with the Nawab's women ; many large and small boats carried on carts drawn by 50, 40, 30, or 20 bullocks ; tygers, leopards, hawks, fighting-cocks, quails, and nightin- gales ; pigeons, dancing-women, and boys; singers, players, buffoons, and mountebanks. In short his ex- cellency had every thing, every object which could * Ruts are covered carriages for women, dtawn by oxe«* SNORTING ANECDOTES. 107 please or surprise, cause a smile, or raise a sneer, at- tract admiration, fix with wonder, or convulse with laughter; captivate the eye, lull the ear, or tickle the palate ; above 500 coolees were employed to carry his shooting apparatus, guns, powder, shot, and etceteras; he had above 1000 double-barrel guns, the finest that Manton and Nock could make, and single-barrels, pis- tols, swords, and spears without number. Religion constrained him to stop some days at Ba- raeech to pay homage at the tomb of a celebrated saint:* all good men who are able, resort to worship this holy anchorite once a year, generally in the month of May ; his bones were discovered about 400 years ago, and manifested their sanctity by some miraculous marks. The witty and unbelieving say they were the skeleton of on ass, without thinking of the impiety in imagining there is any resemblance between an ass, and a saint, whether dead or alive. From Baraeech we steered towards Nanpara, a small town in the first range of mountains, commonly called the Commow Hills, which extend from the eas- tern extremity of Bootan to Hurdwar, and divide Hin- dostan from Tibet and Napal. Game of all sorts were destroyed every morning and evening without number or distinction ; his Excellency is one of the best marksmen I ever saw ; it would be strange if he was not, as one day with another he fires above 100 shots at every species of birds and animals. The first tiger we saw and killed was in the mountains : we xvent to attack him about noon ; he was in a narrow * Named Salar Gazee, r 6 108 SPORTING ANECDOTES. valley which the Nawab surrounded with above 200 elephants : we heard him growl horribly in a thick bush in the midst of the valley. Being accustomed to the sport, and very eager, I pushed in my elephant ; the fierce beast charged me immediately; the ele- phant, a timid animal, as they generally are, turned tail, and deprived me of the opportunity to fire : I ven- tured again, attended by two or three other elephants ; the tiger made a spring, and nearly reached the back of one of the elephants, on which were three or four men ; the elephant shook himself so forcibly, as to ihrow these men ofThis back ; they tumbled into the bush: I gave them up for lost, but was agreeably sur- prised to see them creep out unhurt. His excellency was all this time on a rising ground near the thicket, looking on calmly, and beckoning to me to drive the tiger towards him. I made another attempt, and with more success ; he darted out towards me on my approach, roaring furiously, and lashing his sides with his tail. I luckily got a shot, and hit him ; he re- treated into the bush, and ten or twelve elephants, just then pushed into the thicket, alarmed the tiger, and obliged him to run out towards the Nawab, who instantly gave him a warm reception, and with the as- sistance of some of his omrahs, laid the tiger sprawling on his side, as dead as a stone. A loud shout of wha ! wha ! proclaimed the victory ; and those who had been too timid to approach before, from idle apprehension, assumed their valour, and rushed on the fallen hero with slaughtering swords. On elephants, there is no danger in encountering these savage beasts, which you know from repeated trials. I have been at the killing of above 30 tigers, and seldom saw any one hurt : if 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 109 you recollect, I was thrown off my elephant on one, and escaped with a bruise. The next sport we had of any magnitude was an at- tack on a wild elephant, which we met a few days after the battle with the tiger : we espied him in a plain overgrown with grass. The Nawab, eager for such di- versions, immediately formed a semicircle with 400 elephants, who were directed to advance on and en- circle him. This was the first wild elephant I had ever seen attacked, and confess I did not feel very ea- sy ; however, 1 kept alongside of his excellency, deter- mined to take my chance. When the semicircle of elephants got within 300 yards of the wild one, he looked amazed, but not frightened : two large must* elephants of the Nawab's were ordered to advance against him ; when they approached within twenty yards he charged them; the shock was dreadful ; how- ever the wild one conquered, and drove the must ele- phants before him. As he passed us, the Nawab, ordered some of the strongest female elephants with thick ropes to go alongside of him, and endeavour to entangle him with nooses and running knots ; the at- tempt was vain, as he snapped every rope, and none of the tame elephants could stop his progress. The Nawab, perceiving it impossible to catch him, ordered * Must elephants are those which are in high rut ; they are then very unmanageable, bold, savage, and often very dangerous. The male elephants become mast at a certain age, which some say is 40 years : the must elephants are the only ones who will dare to face a wild one ; they are also used in the elephant-fights exhi- bited before the princes of India. 110 SPORTING ANECDOTES. his death, and immediately a volley of above 100 shots were fired ; many of the balls hit him, but he seemed unconcerned, and moved on towards the mountains; we kept up an incessant fire for near half an hour ; the Nawab and most of his omrahs used rifles which carried two or three ounce balls, but they made very little impression, the balls just entered the skin, and lodged there. I went up repeatedly, being mounted on a female elephant, within ten yards of the wild one, and fired my rifle at his head ; the blood gushed out, but the skull was invulnerable. Some of the Kandahar horse galloped up to the wild elephant, and made cuts at him with their sabres ; he charged the horsemen, wounded some, and killed others. Be- ing now much exhausted with the loss of blood, having eceived 3000 shots and many strokes of the sabre, he slackened his pace, quite calm and serene, as if deter- mined to meet his approaching end with the undaunted firmness of an hero. I could not at this time refrain from pitying so noble an animal, and thought I saw in him the great Epaminondas encompassed by the La- cedemonians at the battle of Mantinea. The horse- men seeing him weak and slow, dismounted, and with their swords began a furious attack upon the tendoni of his hind legs ; they were soon cut ; unable to pro- ceed, this noble monarch of the woods staggered, look- ed with an eye of reproach mixed with contempt at his unfeeling foes, and then fell without a groan, like a mountain thrown on its side. The hatchetmen now advanced, and commenced an attack on his large ivory tusks, whilst the horsemen and soldiers, with barba- rous insult, began a cruel and degrading assault oo the extended hero, to try the sharpness of their sabres* 3 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Ill display the strength of their arm, and shew their invin- cible courage. The sight was very affecting ; he still breathed, and breathed without a groan ; he rolled his eyes with anguish on the surrounding croud, and making a last effort to rise, expired with a sigh ! Thus has many a brave Roman met his fate, overcome by superior numbers. The Nawab returned to his tents, as much flushed with vanity and exultation as Achil- les ; and the remainder of the day, and many a day after, were dedicated to repeated narrations of this vic- tory, which was ornamented and magnified by all the combined powers of ingenious flattery and unbounded exaggeration. " Sooth'd with the sound, the prince grew vain, " Fought all his battles o'er again, ** And thrice he routed all his foes, and thrice he 6lew tb« slain." From the mountains we directed our course towards Buckra Jeel, where we arrived on the 4th of Decem- ber. Buckra Jeel is a large lake, about three miles round at its most contracted extremity, and in some parts about thirty, surrounded by thick and high grass, at the foot of the Gorrackpoor hills; the Jungle,, which surrounds the lake, is full of wild elephants, rhi- noceroses, tigers, leopards, wild buffalos, deer, and ever species of aerial game. This was the place des- tined for the grand hunt, which we were daily taught to expect with pleasing anxiety, by the florid descrip- tions of his excellency. On the 5th of December, early in the morning, we were summoned to the Sylvan war: aline of 1200 elephants was drawn up on the 112 SPORTING ANECDOTES. north of the lake, facing the east ; and we proceeded rapidly through the high grass with minds glowing with the expectation of the magnanimous sport we should meet. Lay down your pipes, ye country squires, who boast in such pompous language the destruction of a poor fox or puss, and say in what splendid lexicon ye could find terms to convey a resemblance of the scene I saw, and now endeavour to describe. When we had arrived at the eastern extremity of the lake, we per- ceived a large drove of wild elephants, feeding and gambolling at the foot of the mountains : I counted above one hundred and seventy. At this critical mo- ment Mr. Conway, a gentleman in the Nawab's service, fell off his elephant, owing to the animal's slipping his foot into a concealed hole : Mr. Conway was much bruised, pale, and almost senseless. The Nawab stopped to put him into a palankeen, and sent him back to the encampment. This gave the wild elephants- time to gaze on our dreadful front, and recover from their amaze; many of them scampered off towards the hills. The Nawab divided our line of 1200 elephants into four bodies, and sent them in pursuit of the wild ones, which they were to take or destroy : I remained with the division attached to the Nawab ; we attacked a large male elephant, and after a long contest. killed him in the same manner as the one I have already des- cribed ; we killed also four smaller ones, and our divi- sion, including the other three, caught twenty- one ele- phants, which we led to our encampment in high tri- umph. I have only given a short account of this grand hunt, as it is impossible for the most splendid language to describe what we saw and felt. The confusion, tu- mult, noise, firing, shrieking of 1200 tame elephants^ SPORTING ANECDOTES, 113 Attacking 170 wild ones, all tossed in terrible disorder, formed a dreadful melange which cannot be imagined by the most luxuriant fancy ; to attempt therefore a delineation would be to injure the sublime subject. There were above 1 3,000 shots fired from all quarters; and, considering the confusion, I am surprised the scene was not more bloody on our side ; about twenty men were killed and maimed, and near half a dozen of horses. I had two rifles and two double barrels, and a boy to load for me in the khawas ;* yet I could not fire quick enough, though I expended 400 balls. Ma- ny of our tame elephants, who were must, and brought to oppose the wild ones, were knocked down, bruised, pierced, and made to fly ; the largest elephant we killed was above ten feet higb,f and would have sold for 20,000 rupees if it had been caught. Our prize of this day might without amplification be estimated at 50,000 rupees ; but you know the love of lucre was not our aim. Pause for a moment, my dear sir, and reflect on the scene I have described ; and you will confess, though seen through the imperfect medium of a description, that it must have been the sublimest sight that ever was presented to the mind of man in the sylvan war. * The khawas is a place in the rear of the howda, where the attendant sits. The howda is a carriage or box like the body of a phaeton, tied on the back of the elephant, where the rider is seated. f Travellers say there are elephants sixteen feet high, but this is the language of romance ; I never saw one eleven feet highj and I have seen some thousands. The Nav. ab gives extravagani prices for large elephants, and he has none eleven feet high, 114 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Actseon would have been alarmed, and Diana and her nymphs frightened out of their wits. We expatiate on it with rapture ; and no one who was present will lose the remembrance of it as long as he enjo)s his fa- culties. From Buckra Jeel we came to Faizebad, where we reposed for three weeks, to recover from the great fa- tigue we had undergone. After a gay scene of every species of oriental amusement and dissipation, we re- turned to this place having killed in our excursion eight tigers, six elephants, and caught twenty-one. To enumerate the other kinds of game would require a sheet as ample as the petition which was presented to Jenghis Khan, and might perhaps be treated by you in the manner that conqueror treated the petition. ANECDOTE OF LORD SPENCER HAMILTON. It is by no means unknown to the sporting world of thirty years past, that the late Lord Spencer Hamilton was one of its most liberal, zealous, and respected vota- ries. No man living enjoyed it more, or run his horses With a higher sense of honour, or greater anxiety to win. It is likewise as universally known, that his libe~ ratify, hospitality, and nocturnal propensities, led him in- to weighty and innumerable difficulties ; difficulties that occasioned as confidential an intimacy between his lord- ship and Besbridge (a celebrated sheriffs officer for four counties) as between a prime minister and his private secretary. Under a variety of pecuniary engagements, writs were unfortunately in eternal approach, and his lordship was, in consequence, as constantly sequester- ing himself to avoid the ejject ; when at length a kiud SPORTING ANECDOTES. 115 ©f accommodating adjustment became unavoidably ne- cessary for the convenience of both parties, which, in the termination of events, proved no way dishonour- ble to either. When B. was put in possession of the copy of a writ, with a letter of instructions from any worthy or unworthy, limb of the law, well knowing the impossibility of " touching his lordship upon the shoul- der" in his recluse habitation, with out works so well defended, he found it necessary to introduce a kind of friendly affection, and apprise his lordship by letter of what he htld against him, with an earnest solicita- tion that his lordship would be punctual and expedi- tious in the business ; which was generally satisfacto- rily arranged, without much delay to one, or disgrace to the other ; B — having this usual fee remitted (which, by the bye, he was greatly entitled to) for his 'unfashionable kindness and unprofessional lenity upon the occasion. This continued, fur some years, to an- swer both their purposes, till his lordship making a grand Wort at " seven's the main," one night in the environs of St. James's, with a view to retrieve his affairs atone stroke, received so violent an electrical shock in the elbow, that he became totally unable to attend to the accumulating admonitions and repeated remonstrances of the sheriff's delegate, whose pressing injunctions now compelled him to write — to solicit — to intreat — to insist — but without the least effect, B — , however, accidentally heard that a deer was to be turned out before the king's hounds at Bullmarsh Heath near Hea- ding; a scene of pleasure from which his lordship was hardly ever known to be absent, unless upon compul- sion in his military attendance upon his. regiment of the guards. As B— had anxiously hoped, so it proved j 1 16 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and he had no sooner discovered his object, than his lordship (in the very moment when every eye was in- tent upon the stag's leaping out of the cart) recognized the antique countenance of his old friend, in as " dead a set at him" as ever was made by one of his own stanch pointers (having the wind) when perfectly in scent of his game. Upon Besbridge's giving signal for chase, his lordship (who always rode most excellent hunters) immediately went " off' at score," leading him a gallop over the heath to the inexpressible laughter and enter- tainment of the company ; when the hounds being laid on, by the interposing sympathy of old Kennedy, the then huntsman (who felt for his friend and brother sportsman) it afforded his lordship immediate opportu- nity to fall iu with them ; while poor Besbridge being thrown out at the very first leap, was reluctantly com- pelled to relinquish the chase, and comfort himself with the consolatory transposition of vetii, vidi, vici,. to " I came, I saw, I was overcome :" but as it is, Hudibrastically admitted, that " He who fights, and runs away, " May live to fight another day j'* so by the same parity of reasoning it may be concluded that this temporary misunderstanding did not extend beyond the morrow. Suffice it to observe, that his lordship no more neglected the private admonitions of so excellent a friend ; nor did he again disconcert his lordship by any similar public obtrusion, having faith- fully promised never to hunt again when his lordship, was in the field ; a promise that he not only strictly adhered to, but he even continued to render his lord- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 117 ship every tenderness in the practice of his profession, 'till the unfortunate hour when the accumulation of pecuniary demands, too numerous and weighty for his lordship to stand against, compelled him to leave his native country, there to breathe " with broken spirit" his last hour in distant obscurity, very remote from the scene of his former hospitality, the presence of his nu- merous sporting friends, and the seat of all those fa- vourite field sports to which his possessions were fully adequate (being in the then receipt of 12001. per an- num) could he have happily divested himself of that unfortunate infectious attachment to" the bones," that has, within a very few years, reduced so many from the inexpressible comforts of affluence, to the dreary abyss of disgrace and misery. AFFECTING FIDELITY OF A DOG. Professor Raff, in his i( System of Natural His- tory," relates the following fact, and as the authenticity of that elegant author is unimpeachable, we think it fully entitled to a place in this collection. " A French merchant having some money due from a correspondent, set out on horseback, accompanied by his dog, on purpose to receive it. Having settled the business to his satisfaction, he tied the bag of mo- ney before him, and began to return home. His faithful dog, as if he entered into his master's ftelingo, frisked round the horse, barked, and jumped, and seemed to participate in his joy. " The merchant, after riding some miles, alighted to repose himself under an agreeable shade, and, ta- king the bag of money in his hand, laid it down by 118 SPORTING ANECDOTES. his side under an hedge, and, on remounting, forgot it. The dog perceived his lapse of recollection, and wishing to rectify it, ran to fetch the bag, but it was too heavy for him to drag along. He then ran to his master, and by crying, barking, and howling, seemed to remind him of his mistake. The merchant under- stood not his language ; but the assiduous creature persevered in its efforts, and, after trying to stop the horse in vain, at last began to bite his heels. " The merchant, absorbed in some reverie, wholly overlooked the real object of his affectionate atten- dant's importunity, but waked to the alarming appre- hension that he was gone mad. Full of this suspicion, in crossing a brook, "he turned back to look if the dog would drink ; the animal was too intent upon its mas- ter's business to think of itself ; it continued to bark and bite with greater violence than before. " Mercy V cried the afflicted merchant, ' it must be so, my poor dog is certainly mad : what must I do ? 1 must kill him, lest some greater misfortune befal me; but with what regret! Oh, couid 1 find any one to perform this cruel office for me ! but there is no time to lose ; I myself may become the victim, if I spare him. " With these words, he drew a pistol from his pock- et, and with a trembling hand took an aim at his faith- ful servant. He turned away in agony as he fired, but the aim was too sure: the poor animal falls wounded and weltering in his blood, and still endeavours to crawl towards his master, as if to lax him with ingra- titude. 11 The merchant could not bear the sight ; he spurred ©n his horse with a heart full of sorrow, and lamented SPORTTXG ANECDOTES. 119 lie had taken a journey, which had cost him so dear. Still, however, the money never entered his mind ; he only thought of bis poor dog, and tried to console him- self with the reflection, that he had prevented a greater evil by dispatching a mad animal, than he had suffered a calamity by his loss. This opiate to his wounded spirit was ineffectual. ■ I am most unfortunate, (said he to himself) : I had almost rather have lost my mo- ney than my dog.' Saying this, he stretched out his hand to grasp his treasure; it was missing! no bag was to be found ! In an instant he opened his eyes to his rashness and foil}*. Wretch that 1 am ! I alone am to blame: 1 could not comprehend the admonition which my innocent and most faithful friend gave me, and I have sacrificed him for his zeal. He only wished to inform me of my mistake, and he has paid for his fidelity with his life/ " Instantly he turned his horse, and went off with a full gallop to the place where he bad stopped. IJe saw wilh half-averted eyes the scene where the tragedy was acted ; he perceived the traces of blood as he pro- ceeded ; he was oppressed and distracted, but in vain did be look for his dog— he was not to be seen on the road. At last he arrived at the spot where he had alighted. But what were his sensations! his heart was leady to bleed— he cursed himself in the madness of despair. The poor dog, unable to follow, his d^ar, but cruel, master, had determined to consecrate his last moments to his service. He had crawled, all bloody as he was, to the forgotten bag, and in the agonies of death he lay watching beside it. When he saw his master, he still testified his joy by the wagging ot hiys tail — he could do no more — he tried to rise, but his strength was gone; the vital tide was ebbing fast. 120 SPORTING ANECDOTES. even the caresses of his master could not prolong his fate for a few moments : he stretched out his tongue to lick the hand that was now fondling him in the agonies of regret, as if to seal forgiveness for the deed that had deprived him of life. He then cast a look of kindnesi on his master, and closed his eyes for ever/' A SINGULAR RENCONTRE. A gentleman once made an excursion into Lei- cestershire, to hunt with the fox-hounds so justly cele- brated in that county. On the first day of their sport they unkenneled in high style, the fox breaking on the unexpected side of the covert, with only two horsemen (a large field) within hearing, and the hounds going away in a body breast high, every soul was completely thrown out, and continued riding near twenty miles upon enquiry, without once reaching the chace, or even hearing to a certainty, which way they were gone. Thus some were riding one way, and some ano- ther ; and the gentleman followed, as he supposed, the track of the chase, destitute of any guide whatsoever, except his own private opinion. At length he observed hounds running up the side of a hill, at a distance of about four or five miles ; this discovery excited in him the most lively joy, being thus relieved from that unpleasant state of suspence : it gave new life and vi- gour both to himself and his horse. By pursuing the line accurately, he came within hearing, and ultimately to the death first, as the huntsman was throwing Rey- nard among the hounds. Not attending to the com- pany, but intently fixed upon the energetic emulation of the hounds,, in tearing their fox, he was roused from SPORTING ANECDOTES. 121 his enjoyment by a voice eagerly enquiring " How long they had run ?" Taking out his watch, he very inno- cently replied — " An hour and three quarters." — " An hour and three quarters V 3 vociferated, with stentorian lungs, the enquirer, " why, sir, it is not much more than half an hour since we unkenneled: we came away close at his brush, and after the hardest brush I ever rode in my life, we have killed without a check !" This difference of opinion instantly rouzed the attention of all present, and excited no small degree of mutual sur- prise ; for the gentleman appeared to the company a preter-natural visitor from the regions above or below ; and he, discovering no one face in the field that he had seen in the morning, proceeded to explanation, when it appeared that he had run accidentally into Sir W. L — r's hounds, and had only to condole himself with the whimsical singularity of his situation, not to be equalled, perhaps, by the oldest sportsman in the king- dom. He had unkennelled with one pack, (rode a chace of near thirty miles without hounds) and been at the death with another : having that distance to return un- accompanied, to the spot he had fixed on for his resi- dence, during his sporting excursion to that county. GOOD HOUNDS. Peter Beckford, Esq. having heard of a small pack of beagles to be disposed of in Derbyshire, sent his coachman (the person he could then best spare) to fetch them. It was a long journey, and the man, not having been used to hounds, had some trouble in getting them along; besides, it unfortunately happened, that they had not been out of the kennel for many weeks 122 SPORTING ANECDOTES. before, and were so riotous, that they ran after every thing they saw ; sheep, cur-dogs, and birds of all sorts, as well as hare and deer, had been his amusement all the way along. However, he lost but one hound : and when Mr. Beckford asked him what he thought of them, he replied — •" They could not fail of being good hounds, for they would hunt any thing /" SINGULAR STRATAGEM OF A FOX. Some gentlemen being a hunting in Derbyshire, found a fox in good style, went away with him, and had a severe run of two hours and a half, when the hounds came to a sudden check. After trying for a quarter of an hour to no purpose, one of the old hounds ran up to a dead sheep, (which appeared to have been recently killed) and could not be prevented smelling about it, and sometimes biting it. Every one was sur- prised at this, till the dog absolutely gave tongue, and the whole pack came up, and tore the sheep to pieces in a moment. But what was their astonishment, when Reynard himself appeared, covered with the blood and entrails of the sheep ! He was of course immediately killed. It seems, that running through a flock of sheep, and finding himself very hard pushed, and unable to go much farther, he had killed one, ripped open its belly, and secreted himself within, as the only means of saving hijB life, THE LATE RICHARD R1GBY, ESQ. The early life and habits of Mr. Rigby, were not calculated to enforce economy ; according to the lash- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 123 ionable, or the foolish manners of the age, mortgages and money-lenders had made deep inroads on his pa- ternal estate, which was originally respectable, before he had perfectly attained the age or art of properly enjoying it; end he might have lived to deplore his imprudence in abject dependance, had not the turf t which contributed to diminish, afforded him an oppor- tunity of redeeming his fortune. The grandfather of the present Duke of Bedford had given great offence to the gentlemen in the neighbour- hood of Litchfield, by an improper and unfair interfe- rence at their races; and as it was by no means safe or easy effectually to punish a man fortified by rank, privilege and wealth, they at last determined to bestow on this illustrious offender manual correction. The overbearing conduct of the duke, in some matter re- lating to the starting of the horses, and their weights, in which he had no kind of right to interpose, soon af- forded the confederates an opportunity of executing their purposes. He was in a moment separated from his attendants, surrounded by the party, hustled, and unmercifully horse-whipped by an exasperated coun- try attorney, with keen resentments and a muscular arm. The lawyer persevered in this severe discipline, without being interrupted by his grace's outcries and declarations " that he was the Duke of Bedford f an assertion which Mr. Humphries, the assailant, posi- tively denied, adding, " that a peer of the reaim would never have conducted himself in so scandalous a man- ner." The matter soon circulated over the course* and, reaching Mr. Rigby's ear, with a generous, per- haps a political gallantry, he burst through the croud, G 2 124 SPOUTING ANECDOTES. rescued the di'stressed peer, completely threshed his an- tagonist, and protected the duke off the ground. From this time the foundation of the immense for- tunes of this gentleman may be dated. Grateful for the singular service they had received, the Russel fa- mily heaped their favours on him, and at length pro- cured him the most lucrative office in the gift of the crown, that of paymaster-general : the emoluments arising from which, during the American war, amount- ed annually to fifty thousand pounds. The amuse- ments of Mr. Rigby, in the country, principally con- sisted in fox-hunting; for which, in the county of Suf- folk, his abilities are well known. In short, wherever business or pleasure conducted him, his social habits and convivial talents gave a zest to the scene. RUSSIAN GAMING ANECDOTE. The grand Chancellor Ostermann,* was so well served abroad, as to get intelligence of a scheme form- ed at the court of Versailles to send over an insinua- ting elegant gamester to attack the Duke of Biran on his weak side (a violent rage for play), and by that means to render him probably more tractable on some point they wanted to gain, when less overflowing with ready money than he generally was. To communicate this information, the chancellor called on the haughty duke, then all powerful, and sus- pected he was at home, though declared abroad by his porter. This real, or supposed affront, the chancellor * Who was chancellor during the reign of the Empress Anne, SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 125 took a most humourous mode of revenging, which was wrapping himself up in flannels, as if attacked with a violeut fit of the gout, to which he was subject, and then writing a note to the Empress Anne, to inform her majesty he had something of moment to communicate, but was unfortunately unable to move from his couch with his ordinary complaint. This produced the very visit he expected ; and the duke was announced as coming to speak with him from the sovereign. Ostermann received his visitor extended on a sopha, wrapped up like a mummy in flannel, and pretended to be unable, from pain, to utter any thing but the usual involuntary exclamations of a msm in violent sufferings. When he had made the duke sit in eager curiosity to hear his secret, long enough to be re- venged on him for the supposed refusal at his door, he seemed to articulate, with great difficulty, that the French were sending over a gamester, — and then stopped again with excess of pain. The duke, on hear- ing the mountain thus delivered of a mouse, and being unable to draw any thing further from the gouty chan- cellor, went off in a pet, probably thinking it a joke on- his prevailing passion ior gaming, and informed the em- press that Count Ostermann had nothing to reveal, but was delirious with a severe fit of the gout. — Here the matter rested, and was forgot by the duke. Some months after the political gamester actually arrived, under the form of an elegant, easy, dissipated marquis, with a large credit on a house of the English factory ; he presently insinuated himself into tlie good graces of the duke, and had cleared him and his party of their superfluous cash ; when the chancellor, think- ing the lesson, sufficient, dispatched a courier to Mas- G 3 126 SPORTING ANECDOTES. cow, to bring down post a midshipman, absent on leave from the fleet, named Cruckoff, whom he was assured to be inferior to none in Europe, either in the necessary manipulation of the cards, or knowledge of the game Quinze, then the fashionable court play, and at which the marquis had won all the money; one preliminary measure was, however, necessary to the scheme of get- ting back the money of the duke and the other noble- men, which was, to get the midshipman made an offi- cer of the guards, to entitle him to play at, court ; this Ostermann did, by soliciting it for him under the title of a relation, a favour immediately conferred by Anne, left entirely ignorant of the plot. The new ensign be- gan to lose freely small sums, like a wealthy noxkt elated with the honor of playing at court, and at last drew the attention of the marquis, as a pigeon worth plucking. After some evenings, forcing him with high play, two-thirds of all his former gains were carried off by the pigeon ; who was then marked out as an object worthy of condign punishment by the nettled French- man, and a monstrous stake was proposed, which the marquis certainly made himself sure of gaining, by some master-piece of shuffling art, reserved for the eoup de grace : but probably it never entered into the marquis's head, or calculation, that a Muscovite pi- geon could swallow a card he had drawn too much, as he actually did, with some sweetmeats taken from an adjoining table, and left just fifteen in hand, the same number the Frenchman's art had procured to himself likewise, and on which he betted not only all his for- mer winnings, but to the amount of his credit with his banker, in perfect security of gaining; but he had for- got an essential circumstance in case of equality, that SPORTING ANECDOTES. 12/ tnc Russian was first in hand, which determined the matter in his favour, and the laugh was turned on the unfortunate Frenchman, The chancellor, by this means, being in possession of the gains and credit of the amiable gamester, waited once more on the duke, to finish the conversation which the gout had prevented him concluding on his grace's first visit, and toid him that he was then anxi- ous to put him on his guard against a gamester whom the court of France was sending to fleece him, and had it not been for the impatience of his highness on that occasion, and the abrupt manner in which he left him, he might have saved his money, The duke, quite outrageous at the trick played him by the marquis, talked of having him arrested as a cheat ; but the chancellor, taking a bag from under his cloak, added coolly, that he had taken a more ef- fectual method to punish him in kind; returned the duke both bis own and his friend's money, only airily begging him, in future, not to be so impatient when gouty mm had secrets to diseoter. The rest of the spoil made the fortune of the success- ful officer, with an injunction never to lift a card again, if he wished to spend his days out of Siberia, where people would run less risk from his address. It has since become a sort of proverb among the Russian black legs, that such a one plays like a mids/iif* man, if fortune favours him a little too much* & 4 128 STORTING ANECDOTES. THE FIDELITY OF A DOG. In a village situated between Caen andVire, on the borders of a district called the Grove, there dwelt a peasant of a surly untoward temper, who frequently beat and abused his wife, insomuch that the neighbours were sometimes obliged, by her outcries, to interpose, in order to prevent farther mischief. Being at length weary of living with one whom he always hated, he re- solved to get rid of her. He pretended to be recon- ciled, altered his behaviour, and on holidays invited her to walk out with him in the fields for pleasure and recreation. One summer evening, after a very hot day, he carried her to cool and repose herself on the borders of a spring, in a place very shady and soli- ■ tary. He pretended to be very thirsty. The clear- ness of the water tempted them to drink. He laid himself down all along upon his belly, and swilled large draughts of it, highly commending the sweetness of the water, and urging her to refresh herself in like manner. She believed him, and followed his exam- ple. As soon as he saw her in that posture, he threw himself upon her, and plunged her head into the water, in order to drown her. She struggled hard for her life, but could not have prevailed, but for the assis- tance of a dog, who used to follow, and was fond of her r and never left her. He immediately flew at the hus- band, and seized him by the throat, made hini let go his hold, and saved the life of his mistress. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 129 ARTIFICES OF ANIMALS OF THE CHASE. The artifices practised by animals proceed from se- veral motives, many of which are purely instinctive, and others are acquired by experience and imitation. Their arts in general are called forth and exerted by three great and important causes; the love of life, the desire of multiplying and continuing the species, and that strong attachment which every animal has to its offspring. These are the sources from which all the movements, all the dexterity, and all the sagacity of animals originate; the principle of self-preservation is instinctive, and strongly impressed upon the minds of all animated beings; it gives rise to innumerable arts of attack and defence, and not unfrequently to sur- prising exertions of sagacity and genius. The same re- mark is applicable to the desire of multiplication, and to parental affection. Upon this subject we shall, as usual, give some ex- amples of animal artifice, which may both amuse and inform some readers. When a bear or other rapacious animal attacks cat- tle, they instantly join, and form a phalanx for mutual defence; in the same circumstances, horses rank up in lines, and beat off the enemy with their beels. Poniop- pidan tells us, that " the small Norwegian horses, when attacked by bears, instead of striking with their hind legs, rear, and by quick and regulated strokes with their fore feet, either kill the enemy, or oblige him to retire ; this curious and generally successful defence, is fre- quently performed in the woods, while a traveller is seated on the horse's back. It has often been re- marked, that troops of wild horses, when sleeping ei- ther in plains, or in the forest, have always one of their G 5 ISO SPORTING ANECDOTES. number awake, who acts as centinel, and gives notice of any impending danger." Margraaf nforms us, that " the monkeys in Brazil while they are sleeping on the trees, have uniformly a -centinel, to warn them of the approach of the tyger, or other rapacious animals, and that if ever this centinel is found sleeping, his companions instantly tear him in pieces for his neglect of duty. For the same pur- pose, when a troop of monkies are committing depre- dations on the fruits of a garden, a centinel is placed on an eminence, who, when any person appears, makes a certain chattering noise, which the rest understand to be a s : gnal for retreat, and immediately fly off, and make their escape/' The deer kind are remarkable for the arts they em- ploy in order to deceive the dogs ; with this view, the stag often returns twiceor thrice upon his former steps : he endeavours to raise hinds or younger stags to follovy him, and to draw off the dogs from the immediate ob- ject of their pursuit. If he succeeds in this attempt, he then flies off with double speed, or springs off at a side, and lies down on his belly to conceal himself. When in this situation, if by any means his foot is re- covered by the dogs, they pursue him with more ad- vantage, because he is now considerably fatigued ; their ardour increases in proportion to his feebleness, and the scent becomes stronger as he grows warm. From these circumstances the dogs augment their cries and their speed, and though the stag employs more arts of escape than formerly, as his swiftness diminish- es, his doublings and artifices become gradually less ef- fectual : no other resource is now left him but to fly from the earth which he treads, and go into the water. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 131 to cut off the scent from the dogs, when the huntsmen again endeavour to put them on the track of his foot. After taking to the water, the stag is so much exhaust- ed, as to be incapable of running much further, and is soon at bay, or in other words, turns and defends him- self against the hounds : in this situation he often wounds the dogs, and even the huntsmen, by blows with his horns, till one of them cuts his hams to make make him fall, and then puts a period to his life. The fallow deer is more delicate, less savage, and ap- proaches nearer to the domestic state than the stag. The male, during the rutting season, makes a bellow- ing noise, but with a low and interrupted voice ; they are not so furious as the stag; they never depart from their own country in quest of females, but they brave- ly right for the possession of their mistresses ; they associate in herds, which generally keep together. When great numbers are assembled in one park, they commonly form themselves into two distinct troops, which soon become hostile, because they are both am- bitious of possessing the same part of the inclosure; each of these troops has its own chief or leader, who always marches foremost, and he is uniformly the old- est and the strongest of the flock ; the others follow him, and the whole draw up in order of battle to force the other troop, who observe the same conduct from the best pasture. The regularity with which those combats are conducted is singular ; they make regular ■attacks, fight with courage, and never think themselves vanquished by one check, for the battle is daily renew- ed till the weaker are completely defeated, and obliged to remain in the worst pasture. They love elevated and hilly countries. When hunted, they run not strait g 6 132 SPORTING ANECDOTES. out like (he stag, but double and endeavour to conceal themselves from the dogs by various artifices, and by substituting other animals in their place. When fa- tigued and heated, however, they take the water, but never attempt to cross such large rivers as the stag ; thus between the chace of the fallow deer and of the stag there is no material difference ; their sagacity and instincts, their shifts and doublings, are the same, on- ly they are more frequently practised by the fallow deer, as he runs not so far before the dogs, and is less enterprising; he has oftener occasion to change, to substitute another in his place, to double, return upon • his former tracks, &c. which renders the hunting of the fallow deer more subject to inconveniences than that of the stag. The roe deer is inferior to the stag and fallow deer, both in strength and stature, but he is endowed with more strength and gracefulness, courage, and vivacity ; his eyes are more brilliant and animated, his limbs are more nimble, his movements are quicker, and he bounds with equal vigour and agility : he is likewise more crafty, conceals himself with greater address, and derives superior advantages from his instincts, though he leaves behind him a stronger scent than the stag, which increases the ardor of the dogs. He knows how to evade their pursuit by the rapidity with which he commences his flight, and b\. his numerous doublings, lie delays not his art of defence till his strength begins to fail him ; for he no sooner perceives that the first efforts of a rapid flight have been unsuccessful, than he repeatedly returns upon his former steps, and after confounding by those opposite motions the direction he has taken, after mixing the present with the past ema- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 133 nations of the body, he by a great bound rises from the earth, and retiring to a side, lies down flat on his bel- ly ; in this immoveable situation, he often allows the whole pack of his deceived enemies to pass very near him. PEROCIOUS SCOTCH BULL. One Thomas White, a butcher, in the city of Edin- burgh, had lately a very extraordinary escape : — having gone in along with one of his companions, to drive some bullocks out of Provost Stewart's park, the bullocks, after being driven up to the gate, turned while one of the lads was employed in opening the gate. White, when the animals turned, chased them to the foot of the park, where there was a bull well known to be very ferocious, and which immediately pursued him. He ran till he was sensible that he was losing breath, and that the animal was gaining upon him : he threw himself flat upon his back, when the creature coming up, transfixed him with one stroke of its horn, which passed through the belly, close to the borders of the chest, the tip of the horn coming out through the lower part of the chest, so that both chest and belly were opened, and the horn had such a hold upon the lower ribs, as to turn him over before it slipt its hold. — He was saved from a second stroke, which would have surely been fatal, by his dog running at the bull, and catching it by the heel, when the bull ran round the park, roaring very furiously, the dog, which was of the small shepherd kind, still keeping its hold. White's companion coming down at this time, carried him away upon his shoulders, and laid him in a safe place behind 134 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the railing of the park : and the bull, after having shook off the dog, returned to the place where he had left the man, after having gored him, snuffing at the blood, and tearing up the grouud with his hoofs. White was carried on men's shoulders to the house of a surgeon, who put back a part of the bowels which protruded at one of the wounds, and cut off, as is re- ported, a part of the omentum. — He was conveyed to the hospital, where, after keeping his bed eight or tea days, he made a perfect recovery ! TOM ROBERTS, THE FAMOUS KIHMOND CRIPPLE. Thomas Roberts was born of indigent, parents, at Xirmond, in Lincolnshire, where he died on the l6th of May, 1798, aged eighty-five. This extraordinary person was, if we may so term it, a lusus natures ; he was perfect to his elbows and knees, but without either arms or legs ; above one of his elbows was a short bony substance, like the joint of a thumb, which had some muscular motion, and was of considerable use to him. Nature compensated for his want of limbs, by giving him a strong understanding, and bodily health and spirits. When Sir George Barlow, the last baro- net of that ancient family, rented of Edmund Turnor, Esq. the manor and lordship of Kirmond, he kept a pack of hare-hounds. Tom was for many years em- ployed as his huntsman, and used to ride down the hills, which are remarkably steep, with singular courage and dexterity. His turn for horses was so great, that, on leaving the service of Sir George Bar- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 155 Icav, he became a farrier of considerable reputation, and indulging in his propensity to liquor, seldom came home sober from the neighbouring markets : he, how- ever, required no other assistance from the parish (till he became infirm) than an habitation, and the keeping of a horse and cow. What is, perhaps, more remarka- ble, he married three wives ! By the first, who was an elderly woman, he had no children; but by the second he left two sons, now in good situations as farmers' servants, who attended the funeral of their father, and buried him in a decent manner. THE DUTCH BARON. The gentlemen of the green cloth were put out of queuey by a hero of a hazard-table imported from the continent, a few years ago, by one of the squad, who, while he pretended to be playing the losing game, was shrewdly suspected of going snacks in all that rolls into the pocket. • The Dutch Baron was introduced by his friend who happened to have known him at Hamburgh. He played in a crowd of billiard amateurs and professors, many of whom were rich, and lost about one hundred and fifty guineas with the utmost sang-froid. Upon his retiring, his friend told the company he was a fine pigeon, a Dutch Baron, who had emigrated from Hol- land with immense property, and who would as readily lose ten thousand pounds as ten guineas. Some ask- ed, " U it the Gala Mope?" "No, (replied others) he is in hands that will not let him slip a-while." " Is k the Princess Amelia's house Hope?" asked another. 136 SPORTING ANECDOTES. " Who is he ? Who is he ?" was eagerly enquired — " A Dutch Baron, as rich as a Jew," was answered in a whisper. No Batavian laid out an hundred and fifty guineas so well as the Dutch Baron. The whole corps of .riflemen flocked around him, like a swarm of fish at a piece of bread. But little P. well known at Bath, who thought he best knew how to make his market, like a man of business, applied to the baron's friend to have the first plucking. The friend, as a great favour, en- gaged to use his influence; little P. was at the billiard- table the first man in the morning, that he might se- cure the play in his own hands ; the baron came — to it they went; little P. kept back his play; the Dutch Baron played but poorly — fair strokes he often missed; but whenever he was at an important point, he won, as if by accident. On they went — Hambletonian and Diamond. Little P. was afraid of frightening the ba- ron, by disclosing the extent of his play ; the baron played so as to persuade every one he knew little of the game. The contest was, who should play worst at in- different periods, and who, without seeming to play well, should play best at important points — the Baron won on all great occasions, till little P. had lost about 300/. But the baron managed so well, that no one thought he could play at all ; and although little P. was sickened, yet the bait of 150 guineas found plenty of customers. Some of them the greatest adepts in the kingdom, gave the baron at starting three points in the game ; but the baron's accidental good play was so superior, whenever a great stake was down, he at last gave three points to those who had given him three points,, and still beat them— by accident. And before SPORTING ANECDOTES, 137 the billiard knowing ones at Bath would stop, the ba- ron had won nearly ten thousand pounds, with which he made a bow, and came to London. But this Dutch Nobleman's fame travelled almost as fast as himself, and he was found out ; not, however, till he had sweated some of the most knowing gentle- men of the queue. He concealed his play so well, that no one could form an idea of its extent. To the best billiard-play- ers he gave points, and always won on important occa- sions. He seemed to be a very conjuror, command- ing the balls to roll as he pleased ; and there was no- thing to be named, that it is not supposed he could accomplish. But the most entertaining part of his story is the stile of reprobation iu which the professors of the queue spoke of his concealment of his play. They execrated him as guilty of nothing short of cheating ; they, whose daily practice it was to conceal their play, and angle on the gudgeons with whom they engaged — they bit- terly reviled the Dutch Baron for retorting their own artifice, and entrapping them in their own way. And who was the Dutch Baron ? asks every one who hears of his achievements. In Hamburgh, he was the marker at a billiard table! THE DOG AND THE PYEMAN. Mr. Smellie relates a curious anecdote of a dog, who at this time belongs to a grocer in Edinburgh ; it has for some time and amused astonished the people in that neighbourhood. A man who goes through the streets ringing a bell and selling penny pies, happened 138 SPORTING ANECDOTES. one day to treat this dog with a pye. The next time he heard the pyeman's bell, he ran to him with impe- tuosity, seized him by the coat, and would not suffer him to pass. The pyeman, who understood what the animal wanted, shewed him a penny, and pointed to his master, who stood at the street-door, and saw what was going on. The dog immediately supplicated his master by many humble gestures and looks. The mas- ter put a penny into the dog's mouth, which he in- stantly delivered to the pyeman, and received his pye. This traffic between the pyeman and the grocer's dog has been daily practised for months past, and still con- lini es. CHARACTER OF A SIBERIAN DOG. Tins animal, which is not uncommon in any of the climates about the Arctic Circle, is used in Kstutscbttt- ka for drawing sledges over the frozen snow. These sledges generally carry only a single person, who sits sideways. The number of dogs usually employed is five; four of them yoked two and two, and the other acting as leader. The reins are fastened, not fo the head, but to the collar ; and the driver has, therefore, to depend principally on their obedience to his voice. Great care and attention are consequently necessary in training the leader, which, if he is steady and docile, becomes very valuable, the sum of forty roubles (or ten pounds) being no uncommon price for one of them. The cry of tagtag, tagtag, turns him to the right, and kovgha, kougha, to the left: the intelligent animal immediately understands the words, and gives to the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 139 rest the example of obedience : ah y ha, stops them, and ha, makes them set off. The charioteer carries in his hand a crooked-stick, which answers the purpose both of whip and reins, iron-rings are suspended atone end of this stick, both by way of ornament, and to encourage the dogs by their noise, for they are frequently jingled for that purpose. It the dogs are well trained, it is not necessary for the rider to exercise his voice; if he strikes the ice with his stick, they will go to the left ; if he strikes the legs of the sledge, they will go to the right ; and when he wishes them to stop, he has only to place the stick be- tween the snow and the front of ihe sledge. When they are inattentive to their duty, the charioteer often chas- tises them, by throwing it at them. The dexterity of the riders, in picking this stick up again is very remark- able, and is the most difficult manoeuvre in this exer- cise : nor is it, indeed, surprising that they should be skilful in a practice in which they are so materially interested ; for, the moment the dogs find that the driver has lost his stick, unless the leader is both steady and resolute, they set off at full speed, and never stop till either their strength is exhausted, or till the carriage is overturned and dashed to pieces, or hurried down a precipice, when all are buried in the snow. The manner in which they are generally treated seems but ill calculated for securing their attachment. During the winter they are fed sparingly with putrid fish, and in summer are turned loose, to shift for them- selves, till the return of the severe, season renders it necessary to the master's interest that they should be taken again into custody, and brought once more to 140 SPORTING ANECDOTES. their state of toil and slavery. When yoking to the sledge, they utter the most dismal howlings; but, when every thing is prepared, a kind of cheerful yelp- ing succeeds, which ceases the instant they begin their journey. These animals have been known to perform, in three days and a half, a journey of near two hundred and seventy miles. And scarcely are horses more useful to Europeans, than these dogs are to the inhabitants of the frozen aud cheerless regions of the north. When, during the most severe storm, their master cannot see the path, nor even keep his eyes open ; chey very sel- dom miss their way : and whenever they do this, they go from one side to the other till, by their smell, they regain it; and when in the midst of a long journey, as it often happens, it is found absolutely impossible to travel any farther, the dogs, lying round their master, will keep him warm, and defend him from all danger. They also foretel an approaching storm, by stopping and scraping the snow with their feet: in which case it is always advisable, without delay, to look out for some village, or other place of safety. THE MASTIFF*. This description of dog is peculiar to England, where they are principally of use as watch-dogs; a duty which they discharge not only with great fidelity, but frequently with considerable judgment. Some of them will suffer a stranger to come into the yard they are appointed to guard, and will go peaceably along with him through every part of it, so long as they con- tinue to touch nothing; but the moment he' attempts SPORTING ANECDOTES. 141 to touch any of the goods, or endeavours to leave the place, the animal informs him by gentle growling, or, if that is ineffectual, by harsher means, that he must neither do mischief nor go away, and seldom uses vio- lence unless resisted ; even in this case he will some- times seize the person, throw him down, and hold him there for hours, or until relieved, without biting him. A most extraordinary instance of memory in a mas- tiff is related by M. D'Obsonville. This dog, which he had brought up in India, from two months old, ac- companied himself and a friend from Pondicherry to Benglour, a distance of more than three hundred leegues. " Our journey (he says) occupied near three weeks, and we had to traverse plains and moun- tains, and to ford rivers, and go along several bye- paths, and the animal, which had certainly never been in that country before, lost us at Benglour, and imme- diately returned to Pondicherry. lie went directly to the house of M. Beylier, then commandant of artil- lery, my friend, and with whom I had generally lived. Now the difficulty, is, not so much to know how the dog subsisted on the road, for he was very strong, and able to procure himself food ; but how he should so well have found his way, after an interval of more than a month. This was an effort of memory greatly su- perior to that which the human race is capable of ex- erting." The mastiff' is extremely bold and courageous. Stow relates an instance of a contest between three of them and a lion, in the presence of King James the First. One of the dogs being put into the den, was soon disa- bled by the lion, which took him by the head and neck, and dragged him about : another dog was then 142 SPORTING ANECDOTES. let loose, and served in the same manner : but the third being put in, immediately seized the lion by the lip, and held him for a considerable time: till, being se- verely torn by his claws, the dog was obliged to quit Lis hold ; and the lion, greatly exhausted in the con- flict, refused to renew the engagement, but, taking a sudden leap over the dogs, fled into the interior part of his den. Two of the dogs soon died of their wounds: the last survived, and was taken great care of by the king's son ; who said—" He that had fought with the king of beasts should never after fight with any inferi- or creature." This animal, conscious of his superior strength, has been known to chastise, with great propriety, the im- pertinence of an inferior: — a large dog of this kind, belonging to the late M. Ridley, Esq. of Heaton, near Newcastle, being frequently molested by a mongrel and teazed by its continual barking, at last took it up in his mouth by his back and with great composure dropped it over the quay into the river, without doing any farther injury to an enemy so much beneath his no- tice. BROUGHTON THE BRUiSER. John Broughton served an apprenticeship to a waterman, and when out of his time plied at Hunger- ford-stairs, in which situation his strength and agility was long unknown. Having a difference one day with a brother of the oar, it was resolved that the point should be decided by a fight, when it was soon found that in powers of body, and agility of arms, he had not only an eminent SPORTING ANECDOTES. 143 superiority over his antagonist, but that he evinced 2. genius in the art, offensive and defensive, far superior to any other of his fraternity. Elated by the praises he received on this occasion, and convinced, by the battered appearance of the ene- my, of his own strength and judgment, he sold his boat, and commenced professed boxer, in which occupation he was for several years patronized by many of the first characters in the country, and particularly by William Duke of Cumberland, and the late Marquis of Gran- by, who was himself an amateur in the art of boxin*. Supported by this patronage, he instituted a pugilis- tic academy in Tottenham-court-road, where his pu- pils, who felt a thirst after fame, had opportunities of bruising each others bodies, and knocking out each others teeth and eyes, in the presence of spectators, with whom were mixed many of the first characters in the nation. In this illustrious situation, the mighty hero of the theatre often astonished his scholars, the gentry, nobi- lity, and the public, by a display of his pre-eminence; and was always triumphant till his unfortunate trial of skill with the notorious Slack: in which, to adopt the language of his seminary, he gave in, but not till both his day-lights were sewed up, by a blow exactly over his nose. After this lamentable failure, which, however, con- tributed more to the temporary mortification, than red disgrace of Broughton, he retired from the public stage into private life, subsisting very comfortably up- on the earnings of his hands, and his situation as one of the yeomen of the guard. He attended the duke of Cumberland in one of his 144 SPORTING ANECDOTES. military expeditions to the continent, where, on being shewn a foreign regiment of terrific appearance, the duke asked him if he thought he could beat any of the men who composed it. Upon which Broughion an- swered — " Yes, please your royal highness, the whole .corps, with a breakfast between every battle." He died on the 8th of January, 1789, at his house at Walcot Place, Lambeth, in the 85th year of his age. It is universally acknowledged, by amateurs in the art, that Broughton carried both the theory and prac- tice of it to the highest point of perfection ; and that even Slack, his conqueror, was by no means equal to him in abilities. JOHNSON AND HIS BLACK HORSE. This celebrated horseman is well remembered by many persons now alive in this country. Johnson being at Derby in one of his excursions, married the daughter of Alderman Howe, who then kept one of the principal inns; and succeeded him in his business. He conducted himself so as to be well esteemed by the gentlemen of the county ; and his black horse, which he still kept, was one of the favourites of the Vernon Hunt, then probably the first in England. A feat per- formed by him and his horse may, perhaps, be worth remembering. The hunt were taking leave of Lord Vernon, one day, by the side of the Ha! Ha! when his lordship told Johnson, it was extraordinary that he never had been tempted, in the course of any day, to do more, as a horseman, than all the members of the hunt could 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 145 d 0# — " Well, my lord, (said he) what would you wish me to do ?"— 1 am not to choose/' (said his lordship) but surely you can do something more than others."— " I will go over that Ha ! Ha ! my lord.—" So can others, myself for one."—" But I, my lord, (said he) will go over it in a way in which your lordship can- not/' He rode his black horse up to the brink, and, as he stopped, laid his hands upon the pommel of the saddle, and sprung from that posture clear over the Ha ! Ha! — The hunt applauded, but the performance was not over. He was something shook by the fall, and did not immediately rise; the horse looked at him at- tentively all the while, and, when he had got out of the way, followed him over, ran up to him, and stood by his side till he mounted. FATAL RENCONTRE. In Sandpit Wood, in the parish of Terlingin Essex, a pack of fox-hounds, very early in the season of 1782, had just unkennelled, and the hares, as well as foxes, of which there were plenty in the cover, were many of them disturbed. In one of the paths a hare met and ran against a terrier who was hastening to the cry, with such velocity, that both animals were ap- parently killed ; the dog with some difficulty was re- covered but the hare's skull was fractured to pieces. THE CLERICAL HUNTSMAN. The late R.ev. Mr. L , of Rutlandshire, was so attached to the sport of fox-hunting, that he seldom H 146 SPORTING ANFXDOTES. performed divine service on the week days without his boots, though the church was not twenty yards from his residence. Should the musical echo of the huntsman's halloo reach his ear before the service was concluded (which had frequently happened) instantly the surplice was thrown off, the book shut, and, sans cere?nonie i his pious congregation were left to the clerk, who very cordially used to tell them to depart, that he might shut the door, and go about his business. CHARACTERISTIC SKETCH. Mr. C-r-t-r, a gentleman not many years ago of a respectable patrimonial estate, in the neighbourhood of Witney, in Oxfordshire, was, in the complete accept- ation of the term, a fox-hunter. He could boast a kennel of the finest hounds in that part of the country, and was in possession of a stud of mettled coursers, to whom, as to their master, neither hedge nor ditch, nor five barred gate, nor river, nor precipice, had appear- ance formidable enough to interrupt the sport, or damp the ardour of the pursuit. In his dress, his manners, and his conversation, the huntsman and the whipper-in were the evident models of his imitation. Over the hilarity of the briskly flowing bowl, in the intercourses of friendship, and even in the endear- ments of domestic life, the language of the chace was never forgotten ; in short, throughout the surrounding country, fox-hunting C-r-t-r was the epithet by which he was universally known, and with indisputable pro- priety distinguished. Even his nearest relatives were esteemed only in proportion to their attachment to the chace. Those who wished for his affections had no SPORTING ANECDOTES. 147 hopes of success, but by leaping into them over a five- barred gate, and to be sent to hell with a tantivy was the inevitable consequence of standing in awe of broken limbs, or a dislocated neck. It happened one day, while this heroic votary of Diana was endeavouring to leap a gate of unusual height, that the leg of his favourite hunter caught be- tween the upper bars, threw him on the other side, and tumbling with all his weight upon him, crushed and fractured one of his legs in so dreadful a mannei, as rendered vain all the healing efforts ofchirurgical skill, and left to the unhappy sufferer only the dreadful al- ternative of amputation or death. Mr. C-r-t-r was not long deliberating on his choice. Recollecting that he never should be able to keep the saddle at a fox-chase with a wooden leg, he swore that he came into the world with two legs, and with two he would go out of it. In this resolution he obsti- nately persevered ; and after languishing some time (if to a man of his resolution and violent temper the term languishing can ever be applied), his fancy still running on the darling pleasures of the chace, he went out of the world as he would have ended a fox-hunt, with the exulting shout of the death halloo; having previously bequeathed his estate to his favourite ne- phew, for no other reason than because he had used, while a boy, to follow him through the dangers and delights of the chase ; excluding entirely all his other numerous relations who were more careful of their limbs; leaving to his wife only an annuity of two hun- dred pounds, because she could not leap over a rive- barred gate. H 2 148 SPORTING ANECDOTES. A MONKEY CURED OF HUNTING. The late Duke of Richmond had some hunters in Sussex. A monkey who was kept in the same stable, was remarkably fond of riding the horses, skipping from one to the other, and teazing the poor animals inces- santly. The groom made a complaint to the Duke, who immediately formed a plan to remedy the evil. " If he is fond of riding (replied his Grace), we'll en- deavour to give him enough of it :" and accordingly provided a complete jockey dress for the monkey. The next time the hounds were out, Jackoo in his uniform was strapped to one of his best hunters. The view hal- loo being given, away they went through thick and thin; the horse carrying so light a weight, presently left al) the company behind. Some of the party, pass- ing by a farm-house, enquired of a countryman whe- ther he had seen the fox. " Ay zure (said the man), he is gone over yon fallow." " And was there any one up with him ?" Ay zure (said John), there be a lit- tle man, in a yellow jacket, just gone by, riding as tho' the devil be in un. I hope from my heart the young gentleman mayn't meet with a fall, for he rides most monstrous hard." His experiment had the desired ef- fect. Jackoo was sufficiently chafed by his exercise to make him dislike the sight of a stable ever after- wards. _ SPORTING ANECDOTES. 149 THE SUCCESSFUL SPORTSMAN. Some gentlemen being out shooting, one of the company who was but an indifferent shot, after making several unsuccessful attempts to kill game by firing at random, lodged two pellets in the cheek of a gentle- man of the party ; but when the marksman came up lo apologize, and to express his sorrow : " My dear sir (said the other), I give you joy in your improvement, I knew you would hit something by and bye/' ~ A HUMOItOUS REVENGE. A Gentleman, somewhat too distinguished for scolding his huntsman in the field, was so incensed once, at a reply the fellow made, that he turned him off instantly on the spot. The huntsman, after delivering up bis horse, got into a rabbit cart, and away he went. The next morning, when the gentleman was going out, and had got to the end of the town with his hounds, the voice of his huntsman saluted his ear, who began hallooing to the dogs till not one of them would leave the tree where the man had perched him- self. What was to be done ? The gentleman wished to hunt, but there was no hunting without- dogs, and there was no stopping the man's mouth; so that he was at length compelled to make the best of a bad bargain, and take the fellow down from the tree into his service again. THE BITER BIT. A Gentleman of considerable fortune in the neighr bourhood of Whitby, and who was tenacious of the h 3. 150 SPORTING ANECDOTES. game upon his manor, once found an unqualified per- son shooting, and not only seized his gun, but carried him before a magistrate, who of course levied the for- feiture, which was paid. He then assured the justice, he did not complain of the exaction of the penalty, because he knew it was conformable to the law; but as the abuse lavished upon him by his prosecutor had been accompanied with a multiplicity of horrid oaths, he considered it as his bounden duty to become his accuser in turn. Having therefore given evidence against him, in form, for swearing forty oaths, the ma- gistrate was, in consequence of the deposition, una- voidably obliged to fine the gentleman ten pounds, half of which went to the poor of the parish, and the other half to the informer. THE VENAL COURTIER. Nothing could equal the degraded situation to which human nature was reduced under the ancien regime of France. The following instance of courtly and parasitical servility will exemplify the fact. The minister Machiavel, lost a little female greyhound, a great favorite. Bouret, who possessed the spirit of in- trigue in the supremest degree, and sighed as much as Mr. Beaufoy to be noticed by the Minister, considered this a most favourable opportunity to ingratiate him- self with Machiavel. For this purpose, after much labour, he procured a greyhound critically like the one lost. This he brought home, and next dressed up a puppet with a black robe, such as that worn by the Comptroller-General : he never suffered this grey- hound to eat until it first creeped and fawned on the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 151 wooden Comptroller. When sufficiently trained, he led it to the house of Machiavel, and the moment the greyhound saw the Comptroller, she ran to him, leaped upon his neck, and licked his face, which made the minister imagine that it was the dog which he had lost. It is unnecessary to add, that a man capable of paying such unremitting attention to a dog, was well adapted to ingratiate himself, by every species of ca- nine servility, into the good graces of a Minister. A CHARACTERISTIC EPITAPH. Here lieth ready to start, in full hopes to save his distance, Timothy Tukf, formerly stud-groom to Sir Marmaduke Match'em. and late keeper of the Racing-Stables on Cerny Downs, but was&eaf out of the world, on the first of April last, by that invincible Rockingham*, Death. N. B. He lived and died an honest man. Here lies a groom, who longer life deserv'd, Whose course was strait, from which he never swerv'd ; Yet ere was quite complete his fiftieth round,* Grim Death, at Jack Cade,± brought him to the ground. This tyrant oft, to cross and jostlt tried, But ne'er, till now, could gain the whip-hand side. In youth he saw the high-bred cattle train'd, By gentle means and easiest trammels rein'd ; * A famous horse. t The Round, or King's Plate Course, at Newmarket, t A steep ascent ia that course, fatal to bad bottomed horses, H 4 15% SPORTING ANECDOTES. He taught them soon the ending-stand to gain, Swift as Camilla's o'er the velvet plain. Oft from the crack ones bear the prize away, And triumph boldly in the blaze of day : But of late years he used the fertile plough. To grace with yellow corn the naked brow, And her green turf, which they were wont to tread, Affords the trembling oats, with which they're fed. Oh ! may this sod, with thorny texture hound, Protect from horses hoofs the sacred ground ; .And may his colts and fillies* truly run Their beaten course+> and see a later sun ! SPORTING BV ACT OF PARLIAMENT. A DIALOGUE. Justice. What have you to alledge against the pri- soner ? Accuser. Please your worship's grace, I be come to prosecute him on the dog act. Prisoner. 'Tis a false charge — I never stole a dog in all my born days — and if any one should dare to say I did, I would tell him he is a gallows liar to his face. Accuser. I say you are one of the most notedest dog- stealers in England, and I can prove as how you stole my bitch. Prisoner. As to my stealing a few bitches now and then, I don't pretend to deny. It is better to pick up a little money in an honest employment, like that, than * His infant sons and daughters. f A straight course of four miles. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 153 to lounge about like an idle vagabond. There is no barm at all in stealing bitches. Justice. I believe fellow I shall convince you to the contrary. Prisoner. You must not pretend to teach me law better than I knows it. I was bred to the crown law, and served a regular clerkship to it among my bre« thren in the neighbourhood of Chick-lane. I think J could have made a figure if I had been called to the bar. Justice. Then you will shortly have an opportunity of shining in your proper sphere. Prisoner. I should have been hanged many sessions ago, if so be as how I had not been clever in turning and twining the Acts of Parliament. I have not stu- died law for nothing. Lord bless your dear worship's eyes, I have made the most karnedest judges going knock under me. When I came to explain and identi~ Jicate what law was, they hung down their ears, looked foolish, and had not a word to say for themselves. Justice. Have you not stole the man's bitch ? - Prisoner. I have. Justice. Then I shall convict you in the penalty of forty pounds. Prisoner, I have read the Act of Parliament, and defy you, or any other dealer in the peace, to hurt a hair of my head. You must not pretend to teach those that can teach you. I knows a thing or two, and if you don't mind what you are about, you may perhaps catch cold. Justice. If you threaten me, I shall commit you. v Prisoner. You had better commit fornication. Justice. Is not a bitch a dog ? h 5 154 SPORTING ANECDOTES, Prisoner. Is not your wife a justice of the peace? Your worship won't pretend now to say that a cow is a bull. Justice. I must insist upon it, that according to the true spirit of the statute, a dog and a bitch are exactly the same thing. Prisoner. I dare you to commit me on the statute of 10 G. 3.; the word bitch is not so much as men- tioned in it. I had the opinion of my brethren upon this gig, and bl-st me if 1 dont steal as many bitches as I come near, in spite of all the old women in the com- mission. Justice. If you call me an old woman again, I'll trounce you. Prisoner. Read that, and be convinced. Justice (after having read the Act). Discharge this fellow. I shall not venture to commit him. Prisoner. Lord help the poor law-makers ; they al- ways leave a hole for a man of geninsity to creep out of! If they have a mind to make their acts binding, they must consult one of us knowing ones, who are up to a thing or two, which is more than you are. — (Exeunt severally.) THE PARSON'S TENACITY. The late Lord D. being on a hunting party in the neighbourhood of Wentbridge, in Yorkshire, was in- vited by a Mr. S. of that village, to alight (as well as the rest of a numerous field ot sportsmen) from their horses, and take some refreshment. The invitation was of course accepted. Their repast being finished, Lord D. commended some brown bread highly, de« SPORTING ANECDOTES. 155 daring it to be the best he had ever eaten, and with Mr. S's permission he would take some home to his lady. No, my Lord, replied Mr. S. I beg your par- don for that ; eat as much as you will, but by G-d you shan't pocket any. DEAD GAME. An expert sportsman once sallied forth to commit dreadful havoc among the harmless tenants of the field. Being properly accoutred with a double-bar- rell'd gun, he had the good luck speedily to discover one, which he shot at, and instantly another presented itself to his view, at which he discharged the other bar- rel; highly elated with his skill, as they both appeared fixed to the spot, he. ran with the eagerness of a city fowler to secure his prize ; when lo ! he found them both dead and cold, having previously been snared, in which state they hung suspended ! A CURIOUS CASE. Mr. Morgan, who lives adjoining Lord Thurlow's, at Norwood, and is Lord of the Manor, keeps a num- ber of dogs, one of which is in the habit of sporting alone, and bringing home hares, or whatever he catches, to his master's house. A few weeks ago, the dog caught a hare on Syden- ham Common, and, as usual, was taking it home to his master. A publican, who was on horseback at the time, pursued the dog, and took the hare from him, in the presence of Mr. Morgan's sportsman, who demand- ed the hare j but the publican took it home, and said h 6 156 SPORTING ANECDOTES. he had as much right to the animal, as either the sportsman or the owner of the dog. The publican being discovered, he was obliged to appear at the Quarter Sessions, where he was fined five pounds for having the hare in his possession, and not having taken out a certificate, authorising him to kill game. He appeared, in preference to making an apology, which Mr. M. demanded. The fine he refused to pay, on the ground that he had not a hare in his possession, as the dog had, pre- viously to his taking it from him, either ate or sepa- rated the head from the body. This circumstance puzzled their worships, the justices; but Mr. Morgan politely relieved them from their embarrassment, by agreeing to bring the matter before the Court of King's Bench. CLERICAL FRIENDSHIP OF CANINE CON- TRACTION. A clergyman, in thecity, was possessed of a dog which had a strange custom of going every morning duiing the summer season to the New River, and plunging into the water, after which immersion, he very orderly trotted home again. This peculiarly at- tracted the attention of another clergyman, who, in his morning's walks, had frequently observed the fact with no small entertainment. Nor did he escape ihe no- tice of the clog ; for honest Rover, finding he had crept into some little favour with the parson, resolved as will appear, to cultivate a farther acquaintance, to which end he exerted that talent at adulation, which geuerally lies in a dog's tail. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 157 Upon one of these occasions, instead of making the best of his way home, he made bold to arrest our sable friend, by griping the skirt of his coat, rather sportive- ly, than with any vicious or sanguinary intention. But yet he seemed unwilling to let go his hold. The singularity of the circumstance, as may be imagined, awakened the curiosity of his prisoner, who wisely thinking it would be to no purpose to remonstrate, put himself under the conduct of his canine companion, and walked on, musing on the adventure and wonder- ing, at the same time, what would be the event. Through many bye-ways and windings did they tra- vel, 'till at length Rover released his captive, and made a set, which was saying, as plain as a dog could say, that their journey was at an end. So in fact it was; and now the last act of civility remained to be performed on the part of the dog, which he acquitted himself of (to his credit be it spoken) very handsome- ly, never losing sight of his charge until he had intro- duced him to his master; the denouement was not in- consistent with the whole tenor of the dog's deport- ment, the clergymen having thus contracted an inti- macy and ever afterwards lived in habits of friend- ship. ANECDOTE OF THE P OF W . His Royal Highness was many years resident at Clifd^n- House, in the county of Bucks; and being very fond of shooting, he gave orders for breeding a great number of pheasants and partridges, that when they came to proper maturity they might be liberated, on purpose to afford his Royal Highness amusement in 2 158 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the shooting season : by which means the neighbour- ing woods and fields were most plentifully stored with game. It happened that a clergyman, whose name was Bracegirdle, resided in the neighbourhood with a large family, upon a small curacy, and being an excellent shot, thought there was no harm in lessening the game, towards the support of himself and his family: the Prince being apprised of it, sent an express command to him not to destroy the game, for that he would, in due time, consider him and his family. The mandate was punctually obeyed at that tin*?, the parson laid by his gun, and every thing seemingly promised no further encroachment. The ensuing season, his Royal Highness being out on a shooting party in the neighbourhood, heard the report of a gun at no great distance from him ; orders were immediately given to find out the party, and bring them before his Royal Highness : who should ap- proach but parson Bracegirdle, and having approached his royal highness, the Prince (with his usual good na- ture) asked him what diversion he had met with; to which he replied, some little ; but pray (said the Prince) what have you got in your hawking bag ? let us see the contents. The parson then drew out a fine cock phea- sant aud two brace of partridges. Very fine (said the Prince); but did I not command you to forbear de- stroying the game? The parson, very sensible of the breach he had been guilty of, most humbly besought his Royal Highness' s lorgiveness, alledging, that the beauty of the morning invited him abroad, and hap- pening to take the gun along with him, t h e creature (pointing to the game) got up beiuie me, and flesh SPORTING ANECDOTES. 15Q and blood could not forbear. The Prince was so pleased with his apology, that he bid him rise up and attend him; the conversation then turned on the art of shooting flying, which at that time his Royal High- ness was rather defective in: but by Mr. Bracegirdle's constant attendance on the Prince in all his shooting excursions, he became a tolerable good shot ; and in remembrance of the promise he made him, obtained for him the living of Taplow, then worth two hundred pounds a year. SPORTING ARDOUR. The late Duke of Grafton, when hunting, was thrown into a ditch; at the same time a young curate, calling out " Lie still my Lord/' leaped over him, and pursued his sport. Such an apparent want of feeling, we may presume, was properly resented. No such thing : on being helped out by his attendants, his Grace said, " that man shall have the first good living that falls to my disposal; had he stopped to have taken care of me, I never would have given him any thing:" being delighted with an ardour similar to his own, or with a spirit that would not sloop to flatter. SPIRIT OF A GREYHOUND. One of this species of dogs having run a hare ex- tremely hard, and turned her at least a dozen times, killed her by himself; but was so exhausted, thai he lay down panting by her side, seemingly unable to rise. Two countrymen, perceiving the situation of the dog, and the master not coming up, hoped to secure the l60 SPORTING ANECDOTES. prize; but upon going to seize it, the greyhound sprung up, took the hare in his mouth, and run with it to his master, the fellows pursuing with stones and sticks. When he met his master, he laid down the hare at his feet and immediately turned round and flew at the men, but was so enervated, that he dropped down as if dead: by proper attention, however, he was re- stored, and lived long a faithful servant to his master. THE ROYAL CONVERT. Alonzo the Fourth, surnamed The Brave, ascended the throne of Portugal in the vigour of his age. The pleasures of the chace engrossed his whole attention ; his confidants and favorites encouraged, and allured him to it; his time was spent in the forest, while the affairs of government were neglected, or executed by those whose interest it was to keep their sovereign in ignorance. His presence at last being essential at Lisbon, he entered the council with all the impetuosity and fervor of a juvenile sportsman, and, with great familiarity and gaiety, entertained his nobles with the history of a whole month spent in hunting, fishing, and shooting. When he had finished his narrative, a no- bleman of the first rank rose up : — " Courts and camps (said he), were allowed for kings, not woods and de- sarts ; even the affairs of private men suffer when re- creation is preferred to business; but when the phan- tasies of pleasure engross the thoughts of a king, a whole nation is consigned to ruin. We came here for other purposes than to hear the exploits of a chace ; exploits which are only intelligible to grooms, to fal- coners, and such people j if your majesty will attend SNORTING ANECDOTES. l6l to the wants and remove the grievances of your people, you will find them obedient subjects ; if not " The king, starting with rage, interrupted him : — " If not, what?" — " If not," resumed the nobleman, in a firm and manly tone, " they will look for auother and a better king !" Alonzo, in the highest transport of passion, expressed his resentment, and hastened out of the room, in a little time, however, he returned calm and reconciled. " I perceive (said he) the truth of what you say ; he who will not execute the duties of a king, cannot long have good subjects. Remember, from this day forward, I am no longer Alonzo the sportsman, but Alonzo, king of Portugal." His majesty kept his resolve with the most rigid ob- servance, and became, as a warrior and a politician, the greatest of the Portuguese monarch?. PLACE HUNTING AND TICKET HUNTING. It frequently happens, that we use the same means to attain ends that are very dissimilar. This was the case with a gentleman who had never been observed with the king's stag-hounds, in the course of the day, but who, nevertheless, applied (after the stag was taken) for a qualification ticket, to which Johnson, the huntsman, conscientiously objected, upon his " not having been present at the taking of the deer." With some degree of concern, he replied, " he considered himself entitled to it, as he had followed the king all day." George Gorden (one of the yeoman-prickers, or assistant-huntsmen) instantly replied, " If you hunt for a place, sir, you may follow the king; but, by G — d, if you hunt for a ticket you must follow me!" 162 SPORTING ANECDOTES. This is a fact not to be controverted, as George is un- doubtedly one of the best riders in the field. THE SEA-HORSE. A captain of a West-Indiaman wished to purchase a horse ; in consequence he applied to a well-known character, who sold him one. After the purchase had been made, the captain observed—" Well, now the horse is mine, pray tell me candidly whether he has any faults, and what they are. " What do you mean to do with him, replied the other?" " Why to take him to sea" said the Captain, to the West Indies." 11 Then I will be candid (replied the dealer), he may go very well at sea, but on land he cannot go at all, or I would not have sold him." THE SPORTING REPRIEVE. Man, and his inferiors, the brute creation, are alike subject to the vicissitudes of life ; and the same erratic course of events, which sometimes lead to the prema- ture destruction of a human being, may likewise pro- duce the too early sacrifice of a quadruped, unless saved by the concurrence of accident. Of the truth of this assertion, the following fact is illustrative. A very handsome tame fox escaped from the receptacle in Edgware Road: hand-bills, with a guinea re- ward for his recovery, were circulated on the following morning, but no information whatever could be ob- tained for ten days after, when a hay-salesman riding into the yard, and enquiry being made of him, he re- membered to have heard that a fox had been caught SPORTING ANECDOTES. l63 by Mr. Nicholls, of Kingsbury, with greyhounds a few days before, and being taken unhurt, he was trans- ferred to Mr. Hill, of Lower-Hall, near Edgware, and was to be turned out at Stanmore on the following morning. As a moment was not to be lost, a messen- ger was instantly dispatched to Mr. Hill, who, re- ceiving him very politely, consented to relinquish the intended sport if it should prove the fox in question ; but whether the fox was magnified by the light of the candle, or the messenger's eyes diminished by the hos- pitality of the house, cannot be ascertained; though certain it is he declined the fox, saying, " he would take his oath the fox then before him was not the identical fox that was lost." Returning late at night with this account, and the owner of the (ok being too old a sportsman to believe a native fox could be found in a hedge-row within six miles of the metropolis, he dispatched one of his lads more particularly known to him, by five in the morning, who, arriving just as he was going to be bagged for his fatal destination, had some difficulty to obtain an interview, the previous messenger having most decisively declined the fox with the before-mentioned assertion ; but prevailing in his application, he was admitted, and whilst the standers- by stood aloof with fear, Reynard instantly submitted to the embraces of his oldfriend, and being by him car- 1 ried into the parlour for the amusement of the Ladies, and the no less curious feminities in the kitchen, was re- turned triumphant to his old home, where he afforded occasional sport in miniature for two brace of terriers > thus fully verifying the philosophic prediction of Mac- heath, that The wretch of to-day may be happy to-morrow. 164 SPORTING ANECDOTES. INTREPIDITY OF HENRY IV. The renowned Henry IV. King of France, experi- enced once an extraordinary hunting adventure. A bold renegado, who had been in the Spanish service, and called himself Capt. Michan, came to solicit em- ployment from Henry, when he was only King of Na- varre. The King was cautioned to beware of this de- serter, arriving from a country which could not but be suspected by every protestant. But the mind of Hen- ry was too full of honour to be capable of entertaining suspicions upon insufficient grounds, and he therefore paid no regard to this advice. A few days after, as he was hunting in the forest of Arras, being alone in a se- questered place, he perceived Michan advancing to- wards him, well mounted, with a brace of pistols at his saddle bow. On his approach, he said to him with a firm tone of voice, " Captain Michan alight; I have a mind to try if your horse be as good as you pretend." Michan instantly obeyed, and the king mounted : then taking out the pistols, he said to Michan, " Have you an intention to kill any one, Captain ? I am assured that you design me for your victim ; now your life is in my power, if I please to take it." He then dis- charged the two pistols in the air, and commanded Mi- chan to follow him. At first he attempted to justify himself; but thinking it the safest way to make bis escape, he set off two days after, and never again made his appearance. SPORTIN& ANECDOTES. 165 THE BITER BIT. During the second encampment which the En- glish forces made in Bojapore, in the East Indies, one of the officers had a horse stolen from him, but missing the road before he got clear of the tents, the thief was detected and brought back. The gentleman, highly pleased at recovering his horse, and much surprized at the dexterity of the fellow that carried him off, amidst seven or eight /fee* (grooms) sleeping around him, was more inclined to admire his address and expertness, than to punish him. Next morning his resentment having subsided, his curiosity rose in proportion : he therefore ordered the fellow to be brought before him, and demanded by what contrivance he had effected his design. The fel- low replied, he could not well tell his honor, but that if he pleased be would shew him. " Well then (said the officer), since you are so bad at description, we will see how you did it." Being arrived at the pickets, the fellow crept softly under :he horse's belly : " Now, sir (says he), pray take notice; this is the manner I crawled over the^ces ; the next thing was to loosen the ropes behind, which I did thus. I then clapped a hal- ter, observe, sir, if you please, over his neck thus/' 4< Vastly clever, by Jove, " exclaimed the officer, laugh* ing and rubbing his hands. " In this manner conti- nued the fellow), 1 jumped upon his back, and when once I am mounted, I give any one lea <> c tch -ne if they can." In saying which, he ga ,j h< rs i a kick, and though almost surroundei s, <\c. 166 SPORTING ANECDOTES. pushed him through the gaping croud, put him to his full speed, and carried him clean off. TONY BRUN'S SALT FISH. Tony Brun, an erratic comedian, with more am- bition than ability, was no less remarkable for his sinn gular simplicity, than extreme fondness for angling. When he was, member of the Liverpool Theatre, he laid one evening several lines in a stream near the town, in hopes of procuring an excellent dinner for the next day. In the course of the night, a theatrical wag, belonging to the same company went to the place, drew up his hooks, and on some of them fixed red her' rings, and on others sparrows, carefully placing them again in the foimer situation. Early in the morning Tony went with a friend to secure his expected prize, and drew up the red herrings; upon which he said to his companion, " Before God, here are herrings, and upon my faith ready pickled too. Proceeding further, he drew the sparrows on shore ; after examining them for some time very attentively, he exclaimed, " God' bless my soul, this is indeed very surprising! I don't wonder at catching the red herrings, because they were in their own element, but I really never before thought that birds lived in water; I should as soon have t; ted to have shot Jish in the air: but I will takettdre-and not be disappointed a second time, by laying my lines here for fresh ijish ." SPORTING ANECDOTES. 167 A SPORTING GENERAL'S DISPATCHES. I have the honour to inform yon, that I moved with the detachment you were pleased to entrust me with, consisting of three greyhounds, two setters, and four couple of harriers, at day-break of the 18th inst. The weather being rather unfavourable, prevented my leaching Hare Hill, tin" seven A. M. where I received information from Hector (whom I had previously dis- patched on a reconnoitring expedition), of the enemy lodged in a large thicket, strongly defended by enor- mous bushes, a large ditch in front, and other redoubt- able entrenchments. As I wished to dispose of the force you entrusted me with to the best advantage, I commanded the veteran Caesar to watch an entrance into the redoubt; Alexander to secure a retreat that seemed very eligible, down a narrow lane; while Nero, Clytus, and Brutus, formed a similar defence in an op- posite quarter ; the rest, headed by Old Ventidius, I placed as a corps de reserve to the whole, at the same time forming a very formidable circumvallation; and thus arranged, 1 judged an escape wholly impractica- ble. The enemy finding every retreat cut off by this more than trio of chexaux-de-frize, preserved a pro- found silence, so as to lessen my belief of the truth of Hector's report, whose age and length of services have rather obscured his sagacity ; I, however. iu firing some small shot, the rather from a motive to .^rrify, than any intent of carnage. This had an effect inimi- cal to my wishes, for some inhabitants in my rear, (consisting of a sow and nine pigs) left their dwelling with such velocity as (by a coup de main) to divert the attention of Brutus and Csesar, by which two retreats 1(58 SPORTING ANECDOTES. were vacated, the enemy escaped, and thereby a glo- rious opportunity was unfortunately lost. However, while I regret the failure of the manoeuvre, it is some consolation to find, that had it succeeded, the achieve- ment would have been nothing more than an ancient rabbit, the callousness and pusillanimity of which would have disgraced your table, and degraded my arms. After annihilating the pig-stye (which I should be sor- ry you would deem less reconcileable with humanity than the love of the chase), I detached Hector on an expedition towards the west of Reynard Wood, with a view of dislodging an old fox, who has long baffled the united efforts of horse, dog, and gun; and whose strength and cunning seem to increase with his success. In this I was also unsuccessful ; for his firm- ness is of that tenacious nature, as must render him in- vincible. In vain I tried every means human wisdom could suggest, in order to allure him to an open, and decisive attack, and at last compulsively called in my advanced and flanking parties, and marched them off the ground in gnod order, with no other acquisition than this lesson, that lenient, not compulsive mea- sures, seem most likely to facilitate the desired pur- pose. A combination of difficulties then succeeded ; a vio- lent shower, added to bad and almost inaccessible roads ; to increase which, poor Hector grew almost blind with fatigue and want of food, (it being then three and a half P. M.) Ceesar in a similar predica- ment, Nero with a thorn in his foot, Alexander and Clytus in strong contention for an almost Aeshless bone the former had accidentally picked up ; my am- munition nearly exhausted, and what was left rendered SPORTING ANECDOTES. 169 useless by the late heavy rains : to complete which, my Rosinante was become spiritless and tired, when luck- ily I espied a mansion, apparently a mile from my then situation, but on enquiry found there was no ether ac- cess to it than by a circumjacent road, at least three miles by computation. Niglu approaching, and my- self thus situated, I found a guide would be es- sential to my own and dogs preservation, therefore en- gaged a stranger, who was fortunately passing, the small expence of which, when weighed with the neces- sity, cannot but meet with your concurring acquies- cence. Thus assisted and supported, by an insupera- ble perseverance and magnanimity, we reached the de- sired abode about nine at night, after having surmount- ed innumerable impediments. Our sojourn in thete quarters will not be any longer than the return -of our ability to renew the chace, which, I have every reason "to hope, will be equally speedy, with an opportunity of restoring verdure to laurels that have been tinged only from the physical and untoward incidents of the day. It would be a want of gratitude not to express my •hearty commendations of the zeal and avidity shewn by every dog under my command; if there were any contention, it arose from a natural impulse, a becoming •emulation in the chace, which should be most forward in obeying him who has the honour to be, Sir, your's &c. NAT. NIMROD. P. S. I send this dispatch by an old tenant of your's, to whose care and attention (as guide) I am in- debted for our preservation ; and while I recommend him to your notice, must also refer you to him for fur- ther information. i 170 SPORTING ANECDOTES, ERQAD HINTS TO CITY SPORTSMEN. If there are three of you, by all means hire a post- chaise, as it cuts a dash, and comes cheap. Be sure you let the muzzles of your guns beoutaquar- ter of a yard on each sid£ of the chaise, to shew all the people on the road that you are sportsmen. On no account begin shooting for game before you get to Hackney, Carnberwell, Kentish Town, Mile End, top of Kent-Street Road, or any place of equal distance from town. Take care you do not shoot a sheep, or a cow, instead of the bird, you take aim at. The guns of least repute among common sportsmen are the best, those that scatter their shot the widest, as there is more chance of hitting them — if one, as the saying is, won't, another will. There is nothing like a sure shot. Many a bird has been missed by firing hastily at too great a distance. The best mode is. to place your piece close to his head; thus the body is not torn. *Takiug aim with both eyes shut, is not so good a practice as with both open, as cunning Birds have been known to take advantage of the moment, and fly away. In choice of dogs, that species of the spaniel, called the Spitalfields Hie-away is to be preferred, as he will hunt every kennel as well as ditch, and runs over most ground. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 1?1 THE INSPIRED GAMESTER. A.v Archbishop of Canterbury making a tour into the country, stopped at an inn for refreshment. Being at the window, he observed at a distance, in a solitary wood, a well-dressed man alone, talking, and acting a kind of part. The prelate's curiosity was excited, to know what the stranger was about, and accordingly sent some of his servants to observe him, and hear what he was re- hearsing. But they bringing back an answer far from satisfactory, his grace resolved .to go himself; he ac- cordingly repaired to the wood, ordering his attendant to keep at a distance. He addressed the stranger very politely, and was answered with the same civility. A conversation having been once entered into, though not without interruptions, by an occasional soliloquy, his grace asked what he was about. " I am at play/' he replied. " At play," said the prelate, " and with whom? you are all alone !" — " I own," said he, a Sir, you do not perceive my antagonist, but I am playing with God." — " Playing with God, (his lordship think- ing the man out of his mind) this is a very extraordi- nary party ; and pray at what game, Sir, are you play- ing?' 7 — " At chess. Sir." — The archbishop smiled ; biU the man seeming peaceable, he was willing to amuse himself with a few more questions. " And do you play for any thing, sir ?" — '* Certainly." — " You can- not have any great chance, as your adversary must be so superior to you ! — " He does not take any advan- tage, but plays merely like a man." — " Pray, Sir, when you win or lose, how do you settle ycur ac- i 2 172 SPORTING ANECDOTES. counts ?" — " Very exactly and punctually, I promise you." — " Indeed ! pray how stands your game ?" The stranger, after muttering something to himself, said, " I have just lost it." — And how much have you Josti" — " Fifty guineas.'' — " That is a great sum; how do you intend paying it, does God take your mo- ney ?" — " No, the poor are his treasurers; he always sencs some worthy person to receive the debt, you are at present the purse-bearer." Saying this, he pulled out his purse, and counting fifty guineas, put them in- to his grace's hand, and retired, saying, " He should play no more that day." The prelate was quite fascinated ; he did not know v/hat to make of this extraordinary adventure, he ■viewed the money, and found all the guineas good; re- called all that had passed, and began to think there must be something in this man more than he had dis- covered. However, he continued his journey, and ap- plied the money to the use of the poor, as had been di- rected. .Upon his return, he stopped at the same inn, and perceiving the same person again in the wood, in his former situation, he resolved to have a little further .conversation with him, and went alone to the spot .where he was. The stranger was a comely man, and the prelate could not help viewing him with a kind of religious veneration, thinking, by this time, that he was inspired to do good in this uncommon manner. The prelate accosted him as .an old acquaintance, unjl familiarly asked him how the chance stood since they had last met. " Sometimes lor me, and somei-imcs against me; 1 have loth lost and won." And are you .at plav now r"-r-" ^ T es, Sir, we have played sever*) 3T0RTI\'G ANECDOTES. 1?3- games to day." — " And who wins ?" — " Why, Sir, at present the advantage is on my side, the game is just- over, I have a fine stroke ; check mate, there it is." — •J And pray, Sir, how much have you won?" — " Five hundred guineas?" — " That is a handsome sum; but bey are you to be paid r" — " I pay and receive in-the like manner : he always sends me some good rich man when I win ; and you, my lord, are the person. God is remarkably punctual upon these occasions." The archbishop had received a very considerable sum on that day : the stranger knew it, and produced a pistol, by way of receipt; the prelate found himself un- der the necessity of delivering up his cash ; and, by this time, discovered the divine inspired gamester to be neither more or less than a thief. His lordship had, in the course of his journey, related the first part of this adventure, but the latter part he prudently took great pains to conceal. SPORTING ANECDOTE OF JAMES 7. James the First being one time on a hunting party, near Bury St. Edmund's, he saw an opulent townsman, who had joined the chace, very brave in his apparel, and so glittering and radiant, that he eclipsed all the court. 'The king was desirous of knowing the name of this gay gentleman, and being informed, by one of his followers, that it was Lamme, he facetiously replied, " Lamb, you call him; I know not wnat kind of lamb he is, but I am sure he has got a good fleece upon his back." i$ 174 SPORTING ANECDOTES' CHERUBIM SHOOTING. Two Cockneys issued forth on a shooting-party, to some little distance from town, and were to sleep at an ale-house, and rise early to their sport in the morn- ing. Trudging to their quarters in the dusk of the evening, a large looking bird came sailing round the corner of a barn, at which one of them put up his gun, he shot, and the bird fell ;— -but, oh horror! what was the surprise and dread of him and hiscompanion, when running up in a great hurry to pick up his game, he found a pair of full bright eyes in a round comely face; with a pair of suow-white wings extended, and flutter- ing in agonies ! away they ran to the house, where the shooter instantly fainted; and, on earnest enquiry of mine host into the cause of their alarm, his fellovr sportsman, with a tremulous voice, cried — " Ah ! poor creature! heaven forgive him ! — but he has had the misfortune — I am sme it was unintentional— to shoot a cherubim I" However, as Boniface and bis hostler were not quite satisfied with this account, they took a candle and lan- thorn to the spot, and there found the supposed cheru- bim to he only a poor unfortunate owl ! SURPRISING COURAGE OF A CAT. While man in the fulness of his pride looks for every virtue in his own race, and haughtily despises, or discredits, the genuine emotions of unsophisticated nature in the bosoms of animals, he reads, either with astonishment, or scepticism, the well accredited facts SPORTING ANECDOTES. . 175 which are daily commemorated, relative to the power of instinct (if not ratiocination) displayed among the brute creation. It is, however, pretty generally acknowledged, that the dog oftee :eaches to the point of human sagacity : the following instance oi muternal courage and affection in a cat, is no less deserving of admiration. A cat, who had a numerous brood of kittens, one sunny day in spring, encouraged her little ones to frolic in the vernal beams of noon, about the stable door ; while she was joining them in a thousand tricks and gambols, they were discovered by a large hawk, who was sailing above the barn-yard in expectation of prey ; and in a moment, swift as lightning, darted upon one of the kittens, and had as quickly borne it off, but for the courageous mother, who seeing the danger of her offspring, flew on the common enemy, who, to defend itself, let fall the prize; the battle presently became seemingly dreadful to both parties, for the hawk, by the power of bis wings, the sharpness of his talons, and the keenness of his beak, had, for a while, the advan- tage, cruelly lacerating the poor cat, and had actually deprived her of one eye in the conflict ; but puss no way daunted at the accident, strove with all her cun- nmo- and agility for her little ones, till she had broken the wing of her adversary : in this state she got him more within the power of her claws, the hawk still de- fending himself, apparently with additional vigour, and the light continued with equal fury on the side of gri- malkin, to the great entertainment of many spectators. At length victory seemed to favour the nearly exhaus- ted mother, and she availed herself of the advantage : for, by an instantaneous exeition, she laid the hawk- i 4 186 SPORTING ANECDOTES'. motionless beneath her feet, and, as if exulting in the victory, tore the head of the vanquished tyrant; and immediately, disregarding the loss of her eye, ran to the bleeding kitten, licked the wounds made by the hawk's talons in its tender sides, purring while she ca- ressed her liberated offspring, with the same maternal affection as if no danger had assailed them, or their af- fectionate parent. Ah ! wanton cruelty, thine hand withold, And learn to pity from the tale that's told : Caress Felina, for in her we rind A grand example to instruct mankind — ■ Who leaves her young unguarded, or unfed, Has far less vktue than this quadruped. THE SPORTING. PARSON. IN A LETTfiB TO A FU1END:. Dear , I am just returned from having paid a visit lo an old acquaintance, Jack Buckskin, who is now become the Rev. Mr. Buckskin, rectorof parish, in this county, a living worth upwards of 3001. per annum. As the ceremonies of ordination have occasioned no alteration in Jack's morals and behaviour, the figure he makes in the church is somewhat remarkable ; but as there are many other incumbents of country livings, whose clerical characters will be found to tally with his, perhaps a slight sketch, or, more accurately speak- ing, a rough draught of him, with some account of my visit, will not be unentertaining to you. Jack, hearing that I was in this part of the kingdom, sent me a very hearty letter, informing mo that he had been double japanned (as he called it) about a Sporting anecdotes; 177 year ago, and was the present incumbent of , where, if I would favour him with my company, he Would give me a cup of the best ale in the county, and would engage to shew me a noble day's sport, as he was in "a fine open country, with plenty of foxes. I rejoiced to hear he was so comfortably set- tled, and set out immediately for his living. When I arrived within the gate, my ears were alarm- ed with such a loud chorus of " No mortals on earth are so jovial as we," that I began to think I had made a mistake; but its close neighbourhood to the church soon convinced me that this could be no other than the parsonage house. .On my entrance, my friend (whom I found in the midst of a room full of fox-hunters) got up to wel- come me to - , and embracing me, introduced me to his friends : and placing me at the right hand of his elbow chair, assured them that I was an honest cock, and loved a chace of rive and twenty miles an end as well as any of them. To-preserve the credit of which charac- ter, I was obliged to comply with an injunction to top off a pint bumper of port, with the foot of the fox dipped and squeezed in it, to give a zest to the liquor. The whole economy oi Jack's life is very different from thai of his brethren. Instead of having a wife and a house full of children (the most common family of a country clergyman), he is single, unless we credit some whispers in the parish, that he is married to- his housekeeper. The calm amusements of piquet, chess, backgam* mon, have no charms for Jack, who sees his " dearest action in the held," and boasts, that he has a brace of as'good hunters in his stable as ever leg was laid oven i ."> . 1/8 SPORTING ANECDOTES.- Hunting and shooting are the only business of his life; for hounds and pointers lay about in every parlour; and he is himself like Pistol, always in boots. The estimation iu which he holds his friends is rated according to their excellence as sportsmen; and to be able to make a good shot, or hunt a pack of hounds well, are the most recommending qualities. His pa- rishioners often earn a shilling and a cup of ale at his house, by coming to acquaint him that they have found a hare sitting, or a fox in cover. One day, while I was alone with my friend, the servant came to tell him that the clerk wanted to speak with him : he was ordered in; but I could not help smiling, when, (in- stead of giving notice of a funeral, christening, or some other church business, as I expected) I found the honest cleric came only to acquaint his reverend superior, that there was a covey of partridges, of a dozen brace at least, not above three fields from the house. Jack's eldest brother, Sir Thomas Buckskin, who gave him the benefice, is lord of the manor, so that Jack has full power to beat for game unmolested. He goes out three limes a week with his brother's hounds, whether Sir Thomas hunts or not ; and has, besides, a deputation from him, as lord of the manor, consigning the game to his care, and empowering him to take away all guns, nets, and dogs, from persons not duly qualified. Jack is more proud of his office than many other country clergymen are of being in the commis- sion of the peace. Poaching is, in his eye, the most heinous crime in the two tables ; nor does the care of spuls appear half so important a duty as the preserva. tion of the game. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 179 Sunday, you may suppose, is as dull and tedious to, this ordained sportsman as to any fkie lady in town : not that he makes the duties of his function any fatigue to him, but as this is necessarily a day of rest from the usual toils of shooting and the cbace. It happened, that the first Sunday after I was with him, he had en- gaged to take care of a church, which was about twenty miles off, in the absence of a neighbouring clergyman. He asked me to accompany him, and the more to en- courage me, he assured me that we should ride over as fine a champaign open country as any in the world. -Accordingly I was roused by him in the morning before day-break, by a loud hallooing of Hark to MerrimaiV and the repeated smacks of his half-hunter. After we had fortified our stomachs with several slices of hung- beef, and a horn or two of stingo, we sallied forth. Jack was mounted upon a hunter, which he assured me was never yet thrown out : and as -\ye rode along, he could not help lamenting that so fine a morning should be thrown away on a Sunday, at the same time remarking, that the dogs- might run breast high. Though we made the best of our way over hedge and ditch, and took every thing, we were often delay- ed by trying if we could prick a hare, or by leaving the road to examine a piece of cover ; and he frequently made me stop, while he pointed out the particular course that Reynard took, or the spot where he had earthed. At length we arrived on full gallop at the church, where we found the congregation waiting for us ; but as Jack had nothing to do but alight, pull his band out of the sermon case, and clap on the surplice, he was x 6 180 SPORTING ANECDOTES. . presently equipped for the service. In short, he be- haved himself, both in the desk and in the pulpit, to- the entire satisfaction of all the parish, as well as to the esquire of it, who, after thanking Jack for his excel- lent discourse, very cordially took us home to dinner with him. I shall not trouble you with an account of our enter- tainment at the esquire's, who being himself as keen a sportsman as ever followed a pack of dogs, was highly delighted with Jack's conversation. u Church and king," and another particular toast, in compliment, I suppose, to my friend's clerical character, were the first drank after dinner ; but these were directly fol- lowed by a pint bumper to " Horses sound, dogs heal- thy, earths stopt, and foxes plenty." When we had run over again, with great joy and vo- ciferation, as many chases as the time would permit, the bell called for afternoon prayers; after which, though the esquire would fain have had us stay and take a hunt with him, we mounted our horses at the church-door, and rode home in the dark, because Jack had engaged to meet several of his brother sportsmen* who were to lie all night at his own house to be in readiness to make up the loss of Sunday, by going out a shooting very early the next morning. THE ARTFUL COURTIER. Louis the Fourteenth playing at back-gammon, he had a doubtful throw ; a dispute arose, and the sur- rounding courtiers all remained silent. The Count de Gramont happened to come in at that instant :-— " De=. cide the matter," said the king to him, " Sire," said SPORT I XG ANECDOTES. 181 the count, " your majesty is in the wrong." — " How \" replied the king, " can you thus decide, without know- ing the question ?" — " Because," said the count, " had the matter been doubtful, all these gentlemen present would have given it for your majesty. " GENEROSITY REWARDED. The following anecdote of the Hon. Mr. Rigby, has been attested by persons whose veracity may be relied on : — Like most young gentlemen in Ireland, he used to play, and sometimes pretty deep. Being one evening at hazard, in a public place, he was very suc- cessful ; and having won a considerable sum, he was putting it in his purse, when a person behind him said, in a low voice to himself, " Had I that sum, what a happy man should I be!" Mr. R. without looking back, put the purse over his shoulder, saying, " Take it, my friend, and be happy." The stranger made no reply, but accepted it, and retired. Everyone present was astonished at Mr. R's uncommon beneficence, whilst he received additional pleasure, on being in- formed that the person that had received the benefit was a half-pay officer in great distress. Some years after, a gentleman waited upon him in his own equi- page, and being introduced to Mr. R. acquainted him that he came to acquit a debt he had contracted with him in Dublin. Mr. R. was greatly surprised at this declaration, as he was an entire stranger. " Yes, sir," continued the visitor, " you assisted me with above a hundred pounds, at a time that I was in the utmost in- digence, without knowing, or even seeing me ;" and then related the affair of the gaming-table : " with that 182 SPORTING ANECDOTES. money," continued the stranger, " I was enabled to pay some debts, and fit myself out for India, where I have been so fortunate as to make an ample fortune." Mr. Rigby declined taking the money, but, through the pressing solicitation of the gentleman, accepted of a valuable diamond ring. THE PATIENT ANGLER. A gentleman, who was allowed to be one of the greatest and most philosophic anglers of the age, pas- sing from Islington to town, as was his daily custom, frequently saw a brother sportsman planted on a par- ticular spot of the new river. Being jealous to think he should have all the sport to himself, he resolved to rise early some morning, and take his post before the other arrived : having taken his rod and line, and all the rest of the angling apparatus, he repaired to the spot, and remained uninterrupted for a considerable time, but without success. At length the original oc- cupier of this envied spot appeared, when the gentle- man could not help exclaiming, " Egad, sir, I do not know how you manage it, but I have been angling, these three hours, and have caught nothing at ali. > * — " Oh, Lord, sir/' replied the other, " what's that,, compared to me, why I have been angling here tliess three years and never caught a fish yet!" THE DISINTERESTED MONEY- LENDER. A nobleman, who was uncommonly addicted to play, had, one night at Bath, not only emptied his purse, but borrowed of the by-standers,. till they re- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 183 fused to lend him another guinea. At last a gentle- man was prevailed upon to advance him ten guineas, on condition that if he did not repay him on that day se'nnight he should give him half a crown every time he should ask him for payment. My lord agreed. The week being expired, he took every op- portunity of asking, and his lordship thought himself cheaply excused for halt a crown, till the next Bath season came on, when, before a numerous company, the gentleman thus addressed his lordship — " JMy lord, 1 scorn to take interest for your ten guineas; your lord- ship has, at two and sixpence a time, paid me twelve pounds : there is a guinea and a half, and remember, 'tis not the want of fortune, so much as the want cf thought, which has occasioned your present distress." THE VENERABLE SPORTSMAN. An ancestor of the celebrated M. Calonne, was re- markable for his attachment to the sports of the field, and for preserving his vigour and strength, both of mind and body, to an advanced period of his life. At the age of eighty-five, he used constantly every day, to take the exercise of riding. A friend, one morning, in the autumn, met him on horseback riding very fast : " Where are you going in such a hurry this morning?" enquired the gentleman. " Why, sir," replied the other' facetiously, " I am riding after my eighty-fourth year." GAMING ANECDOTE. It is well known that the Duke of Argyle had a con- nexion with a lady of the name of C— p — b — II, by whom be had a natural son, and to whom he gave a polite 1*84 SPORTING ANECDOTES education. At a proper age be likewise made interest for him in the guards, in which corps he soon figured as a captain. The duke was sensible that the young man's pay could not support him with proper dignity ; he accordingly allowed him the following genteel sti- pend, though somewhat whimsical : — The captain found upon his bureau, every morning, a clean shirt, a pair of stockings, and also a guinea. This extraneous allowance was intended to prevent him from gaming.- But the sharks knew his connections, and, according to the gambling lexicon, had him at the best ; in a word, they tickled the captain for a thousand. The duke heard of his son's disaster, but took no notice of it, till his dejected appearance rendered it apparent that some misfortune had occurred. " Jack," said he one day at dinner, " what is the matter with you ?" " The captain changed colour, and reluctantly acknowledged the fact. " Sir," said his grace, .'* you do not owe a farthing to that blackguard; my steward settled it with him this morning for ten guineas, and he was glad to take them/' exclaiming at the same time, that " by Jasus, he was damned far North, and it was well it was no worse I" THE SPORTING 1'HYSICIAN A lkarn'd physician, as they tell, Who lov'd the sport of shooting well, Had toil'cl three days in hopes of game, But lost his time, and with.it fame ; . Whe.n John, his fav'ril* servant, bow'dL And begg'd for once to be aflow'd, To try in neighboring field his art, A;3ur'd he soon should play his pstffc S TOUTING ANECDOTES. 19- For birds there were, it was well-known, And lie would doctor them 'ere noon. •• What mean you, John ?" old Galen cries, " Why hill them, sir," plain John replies. A IACETIOUS ENQUIRY. After a loud preface of—*' Oh, yes!" pronounced most audibly three times in the High-street, at New- market, the late Lord Barrymore having collected a number of persons together, made the following general proposal to the gapers — " Who wants to buy a horse that can walk five miles an hour, trot eighteen, and gallop twenty V — " I do," said a gentleman with ma- nifest eagerness. " Then," replied Lord Barrymore, " if I see any such animal to be sold, I will be sure ta let you know." PUGILISTIC LINGO. The same nobleman once betted a large sum of money upon Johnson and Big Ben, atBambury, in Ox- fordshire, where the former fought Perrins, the Bir- mingham giant, and Big Ben fought Jacobs. Lord Barrymore was on the stage, with some other persons of distinction, during the contest, and it was generally imagined, from the shifting and falling.of Ben, that he would get the worst of it. The mob. hissed him as he sat upon the stage, for what they supposed. cowardice, and Lord Barrymore, thinking of his money, reproached him for his seeming want of manhood ; when the rough-hew n hero, looking archly at his lordship, growl- ed out in his usual hoarse accent, " V/hy^ny lord, you 186 SPORTING ANECDOTES. an't vp to my gossip, I can beet un then I please: don't mind me, I tell you I am only manouiering /" THE LOST HARE. The celebrated Beau Nafh having, at one time, a disorder which prevented him from riding on horse- back, his Grace the Duke of Beaufort often rallied him on the occasion, and told him, if he would pro- duce him a hare that he (Nash) was at the taking of, his grace in return would make him a present of a buck in the season. Mr. Nash accordingly replied to one of his chairmen to get him a leveret, which he ordered to be hunted by six turn?pit dogs, in a large room at Westgate-house, and was himself time enough to take it up alive. He then wrote a letter to the duke, and sent the nare in a basket by Bryan, his running-foot- man, and who had the honour of being an Hibernian. When Bryan got upon Lansdown, which is the road to Badminton, where the duke's seat is, he proposed great pleasure to himself in coursing the hare, as he bad a favourite dog with him. He therefore took off his great coat, which covered his running dress, and laid it down by the basket. After he had let the hare loose, she stood some time, till he set the dog at her, when she started from the place, and ran with speed to the first cover; Bryan following her till she was out ofsiglu. When he came back for his coat and basket, he found, to his great mortification and surprise, that both were gone. However, having Mr. Nash's letter to the duke, he made the best of his way to Badminton. On his arrival there, his grace ordered him up stairs, and asked him what news he had brought. Bryan an- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 187 swered, " Arrah, by my shoul and shalvaticn, I have brougl)t a letter tor your dukesbip," and he immedi- ately gave it to his grace; who, after reading it, told Bryan he was glad the hare was come. " By my shoul," says Bryan, " and so am I ; but pray, your graceship, is my great coat come too?" The company being informed of the particulars, could scarce contain themselves at the simplicity of the fellow. However, the duke kept his word with Mr. Nash, and sent him a buck. A RUNNING HORSE. Two village sportsmen discoursing about a horse that had lost a race, one of them, by way of apology, observed, that the cause of it was an accident in his running against a waggon : — to which the other, who affected not to understand him, very archly replied^ why, what else was he fit to run against ? ON THE SAGACITY AND THE FIDELITY OF DOGS. Mr. Dibdik, in his Tour thiough England, has the following interesting observations on the canine race : — Dogs, if I may be permitted the expression, have noble passions, and possess a rectitude which, if it be instinct, proves that instinct is superior to reason. Their gratitude is unbounded, their devotion exem- plary, their study and delight are to please and serve their master ; they watch his commands, they wait upon his smiles, they obey, oblige, and protect him, and are ready to die in his defence : nay, they love 188 SPORTIXG ANECDOTES him so wholly and entirely, that their very existence depends.upon his attention to them. I had a dog my- self, that I was necessitated to leave behind me when I began my tour, and he pined away and died in a few days alter he had lost me. I have always loved dogs, and the observations I have made are innumerable, and all to their advantage ; among the rest I am com- petent to declare that they make friendships, always, however, with caution, among one another. Upon these occasions, they premise their compact, they ob- serve it inviolably, and this understood, the strongest protect the rest. I had a yard dog, that had every thing of a wolf but the ferocity. He was as gentle as a lamb, nothing offered to himself could insult him; but no roused lion could be more terrible if any of the family, or the other dogs were insulted. . 1 shall now shew you, by the relation of some pointed facts, the discrimination, the reason, the good sense, for I cannot say less, of dogs. The first is a circum- stance which happened under my own observation last summer, and I introduce it here to give it force. You know I would not affront you by asserting a falsity, and I hope the public are equally inclined to credit what I most solemnly declare to be fact. This is the least I could say as the preface to my story. I took with me last summer one of those spotted dogs, which are generally called Danish,. but the breed is Dalmatian. It was impossible for any thing to be more sportive, yet more innolfensive than this dog. Throughout the mountainous parts of Cumberland and Scotland, his delight was to chase the sheep, which he would follow with great alertness even to the summits cf the most rugged steeps; and, when he had frightea* STORTING ANECDOTES. 189 *\i them and made them scamper to his satisfaction, for he never attempted to injure them, he constantly came back wagging his tail, and appearing very happy at those caresses which we, perhaps, absurdly bestowed upon him. About seven miles on this side Kinross, in the way from Stirling, he had been amusing himself with play- ing these pranks, the sheep flying from him in all di- rections, when a black lamb turned upon him, and looked him full in the face. lie seemed astonished for an instant; but, before he could rally his resolution, the lamb began to paw and play with him. It is im- possible to describe the effect this had upon him ; his tail was between his legs, he appeared in the utmost dread, and slunk away confused and distressed. Pre- sently his new acquaintance invited him, by all manner of gam: ols, to be friends with him. What a moment for Pythagoras or Lavater ! Gradually overcoming his fears, he accepted this brotherly challenge, and they raced away together, and rolled over one ano- ther like two kittens. Presently appeared another object of distress. The shepherd's boy came to re- claim his lamb ; but it paid no attention, except to the dog, and they were presently at a considerable dis- tance. We slackened our pace for the convenience of the boy; but nothing would do: we could no more call off the dog than he could catch the lamb. They con- tinued sporting in this manner for more than a mile uud a half. At length, having taken a circuit, they were in our rear ; and, after we had crossed a small bridge, the boy with his pole kept the lamb at bay, and at length catch ed him ; and, having tied bis plaid 190 SPORTING ANECDOTES. round bim, it was impossible for him to escape. Out of fear of the boy, and in obedience to us, the dog fol- lowed reluctantly; but the situation of the lamb all this time cannot be pictured; he made every possible attempt to pass the boy, and even determined to jump into the river, rather than not follow the dog. This continued till the prospect closed, and we had lost sight of our new ally, whose unexpected offer of amity to Spot, seemed ever after to operate as a friendly ad- monition, for from that day, he was cured of following sheep. This friendship at first sight between a dog and a lamb, I shall follow up with a circumstance to prove the friendship of dogs towards each other. A traveller belonging to a considerable house in the city, was very fond of a small French spaniel, belong- ing to the lady of the house, which had been accus- tomed to follow him, and therefore occasionally con- fided to his care. He began a journey, and did not perceive, till he was near twenty miles from home, that the little dog had accompanied him. He found himself in a very unpleasant dilemma; but, after some consideration, he made up his mind as to what conduct would be most expedient to adopt. It was impossible to send the dog from the place where he had discover- ed him; but he recollected that about thirty miles farther on he might entrust him with great confidence to the care of a landlord, who, he was sure, would get bim safely conveyed in the waggon to town. This he resolved to do, having previously written home to that effect, to avoid uneasiness. When he arrived at the inn, he committed the dog SPOUTING ANECDOTES. igi to the care of the landlord, as he had intended, and pursued his journey. His route being circuitous, rue had occasion, in the course ui a lew days to return to this very inn. The first thing he did, of course was to enquire after the little dog, and was told by the land- lord, with great concern that he was lost, and that the particulars of the accident were these : — He had by some means got into the stables, and had been severe- ly treated by the yard dog, from which moment he had disappeared, and eluded every search that had been made after him. The traveller, extremely con- cerned at this intelligence, made every possible enquiry •for the dog, without effect, and went to bed. The next morning he heard a noise as if dogs were fighting in the yard ; and, his mind being alive to the circumstance of having lost the little spaniel, his curi- osity was naturally excited, and he ran to the scene cf action, where he saw too large dogs fighting, and a little one looking on. The fact turned out, that the little dog, after having been beaten had gone home, made the house dog acquainted with the circumstance, and brought him to revenge his cause. This is very strong, it must be confessed ; but 1 declare that my mind does not revolt at it. I know it to be possible, supposing the distance to be only two miles ; why should it not then be true, supposing it to be fifty ? The condition of the little dog manifested sufficiently to his friend and protector the treatment he had received: and, for the rest, we know that dogs will in a most astonishing manner, retrace their steps. My sister had a dog stolen from her by a strolling tinker, which found its way home from some very considerable distance, for 192 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the skin was completely off its feet, and it fell down at the door, unable to proceed an inch further. We have here seen the operation of reason upon dogs, and that they are capable of friendship. I shall now go into some instances of their fidelity, a quality which every body knows they possess in an astonishing degree, though few, perhaps, have given themselves the trouble of ascertaining in what an extraordinary man- ner upon this subject they challenge our admiration. A gentleman in the city had a dog so attached to him, that he -knew no pleasure in the absence of his master. This dog of course he loved and valued, for I have the pleasure of knowing him, and I believe no man can have more humanity or sensibility. This gentle- man married. In a short time the dog seemed to feel a diminution of attention towards him, and testified •great uneasiness; but, finding his mistress grew fond of him, his pleasure seemed to redouble, and he was per- fectly happy. Something more than a year after this they had a child. There was now a decided inquietude about the dog, and it was impossible to avoid noticing that he felt himself miserable. The attention paid to the child encreased his wretchedness, he loathed his .food, and nothing could content him, though he was -treated on this very account with the utmost tender- ness. At last he hid himself in the coal cellar, whence every kind and solicitous means w^re taken to induce him to return, but all in vain, lie was deaf to all en- treaty, rejected all kindness, refused to eat, and conti- nued firm to his resolution, till exhausted nature yield- ed to death. I shall give one more instance of the affecti'ug kind. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 193 The grandfather of as amiable a man as ever existed, and one of my kindest and most valuable friends, had a dog of the above endearing description. This gen- tleman had an occupation which obliged him to go a journey periodically, I believe every month. His stay was short, and his departure and return were regular, and without variation. The dog always grew uneasy when first he lost his master, and moped in a corner, but recovered himself gradually as the time of his re- turn approached ; which he knew to an hour, nay, to a minute, as I shall prove. When he was convinced that his master was on the road at no great distance from home, he flew all over the house, and if the street- door happened to be shut, he would suffer no servant to have any rest till it was opened. The moment he obtained his freedom away he went, and to a certainty met his benefactor about two miles from (own. He played and frolicked about him till he had obtained one of his gloves, with which he ran or rather flew home, entered the house, laid it down in the middle of the room, and danced round it. When lie had suf- ficiently amused himself in this manner, out of the house he flew, returned to meet his master, and ran be- fore him, or gambolled by his side, till he arrived with him at home. I know not how frequently this was repeated, but it lasted, however till the old gentleman grew infirm, and incapable of continuing his journies. The dog by this time was also old, and became at length blind ; but this misfortune did not hinder him from fondling his master, whom he knew from every other person, and for whom his affection and solicitude rather increased than diminished. The old gentleman after a short ill- K 194 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ness died. The dog knew the circumstance, watched the corpse, blind as he was, and,did his utmost to pre- vent the undertaker from screwing up the body in the coffin, and most outrageously opposed its being taken out of the house. Being past hope, he grew disconso- late, lost his flesh, and was evidently verging towards his end. One day he heard a gentleman come into the house, and rose to meet him. His master, being old and infirm, had worn ribbed worsted stockings for warmth ; this gentleman happened to have stockings on of the same kind. The dog, from this information, thought it was his master, and began to demonstrate the most extravagant pleasure ; but, upon farther exa- mination, finding his mistake, he retiied into a corner, where in a short time afterwards he expired. I shall mention a few circumstances relative to the sagacity of dogs, and take my leave of this subject. At a convent in France, twenty paupers were served with a dinner at a given hour every day. A dog le- longing to the convent did not fail to be present at this regale, because of the odds and ends which were now and then thrown down to him. The guests, however, were poor and hungry, and of course not very wasteful, so that their pensioner did little more than scent the feast of which he would fain have partaken. The por- tions were served one by one, at the ringing of a bell, and delivered out by means of what in religious houses is called a tour, which is a machine like the section of a cask, that turning round upon a pivot, exhibits whatever is placed on the concave side, without disco- vering the person who moves it. One day this dog who had only received a few scraps* waited till the paupers were all gone, took the rope m 4 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 195 his mouth and rang the bell. This stratagem sue" ceeded. He repeated it the next day with the same good fortune. At length the cook, iinding that twenty one portions were given out instead of twenty, was de- termined to discover the trick, in doing which he had no great difficulty; for lying perdu, and noticing the paupers as they came in great regularity for their dif- ferent portions, and that there was no intruder except the dog, he began to suspect the real truth, which he was confirmed in when he saw him wait with great de- liberation till the visitors were all gone, and then pull the bell. The matter was related to the community, and, to reward him for his ingenuity, he was permitted to ring the bell every day for his dinner, when a mess of broken victuals was purposely served out to him. I will now relate a remarkable circumstance, re- ceived in France for truth, and which will be found at length in the Essais Historiques sur Paris. In the reign of Charles the Fifth, a gentleman of the name of Aubri, accompanied by a dog, was assassinated in a wood, and buried at the foot of a tree. The dog, it was supposed, remained on the spot, till he was nearly famished, for in that condition, he came to Paris, to the house oj his master's particular friend, and howled most pite- ously. He had scarcely satisfied the cravings of his appetite, when his agitation grew more violent. He ran to the door, appeared by his actions as if he wanted somebody to follow him, pulled his master's friend by the coat, and grew more and more impatient. The singularity of these actions in the dog, his returning without his master, the inquietude which had been caused by the absence of the master himself, who, by appointment ought long before that time to have been 196 SPORTING ANECDOTES. at Paris ; these and other circumstances, determined the friend, in company with others, to follow the dog, who conducted him to the foot of a tree, and then re- doubled his howlings and solicitude. He scratched up the earth, and manifested so many signs, that, together with the appearance of the fresh mould, and a number of collateral circumstances, convinced them they ought to search for the body of the unfortunate Aubri, which they now began to believe was buried there, and which in fact they found. The Chevalier Macaire, as a person inimical to the interests of Aubri, and in particular on account of his high favour with the king, they all suspected to have a hand in the murder. The friend took an opportunity of shewing Macaire unexpectedly to the dog. He in- stantly grew outrageous, and endeavoured to fly at him ; but the friend, who had taken his precaution for that time prevented him. Determined, however, to revenge Aubri, he made all he suspected known to the king, who commended him for what he had done, and appointed him at a given time to appear at the palace, accompanied by the dog. They were introduced among the courtiers, who caressed the dog and to whom he shewed every respect and attention; but the moment Macaire came into the room, who had been purposely kept back, he flew at his throat. The matter was in consequence more particularly enquired into ; till, from a train of circumstances, and at length his own confession, he was found guilty of the murder, the lady either on one side or the other. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 205 A labourer came to our assistance; he got under the lady, find raised her. " Bless my eyes, (exclaimed the labourer) her heels are where her head ought to be !" "It is really a horrid chasm/' said the virtuoso, peeping into the ditch. " Every body, from the highest to the lowest, have their ups and downs in this world," observed a lame beggarman, with a malicious smile. Having seated the lady upon the bank, and put every thing to rights, Sophia joined us, and with the help of a smelling bottle, and chafing the lady's tem- ples, she was restored to herself: she had received but little injury that we could perceive, and she declared she felt none. " But I fear I shall be thrown out," said the lady : so curtesying thanks to Sophia, and -smiling, thanks to O'Carrol and myself, with our help she mounted her hunter, cleared the ditch where she was thrown, and taking a short cut, to avoid the im- pending evil, was soon out of sight, and we returned to the cottage. CONJUGAL SPORTING. A gentleman meeting his gamekeeper return- ing from shooting, asked him which way he had been. " I've been trying Drayton Wood, your honour." — " Why, what took you that beat?"— " My poor wife was buried this morning, and I went to Drayton to at- tend the funeral j so thought I'd try the cover in my way back." €06 SPORTING ANECDOTES. THE HONEST HORSE. A jocxey once selling a nag to a gentleman at Glasgow, frequently observed, with emphatic earnest- ness, that he was an honest horse." After the pur- chase, the gentleman asked him what he meant by an honest horse, " Why, sir, I'll tell you, (replied the Jockey) whenever I rode him he always threatened to throw me, and, d— n. me, if ever he deceived me." THE DISAPPOINTED GAMEKEEPER. The energies of nature are often strongest where su- perficial observers consider them as nearly expiring.. A sudden impulse will sometimes animate the expiring frame of man to acts of strength beyond the expecta- tion of surrounding observers: and thus too it often is with the other parts of the animal kingdom. A striking instance of the truth of this reasoning is displayed in the following narrative. William Dann, the gamekeeper of a gentleman near Bath, shooting one day in a coppice with- spaniels, they flushed a woodcock, which he shot at and perceptibly wounded, but not so as immediately to bring it down; he therefore, waited to reload his piece, and then went in search of the wounded bird, to a spot about a hun- dred yards distant, near to which he supposed he had marked his fall; but, on looking back after a young dog which had remained behind, and going up to him, he found he was mouthing the wounded woodcock, which he had much bitten, and nearly stripped of its feat'iers. The gamekeeper having taken the bird; SPORTING ANECDOTES. 207 from the dog, smoothed up its remaining plumage, and, after carrying it about twenty yards in his hands, in an expiring state, as he thought, he threw it down for the youn^cur to pick up, and bring after him. Be- fore the dog could get it, the cock, to the utter asto- nishment of the gamekeeper, took flight, and went off in so sharp a style, and with such astonishing strength, that he could neither shoot at him in his exit, or ever after get sight of him. DIARY OF A SPORTING OXONIAN. Sunday — Waked at eight o'clock by the servant, to tell me the bell was going for prayers — wonder those scoundrels are suffered to make such a noise — tried to sleep again, but could not — sat up and read Hoyle in bed. Ten, got up and breakfasted — Charles Racket called to ask me to ride — agreed to stay till the presi- dent was gone to church. Half after eleven rode out — going down the High-street, saw Will Sagely going to St. Mary's ; can't think what people go to church for. Twelve to two rode round Burlington Green — met Careless and a new freshman, of Trinity — engaged them to dine with me. Two to three, lounged at the stable — made the freshman ride over the bale— talked to him about horses — sees he knows nothing about the matter — went home and dressed. Three to eight, din- nei and wine — remarkably pleasant evening — sold Rack- et's stone-horse for him, to Careless's friend, for fifty guineas — certainly break his neck — eight to ten coffee- house, and lounged in the High-street — stranger went home to study— afraid he's a bad one — engaged to hunt to-morrow, and dine with Racket. Twelve, 208 SPORTING ANECDOTES. supped and went to bed early, in order to get up to- mon ow. Monday. — Racket rowed me up at seven o'clock — sleepy and queer, but was forced to get up and make breakfast for him- Eight to five in the afternoon hunt- ing — famous run, and killed near Bicester— number of tumbles-— freshman out in Racket's stone- horse— got the devil of a fall in a ditch — horse upon him— but don't know whether he was killed or not. Five, dressed and went to dine with Racket — Dean had crossed his name, and no dinner could be got— went to the Angel and dined— famous evening till eleven, when the proc- tors came, and told us to go home to our colleges- went directly the contrary way. Eleven to one, went down into St. Thomas's, and fought a raff. One, dragged home by somebody, the Lord knows whom, and put to bed. Tuesday. — Very bruised and sore — did not get up till twelve— found an imposition upon my table — mem, to give it the hair-dresser — drank six dishes of tea — did not know what to do with myself, so wrote to my father for money. Half after one, put on my boots to ride for an hour — met Careless at the stable— rode to- gether — asked me to dine with him, and meet Jack Sedley, who is just returned from Italy. Two to three, returned home, and dressed. Four to seven, dinner and wine — Jack very pleasant, told good stories — says the Italian women have thick legs — no hunting 'to be got, and very little wine — wont go there in a huiry. Seven, went to the stable, and looked into the coffee- house — very few drunken men, and nothing going for- wards — agreed to play Sedley at billiards— Walker's table engaged, and forced to go to the Blue Posts— SPORTING ANECDOTES. 209 lost ten guineas — thought I could have beat him, but the dog has been practising at Spa. Ten, supper at Careles's — bought Sedley's mare for thirty guineas — thinks he knows nothing of a horse, and believe J have done him — drank a little punch, and went to bed at twelve. Wednesday. — Plunted with the Duke of B. — Very long run — rode the new mare — found her sinking, so pulled up in time, and swore I had a shoe lost — obliged to sell her directly — buy no more horses of Sedley — knows more than I thought he did. Four, returned home, and as I was dressing to dine with Sedley, received a note from some country neighbours of my father's, to dc-sire me to dine at the Cross---obliged to send an ex- cuse to Sedley— wanted to put on my cap and gown- not to be found — forced to borrow. Half after four to ten, at the Cross. Ten, found it too bad, so got up and told them it was against the rules of the university to be out later. Thursday.— Breakfasted at the Cross, and walked all the morning about Oxford with my Lions— terrible flat work— Lions very troublesome-— asked an hun- dred and fifty silly questions about every thing they saw—wanted me to explain the Latin inscriptions on the monuments in Christ church chapel— wanted to know how we spent our time— -forced to give them a dinner, and, what was worse, to sit with them till six, when I told them I was engaged for the remainder of the evening, and sent them about their business. Se- ven, dropped in at Careless's room, found him with a large party, all pretty much cut— thought it was a good time to sell him Stdiey' mare, but he was not quite drunk enough— made a bet with him that I 210 SPORTING ANECDOTES. trotted my poney from Benson to Oxford within the hour— sure of winning, for I did it the other day ia fifty minutes. Friday. — Got up early, and rode my poney a foot- pace over to Benson to breakfast— old Shrub at break- fast-— told him of the bet, and shewed him the poney -—shook his head and looked cunning when he heard of it — good sign — after breakfast rode the race, and won easy, but could not get any money— -forced to take Careless's draft — dare say it is not worth twopence,, lounged at the stable, and cut my black horse's tail- eat soup at Sadler's— walked down the High-street— met Racket, who wanted me to dine with him, but could not, because I was engaged to Sagely *s. Three, dinner at Sagely's— very bad-— dined in a cold hall, and could get nothing to eat-- wine new— -a bad fire- tea-kettle put on at five o'clock —-played at whist for sixpences, and no bets— thought I should have gone to sleep— terrible work dining with a studious man. Eleven, went to bed out of spirits. Saturday, — Ten, breakfasted — took up the last Sporting Magazine — had not read two pages before a dun came — told him I should have some money soon — would not be gone — offered him brandy — was sulky, and would not have any — saw he was going to be sa- vage, so kicked him down stairs, to prevent his being impertinent — thought perhaps I might have more of them, so went to lounge at the stables — poney got a bad cough, and the black horse thrown out two splints — went back to my room in an ill- humour, found a letter from my father — no money, and a great deal of advice — wants to know how my last quarter's allow- ance went — how the devil should I know, he knows I SPORTING ANECDOTES. 211 keep no accounts— do think fathers are the greatest bores in nature — very low-spirited, and flat all the morning — some thoughts of reforming, but luckily Careless came in to beg rne to meet our party at his rooms, so altered my mind — dined with him, and by nine in the evening was very happy. THE LATE DUKE OF CUMBERLAND. His Royal Highness William Duke of Cumberland being at a Newmarket meeting, just before the horses started he missed his pocket-book, containing some bank notes. When the knowing ones came about him, and offered several bets, he said, " he had lost his money already, and could not afford to venture any more that day/' The horse which the duke had in- tended to back was distanced, so that he consoled him- self with the loss of his pocket-book, as being only a temporary evil ; as he should have paid away as much had he betted, to the Worthies of the Turf. The race was no sooner finished, than a veteran half-pay officer presented his royal highness with his pocket-book, saying he had found it near the stand, but had not an opportunity of approaching him before ; when the duke most generously replied, " I am glad it has fallen into such good hands — keep it — had it not been for this accident, it would have been by this time among the black legs and thieves of Newmarket." THE BARGAIN. A Gentleman of great character on the turf, as a knowing one, once bought a horse of a country dealer. The bargain being concluded, and the money paid, 212 SPORTING ANECDOTES, the gentleman said—" Now, my friend, I have bought your horse because I liked his appearance, and I asked you no questions; tell me now his faults: you know 1 have paid you, therefore you have nothing to fear." Faults, (replied the man) I know of no faults except two." " What are they ?" " Why, sir, he is bad to catch." " I do not mind that, (said the know* ing one) I shall contrive to catch him if he be the d-v-1. But what is the other fault ?" (rejoined he wiih some impatience.) " Ah! sir, (replied Hodge, scratching his pate) he is good for nothing when you have catched him." A CRITICAL JUNCTURE. Wriothesly, Duke of Bedford, was at Bath one season, when a conspiracy was formed against his Grace by several first-rate sharpers, among whom was the manager of a theatre and Nash, the master of the ceremonies. — A party at hazard had already deprived the Duke of upwards of seventy thousand pounds, when he got up in a passion, and put the dice in his pocket. The gamesters were all terrified, as they knew they were loaded, and more especially so because the Duke had communicated his suspicions, and intimated at the s?me time his resolution of inspecting them. His Grace then retired into another room, and flinging himself gn a sopha, fell asleep. The only step that appeared practicable to the win- ners, to avoid disgrace and get their money, was to pick his pocket of the loaded dice, and to supply their place with a pair of fair ones: they accordingly cast lots SPORTTXG ANECDOTES. 213 who should execute this dangerous commission, and it fell on the manager ; he performed the operation without being discovered ; after which, his Grace having closely- inspected the dice he had in his pocket, and finding them just, renewed the party, and lost nearly thirty thousand pounds in addition yet they could not divide this sum without quarrelling, and Nash, think- ing himself ill-used, divulged the whole imposition to his Grace, whereby he saved the remainder of the money. His grace made Nash a handsome present, and ever after gave him his protection, the Duke think- ing the secret was divulged through friendship. THE HUNTING CONNOISSEUR, A gentleman that was exceedingly fond of hunt- ing, was once running a fox (the dogs being in full cry) up the side of an acclivity, where the echo gave the various tones a striking effect ! meeting a friend to whom, after the usual salutation, he observed, " what heavenly music J 5 '—" Heavenly music, (exclaimed the other, looking up and listening) why I cannot hear any thing for the noise of those d-mn-d hounds !" the inexorable sportsman. We have read many instances of unpremeditated equivoques, but the following may, perhaps, fairly be said to eclipse them, in point of appropriateness. A lord of a manor having brought an action against the parson, for shooting upon his lands, imagined himself to be addressed from the desk, one Sunday, in these words — " O Lord forgive us our trespasses :" the 3 214 SPORTING ANECDOTES. squire rose in a fury, and swore lit -would sec him damn'd first ! A GOOD SHOT. One of the exiled princes of the unfortunate house of Bourbon, that house, whose fate has excited the commiseration of every reflecting mind, was once shooting at Mr. Coke's, at Holkham. While looking the coveys, a foreign servant cried out poule (hen), as is customary whenever a hen-pheasant rose. On the gamekeeper's return at night, Mr. Coke asked what sort of a shot the prince was. To which the man re- plied,' l I thought, sir, you had been the best shot in the world, till 1 saw his highness, who beats you ; for if he had pulled as often as the French fellow desired him, he would have shot all the pheasants on -your honour's estate." 1 A RECEIPT TO MAKE A JOCKEY. Take a pestle and mortar of moderate size, into Queensbury's head put Banbury's eyes ; Cut Dick Vernon's throat, and save all the.blood, To answer jour purpose, there's none half so good j Pound Clermont to dust, you'll find it expedient, The world cannot furnish a better ingredient. From Derby and Bedford, take plenty of spirit, Successful or not, they have always that merit- Tommy Panton's address, John Wastell' advice, And touch of Prometheus, 'tis done in a trice ! CONCISE CONSOLATION. A gentleman of fo.tune having purchased a grey geldings at a repository of much celebrity, for the pin- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 21j pose of carrying his daughter, sent the horse to a vete- rinarian of some eminence, for his opinion, from whom he received the following information. " Sir, " The subject sent for examination is so completely chest -foundered, that he can hardly get his legs from under him ; in addition to which, one eye has taken final leave, and the other is visibly inclined to follow. I understand by your servant, he was brought from the hammer; to the hammer he had better be re- turned. ' The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away ; blessed be the name of the Lord." CANINE INGRATITUDE. The dog, of all the animals in the creation, has ever been regarded as the peculiar friend and companion of man. Among the most conspicuous of those qualities which bind him to his master, and render him amiable to mankind, is that of gratitude ; gratitude, which no ill usage can shake, no neglect can destroy. But ano- malies are no less frequent in animals than in man; the latter have their moral deviations, and the former their instinctive contradictions. As a striking proof of the justness of these deductions, we will present to our readers the following accredited fact. A butcher, of Mitcham, in Surrey, had reared a mastiff-dog from a puppy, and was so attached to him, that he was his constant company wherever he went. One day this mastiff had been eating very plentifully of some horse-flesh which his master had purchased for him, and having lost some part of it, the butcher at- tempted to take hold of i», in order to lay it by : the 216 SPORTING ANECDOTES. dog instanf y seized liis arm, and tore the flesh off in a most dreadful manner: not content with this, the fu- rious animal flew up at his master's throat, where ht fastened himself, and was not loosened from his hold, 'till some neighbours tied a rope round his neck in or- der to strangle him. The moment the dog felt the cord, he let go ; and such was the extraordinary at- tachment of the butcher to this favorite mastiff, that al- though his life was in imminent danger, he would not suffer the animal to be destroyed. It is generally sup- posed, that eating such a quantity of raw horse-flesh occasioned the ferocity of the animal ; for 'till this cir- cumstance happened, he had always been remarkably docile. dr. tranklin's advice to a young sportsman. A gentleman of this description, from a too eager pursuit of the follies of high fashion, had spent the last guinea of his patrimony. At length, after receiving in- sults from those whom he had protected, and being de- nied a meal by those whom he had once fed, fortune in one of her vagaries, presented him with another estate more valuable than the first. Upon the possession of it, young Nimrod waited upon the late celebrated Dr. Franklin, who had been the friend of his father, to beg his advice. " What were the causes of your late mis- fortunes ?" enquired the doctor. •' Lawyers, quacks, gamesters, and footmen," replied the applicant. " The four greatest pests of your metropolis/' rejoined Frank- lin. " But poisons (continued the doctor) in the po- litical as well as medical world may, when judiciously SPORTING ANECDOTES. 217 applied, become antidotes to each ether; my advice therefore, is, that you remember the past conduct of the lawyers ; this remembrance will teach you not to go to law, and by this you will preserve your new-ac- quired property from their chicanery; the practice of the quacks should teach you to live temperately, and by this you will escape the miseries created by those mercenary monsters; the gamester may shew you the necessity of forbearance, and remind you of the old proverb, that ' only knaves and fools are adventurers;' and by this your vigilance will be excited to take care of your ready money : as to the idleness and insolence of footmen, these will teach you the pleasures of wait- ing upon yourself, in which you will be sure to escape the mortification of paying for torments in your own house. Go, son of my friend, ponder these antidotes, and be happy." the Quaker's view holla ! TnK Duke of Grafton being fox-hunting near New- market, a quaker, at some distance, upon an adjoining eminence, pulled off his hat, and gave a view holla ! The hounds immediately ran to him, and being drawn off the scent, were consequently at fault, which so en- raged the duke, that galloping up to the offender, he asked him in an angry tone, " Art thou a quaker?" " I am, friend," replied broad-brim. " Well then, (rejoined his grace) as you never pull off your hat to a christian, I will thank you in future not to pay that compliment to a fox." 218 SPORTING ANECDOTES. A HORSE AND A GALLOWAY. The famous Dr. Galloway, so remarkable for his surprising cures in the veterinary line, passing along the street, a'young man called after him, " Dr. Horse! Dr. Horse !" at which the doctor turned round, and said, " Is it me you want? my name is Galloway, and not Horse. " Why, (replied the wag) what difference is there between a horse and a galloway ? PLAY UPON WORDS. A poacher was carried before a magistrate, upon a charge of unlawfully killing game in a nobleman's park, where he was caught in the fact. Being asked what he had to say in his defence, and what proof he could bring to support it, he replied, — " An' please your worship, I know and confess that I was found in 'his lordship's park, as the witness has told you, but I can bring the whole parish to prove, that for these thirty years it has been my manner.'" LONDON FO}C CHASE. The Epping Hunt has often been admired for its cu- rious field of sportsmen, but we believe never was there a more motley group than that which was dis- played on the following singular occasion: — A fine fox was unkennelled among the ruins in the Strand, on the western side of Temple Bar. Masons, labourers, hackney coachmen, &'c. &c. all in full cry, joined the pursuit. The. crowd and variety were additionally in- creased by a large portion of the casual passengers in SPORTING ANECDOTES. 219 that great thoroughfare, who were attracted to the scene of curiosity, supposing that some wonderful dis- covery had been made among the ruins. Poor Rey- nard, being an animal of strong instinct; first made for Clement's Inn, in hopes, no doubt, that a fellow-feel- ing would there ensure him a safe asylum. He had the good fortune to gain the gate, but that was nearly the total of his success; he tried every building; he ran up stairs and down stairs; but no friendly lawyer would afford him shelter, no hospitable door would open to receive him; he met with nothing but demur- rers, rebutters, and sur-rebutters, while action vi et ar- mis every where pursued him; finding no law in the inn, he made a double to gain his own ground, but he had scarcely reached it, when the blow of a pick-axe put an end at once to his life, and the pursuit. A hod- mau immediately mounted his brush, and a party of masons and labourers carried tne dead body in pro- cession to a public-house, there to regale themselves after the fatigues of the day, and celebrate the success of the chase. From whence poor Reynard came, or how it happened he should take up such strange quar- t-re, we cannot conjecture. A FASHIONABLE SPORTSMAN AND HIS. l'RIEND. "k*.— -Lend me a horse, my friend Bob, for to morrow- Pray which of them all will you lend ? Its cursed unpleasant, you well know, to borrow, But I'm easy with you, my good friend. — Pon honour, with pleasure I would but indeed— ^ Inch would you prefer then ? — L 2 £20 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Dick.— The Urey— Bob, — Poor devil, he's badly, and quite off his feed.— > We'd a d — ran — ble run the last day — Dick.— The Black— Bob. —He is blister'd— Dick. — The Brown — Bob. — He is fired — Dick.— The Bay- Bob. — She's a.stumbling bitch : You should not have her, Dick, unless I desir'd, To see you laid dead in a ditch. Dick. — Pray which shall I have then — Brown Muzzle or Crop ? Bob. — I lend none — if truth I must tell — I've no licence, I own-— but ray stable's a shop— I ride all my horses — to sell. A SINGULAR ANECDOTE. A gentleman of Worcester paying a visit to a friend a few miles distant, took with him a brace of greyhounds, for the purpose of a day's coursing :— a hare was soon found, which the dogs ran for several miles, and with such speed, as to be very soon out of sight of the party who pursued ; but, after a very con- siderable search, both the dogs and the hare were found dead, within a few yards of each other ; nor did it ap- pear that the former had caught the hare, as no marks of violence were discovered upon her. A labouring man, whom they passed, said he saw the dogs turn her two or three times. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 221 INSTANCE OF EXTRAORDINARY AFFECTION IN A BADGER. The following circumstance is related in a letter to a friend from Chateau de Venours. " Two persons were on a short journey, and passing through a hollow way, a dog which was with them started a badger, which he attacked, and pursued, till he took shelter in a burrow under a tree. With some pains they hunted him out, and killed him. Being a very few miles from a village, called Chapellatiere, they agreed to drag him there, as the Commune gave a reward for every one which was destroyed ; besides, they purposed selling the skin, as badger's hair fur- nishes excellent brushes for painters. Not having a rope, they twisted some twigs, and drew him along the road by turns. They had not proceeded far, when they heard a cry of an animal in seeming distress, and stopping to see from whence it proceeded, another bad- ger approached them slowly. They at first threw stones at it, notwithstanding which it drew near, came up to the dead animal, began to lick it, and continued .its mournful cry. The men, surprised at this? desisted from offering any further injury to it, and again drew the dead one along as before; when the living ... determining not to quit its dead companion, lay down on it, taking it gently by one ear, and in that manner was drawn into the midst of the village; nor could dogs, boys or men induce it to quit its situation by any means, and to their shame be it said, they had the in- humanity to kill it, and afterwards to burn it, decla- ring it could be no other than a witch." l 3 222 SPORTING ANECDOTES. THE ROYAL CHESS-PLAYER. Prince Bathiani, a branch of one of the first fa- milies in Hungary, (says a member of the late Na- tional Assembly) seems to possess no ambition beyond a desire to analyze the whole composition of the game of Chess. Could Addison's ideas be followed up in the dissection of the brain of this man, he observes, nothing would be found in it but the various models of all the various pieces made use of in this game, from the pawn to the king. He sees, he hears, he thinks of nothing but chess. It is the first thought of his waking hours, and the last of his nocturnal slumbers: all the motives that move and agitate other men, are to him dull and inert. " In vain (says the French writer of this account) did I endeavour to detach him but for a moment from the precious continuity of his own ideas, by introducing some observations upon the situation of his country. To these he made no reply; but pulling a small chess-board out of his pocket, he assured me that he had it made at London by one of the ablest artists of which Great Britain had to boast/' Resembling the ancient knights-errant that ranged over hill and dale in search of adventures, Prince Ba- thiani has traversed all Europe with no other view than to obtain the superlative happiness of throwing down the gauntlet to some of the ablest players. It was perhaps jestingly said of this prince, that he had an idea of travelling into Asia, to discover whether any of the race of Palemedis were still in existence. There can be no doubt that his journey to Rome, about the year 1794,was for the purpose of learning SPORTING ANECDOTES. 223 the abilities of the chess-players in that city. For three months he was most rigorously incog. He also lost considerable sums, but was by no means cured of the vain conceit of his own abilities: at best but a very middling player, he was continually intoxicated with' the eulogiums heaped upon him by artful and design- ing men. Dining one day at the house of his banker, an abbe being present, and proposing a party at chess, it was accepted by the prince with great pleasure; when the abbe, after considerable success, perceiving that his want of attention had nearly been prejudicial to him, suddenly exclaimed, " What a fool am I ; I have been nearly as conceited as Prince Bathiani.'" — The banker, who was a looker-on, felt an uncommon em- barrassment. The prince, however, without betray- ing any symptoms of surprise, asked the abbe, " Why he said he was as conceited as Prince Bathiani?" " Be- cause, (replied the other) 1 have often heard that this German prince is a terrible chess-player, but that his vanity is so great, that he believes himself the first player in the world ; while the proof of the contrary exists at Vienna, where he lost fifty thousand crowns." " That is false (replied the prince), he lost no more than forty/' " Well (said the abbe), that is enough to prove him forty times a fool." It is scarcely neces- sary to add, that this party soon broke up, the prince paid his loss, and went out abruptly. The abbe's cu- riosity being awakened to know his partner, the banker unable to resist his importunities, informed him that this was Prince Bathiani himself. " That (exclaimed the abbe) is impossible." However, to be convinced,, he followed the prince's chariot towards the Place d'Espagne, and being soon after completely satisfied,. L 4 5224 SPORTING ANECDOTES. lie had only to regret that he did not derive more ad- vantage from the opportunity that had been afforded him. AN EXTRAORDINARY STAG HUNT. It is maintained by metaphysicians, that all our actions result from the association of ideas; that dur- ing sleep this operation of the mind still continues with a certain degree of energy, though memory is sus- pended, (whence the proximate cause of dreams) and that if any past or expected event dwells strongly and exclusively upon the intellect, we infallibly find our- selves, while asleep, busied about that event. Per- haps a stronger proof of the accuracy of this hypothesis never occurred, than that which was presented by Sir F — d P — le. This gentleman slept one night at the Cock Inn, Epping, preparatory to the last day's stag hunt at that place; but going to repose, he was so full of the pleasures of next day's field, that he no sooner fell asleep, than in imagination he entered upon the chase with his accustomed ardour. -After running the first burst quietly enough in bed, he jumped up, in or- der, as he supposed, to take a leap over a stile; and to supply the want of a horse, he adroitly threw up the sash, and strided his supposed hunter: the window happened not to be far from terra Jirma, and by luckily catching hold of the curtain, he landed safely on the other side of the hedge. Sir Ferdinand then continued the sport with unabated vigour, and had proceeded some considerable way towards Epping-place Inn, when he luckily met with a check; during his chase, he had kept the middle of the road, a privilege which he was SPORTING ANECDOTES. 225 by no means easily made to relinquish ; however, he met with a broad- wheel waggon, the driver of which perceiving something in white before him, providentially stopped his horses, or Sir F. must have been materially injured. Hodge, still finding the ghost advance, and being a stout fellow, he stepped forward, and accosted him with " who's there?" No reply being made, he made bold to take him by the hand and shake him: it was not, however, 'till he had repeated this compulsory salutation two or three times, that Sir F. could be made to relinquish his pursuit, and acknowledge that he was thrown out. When he came to himself, his astonishment is easier to be conceived than described: however, upon recollecting that he had been in bed at the Cock at Epping, and explaining the event to the astonished waggoner, he re-conducted him to the inn, and knocked up the landlord. Sir F. and the host im- mediately went to the room where he had slept, and there found the window and curtain in the situation above-described ; the dream also recurring to Sir Fer- dinand, the whole of this wonderful event was ac- counted for, Sir F. then went to bed again, had me- dical assistance, and continued at tie inn several days, in consequence of the bruises he received in the fall from the window, and the cold he caught during the chase. SPORTING PORTRAIT OF THE P OF W . This is a most distinguished likeness of the original,, who, with as good a head and better heart tha major part of his cotemporaries, has orihap^ily be- come the dupe of almost every titled villain in the l 5 226 SPORTING ANECDOTES. higher circles of society. There is not a polished ad- venturer of the family, but has enjoyed some part of the general depredation upon his property. Possessing sensations openly alive to all the tender claims of huma- nity, to all the endearing offices of polite society, he could not, so early in life, be proof against the eter- nally seducing attractions of duplicity. Born to sup- port a situation far superior to every idea of subordi- nation, he could not be abstracted from that infinity of temntation, to which a p of so much distin- guished philanthropy, so much invariable affability, must inevitably become the incessant subject. Pro- pelled by the influence of fashion, and the never-fail- ing force of example, he became a temporary depen- dant upon the deceptive criterion of 'friendly assistance, and a dupe to the most villainous schemes, the most abandoned artifices, that ever disgraced an aristocratic association. Under the relentless influence of such connections, he unfortunately embarked in every un- justifiable and ruinous pursuit that juvenility could adopt, or infatuation approve. His hounds, hunters, stud in training, and the retinue that were attendant upon the whole, exceeded, in these respects, every moderate calculation, both in number and expendi- ture; which, in addition to the immense sums for which he stood engaged upon the turf, would have an- nihilated the revenue of majesty itself, and rendered additional claims upon national liberality matter of the most inevitable necessity. Happy, however, for him- self, happy for his august and anxious relatives, more happy for an admiring, expectant, and beloved na- tion (over whom he is one day to preside) he has, with a degree of ardour that adds lustre to a long list of in- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 22?" herent virtues, no longer to be obscured, nobly and voluntarily relinquished every fascinating folly, that could tend to sully his name, or degrade his dignity; his hunting establishment has been long reduced, his numerous racing stud distributed by the hammer of a fashionable auctioneer, and his almost unlimited retinue dismissed, as a kind of sacrifice to economy. In contemplating this spontaneous act of honour and of justice, let us generously bury in oblivion the re- membrance of those follies, which thousands in his situation, surrounded with every incentive to irregu- larity, and beyond the restraint of authoritative inhi- bition, would have committed, but which fetv would have the magnanimity to abjure. And let us never forget, that it is harder to make one retrogate motion from vice to virtue, than to sink from the highest pin- nacle of the former to the lowest depths of the latter. " Virlus in actione consistit." Hon. THE HIGH ELGOD OF A FOXHOUND. An Historical Fact. The breed of Colonel Thornton's canine race was universally allowed to be one of the highest strain ima- ginable; uncon fined to sort, as also unrestrained in ex- pence, his observation and experience indubitably proved his great knowledge in every cross of bloody more than any other sporting competitor. In crossing the foxhound with the pointer, and vice versa, he evinced a science peculiar to himself; and the follow- ing anecdote of a foxhound, as related by himself, will l 6 228 SPORTING ANECDOTES. not be altogether inapplicable to verify the existence of high blood in the species. A gallant lofty young bitch-hound was one day freely giving tongue, in drawing a strong cover, and when at first casting off, and none of the other hounds challenging the same drag, the huntsman chided her babble, but to no purpose; she still continued with redoubled note, and the huntsman persisted she was wrong, and thought her lavish and incorrigible, which induced him to apply the whip with great severity, and in the bestowing of which, one of her eyes was acciden- tally lashed out of the socket. In this state the bitch continued to run from drag to chase, and proved her- self stanch, and not riotous, for a fox had stole away, and she broke cover, single-handed. However, after much cold scenting, and some delay, the pack hit off the chase; at some. little turning, a farmer, who was reconnoitring his grounds, informed the field, or rather the gentlemen of the chase, that they were far behind their fox, for that a single chase hound, very bloody about the head, and with an eye cut out, had passed some fields distant, and tbat she was then running breast high in scent, and there was little probability of getting up to her afterwards; however, coming up to check, the pack did get up with her, and after some lit- tle cold hunting, hit off the chase again from a nume- rous cast, where the biich had not failed, and clapped on him some hard running. At length, after a severe burst, they run into their fox, and killed him in a most gallant style; Colonel Thornton, the owner of the hounds, was in at the deaih, and observing this bitch- hound, actually took out his scissars, and severed the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 229 skin by which the eye had hung pendant, during the progress of the chase." INSCRIPTION ON A FAVOURITE DOG. My dog, the trustiest of his kind, With gratitude inflames ray mind. Let this perpetuate the memory of an animal, who, when living, was deservedly esteemed for his uncommon sagacity and honesty j though of Irish origin, he was no rebel, but faithful, constant, and invariable in his attachments ; his anger got sometimes the better of that discretion with which he was endowed by nature ; but it was then, only when he found unjustifiable opposition to his delegated legal authority. Possessed of every amiable quality, His resentment for any ariVo.it, or rough treatment, soon subsi and lie bee placable, loving, and sincere. Such was the 1 ttnous Uko, whoso misfortune it was to be killed by accid (to the genei tl regret of ail who knew him) June d, 17 y 6. 230 SPORTING ANECDOTES. BIOGRAPHY PARODIED, IN THE HISTORY OF PERO. Pero was descended, on the female side, from a very ancient line in Northumberland, and tradition says, that his ancestors were, from generation to gene- ration, great favourites of the Saxon kings of that dis- trict. By his own mother's side, (who was of Shrop- shire) he was related to almost all the celebrated hounds who signalized themselves in the chase during the time of the Danish and Norman usurpations. Jn the tree of pedigree of Pero's family, we find also the name of Yelpo, king Canute's favourite buck hound, and also that of List, who was king Alfred's faithful companion, when that monarch was driven forth, and in disguise, in the Isle of Wight. But the most illus- trious name in the tree, and the founder of the male line, is Hatpan, who came over with William the Con- queror, and was his favourite blood-hound; there- cords likewise of the Duke of Fitzroy's kennel assure us, that when the conqueror deluged the northern counties with blood, and spread desolation throughout that district, Harpan attended him, and had an amour with a beautiful fox-hound belonging to the Prior of Durham, from which union our Pero was lineally de- scended. When he was but a little puppy, he shewed a great precocity of genius, and every one foretold that he would not disgrace the illustrious blood that flowed in his veins! He was, therefore, when very young, put under the care of Tom Snipe, the duke's game- keeper, but this part of his education did not succeed according to expectation. Honest Tom, in his old 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 231 days, Laving made too free with the bottle, Pero's in- structions were, consequently, much neglected, and it was feared he would fall into idle habits, and that his great genius would remain uncultivated. To prevent such a dreadful misfortune, his guardians removed him into Wiltshire, where he finished his studies, under the care of the learned and ingenious Peter Partridge, gamekeeper to Lord N d ; at first, indeed, he suf- fered severely by Peter's whip, but no sooner was he broke of his idle habits, than he made a most rapid progress in his education, in every part of which he was without an equal, whether for the melody of a fine deep-toned voice, for swiftness of foot, unexhausted strength, or stanchness of scent; nor can it create sur- prise, that these rare qualifications, so happily blended together, procured him the favour and patronage of the great. He has hunted with all the first nobility hi the kingdom, and indeed has always kept the best company, and never failed to excite their esteem and admiration. He was always in at the death, on which occasion he has often been honoured by his M y's attention, and at one time was patted on the head by the P of W , but this singular honour and happiness had almost cost him his life ; for, on boast- ing of irin the kennel, with rather too much vanity, the envious hounds set upon him, and had not the whipper-in most fortunately entered, and seasonably exercised his whip among them, he had certainly been torn limb from limb. Lord L — — , who was then on a hunting visit to Lord N , affected with Pero's dangerous situation, begged him of his lordship, and his request was granted j but no sooner did he bring 232 SPORTING ANECDOTES. him home, than his own kennel was equally envious < So true are the words of the lyric bard — " A favourite has no friend !" To remedy this inconvenience, however, it was or- dered that Pero should sleep in the warm stable, and all day he was a parlour guest with his lordship, by whose hand he was fed with the choicest bits; but such is the fallaciousness of worldly enjoyments! with all this semblance of terrestrial bliss, poor Pero was truly miserable; the servant maids, though they dare not speak out, were his bitter enemies, and were even greatly offended, forsooth, because he dirtied the stair- case, the hall, and the parlour ! and besides the almost daily plots that were laid to poison him, many a good kick and blow he got when his master's back was- turned. Thus passed his days, till old age, hastened by luxury and inactivity, (for he indulged himself too much in sleeping before the parlour fire) brought on its attendant infirmities. His loss of memory became notorious, and all his faculties were visibly impaired; when his lordship, out of great compassion and regard for him, ordered him to be hung, a death, which, ex- cepting a few that were shot for being mad, was the lot of all his ancestors, for these two thousand years,, and perhaps as many more beyond the extent of our most ancient records. In his person, Pero was re- markably well made, and beautifully spotted with liver colour, except on bib left hind leg, where he wore two- black spots; one of his ears was a little torn, occasi- oned by the not in the kennel, already mentioned; he had great expression in his countenance; when his 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 233 lordship would hold up to him the wing of a fowl, or a slice of venison, he would leer at it slily, and wag his tail, and turn up one ear, as if listening with great at* tention, which, together with the arch cast of his eyes, gave him a wonderful look of sagacity. He was firm in his friendship, and grateful to his benefactors, whom lie would attend night and day ; but he was vindictive to a high degree, and could never forbear growling when any, who had used him ill, entered the parlour, while he lay at his lordship's feet i he was greatly ad- dicted to concubines, by whom he has left a numerous progeny, which are highly prized by the best huntsman in this kingdom, lie was also a great thief, for which the cook and butler gave him many a curse, and not a few hard blows ; but, it must be said in his vindication, that lie never stole any thing except when he was hun- gry ; we had almost forgotten to mention to posterity, that half his tail was cut off* ; this was done by the ce- lebrated Tom Snipe, already mentioned ; the reason he gave forit was, that the weight of his tail might not break his back, when he was in hard running; so hap- py is it for youth to fall into the hands of ingenious preceptors, and so ridiculous is the saying of the poet — " God never made his works for man to mend." In a word, he was a dog, V Take him for all in all, we ne'er shall see his like again." 234 SPORTING ANECDOTES. WONDERFUL ESCATE. A gentleman being sporting one day, was led farther than he intended, by the wildness and continued evolution of the covey he was pursuing, till at length night surprised him. Being unwilling to return through the length of way that would be inevitable if he pur- sued the proper road, he chose to cut off a part, by taking almost a trackless route through the fields. This road he had before travelled, though it was many years since; he kept therefore in the track he had for- merly known, which was by the side of the dangerous Mersey, whose waves had, in one place, undermined and washed away the solid earth, and left only the turf remaining above, twenty yards from the surface of the water. When he came to tin's place, it sunk with his weight, and he had inevitably perished, had not his gun, which he carried under his arm, caught two trees that had inclined, but not totally yielded, to the waves. But even this temporary safety could not secure his life, for, when unable to endure it, he must inevitably have fallen into the river, had not one of his faithful dogs rescued him. If he moved, the gun would have lost its hold ; he was, therefore, uncertain what to do in this dreadful dilemma; but the grateful animal looked round in seeming despair, whined and gazed full at him, and at length, with all the firmness that a friend is ca- pable of displaying for his benefactor, seized him by the collar, and absolutely drew him from his tremen- dous suspension, The gentleman, when delivered, lay on the ground for some time thunderstruck and mo- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 235 tionless; the poor animal watched him with the great- est solicitude, but when he perceived him rise, it is impossible to express how he bounded round the field, leaped up as high as his head, bounded again, and used every gesticulation to manifest his excessive joy I SKETCH OF A SPORTSMAN" OF THE LAST AGE, This character, now worn out and gone, was the in- dependant gentleman of three or four hundred pounds a year, who commonly appeared in his drab or plush coat, with large silver buttons, and rarely without boots, His time was principally spent in field amuse- ments, and his travels never exceeded the distance of the county town, and that only at assize and sessions, or to attend an election. A journey to London was by one of these men, reckoned as great an undertaking as is at present a voyage to the East Indies; and it was undertaken with scarcely less precaution and pre- paration. At church, upon a Sunday, he always ap- peared, never played at cards but at Christmas, when he exchanged his usual beverage of ale, for a bowl of strong brandy punch, garnished with a toast and nutmeg. The mansion of one of these squires was of plaster, or of red brick, striped with timber, called callimanco work, large casement bow window, a porch with seats in it, and over it a study ; the eaves of the house were well inhabited by martins, and the court set round with holly-hocks, and dipt yews; the hall was provided with flitches of bacon, and the mantle-piece with fowl- ing pieces and fishing-rods, of different dimensioos, ac- 236 SPORTING ANECDOTES. companied by the broad sword, partisan, and dagger borne by his ancestors in the civil wars; the vacant spaces were occupied by stag's horns; in the window lay Baker's Chronicle, Fox's Book of Martyrs, Glanvil on Witches, Quincys Dispensatory, Bracken's Farriery, and ihe Gentleman's Recreation ; in this room, at Christ- mas, round a glowing fire, he entertained his tenants; here was told and heard exploits in hunting, and who had been the best sportsman of his time ; and although the glass was in continual circulation, the traditionary tales of the village, respecting ghosts and witches, pe- trified them with fear ; the best parlour which was ne- ver opened but on some particular occasion, was fur- nished with worked chairs and carpet, by some indus- trious female of the family, and the wainscot was deco- rated with portraits of his ancestors, and pictures of running horses and hunting pieces. Among the out-offices of the house were a warm stable for his horses, and a good kennel for his hounds; and near the gate was the horse-block, for the conveni- ency of mounting. . But these men and their houses are no more ; the luxury of the times has obliged them to quit the coun- try to become the humble dependents on great men, and to solicit a place or a commission to live in Lon- don, to rack their tenants, and draw their rents before due. The venerable mansion is suffered 10 tumble down, or is partly upheld as a farm-house, until, after a few years, the estate is conveyed to the steward of the neighbouring lord, or else some nabob limb of the law, or contractor ! SPORTING ANECDOTES. 237 THE ECONOMICAL SPORTSMAN. There is no apophthegmatical axiom so just but that it is capable of modification, either from its own inherent deficiency, or from the multifarious inclina- tions, habits, and pursuits of mankind. That " neces- sity is the mother of invention," few will feel disposed to contradict, and as few probably would be inclined to assert or maintain, that the love of pleasure, or a peculiar fondness for any given pursuit, could produce the same ingenuity, and stimulate a man to the same contrivances as that lt tamer of the human breast," ne- cessity. But, " Exemplo plus quam ratione vivimus," All knowledge is built upon experience, and experi- ence alone can produce perfection. The following well authenticated narrative will sufficiently prove that there is no passion of the human breast so strong, but that it may be equalled, and sometimes surpassed, by others, of less apparent energy. With half a dozen children, as many couple of hounds, and two hunters, Mr. Osbaldeston, clerk to an attorney, kept himself, family, and these dogs and horses, upon sixty pounds per annum. This also was ef- fected in London, without running in debt, and with always a good coat on his back. To explain this seeming impossibility, it should be observed, that after the expiration of the office hours, Mr. O. acted as an accomptant for the butchers at Clare Market, who paid him in offal. The choicest morsels of this he se- 238 SPORTING ANECDOTES. lected for himself and family, and with the rest he fed his hounds, which were kept in the garret. His horses were lodged in the cellar, and fed on grains from a neighbouring brewhouse, and on damaged corn, with which he was supplied by a corn-chandler, whose books he kept in order once or twice a week. In the season he hunted, and by giving a hare now and then to the farmers over whose grounds he sported, he secured their good will and permission ; and several gentlemen struck with the extraordinary economical mode of his hunting arrangements, which were generally known, winked at his going over their manors. Mr. O. was the younger son of a gentleman of good family, but small fortune, in the north of England, and having imprudently manied one of his father's servants, was turned out of doors, with no other fortune than a southern hound big with pup, and whose offspring from that time, became a source of amusement to him. THE MONKEY SPORTSMAN. A diverting occurrence once took place near Taunton, in Somersetshire. A favourite old hunter, belonging to Joseph Pautley, P^sq. being locked in the stable, on hearing the.noise of a French horn and cry of the hounds began to be very restiff; the ostler instant- ly saddled him, placed a large monkey on his back, and turned him loose; following the sound, he joined the pack, and was one of the first in at the death of poor Reynard ; but the amazement of the sporting gentlemen was greatly heightened by observing the monkey hold the reins with all the dexterity of a true sportsman. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 23$ ELEGY ON THE DEATH OF A SPORTSMAN. Pale rose the misty spirits of the vale, And from the verdant haunts of silver time, Whose fairy haunted stream, First heard the discord of ray artless song, Spread o'er the fading landscape wide ; Enthron'd are now tue starry throng ; The queen of heaven is clad in ali her pride ; The. birds of night majestically sail Amid the silent air : While pensive meditation seeks the plains Whose hallow'd earth Eugenio's dust contains. Ah ! youth belov'd, of sport beyond compare ; Past fell my tears upon the sacred spot, Alas ! by all, but me, neglected and forgot ! Ah ! what is manly youth, or jocund health] When death is near ! Ah ! what avail the treasured hopes of wealth, When fate prepares the destin'd bier! No more Eugenio shall joy's ardent fire Impel thee o'er the plain ; No more shall sport the mountain rocks ascend, Or on the syrtes of the marsh depend, And bid thee, danger, and stern toil disdain,* No more thy nerves confirm, thy gen'rous soul inspire. Where is the vigorous stride, the manly mien, On which th' immortal maids, Who rale the sylvan shades, Gaz'd with delight, envious of Clara's bliss; While the rude powers that guard the glades Trembling relir'd ? Ah me ! no more is seen The graceful form that glow'd amidstthe breeze, In the mild vallej, or the lonely wood, When thou, at sport's command, her devious steps pursu'd. QiO SPORTING ANECDOTES. Farewel, the thund'ring tube ! Eugenio now No more invites me to the field ! No more at night's approach, the raptur'd youth., Bidding his various spoils assert the truth, Narrates the toils and triumphs of the day. When morning is reveal'd, On the high healthy mountain's brow His early voice shall summon me away No more. Farewell, Oh sport ! And every gay resort, Where with Eugenio once I woo'd thy charms, Me faithful grief disarms, And friendship leads, when evening's shades arise ; Or early morn with purple stains the skies, Where, mould 'ring in the grave, my lov'd companion lies, CANINE SAGACITY AND GRATITUDE. A gentleman who usually spent the winter months in the capital of North Britain, having gone with his family to pass the summer at his country seat, left the care of his town residence, together with a fa- vorite house-dog, to some servants, who were placed on board wages. The dog soon found board wages very short allowance; and to make up the deficiency, he had recourse to the kitchin of a friend of his master's, which in better days he had occasionally visited. By a hearty meal which he received there daily, he was enabled to keep himself in good condition, till the re- turn of his master's family to town on the approach of winter. Though now restored to the enjoyment of plenty at home, and standing in no need of foreign li- berality, he did not forget that hospitable kitchin, where he had found a resource in his adversity. A few days after, happening to saunter about the streets, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 241 be fell in with a duck, which, as he found it in no pri- vate property. He snatched up the duck in his teeth, carried it to the kitchen where he had been so hospita- bly fed, laid it at the cook's feet, with many polite movements of his tail, and then ran out with much seeming complacency, at having given this testimony of his grateful sense of favours. LACONIC REJOINDERS. About thirty years ago, a gentleman riding cheek- by-jowl with poor Bob Bloss, the training groom, (in the interval between the heats at an Epsom meeting, and knowingly balancing the pretensions of the different horses, as well as the owners,) found himself by the side of a Golrmding mare, called Whirligig, which he knew to be the property of a London chimney-sweeper, nick-named Sootbag. At the instant, a cockney sportsman rode up, and asked the following questions of the lad who led the mare, and received the follow- ing answers. " What's the name of this mare Y f 'Whirligig/ " Who rides her?" ' Blackwig/ " To whom does she belong ?" * Sootbag/ ANECDOTES OF THE LATE LORD ORFORD. No man ever sacrificed so much time, or so much property, to practical or speculative sporting as the late Earl of Orford, whose eccentricities are too firmly in- dented upon " the tablei of the memory," ever to be obliterated from the diversified rays of retrospection. Incessantly engaged in the pursuit of sport and new in- ventions; he introduced more whimsicalities, moreex^ u 242 SPORTING ANECDOTES. perimental genius, and enthusiastic zeal than any man ever did before him, or most probably any other man ever may attempt to do again. Among his experiments of fancy, was a determina- tion to drive four red deer-stags in a phaeton instead of horses, and these he had reduced to perfect disci- pline for his excursions and short journies upon the road : but unfortunately, as he was one day driving to Newmarket, their ears were saluted with the cry of a pack of hounds, which soon after crossing the road in the rear, caught scent of the " four in hand/ and com- menced a new kind of chace, with " breast-high" alac- rity. The novelty of this scene was rich beyond des- cription ; in vain did his lordship exert all his chario- teering skill — in vain did his well-trained grooms ener- getically endeavour to ride before them; reins, tram- mels, and the weight of the carriage, were of no ef- fect, for they went with the celerity of a whirlwind; and this modem Phaeton, in the midst of his elec- trical vibrations of fear, bid fair to experience the fate of his namesake. Luckily however, his lordship had been accustomed to drive this set- of " fiery-eyed steeds" to the Ram Inn, at Newmarket, which was most happily at hand, and to this his lordship's most fervent prayers and pjaeuxati; this day delivered into my custody by the said Henry Hurbert, and will before the said first day of March next, fully and ef- fectually train up and teach the said bitch to set par- tridges, pheasants, and other game, as well and exact- ly as the best setting dogs usually set the same. And the said bitch, so trained and taught, I shall and will deliver to the said Henry Hurbert, or to whom he shall appoint to receive her, at his house in Ribbesford, aforesaid, on the first day of March next. And if at any time after the said bitch shall, for want of use or practice, forget to get game as aforesaid, I will at my costs and charges maintain her for a month, or longer, as often as need shall require, to train up and teach her to set game, as aforesaid, and shall and will fully and effectually teach her to set game, as well and exactly as is above mentioned. " Witness my hand and seal the day and year first above written. John Harris his X mark. " Sealed and delivered in the presence of H. Payne his X mark/' \ 264 ORTING ANECDOTES, H, A RATIONAL DOG. [The pro} \ of the Rev. Dr. Worsley, of Gatcomb, in the Isle of Wight, Related by H -y C -g, Esq.] Errors, like straws, upon the surface flow; He who would seek for pearls, must dive below. DRYDEN. Man, in the fulness of his imaginary consequence, has presumed to assert that there is no creature in the universe possesses reason but himself. If this be a true position, how frequent may he behold in the less fa- voured animals, actions, that may put his rationality to the blush, and faculties,, . only called instinctive, 'to remind human presumption of its own insufficiency ! Some authors, and those of no mean consideration, have learnedly maintained, that if we must admit of a difference, the portion is often so slender, that a wise man hardly knows where to draw the line of demarca- tion. Our own immortal Milton was certainly posses- sed of this sentiment, when he composed the following interrogatories: Is not the earth with various Living creatures, and the air replenish'd ; and all these at Thy command to come and play before thee ? Knowest thou ISlot iheir language and their way ? They also know, and Reason not contemptibly. With these had pastime." ■*■ And now Aurora with the jocund hours, presented one of those lovely mornings, when softened by a pe- culiar serenity, every being that has pulsation rejoices, 2 SPORTING ANECV^TES. 265 with the vegetation that surround it. The sun had just exhaled the dews of night when i quitted my inn, and having refreshed myself at the milk-house on Node's Hill,* resolved on a trip to Chele-Bay, and the south-westerly parts of this delectable island : so, like the Peripatetics of old, took my staff, and pursued my journey with no other companion but the rural muse. At Gatcomb, about two miles west of Newport, a fine black dog, powdered with large white spots, and of the greyhound breed, came across the field from his master's house towards me, swift as an arrow from the bow of an archer ; he presented his nose, pricked up his ears, and wagged his tail, while, with the most sig- nificant look I had ever beheld, seemed to say — " Let me be your companion, you will not disapprove my friendship." I encouraged my new acquaintance for his partiality towards me, and consented to comply with his solicitations, for I had frequently found the whimsicality of the canine reasoner, and his playful en- deavours to divert, more agreeable to me than the ri- diculous frivolity of our own species. We therefore set off together in the most friendly manner, and pre- sently became as familiar, as if our acquaintance had been of a long standing; and he did every thing with me but talk. If a robin perched upon a bramble bough, he flew forwards to look into the matter ; and * The French having attempted to force Caresbrook Castle, defended by Sir Hugh Tyrrel, were cat off by an ambuscade, in a lane, which still bears the name of Deadman's Lane: and the tumuli, where the slain were buried, was called Hoddit's-Hill, now corrupted to Node's-Hi'l. $66 SPORTING ANECDOTES. when any thing appeared, having human consistency, my new friend returned with the greatest precipitance to warn me of the thing, and put me on my guard. When he came to a runlet of water, he would stay to 3ap of the current, and, turning up his brilliant eyes, most tenderly seemed to say— " Companion, if thou art thirsty, here thou mayest slake thy craving, like me, to the lull of thy wishes." To be brief my dog was my prime minister, and performed his duty in that capa- city with more credit to himself than many moderns who fill that exalted station; for he never led me to act wrong, nor forced me, through false representa- tions, to perform projects prejudicial to the interest of those who looked up to me for comfort and protec- tion; he had no piivate motive to gratify, nor could I accuse him of the smallest peculation : on the con- trary, he was a most penetrating companion upon dis- interested principles, my playful associate, determined defender, and my accomplished friend. And thus we journeyed together, communicating reciprocal caresses, until we arrived at the White Horse at Niton, near the sea; a village celebrated for its prodigious crabs and delicious oysters. I entered the mansion with an in- tent to solace myself and companion, but the good wo- man of the refectory assured me her husband was gone with his fish to Southampton, and she had not so much as a lobster left behind. At this disagreeable news, I found myself obliged to go farther a-field, so resolved to pass over the high downs of St. Catherine* for * St. Catherine's chapel, on Chele Downs, was founded by Walter Gadyton, in 3323. SPOUTING ANECDOTES. 26/ dele-Bay . As I turned over the stile at Niton, my good friend seemed more attentive than I had before observ- ed him. I had reason to apprehend his distress arose from my disappointment, and I endeavoured to rouse him to more playful measures. At length, as if awa- kened by some pleasing recollection, he raised his ears and darted across the Downs; in a few minutes I heard something cry like a tortured child, it was a fine wild rabbit my friend had taken, and when he had de- prived it of life, brought his game and laid it at my feet, and again turning his eyes pleasantly towards me, seemed to articulate thus — " There, fellow-traveller, though you were deprived of a meal at the White Horse at Niton, I have provided one on the Downs of St. Catherine ; take it, and refresh thy weary spirits." I took the rabbit by the heels, caressed my new friend in need, and we went merribly over the downs and rocks together, till we arrived at the old stone-church by the bay side, which, with the bays of Brixton and Fresh- water, form one dreadful coast, from Broken End to the Needle Rocks. Reflecting on the dangers of the sea- worn mariners, I left these tremendous heights, and with my playful dog tripped to the green by the church, entered a pleasant house called the Spaniard, and there found an excellent repast. Think'st thou thro' life to drink thy cur>all sweet, Thou'rt wrong ; some bilters in the bev'rage meet. And this is right ; since every age agrees. Without its bitters, not a sweet shall please. I omitted to observe, as I passed Chele, with the rabbit in my hand, and the dog by my side, I overtook -a being they call at this place a gentleman-farmer, witk N 2 ^66* SPORTING ANECDOTES. a fowling-piece. He seemed to regard meand my friend with a surly aspect. I moved my hat, but he returned not the motion. Just as I had finished my comforta- ble meal, 1 heard the report of a gun ; I looked round for my dog, but saw him not, he had strayed to the village green. I leaped up and flew to the door, when a rustic lad told me the gun was fired by Farmer •\y v? at a black dog, for running after his lambs. I instantly concluded the death of my kind companion had been effected by the same surly thing we passed in the lane. I could have sighed at the dissolution of a common acquaintance, but had a tear ready for my generous and playful quadruped. " If ever the farmer (said I with warmtn) should arrive at the bar of judgment, may he, who is the founder of mercy, remind him of the murder; and may he be forced to acknow- ledge, with contrition, that when he slew my honest companion he took away the life of a being pos- sessed of more philanthropy than himself." Such was my affection for this kind creature; and the man of mercy will pardon my exclamation. It is a poor and pitiful benevolence, that doth not extend beyond our own species : limited to that narrow sphere, it will daily counteract itself as we advance in life, until it be- comes entirely confined to ourselves, and as shrivelled, cold, and forlorn, as flinty avarice in the shades of its detested obscurity. I had scarce made an end of my reflections, when I beheld my dog enter unhurt ! The farmer had mis- , sed his aim ; and, that we might not run the risk of another attack, my friend and I left the inhospitable shores of Chele. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 209 Unwilling to return the way we came, I took the road to Chillerton ; and my fellow-traveller continued as entertaining as before; we went merrily on till we arrived at the back gate of Gatcombe-house ; the dog knew his home, and, as if sensible of the impropriety of proceeding, in the most tender manner caressed me, and bid me farewell; then darting through his master's grounds, leaped the pales, and disappeared. How shall we account for so much knowledge, fore- sight, and friendship, in what we call the brute ? May not this be suggested as a solution : the dog is capable of discriminating the imports of sounds, as well as man, and, of course, is competent to observe upon the ac- tions of those with whom he is familiar ; at least, I found those principles in the subject of my eulogium, whose friendship I shall never forget, and with whom I should again be happy to find such rational pastime ! MEMOIRS OF A CELEBRATED SPORTING LADY. Lady Da re all was the only child of a gentle- man of large fortune, in Hampshire, who was a perfect Nimrod in the chase; he was doatingly fond of her, having no son to initiate into his favorite pursuits, or to participate with him in the pleasures of hunting and shooting; seeing his daughter a fine robust girl, he de- termined to bring her up in the place of one, and, as she had strong animal spirits, great muscular strength, and rude health, she preferred partaking of the field sports of her father, to the lessons of the French go- verness and dancing- master, or being confined to work at the tambour-frame of her mother ; in spite of n 3 270 SPORTING ANECDOTES. whose gentle remonstrances, Mr. Hawthorn, aided by -the inclinations of his romping daughter, vowed he would have bis plan of educalion adopted. In consequence, at fifteen, she would take the most desperate leaps, and clear a five-barred gate with the keenest fox-hunter in the county. She was always in at the death ; was reckoned the best shot within a hun- dred miles ; for having once levelled her death-dealing tube, the fate of the feathered tribe was inevitable, as the spoils she exultingly displayed> sufficiently testi- fied, when she turned out her net to her admiring fa- ther. At seventeen, Harriet Hawthorn, early habituated to exercise, had never felt the baleful curse of ill-health, that extermination of every comfort. Her height was five feet eight; her person finely formed : she had a commanding and majestic appearance. From the free- dom of her education which had banished mauxaht honte, she had acquired a firm tone of voice, an impres- sive manner of delivering her sentiments, which, if it did aot always carry conviction to her auditors, helped to awe them into silence. Her complexion was that oia bright brunette; on her cheeks glowed the rich tints of health, laid on by Aurora, as she hailed the rosy- fingered goddess's approach on the upland lawn. Her eyes were of the darkest hazel, full of fire and intelli- gence ; ber nose Grecian; her hair a glossy chesnut, which flowed in luxuriant profusion upon her fine formed vshoulders, in all its native graces, as she never would consent to its being tortured into the fantastic forms dictated by the ever- varying goddess, Fashion, to her votaries. Her mind partook of the energies of her body, it was SPORTING ANECDOTES. 2?1 strong, nervous, and masculine ; she had a quick per- ception of character, and a lively wit, which she ex* pressed in flowing and animated language ; unused from early life to restraint, she never could be induced to put any on her words and actions* but had, to the present moment, done and said whatever struck her fancy, heedless of the world's opinion, which she treat- ed with the most sovereign contempt. At the period we have mentioned, she met at a fox- chase, Sir Barry Dareall, a handsome young man, just come of age, with whom she was charmed, by seeing him take a most desperate leap, in which none but her- self had the courage to follow him. Mutually pleased with each other's powers, from that time they became constant companions ; they hunted, shot, and played b:ick -gammon together. At this crisis the lovers were divided, by Squire Haw- thorn being ordered to Bath by his physicians, after having had a severe fit of his old enemy, the gout, in his stomach. To expel this foe to man, from the seat of life to the extremities, he was sent to drink the wa- ters of Bladud's fount, though, in the squire's opinion, old Madeira would have been much more pleasant, and of equal utility ; but the faculty persisted, and he was compelled to yield. He would not go without his dar- ling Harriet, deprived of whose society he could not exist a single day. This was Miss Hawthorn's first introduction to the fashionable world, except at an assize, a race, or an election ball. It was all, to her, new and wonderful ; she was at first amused by the novelty and splendour of the gay city of Bath, that emporium of cards, scandal, and ceremony. With her ideas of free-agency, she N 4, 272 SPORTING ANECDOTES was soon disgusted with the painful restraint imposed on her by the latter; wild as the wind, and unconfined as air, she soon bid defiance to rule and order, deter* mined to please herself just as she used to do at Bram- ble-Hall. In consequence of this wise resolve, she would mount her favourite blood-horse, gallop over Claverton Downs for a breathing before breakfast — leap off at the pump-room — dash in — charge up the ranks between yellow-faced spinsters and gouty par- sons, to the terror of the lame and decrepid — toss down a glass of water— quite forget the spur with which she always rode — entangled it in the fringe of some fair Penelope's petticoat, who, in knotting it, had be- guiled many a love-lorn hour, which this fair eques- trian demolished in a moment, paying not the least attention to the comments her behaviour occasioned the company to make, such as — " How vastly disagree- able—monstrous rude — quite brutish — only a fit com- panion for her father's hounds— I wonder how her mo- ther, who is really a very polite bred woman, can think of letting her loose without a muzzle!" To au- dible whispers, like these, Miss Hawthorn either laugh- ed contemptuously ; or as her wit was keen and point- ed, she made the retort courteous, and by her sarcasms soon silenced her antagonists. At the balls, she paid asjrttle attention to prece- dence and order, as she did to ceremony in the pump- room ; in vain the master of the ceremonies talked " about it, and about it ;" in vain he looked sour, or se- rious. She laughed in his face — advised him to des- cend from his altitude, that only made him look queer and quizzical; then walked to the top of the room, takes her place upon those seats held sacred for nobi- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 273 Jity, that were not to be contaminated by plebeians. In vain the elected sovereign of etiquette, talked of his delegated authority, and remonstrated against her en- croachments, as indecorous and improper. The men supported her in all these freaks ; the women, afraid of her satirical powers, only murmured their disappro- bation. The males were all charmed with the graceful beauty of her person, and the wild playful eccentricities of her manners: she was the toast and admiration of Batb r under the appellation of — " La Belle Sauiage." The fe- males concealed the envy they felt at this new rival cf their charms, under a pretended disgust of her unfe- mnized manners and masculine pursuits; while she felt and expressed a perfect contempt of their trifling avocations : and used to say they were pretty auto- matons, whose minds were as imbecile as their per- sons. Tired of the dull routine of fashionable follies, as the pleasure of surprising the crowd lost their novelty, Miss Hawthorn sighed for the time that was to restore her to her early habits. Of all the men that fluttered round, praised her charms, and vowed themselves her devoted adorers, she saw none that could stand in com- petition or dispute her heart, with her favourite com-' panion in the chase ; the manly, bold, and adventu- rous Sir Harry Dareall. Her father, who, by drinking the waters, had expel- led the gout from his stomach to his feet, and was con~ tent to accept a prolongt-d existence through n t- me- dium of excruciating torments, could not, till pro- nounced by the taculty to be in a state ot convales- cence, remove to B,ramble-Hall. Miss Hawthorn H 5- 274 SPORTING ANECDOTES. obliged to remain in a place of which she was heartily tired, sought amusement in her own way ; nor gave herself trouble what the company, with whom, to oblige her mother, she associated, thought of her ac- tions. At length Mr. Hawthorn, with his family, left Bath, and returned to Bramble Hall, where he soon received a visit from Sir Harry Dareall, who made overtures to the old gentleman of marrying his blooming Harriet. Mr, Hawthorn discovered the pleasure with which she received the baronet's proposal ; accepted the offer with as much eagerness as it was made, by the intend- ed son-in-law ; and as the estates joined, and their pursuits were so congenial, every one pronounced it a good match. Soon after Sir Harry received the hand of the blooming Harriet from her father; after which the new married pair, with a splendid retinue, set off for Leveret Lodge, the seat of Sir Harry, who, with the old-fashioned hpspitality of his progenitors, ordered open-house to be kept for his tenants and dependants. The October brewed at bis birth, and preserved for this joyous occasion, was now poured out in liberal pota- tions, and drank to the health of the bride and bride- groom ; an ox was roasted whole in the park, and the plumb-pudding of our hardy sires smoaked on the fes- tive board. This rural fete, in the old English style, lasted a week. Let us now follow Lady Dareall, and note her entree into the great world. Aided by the advantages of youth, beauty, fortune, fashion, and consequence, the admiration of the men, the envy of the women, and the gaae of the multitude. Through the entreaties and SPORTING ANECDOTES. 27-^ remonstrances of her husband and friends, she allowed herself to be presented at court, to have a box at the opera, and so far to comply with the fashionable cir- cles, to which she had been introduced, as to attend their routs, and give them at her own house; but these were not the amusements congenial to her mind, and she determined that, as she yielded to her husband's inclinations in town, she would live to please herself in the country. For this purpose she kept a pack of fox-hounds, that were reckoned the stanchest in the country; her stud was in the highest condition; her pointers excellent ; and the partridges felt she had not' forgot to take a good aim. Obliged, by fashion's law, to pass some of the winter months in London every year, she soon threw off the restraint that tyrant custom imposes on the sex : amu- sed herself by riding her favourite blood horse, Tar- quin, against the male equestrians in Hyde-Park, or driving her phaeton with four fleet coursers in hand, through all the fashionable streets, turning a corner to an inch, to the wonder, and terror of her beholders. The ladies, who were constantly hearing her admired by the men, for her prowess, and venturous feats of horsemanship, rinding Lady Dareall was quite the rage, sickened with envy ; determining, as they could not persuade her to follow their fashions, they would aspire to imitate hers. . From hence we may date the'era of women venturing their pretty necks in a fox-chase, shooting flying, and becoming female-charioteers, to rival the celebrity of the fair huntress, who was at the head of the haut-ton, with all these dashing ladies; and we had Dareall : ' " N 6 276 SPORTING ANECDOTES. riding-hats, Dareall boots and spurs, and Dareall sad- dles ! When Lady Dareall had been married about four- teen years, she had the misfortune to lose her husband, who was thrown from his horse during a fox-chase, and fractured his skull, by attempting a desperate leap. His beloved lady, who had cleared it a few moments before, saw the accident, immediately sprung from her horse, and, while she sent for a surgeon, and a carriage, no house being nigh the spot where the accident hap- pened, she threw herself on the ground by his side, and laying his bleeding head on her lap, shed a torrent of genuine tears, over the only man she ever loved. He was unable to speak, but seemed sensible of her tender sorrow: for he feebly pressed her hand, and before any assistance arrived expired in her arms. She mourned for hitn with unfeigned sorrow; her u occupation seemed to be gone ;" her horses fed quietly in their stables, while for the space of three months the hounds slept in their kennels, and she wore a black riding-habit for six. But time, which amelio- rates the keenest anguish, and reconciles us to all things, aided by the conviction we cannot recal the te- nants of the tomb, failed not to pour its lenient balm into her wounded bosom; and Lady Dareall " was. herself again/' Sir Harry left an only son, by this lady, the present Sir John Dareall, who, following the example of his father and mother, we see him now at the pinnacle of fashion, a Nimrod in the chase, a Jehu in London streets, a jockey riding his own matches at Newmarket,, a bore at the opera, and a pigeon at the ladies' faro- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 27? tables! But lie is a mixed character: he seeks cele- brity by mixing with men of quality and fashion ; to gain the reputation of being one himself, he imitates all their follies, though they are not the sort from which,, by inclination, he is enabled to receive any pleasure; for this he associates with the wives and daughters of needy nobility, with whom his money will compensate for his manners, though, did he give the sensations of his heart fair play, he would mix among the buxom daughters of his fox-hunting neighbours." To gratify his desire for fame, he will draw straws for hundreds, race maggots for thousands ; has a cha- riot, built by Leader, in which he never rides; keeps an opera-dancer, whom he seldom sees : but this is to give him eclat with the fashionable world, and stamp him as a man of high ton ! for, to indulge his real taste, he steals in a hackney-coach to the embraces of his dear Betsey Blossom, once the dairy-maid of his mo- ther, but now his mistress, in a snug lodging in Mary - lebone, whom he admires for the vulgar, but native, charms of rosy cheeks, white teeth, and arms as blue as a bilberry. Lady Dareall, his mother, at the present period is not yet forty, though she appears much older; for she is grown robust. Her complexion is dyed of the deepest bronze, occasioned by living so much on horseback, and exposing herself to the warring ele- ments in all seasons ; for the burning sun, or the pelt- ing storm, deter her not from her accustomed avoca- tions. By her management of herself she is so truly case-hardened, that she sets coughs, colds, and sore throats, at defiance! She rises at day-break, plunges directly into a cold 2/8 SPORTING ANECDOTES. bath, makes a meat breakfast, then mounts her fleet mare, and, according to the season either hunts, shoots, or courses till dinner. After having visited her stud* sits down at back-gammon with the vicar; but if she has a visitor that can play, she prefers her favourite game, chess. But though she has done every thing to preserve her health, and destroy her beauty, she is still a fine wo- man, and remains a favourite of the neighbouring gen- tlemen; is their companion infield-sports, and often entertains with a dinner the members of the hunt in the vicinity. CURIOUS INSTANCES OF AFFECTION. Pliny relates, that at Argos, a goose was enamour- ed of a fair boy, named Henus, and also of a damsel, called Glauce, who was a skilful player on the lute; in this latter attachment he had a rival in a ram ! Lacy- das, the philosopher, had the honour of a gooses love+ so ardent, that it never left him night or day; and he- was goose enough, at the death of his favourite, to have the creature buried magnificently. The affection of geese, in these later days, have apparently taken a dif- ferent direction, and, like other experienced lovers* have evinced their passion for old. women. As an in- stance, an aged blind woman, of a village in .Germany, used to be led every Sunday to church by a gander* taking hold of her gown with his bill; when he had in- troduced her to her seat, he always retired to graze in the church-yard, and no sooner was the congregation- dismissed, but he returned to his duty, and led het' SPORTING ANECDOTES. 279 home. One day the pastor called at the house of the party, and expressing his surprize to the daughter of her mother being out—" Oh, sir, (said the girl) we are not afraid of trusting her out, for the gander is with her! CANINE FIDELITY. Mr. Hawkes, farmer, of Hailing, returning much intoxicated from Maidstone market, with his dog, when the whole face of the country was covered with snow, mistook his path, and leaped over a ditch on his right hand, towardsthe river; fortunately he was una- ble to get up the bank, or he would have fallen into the Medway, at nearly high water. Overcome with liquor, Hawkes fell amongst the snow, in one of the coldest nights ever remembered ; turning on his back, he was soon asleep ; his dog scratched the snow from about him, and then mounted upon the body, rolled himself round, and laid him on his master's bo- som, for which his shaggy hide proved a seasonable covering. In this state, with snow falling all the while, the farmer and his dog lay the whole night: in the morning a Mr. Finch, who was out with his gun, per- ceiving an uncommon appearance, proceeded towards it; at his appearance the dog got off the body, shook the snow from him, and, by significant actions, encou- raged Mr. Finch to advance. Upon wiping the snow from the face, his person was immediately recognized, and was conveyed to the first house, when a pulsation in the heart being perceptible, the necessary means to recover him were employed, and in a short time 280 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Hawkes was able to relate his own story.* In gratitude to his faithful friend, a silver collar was made for his wearing, and thus inscribed : — In man true friendship I long strove to find But miss'd my aim ; At length 1 found it in my dog most kind j Man! blush for shame. INTERESTED CONDOLENCE. When hounds are at a check, the huntsman should not move his horse either one way or the other. Hounds lean naturally towards the scent, and if no- thing be said, will soon recover it; if a hound is spoken to at such a time, calling him by his name (which is too much practised) he seldom fails (observes Mr. Beck- ford) to look up, as much as to say, what the deuce do you want f Had he ihe faculty of speech, he would add, before he stooped to the scent again — " You fool, let me alone" When hounds are at fault, not a word should be said; no other tongue should be heard but that of a hound, and so inflexible was a friend of Mr. Beckford's, who kept harriers, in this particular, that a gentleman accidentally coughing while his hounds were at fauh, he rode up to him immediately and said — " / wish, sir, xvith all my heart your cough was better." * From this interesting fact were derived ihe materials for th*. Prologue to the Wheel of Fcrtune. I'd. SPOUTING ANECDOTES. S28 1 CYPRIAN HUNTING. To shew you the peculiar manner in which greyhounds are trained to pursue their game in some countries, the following description of their use in the Island of Cyprus may not be uninteresting. " Lv this place (says the author) I had the pleasure of seeing a Cyprian hunting, or coursing match, and that at which I was present was none of the least bril- liant, as it was the governor's. Having arrived at a spacious plain, interspersed with clumps of mulberry- trees, some ruins, and thick bushes, the sportsmen be- gan to form a ring, in order to inclose the game. The barrier consisted of guards on horseback, with dogs placed in the intervals. The ladies of the greatest distinction in Nicosia, with a multitude of other peo- ple, stood upon a little hill, which I ascended also. The governor and his suite were posted in different parts of the plain, and as soon as the appointed mo- ment arrived, the hunt was opened with the sound of musical instruments; part of the dogs were then let loose, which, ranging through the bushes and under- wood, sprung a great number of quails, partridges, and woodcocks. The governor began the sport by bringing down one of these birds, his suite followed his exam- ple, and the winged tribe, into whatever quarter they flew, were sure of meeting with instant death. I was struck with the tranquillity of the stationary dogs, for, notwithstanding the instinct by which they were spur- red on, not one of them quitted his post; but the rest ran about in pursuit of the game. The scene was soon changed, a hare started up from a bush, the dogs pur- 282 SPORTING ANECDOTES. sued, and while ihe former made a thousand turnings iii order to escape, she every where found an opponent : she however, often defeated the greyhounds; and I ad* mired* in such cases, the sagacity of these animals, which disdaining the assistance of those that were young and inexperienced, consequently liable to be deceived, wait- ed until some of the cunning old ones opened the way for them, and then the whole plain was in motion : when the poor animal was just ready to become a prey to its enemies, the governor rushed forward, and throwing a stick which he held in his hand before the greyhounds, they all stopped, and not one of them ven- tured to pass this signal. One of the swift greyhounds, being then let loose, pursued the hare, and having come up with it, carried it bach, and jumping upon the neck of the governor's horse, placed it before him. The governor took it in his arms, and delivering it to one of his officers, gave him orders, if it continued alive, to shut it up in his park, where he maintains a great many prisoners of the same kind. 1 admired, above all, the discipline of the greyhounds, and the humanity of the governor, who thought it his duty to preserve an animal which had afforded him s© muck pleasure. THE HUMBLE PETITION OF DUCE^ AN OLD POINTER. Pity the sorrows of a poor old dog, Whose trembling limbs your helping hand require ; Permit her still to crawl about your house, Or rest contented near your kitchen fire* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 283 Oft' for your sDort I brush'd the morning dew Oft' rang'd the stubble where the partridge lay ; Well-pleas'd I labour'd ; — for I toil'd for you, Nor wish'd for respite till the setting day. With you my good old master, have I rov'd, Or up the hill, or down the murm'ring brook; When game was near, no joint about me mov'd r I strove to guess your wishes by your look. While you with busy care prepar'd the gun, I frisk'd and sported by my master's side, Obey'd with ready eye your sign to run, Yet still abhorr'd the thoughts of ranging wide, these were days, be they remember'd still, Pleas'd I review the moments that are past ; 1 never hurt the gander by the mill, Nor saw the miller's wife stand all aghast. I never slunk from the good farmer'* vard j The tender chicken liv'd secure for roe ; Though hunger prest, I never thought it hard. Nor left you whistling underneath the tree. These days, alas ! no longer smile on me ; No more I snuff the morning's scented gale, No more I hear the gun with wonted glee, Or scour with rapture thro' the sedgy vale. For now old age relaxes all my frame, Un-nerves my limbs, and dims my feeble eyes j Forbids my once swift feet the road to fame, And the fond crust, alas ! untasted lies. Then take me to your hospitable fire, There let me dream of thousand coveys slain; There rest, till all the pow'rs of nature tire, Nor dread an age of misery and pairu 284 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Let me with Driver/ my old and faithful friend, Upon his bed of straw sigh out my days ; So blessings on your head shall still descend, And, well as pointer can, I'll sing your praise. . Pity the sorrows of your poor old Duce, Whose trembling limbs your helping hand require: Permit him still to crawl about your house, Or rest contented near your kitchen fire. SINGULAR SAGACITY OF AN ENGLISH MASTIFF, A French officer, more remarkable for his birth and spirit than for his riches, had served the Venetian republic with great valour and fidelity for some years, but had not met with preferment adequate by any means to his merits. One day he waited on the illus- trissimo, whom he had often solicited in vain, but on whose friendship he had still some reliance. The re- ception he met with was cool and mortifying: the no- ble turned his back on the necessitous veteran, and left him to find his way to the street, through a suit of apartments magnificently furnished. He passed them, lost in thought, till casting his eyes on a sumptuous sideboard, where stood on a damask cloth, as a prepa- ration for a splendid entertainment, an invaluable col- lection of Venice glass, polished and formed to the highest degree of perfection : he took hold of a corner of the linen, and turning to a faithful English mastiff, who always accompanied him, said to the animal, in a A favourite horse. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 285 kind of absence of mind — " There, my poorold friend, you see how these scoundrels enjoy themselves, and yet see how we are treated!" The poor dog looked up in his master's face and wagged his tail, as if he under- stood him. The master walked on, but the mastiff, slackening his pace, and laying hold of the damask cloth with his teeth, at one hearty pull brought the whole sideboard to the ground, and deprived the inso- lent noble of his favourite exhibition of splendor] CURIOUS WAGER. General Scott won oue of his many thousands at Newmarket, by the following wager : — Just as his horse was about to start for a sweepstakes, Mr. Pau- ton called out to him — " General, I'll lay you a thou- sand guineas your horse is neither first nor last." The general accepted the bet; immediately gave directions to his rider; his horse came in hist, and he claimed the money. Mr. Panton objected to payment, because the general had spoken to his rider ; but the Jockey Club held, that the bet was laid not upon the chance of the place in which the horse would come, if the ri- der was uninformed of it, but upon the opinion that he had not speed enough to be first, nor tractability enough to be brought in last. LUDICROUS COMPARISONS. The penetrating eye of reflection may often disco- ver strong resemblances between many of the canine species and certain classes of mankind ; not so ab- solute, certainly, but that contrarieties will exist; 5 286 SPORTING ANECDOTES. though the more general adumbrations of character approach so as nearly to coalesce without the smallest difficulty. A few of the most obvious of them may be thus ranked. The supple, sinister, smooth-tongued sycophant, in the scent of a great man, who is ready to execute the commands of a premier, however repugnant they may be to his inclination; however they may revolt against his ideas of honour (to say nothing of the shocks they give his conscience) : who is ever disposed " To fetch and carry nonsense for my lord." To say aye and no to every nothing a great man says —though aye and no too are not certainly, as old Lear says, true divinity —may aptly be coupled, in the way of comparison, with the spaniel, who is distinguished among his canine companions, by fawning upon those who use him worst, and licking even the hand that is raised in wrath against him ; crouching at the feet of his imperious master, and becoming more humble the more he is beaten by him. The sour and severe critic, whose supreme delight is to discover errors in a work which has met with a favourable reception from the public, who sits down with all the malice of an enemy, fastens upon the slightest deviation from the rigid rules of the Slagyrite with the execrable satisfaction of a Scaliger, and points them out to view with an exultation which does no cre- dit to his heart, whatever compliments he may receive for his critical acumen — ranks with the cur, who is al- ways snapping and snarling at every man lie meets, sticks close to his heels, and annoys those whom he as- 4 SPORTING ANECDOTES. %87 530 SPORTING ANECDOTES, for my grave stone, if your honour will say something first about my birth, parentage, and education/' The gentleman promised, and he died. Here lies Timothy Fox, who was unkennelled at seven o'clock, November 5th, 1768 ; and having availed himself of many shifts thro' the chase, Vut at last not being able to get into any hole or crevfcv was run down by Captain Death's bloodhounds, Gout, Rheumatism, Dropsy, Catarrh, Asthma, and Consumption. From early youth I learnt to hoop and halloo, And o'er the Cotswold the sharp hound to follow J Oft at the dawn I've seen the glorious sun, Gang from the cast till he his course had ruth I was the fara'd Mendoza of the field, And to no huntsman would give in or yield j And when it fancied me to make a push, No daring Nimrod ever got the brush. But all my life-time death has hunted me, O'er hedge and gate, nor from him could I flee j Now he has caught my brush, and in this hole Earth my poor bones — " Farewel ! thou flowing bowl, Scented* with Reynard's foot, for death my rumf hath stole. * A custom with enthusiastic fox-hunters, to put a foot, or pad, of the fox killed into a bowl of punch; deduced, perhaps, from the unenlightened heroes amongst the ancient northern tribes, who thought the beverage more highly flavoured when drank out of the skulls of their enemies. The writer of the pre- sent anecdote must confess, that he has carried his ardour more than once so far, as to immerse the foot of a fox recently killed ia a bumper of port. f His aquavits. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 531 PROMPT COURAGE OF FRANCIS f. When this monarch was at Amboire, among other diversions for the ladies of his court, he ordered an enormous wild boar he had caught in the forest to be- let loose in the court before the castle. The animal enraged at the small darts, &c. thrown at him from the windows, ran furiously up the grand stair-case, and burst open the door of the ladies' apartment. Francis ordered his officers not to attack him, and waited de- liberately to receive him with the point of his hanger, which he dexterously plunged between his eyes, and,, with a forcible grasp, turned the boar upon his back.. This prince was^then but one and twenty years of age. REPARTEE OF LOUIS XV. When this monarch went out to hunt, ic was cus- tomary for his suite, to take with them forty bottles of wine, of which, however, he seldom tasted ; indeed, they were intended more for his servants than for him. One day the king was extremely thirsty, and asked for a glass of wine. " Sire, there is none left," said they, " Do you not always bring forty bottles ?" — '* Yes, Sire, but all is drank/'—" In future (said he) you will be so good as to bring forty-one, that at least one may be left for me. EPITAPH ON A HORSE. In the park at Goatherst, near Bridgewater, in So- mersetshire, the seat of Sir Charles Tynne, Bart, is erected a tomb to the memory of a favourite horse. 532 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The monument is adorend with the various trap- pings and accoutrements in which that animal is com- monly arrayed ; and in the centre are the following lines. j> To the memory of one who was remarkably steady, these stones are erected. What he undertook, with spirit he accomplished j His deportment was graceful, nay noble j the ladies admired, and followed him ; by application, he gained applause. His abilities were so powerful, as to draw easily the divine, the lawyer, and the statesman into his own smooth track. Had he lived in the days of Charles I. the cavaliers would not have refused his assistance, for tojtbe reins of due go- vernmenthe was always obedient He was a favourite, yet at times he felt the wanton lash of lawless power. After a life of laborious servitude, performed like Clarendon's, with unimpeached fidelity, he, like that great man, was turned out of employment stript of all trappings, without place or pension : Yet, being endued with a generous forgiving temper, saint-Tike, not dreading futurity, he placidly met the hand appointed to be his assassin. Thus he died — an example to all mortals under the wide expanded canopy of heaven. CHARACTER OP THE BLOOD-HOUNDS.. Used in the Island of Cuba by the Spanish Chasseurs. BY R. G. DALLAS, ESQ. The dogs carried out by the Chasseurs del Res, are perfectly broken in, that is to say, they will not kill the object they pursue unless resisted. On qoming up SPORTING ANECDOTES. 333 with a fugitive, they bark at him till he stops, they then -crouch near him, terrifying him with a ferocious growl* ing if he stirs. In this position they continue barking, to give notice to the chasseurs, who come up and se- cure their prisoner, each chasseur, though he can hunt only with two dogs properly, is obliged to have three, which he maintains at his own cost, and that at no small expense. These people live with their dogs, from which they are inseparable* At home the dogs >are kept chained, and when walking with their masters, are never unmuzzled, or let out of ropes, but for at- tack. They are constantly accompanied with one or two small dogs, called finders, whose scent is very keen, and always sure of hitting off a track. Dogs and bitches hunt equally well, and the chasseurs rear no more than will supply the- number required. This breed of dogs, iudeed, is not so prolific as the common kinds, though infinitely stronger and hardier. The animal is the si-ze of a very large hound, with ears erect, which are usually cropped at the points ; the nose more pointed, but widening very much towards the after-part of the jaw. His coat, or skin, is much harder thau that of most dogs, and so must be the whole structure of the body, as the severe beatings he undergoes in training would kill any other species of dog. There are some, but not many, of a more ob- tus nose, and which are rather squarer set. These, it may he presumed, have been crossed by the mastiff; but if by this the bulk has been a little increased, it has added nothing to the strength, height, beauty, or agi- lity of the native ureed. S34 SPORTING ANECDOTES.' EPITAPH. On a grave-stone on the north side of St. Nicholas Church, Nottingham. Here lieth the body of Thomas Booth, who de- parted this life the 26th day of March, A. D. 1752, eged 7o. Here lies a marksman, who with art and skill When young and strong, fat Bucks and Doe? did kill. Now conquered by grim death ; go, reader tell it, He's now took leave of powder^ gun, and pellet. A fatal dai r, which in the dark did ^y, Has dropt him down among the dead to lie. If any wants to know the poor slave's name, 'Twas old Tom Booth, ne'er ask from whom he came. He's hither sent, and surely such another, Ne'er issued from the belly of a mother. It is said, that the deceased composed the above previous to his death, and requested it might be placed on his grave-stone. He was a sportsman and very fond of buck-killing. EXTRAORDINARY FOX-CHASE. In January 179^1 & most remarkable adventure happened with the hounds belonging to his Grace the Duke of Beaufort :— They had unkennelled at Stanton Park, when after a most excellent chase over a long scope of country, Reynard being close pressed, and nature nearly exhausted, in the last moments of des- pondency he entered a cottage at Castle Coambe, and actually took refuge in a cradle, from which but a very few minutes before a woman had providentially SPORTING ANECDOTES. 33^ taken her infant. This last exertion of strength and sagacity for the preservation of life, was, however, al- most immediately rendered abortive ; for the " well- seented hounds," steady to " the adhesive attack," were not foiled to a fault, but entering the hovel, seized upon their devoted victim, and dragging him from " his lurking place," effected his immediate de- struction. EXTRAORDINAY EQUESTRIAN PERFORMANCES. One of the earliest in. the order of time, in this country, occurred in the year 1604, in the reign of James I. when John Lepton, Esq. of Kenwick, in Yorkshire, who was one of his Majesty's grooms, un- dertook to ride five times between London and York, from Monday morning till Saturday night. He ac- cordingly set out from St. Martin's-le-Grand, between two and three in the morning of the 26th of May, and arrived at York on the same day, between five and six in the afternoon ; rested there that night, and the next day returned to St. Martin's-le-Grand, about seven in the evening, where he staid till about three o'clock the next morning. He reached York, a se- cond time, about seven at night, from whence be set off again for London about three in the morning, and reached London between seven and eight. He set off again for York between two and three in the morning following, and getting there between seven and eight at night, completed his undertaking in five days. On the monday following he left York, and came to his Majesty's court at Greenwich, as fresh and as cheer- ful as when he first set out. $36 SPORTING ANECDOTES. In the year 16*19, on the 17th cf July, one Bernard Calvert, of Andover, rode from St. George's church, Southwark, to Dover, from thence passed by barge to Calais, in France, and from thence back to St. George's church, the same day ; setting out about three o'clock in the morning, and returning about eight in the evening, fresh and hearty. In 1701, Mr. Sinclair, a gentleman, of Kirby Lons- dale, in Cumberland, for a wager of five hundred guineas, rode a galloway of his, on the Swift, at Car- lisle, a thousand miles in a thousand successive hours. In 1745, Mr. Cooper Thornhill, master of the Bell Inn, at Stilton, in Huntingdonshire, made a match, for a considerable sum, to ride three times between Stil- ton and London. He was allowed as many horses as he pleased, and to perform it in fifteen hours. He accordingly started on Monday, April 29, 1745, and rode h. to. sec. From Stilton to Shoreditch church, Lon- don, (71 miles) in - From London to Stilton in - From Stilton to London in - Which was two hundred and thirteen miles in ele- ven hours, thirty-three minutes, and fifty-two seconds; and three hours, twenty-six minutes, and eight se- conds within the time allowed him. On Wednesday, June 27, 1759, Jennison Shafto, Esq. performed a match against time, on Newmarket Heath; the conditions of which were, he was to ride fifty miles (having as many horses as he pleased) in two successive hours, which he accomplished with ten 5 3 52 59 3 50 57 3 49 56 SPORTINGL ANECDOTES. 537 horses, in one hour, forty-nine minutes and seventeen seconds. In 1761, a match was made between Jennison Shafto and Hugo Meynel, Esqrs. for two thousand guineas; Mr. Shafto to get a person to ride one hundred miles a day (on any one horse each day) for twenty-nine days together ; to have any number of horses not ex- ceeding twenty-nine. The person chose by Mr. Shafto was Mr. John Woodcock, who started on Newmarket- Heath, the 4th of May, 176l, atone o'clock in the morning, and finished (having used only fourteen horses) on the first of June, about six in the evening. On Tuesday, August the J 4th, 1773, at thirty-five minutes past ten in the evening, was determined a match between Thomas Walker's, Esq. hackney geld- ing and Captain Adam Hay's road mare, to' go from London to York. Mr. Walker rode his horse, and and Captain Mulcaster rode for Mr. Hay. They set out from Portland street, London, and Captain Mul- caster, with the winning mare, arrived at Ouse-bridge, York, in forty hours, and thirty-five minutes. Mr. Walker's horse tired within six miles of Tadcaster, and died the next day. The mare drank twelve bottles of wine during her journey, and on the following Thurs- day was so well as to take her exercise on Knaves- mire. The last week in September, 1781, a great match of four hundred and twenty miles in one whole week, was rode over Lincoln two-mile course, and wen by Richard Hanstead, of Lincoln, and his famous grey horse, with great ease, having three hours and a half to spare. Q 538 SPORTING ANECDOTES. October the 3 5th, 1783, Samuel Haliday, a but- cher of Leeds, undertook, for a bet of ten pounds, to ride from Leeds to Rochdale, from thence to York, and back again to Leeds (one hundred and ten miles) in twenty hours. He started at ten o'clock at night, upon a slender mare not fourteen hands high ; and though he rode above fourteen stone, he finished his journey with ease, in less than eighteen hours. December 29th, 1786, Mr. Hull's horse Quibbler, run a match for a thousand guineas, twenty-three miles in one hour, round the Flat at Newmarket, which he performed in fifty-seven minutes and ten se- conds. August 15tb, 1792. To decide a wager of fifty pounds, between Mr. Cooper and Mr. Brewer of Stamford, the latter gentleman's horse, Labourer, ran twenty times round the race ground (exactly a mile) at Preston, in fifty- four minutes. In October 1791, at the Curragh meeting in Ireland, Mr. Wilde, a sporting gentleman, made bets to the amount of two thousand guineas, to ride against time, viz. one hundred and twenty-seven "English miles in •nine hours. On the 6th of October he started, in a valley near the Curragh course, where two miles were measured, in a circular direction : each time he en- compassed the course it was regularly marked. Dur- ing the interval of changing horses, he refreshed him- self with a mouthful of brandy and water, and was no more than six hours and twenty-one minutes, in com- pleting the one hundred and twenty-seven miles ; of course he had two hours and thirty-five minutes to spare. — Mr. Wilde had no more than ten horses, but they were all blood, and from the stud of Da- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 339 ley, Esq. — Whilst on horseback, without allowing any thing for changing of horses, he rode at the rate of twenty miles an hour, for six hours. He was so little fatigued with this extraordinary performance, that he was at the Turf Club-House, in Kildare, the same evening. The expedition of the express, with the account of the drawing of the Irish lottery, for 1792, has never yet been equalled, as will appear from the following road bill of the third day's express, Nov. 15, 1792. tn. h. m. Holyhead to Birmingham - - l63l in 11 45 Birmingham to Stratford upon Avon 231 2 4 Stratford upon Avon to London - 105 f 45 292 20 94 October the 14th, 1791, a trotting match took place on the Romford road, between Mr. Bishop ? s brown mare, 18 years old, and Mr. Green's chesnut gelding, six years old, twelve stone each, for fifty guineas a side ; which was won with ease by Mr. Bishop's mare. They were to trot sixteen miles, which the mare per- formed in fifty-six minutes and some seconds. SINGULAR ACCIDENT. On Sunday, the 29th of October, 1802, about two o'clock, just as the fashionable world were begin- ning to collect in Hyde Park, an awful lesson presented itself to those Photonic Meteors, who are so eternally anxious to obtain a superiority over each other, by the 340 SPORTING ANECDOTES. blaze of their individual brilliancy. A gentleman of the name of D. entering the Park from the turnpike, in his curricle, with a pair of blood bay horses, had not got more than six times the length of his carriage within the gate, when the horses, either from instinc- tive spirit, not accustomed to the restraint of harness, or alarmed with the rattling of the carriages, began to be a little rampant. Here unfortunately, the driver, either by design or accident, happening to strike one of the horses with the whip, he instantly made an ef-. fort at speed, which his companion, being rather more obedient to the bit, seemed for a moment reluctantly to comply with ; but the force of emulative inspira- tion was too great to suppress, and they jointly over- came the power opposed to their exertions. As the speed of the horses increased, the dread and anxiety t )f the numerous spectators became on every side per- ceptible, and infinite personal but ineffectual efforts -were made to render assistance. They took the left- liand road toward the canal and magazine, over the gravel recently laid down ; at the first gate on the right, the groom, by a sudden jerk upon the large stones, was either thrown or jumped out ; and, sus- taining no injury, instantly followed, in hope of assist- ing his master, who firmly kept his seat, the horses going at the extent of their speed, threatening in- evitable destruction. Reaching the side of the canal, and no prospect presenting itself but being dashed to atoms, by a continuance of their career becoming, if possible, more and more impetuous, he, at this mo- ment, used all his force to guide them into the water ; they obeyed the reins, took the canal, and, although m the greatest danger of being lost, they regained the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 341 land, and were got again into the road, when every heart was elate, upon a presumption the worst was past ; and a person had, with great personal fortitude, seized the off-horse by the bridle, and continued to- persevere till compelled to relinquish bis hold for the preservation of his own life. Here the loud supplications of Mr. D. for assistance, were most distressing to every human mind, unable ta afford the least relief; in which dilemma of mental despondency and desperation, he, perhaps most fortu- nately, once more guided them towards that deep they had before escaped, where the great body of water, by the time they were chest deep, had retarded their speed, and they seemed to be brought up ; but in the very act of turning, when their heads were pointing for the land, the off horse being upon the edge of the great depth, lost foot-hold, when a scene shocking to behold instantly ensued; the weight of the sinking horse gradually subdued every effort of the other, till only their heads were seen abovejthe surface ; during which the curricle continued sinking, the body of Mr* D. doing so likewise^ till only his head was percepti- ble, at which moment, the groans of the horses, and lamentations of the driver, exceed the power of the pen to describe; and never can be obliterated from the mind of the writer, who was a near and miserable spectator of the whole. At the critical instant, when it was supposed no effort could save his life, two per- sons, who had from the first made a determined point at relief, plunged into the stream up to their breasts, and most happily preserved his life at the hazard of their own. The horses after long struggling, were-' 34^ SPORTING ANECDOTES. both drowned, and left in the canal, the curricle was brought to shore by the boat. THE DUKE DE NIVERNQ1S. When this accomplished cideiant nobleman was ambassador to England, he was going to lord Town* send's seat, at-Rainham, in Norfolk, on a private visit, en dishabille f and with only one servant, when he was obliged by a very heavy shower to stop at a farm- house in the way. The master of the house was a clergyman, who, to a poor curacy, added the care of a few scholars in the neighbourhood, which in all might make his living about eighty pounds a year: this was all he had to maintain a wife and six children, When the duke alighted, the clergyman, not knowing h'tii rank, begged him to come in and dry-himself, which the other accepted, by borrowing a pair of old worsted stockings and slippers, and warming himself by a good fire. After some conversation, the duke observed an old chess-board hanging up; and, as he was pas- sionately fond of that game, he asked the clergyman whether he could play. The latter told him that he could play pretty tolerably, but found it difficult in that part of the country to get an antagonist. " I am your man," says the duke. " With all my heart," answers the clergyman, " and if you will stay and take pot- luck, I will see if I cannot beat you/' The day conti- nuing rainy, the duke accepted his ofTer, when his an- tagonist played so much better, that he won every game. r l his was so far from fretting the duke, that he was pleased to meet a man who could give him so much entertainment at his favourite game. He accor- SPORTING AXECDOTEST. 345 dingly enquired into the state of his family affairs, and making a memorandum of his address, without disco- vering his title, thanked him, and departed. Some months elapsed, and the clergyman never thought of the matter, when, one evening, a footman rode up to the door, and presented him with a note — « " The duke de Nivernois' compliments wait on the Rev. Mr. , and as a remembrance for the good drubbing he gave him at chess, begs that he will accept the living of - ■ worth 4001. per annum, and that he will wait upon his grace the duke of Newcastle on Fri-. day next, to thank him for the same." The good clergyman, was some time before he could imagine it to be any more than a jest, and hesitated to obey the mandate; but as his wife insisted on his making a trial, he went up to town, and to his un- speakable satisfaction, found the contents of the not* literally true. ASTONISHING OCCURRENCE. One of the Oxford dragoon horses, quartered a£ Leominster, in the neighbourhood of Ludlow, Shrop- shire, having got loose in the stable, had the curiosity to march up a crooked stair-case into the hay-loft, with a view, no doubt, to examine his stock of pro- visions ; it is supposed he must have been there at least two hours, when his rider coming to the stable,, and missing his horse, was thunderstruck, knowing he had the key in his pocket. The poor fellow, not having the least suspicion of his horse being up stairs, run like a madman to inform an officer of his loss, but had scarcely got twenty yards, when the animal (e^* 344 SPORTING ANECDOTES. lilting in his station) put bis head through the pitching hole and neighed aloud. The astonishment of the sol- dier, and the whole neighbourhood, can be better con- ceived than described. Every stratagem that could be devised was made use of, to lead or force him down the stairs, but all in vain; he saw the danger, and was obstinate. The horse, ran a considerable time, trotting and snorting about the loft, to the no small diversion of the spectators ; at length, having wearied their efforts and patience, he accidentally trod upon the only vul- nerable part of the floor, a trap door which covered a hole for sacking hops, 27 inches by 23, which being made of weaker boards than the rest, gave way ; and his hinder part going down through, till his feet, touch- ed the ground, he remained a few seconds in that posi- tion, and then disappeared, (like Harlequin in a pan- tomime, or the methodist parson into the washing tub) and dropped into the very posture and place in which he before stood in his stall, without any hurt ex- cept the loss of a few hairs off one of his legs, and a piece of skin, the size of a shilling, off his whiskers. The spectators could not forbear expressing trieir won- der, that the creature could fall through so small a hole without greater injury. TROTTING MATCH. Edward Stevens, a noted jockey in the neigh- bourhood of Windsor, made a bet with a sporting gen- tleman of great celebrity in the annals of Newmarket, that he would produce a pair of horses from his own SPORTING ANECDOTES. 345 tud, who should trot in a tandem from Windsor to Hampton Court, a distance of sixteen miles, within the hour. The day being fixed, they performed the jour- ney, with great ease, in fifty- seven minutes and thirteen seconds. They were driven by Mr. James Stevens, brother to the owner, who, by his excellent manage- ment, was the chief cause of their being so little dis- tressed by the exertion. THE HOUNDS. AN ALLEGORY. A huntsman was leading forth his hounds, on* morning, to the chase, and had linked several of the young dogs in couples, to prevent their following every scent, and hunting in a disorderly manner, as their own inclination and fancy should direct them. Among, others, it was the fate of Jowler and Vixen to be yoked together. Jowler and Vixen were both young and in- experienced, but had for some time been constant companions, and seemed to have entertained a great fondness for each other; they used to be perpetually playing together, and in any quarrel that happened, always took one another's part; it might have been. expected, therefore, that it would not be disagreeable to them to be still closer united. However, in fact, it proved otherwise ; they had not long been joined to- gether, before both parties began to express uneasiness- at their present situation. Different inclinations and opposite wills began to discover and exert themselves ; if one chose to go this way, the other was eager to take the contrary; if one was pressing to go forward, the- ©ther was sure to lag behind— Vixen pulled back- Jow^ Q 5 346 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Jer, and Jowler dragged along Vixen— Jowler growled at Vixen, and Vixen snapped at Jowler. At last it came to a downright quarrel amongst them ; and Jowler treated Vixen in a very rough and ungenerous manner, without any regard to the inferiority of her strength, or the tenderness of her sex. As they were thus continually vexing and tormenting one another, an old hound, who had observed all that passed, came up to them, and thus reproved them: — " What a cou- ple of silly puppies you are, to be thus perpetually worrying one another at this rate ! What hinders your going on peaceably and quietly together? Can- not you compromise the matter between you, by each consulting the other's inclination ? At least, try to make a virtue of necessity, and submit to what you cannot remedy; you cannot get rid of the chain, but you may make it sit easy upon you. I am an old dog, and let my age and experience instruct you. When 1 was in the same circumstances with you, I soon found the thwarting my companion was only tormenting my- self; and my yoke-fellow came into the same way of thinking. We endeavoured to join in the same pur- suits, and to follow one another's inclination ; and so we jogged on together, not only with ease and quiet, but with comfort and pleasure. We found, by expe- rience, that mutual compliance not only compensates for liberty, but is even attended with a satisfaction and delight beyond what liberty itself can give." SPORTING ANECDOTES. 347 AN EPITAPH. Beneath this turf a female lies, That once the boast of fame was ; Have patience, reader, if you're wise r You'll then know what her name was. In days of youth, (be censure blind) To men she wou'd be creeping ; When 'mongst the many one prov'd kind And took her into — keeping. Then to the stage* she bent her way, Where more applauded none wasj She gain'd new lovers ev 'ry day, .But constant still to -one was. By players, poets, peers, address'd, Nor bribe nor flattery mov'd her i And tho' by all the men caress'd, Yet all the — women lov'd her. Some kind remembrance then bestow Upon the peaceful sleeper; Her name was Phielis, you must know ; One Hawthorn was her keeper. * A little spaniel bitch strayed into the Theatre, in Drury=> Lane, and fixed upon Mr. Beard as her master and protector, was constantly at his heels, and ai tended him on the stage in the character of Hawthorn. She died much. lamented, not only by her master, who was a membei 01 the Beef-Steak Club, but by all the members ; at one of their meetings, as many as chose it, were requested to furnish, at the next meeting, an epitaph. Among divers, preference was given to the above, trom the pen ot the late worthy John Walton, to whom the club xvere obluert -or the wen known baitad of " Ned and .\eiJ,' ; a*;d some beautiful songs. q6 348 SPORTING ANECDOTES, PUNISHMENT OF THE STAG. An extraordinary event occurred no longer since than June, 1795, upon the frontiers of Kiow, upon the Dniper, in Russia ; when a man was seen fast tied upon the back of a stag, which, probably terrified with this uncommon burden, was going at full speed. It was to no purpose that the spectators attempted to stop, or pursue the animal; it was soon out of sight, and about eight days after the wood-cutters found both of them dead in a wood, near Miedzyryez, in Poland ; the man was so much torn and mangled, as to render any recognizance of his person impossible. It was,, however, conjectured, that he had been the victim of some great lord. A similar circumstance we are informed, occurred in the neighbourhood of Friedberg, in the sixteenth century, through which place, a man chained to the back of a stag, was seen to pass, and distinctly heard to cry for assistance, saying he had been three days in that dreadful situation, the stag having brought him all the way from Saxony. Some time after the man. and the beast were both found, almost torn to pieces,, near the city of Solnis. THE ASSEMBLY OF QUADRUPEDS. A gentleman travelling, about thirty years ago^ through Mecklen burgh, was witness to the following curious circumstance, in the post-house of New Star- gard. After dinner, the landlord placed on the floor a large dish of soup, and gave a loud whistle. Imme* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 349 diately there came into the room, a mastiff, a fine -Angora cat, an old raven, and a remarkably large rat, with a bell about his neck. The four immediately went to the dish, and without disturbing each other, fed together; after which, the dog, cat, and rat lay before the fire, while the raven hopped about the room. The landlord, after accounting for the fami- liarity existing among the four, informed the guests that the rat was the most useful of them, as the noise he made with his bell had completely cleared the house from the rats and mice with which it was before in- fested." GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE FOX. By Mr. Pennant, and other eminent writers. The fox is a native of almost every quarter of the globe, and is of such a wild nature, that it is impos- sible fully to tame him. He is esteemed the most sa- gacious and most crafty of all beasts of prey. The former quality he shews in his mode of providing him- self an asylum, where he retires from pressing dangers, where he dwells, and where he brings up his young : and his craftiness is discovered by his schemes to catch lambs, geese, hens, and all kinds of small birds. The fox, if possible, fixes his abode on the border of a wood, in the neighbourhood of some farm or village : he listens to the crowing of the cocks and the cries of the poultry ; he scents them at a distance ; he chuses his time with judgment; he conceals his road as well as his design; he slips forward with caution, some- times even trailing his body, and seldom makes a fruit- less expedition. If he can leap the wall, or get in 350 SPORTING A1STECDOTE3. underneath, he ravages the court-yard, puts all to death, and retires softly with his prey, which he either hides under the herbage, or carries off to his kennel. He returns in a few minutes for another, which he carries off or conceals in the same manner, but in a different place. In this way he proceeds till the progress of the sun, or some movements perceived in the house, ad- vertise him that it is time to suspend his operations, and to retire to his den. He plays the same game with the catchers of thrushes, woodcocks, &c. He visits the nets and birdlime very early in the morning, car- ries off successively the birds which are entangled, and lays them in different places, especially by the sjde9 of highways, in the furrows, under the herbage or" brushwood, where they sometimes lie two or three days; but he knows perfectly where to find them when he is in need. He hunts the young hares in the plains,, seizes old ones in their seats, digs out the rabbits in the warrens, discovers the nests of partridges and quails, seizes the mother on the- eggs, and destroys a vast quantity of game. He is exceedingly voracious, and,, when other food fails him, makes war against rats, field mice, serpents, lizards, and toads. Of these he destroys vast numbers, and this is the only service that he appears to do to mankind. When urged by hunger he will also eat roots or insects ; and the foxes near the coasts will devour crabs, shrimps, or shell -fish. In France and Italy they do incredible mischief, by feeding on grapes, of which they are excessively fond. We are told by Buffon, that he sometimes attacks bee-hives, and the nests ot wasps, for the sake of what he can find to eat: and that he frequently meets with so rough a reception, as to force him to retire, that SPORTING ANECDOTES. S51 he may roll on the ground and crush those that are stinging him; but having thus rid himself of his trou- blesome companions, he instantly returns to the charge, and obliges them at length to forsake their combs, and leave them to him as the reward of his victory. When pressed by necessity he will devour carrion. " I once (says M. Buffon) suspended on a tree, at the height of nine feet, some meat, bread, and bones. The foxes had been at severe exercise during the night; for next morning the earth all round was beaten, by their jump- ing, as smooth as a barn-floor." The fox exhibits a great degree of cunning in digging young rabbits out of their burrows. He does not en- ter the hole, for in this case he would have to dig se- veral feet along the ground, under the surface of the earth ; but he follows their scent above, till he comes to the end, where they lay, and then scratching up the earth, descends immediately upon, and devours them. Pontoppidan informs us, that when the fox observes an otter to go into the water to fish, he, will frequently hide himself behind a stone, and when the otter comes to shore with his prey, he will make such a spring upon him, that the affrighted animal runs off, and leaves his booty behind. " A certain person (continues this writer) was surprised on seeing a fox near a fisherman's house, laying a parcel of to rsks'* heads in a row: he waited the event; the fox hid himself behind them, and made a booty of the first crow that came for a bit of them/' * A species of cod. $52 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The fox prepares for himself a convenient den, in which he lies concealed during the greater part of the day. This is so contrived, as to afford the best pos- sible security to the inhabitant, being situated under hard ground, the roots of trees, &c. and is besides fur- nished with proper outlets, through which he may escape in ease of necessity. This care and dexterity in constructing for himself a habitation, is, by M. Buf- fon, considered as alone sufficient to rank the fox among the higher order of quadrupeds, since it implies no small degree of intelligence. " The fox (says he) knows how to ensure his safety, by providing himself with an asylum to which he re- tires from pressing dangers, where he dwells, and where he brings up his young. He is not a vagabond, but lives settled in a domestic state. This difference, though it appears even among men, has greater effects, and supposes more powerful causes among the inferior animals. The single idea of a habitation, or settled place of abode, the art of making it commodious, and. concealing the avenues to it, imply a superior degree- of sentiment." He is one of those animals that, in this country, are made objects of diversion in the chase. When he finds^ himself pursued, he generally makes towards his hole, and penetrating to the bottom, lies till a terrier is sent in to him. If his den is under a rock r or the roots of trees, which is often the case, he is safe, for the ter- rier is no match for him there; and he cannot be dug out by his enemies. When the retreat to his kennel is cut off, his stratagems and shifts to escape are as sur- prising as they are various. He always takes to the most woody parts of the country, and prefers the paths SPORTING ANECDOTES. S53 that are most embarrassed with thorns and briars. He runs in a direct line before the hounds, and at no great distance from them; and, if hard pushed, seeks the low wet grounds, as if conscious that the scent did not lie so well there. When overtaken he becomes ob- stinately desperate, and bravely defends himself against the teeth of his adversaries, even to the last gasp. Dr. Goldsaiith relates a remarkable instance of the parental affection of this animal, which, he says, oc- curred near Chelmsford. " A she fox that had, as it should seem, but one cub, was unkennelled by a gen- tleman's hounds, and hotly pursued. The poor ani- mal, braving every danger, rather than leave her cub behind to be worried by the dogs, took it up in her mouth, and ran with it in this manner for some miles; at last, taking her way through a farmer's yard, she was assaulted by a mastiff, and at length obliged to drop her cub ; this was taken up by the farmer." And, we are happy to add, that the affectionate creature escaped the pursuit, and got off in safety. Of all animals, the fox has the most significant eye, by which is expressed every passion of love, fear, ha- tred. &c. He is remarkahlv r»lavful : but. like all w*rr<* • -■ j i — v — * ' *■&"* creatures half reclaimed, will on the least offence bite even those with whom he is most familiar. He is never to be fully tamed : he languishes when deprived of liberty; and, if kept too long in a domestic state, he dies of chagrin. When abroad, he is often seen to amuse himself with his fine bushy tail, running some- times for a considerable while in circles to catch it. In cold weather he wraps it about his nose. The fox is very common in Japan. The natives be** lieve him to be animated by the devil, and their histo- 354 SPORTING ANECDOTES. rical and sacred writings are all full of strange accounts respecting him. He possesses astonishing acuteness of smell. During winter he makes an almost continual yelping, but in summer, when he sheds his hair, he is for the most part silent. In the northern countries there is a black fox, a va- riety of the common fox. The Kamtschadales in- formed Dr. Grieve that these were once so numerous with them, that whenever they fed their dogs, it was a difficult piece of labour to prevent them from par- taking. .The doctor says, that when he was in Kamts- chatka, they were in such plenty near the forts, that in the night they entered them, without any apparent apprehension of danger from the dogs of the country. One of the inhabitants, he informs us, caught several of them in the pit where he kept his fish. The mode usually adopted by the inhabitants for taking them, is by traps baited with live animals: and, for the greater security, two or three of these traps are placed upon one hillock, that, whatever way the foxes approach, they may fall into one of them. This is found necessary, since those which have been once in danger, ever afterwards go so cautiously to work, as frequently to eat t ! e bait without being seised. But, with all their cunning, when several traps are em- ployed, it is difficult for them to escape. Their skins are very valuable. A CELEBRATED MAUKSWOMAN. The ingenious Dr. W. Hutton, of Birmingham, in a late publication, in which he gives an account ol SPORTING ANECDOTES. 355 several singularities which he met with in a recent journey through a part of Derbyshire, adds, " But the greatest wonder I saw, was Miss Phebe Brown, in person five feet six, about thirty, well proportioned, round sized and ruddy, a dark penetrating eye, which, the moment it fixes upon your face, stamps your cha- racter, and that with precision. Her step, pardon me the Irishism, is more manly than a man's, and can easily cover forty miles a day. Her common dress is a man's hat, coat, and a spencer over it," and mens' shoes. J believe she is a stranger to breeches. She can lift one hundred weight with each hand, and carry four- teen score. Can sew, knit, cook, and spin, but hates them all, and every accompanyment to the female character, except that of modesty. A. gentleman at the New Bath recently treated her so rudely, * that she had a good mind to have knocked him down.' She positively assured me, that she did not know what fear was — she never gives any affront, but will offer to fight any man who gives her one — if she has not fought, perhaps it is owing to the insulter's being a coward, for none else would give an affront. She has strong sense ? an excellent judgment, says some smart things, and supports an easy freedom in all companies. Her voice is more than masculine, it is deep-toned ; the wind in her favour, she can send it a mile; has no beard, or prominence of breast; accepts any kind of manual la- bour, as holding the plough, driving the team, thatch- ing the ricks, &c. but her chief avocation is horse- breaking, at a guinea a week ; always rides without a saddle; is supposed the best judge of a horse, cow, &c. i-n the country, and is trequentl) requested to purchase for others at the neighbouring fairs. She is loud oi 356 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Milton, Pope, Shakespeare, also of music; is self* taught; performs on several instruments, the vio- lin, &c. She is an excellent marhswoman y and, like her bro- ther sportsmen, carries her gun upon her shoulder. She eats no beef, or pork, and but little mutton, her chief food is milk, and also her drink, discarding wine, ale, and spirits/' WOLF-HUNTING. Soon after Mr. Putnam removed to Connecticut, the wolves, then very numerous, broke into his sheep- iold, and killed seventy fine sheep and goats, besides wounding many lambs and kids. This havoc was 'com- mitted by a she-wolf, which, with her annual whelps, had for several years infested the vicinity. The young were commonly destroyed by the vigilance of the hun- ters, but the old one was too sagacious to come within gun-shot; upon being closely pursued, she would ge- nerally fly to the western woods, and return the next winter with another litter of whelps. This wolf at length became such an intolerable, nuisance, that Mr. Putnam entered into a combina- tion with five of his neighbours to hunt alternately un- til they could destroy her. Two, by rotation, were to be constantly in pursuit. It was known that, having lost the toes from one foot by a steel trap, she made one track shorter than the other. By this vestige, the pursuers recognized, in a light snow, the route of this pernicious animal. Having followed her to Connec- ticut river, and found she had turned back in a direct course towards Pomfret, they immediately returned, and by ten the next morning the blood-hounds had. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 367 driven her into a den, about three miles from Mr, Putnam's house. The people soon collected, with dogs, straw, fire, and sulphur, to attack the common enemy* With this apparatus several unsuccessful efforts were made to force her from the den. The hounds came back badly wounded, and refused to return. The smoke of blazing straw had no effect : nor did the fumes of burnt brimstone, with which the cavern was filled, compel her to quit the retirement. Wearied with such fruitless attempts, (which had brought the time till ten o'clock at night) Mr, Putnam tried once more to make his dog enter, but in vain! He proposed to his negro- man to go down into the cavern and shoot the wolf; the negro declined the hazardous service. Then it was, that their master, angry at the disappointment, and declaring that he was ashamed to have a coward in his family* resolved himself to destroy this ferocious beast, least she should escape through some unknown fissure of the rock. His neighbours strongly remon- strated against the perilous enterprize : but he, know- ing that wild animals were intimidated by fire, and having provided several strips of birch-bark, the only combustible material which he could obtain that would afford light in this deep and darksome cave, prepared for his descent. Accordingly, divesting himself of his coat and waiscoat, and having a long rope fastened round his legs, by which he might be pulled back at a concerted signal, he entered head foremost, with the blazing torch in his hand. The aperture of the den, on the east side of a very high ledge of rocks, is about two feet square; from thence it descends obliquely fifteen feet, then running horizontally about ten more, it ascends gradually six- 2 $58 SPORTING ANECDOTES. teen feet towards its termination. The sides of this subterraneous cavity are composed of smooth and solid rocks, which seem to have been divided from each other by an earthquake. The top and bottom are also •of stone, and the entrance in winter being covered with ice, is exceedingly slippery. It is in no place high enough for a man to raise himself upright, nor in any part more than three feet in width. Having groped his passage to the horizontal part of the den, the most terrifying darkness appeared in fiont of the dim circle of light afforded by his torch. It was silent as the house of death. None but monsters of the desert had ever before exploded this solitary man- sion of horror. He cautiously proceeded onward, came to the ascent, which he slowly mounted on his hands and knees, until he discovered the glaring eye-balls of the wolf, which was sitting at the extremity of the cavein. Startled at the sight of the fire, she gnashed her teeth, and gave a sullen growh As soon as he had made the necessary discovery, he kicked the rope, as a signal for pulling him out. The people at the mouth of the den, who had listened with painful anxiety, hearing the growling of the wolf, and supposing their friend to be in the most imminent danger, drew him forth with such celerity, that his shirt was stripped ov$r his head, and his skin was severely lacerated. After he had adjusted his cloaths, and loaded his gun with nine buck-shot, holding a torch in one hand, and the musket in the other, he descended a second time, when he drew nearer than before; the wolf assuming a still more fierce and terrible appearance, howling, rolling her eyes, snapping her teeth, and, dropping her head between her legs, was evidently in the at- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 359 titude, and on the point of springing at him. At the critical instant he levelled, and fired at her head. Stunned with the shock, and suffocated with the smoke, he immediately found himself drawn out of the cave; but having refreshed himself, and permitted the smoke to dissipate, he went down the third time. Being come within sight of the wolf, who appearing very passive, he applied the torch to her nose, and perceiving her dead, he took hold of her ear, and then kicking the rope (well tied to his legs), the people above, with no small exultation, drew them both out together. ANIMAL C0U1J-AGE. There is a well-authenticated anecdote of g cock, that, by crowing, clapping his wings, &c. shewed such spirit on board the gallant Rodney's ship, during the battle on the very memorable 12th of April ; the fol- lowing may be added as a counter-part to it: — At the commencement of the action which took place between the Nymph and Cleopatra, during the late war, there was a large Newfoundland dog on board the former vessel, which, the moment the firing be- gan, ran from below deck, in spite of the^men to keep him down, and climbing up into the main chains, he there kept up a continual barking, and exhibited the most violent rage during the whole engagement. When the Cleopatra struck, he was among the foremost to board her, and there walked up and clown the decks, seemingly conscious of the victory he had gained. $60 SPORTING ANECDOTES. EXTRAORDINARY PIKE. Two gamekeepers belonging to the Hon. Mrs* Leigh, at Stanley Abbey, were dragging a part of the river Avon, under Bericott Wood : within sight of the Abbey-door they caught a pike, which after laying on the bank some time, attempted to disgorge something: he was immediately opened, and another pike taken out of him, which measured, from the extremity of its head to the end of the tail, two feet two inches and a half; weighed four pounds and a half, and the fish it was taken out of, weighed sixteen pounds* THE AFFRIGHTED HORSE. As Captain Laing, a gentleman in the army, was driving his gig down the road from St. Peter's, at Broadstairs, into the village, by some accident the ani- mal took fright in coming down the hill, ran with great violence past the corner in the open street, and took for the parade on the beach, which is directly opposite. In the small distance between the high road and the Parade is an iron bar placed across the railing, to pre* vent carriages passing. The captain, aware of this railing, crouched in the chaise, which passed within an inch of the top, and of his head. Within four yards Was the cliff, on the edge of which was a strong railing: upon reaching which the horse made a bold leap over it, but the strong post of the railing caught one of the wheels of the chaise, by which means the shafts were broken off short, the horse and harness precipitated into the sea, and the chaise and driver left behind. It SPORTING ANECDOTES. 36*1 was most happy for Mr. Laing that the horse at- tempted to leap the railing when he came to it ; for had he, on the contrary, forced himself against it, it would easily have given way, and inevitable des- truction to him would have been the consequence ; as it was, Mr. Laing escaped without the least injury. The chaise was broken, and the poor animal was dashed to pieces at the bottom of the cliff. FOX-CHASE WITH MR. PAUTOK's HOUNDS. A pack of fox-hounds, consisting of twenty-three couple, belonging to Thomas Panton, Esq. of New- market, found a fox at Abyssey-wood, near Thurlow, in the county of Cambridge, which immediately quit- ted the cover, and ran two rings to Blunt's Park, and back toAbyssey; he then flew his country, and went in a line through Lawn-wood, Temple-wood, to Hart- wood, where there was a brace of fresh foxes. The pack then divided, fifteen couple and a half went away close (as it is supposed), at the hunted fox, to West Wickham-common, then to Weston Covele, near Chal- ton-wood, and over Willingham-green ; he then took the open country to Balsham, turned to the right, and away to the six-mile bottom going to Newmarket; he gas ihen headed by a chaise, turned short to the left, and stood away upon the Heath in a line to Gogma- gog-hills, and was run from scent to view, laid down, and was killed upon the open Heath, at the bottom of the hill. He stood an hour and three quarters, with- out a minute's check ; and it is supposed in that time he ran a space of near thirty miles. The only gentle- ben who were in at the death, were Thomas Panton, 362 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and Benjamin Keene, Iisqrs. with die huntsman, Tho- mas Harrison. The pack, as observed before, di- vided at Hart-wood; six couple and a half of hounds went away with one of the fresh foxes, and killed him without any assistance, at Wethers-field, near Haver- hall. The remaining couple of hounds went away with the other fox, and killed him at Thurlow-park gates. EPITAPH ON HIGHFLYER. ALAS, F00R HIGHFLYER He deserves the pen of an abler writer, but the only merit I can claim is priority. — " Bis dat qui cito dat" HERE LIETH The perfect and beautiful symmetry Of the much lamented HrGHFLVER; By whom, and his wonderful offspring, The celebrated Tattersall acquired a noble fortune But was not ashaired to acknowledge it. In gratitude to this famous Stallion, He call'd an elegant mansion he built HIGHFLYER-HALL. At these extensive demesnes , It is not unusual for some of the Highest characters To regale sumptuously, When they do the owner the honour Of accepting his hospitality. A gentleman of the Turf, Tho' he has no pioduce from the above Stali ION, Begs leave to pay this small tribute To his memory SPORTING ANECDOTES. 363 Here lies the third* of the Newmarket race. That ne'er was conquer'd on the Oly.npic Plain : Herod his sire, who but to few gave place, Rachel hisdara — his blood without a stain. By his prolific deeds was built a court, f Near where proud Ely's turrets rise ; To this fam'd sultan would all ranks resort, To stir him up to an ain'rous enterprize. To thae three patriarchs * the Turf shall owe The long existence of superior breed : That blood in endless progeny shall flow, To give the lions strength and roebuck's speed. THE FOX-HUNTING PARSON. The late Rev. Mr. L t, of Rutlandshire, when a young man, being out with Mr. Noel's hounds, he said to the Earl of G. who had promised him the living of T. when it should become vacant — " My lord, the church stands on the land of promise/' And a short time afterwards when he had been inducted, he said — " My lord, now the church stands on the land of possession." — lie has been known several times, when at prayers in a week, to leave the congregation, and join the hounds, when they chanced to pass in full cry; and once, when he was marrying a couple, left them in the middle of the service, and told them he would finish it the next morning. — He was esteemed as a worthy good man, by all ranks of people in the ueighourhood, and did a great deal of good himself among-t the poor iu his own pariah. He died, universally lamented, some years ago, and a very remarkable circumstance * Childtrs, — Eclipse. t An elegant villa near Ely, I Childers, Eclipse, Highflyer. K 2 364 SPORTING ANECDOTES. happened during the funeral ; a fox, very hard run, was killed, after an excellent day's sport within a few yards of the grave, at the time when the sexton was filling it in. REMARKABLE LEAP. In March last, when a pack of hounds, were in pur suit of a fox which took through the inclosures adjoin ing to Sydenham, in Kent ; one of the party, a gentle man who lives in the neighbourhood, came up to a gate which he expected to be permitted to pass through : but in this he was for some time prevented by a man whose appearance bespoke him a knight of the cleaver who, brandishing the terrible instrument of his trade, swore that no one should go that way, whilst he was able to make use of his knife. The sportsman, unvvil ling to lose the game, which would have been the case had he gone another way, began to expostulate with the butcher, and told him, it was not his wish to be out of humour, and was sorry to find his temper soured by some disappointment he had undoubtedly met with. All this had no more effect upon the defender of the castle than to make him the more positive that no per- son should pass through —filled with the enthusiasm of the chase, he asked him whether he might go over ; this he assented to, observing at the same time, that neither him nor any man in England could. However, our sportsman was not to be intimidated by his obser- vations, but instantly drew his horse a few yards back, then ran him to the gate, which he took and cleared well, carrying the rider safe over, to the astonishment of every one. This gate was a five-barred one, with paling upon SPORTING ANECDOTES. 365 the top, exactly six feet and a half high; the boldness of the attempt did that which the most persuasive lan- guage could not effect — it brought from the morose lamb-slayer this exclamation, *' that lie would bed — d if ever he prevented this gentleman from going through his gate whenever he thought proper." THE CLERICAL JOCKEY. Hipponeus is a young man of fortune, lately ad- mitted into orders \ and, as the habit of a clergyman is a passport into the best of companies, Hipponeus is vi- sited by the most respectable families of that part of the country in which he resides. But Hipponeus's pleasure is seated in his stable, in which he is more nice .than in the economy of his household. If you call upon him in a morning, he is out airing his horses ; or should you chance to call upon him in an evening, he is with his stud. It' any ol his horses are sick, you may perceive it in the dejection of his countenance; or shall they, on the contrary, be all in health and high condition, the eager glee of approbation enlivens his whole features: thus this young man's pleasures are regulated by the diary of his stable. Hipponeus is a constant attendant at Newmarket, and, by his fre- quent conversation with jockies and sharpers, has at- tained to the happy imitation of the completeston the turf. He is constantly buying and selling horses, and it is allowed that he thoroughly understands (what is termed by dealers) making up a horse. Hipponeus is never so happy as when he can (in the language of jockies) take in a friend. It was but the other day that Philoiius applied to him to procure him a tractable r 3 366 SPORTING ANECDOTES. jade ; for Philotius is one of those who prefer an easy seat to a prancing steed with a probability of being thrown from the saddle. Hipponeus promised his best endeavours, and as one of his own horses had not turned out thoroughly to his satisfaction, he thought it the luckiest time possible to accommodate his friend. Philotius took the horse on the recommenda- tion of Hipponeus, and, in a few days, it proved unfit for use; and now Hipponeus congratulates himself on his superior judgment in horsc-Jlesh, L— D CA — V — SH. The character of the C— n— sh family, throughout all its branches, is uniform, cold, and phlematic ; of unsullied honour and integrity. Lord G e differs in no one point irom the rest, unless that he may, by the force of example, be in some degree more tinctured with the prevailing follies of the age. When very young, he discovered a. penchant for gaming, which has never forsaken him, nor do we believe that his fortune has been materially injured by it, the coolness of his temper preventing those excesses that might have otherwise been fatal. We do not believe that the mines of Peru would se- duce this gentleman to commit a dishonourable act; but if his soul disrlains injustice and dishonour, it is not sufficiently warm and animated to feel the exquisite delight of pure natural sensibility, or from thence to be roused to the duties of an amiable and extensive benevolence. Indolence, rather than the want of ge- nerosity, we are inclined to believe, is the cause of this omission: but if he was less slothful and indifle- SPORTING ANECDOTES. S67 rent, he would be far more amiable and useful. The liberal and noble spirit of the lady united to this fa- mily, whose charities were universal, and whose benig- nity of heart was pronounced by the beaming graces of the most ingenuous lovely impassioned countenance,* ought to have operated as an example to persons of a similar rank; bit, alas! they are, for the most part, irreclaimable. Her lively mercurial temper was also adapted and admirably.calculated to correct the phlegm of the family with which she was connected ; but tire and water cannot assimilate. If it falls to the lot of the im- partial biographer to expose the vices of others^ how happyshould we be, had we sufficient eloquence and abi- lities to describe the various excellences of this charm* ing woman 1 Who could have regarded her tender assi- duity, her affectionate attachment, and universal be- nevolence, without feeling a degree of pleasure almoit inexpressible ? The cold unfeeling mind may condemn her warmth of temper, as hurrying, on many occasions, into extrenv-s not propeily belonging to feminine re- serve; but sensibility, like h« rs, disdains the fasiidious delicacy of * tio/n-.tte, or punctilio, when the interest or happ.ness 01 a lnend is at stake. Let us, therefore, consider irifimg peccad lloes as> only serving to heighten the. general foeauu oi ht a" cbara ler. All he,- toibles anil levities originated in a p rity oi heart, and a con- sciousness oi lier own innocence, which made her • When the Dutchess ol D— - — e. mad> her fust appearance at Derhy races alter ner uiarn.»ue, an hone t rustic, oh her grace beinjz pointed out to lum, in a. kind o\ r- pturous astonishment, ex- cUiued — " Tout wore he G—d Al — ni — ty, he would make her Queen ot" Heaven," R 4 S6H rforting anecdotes. overlook those forms of ceremony and restraint which prudence may, perhaps, require, but of which even the strictest observance is not always sure to stop the breath of calumny. STORTING RETORT. In England, as the titles of nobility are limited, and cannot be usurped by fictitious characters without de- tection, they confer a degree of consideration upon the possessor, far superior to what is observed in foreign countries, where they are abundant to an extreme, and where every needy adventurer can assume them. A German baron, in derision, once observed to a French marquis, that the title of marquis was very common in France: " I, (added he, laughing) have a marquis in my kitchen." — " And I, (retorted the Frenchman, who felt hinjself insulted) have a German baron in my stable." This repartee was particularly happy; it being well known that German grooms are as common out of their own country as are French cooks. Jt af- fords a just lesson too, against the folly, as well as rude- ness, of all national reflections. CANINE ADOPTION. At the seat of A. Spurling, Esq. at Dyne's Hall, in Essex, a spaniel bitch, remarkable for being a good finder, having a litter of her puppies drowned, went shortly after into the adjoining plantations, and soon returned with a leveret in her mouth, supposed to be about a fortnight old, to which she gave suck, and con- tinued to be affectionately attached to it for a con- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 369 siderable time, to the astonishment of a great number of sportsmen in that neighbourhood, who were eye-wit- nesses to that wonderful event. HUNTING ADVENTURE OF HENRY IV. The education which this great man received was calculated to make him fond of woodland scenery and the sports of the field. Sent to a remote castle, amid the dreary rocks in the vicinity of the Pyrenian moun- tains, delicacy had no part in the education of the youthful Henry. His ordinary food was brown bread, cheese, and beet. He was cloathed like other children of the country, in the coarsest stuff, and was inured to climb and rove over the rocks often barefooted and bareheaded. Thus, moreover, by habituating his body early to exercise and labour, he prepared his mind to support with fortitude all the vicissitudes of his future life. How much more interesting to the truly sentimental reader, (the reader who reflects on what he reads, with a view to extract useful wisdom from it) are the rural exploits of young Henry, amid the craggy rocks of Bigorre and Beam, than the feats of the plumed hero of the field, or the deportment of the august mo- narch, surrounded by his courtiers in theThuilleries or the Louvre I Hunting was ever the favourite diversion of this mo- narch. He often strayed from his attendants, and met with some adventures which proved pleasant to himself, and evinced, the native goodness of his heart, and an affability of disposition which charmed all who had an opportunity of observing it. r 5 370 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Being on a hunting-party one day in the Ven- domois, he strayed from rns attendants, and some time after observed a peasant sitting at the foot of a tree:—" What are you about there?" said Henry. — 11 I am sitting here, sir, to see the king go by."- -" If } r ou have a mind (answered the monarch) to get up be- hind me, I will carry you to a place where you can have a good sight of him." The peasant immediately mounts behind, and on the road asks the gentleman how he should know the king. " You need only look at him who keeps his hat on while all the rest remain uncovered." The king joins his company, and all the lords salute him: — •« Well, (said he to the peasant) which is the king? — " Faikes, (answered the clown) it must be either you or I, for we both keep our hats on!" SINGULAR BOAT MATCH. On the 28th of June, 1765, was determined a wager, between two noblemen, for a thousand guineas, that a boat should go twenty-five miles in an hour. For this purpose a large circular trench, of one hundred feet diameter, and nine feet wide, was dug in a field hehind Jenny's Whim, near Chelsea bridge ; and, in the cen- tre of the land surrounded by this trench was fixed a post, with a radius, extending to the middle of the ca- nal ; so that the boat, being tied to the moveable end of the raditis, might be moved with great velocity by a very slow motion, by ahorse fastened to some point of the radius, between the boat and the centre. The wager was, however, lost, by part of the tackling SPORTING ANECDOTES. 571 giving way ; though the trial had succeeded perfectly well the day before. sir j. iiarinoton's dog, bungey, la a letter from Sir John H.*rin»toii to Prince Heniy, son to King James I, cono-rninj Wa dogge. May it please your highnesse to accepte in as good sorte what I nowe offer; as it hath done aforetyine; and I may saie / pedefaustu; but, havinge goode rea- son to thinke your highnesse had good will and hkinge- to read what ott.ers have toldeof my rare dogge, 1 wilt- even give a brief historic of his good deedes and strauuge feats ; au s 3 3.90 SPORTING ANECDOTES. mals commonly are. In the evenings it soon became so frolicksome, as to run and jump about his sofa and bed; sometimes in its play it would leap upon, and pat him with its fore-feet, or, whilst he was reading, even knock the book out of his hand. But whenever a stranger entered the room, the little animal always exhibited considerable alarm. Mr. Borlase saw a hare that was so familiar as to feed from the hand, lay under a chair in a common sit* ting-room, and appear, in every other respect, as easy and comfortable in its situation as a lap-dog. It now and then went out into the garden, but after regaling itself always returned to the house as its proper habita- tion. Its usual companions were a greyhound and a spaniel, both so fond of hare-hunting, that they often went out together, without any persons accompanying them. With these two dogs this tame hare spent its evenings : they always slept on the same hearth, and very frequently would rest itself upon them. Hares are very subject to fleas. Linnaeus tells us, that cloth made of their fur will attract these insects, and preserve the wearer from their troublesome at- tacks. Dogs and foxes pursue the hare by instinct: wild cats, weasels, and birds of prey, devour it: and man, far more powerful than all its other enemies, makes use of every artifice to seize upon an animal which con- stitutes one of the numerous delicacies of his table. Even this poor defenceless beast is rendered an object of amusement, in its chase, to this most arrogant of all animals, who boasts his superiority over the brute creation in the possession of intellect and reason: SPORTING ANECDOTES. 391 wretchedly, indeed, are these perverted, when exer- cised in so cruel, so unmanly a pursuit: — Poor is the triumph o'er the timid hare ! Yet vain her best precaution, though she sits Conceal'd with folded ears ; unsleeping eyes, By nature rais'd to take th' horizon in ; And head conceal'd betwixt her hairy feet, In act to spring away. The scented dew Betrays her early labyrinth ; and deep - In scalter'd, sullen openings, far behind, With ev'ry breeze she hear- the coming storm. But nearer, and more frequent, as it loads The sighing gaie, she springs amaz'd, and all The savage soul of game is up at once. In India the hare is hunted for sport, not only with dogs, but with hawks, and some species of the cat genus. The flesh, though in esteem amonst the Ro- mans, was forbidden by the Druids, and by the Bri- tons of the early centuries. It is now, though very- black, dry, and devoid of fat, much esteemed by the Europeans, on account of its peculiar flavor. The female goes with young about a month: she generally produces three or four at a litter, and this about four times in the year. The eyes of the young ones are open at birth : the dam suckles them about twenty days, after which they leave her and procure Ibeir own food. They make forms at a little distance from each other, and never go far from the place where they were brought forth. The hare lives about eight years. s 4 392 SPORTING ANECDOTES, The Varying Hare, This species has a very soft fur, which in summer is grey, with a slight mixture of tawny ; the tail is al- ways white. The ears are shorter, and the legs more slender than those of the common hare; and the feet more closely and warmly furred. In size this animal is somewhat smaller. Besides other cold parts of Europe, the varying hare is found on the tops of the highest Scots hills, never descending to the plains. It never mixes with the last species, though common in the same neighbourhood. It does not run fast, and when alarmed takes shelter in clefts of the rocks. In September it begins to change its grey coat, and resume its white winter's dress, in which only the tips and edges of the ears, and the soles of the feet are black. In the month of April it again becomes grey. It is somewhat singular, that although this animal be brought into a house, and even kept in stoved apart- ments, yet it still changes its colour at the same pe- riods that it does among its native mountains. o In some parts of Siberia the varying hares collect together in such multitudes, that sometimes flocks of five or six hundred of them may be seen migrating in spring, and returning in the autumn. Want of sus- tenance compels them to this: in winter, therefore, they are under the necessity of quitting the lofty hills, the southern boundaries of Siberia, and seeking the plains and northern wooded parts, where vegetables -abound ; and towards spring they again return to their SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 3Q3 mountainous quarters. In their white state their flesh is extremely insipid.. ANECDOTE OF THE DEER, BY COLONEL THORNTON. Every circumstance relative to the sports of the field, that contain the least interest, is highly valued by those who make this healthful diversion an object of pursuit: — the following observations on the deer, are from the pen of the most accomplished sportsman, of the present day, which cannot but prove acceptable to the reader. " Deer (says the colonel) cast their horns about the. month of May. Nature seems to have intended this for the purposes of supplying those which have broke their horns by fighting, with new ones the succeeding year; as no animal hghts more desperately, or vici- ously than the deer. Their fencing and and parrying, to those who have witnessed it, is beyond every thir.j, and, it may be said, scientific. During the time of the velvet they remain concealed as much as possible, conscious of their inability to attack or defend them- selves; as the most trifling touch upon the velvet, in this state, gives them exquisite torture. The velvet, when fried, is considered by epicurean sportsmen, the most delicate part of the deer. The growth of the horns only occupies abcut six weeks between the cast- ing to the bringing them to perfection, wberi they have been known to weigh twenty pounds. It is a mistaken notion, that the antlers impede the deer in cover, as £hey enable him ? on the contrary, to dash through s 5 394 SPORTING ANECDOTES. thickets and save bis eyes, as also to aid him when reared on their hind legs (which they do to an extra- ordinary height) to draw down the young branches for sustenance. TREGONVILLE FBAMPTON, ESQ. This extraordinary character was born in the reign of King Charles the First, when the sports of racing commenced at Newmarket, and he was Keeper of the Running Horses to their Majesties William the Third, Queen-Ajine, George the First, and George the Se- cond, diea* 12th of March, 1727, aged 86 years. The most remarkable event in the lives of this gentleman and his horse Dragon, is most pathetically depicted by Dr. John Hawkesworth, (in No. 37 of the Adven- turer) in the following words, supposed to be spoken by the horse in the Elysium of beasts and birds. " It is true, (replied the steed) I was a favourite; but what avail it to be the favourite of caprice, avarice, and barbarity : my tyrant was a man who had gained a considerable fortune by play, particularly by racing. I had won him many large sums, but being at length excepted out of every match, as having no equal, he regarded even my excellence with malignity, when it was no longer subservient to his interest. Yet still I lived in ease and plenty; and as he was able to sell even my pleasures, though my labour was become use- less, I had a seraglio in which there was a perpetual succession of new beauties. At last, however, ano- ther competitor appeared: I enjoyed a new triumph by anticipation ; I rushed into the field, panting for SPORTING ANECDOTES. 395 the conquest; and the first heat I put my master in possession of the stakes, which amounted to one thou- sand guineas. Mr. — — , the proprietor of the mare that 1 had distanced, notwithstanding this disgrace, de- clared with great zeal, that she should run the next, day against any gelding in the world for double the sum: my master immediately accepted the challenge, and told him that he would, the next day, produce a gelding that should beat her; but what was my asto- nishment and indignation, when 1 discovered that he most cruelly and fraudulently intended to quality me for this match upon the spot; and to sacrifice my life at the very moment in which every nerve should be strained in his service. As I knew it would be in vain to resist, I suffered myself to be bound : the operation was performed, and I was instantly mounted, and spurred on to the goal. Injured as I was, the love of glory was still superior to the desire of revenge. I de- termined to die as I had lived, without an equal ; and having again won the race, I sunk down at the post in an agony, which soon after put an end to my lite." " ' When I had heard this horrid narrative, which indeed J remembered to be true, I turned about in ho- nest confusion and blushed that 1 was. a man/" s 6 S36 &PORTI&G ANECDOTE^ SUFFERINGS OF THE POST-HORSEs (From Bloomfield's " Farmer's Boy.") Could the poor Post-Horse tell thee all his woes— Shew thee his bleeding shoulders, and unfold The dreadful anguish he endures for gold ! Hir'd at each call of business, lust, or rage, That prompt the trav'ller from stage to stage, Still on his strength depends their boasted speed, For them his limbs grow weak, his bare ribs bleed And though he, groaning, quickens at command* Their extra shilling in the rider's hand Becomes his bitter scourge — 'tis he must feel The double efforts of the lash and steel, Till when, up hill, the destin'd inn he gains, And trembling under complicated pains, Prone from his nostrils, darting on the ground, His breath emitted floats in clouds around ; Props chase each other down his chest and sidesj And spatter'd mud his native colour hides ; Thro' his swoln veins the boiling torrent flows, And every nerve a separate torture knows. His harness loos'd, he welcomes, eager-ejed, The pail's full draught that quivers by his side j And joys to see the well-known stable-door, As the starv'd mariner the friendly shore. ■ Ah ! well for him, if here his suff 'rings ceas'd. And ample hours of rest his pains appeas'd ! But rous'd again, and sternly bade to rise, And shake refreshing slumbers from his eyes, Ere his exhausted spirits can return, Or through his frame reviving ardour burn, Come forth he must, tho' limping, raaim'd, and sdre j He hears the whip — the chaise is at the door j The collar tightens, and again he feels His half heal'd wounds enflam'd ; again the wheels,, With tiresome sameness, in his ears resound, O'er blinding dust, or miles of flinty ground. SPORTING ANECDOTES. S$7 FALCONRY AMONG THE ANCIENTS. An early writer on this subject gives us the follow* ing anecdote : — " I once had (says he) an excellent opportunity of seeing this sport near Nazareth, in Ga- lilee. An Arab, mounting a swift courser, held the falcon on his hand, as huntsmen commonly do. When we espied the animal on the top of a mountain, he let loose the falcon, which flew in a direct line, like an arrow, and attacked the antelope, fixing the talons of one of his feet into its cheeks, and those of the other into its throat, extending his wings obliquely over the animal ; spreading one towards one of his ears, and the other to the opposite hip. The creature, thus at- tacked, made a leap twice the height of a ; man, and freed himself from the falcon; but, being wounded; and losing both its strength and speed, it was again at- tacked by the bird, which fixed the talons of both his feet into its throat, and held it fast, till the huntsman coming up, took it alive, and cut its throat. The fal- con was allowed to drink the blood, as a reward for his labour; and a young falcon, which was learning, was likewise put to the throat. By this means the young birds are taught to fix their talons in the throat of the animal, as the properest part; for, should the falcon fix upon the creature's hip, or some other part of the body, the huntsman would not only lose his game, but his falcon too ; for the beast, roused by the wound, which could not prove mortal, would run to the deserts and the tops of the mountains, whither its ^enemy, keeping its hold, would be obliged to follow, 398 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and being separated from its master, must of course perish. THE OLD HORSE ON HIS TRAVELS. BELATED BY HIS MASTER. The whole life of this poor slave, till within the two last years, has been a continued trial of strength, la- bour, and patience. He was broken to the bit by a Yorkshire jockey, to be rode the moment he was fit for service by an Oxonian scholar, who, whatever might have been his learning in abstruser sciences, was little conversant in the rudiments of humanity, though they are level with the lowest understanding, and founded on the tender code of that great lawgiver, who has told us, " a just man is merciful to his beast." During the very first vacation, this sprightly youth so completely outrode the strength of his steed, that he sold him on the same day that he regained his college, at the re- commencement of the term, for two guineas, to one of those persons who keep livery-stables, and at the same time have horses to let. It was not easily possi- ble for a poor wretch, so badly situated before, to change so much for the worse : and, of all the fates that attend a hackney horse, that which belongs to the drudge of a public university is the most severe ; it is even harder than that of the servitors of the college. He remained in this servitude, however, sixteen years, during which he was a thousand times not only priest- ridden, but parish-ridden, and yet was rarely known to stumble, and never to fall. Is it not questionable whether half the parishioners, or even the priests (with reverence be it spoken), could say as much for SPORTING ANECDOTES. 399 their own travels in the rugged journey of life ? His master, rather from policy than compassion, thought it most for his future interest to allow his four-footed servant a short respite, and he was accordingly fa- voured with a month's run in what is called a salt- marsh ; but, before his furlow was expired, he was borrowed by some smugglers, who then infested the coast, and who- made him the receiver of contraband commodities, as well as aider and abettor in practices, which, like many other underhand actions, are best carried on in the night-time. We say borrowed, be- cause, after a winter's hard work in the company of these land pirates, the horse was thrown up by his temporary employers in the very marsh out of which he had been pressed into their service, and a leather label, on which was marked this facetious intelligence, fastened to his fetlock — Owner, 1 have been smuggled. By these means he unexpectedly came again into his quondani master's possession, out of which, however, he departed the summer after, in the society of an old fellow-commoner, who,' after many years close con- finement in the cloisters, was disposed to lelinquish them in favour of a piece of church-preferment in Nor- folk, which happened to be in the gift of a lady about his own standing in life, and who, in the days of her youth, avowed so strong a partiality for this gentle- man, that her father, disapproving her alliance with a person who had only the hopes of a curacy before his eyes, thought fit to clog her inheritance, over which he had complete authority, with a formidable condition of forfeiting the whole estates, should she marry a son of the church ; shutting out, hereby, the whole body of divinity, to exclude the aforesaid individual mem- 6 400 SPORTING ANECDOTES. her. Faithful, however, to the merits of the manwlio' had won her heart, she was glad to find that parental tyranny, which had tied her hand, had left free her fortune ; she, therefore, took the first opportunity to present the object of her early choice with the only piece of service in her power — a presentation to the living of which she was become the patroness ; think- ing this a better evidence of her still existing partiality, than if she had set fortune at defiance, and sacrificed not only her own advantages, but her lover's, in gra- tifying a passion which would have impoverished both. An example of tenderness, this, well worthy the imi- tation of more romantic minds. It was to be inducted to this living our learned clerk now journeyed on the ancient steed whose memoirs I am now writing; and, as he did not intend to revisit the banks of the Isis r and had often been securely carried to a neighbouring cha- pel, where he officiated, on the back of this identical horse, he purchased him, to the intent that he should get into a good living also. But the turbulent part of this poor brute's adventures were not yet performed. His patron died, without himself deriving what might have been expected from bis benefice; and, soon after the decease of the master, the servant fell into the hands of a man in the same parish, who, to a variety bf other endeavours to subsist a large and needy fa- mily, added that of letting out occasionally a horse, Our hero, still unbroken in eitht-r knees or constitu- tion, was deemed fit for this purpose, and, being thought of little value, was obtained at an easy price. His new master removed soon after to Lowestoft, which you know is a considerable sea-bathing town by the sea-side, in the county of Suffolk, where the toils SPORTING ANECDOTES. 401 imposed by his Oxford tyrant were more than accumu- lated ; for, besides dragging a cart all the morning with loads of bread (a baker being among the business of his master), he was, on account of his gentle dispo- sition, ihe horse fixed upon to take a couple of gouty invalids in the bathing-machine, after the more vigo- rous divers and dippers had finished their ablutions. In the afternoon he was harnessed to the London post- coach, which daily past from Lowestoft to Yarmouth. The next morning, by day-break, he came with the return of the said coach, and was then ready for the diurnal rotation at home, unless a more profitable of- fer happened to take him another way. Four years of his life were passed in this miserable round of labours, and it was at this period of his history he and I became acquainted. My affections were engaged, and I pre-determined to make a present to them of this horse, for a sight of which I immediately sent my servant ; but, when he was led to the door of my friend's house, and though my resolution to mark him for my own grew firmer, as I gazed upon. his pity-moving carcase, I totally gave up all ideas of his utility. The owner himself con- fessed he was almost done up; at which thought a long sigh ensued, and a confession that he had been the chief support of the family ; observing, while he patted his neck, that the poor fellow might be said not only to carry his childrens' bread to be sold, but to make it. — M But its all over with you now, my old boy, (con- tinued the baker) you may get me through the autumn, mayhap, and then— " " What then?" said I.— " He must hobble away to the kennel ?" — " To the kennel !" — " Even so, master : what must be, must be : 402 SPORTING ANECDOTES. I can't afford to let him die by inches ; and, if I could, I don't see the humanity of that ; better give him to the dogs while they can make a meal of him, and pay me a small matter for their entertainment.— He will, how- ever, carry your honour this month to come creditably." Pre-determined, as I said, to spare the remains of this poor wretch, I bought him on the spot, convinced that it would be difficult to find any other person who would receive him on any terms. His appearance was such as would have justified Rosinante in refusing his acquaintance on the etiquette of comparative poverty. The association would have disgraced that celebrated spectre; nor did Quixotte himself exhibit so woeful a countenance. If ever, therefore, I could boast of an action purely disinterested, and which had unalloyed compassion for its basis, it was the giving five times more than he was worth, that is to say, five guineas, for this old horse j intending only, at the time, that he should pass the residue of his days in peaceful in- dolence, broke in upon by the infirmities of life, and die a natural death. To this end I obtained him the run of a friend's park, where I considered him as a re- spectable veteran retired on a pension. In this ver- dant hospital he remained, unsought, unseen, a whole year; at the end of which, being invited to pass the Christmas with the noble and generous owner of the park aforesaid, I paid a visit also to my pensioner, who had grown so much beyond himself on their un- measured bounty, that he seemed to be renovated. Do not wonder that I scarce knew him in his improve- ments, for he appeared not to know himself. The poor fellow's very character was inverted; the alteration reached from head to heel: he neighed, snorted, kick- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 405 ed, and frolicked about the pasture, on my first at- tempt to stop him, with the airs of a silly foal. I re- minded him that he ought to deport humbly, consider- ing the melancholy situation from which he was but recently delivered; yet, so far from paying any atten- tion, he turned from my morality with another snort of disdain, tossed up his saucy head, and threw up his heels, wholly forgetting, like other ingrates, his for- mer condition. Like them too, he appeared to. con- sider the world now made for him ; and, therefore, betwixt jest and earnest, I was resolved once more to shew he was made for the world. The next day I caused him to be taken from his green recess, and performed the tour of the environs on his back. More airily, more pleasantly, I could not have been canied, nor, towards the end of the ride, more soberly. The spirit which he shewed in the pasture was but as the levities of a hearty and happy old age, iu the plenitude of uncurbed leisure; like the gaiety of a veteran, who, finding himself in health, might take it into his head to finish in a coun- try-dance; but these are sallies for a moment! Ah ! my friend, how many poor starving wretches, worn down by their cruel task- masters, goaded like this horse by the " whips and spurs of the time," and driven out of one hard service to another, might, like him, be rescued, in the extremity, at small expence, and by the hand of bounty be protected from farther rigours ! even till they were renewed for a serviceable, instead of a diseased old age ! How many half-famished, hard- ridden creatures of the human race, I say, might, in like manner, be replenished. RejeC not this long story, this episode, this heroi-comi-epic if you please; 404 SPORTING ANECDOTES. but I cannot allow you to call it a digression. You will admit it to be in point when you are given to un- derstand, that on this very horse, thus restored by a little indulgence, I have measured a thousand miles, and find myself in sufficient heart to measure a thou- sand more. In the four and twentieth year of his age we sallied forth ; and if the master had, in the course of his travels, made as few trips, as few false steps, as the servant, he might be a match for the .safest goer on the road of life. CAPE BUFFALO, Tn e savage disposition of this animal renders it well; known about the Cape of Good Hope, and in the several other parts of Africa, where it is found. It is- very large, and enormously strong. The body is of a black, or dusky ash-colour ; the front parts covered with long, coarse, black hair. The horns are very thick and rugged at the base, sometimes measuring three feet in length, and laying so flat as to cover almost all the top of the head. The body and limbs are very thick and muscular; and the animal is above twelve feet long and six in height. The head hangs down, and bears a most fierce and malevolent aspect. In the plains of Caffraria, the buffalos are so com- mon, that is by no means unusual to see a hundred and fifty, or two hundred, of them in a herd. They gene- rally retire to the thickets and woods in the day time, and at night go out into the plains to graze. Treacherous in the extreme, they frequently conceal themselves among the trees, and there stand lurking till some unfortunate passenger comes by, when the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 405 animal at once rushes out into the road, and attacks the traveller, who has no chance to escape but by climbing up a tree, if he is fortunate enough to be near one. Flight is of no avail, he is speedily overtaken by the furious beast, who, hot content with throwing him down and killing him, stands over him for a long time afterwards, trampling him with his hoofs, and crushing Lim with his knees; and not only mangles and tears the body to pieces with his horns and teeth, but like- wise strips oft' the skin, by licking it with his tongue. Nor does he perform all this at once, but ofien retires to some distance from the body, and returns with sa- vage ferocity to gratify afresh his cruel inclination. As Professor Thunberg was travelling in Caffraria, he and his companions had just entered a wood, when they discovered a large old male buffalo, lying quite alone, in a spot that, for the space of a few square yards, was free from bushes. The animal no sooner observed the guide, who went first, than, with a horri- ble roar, he rushed upon him. The fellow turned his liorse short round behind a large tree, and the buffalo rushed straight forwards to the next man, and gored his horse so dreadfully in the belly, that it died soon af- ter. These two climbed into trees, and the furious animal made his way towards the rest, of whom the pro- fessor was one, who were approaching, but at some distance. A horse without a rider was in the front; as soon as the buffalo saw him, he became more out- rageous than before, and attacked him with such fury that he not only drove his horns into the horse's breast, but even again through the very saddle. This horse was thrown to the ground with such excessive violence, that he instantly died, and many of his bones 406 SPORTING ANECDOTES. were broken. Just at this moment the professor hap- pened to come up, but, from the narrowness of the path, having no room to turn round, he was glad to abandon his horse, and take refuge in a tolerably high tree. The buffalo, however, had finished for, after the destruction of the second horse, he turned suddenly- round, and galloped away. Some time after this, the professor and his party espied an extremely large herd of buffalos grazing on a plain. Being now sufficiently apprized of the disposi- tion of these animals, and knowing that they would not attack any person in the open plains, they approached within forty paces, and fired amongst them. The whole troop, notwithstanding the individual intrepidity of the animals, surprized by the sudden flash and re- port, turned about, and made off towards the woods. The wounded buffalos separated from the rest of the herd, from inability to keep pace with them. Amongst these was an old bull buffalo, which ran with fury to- wards the party. They knew that, from the situation of the eyes of these animals, they could see in scarcely any other direction than straight forward; and that in an open plain, if a man that was pursued darted out of the course, and threw himself flat on the ground, they would gallop forward to a considerable distance before they missed him. These circumstances pre- vented their suffering any material alarm. The ani- mal, from this circumstance, passed close by them, and fell before he appeared to have discovered his er- ror. Such, however, was his strength, that, notwith- standing the ball had entered his chest, and penetrated through the greatest part of his body, he ran at full speed several hundred paces before he fell. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 40? . The Cape buffalo is frequently hunted by Europeans and by the natives of South Africa. In Caffraria he is generally killed by means of javelins, which the inha- bitants use with considerable dexterity. When a Caf- fre has discovered the place where several buffalos are collected together, he blows a pipe, made of the thigh- bone of a sheep, which is heard at a great distance. The moment his comrades hear this notice, they run up to the spot, and surrounding the animals, which they take care to approach by degrees, lest they should alarm them, throw their javelins at them. This is ge- nerally done with so sure an aim, that out of eight or twelve, it is very rarely that a single one escapes. It sometimes, however, happens that, while the buffalos are running off, some one of the hunters who stands in the way is tossed and killed; but this is a circum- stance not much regarded by the Caffrarians. When the chase is ended, each one cuts and takes away his share of the game. Some Europeans at the Cape once chased a buffalo, and having driven him into a narrow place, he turned round, and instantly pushed at one of his pursuers, who had on a red waistcoat. The man, to save his life, ran to the water, plunged in, and swam off, the animal followed him so closely, that the poor fellow had no al- ternative but that of diving. He dipped overhead, and the buffalo, losing sight of him, swam on towards the opposite shore, three miles distant, and, as was sup- posed, would have reached it, had he not been shot by a gun from a ship lying at a little distance. The skin was presented to the governor of the Cape, who had it stuffed, and placed it among his collection of curio- sities. 408 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Like the hog, this animal is fond of wallowing in the mire. His flesh is lean, but juicy, and of a high fla- vour. The hide is so thick and tough, that targets, musket proof, are formed of it ; and even while the animal is alive, it is said to be in many places impene- trable to a leaden musket-ball; balls, hardened with a mixture of tin, are, therefore, always used, and even these are often flattened by the resistance. Of the skin the strongest and best thongs for harness are made. The Hottentots, who never put themselves to any great trouble in dressing their victuals, cut the buffa- lo's flesh into slices, and then smoke, and at the same time half broil it, over a few coals. They also fre- quently eat it in a state of putrefaction. They dress the hides by stretching them on the ground with stakes, afterwards strewing them over with warm ashes, and then with a knife scraping off the hair. BROMLEY, THE COCK-FEEDER, This celebrated character was a shoe-maker, pre- vious to his entrance into the sporting-world, at Wat- lington, a village near Benson, in Oxfordshire ; and for his punctualit}' in performing his promises enjoyed no small degree of rustic reputation. Being married early in life, he was in a few years surrounded by an epitome of King Priam's family; but his wife dying, he commenced his career as a cock-feeder, with as much modest sensibility as could be expected in any man in a similar situation. His person was good, his manner open, and his countenance without disguise ; but, like every other adventurer who depends upon SPORTING ANECDOTES. 40$ such a fickle jilt as Fortune, he at first experienced a variety of hits and gammons, replete with various vi- cissitudes. Being alternately elated by the smiles of to day, and the rebuffs of to-morrow, he continued to fluctuate between hope and despair, till his prudence and equanimity were put to the test by a rapid rise to the zenith of success and professional popularity. But the vibrations of enthusiastic, flattering, fleeting popularity, and unsullied prosperity, we are told the brain of poor Bromley was not sufficiently fortified to bear — for having vainly suffered his ambition to rise to the utmost pitch of gratification, by an uninterrupted chain of success, he met a reverse of fortune with such a burthen of mental misery, as was ever after plainly depicted in his countenance and manner ; and those who are most accustomed to scrutinize nature in her nicest moods, plainly saw into the inmost recesses of Iris heart. The successes of years in a great variety of mains, not only raised him to a degree of professional ce- lebrity (hardly inferior to any competitor in the king- dom) but gave him such a consciousness of superiority, and disgusting consequence, that soon hurled him from the summit of that eminence he had so rapidly at- tained, almost to the abyss of his original insigmficantfe }fi the scale of society. Even during the time a main was depending, when in the cock-pens with the toasters oi the match, he considered it a degradation to hear their opinions, or receive their instructions ; and al- though they were the ostensible and pecuniary princi- pals of the match, their ideas and admonitious were almost invariably held in the utmost contempt. Tbis (invincible) caprice, had it only happened in an in- 410 SPOUTING ANECDOTES. stance or two, might have passed over without muck injury to his interest, but it became, by his constant encouragement, so completely habitual, that his best friends could no longer brook the inconsistency, and visibly began to decline ; his increasing pride, ill-hu- mour, and ostentation, became at length not only un- bounded, but unbearable $ his greatest patrons saw it of course with concern, and withdrew their favours in proportion. Captain Bertie (brother of the Earl of Abingdon, lately deceased) was his first and best friend, Mr. Du- rand his last, for whom he was permitted to feed a main at the Cockpit Royal, upon which unusual sums of money were depending. To sum up his character, he was a man of correct professional judgment, but, un- fortunately for him, that judgment was frequently sub- servient to the prevalence of unqualified passion and unrestrained impetuosity; failings which placed him in a situation much better conceived than described ; in consequence of the overbearing rudeness and personal peevishness that latterly rendered him so truly obnox- ious to his superiors, particularly those who had his interest most at heart, as well as his unfortunate subor- dinates, who looked upon him with the complicated a»d jaundiced eyes of commiseration, envy, and dis- content. At one view, however, taking him for " all in all," we presume that no one man has passed through the " fiery ordeal" of a cock-pit, surrounded with its concomitant villanies, with a greater degree of unsul- lied purity; many there are in the long list of " gay bold-faced villains," who have largely attacked his pe- cuniary sensations, without effect; and from our own knowledge of his professional practice and pleasurable SPORTING ANECDOTES. 411 pursuits, we are justified in our opinion and report, that he lived and died a man whose honesty never sustained a shock, and whose integrity was never suspected. PECULIAR WINTER DIVERSIONS OF THE RUSSIANS. Described by a late Traveller in that Country. Some of their amusements are peculiar to the cli- mate. One of the chief is, that of riding in a light open sledge for pleasure, which is very common, be*- cause very agreeable, when the weather is not too severe. Skating may be mentioned as another; but the weather is often too severe for that, and therefore it is by no means so general in Russia, as in milder climates, such as Holland, Germany, &c. But of all the winter diversions of the Russians, the most favourite and which is peculiar to them, seems to be that of sli- ding down a hill. They make a track on the side of a steep hill, mending any little inequalities with snow, or ice; then at the verge of the hill, sitting on a little seat not bigger than, and much resembling a butcher's tray, they descend with astonishing velocity. The sensation is, indeed, very odd, but, to myself, for I of- ten had the curiosity to try, I cannot say it was agree- able; the motion is so rapid, it takes away one's breath: nor can I give you an idea of it, except desiring you to fancy you were to fall from the top of a house without hurting yourself, in which you would probably have some mixture of fear and surprise. The Russi- ans are so fond of this diversion, that at Petersburgh, having no hills, they raise artificial mounts on the ice t 2 412 SPORTING ANECDOTES. on the river Neva, for the purpose of sliding down them ; particularly on holidays and festival seasons, when aU the p< ople, young and old, rich and poor, partake of the sport; paying a trifle to the person who. constructed the mount, each time they descend. I call this peculiar to Russia, as a diversion : for though it is practised at the place known by the name of the Ramasse, the descent of Mount Cenis to Lanc- bourg, which, in some seasons of the year, is in a state that admits of travellers sliding down it in the same method, as is described in most books that treat of the Alps, yet. this may be considered rather as necessity, or convenience, than merely amusement. The late Empress Elizabeth was so fond of this di- version, that, at her palace of Zarsko Zello, she had artificial mounts, of a very singular construction, made for this purpose. These have been called by some En- glishmen who have visited that country, " the Flying Mountains;" and I do not know a phrase which ap- proaches neaier to the Russian name. You will ob- serve, that there are five mounts of unequal heights; the first and highest is full thirty feet perpendicular al- titude ; the momentum with which they descend to this carries them over the second, which is about five or six feet lower, just sufficient to allow for the friction and resistance ; and so on to the last, from which they are conveyed by a gentle descent, with nearly the same velocity, over a piece of water into a little island. These slides, which are about a furlong aud a half in length, are made of wood, that they may be used in summer as well as in winter. The process is, two oj four persons sit in a hale carriage, and one stands be- hind, for the more there are in it, the greaterthe swift- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 413 ness with which it goes; it runs on castors and in grooves to keep it in its right direction, and it descends with wonderful rapidity. Under the hill is a machine worked by horses, for di awing the carriages back again, with the company in them. Such a work as this would have been enormous in most countries, for the labour and expence it cost, as well as the vast quan- tity of wood used in it. At the same place there is another artificial mount, which goes in a spiral line, and, in my opinion, (for I have often tried it also) is very disagreeable; as it seems always leaning on one side, and the person feels in danger of falling out of his seat. They are able also to go out a hunting; and as the country abounds with game, it furnishes a large part of their provisions during the seasons when they are permitted to eat it; for the fasts of the Greek church,, taken together, interdict animal food full half the year. The method the common people use in hunting is with snow shoes, which are nothing more than a piece of wood, half an inch thick, five or six feet long, aud about four inches broad, turned up at the end, which they fasten at the bottom of their feet, and by means of them they run, or rather skate, over the snow, with a pole in their hands, faster than the hare, or any game they pursue, which are apt to sink in. They enjoy also the profitable diversion of fishing, notwithstanding the water's being covered with ice; and one manner of it, with a drag-net, is very particu- lar, though I doubt if I shall be able to describe it, so as to give you an idea of it. There is a hole, about four feet by two, cut in the ice, to let down a common drag-net ; opposite to this, at the distance they nieau T 3 414 SPORTING ANECDOTES. to pull up the net, is another hole, about four feet square : they then cut a number of small round holes at about four yards distant from each other, in a circu- lar form, from the hole where the net is let down, to that where it is taken up. At the ends of the two strings, that is, the upper and lower strings which drag the net. long poles are tied: these poles will reach from one round hole to another, where they are di- rected and pushed under the ice, as they swim at the top of the water, till they come to the biggest square hole, at which they draw tbem out, and by this means the net, inclosing the fish it has surrounded ; for the upper part of the net is floated at the top of the water under the ice, and the lower part of it sunk by leads, in the same manner as when the river is open : the in- genuity of the operation consists in the contrivance of dragging under the ice. SINGULAR HARE-HUNTIN*. Some time since, as Mr. Clarke, of.Horndean, was going a few miles on foot, in the forest of Bere, to visit a friend, he observed a hare come into the green road before him, which seemed to be listening, and looking back for something which pursued her. He stood still, and hearing no dog, was curious to discover the cause of her alarm ; when, to his great surprise, he dis- covered the object of it to be a small yellow-red and white stoat, which hunted her footsteps with the ut- most precision. He, wishing to know if so diminutive an animal could have a chance of coping with the great speed of the hare, retreated to a holm-bush hard, by, where he was an attentive observer of this silent hunt SPORTING "ANECDOTES. 415 lor near two hours, during which, he is certain to have seen both hare and stoat at least forty times. They were frequently gone for five or ten minutes ; but the hare, still unwilling to leave the place where she was found, came round again, and her little pursuer some- times close at her heels. Towards the end of this re- markable chase, which became uncommonly interest- ing, the hare took advantage of the thickest covert the place afforded, and made use of all her cunning and strength to escape, but without effect; till at length, weaned out by the perseverance of the stoat Mr. C. heard her cry for some time. At last, the cries coming from one point, he concluded she was become the vic- tim of the chase; on which he went to the spot, where he found the hare quite dead, and the stoat so intently fastened on her neck, as not to perceive his approach. The stoat, in its turn> now fell a victim to Mr. C/s stick ; after which he proceeded, with both bare and stoat, to the house of his friend. MR. FOSTER POWELL. This extraordinary man was born in the year 1736, at Horsforth, near Leeds, in Yorkshire, and, being bred to the law, was clerk to an attorney, in the New Inn, London. While in that employ, he had occasion to go to York for some leases, to which place he went and returned on foot, in little more than six days. He afterwards performed several expeditions with great swiftness, particularly from London to Maidenhead - bridge and back, (twenty-seven miles) in seven hours. In 1773, he made a deposit of twenty pounds, for T 4? 416 SPORTING ANECDOTES. a wager of one hundred guineas, the conditions ©f which were, that he should begin, some Monday in November, a journey to York on foot, and back again in six days. He accordingly set out on Monday, November the 2.9th, 1773. The particulars of this journey, as au- thenticated by Mr. Powell, are as follow : — M I set out from Hicks's-hall, London, on the 2£th of November, 1773, about twenty minutes past twelve o'clock in the morning, for a wager of one hundred guineas, which I was to perform in six days, by going to York, and returning to the above place. MJLESi ei I got to Stamford about nine o'clock in the evening of that day --------88 u Nov. 30. Set out from Stamford about five in the morning, and got to Doncaster about twelve at night --------- 73 " Dec, 1. Set out from Doncaster about five in the morning, and got to York at half-past two in the afternoon ---------37' "'' Departed from York about six the same after- noon, and got to Ferrybridge about ten that night 32 " Dec. 2. Set out from Ferrybridge about five in the morning, and got to Grantham about twelve at night ----.-•--- 65 " Dec. 3. Set out from Grantham at six in the morning, and got to the Cock at Eaton about eleven at night - ---------54 11 Dec. 4. Set out from Eaton, the sixth and last day, about four in the morning, and ar- SPORTTNO ANECDOTES'. 417 rived at Hicks's-hall about half past six in the evening ---^----.•-•-55 Total 39+ " Foster Powell." What rendered this exploit more extraordinary was, that he set out in a very indifferent state of health, being compelled, from a pain in his side, to wear a strength- ening plaister all the way ; his appetite, moreover, was very indifferent, for his most frequent beverage was either water or small beer ; and the refreshment he most admired was tea, and toast and butter. In his next two performances he \va» more unfortu- nate. The first was in the summer of I77b> he run a match of a mile on Barham Downs, near Canterbury, against Andrew Smith, a famous runner of that time, who beat him. The second was in November, 1778, when he un- dertook to run two miles in ten minutes, on the Lea- bridge road, which he lost by only half a minute. In September, 1787, he offered a wager of twenty- five guineas, that he walked from the Falstaff Inn, at Canterbury, to London- bridge, and back again, which is one hundred and twelve miles, in twenty- four hours : which being accepted, he set out on the 27 th of that month, at four o'clock in the afternoon, reached Lon- don bridge at half-past two the next morning, and was again at Canterbury at ten minutes before four in the afternoon. « June the 8th, 1788, he set out from Hicks's-hall, on his second journey to York and back again; which he t a 418 SPORTING ANECDOTES. performed in five days and nineteen hours and a quarter. On the I5th of July following, be undertook, for one hundred guineas, to walk one hundred miles in twenty- two hours, which he accomplished with ease, and had several minutes to spare. He went from Hyde-Park, Corner to the fifty mile-stone at Wolverton-Hill, on the Bath road, and back to Hyde-Park Corner. In 1790, he took a bet of twenty guineas to thirteen, that he would walk to York and return in five days and eighteen hours. He set off on Sunday, the 22d of August, at twelve at night, and reached Stamford on Monday night; arrived at Doncaster on Tuesday night; returned from York as far as Ferrybridge, on Wednesday; on Thursday he slept at Grantham; on Friday 011 this side "Biggleswade, and arrived at St« Paul's cathedral on Saturday, at ten minutes past four, which was one hour and fifty minutes less than the time allowed him. He was so little fatigued with this journey, that he offered to walk one hundred miles the next day, if any person would make it worth his trouble, by a consider- able wager. Soon after this he exhibited himself in a new light to the public, .>y being theatrically crowned at Astley's Amphitheatre, in the same manner as Voltrire was at the Comedie Francois, in Paris, some years before. On November 22d following, he was beat by West a publican, of Windsor, in walking (for forty guiueas) forty miles on the western road : and, soon after, failed in attempting to walk from Canterbury to Lon- don in twenty-four hours, owing to the extreme dark- ness of the nigU. On his return over Blackheatu he SPORTING ANECDOTES. 419 fell several times, and could not recover the right road. On Sunday night, July the 1st, he started, at twelve o'clock, from Shoreditch church, to walk to York and back again in five days and fifteen hours, for a wager of thirteen guineas; which he won, by arriving at Shoreditch the following Saturday, at thirty-five mi- nutes past one in the afternoon, which was an hour and twenty-five minutes withmhis time. He walked, on the Brighten road, one mile in nine minutes, for a wager of fifteen guineas; and run it back again in five minutes and fifty-two seconds, which was eight seconds within the time allowed him. FACETIOUS INSTRUCTIONS. Endeavour to inculcate an idea, wherever you go, that riding hard and riding bets are the only things on eanh to excite attention; that they are the leading qualifications by which to acquire pre-eminence, and, in fact, that there is no pleasure bat the chase, that a sensible man can engage in with consistency. Hold it forth to your servants, as a matter of the utmost mag- nitude, and confirm this by the orders of the preceding evening, that the whole house may be in early confu- sion, and strict preparation in the morning. If you possess a hoise not worth twenty pounds, or the least entitled to the appellation of a hunter, (affect a dig- nity, if you have it not.) let him be ordered in wait- ing at the place df throwing off; to which, after leav- ing the hand of your hair-dresser, and a comfortable breakfast-table, you come dashing upon a ten pound hack ; here it is necessary tor you to ride up with the T <5 420 SPORTING ANECDOTES. most unbounded effrontery, and survey every part of the company with the most ineffable contempt; exchange your horse, adjust your apparatus, and ask your ser- vant (although he may be only so lor the day) a thousand questions, of no other import than to render yourself conspicuous. When the hounds are thrown into covert, and every experienced sportsman is in silent agitation for the first challenge, it will be your particular care to become the only subject of vocifera- tion, by unnecessary remarks, or futile observations; be sure to gallop from one extremity of the covert to the other, when the hounds have good drag, and are likely to find : so soon as they unkennel, fix yourself at the most likely spot for the fox to break, because you will not only have the pleasure of beading him, but probably the happiness of a vein, and this you may do with the strictest attention to your love of the sport, be- cause the longer he remains in the covert where he is found, the longer you will insure the satisfaction of hearing the hounds. If he luckily should avoid being mobbed to death by you, and your fraternity, and is so fortunate as to break away, it becomes your duty to lay as well as you can with the hounds; but when, as it may frequently happen, you find the horses of others Jbave more speed, or are better leapers than your own, vociferate " Hold hard ! hold hard!" with the most violent and stentorian voice. This will give a decided proof of your consequence (particularly if you are a subscriber to the pack), and will intimidate the pusilla- nimous to let you get before them ; by which stroke of policy you in part carry your point, and become a leading sportsman of the first description, at least in. vour own opinion. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 421 Take a great number of unnecessary leaps in the course of the dav, not only to prove your courage, but \our humanity also, by such a display of attentive ten' dcrness to your favourite horse. However \ou may have been accidentally behind, make a point of coming up in the midst of a dirty country, or watery lane, for by almost smothering those you pass with dirt or wa- ter, you become an object of general attraction, though whether by exciting smiles of approbation, or frowns of contempt, experience will best convince. Whenever you may happen to be at the death, take care to give the huntsman, or whipper-in, a previous hint that you have particular occasion for the brink (or at any rate a pad), for which they shall receive the customary gratuity. After the chase, bore all your friends, for some days, with its incredible length and innumerable difficulties; M what hair-breadth escapes in the imminent deadly breach," and how very much you had rendered your- self an object of admiration. Carefully implant in your memory these leading traits of instruction, as they will olten be serviceable to you upon those occasions, which it will be needless, bo enumerate. A LION HUNT. DESCRIBED BY AI. VAILLANT. After a journey of two short days, we arrived kt a pleasant valley, shaded by a prodigious number of nimosas in full bloom, where we found a herd of cat- lie, whose presence told us, a horde could not be very -distant. Klaas, and the Namagnais, went before to 422 SPORTING ANECDOTES. announce my arrival. The beauty of the pasturage, which every where covered the foot of the mountains, made me determine to spend a few days near the horde. When my tent was fixed, the chief came to pay me a visit, and gave me very satisfactory news respecting my camp at Orange River, which he had seen ; they lived with another horde, who were gone to exchange cattle for tobacco. He himself would have sent some of his own people on the same object, had it not been for a circumstance that kept him in continual alarm, and hindered him from weakening his troop, by de- taching his men. For some time past, a lion and lioness had taken up their abode in a thick coppice, which he shewed me ; the horde had in vain endea- voured to dislodge the ferocious beasts, they having evaded all their attacks. They came, he said, every night, and attacked not only the beasts, but the men themselves ; and, the very night before, they had taken away an ox. Full of confidence and hope in the suc- cess of my fire-arms, the horde was happy at my arri- val, and entreated me to rid them of so dangerous an enemy ; not in the least doubting rny success, if 1 would attempt it. Of the two favours these people wished me to oblige them in, one was entirely out of my power, which was letting them have tobacco; for, for a month past, my own people lived on half their allowance. It was easier, however, for me to serve them in regard to the lions ; but this required great circumspection and prudence. The lions being so resolved to remain, in spite of all the efforts of the horde to drive them off, made me suspect they had cubs, and this circumstanfe would render the attack extremely dangerous; for SPORTI.VG ANECDOTES. 4"23 these animals, formidable at all times, are, under these circumstances, so furious, that nothing can re- sist them. Nevertheless, I engaged to attack them on the following day, and promised either to destroy them, or force them away ; but considering the thick* ness of the coppice, and difficulty of approach, I re- quired, independent of my own people, the assistance of all the horde. During the night we surrounded ourselves with a great many fires, and every now and then discharged our pieces. These precautions were, however, useless, for having to devour the remains of the ox, they did not appear, though we heard them frequently during the night. At day-break all the men of the horde were armed, ready for the attack, even the women and children wished to be of the party ; not indeed to join in the attack, but to have the plea- sure of enjoying our victory. VJe heard the lions fre- quently roar, but the appearance of day quieted them, and the profound silence that remained on the appear- ance of the lion, was to us the signal of departure. The coppice was about two hundred feet long, and sixty-one broad, and was more sunk than any of the surrounding ground, so that to get at it we were forced to descend. It was chiefly composed of low bushes and underwood, except towards the middle, where there we: e a few nimosas. If I could have gained these trees, seated on their summit, 1 should have been in a favourable place to attack them ; and might, at my leisure, have shot them both. To attempt this, as 1 did not know exactly the den of the lions, was, however, too dangerous ; the only plan then that re- mained, was to attempt to drive them out of their hiding place, For it was difficult, and almost impos- 424 SPORTING ANECDOTE.! sible, to arrive at the place where they were, on ac- count of the bushes, which were so hit>h and thick,, that my marksmen would not have been able to use their long fusils. I determined to place them at differ- ent distances on the heights which surrounded the wood, in such a manner that the lions could net reach the plain without b< ing perceived. As none of the savages would enter the place, we were obliged to attempt driving the oxen of the horde into it : this was a diffi- cult matter; but, by dint of blows and noise, we at last forced them to enter ; at the same time my dogs were let loose, and, to frighten our enemy still more, I discharged my pistol several times. The oxen smel- ling the animals, soon began to recoil ' y but bring re- pulsed by our noise, and the barking of the dogs, they entered furiously, lowing in a dreadful manner. The lions roused by their danger, expressed their rage by roaring horribly. The shock of two armies was not more tremendous than their terrible roaring, con- founded with the animated cries of the men and dogs,, and bellowing of oxen. This frightful concert conti- nued for some time, and I began to despair of success in our enterprize, when, on the side opposite to where I was, 1 heard piercing cries, instantly followed by the report of a gun ; to this report, immediately suc- ceeded shouts of joy, which passing from one to the other, soon reached me, and announced a victory. I ran to the place from whence the noise came, and found the lioness expiring. It had ai last quitted its fort, and was rushing with fury towards my troop, when Klaas, who occupied that post, seeing her, had tired at and kdled her. Its teats, although without milk, were swelled and hang- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 425 ing, wbichxfnade me suppose her cubs were as ye^ young; and, in this conjecture, I was not deceived. The idea struck me of employing her body to draw them from the coppice. For this purpose I had her drawn to a certain distance, not doubting they would appear as soon as they found her track, and that the male himself might follow, either to revenge or defend them. I ordered therefore several of my men, who were to the right and left, to approach, and remain about twenty yards from the carcase, ready to fire if the animals approached. This scheme, however, fail- ed, and we passed many hours fruitlessly expecting them to appear. Indeed the cubs, uneasy at not see- ing their mother, ran to all quarters of the wood growling. The male separated from her, redoubled his roaring and his rage. He at one time appeared on the skirts of the thicket, his eyes flashing fire, his maue erected, and lashing his sides with his tail. But be was unfortunately out of the reach of my fusil. One of my men, who was nearer, however, fired at him, but missed him. At this bad shot he disappeared; and, whether he was afraid to attack a troop so nume- rous as ours, or would not abandon his young, or was slightly wounded, he appeared no more. After hav- ing uselessly waited some time, and despairing of the success of my stratagem, I resolved to have recourse to my former plan of attack, and ordered every man to his former post ; but the oxen were so extremely frightened, that when we attempted to force them into the coppice, we found it impossible. As we had employed the greatest part of the day, and the sun was now setting, the attack would become perilous, I thought it expedient to retreat, and leave for the next 426 SPORTING ANECDOTES. day our last victory. The savages carried with joy the lioness to the kraal, with the pleasing thoughts of having got rid of one of their enemies, and the feast they should make of the carcase. As for myself I only wanted the skin, and ordered it to be taken off; it was four feet four inches in height, and ten feet eight inches long. The author then proceeds, and gives an account of the feast, after which he says — During the night I heard neither the roarings of the cubs, nor of their fa- ther. I attributed the cause to the noise the savages made, for if all the lions had assembled on purpose to roar together, they could scarcely have been heard, in the noise and jollity of the feast ; but there was another reason, the male, frightened at the danger he was in,, had taken advantage of the night, and retired with his family. When we arrived to continue the chace in the morning we found the wood empty. From the first entrance of my dogs I perceived we were too late,, however, to be certain, I fired my pistols once or twice, in hopes, if they were there, at that- noise tljey would make themselves heard by their roaring, or by the noise they made in moving. This precaution having had no effect, we entered with circumspection, and only found vestiges of the slaughter this family had made. When I saw this, I occupied myself by trying to find out the size of the father, and the number and size of the cubs. From what I could judge, there seemed to have been only two ; but, from the print of their feet, f imagined them to be as large as my dog Yager, who reached as high as my middle, and there- fore they were already dangerous, and could do a great deal of mischief. As to the father, 1 concluded SPORTING ANECDOTES. 427 from the same circumstance, (for his feet, fiom the impression, seemed to be nearly three times the size oi ihe female's) that he must be of an enormous size. LEAP FROM EGREMONT BRIDGE. A young gentleman, an inhabitant of Lancas- ter, riding on the road beiwec:? Ravenglass and White- haven, on a very high-spirited blood horse, not far distant from Egremont, he was passed by a single horse chaise, which occasioned the animal to be very un- ruly ; thinking to pacify him by passing the chaise, he cantered forwards ; but the horse no longer to be re- strained, struck off on a full gallop, and coming upon Egremont-bridge (the middle of the battlements of which present nearly a right angle to the entrance upon it) was going with such fury, that, unable to retrieve himself, be leaped sidelong upon the battlements, which are upwards of four feet high. The rider find- ing it impossible to retrieve, and seeing the improba- bility of saving either of their lives, had he floundered over head foremost, just as the horse was falling head- long down, had the presence of mind to strike him on both sides with the spurs, and force him to take a clear Jeap.— Owing to this precaution, he alighted upon his feet, and the rider firmly keeping his seat, held up the horse, till reaching the bottom, he leaped off. When we consider the height of the bridge, which has been accurately ascertained to be upwards of twenty feet and an half perpendicular height from the top of the battlements, and that there was not one foot depth of water in the bed of the river where they fell, it is really 428 SPORTING ANECDOTES. miraculous that they were not both stricken dead upon the spot. He travelled with his accustomed vigour from Egre- mont to Whitehaven, the distance of five miles. The only injury he received was a sprain in one foot, which confined him three days at his inn, the King's Arms, in Whitehaven. He remained there three days longer, waiting the recovery of his horse, who had a slight wound in the stifle joint. Both perfectly recovered. The horse's feet had struck one of the parapet stones of the bridge with such violence, as to throw it four inches out of its situation. MR. PHILLIDOR, THE CELEBRATED CHISS-PLAYER. This very singular character must certainly excite the astonishment of every one whoever heard of his wonderful performance at the chess-board. The fol- lowing anecdotes were related by himself to a very distinguished sporting gentleman, the authenticity oi which is not to be doubted. Andre Danican Phillidcr was born at Dreux, near Paris, in 1726. His grandfather was a hautboy-player at the court of Louis X ill. An Italian niusjeiau, named Philhdor, was admired at that court for his performance on the same instrument; and, after his departure, the king gave Mr. Danican the sobriquet, or nick-name of Phillidor, which has still remained in the family. His father, and several of his brothers, be- longed to the baud of Louis XIV. and XV. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 429 At six years of age be was admitted among the children of the Chapel-Royal, at Versailles, where, being obliged to attend daily, he had an opportunity of learning chess from the musicians in waiting, of whom there were about eighty. Cards not being al- lowed so near the chapel, they had a long table, with six chess-boards inlaid. At the age of eleven, a motet, or psalm, with cho- ruses, of his composition, was performed, which pleased Louis XV. so much, that he gave the com- positor five louis ; this encouraged the lad to compose four more. When he had attained his fourteenth year he left the chapel, and was then reputed the most skil- ful chess-player in the band. This was in 1740, when several motets of his composition were performed at Paris, at the Concert Spirituel, which were favoura- bly received by the public, as the production of a child, who was already a master and teacher of mu- sic. At this time chess was played at in almost every coffee-house in Paris, and he applied so closely to the game, that he neglected his scholars, and they con- sequently took another master. This induced him rather to pursue the study of chess thaa of music. Mr. de Kermui, Sire da Legalle, who is still living, and was then near forty years of age, was esteemed the best chess-player in France, and young Phillidor sought every opportunity of receiving his instructions, by which he improved so essentially, that, three years after, Mr. de Legalle, though still his master, was not able to allow him any advantage. Mr. de Legalle once asked him whether he had ever tried to play by memory, without seeing the board ? 430 SPORTING ANECDOTES* Phillidor replied, that as he had calculated moves, and even whole games at night in bed, he thought he could do it, and immediately played a game with the Abbe Chenard, which he won without seeing the board, and without hesitating upon any of the moves! This was a circumstance much spoken of in Paris, and, in consequence, he often repeated this method of play- ing. Phillidor then finding he could readily play a single, game, offered to play two games at the same time, which he did at a coffee-house; and of this party the following account is given in the French Encyclo- pedia : — "We had at Paris a young man of eighteen, who played at the same time two games of chess, without seeing the boards, beating two antagonists, to either of whom he, though a first-rate player, could only, give the advantage of a knight when seeing the board. We shall add to this account a circumstance of which we were eye-witnesses. In the middle of one of his ,games, a false move was designedly made, which* after a great number of moves, he discovered, and, placed the piece where it ought to have been at first. This young man is named Phillidor, the son of a musician of repute ; he himself is a musician, and, perhaps, the best player of Polish draughts there ever was or ever will be. This is among the most extra- ordinary examples of strength of memory and of ima- gination." Forty years after this, he played two different times in London, three games at once. Of one of these ex- ertions, the following account appeared in the London newspapers in May, 17S3 : — S 5P0RTIXG AXECDOTES. 431 Xi Yesterday, at the chess-club in St. James's-street, Mr. Pbilhdor performed one of those wonderful ex- hibitions for which he is so much celebrated. He played at the same time three different games, without seeing either of the tables. His opponents were Count Baihl, Mr. Bowdler, (the two best players in London) and Mr. Maseres. He defeated Count Bruhl in an foour and twenty minutes, and Mr. Maseres in two hours. Mr. Bowdler reduced his game 'to a drawn battle in an hour and three quarters. To those who understand chess, this exerlion of Mr. Phillidor's abi- lities must appear one of the greatest of which the hur- man memory is susceptible. He goes through it with astonishing accuracy, and often corrects mistakes in those who have the board before them. Mr. Phillidor sets with his back to the tables, and some gentleman present who takes his part, informs him of the move of his antagonist, and then by his direction, plays his pieces as he dictates." The other match was with Count Bruhl, Mr. Jen- nings, and Mr. Erskine, to the last of whom he gave a pawn and the move ; the count made a drawn game, and both the other gentlemen lost their games. In 1717, he visited England, where Sir Abraham Jansen introduced him to all the celebrated players of the time. Sir Abraham was not only the best chess- player in England, but likewise the best player he ever met with, after his master, Mr. de Legalle ; as the baronet was able to win one game in four of him even ; and Mr. de Legalle, with whom Sir Abraham after- wards played in Paris, was of the same opinion with regard to his skill. 432 SPORTING ANECDOTES. In 174-8, Mr. Phillidor returned to Holland, where he composed his Treatise on Chess. At Aix-la-Cha- pelle he was advised by Lord Sandwich to go to Eynd- boven, a village between Bois le-Duc and Maestricht, where the English army was encamped. He had there the honour of playing with the late Duke of Cumber- land, who subscribed liberally himself, and procured a great number of other subscribers to his work on Chess, which was published in London in 17*9- In 1750, he frequented the house of the French am* bassador, the Duke of Mirepoix, who gave a weekly dinner to the lovers of chess, at which game he was himself very expert. Phillidor remained another year in London, and learning that the King of Prussia was fond of chess, he set off for Berlin, 17 5\. The king saw him play seve- ral times atPostdam, but did not play with him him- self; there was a Marquis de Verennes, and a Jew, who played even with the king, and to each of these Phillidor gave a knight, and beat them. The year following he left Berlin, staid eight months at the Prince of VValdeck's, at Arolsen, and three weeks at the court of the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, and then returned to England, where he remained till 1775, when he returned to France. In that capi- tal he composed operas, and other pieces ; and, in the year 1794, we find him again in London, at Mr. Par- sloe's, in St. James's street, where, on the 23d of Fe- bruary, he played two games blindfold at the same time, against Count Bruhl and Mr. Wilson. Mr. Ph llidor giving the advantage of theiirst move to both parties. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 453 Mr. Bowdler moved the pieces, agreeable to the direction of Mr. Phillidor, against Count Bruhl, and Mr. Rameau moved for him against Mr. Wilson. This match was strongly contested, and lasted an hour and thirty-five minutes. Mr. Phillidor, though he never manifested a clearer head, nor a more tena- cious memory, was obliged to yield to his adversaries, whom he had so often defeated before. The fact is, the odds were immense ; and though the celebrated foreigner is the best player in the world, the other gen- tlemen having made a wonderful progress in their improvement, occasioned of course their success. There was a most numerous and fashionable com- pany present, among whom was the Turkish ambassa- dor and his suite. His excellency paid great attention to the match, and followed all the moves of Count Bruhl. HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE LATE DUKE OP CUMBERLAND. He was one of' the first sportsmen, and greatest characters, that this or any other country lias pro- duced. He was the uncle of his present Majesty, and as a commander, a sportsman, and a man, " Take him for all in ail, We ne'er shall look upon his like again ;*" For he was formed in " nature's nicest mould," that the world might be taught to estimate perfection. Un- der the influence of his counsel, under the weight of his personal exertions y that monster rebellion was subdued, u 434 SPORTING ANECDOTES. beyond the power of renovation, and the British nation relieved from a state of anxiety, to which, by the restless ambition of its neighbours, it had been so long compulsively subjected. Rewarded by his sovereign, by the representatives of the people, and by the citizens of London, he retired from the field of war and the fac- tion of politics, to enjoy the otium cum dignitate of do- mestic comfort, at the lodge in Windsor Great Park, of which he , had some years before been appointed ranger. Here he engaged in all the attracting plea- sures of rural life; established his stud and breeding stock, and, with a portion of liberality equal (or su- perior) to the grateful munificence of a generous peo- ple, retained and employed in useful labour, a greater number of industrious poor than, perhaps, ever was, or maybe, seen again within the park, or forest of Wind- sor. To his indefatigable exertions the present gene* ration stands indebted for the various judicious crosses that have brought the breed of blood-horses to such a state of unprecedented perfection ; and the origin of all the most valuable stallions now in the kingdom, center in the happy combination of his own efforts to pro- duce priority. Crab, Marsh, Herod,- and Eclipse, were amongst the most celebrated of his own breed ; to which were annexed a very long list of progeny, that by his death and the " fascinating flourish of the hammer," were " scattered to all the winds of heaven." Marsh fell to the possession of Lord Abingdon, where lie con- tinued till his death — Eclipse first to Wild-man, then, partis equalis with 'Kelly, and, lastly, to O'Kelly solus— as did the little famous horse Milksop, the then first give and take horse in the kingdom; he was thus named by his Royal Highness, in consequence of hi& SPORTING ANECDOTES. 435 clam's taking fright at him as soon as he was foaled, and never could be brought to any association ; so that he was literally brought up by hand. Eclipse also deriv- ed his appellation from the circumstance of being brought forth during the great eclipse, or real " dark- ness visible." His Royal Highness, in his first efforts for superiori- ty, felt the mortification that every liberal mind must be subject to when surrounded by the most voracious sharks of every description. The family of the Greeks were then, as now exceedingly numerous, and to its various branches his Royal Highness was for a consi- derable time, most implicitly subservient; but as soon as it was possible for him to shake off the effects of the embarkation, and time had enabled him to produce stock of his oum breed, and that breed formed upon his well-improved judgment, he took the lead, and, in a very few years, totally defeated every idea of com- petition. He had, at the unexpected hour of his death, not only the most pure, perfect, and correct, but the most valuable stud of horses in his possession of any subject of the king's dominions; and his loss was considered as a still greater check to the sporting world, as it happened just at the moment when the turf &nd its enjoyments had acquired the meridian of popularity: it was the influenza of the day, to whose infection fresh objects were eternally becoming subject, and to which fashionable fascination the death of so great and so good a promoter, gave an instantaneous obstruction. Amongst the numerous improvements in- cessantly carrying on in and near his delightful resi- dence, the race course at Ascot seamed to be the most favourite and predominant object of pursuit; lading u 2 436 SPORTING ANECDOTES. claim to every care and attention that could possibly constitute a scene of the greatest and most unsullied brilliancy. This the hand of Providence (as the first object of his heart) spared him long enough to see complete ; but just in the moment of exultation, when loaded with the grateful caresses of an idolizing mul- titude, and when absolutely arranging the business of a spring aud autumn meeting at Ascot, to vie in some degree with the sport of Newmarket, and when the whole county resounded with unprecedented plaudits, the allwise and dispensing potoer, to whose dictates we must piously submit, dropped the curtain of death upon -such a life, such an accumulation of goodwill and cha- ritable practice to all mankind, that it is but little imitated, never can be excelled ! In the happy retrospec- tion of which one admonition naturally presents itself for the rumination of every contemplatist of human, excellence— " Go thou and do likewise." LORD C AVD THE WEIRD STSTERS. This nobleman, with many amiable virtues, and many brilliant accomplishments, had a great propensi- ty to gaming: in one night he lost three and thirty thousand pounds to the late General Scott. Morti- fied at his ill fortune, he paid the money, and wished to keep the circumstance secret ; it was however, whispered m the polite circles, and his lordship, to divert his chagrin, a tew nights after, slipped on a do- mino, and went to a masquerade at Carlisle house. He found all the company running after three Irish ladies of the name of G r , in the character ot the SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 437 three weird sisters. These ladies were so well ac- quainted with every thing that was going on in the great world, that they kept the room in a continued roar by the brilliancy of their bon mots, and the terse- ness of their applications to some people of rank u ho were present. They knew Lord C — , and they km j w of his loss, though he did not know them. He walked up to them, and, in a solemn tone of voice, addressed them as follows : — • Ye black and midnight hags what do you do ? Live ye, or are ye aught that man may question ? Quickly unclasp to me the book of fate, Aud tell if good or ill my steps await. riTST "WJTCII. All hail C ! all hail to thee, Ouce annual lord of thousands thirty-three. SECOND WITCH. All hail C ! All hail to thee, All hail ; though poor thou soon shalt be ! HECJTE. C , all hail ! thy evil star Sheds her baneful influence — Oh, beware ! Beware that Thane ! beware that Scott ! Or poverty shall be thy lot. He'll drain thy youth as dry as hay- Hither, sisters, haste away ! At the concluding word, whirling a watchman's rat- tle which she held in her hand, the dome echoed with the sound; the astonished peer shrunk in to himself with terror, retiied, and vowed never to lose more u3 438 SPORTING ANECDOTES. than a hundred pounds at a sitting: which resolution he ever after abided by. EPITAPH. On the D^ath of ihe late John Pratt, Esq. Of Askrigg, in Wensleydale, "Who died at Newmarket, May 8, 1785. A character so eccentric — so variable — so valuable Astonish'd the age he liv'd in. Tho' small his patrimony, Yet, assisted by that and his own genius/ He, for upwards of thirty years, Supported all the hospitality Of an ancient Baron. The excellent qualities of his heart Were eminently evinced By his bounty to the poor; His sympathetic feelings for distress,. And his charity for all mankind. Various and wonderful were the means Which enabled him, with unsullied reputation,, To support his course of life : In which he saw, and experienced Many trials, and many vicissitudes of fortune ; And tho* often hard presb'd, whipt, and spurr'd, By that Jockey Necessity, He never swerv'd out of the course of honour. Once, when his finances were impair'd, He receiv'd a seasonable supply, By the performance of a Miracle !* A famous horse of his, got by Changeling. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 439 At different periods he exhibited (Which vere the just emblems ofhis own life) A Conundrum, an Enigma; and a Riddle; And strange to tell ! even these Enrich'd bis pocket. "Without incurring censure. He trained up an Tnfidel*, Which turned out to his advantage. He had no singular partiality For flowers, shrubs, roots, or birds. Yet for several years he maintain'd a Florist, f And his Red Rose, more than once, Obtain'd the premium. He had a Honeysuckle and a Pumpkin, Which brought hundreds into his purse : And a Phojnix, a Nightingale, a Goldfinch}, and fc Chaffinch, Which produe'd him thousands. In the last war, He was owner of a Privateer, Which brought him several valuable prizes, Tho' never fam'd for gallantry, Yet he had in keeping, at different periods, A Virgin, a Maiden§, an Orange Girl, and a Ballad-Singer : Besides several Missesff, To all wham his attachment was notorious. * Got by Turk, dam (Goldfinch and Miss Nightingale's dsra- by Crab). + Got by Match'em. J Got by Match'em out of Infidel's dam. § Got by Match'em, out of his famous Squirt Mare, the dam of Conundrum, Pumpkin, Ranthos, ^Enigma, &c. and grandam of Miracle, Virgin, Dido, &c. || The dam of Ruckingham, got by Match'em, out ofhis Squirt nare, u 4 440 SPORTING ANECDOTES. And (what is still more a paradox) Tho' he had no issue by his lawful wife. Vet the numerous progeny, and quick abilities, Of these very females, Prov'd to him a source of supply. With all his seeming peculiarities and foibles* Heretain'd his Purity* Till a few davs before his death : When the great Cabiden Spread the fame thereof so extensively, A9 to attract the notice of his Prince, Who thought it no diminution of royalty To obtain so valuable an acquisition by purchase, Aitho' he parted with his Purity At a great price, Yet his honour and good name Remain'd untarnish'd to the end of his life. At his death, indeed Slander, (In the semblance of Pity) Taik'd much of his insolvency, And much of the ruin of individuals j > But the proof of his substance. And of a surplus not much inferior To his original patrimony, 5oon answered — refuted — and wip'd away the calumny. To sum up the abstract of his character, It may trulv be said of him, That his frailties were few j His virtues many. That he liv'd, Almost universally belov'd j That he died, Almost universally lamented. Afterwards Rockingham. SPORTING ANECDOTES, 44l BADGER-HUNTING. The badger is not known to exist in hot countries : it is an original native of the temperate climates of Europe, and is found, without any variety in Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Britain, Poland, and Swe- den. It breeds only twice in a year, and brings forth four or five at a time. The usual length of the badger is somewhat above two feet, exclusive of the tail, which is about six inches long; its eyes are small, and are placed in a black stripe, which begins behind the ears, and runs tapering towards the nose : the throat and legs are; black ; the back, sides, and tail are of a dirty grey, mixed with black; the legs are very short, strong, and thick: each foot consists of five toes; those on the fore-feet are armed with strong claws, well adapted for digging its subterraneous habitation. The badger retires to the most secret recesses, where it digs its hole, and forms its habitation under ground. Its food consists chiefly of roots, fruits, grass, insects, and frogs. It is accused of destroying lambs and rab- bits ; but there seems to be no other reason for con* sidering it as a beast of prey, than the analogy between its teeth, and those of carnivorous animals. Few creatures defend themselves better, or bite with greater keenness than the badger: on that account it is frequently baited with dogs trained for that purpose* and defends itself from their attacks with astonishing agility and success. Its motions are so quick, thai a dog is often desperately wounded in the moment of assault, and obliged to fly. The thickness of the bad- u 5 442 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ger's skin, and the length and coarseness of its hair, are an excellent defence against the bites of the dogs : its skin is so loose as to resist the impression of their teeth, and gives the animal an opportunity of turning itself round, and" wounding its adversaries in their ten- derest parts. In this manner this singular creature is able to resist repeated attacks both of men and dogs, from all quarters; till, being overpowered with num- bers, and enfeebled by many desperate wounds, it is at last obliged to yield. In hunting the badger, you must seek the earths and burrows where he lies; and, in a clear moonshine- night, go and stop all the burrows except one or two, and therein place some sacks, fastened with drawing strings, which may shut him in as soon as he strains the bag. Some only place a hoop in the mouth of the sack, and so put it into the hole; and as soon as the badger is in the sack, and strains it, the sack slips from the hoop, and secures him in it, where he lies trem- bling till he is taken from his prison. The sacks, or bags, being thus set, cast off the bounds, beating about all the woods, hedges, and tufts round about for the compass of a mile or two ; and what badgers are abroad, being alarmed by the hounds, will soon betake themselves to their burrows. Observe, that the person who is placed to watch the sacks, must stand close, and upon a clear wind ; otherwise the badger will discover him, and immediately fly some other way into his burrow. But if the dogs can encounter him before he can lake his sanctuary, he will then stand at a bay like a boar, and make good sport, vigorously biting and clawing the dogs. In general, when they fight, they SPORTING ANECDOTES. 443 lay on their backs, using both teeth and nails; and, by blowing up their skins, defend themselves against the bites of the dogs, and the blows given by the men. When the badger rindi that the terriers yearn* him in his burrow, he will stop the hole betwixt him and the terriers; and, if they still continue baying, he will remove his couch into another chaml er or part of the burrow, and so from one to another, barricading the way before them, as he retreats, till he can go no farther. If you intend to dig the badger out of his burrow, you must be provided with such tools as are used for digging out a fox : you should also have a pail of wa- ter ready to refresh the terriers when they come out of the earth to take breath and cool themselves. it is no unusual thing to put some small bells about the necks of the terriers, which making a noise, will cause the badger to bolt out. In digging, the situation of the ground must' be ob- served and considered; or, instead of advancing the work, you probably may hinder it. In this order you may besiege them in their holds, or castles, and break their platforms, parapels and casemates ; and work to them with mines and coun- termines, till you have overcome them. We must do this animal the justice- to observe, that, though nature has furnished it with formidable wea- pons of offence, and has besides given it strength suf- ficient to use them with great effect, it is, notwith- standing, very harmless and inoffensive, and, unless attacked, employs them only for its support. The badger is an indolent animal, and sleeps much : * To yearn, is to bark as beagles do at their prejr. v 6 444 SPORTING ANECDOTES. it confines itself to its bole during the whole day, and feeds only in the night. H* is so cleanly as never to defile its habitation with its ordure. Immediately be- low the tail, between that and the anus, there is a narrow transverse orifice, from whence a white sub- stance, of a very foetid smell, constantly exudes. The skin,, when dressed with the hair on, is used for pistol furniture, lis flesh is eaten: the hind quarters are sometimes made into hams, which, when cured, are not inferior in goodness to the best bacon. The hairs are made into brushes, which are used by painters to soften and harmonize their shades. In walking, the badger treads on its whole heel, like the bear, which brings its belly very near the ground. THE SPORTSMAN^ CHOICE. Much fam'd is the Arabian breed, but best The horse whom sportsmen prize above the rest; ISuch he, wbo->e shape with these periections crown'd, Lightly he shiits his limbs, with speed he scours the ground. Something above his head his neck should rise, With looks erect, full fifteen hands in size ; His chop should to his neck below incUne, And his full front with sprightly vigour shine; Let waving locks adown his foretop fly, And brills embrown'd should edge his broad bright eye ; Wide nostrils, ample mouth, and little ears ; Arch'd be his neck, and fledg'd with floating hairs, Like, a plum'd helmet, when it nods its crest, Broad and capacious be his stately chest; Let his strong back be furrow'd with his chine, His tail branch out in a long bushy line ; Clean be his thighs, and sin'wy, but below Strait, long., and spare, his weli-tum'd shanks ihould shew , 3 SPORTTXG ANECDOTES. 445 Lean be his legs, and nimble as the stag's, With whom in speed, the fleeting tempest flags; Firm let him tread, and just, and move along Upon a well-grown hoof, compact and strong; Proud of the sport, with too much fire to yield ; — ■ Such be the horse to bear me to the field ! RICHARD FAIR-BROTHER. This veteran sportsman was born of humble, yet wfcjl-disposed parents, in Essex, in the year 1734-. At an early period he shewed a very great attachment to dogs and horses, and, as he advanced in life, his inch" nations were bent towards hunting, which, as it re- ceived no material check from his parents, grew upon him to such a degree that he resolved to leave every other mode of obtaining a livelihood, and give himself up totally to dogs and horses; and accordingly, about the age of eighteen, entered into service in the capacity of groom, where he gained some knowledge of horses ; but he had not yet obtained the object of his desires ; he was much fonder of dogs than horses, and his great- est delight was in the study of the different species of the canine race, the best manner of breeding them, the various distempers they were subject to, and the best and most effectual means of restoring them to health j such, in youth, were his favourite pursuits. It is not necessary to enumerate the several persons* names with whom Richard Fairbrother lived, before he arrived at an age sufficiently mature to take upon him- self the management of a pack of hounds, which were not numerous. His good behaviour was such, that it was no easy matter to be displeased with him ; and if at any time he did offend, he always endeavoured to 446 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the utmost of his power, to make up for it by his future attention and obedience. His relations being in indigent circumstances, it was not possible, or even to be expected, that he should receive any extraordinary education; but, notwith- standing such disadvantages, there was a something in his behaviour far above the lower order of people, and which was much improved after he became a hunts- man, on account of his frequently conversing with gen- tlemen who took that diversion. After having gone through, with a cheerful mind, the different stages, which were only preparatory to his* greatest ambition, and having with much application gained a sufficient knowledge of dogs and horses to qua- lify him for the employ he so much wished, he at length- entered into the service of a gentleman, in the quality of huntsman, where his talents in that line soon became- conspicuous, and confirmed in his choice of the situa- tion, which his inclination led him to prefer. We must here again beg leave to pass over the names of those with whom he first lived in that capacity, that we may make mention of that more celebrated part of his life, which he spent in the service of Russel, Esq. in Essex, the fame of whose fox-hounds every sportsman must recollect, and which the subject of this article bunted in such a manner, as rendered his name famous throughout that part of the country, and gained him the esteem of his master, which he enjoyed many years. Leaving that place, he then went into the service of Harding Newman, Esq. of Navestock,. in Essex, whose foxhounds were likewise looked upon as equal to any in the kingdom. In this gentleman's- service he roue a horse, at that time well known to the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 447 sportsmen by the name of Jolly Roger, which carried him through several of the severest chases ever known in this kingdom ; and by his extraordinary feats in the chase, united to superior talents, he gained the admi- ration of every one. Here should be noticed a very long chase which happened during the time he was in JMr. Newman's service. On the 2d of Deceinber, 1793, they found a fox at Bromfield Hall Wood, near Chelmsford, and after a chase of more than twenty- six miles, without the least check, ran into him, as he was attempting to get into Lord Maynard's garden, at Dunmow; and it is worth remarking, that the hounds pursued the fox through several herds of deer, and an amazing quantity of hares, with a steadiness not to be surpassed by any of the crack packs which hunt that country. It is to be regretted that other instances si- milar to this cannot be given (which are sufficiently numerous), for want of an accurate description of places. Richard lived in this place several years ; at length finding himself advancing in age, and in a man- ner surrounded by a large family, which looked up to him for its chief support, he began to entertain thoughts of quitting the fox-hounds entirely, and entering into some other station of life, which did not require so much exertion, and which would be attended with less danger ; not through a fear of death, but in considera- tion of the injury his family might sustain by his loss. He might have had employment as a gamekeeper, but an opportunity offering, he preferred hunting a pack of harriers, to that of shooting; and accordingly engaged himself with a gentleman, about three miles from Romford, in Essex, where he spent the remainder of his life, in a manner much to his own comfo.t and 2 448 SPORTING ANECDOTES. satisfaction. In this place he enjoyed himself not quite four years, during which period he lived in a cot- tage, at a little distance from his master's house, with his wife and children, leading in his old age a peaceable life, like one retired from, and wearied with, the va- rious scenes and vicissitudes of humau affairs. He constantly, daring the season, hunted the hounds of the gentleman alluded to, three times a week, and was never known, during that period, to conduct him- self with the least impropriety ; on the contrary, it was observed by most people, that he behaved much better than the generality of those in his station did. We will not pretend to &ay, that he was entirely tree from faults, but they were so trifling, that his other good qualities totally counterbalanced them. His tender regard for his family, and the care he took of it, are very much to be commended, which, though large, be contrived at all times to keep decent, and from want; and, much to his credit, he never suffered his chil- dren to use such conversation, or mix with such com- panions, as might tend to corrupt their morals As soon as they were able to obtain any thing towards their own maintenance, he found means to get them employed. The care also he took of both dogs and horses, is very much to his credit, and merit the warmest com- mendation. He was a tall man, but by no means lusty. He com- plained of being unwell during the summer, and after -a few days of very severe illness, he expired on Satur- day morning, toe 8th of September, I7 *>, in the six- ty-fourth year of his age; and was buried on the Thursday following at Chigwell, very much regretted, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 449 not only by the gentlemen of the chase, but by every- one who knew him THE OLD ENGLISH FOX-HUNTER. In a very elegant edition of Somerville's Chase, re* Gently published, with notes by Major Topham, we have the following interesting specimen of fox-hunting in former days : — it is curious (says the major) because it contains the portraiture of a man who was the Nimrod of his day, and was really a fox-hunter; for he dedicated the whole of a long life to it. The character is that of Old Draper, of Yorkshire, and the account is taken from anecdotes delivered down to us by his relatives. In the old, but now ruinous mansion of Berwick- Hall, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, lived once the well-known William Draper, Esq. who bred, fed, and hunted the stanchest pack of fox-hounds in Europe. On an income of seven hundred pounds a year, and no more, he brought up frugally and creditably, eleven sons and daughters : kept a stable of right good Eng- lish hunters, a kennel of true-bred fox-hounds, be- sides a carriage with horses suitable, to carry out my lady and the daughters to church, and other places of goodly resort. He lived in the old honest s \ le of his county, killing every month a good ox, of his own feeding, and priding himself on maintaining a goodly substantial table : but with no foreign kicksh rws. His general apparel was a long dark drab hunting coal, a belt round his waist, and a strong velvet tap on his bead. In his humour he was very joking and facetious, having always some pleasant story, both in the field 450 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and in the hall; so that his company was much sought after by persons of good condition; which was of great use to him in afterwards advancing his own children. His stables and kennels were kept in such excellent order, that sportsmen regarded them as schools for huntsmen and grooms, who were glad to come there without wages, merely to learn their business. When they had got good instruction, he then recommended them to other gentlemen, who wished for no better character than that they were recommended by Esquire Draper. He was always up, during the hunting sea- son, at four in the morning, and mounted on one of his goodly nags at five o'clock, hirrlself bringing forth his hounds, who knew every note of their old master'* voice. In the field he rode with good judgment, avoid- ing what was unnecessary, and helping his hounds when they were at fault. His daughter Di, who was equally famous at riding, was wont to assist him, cheering the hounds with her voice. She died at York in a good old age; and, what was wonderful to many sportsmen^ who dared not to follow her, she died with whole bones in her bed. After the fatigues of the day, whence he generally- brought away a couple of brushes, he entertained those who would return with him, which was sometimes thirty miles distance, with old English hospitality. Good eld October, home-brewed, was the liquor drank; and his first fox-hunting toast, — " All the Brushes in Christendom!" At the age of eighty years this famous squire died as he lived : for he died on horseback. As he was going to give some instruc- tions to a gentleman who was rearing up a pack of fox- hounds, he was seized with a fit, and dropping frora SPORTING ANECDOTES. 45l his old favourite poney, he expired ! There was no man, rich or poor, in his neighbourhood, but what lamented his death ; and the foxes were the only things that had occassion to be glad that Squire Draper was no more /'* A FOX CHASE. While thus the knight's Iongsmother'd fire broke forth, The rousing musicke of the horn he hears, Shrill echoing through the wold, and by the north, Where bends the hill the sounding chase appears; The hounds with glorious peal salute his ears. And woode and dale rebound the swelling lay ; The youths on coursers, fleet as fallow deers, Pour through the downs, while, foremost of the fray, Away ! the jolly huntsman cries ; and echoe sounds, Away f Now had the beagles scour'd the bushy ground, Till where a brooke strays hoilow through the bent, When all confus'd, and snuffing w^ldlie round, In vain their fretful haste explor'd the scent : But Reynard's cunning all in vain was spent, The huntsman from his stand his arts had spy'd, Had markt his doublings, and his shrewd intent, How both the bancks he traced, then backward pky'd ; His track some twentie roods, he bounding sprong aside, Eke had he markt where to the broome he crept, Where, hearkening every sound, an hare was laid ; Then from the thickest bush he slylie lept, And wary scuds along the hawthorne shade, Till by the hill's slant foot he earths his head Amid a briarie thicket : emblem meet Of wylie statesman of his foes adred ; He oft misguides the people's rage, I weer, On others, whilst himselfe winds off with slie deceit. 462 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The cunning huntsman now cheers on his pack, The lurking hare is in an instant slain : Then opening loud, the beagles scent the track, Right to the hill, while thond'ring through the plain ; With blyth huzzas advaunce the jovial train, And now the groomes and squires, cowherds, and boys, Beat round and round the brake ; but all in vain Their poles they ply, and vain their oathes and noise, Till plonging in his den the terrier fiercely joys. Expell'd his hole, upstarts to open sky The villain bold, and wildly glares around. Now here, now there, he bendi his knees to fly : As oft recoils to guard from backward wound ; His frothie jaws he grinds — with hot rid sound The pack attonce* rush on him : foaming ire. Fierce at his throte and sides hangs many a hound ; His burning eyes flash wylde red sparkling fire, While sweltring on the swaird his breath *uid fctrengih eapirSr ./• MAJOR liAGGS. The death of this gentleman was occasioned by a cold caught at the Round-House of St. James's, when he and many others were carried there, by Justice Hyde, from the gaming-table. In the first company he obtained, George Robert Fitz- gerald was his lieutenant. As soon as he got the pank of major, he retired upon half-pay, and devoting himself to deep play ever after, be pursued it with an eagerness and perseverance beyond example. When he was so ill that he could not get out of his chair, he has been brought to the hazard-table, when the rattling of the dice seemed suddenly to revive him. He once won J 7,001)1. * At once* together. SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 453 at hazard, by throning o/?, as it is called, fourteen suc- cessive mains. He went to the East indies in I7&0, on a gaining speculation ; but nut finding it answer, he returned home over laud. At Grand Cairo he nar- rowly escaped death, by retreating in a Turkish dress to Smyrna. A companion of his was seized, and sent prisoner to Constantinople, where he was at length released by the interference of Sir Robert Anstie, the English ambassador. He won 60001. of Mr. O— , some years ago, at Spa, and immediately came to England to get the money from Lord , the father of the young man. Terms of accommodation were proposed by his lordship, in the presence of Mr. D , the banker, whose respectability and conse- quence are well known. Lord O offered him a thousand guineas, and a note of hand for the remain- der, at a distant period. Baggs wanted the whole to be paid down. Some altercation ensued. Mr. D then observed, that he thought his lordship had of- fered very handsome terms. " Sirrah, (said Baggs, in a passion) hold your tongue ; the laws of commerce you may be acquainted with, but the laws of honour you know nothing about." When he fought Fitzge- rald he was wounded in the leg, and fell, but when down returned the fire, winch struck the knee of his antagonist, and made him lame ever after. He never could hear of Fitzgerald's unhappy fate without visible delight, and " grinning horribly a ghastly smile." He is supposed to have utterly ruined by play forty per- sons. At on< time of life he wa=> worth more than 10 V'Oi 1. He i.ad fought eleven duels; and was al- lowed to be very skilful with the sword. He was a man of a determined mind, great penetration, and 454 SPORTING ANECDOTES. considerable literature: and, when play was out of the> case, could be an agreeable and instructive companion. He was very generous to people whom he liked ; and a certain naval lord, highly respected, when in rather a distressed situation at Paris, some years ago, found a never- failing resource in the purse of the major. He lived at Paris several years, in the greatest splendour. His countenance was terrible, though his appearance and manners were gentleman-like. While be lived at Avignon, he frequently gave splendid suppers to the Duke and Duchess of Cumberland, and their friends. He went to Naples at the time they did, and got in- troduced to the king's private parties, of whom he is said to have won 15001. REMARKABLE AESTINENCE OF A DOG. In J789, when preparations were making at St. Paul's for the reception of his Majesty, a favourite bilch followed its master up the dark stairs of the dome, here, all at once, it was missing, and calling and whistling was to no purpose. Nine weeks after this, all but two days, some glaziers were at work in the cathedral, and heard amongst the timbers which sup- port the dome a faint noise ; thinking it might be some unfortunate being, they tied a rope round a boy, and let him down near to the place whence the sound came. At the bottom he found a dog lying on its side, the skeleton of another dog, and an old shoe half eaten. The humanity of the boy led him to rescue the animal from its miserable situation, and it was accordingly drawn up. Much emaciated, and scarce able to stand, the workmen placed it in the porch of the church, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 455 to die, or live, as might happen. This was about ten o'clock in the morning ; some time after, the dog was seen endeavouring to cross the street at the top of Lud - gate-hill, but its weakness was so great, that, unsup* ported by a wall, he could not accomplish it. The ap- pearance of the dog again excited the compassion of a boy, who carried it over. By the aid of the houses he was enabled to get to Fleet-market, and over two or three narrow crossings in its way to Holbom-bridge, and about eight o'clock in the evening it reached its master's house in Red Lion-street, Holborn, and laid itself down on the steps, having been ten hours in its journey from St. Paul's to that place. The dog was so much altered, the eyes being sunk in the head as to be scarce discernible, that the master would not encou- rage his old faithful companion, who, when lost, was supposed to weigh twenty pounds, and now only weigh- ed three pounds fourteen ounces ; the first indication it gave of knowing its master, was by wagging its tail when he mentioned the name Phillis ; for a long time it was unable to eat or drink, and it was kept alive by the sustenance it received from its mistress, who used to (e^d it with a tea-spoon ; at length it recovered. Should it be asked, how did this animal live near nine weeks without food ? This was not the case. She was -in whelp when lost, and doubtless eat her offspring; the remains of another dog, killed by a similar fail, was likewise found, that most probably was converted by the survivor to the most urgent of all natural pur- poses ; and when this treat was done, the shoe suc- ceeded, which was almost half devoured. What fa- mine and a thousand accidents could not do, was ef- fected a short time after by the wheels of a coach, 436 SPORTING ANECDOTES. which unfortunately went over her, and ended the mortal days of poor Phillis. WILD DOGS. • Of dogs that have supported themselves in a wild state, to the great loss and annoyance of the farmer, there are two instances worthy of notice, from the cun- ning with which both these dogs frustrated, for a length of time, every secret and open attack. In De- cember 1784, a dog was left by a smuggling vessel near Boomer, on the coast of Northumberland. Find- ing himself deserted, he began to worry sheep, and did so much damage, that he was the terror of the country, within the circuit of above twenty miles. It is asserted, that when he caught a sheep, he bit a hole in its right side, and alter eating the fat about the kid- neys, left it. Several of them, thus lacerated, were found alive by the shepherds ; and being properly taken care of, some of them recovered, and after- ward had lambs. From this delicacy of his feeding, the destruction may, in some measure be conceived, as the fat of one sheep in a day would scarcely satisfy his hunger. Various were the means used to destroy him: frequently was he pursued with hounds, grey- hounds, &c. but when the dogs came up with him, he laid down on his back, as if supplicating for mercy, and in that position they never hurt him; he therefore laid quietly, taking his rest, 'till the hunters approach- ed, when he made off without being followed by the hounds, 'till they were again excited to the pursuit, which always terminated unsuccessfully. He was one day pursued from Howick to upwards of thirty miles ^PORTING ANECDOTES. 457 distance, but returned thither and killed sheep the same evening. His constant residence was upon a rock, on the Heugh Hill, near Howick, where he had a view of four roads that approached it, and there, in March 1785, after many fruitless attempts, he was at last shot. Another wild dog, which had committed similar de- vastation among the sheep, near Wooler, in the same county (Northumberland), was, on the (5th of June, 1799, advertised to be hunted on the Wednesday fol- lowing, by three packs of hounds, which were to meet at different places; the aid of men and fire-arms was also requested, with a reward promised of twenty guineas to the person killing him. This dog was de- scribed by those who had seen him at a distance, as a large greyhound, with some white in his face, neck and one fore-leg white, rather grey on the back, and the rest of a jet black: — an immense concourse of people assembled at the time appointed, but the chase was «nprosperous ; for he eluded his pursuers among the Cheviot Hills, and, what is singular, returned that same night to the place from whence he had been hunted in the morning, and worried an ewe and her lamb. During the whole summer he continued to de- stroy the sheep, but changed his quarters, for he in- fested the Fells sixteen miles south of Carlisle, where upwards of sixty sheep fell victims to his ferocity. In September, hounds and fire-arms were again employed against him, and after a run from Carrock Fell, which was computed to be thirty miles, he was shot whilst the hounds were in pursuit, by .Mr. Sewel, of Wed- lock, who laid in ambush at Moss Dale. During the chase, which occupied six hours, he frequently turned 458 SPORTING ANECDOTES. * upon the headmost hounds, and wounded several s* badly as to disable them. Upon examination, he ap- peared to be of the Newfoundland breed, of a com- mon size, wire-haired, and extremely lean. This de- scription does not tally with the dog so injurious to the farmers in Northumberland, although from cir- cumstances, there is little doubt but it was the same animal. SINGULAR AND ECCENTRIC CHARACTER. Mr. Archer, a gentleman of about ten thousand pounds per annum, chiefly landed property in Berkshire, and partly in Essex, died a few years ago, and left a very large fortune, great part of which he gave to his wife, but the bulk went to his daughters by a former marriage. Besides his house in Berkshire, he had a fine mansion on his beautiful estate of Coopersale, near Epping, in Esbex. But this house had been deserted for twenty years or more, no one being allowed to re- side in it. On the death of Mr. Archer, it fell to the lot of one of his daughters, who sent a surveyor to examine the house. His report was curious. Neither the gates of the court-yard, nor the doors of the mansion- bouse, had been opened for the period of eighteen years. The latter, by order, were covered with plates of iron. The court-yard was crowded with thistles, docks, and weeds ; and the inner hall with cobwebs. The rooks and jackdaws had built their nests in the chimnies, and the solemn bird of night had taken pos- session of the principal drawing-room. Several of the rooms had not been opened for thirty years. The SPORTING ANECDOTES. 459 pigeons, had, for the space of twenty-five years, built their nests in the library (which contained some thou- sand books), having made a lodgment through the means of an aperture in one of the casements. Here they had, itis supposed, remained undisturbed for the space above-mentioned of several loads of dung were found in the apartment. A celebrated naturalist, who was present at the opening of the house, declared he never saw cobwebs so beautiful before, or of such an amazing size. They extended the whole length of one room, from the ceiling to the ground. The wines, ale, and rum, of each of which there were large quan- tities, had not been touched for twenty years; they were found in fine order, particulaily the port wine. The bailiff, the gardener, and his men, were expressly ordered by their late master not to remove even a weed from the garden or grounds. The fish-ponds were untouched for many years. A gentleman having per- mission to fish, caught several jacks, weighing four- teen and fifteen pounds each. All the neighbouring gentry visited the house and grounds, the ruinous condition of which formed a topic of general conver- sation. The style in which Mr. Archer travelled once a year, when he visited his estates, resembled more the pompous pageantry of the ancient nobles of Spain, when , they went to take possession of a vice-royalty, than that of a plain country gentleman. The follow- ing was the order of the cavalcade: — 1st. The coach and six, with two postillions and coachman. Three ill-riders. Post-chaise and four post-horses. Phae- ton and four, followed by two grooms. A chaise-ma- nne with four horses, carrying the numerous services x 2 400 SPORTING ANECDOTES. of plate. This last was escorted by the under-butler, who had under his command three stout fellows; they formed a part of the household ; all were armed with blunderbusses. Next followed the hunters with their clothes on, of scarlet, trimmed with silver, attended by the stud-grooms and huntsman. Each horse had a fox's brush tied to the front of the bridle. The rear was brought up by the pack of hounds, the whipper-in, the hack horses, and the inferior stablemen. In the coach went the upper servants. In the chariot Mrs. Archer ; or, if she preferred a less confined view of the country, she accompanied Mr. Archer in the phaeton, who travelled in all weathers in that vehicle, wrapped vp in a swansdown coat. EXTRAORDINARY SLAUGHTER. Those huntsmen who are so fond of unnecessarily getting blood and wasting foxes, would doubtless have been much gratified at the hunting match given by the Prince Esterhazy, Regent of Hungary, upon the sign- ing of a treaty of peace with France, a day's sport, that bids fair to vie in point of blood (if the King of Naples' slaughter be excepted) with any of those re- corded in modern history, as there were killed, lo'O deer, 100 wild boars, 300 hares, and 80 foxes. The king had a larger extent, and a longer period for the exercise of his talents, and it was proved that during iiis journey to Vienna, in Austria, Bohemia, and Mora- via, he killed 5 bears, 1820 boars, 1.96*0 deer, 1145 does, 1625 roe-bucks, 13 21 rabbits, 13 wolves, 17 badgers, 1 6,354 hares, and 354- foxes; the monarch tel likewise the pleasure of doing a little in the bird 2 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 46 1 Way, by killing, upon the same expedition, 15,350 pheasants, and 1*2,335 partridges t WOLF-HUNTING. In point of Numbers, the exportation of fox-hound's from this country to France, was at one period very considerable. The compiler requested a friend, who had his regular establishment of fox-hounds in France, to inform him how far the chase of the wolf was successful, or likely to be so, when prosecuted by the vigour and speed of the English fox-hound, and his reply was to the following purport: — " You wish me to communicate my observations on wolf- hunting, which I shall most readily do, but must first apprise you, that neither with my own hounds, which I took with me to France in 177-i, nor with the hounds of the Count de Serrent, which were under my direction some years before, did I hunt the wolf by choice. The Count de Serrent's pack consisted of about thirty couple of French hounds, larger than the English stag-hound, fifteen couple of them were kept for stag-hunting only, and with the remainder they hunted the wild boar and the wolf. The first time £ ever met Serrent's hounds was at a wolf-hunt, where a bitch wolf had littered in some woods of the count's not far distant from the forest; the woods were nearly surrounded by the officers of the carabiniers, eaeh person with a double-barrelled gun, s-ome with small bayonets fixed, and all were loaded with ball. As soon as each sportsman had taken his station, the huntsman and hounds entered the wood, they found immediately, the hounds divided, and I (who was un- armed) tally'd the old bitch wolf, who went off for the x 3 462 SPORTING ANECDOTES. forest in the most gallant style. My English halloo amused some of the French, but enraged others, who declared that if the huntsman had not fortunately stopt the hounds, they would have gone off with the old wolf, and this indeed was my intention. The stopped hounds were clapped back to th ;se running the cubs in thecover, and which were said to be about three or four months old ; they were taller than a fox, and shewed, by the looseness of their make, and the vast s : ze of their bone ; in their then infant state, what they would be when arrived at their full growth; that, however, was forbid, for all but one were shot that day, and the remaining one was killed the day following by one of the count's ktepers. These cubs, whilst hunted, never quitted the covers, nor was it supposed they had ever been out of them ; for the forest, towards which the old wolf pointed, was between four or five leagues di&tance from the woods where she littered, I often hunted the wolf afterwards, and the result was, thai the wolf was either shot when quitting the cover in which he was found, or by some keeper-or person who acci- dentally saw him in his route, or he escaped by going off at one steady pace, until he left hounds, horses, and men, totally beat, and who were generally relieved by the hospitality of some .cure, and enabled to return home the next da). It is asserted, that the wolf, whose pace seems for the most part to be regulated by that of his pursuers, will stop when no longer pursued, and the Lcunds may attack him again the "next morn- ing; perhaps so, but will not the wolf be equally re- freshed by his night's repose as the houncis? Admit- ting that the wolf does stop, he ^ives his enemies a fresh chance, because formerly there was scarce a pa- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 463 rish in France that had not one or more gamekeepers. The huntsman who hunted the wolf, related where he gave him up, how much he appeared fatigued, and which way he pointed to the keepers when his chase ended; they possibly guessed where the wolf rested that night, and by properly placing all the assistants they could collect, got a shot at him when he broke cover, in the same manner as he had been fired at the preceding day. Upon remarking this risk of being shot, whicli the wolf had to escape, to a French gentleman, he assured me that a friend of his, who kept hounds for the wolf only, nevei fired on the wolf until (unable to run any further) he turned upon the dogs, and this generally took place about the fourth or fifth day. This sounds strange hunting to us English fox-hunters, but I declare to you thatl am not prepared to deny the fact." THE OTTER, The description of this animal, and the mode of destroying it, are mentioned on account of its being so inveterate a foe to the fisherman's amusement; for the otter is as destructive in a pond, as a polecat in a hen- house ; this animal seems to link the chain of grada- tion, between terrestial and aquatic creatures, resem- bling the former in its shape, and the latter, in being able to remain for a considerable space of time under- water, and in being furnished with membranes like Jins between the toes, which enable it to swim with such rapidity, as to overtake fis>h in their own element; the otter, however, properly speaking, is not amphibious, be is not formed for continuing in the water, since, like x 4 464 SPORTING ANECDOTES. other terrestrial creatures, he requires the aid of re* spiration; for if, in pursuit of his prey, he accidentally gets entangled in a net, and has not time to cut with his teeth the sufficient number of meshes to effectuate his escape, he is drowned. The usual length of the ot- ter, from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail, is twenty-three inches ; of the tail itself (which is broad at the insertion and tapers to a point) sixteen ; the weight of the male from eighteen to twenty-six, of the female from thirteen to twenty-two pounds; one in October 1754, was snared in the river Lea, between Ware and Hertford, which weighed upwards of forty pounds. The head and nose are broad and flat, the eyes are brilliant, although small, are nearer the nose than is usual in quadrupeds, and placed in such a man- ner, as to discern every object that is above, which gives the otter a singular aspect, not unlike the eel ; but this property of seeing what is above, gives it a particular advantage when lurking at the bottom for its prey, as the fish cannot discern any object vnder them, and the otter seizing them from beneath, by the belly, readily takes any number with little exertion; the ears are extremely short, and their orifice narrow ; the opening of the mouth is small, the lips are capable of being brought very close together, somewhat resem- bling the mouth of a fish, are very muscular, and de- signed to close the mouth firmly, while in the action of diving, and the nose and corners of the mouth are furnished with very long whiskers; it has thirty-six teeth, six cutting and two canine above and below, of the former, the middlemost are the least, it has besides five grinders on each side in both jaws. The legs are \ery short, but remarkably broad and muscular, the SPORTING ANECDOTES, 4o5 joints articulated so loosely, that the otter can turn them quite back, and bring them on a line with its body, and use them as fins ; each foot has five toes, connected by strong webs like those of a water-fowl ; thus nature, in every particular, has attended to the way of life allotted to an animal, whose food is fish, and whose haunts must necessarily be about waters. The otter has no heel, but a round ball under the sole of the foot, by which its track in the mud is easily dis- tinguished, and is termed the Seal. The general shape of the otter is somewhat similar to that of an over- grown weasel, being long and slender; its colour is en- tirely a deep brown, except two small spots of white on each side the nose, and one under the chin ; the skin is valuable, if killed in the winter, and makes gloves more durable, and which at the same time will retain, their pliancy and softness, after being repeatedly wet- ted, beyond any other leather. The otter shews great sagacity in forming its abode burrowing underground on the banks of some river or lake ; and always making the entrance of its hole under water, working upwards to the surface of the earth r and forming several holts, or lodges, that, in case of high floods, it may have a retreat (for no animal is more careful to repose in a dry place), and there making a minute orifice for the admission of air ; and even this aperture, for greater concealment, is fre- quently made in the middle of some thick bush. The otter is very cleanly, depositing its excrements, or spraints, in only one place; upon the least alarm it flies to the water, where by its rapidity in swimming, it fre- quently escapes from its pursuers. The otter destroys large quantities of fish, for he will x 5 466 SPORTING ANECDOTES. eat none, unless it be perfectly fresh, and what be takes himself; by his mode of eating theni, lie causes a still -greater consumption. So soon as the otter catches a fish, he drags it on shore, devours it to the tent, but, unless pressed by extreme hunger, always leaves the remainder, and takes to the water in quest of more. In rivers it is always observed to swim against the stream, to meet its prey; it has been as- serted, that two otters will hunt in concert, that active fish the salmon; one stations itself above, the other below where the fish lies, and being thus chased inces- santly, the wearied salmon becomes their victim. To suppose the otter never uses the sea, is a mistake, for fliey often have been seen in it, both swimming and seeking for their booty in it, and which, in the Orknies, has been observed to be cod and conger. In very hard weather, when its natural sort of food fails, the otter will kill lambs, sucking pigs, and poul- try, and one was caught in a warren, where he had come to prey on the rabbits. In the year 1793, as two gentlemen were shooting at Pilton, in Devonshire, the pointer stood at some brakes, from. whence burst a large otter, the dog seized, but being severely bitten, was soon obliged to quit his hold; after driving him about for some time in a turnip field, they killed him by blows upon the head, and this otter was at a dis- tance of at lea&t five miles from any river or pond, that could supply him with fish, and it is to be presumed, he meant to prey upon some land animal, as he had prowled so far from the place where his natural food could be procured. The otter's flesh is extremely rank and fishy ; the Romish church allows its use on maigre days. In the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 4(?7 kitchen of the Carthusian convent, near Dijon, Mr. Pennant reports that he saw one preparing for the din- ner of the religieuse, of that rigid order, who, by their rules, are prohibited, during their whole lives, the eat- ing of flesh. The otter brings four or five young at a time, about the month of June; as it frequents ponds near gentle- men's houses, litters have been found in cellars, sinks, and other drains. The cubs have been known to have been suckled and brought up by a bitch; near South Molton, in Devonshire, -this happened, and the young otter follows his master with the dogs, but seemed to have no inclination for the water. The young of ani- mals are generally beautiful, but the young otter is not so handsome as the old. There are many instances of otters being tamed when taken young, and becoming so domesticated as to follow their master, answer to a name, and employ their talent in fishing for him: in this state, when fish cannot be had, milk, and pudding made of oatmeal, have been substituted for their food. William Collis, of Kemmerston, near Wooler, in Northumberland, had a tame otter, which always at- tended him, would fish in the river, and when satiated return to him. In Collis's absence, his son took the otter out to fish, but it refused to come ai the accus- tomed call, and was lost; the father, after several days search, being near the place where it was lost, and calling it by its name, it came creeping to his feet t and shewed many genuine marks of firm attachment. Its food (exclusive offish) consisted chiefly of milk and hasty pudding. James Campbell, near Inverness, had likewise a x 6 468 SPORTING ANECDOTES. tame otter, which was frequently employed in fishings and would take eight or ten salmon in a day. If not prevented, it always attempted to break the salmoa behind the fin next the tail; when one was taken from .it, it dived for more ; and when tired, and satisfied with eating the share of the prize alloted it, it curled itself round and fell asleep, in which state it was ge* iierally carried home. This otter fished as well in the sea as in a river, and took great numbers of codlings and other fish. The food besides fish was milk. Mr. Edwards,, likewise, of Little Waltham Hall, Essex, had an otter which always attended him like a dog, and every afternoon, when the old gentleman slept, the otter regularly stationed itself in his lap ; it used to get fish from the ponds in the gardens and grounds near the house: it had milk also given it, and; was at last accidentally killed, by a maid-servant striking it with a broom handle upon the nose,, where a small blow is fatal. But the most curious instance of the otter's being tamed, is that where a person suffered it to follow him with his dogs with which he used to hunt other otters,, and it was remarkable, that so far were the dogs from molesting it, that they would not even hunt an otter while it remained. with them; upon this account, al- though the otter was useful in fishing, and in driving the trouts, and other fish, towards the nets, the owner was obliged to dispose of it. The late Mr. Selby had a fox, that used to go with his fox hounds, but it had not the effect of preventing the dogs from doing their business in the field, for his hounds were eminently famous. The manner of rearing otters to become domestic?. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 469 as quoted by Goldsmith, was " to procure them as young as possible, and to carefully feed them at first with small fish and watery as they gained strength, they had milk mixed with their food, the quantity of their fish provision was lessened, and that of vegetables and bread increased, until at length they were fed wholly upon bread, which perfectly agrees with their constitution. The mode of training them to hunt for fish, required not only assiduity, but patience. They were first taught to fetch, as dogs are instructed; but not possessing the same docility, it required more art and experience to teach them. It was usually per- formed by accustoming them to take a truss, made of leather, and stuffed with wool in the shape of a fish, into their mouth, and to drop it when commanded ; to run after it when thrown forward, and to bring it to their master. From this they proceeded to real fish, which were thrown dead into the water, and which they were taught to fetch to shore. From the dead they proceeded to the living, and at last the animal is perfectly instructed in the art of fishing, and readily obeys his master. Tedious as the process is, the la- bour is amply repaid, as few creatures are more bene- ficial; an otter, thus taught, will catch fish enough to sustain not only itself, but a whole family." In Scotland the vulgar have an opinion, that the otter has its king,, or leader ; they describe it as being of a larger size, and varied with white ; they believe it is never killed, without the sudden death of a man, or some other animal, at the same instant; that its skin is endowed with great virtues: is an antidote against all infection j a preservative to the warrior 470 SPORTING ANECDOTES. from wounds, and ensures the mariner from all disas- ters upon the seas. The hunting of the -otter was formerly considered as excellent sport, and hounds were kept solely for that purpose ; the sportsmen went on each side the river, beating the banks and sedges with the dogs ; if there was otter in that quarter, his seal was soon traced upon the mud, as the water, wherever it would admit of it, (according to the mode now pursued) was lowered as much as possible, to expose the hollow banks, reed beds, and stubs, that might otherwise shelter him ; each hunter had a spear to attack the otter when he vented, or came to the surface of the water to breathe. If an otter was not soon found by the river side, it was imagined that he had gone to couch more inland, and was sought for accordingly ; (for sometimes they will feed a considerable way from their place of rest, choosing rather to go up than down the stream). If the hounds found an otter, the sportsmen viewed his track in the mud, to find which way he had taken. The spears were used in aid of the dogs. When an otter is wounded he makes directly to land, where he maintains an obstinate defence; he bites severely, and does not readily quit his hold; when he seizes the dogs in the water, he always dives with, and carries them far below the surface; an old otter will never give up whilst he has life, and it is observable, that the male otter never makes any complaint when seized by the dogs, or even transfixed with a spear; but the pregnant females emit a very shrill squeak. The chase of the otter has still, however, its stanch admirers, who are apparently as zealous in this pursuit as in any other. we read of. In 17i)6, near Bridgnorth, on the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 471 river Worse, four otters were killed : one stood three, another fonr hours, before the dogs, and was scarcely a minute out of sight. The hearts, &c. were eaten by many respectable people who attended the hunt, and allowed to be very delicious; the carcasses were also eaten by the men employed, and found to be excel- lent; what is a little extraordinary, the account does not state, that the partakers of this hard-earned fare were Carthusians. THE WEAZEL. The hare has no enemy more fatal than the vceazel, which will follow and terrify it into a state of absolute imbecility, when it gives itself up without resistance, at the same time making piteous outcries. The weasel seizes its prey near the head, the bite is mortal, al- though the wound is so small, that the entrance of the teeth is scarcely perceptible; a hare, or rabbit, bit in this manner, is never known to recover, but lingers for some time, and dies. The common weasel is the least animal of this spe- cies, the disproportionate length and height of the little animals which compose this class, are their chief characteristic, and are alone sufficient to distinguish them from all other carniverous quadrupeds ; the length of the wolf in proportion to its height, is as one and a half to one; that of the weazel is nearly as four to one ; the weasel never exceeds seven inches in length, from the nose to the tail, which is only two inches a half long, it ends in a point, and adds con- siderably to the apparent length of the body ; the height of the weasel is not above two inches and a half, so that it is almost four times as long as it is high ; the most, prevailing colour is a pale tawny brown, resem- 472 SPORTING ANECDOTES. bling cinnamon, on the back, sides, and legs; tbc throat and belly white ; beneath the corners of the mouth, on each jaw, is a spot of brown ; the eyes are small, round, and black ; the ears broad and large, and from a fold at the lower part, have the appear- ance of being double;, it has likewise whiskers like a cat, but has two more teeth than any of the cat kind, having thirty-two in number, and these well adapted for tearing and chewing its food. The motion of the weasel consists of unequal bounds, or leaps, and in climbing a tree it gains a height of some feet from the ground, by a single spring ; in the same precipitate manner it jumps upon its prey, and possessing great flexibility of body, easily evades the attempts of much stronger animals to seize it. We are told, that an eagle having pounced upon a weasel, mounted into the air with it,, and was soon after observed to be in great distress: the little animal had extricated itself so much; from the eagle's hold,, as to be able to fasten upon the throat, which presently brought the eagle to the ground, and gave the weasel an opportunity of escaping. Its activity is remarkable, and it will run up the sides of a wall with such facility,, that no place is secure from it. The weasel also preys in silence, and never utters any cry,. except when it is struck, when it expresses resent- ment, or pain, by a rough kind of squeaking. It is useful to the farmer in winter, by clearing his barns and granaries of rats and mice; more slender and nimble than the cat, it presents a more deadly foe, as it can pursue them into their holes, where it kills them after a very short, if any, resistance. Into the pigeon- house it is sometimes a most unwelcome intruder, as it spares neither eggs nor young ones. In "summer it; SPORTING ANECDOTES. 473 ventures at a distance from its usual haunts; is fre- quently found by the side of water, near corn mills, and is almost sure to follow wherever a swarm of rats occupy any place. The female brings forth in the spring,.and takes great pains for the comfort of her young, by preparing a bed for them of straw, hay, leaves, and moss. They have from three to five in a litter, which are born blind, but they soon acquire both sight and strength to follow their dam in her excursions. The weasel sleeps in its hole during the greater part of the day, and evening is the chief time when it be- gins its depredations; it then may be seen stealing from its retreat, and creeping about in search of prey, which extends to all the eggs it can meet with, and it not unfrequently destroys the bird that tries to defend them. If it enters the hen-roost, the chickens are sure to fall victims ; it does not there often attack the cocks, or old hens, nor does it devour what it kills on the spot, but drags it off, to eat at leisure. The weasel's appetite for animal food is insatiable, and he never forsakes it ; all the produce of the plunder it conveys to its hiding-place, and will not touch it till it begins to putrefy. The odour of the weasel is very strong, and is the most offensive in summer time, or when irritated or pursued. The following incident, related by Buffon, shews that the weasel has a natural attachment to what is corrupt, and even delights in the midst of putrid effluvia: — " In my neighbourhood, a weasel and three young ones were taken from the putrid carcass of a wolf, which was hung up by the hind legs as a terror to others ; and in the throat of 474 SPORTING ANECDOTES. this animal had the weasel made a nest of leaves ant} herbage, for the accommodation of her offspring." THE STOAT. This animal, which is equally agile and mischievous with the weasel in the pursuit and destruction of the hare, and all other sorts of game, poultry, and eggs, has, from its habits and the small difference in shape from the weasel, been often described under the same denomination. Its height is about two inches; the tail five and a half, very hairy, and at the points tipped with black ; the edges of the ears and ends of the toes are of a yellowish white; in other respects it perfectly resembles the weasel in colour and form. In the most northern parts of Europe, the stoat regularly changes its colour in winter, and becomes perfectly white, ex- cept the end of the tail, which remains invariably black. It is then called the ermine; the fur is valuable, and is sold in the country where caught, from two to three pounds sterling per hundred. The animal is either taken in traps, made of two flat stones, or shot with blunt arrows. The stoat is sometimes found white during the win- ter season in Great Britain, and is then commonly called the ichttc wcaid. Its fur, however, having nei- ther the thickness, the closeness, or the whiteness, of those which come from Siberia, is, with us, of little value. In the Natural History of Norway, by Pontoppidan, are these remarks upon the stoat, or ermine. " In Norway the ermine lives upon the rocks, his SPORTING ANECDOTES. 475 skin is white, except the tail, which is tipped with black. The furs of Norway and Lapland preserve their whiteness better than those of Russia, which soon acquire a yellowish cast ; and upon this account the former are in greater request even at Petersburgh. The ermine catches mice, like the cat, and when practica- ble, carries off his prey. He is peculiarly fond of eggs, and when the sea is calm he swims over to the islands which lie netr the coast of Norway, where there are vast quantities of sea fowls. It is alledged, that when 4he female brings forth on an island, she conducts her young to the continent upon a piece of wood, piloting it with her snout. This animal, although small, kills those of a much larger size, as therein deer and bear. He jumps into one of their ears when asleep, and ad* heres so fast by his teeth, that the creatures cannot disengage him. He likewise surprises eagles and Ik- .un- cocks, by fixing on them, and never quitting them, even when they mount in the air, until the loss of blood makes them fall down." To destroy these worst of all four-footed vermin to game in its infant state, the following mode is recom- commended : — Provide small square-made steel traps, with a small chain and iron peg to fix them down; get two drachms of musk, shootsome small birds, and dip the tail of these birds in the musk ; tie one on the plate of each trap, and set in the hedges, or where it is suspected they frequent; this will soon reduce the number, should it be ever so c nsiderable; if it so happen, that no musk is irnme to be got, the trap must be baited with a , .rabbit; and it should be remembered, that I it cannot be loo stale. 476 SPORTING ANECDOTES. THE LATE WJNYARD, ESQ. This gentleman, who was one of the first sportsmen in Gloucestershire, attending the funeral of his wife, arrayed in all the pomp of woe, and seemingly torpid with sorrow, was suddenly roused from his grief by the starting of a hare; on which, as if forgetting the melancholy business he was about, he immediately threw down his cloak and other incumbrances, and towing on two greyhounds, the constant atteudant of all his steps, pursued the game. The hare being killed, he rejoined the procession, which had halted on the occasion, and the bearers had set down the corpse. — " Come, gentlemen," said he, resuming hifr melancholy tone, with his sable vestments, " in the name of God, let us proceed with the remains of my dearest wife, and finish the sorrowful ceremony for which we are met." This story was related to the late Francis Grose, Esq. by Mr and Mrs. Batburst, of Lidney-Park, Gloucestershire, who affirmed it to be literally true. THE GREYHOUND. This animal, in ancient times, was considered as a very valuable present, and especially by the ladies, with whom it appears to have been a peculiar favou- rite : in a very old metrical romance, called Sir Egla- more, a princess tells the knight that if he was inclined to hunt, she would, as an especial mavk of her favour, give him an excellent greyhound, so swift, that no deer could escape from his pursuit. Syr yf you be on huntynge founcle, I shall you gyve a good greyhounde, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 477 That is dunne as a doo : For as I am trewe gentylwoman, There was never deer that he at ran, That might yscape him fro. In our own country, during the reign of king John, greyhounds were frequently received by him as pay- ment in lieu of money, for the renewal of grants, fines, and forfeitures, belonging to the crown ; the following extracts prove this monarch to have been exceedingly partial to this kind of dogs. A fine paid A.D. 1203, mentions five hundred marks, ten horses, and ten leashes of greyhounds; another, in 1210, one swift run- ning horse, and six greyhounds. In ancient times three several animals were coursed with greyhounds, the deer, the fox, and the hare. The two former are not practised at present, but the cours- ing of deer formerly was a recreation in high esteem, and was divided into two sorts; the paddock, the fo- rest, or purlieu. For the paddock coursing, besides the greyhounds, which never exceeded two, and for the most part consisted of one brace, there was the teazel, or mongrel greyhound, whose business it was to drive the deer forward before the real greyhounds were slipt. Yhe paddock was a piece of ground generally taken out of a park, and fenced with pales, or a wall; it was a mile in length, and about a quarter of a mile in breadth, but the further end was always broader than that which the dogs started from, the better to accom- modate the company in seeing which dog won the match. At the hither end was the dog-house (to en- close the dogs that were to run the course), which was attended by two men, one of whom stood at the door to slip the dogs, the other was a little without the door, 475 SPORTING ANECDOTES. to let loose the teazer to drive away the deer. The pens for the deer intended to be coursed, were on one side, with a keeper or two to turn them out; on the other side, at some distance, stood the spectators. Along the course were placed posts. The first, which was next the dog-house and pens, was the law-post, and was distant from them one hundred and sixty yards. The second was the quarter of a mile, the third the half mile, the fourth the pinching-post, and the fifth marked distance, in lieu of a post, was the ditch, which was a place made so as to receive the deer, and keep them from being further pursued by the dogs. Near to this place were seats for the judges,, who were chosen to decide the wager. So soon as the greyhounds that were to run the match were led into the dog-house, they were deliver- ed to the keepers, who by the articles of coursing were to see them fairly slipt ; for which purpose, there was round each dog's neck a falling-collar, which slipt through rings. The owners of the dogs drew lots which should have the wall, that there should be do advantage; the dog-house door was then shut, and the keeper turned out the deer; after the deer bad gone about twenty yards, the person that held the teazer loosed him, to force the deer forward, and when the deer was got to the law- post, the dogs were led out from the dog-house, and slipt. If the deer swerved before he got to the pinching-post, so that bis head was judged to be nearer the dog-house than the ditch, it was deemed no match, and was to be run again three days after ; but if there was no such swerve, and the dog ran straight until he went beyond the pinching- post, then that dog which was nearest the deer (shoulct SPOUTING ANECDOTES. 479 lie swerve) gained the contest; if no swerve happened, then that dog which leaped the ditch first was the victor; if any disputes arose, they were referred to the articles of the course, and determined by the judges. In coursing deer in the forest, or purlieu, two ways were used; the one coursing from wood to wood, and the other upon the lawns by the keepers' lodges. In the first, some hounds were thrown into the cover to drive out the deer, whilst the greyhounds were held ready to be slipt where the deer was expected to break; if the deer was not of a proper age and size, the dogs were not let loose; and if, on the other hand, he broke at too great a distance, or was otherwise deemed an overmatch for one brace, it was allowable to way- lay him with another brace of fresh greyhounds. For the coursing upon the lawn, the keeper had no- tice given him, and he took care to lodge a deer fit for the purpose, and bj sinking the wind of him, there was no danger of getting near enough to slip the grey- hounds, and having a fair course. In coursing the fox, no other art was necessary but to get the wind, and stand close on the outside of the wood, where he was expected to come out, and to give him law enough, or he instantly returned back to the cover ; the slowest greyhounds were speedy enough to overtake him; and all the hazard was, the fox spoil- ing the dog, which frequently happened ; for the most part, the greyhounds used for this course were hard- bitten dogs, that would seize any thing. 480 SPORTING ANECDOTES. THE HORSE. Wild horses are taken notice of by several of the an- cients. Herodotus mentions white wild horses on the banks of the Hypanis, in Scythia. He likewise tells us, that in the northern part of Thrace, beyond the Danube, there were wild horses covered all over with hair, five inches in length. The wild horses in Ame- rica are the offspring of domestic horses, originally transported thither from Europe, by the Spaniards. The author of the History of the Buccaneers, informs us, that troops of horses, sometimes consisting of five hundred, are frequently met with in the island of St. Domingo: that, when they see a man, they all stop, and that, one of their number approaches to a certain distance, blows through his nostrils, takes flight, and is instantly followed by the whole troop. He describes them as having gross heads and limbs, and long necks and ears. The inhabitants tame them with ease, and then train them to labour. In order to take them, gins of ropes are laid in the places where they are known to frequent. When caught by the neck, they soon strangle themselves, unless some person arrives in time to disentangle them. They are tied to trees by the body and limbs, and are left in that situation two days, without victuals or drink. This treatment is ge- nerally sufficient to render them more tractable, and they soon become as gentle as if they had never been wild. Even when any of these horses, by accident, re- gain their liberty, they never resume their savage state, but know their masters, and allow themselves to be approached and retaken. SPORTING ANECDOTES, 481 From these, and similar tacts, it may be concluded, that thcdispositions of horses are gentle; and that they are naturally disposed to associate with man, After they are tamed, they never forsake the abodes of men. On the contrary, they are anxious to return to the stable. The sweets of habit seem to supply all that they have lost by slavery. When fatigued, the mansion of repose is full of comfort, they smell it at a consider- able distance ; can distinguish it in the midst of popu- lous cities, and seem uniformly to prefer bondage to liberty. By some attention and address, colts are, at first, rendered tractable. When that point is gained, by different modes of management, the docility of -the animal is improved, and they soon learn to perform, with alacrity, the labours assigned to them. The do* mesticalion of the horse is, perhaps the noblest acqui- sition from the animal world, which has ever been made by the genius, the art, and the industry of man. He is taught to partake of the dangers and fatigues of war, and seems to enjoy the glory of victory. He even seems to participate of human pleasures and amuse- ments. He delights in the chase and the tournament, and his eyes sparkle with emulation in the course. Though bold and intrepid, however, he does notallow himself to be hurried on by a furious ardour. On proper occasions he represses his movements, and knows how to check the natural lire of his temper. He not only yields to the hand, but seems to consult the inclination of his rider; always obedient to the im- pressions he receives, he flies, or stops, and regulates his motions solely by the will of his master. Mr. Ray informs us, that he had seen a horse who danced to music ; who, at the command of bis matter, SPORTING ANECDOTES. affected to be lame ; who simulated death ; lay motion- less, with his limbs extended, and allowed himself to be dragged about till some words were pronounced, when he instantly sprung on his feet. Facts of this kind would scarcely receive credit, if so many persons were not now acquainted with the wonderful docility of the horses educated by Astley, and others. In ex- hibitions of this kind, the docility, and prompt obedi- ence of the animals, deserves more admiration than the dexterous feats of the men. Next to the horse, the dog seems to be the most docile quadruped. More tractable in his nature than most other animals, the dog not only receives instruc- tion with rapidity, but accommodates his behaviour and deportment to the manners and habits of those who command him. He assumes the very tone of the fa- mily in which he resides; eager at all times to please his master, or his friends, he furiously repels beggars, because he probably, from their dress, conceives them to be either thieves, or competitors for food. Though every dog is naturally a hunter, his dexterity is highly improved by experience and instruction. The varieties of dogs, by frequent intermixtures with those of other climates, and perhaps with foxes and wolves, are so great, and their instincts so much diver- sified, that, even though they produce with each other, we should be apt to regard them as different species. What a difference between the natural dispositions of the shepherd's dog, the spaniel, and the greyhound ! The shepherd's dog, independently of all instruction, seems to be endowed by nature with an innate attach- ment to the preservation of sheep and cattle. His do- cility is likewise so great, that he not only learns t* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 483 understand the language and commands of the shep- herd, and obeys them with faithfulness and alacrity, but, when at distances beyond the reach of his master's voice, he often stops, looks back, and recognises the approbation, or disapprobation, of the shepherd, by the mere waving of his hand. He reigns at the head of a flock, and is better heard than the voice of his mas- ter. His vigilance and activity produce order, disci- pline, and safety. Sheep and cattle are peculiarly subjected to his management, whom he prudently conducts, and generally protects. But when the flock committed to his charge is attacked by the fox, the wolf, or other rapacious animals, he makes a full dis- play of his courage and sagacity. In situations of this kind, both his natural and acquired talents are exerted. Three shepherds' dogs aresaid to be a match for a bear, and four for a lion. Every person knows the docility and sagacity of dogs employed in conducting blind mendicants. — Johannes Faber, as quoted by Mr. Ray, informs us, that he knew a blind beggar that was led through the streets of Rome by a middle-sized dog. This dog, besides leading his master in such a manner as to protect him from all danger, learned to distinguish not only the streets, but the houses where his master was accus- tomed to receive alms twice or thrice a week. When- ever the animal came to any of these streets, with which he was well acquainted, he would not leave it till a call had been made at every house where his master was usually successful in his petitions. When the beggar began to ask alms, the dog, being weaned, laid down to rest; but the master was no sooner served, or refused, than the dog rose spontaneously, Y 2 484 SPORTING ANECDOTES. and, without order, or sign, proceeded to the other houses where the beggar generally received some gra- tuity. I observed, says be, not without pleasure and surprise, that when a piece of money was thrown from a window, such was the sagacity and attention of this dog, that he went about in quest of it, lifted it from the ground with his mouth, and dropped it into his mas- ter's hat. Even when bread was thrown down, the animal would not taste it unless he received a portion of it from the hand of his master. Without any other instruction than imitation, a mastiff, when accidentally shut out from a house which his master frequented, uniformly rung the bell for admittance. Dogs can be taught to go to market with money, repair to a known butcher, and to carry home the meat in safety. They can be taught to dance to music, and to search for, and find any thing that is lost. Among these remarkable instances of animal saga- city, ma}' be placed Banks's famous horse, whose re- nown is alluded to by Shakespeare, in " Love's La- bour Lost," Act I. Scene III. and by Dekker, in his " Untrussing of the Humourous Poet." It is related of this horse, that he would restore a glove to its own- er, after his master had whispered the man's name in his ear; that he would tell the number of pence in any silver coin ; and even perform the grosser offices of nature, whenever his master bade him. He danced likewise to the sound of a pipe, and told money with his feet. Sir Walter Raleigh says, " that had Banks lived in older times, he would have shamed all the enchanters in the world, by the wonderful instructions which he had given to his horse." Of the sagacity of a horse, Dr. Swift has given a SPORTING ANECDOTES. 485 strange instance. This horse, which was a native of Bristol, would stand upon his hind legs, bow to the company, and beat several marches on a drum. Sir Kenehn Digby speaks of a baboon that played on the guitar. And we are informed of an ape that played at chess, in the presence of the King of Portugal, Va- rious are the scientific performances of elephants. Bi- shop Burnet says, he saw one at Milan, that played at ball. THE LATE CAPTAIN O KELLY. Delicacy, to survivors, and a desire to avoid th« introduction of a line that can give offence, renders unnecessary the task of biographical minutiae, and en- ables us to pass over (as unconnected with the pur- port) his origin, and the days of juvenility, to accom- pany him to those scenes where he was the subject of popularity, and the very life and spirit of good com- pany. To analyze the means by which he was immerged from those dreary walls in the more dreary environs of Fleet-market, to a scene of princely splendour (by alucky " hazard of the die," with the last desponding -hundred, then reluctantly consigned by his fair frail -friend C — — H =s) is not the intent of the present -page to recite ; or to moralize with admiration upon the vicissitudes that alternately raise us to the sum- mit of prosperity, and then penetrate the bosom of sensibility with the barbed arrow of adversity. Let it suffice, that his bitter draughts were few, and of short duration : what little disquietude he experienced in the infancy of his adventures, was amply compensated y3 486 SPORTING ANECDOTES. by the affluence of bis latter years, in which he enjcyed the gratification of his only ambition, that of being* before he died, the most opulent and most successful adventurer upon the turf. — A circumstance not calcu- lated to create surprize, when it is recollected, that his own penetration, his indefatigable industry, his nocturnal watching, his personal superintendence, and eternal attention, had reduced to a system of certainty 'with him, what was neither more nor less than a mat- ter of chance with his competitors. He had, by the qualifications just recited, possessed himself of every requisite to practise (if necessary) con- sequently to counteract, the various astonishing and almost incredible deceptions in the sporting world, that have reduced so very many to the dark abyss of extreme poverty, and exalted very few to the exhilirat- ing scenes of domestic comfort. Under such accu- mulated acquisitions, resulting from long experience and attentive observation, it cannot be thought extra- ordinary that he should become greatly superior to his numerous competitors, where the successful termina- tion of the event was dependant upon such judgment in making a match, or the interposition of art in de- ciding it. It is a matter, not universally known (even in the sporting world), how very much he felt himself wound* ed, in a repeated rejection of his application to be ad- mitted into some of the clubs instituted and supported by those of the higher order, as well at Newmarket as in the metropolis. These were indignities he never lost sight of, and which he embraced every opportuni- ty to acknowledge and compensate, by the equitable law of retaliation. Of tkis fact numerous corrobo- SPORTING AN EC DOTES. 4SJ native proofs might be introduced ; one, however, of magnitude and notoriety, will be sufficient to produce conviction. The better to expedite his own superiority, and to carry his well-planned schemes into successful execu- tion^ and in order to render himself less dependant upon the incredible herd of necessitous sharks, and de- termined desperate harpies, that surround every newly initiated adventurer, and are unavoidably employed in all the subordinate offices of the turf and training stables, he had (upon making some important disco- veries in family secrets) determined to retain, exclu- sive of sudden and occasional changes, when circum- stances required it, one rider (or jockey), at a certain annual stipend, to ride for him, whenever ordered so to do, for any plate, match, or sweepstakes, but with the privilege of riding for any other person, provided he had no horse entered to run for the same prize. Having adjusted such arrangement in his own mind, and fixed upon the intended object of his trust, he communicated his design, and entered upon negocia- tion ; when the monied terms being proposed, he not only instantly acquiesced, but voluntarily offered to doubled them, provided he would enter into an engage- ment, and bind himself under a penalty, never to ride for any of the black-legged fraternity. The consenting jockey saying " he was at a loss, to a certainty, who the captain meant by the black-legged fraternity.'* — He instantly replied, with his nsual energy, " O, by Jasus, my dear, and I'll soon make you understand who I mean by the black-legged fraternity ! There's the D. of G. the Duke of D. Lord A. Lord D. Lord G. Lord C. Lord F. the Right Hon. A. B, C. D. and y 4 4M SPORTING ANECDOTES. and C. J. F. and all the set of the t haves that belong f their humbug societies and ub aboo clubs, where they can meet and rob one another without detection* This curious definition of the black-legged fraternity, is a proof, sufficiently demonstrative, how severely ht felt himself affected by the rejection, in consequenc* of which he embraced every opportunity of saying any thing to excite their irrascibility, as well as to encoun- ter every difficulty and expence to obtain that pre- eminence upon the turf he afterwards became possessed of. Dining at the stewards' ordinary at Burford races, in the veur 177^, (Lord Robert Spencer in the chair) when those races continued four days (now reduced to two), Lord Abingdon and many other noblemen being present, matches and sweepstakes, as usual after din- ner, were proposed, and entered into for the follow- ing year. Amongst the rest, one between Lord A. and Mr. Baily, of Rambridge, in Hampshire, for 300 guineas h. ft. when the captain being once or twice ap- pealed to by Mr. B. in adjusting the terms, Lord A. happened to exclaim, " that he, and the gentlemen on his side the table," run for honour; the captain and his friends for profit. — The match being at length agreed upon in terms not conformable" to the captain's opi- nion, and he applied to by B. to stand half, the cap- tain vociferously replied, " No; but if the match had been made cross and jostle, as I proposed, I would have not only stood all the money, but have brought a spalpeen from Newmarket, no higher than a two-penny loaf, that should (by Jasus!) have driven his lord- ship's horse and jockey into the furzes, and have kept him there for three weeks." It was htt usual custom to carry a great number of SPORTING ANEGTOOTES. 489 bank-notes in his waistcoat pocket, wisped up together with the greatest indifference. When in his attendance upon a hazard table at Windsor, during the races, being a standing better (and every chair full), a per- son's hand was observed, by those on the opposite side of the table, just in the act of drawing two notes out of his pocket; when the alarm was given, the hand (from the person behind) was instantaneously with- drawn, and the notes left more than half out of the pocket. The company became clamorous for the of- fender's being taken before a magistrate, and many at- tempting to secure him for that purpose, the captain very philosophically seizing him by the collar, kicked him down stairs, and exultingly exclaimed, " 'twas a sufficient punishment, to be deprived of the pleasure ot keeping company with jonthmm" The great and constant object of his pursuit was to collect and retain the best bred stud in the kingdom. This great acquisition he had nearly completed at the time of his death ; having crossed and accumulated the different degrees of blood from their collateral branches, so as nearly to concentrate the various ex- cellencies of different highly estimated pedigrees (by a portion of each) in a single subject. And here it can- not be inapplicable to introduce a few remarks on the celebrity and superior qualifications of that famous horse Eclipse, whose excellence in speed, blood, pedi- gree, and progeny, will be, perhaps, transmitted to the end of time. This wonderful horse was bred by the former Duke of Cumberland, and, being foaled during the great eclipse, was so named by the duke in consequence. His royal highness, however, did not survive to witness y 5 490 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the very great performances he himself had predicted ; for, when a yearling only, he was disposed of by auc- tion, with the rest of the stud : and, even in this very sate, a singularity attended him; for, upon Mr. Wild- taan's arrival, the sale had begun, and some few lots were knocked down. A dispute here arose, upon Mr. Wildman's producing his watch, and insisting upon it the sale had begun before the time advertised. The auctioneer remonstrated; little Wildman was not to be satisfied, and insisted upon it the lots so sold should be put up again, This circumstance causing a loss of time, as well as a scene of confusion, the purchasers said, if there was any lot already sold, which he had an inclination to, rather than retard progress, it was totally at his service. Eclipse was the only lot he had originally fixed upon, and that was transferred to him at seventy, or seventy* five guineas. At four, or five years old, Captain O'Kelly purchased half of him for two hundred and fifty guineas, and, in a short time after, gave seven hundred and fifty for the remainder. His great powers and performances are too well imprinted in the me- mory of the sporting world to be already obliterated. The purchase of the captain's estate near Epsom ft with the great convenience of his training-stables and paddocks, so contiguous to the course, and different ground for exercise, gave him every opportunity of information that his great avidity could excite him to obtain. Indefatigable in his pursuits, he became every day the less liable to disappointment ; and, that he might insure this to a greater certainty, his affability and friendly affection to his domestics and dependants, iiad taught them to look im to him more as a friend SPORTING ANECDOTES. 491 than a master; and to this natural effusion of philan- thropic liberality may be attributed no small portion of the success that so constantly attended him at al- most every country course in various parts of the king- dom — at least in all those parts that were centrical ; for, exceedingly fond of being present when his horses run, he never sent them to remote spots where he could not attend them. He was remarkable for his attach- ment to horses of bottom, that could stand a long day; and made a point, if possible, of always winning at three or four heats, in preference to two. This ren- dered the race a matter of more profitable specula- tion ; for, by protracting the superiority of his own horses, with the termination of the race, he became the winner of greater odds, which were constantly en- creasing every heat, as the horse seemed still less likely to win. Give-and-take plates, as they are called (carrying weight for inches), were then very much in use, but now almost obliterated ; and, amongst the competitors at Epsom, Ascot, Reading, Maidenhead, &c. &c. we were sure to find, for many years in succession, Brutus, Badger (alias Ploughboy), Young Gimcrack, Atom, Tiney, and, with the rest, Captain O'Kelly's Milksop, amongst which group was always seen as desperate running as cau be conceived, each becoming alternately victor, as the course proved, most applicable to his style of running (or the state of condition), as it is well known some horses run well over a flat course, that are deficient in climbing or descending a hill. — Upon this little horse alone he won very considerable sums, as he was at the height of his reputation, as well as his owner in the very zenith of prosperity, when y 6 492 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the turf was in a different degree of estimation; and it may be fairly concluded, that a thousand was then betted for every fifty that is now paid and received. — . Excluded in some measure (by a rejection from the clubs) running for the great stakes at Newmarket, he made a point of sweeping the major part of the plates at every country course within the extent of his circle. His horses never run better, or won oftener, than. when the long odds were against them. This, how* ever, was more the effect of policy than of chance. To enumerate a list of his stud, or a delineation of their individual excellencies, or successful perform- ances, would be to exceed the bounds of our work; it must, therefore, suffice to say, that, by an indefa- tigable and unremitting application to the cause he had embarked in, he accumulated not only a splendid fortune, but left to his successor such a train of stal- lions, in high estimation, that alone brought him in a princely competence* Report, after his decease, circulated an opinion that he had,, by will, under certain restrictions, (in imita- tion of the late Lord Chesterfield) enjoined his, succes- sor to avoid every connexion with the turf; not even to run or enter a horse in bis own name. If such was the fact, (which, by the bye, we have no reason to- doubt) such restriction is, by a supposed, composition, entirely done away, as we now not only see the present Mr. O'Kelly running horses in his own. name, but riding his own matches. Of the late D. O'Kelly, Esq. it may be very justly acknowledged, .we shall never see a more zealous, or a more generous promoter of the turf, a fairer sportsman in the field, or at the gaming- table. 1( he absolutely possessed private advantages SPORTING ANECDOTES. 493 over the less experienced, they were too judiciously managed ever to transpire to his public prejudice. In his domestic transactions he was indulgently liberal, without being ridiculously profuse; and, as he was the last man living to offer an intentional insult unpro- voked, so he was never known to receive one with im- punity. In short, without offence to the distinguished equestrian leaders of the present day, we may aver, he was not in the fashion now extant ; his tradesmen, his riders, his grooms, his helpers and subordinates, comparing the plenty of the past with the poverty of the present, may, with great justice and sincerity, ex- claim — " Take him for all in all, We ne'er shall look upon his like again.' 7 *• « THE LATE SIR ROBERT WALPOLE Was from his youth fond of field sports, and re- tained his attachment to them until prevented by the infirmities of age from their further enjoyment. He was accustomed to hunt in Richmond Park with a pack of beagles. Upon receiving a packet of letters, he usually opened that from his gamekeeper first; and in the pictures taken of him, he preferred being drawn in his sporting dress. AMUSEMENTS OF THE PALAIS-ROYAL. IN A LETTER TO A FRIEND. You know the history of this far-famed palace, its original structure and destination, by Cardinal Rich- elieu, its descent through two successive monarchs to 494 SPORTING ANECDOTES. the iast proprietor, the Duke of Orleans, whose con- version of it to its present destination afforded, at once the means of indulging his incredible extravagance, and gratifying his inordinate avarice. I think I have heard you say, that you have read that most animated, and most excellent description of the Palais-Royal, which is inserted in one of the volumes of the Varieties of Li- terature: it often recurred to my memory, when 1 wit- nessed the busy bustling scene which is there depicted with such fidelity and colouring. Let a man walk un- der these arcades, at any hour of the day, and he will never want food, either for meditation, or amusement; but the Palais-Royal exhibits a scene of peculiar in- terest in the evening. B. whom, to my great surprise- and pleasure, I met the other morning on the Pont- neuf, and who gave us his company to dinner at our hotel, persuaded us to leave our fire-side, and take a lounge in the Palais-Royal: the shape of the building, you know, is that of a parallelogram, which incloses a large garden, whose well-gravelled walks afford a fine view of the edifice. It was about half after seven when we entered by the Rue de Lycce ; at this end of the Pa- lais is a double piazza, with two rows of shops reach- ing from one extremity to the other; so crowded were these promenades with ladies, and loungers of every de- scription, that, by common consent, the ' law of the road' was as strictly preserved, as it is in the streets of London by the hackney-coachmen ! To have disturb- ed this easy, well-regulated flow, would have been ex- tremely rude; and I almost question whether the tide would not have carried any little bark away which had attempted to resist it. Though the other colonnades were also crowded, 3 SPORTING ANECDOTES. 495 Ambulation was not so difficult as here; and we had abundant opportunity to admire, as well the peculiar elegance with which the rival shop-keepers had lighted up their little cabinets of bijouterie, as the splendour and magnificence produced by the genera) illumination of the whole. After we had gratified our curiosity, and scattered as many looks as it was lawful for us married men, on the full unshaded beauties of the deep-bosomed damsels who tread this fairy ground, our friend B , whose long residence here has made him perfectly familiar with the manners and amuse- ments of the people, proposed to shew us the gaming- houses and subterranean gaieties of the Palais-Royal. He had scarcely spoken, when the sounds of ill-tuned instruments, and shrill piercing voices, assailed our ears; a sort of Sirocoggleam, composed of innumerable breathings, rising upon us at the same time, sufficient- ly indicated that there was " High Life below Stairs/' We descended into a large room, whose ceiling, walls, and decorations, counterfeit Arcadian scenery ; the pillars which supported the roof represent the knotty trunks of venerable trees, whose tortuous branches, in- tertwisted with each other, " o'ercanopy the glade." Tityrus, or more probably some Grecian shepherd, is seen lying at his length under the shade of a wide- spreading beech- tree in the wall, cooled by a stationary stream, and watching, with untired eye, the never- ending antics of the kids and lambkins that surround him. The company is not unappropriate to the sce- nery ; Pan is here with his pipe, and many a satyr peeps through the mimic foliage at the careless unveiled nymphs who trip, with fantastic toe, across the ** vel- vet green." These shepherds and shepherdesses, I as- 496 SPORTING ANECDOTES. sure you, live not upon the unsubstantial food of love alone: they have very good appetites, believe mej many of them did I see amusing themselves with a dish pf pettts-pdtts, a bason of soup, and a fine plump pou- kt i glasses of Bourdeaux and Burgundy were rilled with a generous hand, and to my great surprise, did I often inhale the odour of hot rum punch ! The gaming-tables are in a different quarter of the Palais-Royal; we ascended a stair-case, and opened the door of an anti-chamber, where several hundred hats, sticks, and great coats, carefully ticketed, were arranged, under the charge of two or three old men, who receive either one or two sous A forget which, from every owner, for the safe delivery of his precious depo- sit. No dogs are admitted into these sacred apart- ments, nor any thing which is likely to disturb the deep attention and holy quiet which pervade them! From this anti-chamber we opened a folding-door, which in- troduced to a large well-lighted room, in the centre of which was a table, surrounded, at a moderate estimate, by two hundred and fifty, or three hundred persons, anxiously inspecting a game, which it 'was not likely that any of our party should know the name of. We proceeded to another room ; another succeeded that ; and yet another; a fourth, a fifth, a sixth. We omit- ted to reckon the number of the rooms, and, therefore, to avoid exaggeration, we will stop here ; but I am in- clined to believe there are more than six ; all of which communicated with each other, and were equally well attended with the first. Different games were pur- suing, all strange to us unfashionable folks: a few fe- males mixed with this wretched crowd, were seated at the table, and engaged in the game. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 497 These tables are licensed by government — pay a considerable sum of money — and are, I understand, under its immediate inspection: they are excellently regulated : ready cash passes from the loser to the winner, and differences appear to be decided by ap- pointed references, who sit at the table, invested with what we conjecture to be the insignia of oiiice; name- ly, short wooden instruments, shaped like a garden hoe, and which seem to collect the tweive-livre pieces which are scattered over the table. There is one very curious condition imposed upon the holders of these gaming-tables ; they are obliged to furnish every body who enters any of the rooms, with as much table-beer as they chuse to call for. Waiters are, therefore, perpetually running backwards and forwards with overflowing tumblers of this re- freshing beverage, six or seven crowded on a tray; and he is not merely a polite man, but a fortunate one who adheres strictly to the good old-fashioned rule — " Drink what you please, but pocket none/' Beer, to an Englishman in Paris, to me at least, is nectar: I had tasted none since we left Dover; and, although the glasses had received the homage of a hundred lips, it was impossible to resist the temptation : taking all possible care, therefore, to avoid all extraneous mat- ter, I ventured to indulge my inclination, and am now ready to certify, before any magistrate, that the water of the Seine makes as good beer as the water of the Thames. From these licensed tables we visited many scenes of unsanctioned dissipation, in divers subterranean chambers, where the game of billiards was dexterously played ; two or three tables appear to be well attend* 498 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ed in every room ; it really makes one's heart bleed to see so many beardless youths as there are here, and lovely females, hastening on the road to ruin ! But at the Palais-Royal one sees all the world in yellow, blue, and green, to use poor Yorick's words — " run- ning at the ring of pleasure. The old, with broken lances, and in helmets, which have lost their vizors — the young, in armour bright, which shines like gold, be-- plumed with each gay feather of the east — all, all tilt- ing at it, like fascinated knights in tournaments of yor»: for fame and love." THE LATE CHARLES HUGHESr THE CELEBRATED EQUESTRIAN. A ritoLix detail of the origin of an equestrian per- former, would be only troubling our readers with what their own understandings had probably pre-suggested, namely, that his birth was obscure, and his erudition slender. Suffice it then, in brevity, to say, that Hughes was the son of a village ale-housekeeper in Gloucester- shire ; that, as soon as of age sufficient for the different changes, he was a post-chaise driver, a groom in a gen- tleman's stable, and, in the year 1766, or thereabout, a competitor with Price, Sampson, and others, in teats of horsemanship, in a place fitted up for the purpose, near Blackfriars-bridge, where he acquired considera- ble reputation in his profession; and in a very short time emigrated to the continents, Europe, and North America, where we will leave him till the building of the Royal Circus, in 1782, with which we will continue his history. At about this period it was that the ingenious Mr» SPORTING ANECDOTES, 499 Dibdin proposed to some of his friends to build a the- atre for dramatic and equestrian exhibitions. Colonel West, late of Rathbone-place, (of respected memory) and four others, were shortly induced to raise a sub- scription for the purpose ; and, being mostly men of fortune and spirit, daily enlarged and improved the scheme; and, in a few months, laid out to the tune of fifteen thousand pounds in building and preparing the Royal Circus, appointing Mr. Dibdin manager of the stage and Hughes, who had just arrived from abroad, where he had both got and spent an immensity of mo- ney) of the riug, or horsemanship. So that the asser- tion, in some of the diurnal prints, that he was the first projector, and some years proprietor of that theatre, is void of truth, since he was neither the one nor the other, having a life interest only ; which, indeed, gave him a power he did not fail to make use of — of ruin- ing that theatre and himself. The Royal Circus was opened in November 1782, Messrs. Dibdin and Hughes conducting their different departments of stage and horsemanship exhibitions, un- der the controul and direction of the proprietors, or sub- scribers before-mentioned. But being not yet licensed, and the winter season coming on, it soon closed, till the spring following. The entertainments (those of the stage particularly) tvere tasty and pleasing, and in the summer season of 1 783, netted a clear profit of three thousands four hun- dred pounds. One moiety of which the proprietors' generously divided between Messrs. Dibdin and Hughes, and expended the other in further decorations and im- provements. But the profits of the entertainments were but a se- 500 SPORTING ANECDOTES, condary consideration to Hughes. The ring, now alf the to??, was allowed to Hughes to make the best ad- vantage of he could, as a riding-school; and it soon be- came the favourite resort of persons of the first dis- tinction, to learn, or practice, equestrian exercises. Nay, the generosity of the proprietors towards Hughes did not stop here, for other stables, in addition to those actually belonging to the Circus, were rented by them for his use, which he occupied with horses, either to break, or for sale; and it is a well-known fact, that the clear profits of the ring, for the first year, yielded liughes upwards of one thousand pounds; an advan- tage that was likely to improve, rather than diminish, but for causes that will presently speak for themselves. Poor Hughes was, perhaps, the most extraordinary eccentric character upon earth. Litigation was his darling passion, for the gratification of which, he would cheerfully forego any the most pecuniary ad- vantages. That tide in his affairs which was thus ra- pidly running on to fortune, he as assiduously stemmed, as a man would a breach that was likely to drown him. Irascible, turbulent, and indecorous, his whole in- dustry was daily employed in searching out object3 of contention with his brother manager, of whose supe- rior talents he was jealous to a great degree; and the subscribers (or his co-proprietors, as he was fond of calling them) because they opposed and reproved his impetuous temper; and having cultivated an acquaint- ance with some of the most abandoned characters in the rules of the King's Bench, among whom were seve- ral petti-fogging lawyers, (Colonel West, under whom his genius was rebuked, dying about this time) actions at law, and bills in chancery, engrossed his mind, and SPORTING ANECDOTES. .501 his very soul was wrapped up in brief sheets, and slips of parchment ; and at the end of the second season, counselled and assisted with the myrmidons just men- tioned, and heading a hired banditti, composed of jail- runners, seized upon and dispossessed the proprietors of their theatre, which they, for a while, with a most unexampled meanness submitted to ; and very soon after, his co-manager, Dibdin, through his violent usage, and being unprotected, abandoned the theatre, leaving him in full possession of the whole property. For two seasons, during which a bill in chancery was pending between him and the proprietors, did Hughes alone conduct the entertainments of the Circus. But, alas ! what a foiling off was here. is charming theatre, which, under the eye of in, bad been iitted up with so much taste and ele- gance, became a shocking spectacle of devastation. The boxes, the transient resort of beauty and fashion, were occupied, by virtue of written orders from our .nan chief, by butchers just transmigrated from their slaughter-houses, bum-bailiffs, jail-runners, and thief- takers, who, (literally to follow Sir John Fat- staff's idea) might be " following their vocation," per- haps \ and the place was metamorphosed into a mere bear-garden. ;" Alas ! to what base uses may we turn." But a decree in chancery being obtained against les, about the latter end of the year 1787, this concern was restored to its real, if not original owners. For several transfers of shares, and parts of shares, had been made, and the firm was now composed of a baronet, an Irish earl, a chevalier, a pharo-banker, and three honest altornies— a goodly group! 502 SPORTING ANECDOTES. But now the case was materially altered with re- spect to Hughes, whose imprudence and dissipation had long deprived him of the resource arising from his riding-school ; and articles being entered into between him and the proprietors, by order of the court, by which one thousand three hundred and five pounds per annum was to be allowed to the latter, for interest and rent, before any division of profits took place, which sum alone was not very likely to be gained, till the house had retrieved some portion at least of its lost reputation; a liberal weekly pay, for his horses and riders, was Hughes's only dependance. On the other hand, the proprietors, who Were vested with fuller power than ever over Hughes and the whole concern, either through fear, diffidence, pusillanimity, or for other good causes and considerations, perhaps, tamely gave way to his ungovernable temper, and ap- pointing Delpini vice Dibdin, stage-manager, opened the theatre in 1788, and at the end of the season found themselves losers of about three thousand pounds. But seeing, too late, that their loss was to be attributed to unnecessary and exorbitant expences, rather than want of encouragement from the public, they, in the following season, delegated their power to an agent ; who making a reform in the expences, and some alterations and improvements in the house and entertainments, in spite of the intractable beha- viour of Hughes, who refused to supply the horse- manship on any reasonable terms, opened the house with stage exhibitions only. But Hughes soon coming to terms (though not without causing a riot in the house for two successive evenings), the theatre, before the end of that season, was raised to the highest pitck SPORTING ANECDOTES. 503 «f reputation imaginable; insomuch, that the follow- ing season brought down the jealousy and vengeance of the proprietors of the Theatres Royal; who (to their great dishonour it must be recorded) hired a trading justice of the peace, and other emissaries, to accomplish its ruin. Their resentment, however, in about two or three years, having subsided, they suffered Hughes, (for the proprietors abandoned it as a lost estate to them) to open it; but the representatives of Colonel West (who was the ground landlord, and lessor of the premises), soon ejected him, and then let the theatre. Thus did poor, paradoxical Hughes, spurn the good fortune that chance (not merit) had thrown in his way, and, instead of leaving a plentiful provision for his family, died, it is to be feared, in circumstances far •from affluent. A TAME PIG MISTAKEN FOR A WILD BOAR. General H— r, who now holds a situation of high military trust, was formerly a captain in a regi- ment of dragoons, and, like most young officers, had more gallantry than cash. An intrigue with (a mar- ried lady involved him in the consequences of an action for crim. con. and a verdict against him, with 50001. damages, when he had not as may shillings, compelled liim to quit his country, and take refuge in France. He repaired to Calais, at that time the resort of all the English who found it convenient to reside on the Continent. Lord C. H— n, and several other well- known sporting characters, had their head-quarters at the principal hotel. No sooner was the arrival of 504 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Captain H r announced, than a deputation wai sent to invite him. The invitation was immediately accepted, and Lord H. who was well acquainted with the Captain, and knew how passionately fond he was of hunting, promised the company a good joke at his expence. It happened about this time that a report was current of a couple of wolves having made their , ranee in the Forest of Guines, and carried off a of sheep and a shepherd or two. Upon this theme ] d C. 1 1. s< i to work. He told the Captain that his al was fortunate, as he would have an opportu- nity of enjoying his favourite diversion in perfection. He added that the neighbouring country was almost desolated by a wild boar of most portentous size and appearance, and he proposed a hunting match to take place the next morning. The proposal was received with rapture, and Captain H. prepared himself for the chase. He got his hunter and rifle gun ready, and as he was told the boar might attempt to run at him, he fortified his limbs with a pair of high ' boots which reached to his middle. Tims equipped, he was pre- pared at all points for the dreadful rencounter. In the mean time Lord H. considered, that as the chance of finding a wild boar iu the forest of Guines was preca- rious, ;t was necessary at least to make sure of a tame: one. Accordingly he repaired to a Marchand des Co- c/io/16 in Calais, and purchased one of the largest and best fed boar pigs he could find. Early in the mora- in., he directed his servant to proceed with the boar iu a string to the forest of Guines, and stop near the pillar | erected to commemorate the fall of Pilatre de Rosier. lie instructed him, as scon as he heard the sound of hunting horns, to slip the string, let the pig loose, and / SPOUTING ANECDOTES. 505 conceal himself by climbing a tree, perfectly assured the animal would not wander far. The lad stationed himself as was ordered, and about ten o'clock, the gal- lant Captain, at the head of a numerous cavalcade, advanced to destroy the formidable boar. When the troop neared the designated spot, the horns certified their approach. The hog was slipped, and, happy in regaining his liberty, contented hirmelf with taking his breakfast precisely where he was set free. The Cap- tain rode boldly on with his rifle ready cocked, and the noise of the party disturbing the harmless repast of the boar, he began grunting and snorting in the customary manner of the swinish race. The Captain soon perceived him ; his imagination magnified the animal into iy a rugged Hyrcanian boar, the tyrant of the woods;" and he conceited himself about to rival one of the labours of Hercules. He let fly and missed — the pig made off a gra?id pas. The Captain followed, loaded, fired, and missed again. The third time he was more fortunate. He hit the poor pig in the neck, and down he dropped. — The com- pany galloping up, the Captain dismounted, and with his saore, dexterously cut off the animal's head. It was insisted, that as he had achieved the principal ho- nour of the chase, he should carry the boar's head in triumph through the streets of Calais. A large stake was provided, and the head was fixed on the top. The Captain, exulting in his victory, remounted, seized the standard, .and resting one end on his loot, displayed the terrific symbol of his prowess. He entered Calais with as much pride as Sir Guy of Warwick, when he carried the head of a dragon to Athelstan at Lincoln. % 506 SPORTING ANECDOTES* The good people of the town were amazed at sucli a procession, and the Marchand des Cochons, who recog- nised the head of his old acquaintance, could not re- frain from laughter. The sons of Nimrod arrived at their hotel, and sat down to a sumptuous dinner, where the Captain was drank to as the valiant Englishman, who had not been forty-eight hours in Calais, before he had slain the most tremendous boar that ever ra- vaged any country. The Captain received their praises with becoming modesty, but still he thought within himself he merited ten times greater. After din- ner, when the glass had circulated freely, the whole story was developed, and the circumstances of the ad- Venture made manifest. The Captain was at first highly mortified and irritated, but at length he was fain to purchase the secrecy of the company, and avoid being made the talk of the town, by coming down a handsome treat, and entertaining, at his own cost, the whole of the hunting party. MEMOIRS OF A CIDEVANT GAMESTER. Jack Lurehail started upon the town with a fortune of near two thousand a-year. He was soon introduced into what is called good company ; that is, gentlemen gamblers. He thought it a great honour to sit down with a star, or a ribbon, and believed it impossible for a nobleman to be a cheat. His trees were felled by wholesale, the timber converted into cash, and the cash conveyed to the gaming-table, never to return. Still he kept the best company in England ; and though he was unlucky, was certain to lose his money to gentle- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 50f men. The timber demolished, the dirty acres went next; mortgage succeeded mortgage; and at length foreclosures, the whole. How is all this?" said Jack, to an old school fellow, who had been some time in the secret. " Why, you blockhead, you knew nothing of the long-shuffle, the slip, the bridge, or the palm. Can you cog a die, and throw a main when you please ? Did you ever plumb the bones?" " Heyday/' said Jack, " what language- are you talking ; it is all gibberish to me." " That is the very thing/' replied his friend ; " and until you are a perfect master of the language, both in theory and practice, you will never win as long as you live." " Is this possible ?" resumed Jack ; what, then I have been playing with sharpers all this while, when I thought I was in company with noblemen and gen- tlemen of the first rank. Curse upon my vanity ; for the sake of riding in a chariot with a titled scoundrel, and being taken by the arm by him in the drawing- room, have I been losing my estate to noble gamblers, and reducing myself to beggary/' " Well, never mind it;" said his friend, " you know, as the French author justly observes, L'un commence par etre dupe, et Von Jink par etrcfripons — ■ We com- mence dupes and end knaves/ Call at my chambers to-morrow in the forenoon, and I will give you a lesson or two that will enable you to cope with the best of them." Jack took his friend's advice, and soon became such a proficient in the noble art of cheating, that he could cog a die with Lord , or slip a card with Blackleg H-ge. But the greatest misfortune was, his cash was all z 2 508 SPORTING ANECDOTES. exhausted, and he had not a proper variety of clothes to make his appearance at the chocolate-house. He was, therefore, obliged to put up at the Pine Apple or ■the Cocoa, in hopes of a favourable stroke that might enable him once more to figure in that brilliant circle, where he had shone a meteor, but was now totally eclipsed. Revenge, as well as ambition urged him to the pur- suit.; but months rolled away whilst he could just keep lite and soul together, by his honest industry at the ha- zard-table. In the meanwhile he had created many- debts, and was obliged to play at hide and seek, to avoid the impertinence of those very intrusive gentry called catchpoles. At length, however an auspicious moment arrived. The lottery began drawing; and this appeared to him as his last resource. Jack, who had for a considerable time made calculation his chief study, and knew prac- tically the odds at every game that is played, once more became a dupe to the dealers in insurance, and played now at least 50 per cent, against himself, with- out mentioning the odds against being paid, if even successful, though at the same time he would not touch a card, or throw a die, unless he had an equal pull in his favour— So very inconsistent a being is Jack Lure hall Two of the office agents had decamped, where he should have touched handsomely; a third, in which he was pretty deep, was sent to the house of correc- tion, before Jack could receive the ready; and a fourth, where he next insured, was in a precarious atate, when, alas ! a most fatal accident befel poor SPORTING ANECDOTES. 50$ Jack. The bums had dogged him to the office, and at the very critical moment he thought he was upon the point of retrieving hie fortune, and being completely revenged of the noble — no, ignoble — sharps who had so completely fleeced him, he was nabbed, and conveyed to a spunging-house, where, having exhausted all the little cath he was possessed of in a few days, he was carefully and attentively escorted to the other side of the water r and met with a welcome reception from the turn-key of the King's Bench prison, where he remains, under the consolation, that he is well assured by his fellow inmates, that an act of insolvency will pass this session of parliament*. THE HUNTING TIGER. There are now in the Tower of London three cu- rious animals called chetas, or hunting tigers, .which. in the year 1800 were presented by the Court of Di- rectors of the East India Company to his Majesty, with a hunting-cart, two trained bullocks, and every article necessary for the chase. These animals were caught* in the woods of Bydroog, they were about three years, old, and had been trained for hunting for the amuse- ment of Tippoo Suhaun, in ?eringapatam. They were accompanied by six native huntsmen, three of whom had actually been in the service of the above prince. The cheta is the auimal mentioned by Tavernier, Bernice, and other eastern travellers, under the name of the hunting-leopard ; it diners, however, from the leopard properly so called, m the following particu- lars: It bears a greater resemblance to the greyhound z3 310 SPORTING ANECDOTES. in the length and slenderness of its body and limbs ; its head is proportionally smaller than that of the leopard, the iris of the eye is of a deeper yellow, and the face is distinguished by a dark line, descending from the cor- ner of each eye to the mouth. The spots of this ani- mal are each distinct, and not arranged in circles. The body and limbs — excepting the throat, breast, and belly, where a long whitish hair extends — are thickly covered with those spots, beautifully varied in size, of a round, or oval shape, of a fine dark colour, on aground of a light tawny brown. — The ears, which are short and round, are each marked behind with a broad dark bar; and the tail, which is long, slender, and some- what bushy at the extremity, is marked with four such bars from the lip upwards. The cheta differs much in dispositiow from the leo- pard, being easily broken in and trained for the chase; though, like other animals of the same species, it at times evinces the jealousy and malignity of its nature. Its keeper approaches to caress it with diffidence and caution, and it is led to the chase chained and hood- winked. 12 The size of the full-grown cheta is, from the nose to the extremity of the tail, about three feet eight inches, and its height, from the ground to the top of the shoul- der, two feet four inches. When Tippoo Sultaun took the amusement of hunt- ing with these chetas, he was generally in the field at sun-rise accompanied by his two sons, and a few cour- tiers and favourites. The chase was conducted under the superintendance of a chief huntsman, called Meer Shikar, and several attendants. Very little state was observed on the occasion, and none were present but SPORTING ANECDOTES. 51 l" those who received particular invitations. Each cheta was carried on a light cart, drawn by two bullocks trained for the purpose; the huntsman of each was seated on his respective cart, and the other attendants followed it close on foot. The carts moved in regular succession, and the chief huntsman conducted the leading cart ; the cheta, as we observed before, hood- winked. The spectators and sportsmen keep close to the carts, and preserve the most profound silence, in order to avoid alarming the game. On discovering a herd of deer, they proceed with greater caution, and take such a position as to oblige the antelope to run up hill or over broken ground. When they arrive within four or five hundred yards of the game, the men on foot turn thecheta's head towards the antelope, un» cover his eyes, and then let him loose. The cheta continues to be very cautious till he is within two hun- dred yards of the antelope; he then gets bolder, begins to run, and follows his prey wiih the greatest rapidity for three or four hundred yards, when he is either suc- cessful or gives up the chase. If the cheta has been successful, after seizing the antelope, he holds it by the back with his mouth in such a manner as not to hurt it, and keeps the prey down on the ground till the keeper arrives ; he is then hoodwinked, the throat of the antelope is cut, and a leg or two is given to the cheta as his reward. A cheta will run two or three times in a day, and he always selects the largest buck of the herd. — In large herds two or three chetas are let out, and then the sport is highly diversified and interesting. z 4 512 SPORTING ANECDOTES. THE CARIBOU AND CARCAJOU. The Carcajou, a species of cat, is a carnivorous animal, and inhabits the coldest parts of North Ame- > rica. Its weight is generally from 25 to 35 pounds. It is about two feet in lenath, from the end of the snout to the tail, which is about eight inches long. Its head is very short and thick in proportion to the rest of its body; the eyes very small; the jaws very strong, and furnished with 32 very sharp teeth. Nut- withstanding it is small, it is very strong and furious ; andrthough carnivorous, it is so slow and heavy, that it crawls upon the snow rather than walks upon it. One "ttojld scarce conceive from this description, that this is a rapacious beast of prey. As it walks it can catch no other animal than the beaver, which in' its motion is as slow as itself; and that must be in summer, when the beaver is out of its cabin ; but in winter it can only destroy the cabin, and by that means surprise the beaver; which, though per- formed with great vivacity, very seldom succeeds ; be- cause the beaver, if it receives the slightest warning, has its sure retreat under the ice. However, as the beaver, even in the winter, goes into the woods, to seek for fresh provisions, which he likes better than stale, the carcajou may, and frequently does, attack him there. In the woods, the carcajou hides itself among the branches of the trees till it finds an opportunity of leaping on the back of its prey. — The chase that is im>st successful to him is that of the elk and caribou.* • Guthrie, in his Geographical Grammar, observes, " The car SPORTING ANECDOTES. 513 The elk chuses in winter a place where grows a quan- tity of the anagyris fueiiia, or slinking bean trefoil, be- cause it feeds upon it; and remains there unless it is pursued by the hun'ers. The carcajou having once observed the elk's, road climbs up a tree near which he must pass, and from thence leaps upon him, and seizes his throat in a moment. In vain does the poor elk lie down upon the ground, or rub himself against the trees for nothing will make the carcajou let go his hold; and the hunters have sometimes found pieces of their skirt- as large as a hand, that have stuck to the tree against which the elk has rubbed himself, in hopes of shaking, off his devouring enemy. The caiibou, also a prey to this voracious animal, is a species ot deei fouud chiefly about Hudson's Bay; it is something iess than the moose deer, but stronger in its make.— I bete animals are seen in prodigious flocks during i he summer months aoout the Danish river, and Port Nelson, and die remarkably swift*. 'Their hoofs are flat and large, and furnished with very coarse hair between the divisions* which hinders them from sinking, into the suow, on ifcfe surface ot which they run as swiftly as on firm gpound^ When it infra its the thick woods it makes its roads- in winter like the elk, and is in the same manner attacked by the carcajou, who noes not chase the cari- bou, but in places he dexterously leaps upon him from the branch of a tree, fixes himself near its neck, and immediately opens the jugular vein with his teeth, by cajou suspends himself by his long tail from the bough of a tree, and darts on the back of the caribou as he passes under its Vranches. 514 SPORTING ANECDOTES. which the animal bleeds to death, and the carcajou feeds upon his flesh at leisure. The caribou has but one method of escaping from its enemy, and that is by jumping into the water, which the carcajou cannot bear, and immediately quits his hold. LINES On the late mh, dawson. While Honest Frank Dawson has giv'n up the ghost. The good Matthew Dodsworth comes blown to the post. Alas ! what avails all our training and feeding, When a check so uncivil is put to — good breeding. But life is a course, and whatever our pace, When death drops the flag, there's an end ©f the race ; But the grave to the racer renews his life past, For the turf had him first, and the turf has him last. Then no more at the Irishman's toast let us wonder, " Long life to the turf, whether over or under." RULES FOR HUNTING A LA GAMBADO. Th e choice of a horse is a very great essential to- wards enjoying this diversion in perfection; and of proper animals for this purpose there are two kinds.— The one, the full blood horse, as light made as possi- ble, for those that wish to lead the field, and take im- mense leaps; for who is so ignorant as not to know, that the lighter an animal is made, the higher it is able to leap ; and by having less weight of its own to carry, to undergo fatigue the best? — The other kind of horse is the largest kind of waggon-horse; for then, if the sportsman does not wish tojfy any leaps, the size and power of his steed will enable him to break through almost all without leaping. It is a good thing that the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 5\5 horse should already have his wind broken, for then you may ride him as fast as you can flog him on, with- out any fear of any accident of this kind ; besides that, the violence of his panting after severe exercise, keep- ing his body in motion, thereby prevents him from taking cold by cooling too suddenly. I should parti- cularly recommend a blind horse ; for then, being igno- rant of what kind of leaps he has to take, he will never be careless, but always do his best for fear of falling short ; and also is in no danger of losing time, by taking fright, and swerving from the track. In order to ride to the greatest advantage, very long stirrups are useful, and always a very sharp curb bridle and martingal, that the horse may always be under complete command ; particularly to hold him tight in over a leap, and check him severely when he puts his fore legs to the ground again. If a horse is broken- knee'd, so much the better leaper will he be ; for his knees being sore, he will be afraid of hitting the sore- place against his leaps, and will clear them well. With regard to the dress of the rider — I would by no means advise a short coat, but one as long as possible, to co- ver the knees well if it should rain. The best colour, as being farthest seen, is undoubtedly, white; though ignorant people prefer scarlet or green. The foolish cap at present in vogue, will, no doubt, soon be sup- pressed by the use of the cocked hat; made in such a way, that the hind flap may let down, to keep the rain from the neck in wet weather. The old French jack-boot is a capital thing for keeping out wet, and thorns, when you brush through a hedge. The longer the spur the better. Perhaps, for the huntsman, a *6 516 SPORTING ANECDOTES* four-in-hand whip would be very useful, to flog the foremost hounds. Before you go out in the morning the horses should be stuffed with as much corn as they can eat, and r.e- mernber to drench them well with water, that they may have a good quantity in their stomachs to last them all day. Early in the day, ride as hard as possible, to get the horse on his legs a little ; and take care to keep galloping about whenever there is a check, or you are drawing for a fresh fox. The hounds cannot be too much called to — it puts them, of course, in spirits.— If your horse is fleet enough, get up to the leading hounds when running, and keep laying lustily on them with your whip to keep them going. High winds are very favourable for scent, and rainy stormy weather, as it keeps the horses so cool. If a hare is found when your pack is running a fox, let them follow and kill her, by all means, as it gives them spirits for the rest of the chase. Flogging well in the morning, before the dogs go out, is a good thing in terrorem, as it lets them know what to expect if they behave ill. When the chase is over, take care not to give the pack nor your horses too much meat, that they may sleep bet- ter, and recruit after their fatigue. MATT. HORSLET. A short time since was carried to his grave, the celebrated farming foxhunter of the East-Riding of Yorkshire, at the advanced age of nearly ninety. It would be a kind of treason against sporting, not to re- scue in some sort his memory from oblivion; for if SPORTING ANECDOTES. 517 ever a man loved hunting li with all his soul, and all his strength," and died game at the last, Malt. Hors- ley was that hunter. On a small farm he contrived, from time to time, to bring into the field, to show off there, and to sell afterwards at good prices as many good horses as ever perhaps belonged to one person ; for in the course of nearly a century, he had hunted with three generations. But this was not all his praise. He had a natural vein of humour and faceti- ousness, which the quaintness of a strong Yorkshire dialect heightened still more ; and some greater men, who were his neighbours, wished to trample him down — poor man ! he sometimes put aside the effects of ill-humour, bv good-humour of his own. But as the bards from Menander down to Oliver Goldsmith, were of opinion that a line of verse was twice as long remembered as a line of prose, we have subjoined in doggrel rhyme, a sketch of the character of MATT. HORSLEY THE OLD TOX-HUNTER. Matt Hoksley is gone! a true sportsman from birth. After all his long chases he's taken to eartii ; Full of days, fulloi whim, and good humour he died, The farmer's delight and the fox-hunter s pride ! And tho' the small conuoris ot lite's private hour Were otten encro«tch'd on by rank and by power* And tho' his plain means could imt poorly afford To cope with the squire or contend with a lord — Yet Matt the shai p arrows of malice stiil broke, In his quaint Yorkshire way, by a good-humour'd joke, Till fourscore and ten, he continued life's course : Aad for seventy long ^eaia ue made part of his horsej 518 SPORTING ANECDOTES. From the days of old Draper, who rose in the dark, Matt hunted thro' life to the days of Sir Mark* With Hunmanby's squiref he was first in the throng, And with hard Harry Foordf never thought a day long ; If the fox would but run, every bog it was dry No leap was too large — no Wold hill was too high : Himself still in wind, tho' his steed might want breath, He was then, as he's now, ever " in at the death," A lough hearty saplin from liberty's tree, If ever plain Yorkshireman lived — it was he. But at last honest Matt has bid sporting adieu, Many good things he uttered ; — one good thing is true, "That aw'd by no frowns, above meanness or pelf — No bad thing could ever be said of himself." As honest Matt Horsley is gone to repose— And he and the foxes no longer are foes ! Lay one brush on his grave ! — it will do his heart good : For so vermin his nature — so true was his blood, That but stand o'er his sod — Tally-ho ! be your strain, Matt Horsley will wake and will hollow again. * Sir M. Masterman Sykes-— whose hounds are almost as po- pular as the owner of them ; and for whom every man, who can, preserves a fox. f Humphrey Osbaldeston, Esq. who in his day, and in the days of Isaac Granger, who was his huntsman, had one of the best packs of fox-hounds in England. % Harry Foord, a former vicar of Fox-holes on the Wolds, es- teemed one of the best gentleman riders in England — and who preserved that true character in riding, never to avoid what was necessary, or to do that which was not. He therefore rode, through ten seasons, two as good horses as ever went into a field •-though riding 14 stone. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 519 SINGULAR INSTANCES OF THE CUNNING OP FOXES IN A LETTER FROM A TRIENB. " I happened lately to pay a visit to a friend of mine in the country, who is the Nimrod of the parish where he resides. Before dinner, as we were amusing ourselves with a walk in one of his inclosures, and viewing his excellent breed of horses, our attention was called off to a numerous flock of crows and other birds very clamorous in the air ; they seemed to be in eager pursuit of some notorious enemy of the ter- restrial kind : and now and then would dart down and attack with great bitterness and fury. As a sight of this kind was quite new to me, I was just asking what creature it could be, who thus provoked against itself the hostile commotion of the fowls of heaven ; when my friend sprung away, hallooing to a brace of greyhounds, a pointer, and a couple of terriers, that attended us : and crying to me, while he pointed to the crows, ' Ecce signum, A fox, by Jupiter/ •' In no period of my life, could I ever boast my swiftness in running; but at this juncture, I was par- ticularly unfortunate with the incumbrance of a pair of boots and breeches, which for their — I had almost said antiquity — might have claimed kindred to those of the famous knight of LaMancha, otherwise ycleped the redoubted Don Quixote ; so that before I could penetrate a thorn hedge ; crawl over a broad miry ditch, with addition of some gilding to my clothes; and arrive within vision of the chase, at the expence 520 SPORTING ANECDOTES. of much respiration ; the sport was terminated by the capture of reynard : who, likn myself, was to be sure alive, but horribly soiled, mangled, and out of breath. Thei) it was his feathered persecutors finished the pur- suit, and dispersed to their several habitations, no doubt very well pleased, that their implacable foe had fallen inlo the hands of one who knew so well how to punish offenders, in two of the elements at least. " On this occasion, the joy that shone in my friend's countenance, was such, as 1 dare to say, could not be surpassed by that of a British general, were the fortune of war to throw into his power the sly French fox Buonaparte; who seems, however, conscious of bet- ter policy, than to quit his den when not forced by the most urgent necessity. Be that as it may, having se- cured our prisoner, we set homeward ; and by the way, fell discoursing upon the superior cunning of foxes to all other animals known in this country. * In proot of this,' said my friend, 4 i was witness some years ago, to a remarkable long chase with an old fox, when the hounds losing the scent, stopped short of a sudden at a solitary cottage. Every corner, cranny, and piece of furniture was narrowly ransacked, even to the. smoky vent, but no where could the sly rogue be discovered. By order of the huntsman, the dogs were then led iff toa considerable distance, in order to attempt discovering the foot, which having effected, they run it straight back to the hut again, where their noses were finally arrested. " * Now convinced one and all of us, that he must forcertaiu be about the house, and no where else, our astonishment at his concealing himself was only to b* I SPORTING ANECDOTES. 521 equalled by the difficulty of finding him ; and there were not wanting some among us, particularly the huntsman and whipper-in, who declared it as their opinion, that, unless an old woman, the lone inhabi- tant of the cottage, was set adrift, we should unkennel no fox there that day ; believing Goody to be no other than a witch, whom, in the shape of a fox, we had thus hunted into her dwelling, where she found it highly necessary to resume the human figure for the security of her person. In short Sir/ continued my friend, * we were perplexed with difficulties, that I know not what might have befallen this poor cottage, had not the huntsman roared aloud, * Ha ! now I 1 smoke him. Are you there "Niger? Gem'men, mark ' the sly son of a bitch upon the house-top.* There ha hud dug a pit, wherein, it is most probable, he had escaped undiscovered, but for a small portion of his back, which appearing above, and differing somewhat in colour from the turf on the roof of the house, was the cause of his detection and mortality. " * Nay, (proceeded this gentleman), as a further instance of the singular instinct in these animals ; the minister of the parish last year, was served a trick to the full as cunning, as that I have now mentioned, by a fox, which 1 suspect to be the very one now in cus- tody. After devouring several of his poultry for two nights successively, the family determined to watch the enemy the night following — Agreeably to their wishes, he came back once more; and, though they made quick preparation to secure their prisoner, from the time the geese and hens began a gaggling and cack~ ling, which was known to be a token of his having con>s 522 SPORTING ANECDOTES. menced the act of plundering and bloodshed ; yet, lip* on entering the hen roost with the utmost caution, my gentleman had actually found time to kill three of Mass John's fat ganders; and afterwards, to become himself invisible. The most minute search, with a variety of lights, was to no purpose ; so that, ima- gining reynard had given them the slip, the minister had already opened the door, and was preparing to retire with his attendants, when, taking up the slaugh- tered geese, out stole from below them, the cunning object of their exploration, and bid good night to hi§ enemies in full safety. A variety of other stories, relating to foxes and the chase, this communicative gentleman entertained me with ; and I know his veracity to be unquestionable. But I am afraid by this time, you will think my literary pursuit sufficiently protracted ; and that it is full time now, to quit the field with my fox and hounds, in or» der to make room for othe:s, being uo more than jus- tice, that, " Every fox should have hi& shift, and every dog his day/' 10RD CAMELFORD AND JUS FIGHTING DOG. The late Lord Camelford purchased, a short time before his death, Mr. Mellish's celebrated fighting dog. This animal, wtio was as renowned for his battles as Buonaparte, was originally the property of fighting Humphreys; he next came into the possession of fight- ing Johnson, by whom he was dearly beloved and ad- mired; his next owner was fighting Ward, who sold him a few years ago to Mr. Mellisb, for twenty gut- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 523 neas. His lordship, being fascinated with the bold feats and the spirited demeanour of the animal, pro- posed to buy him, and Mr. Mellish consented to sell him in the carcase way. The dog was accordingly put into the scale, after a good hearty dinner of tripe, and was found to weigh forty-two pounds. The price agreed upon was two guineas per pound, so that the purchase-money amounted to eighty-four guineas. This was satisfied in the following manner : — A favou- rite gun, belonging to his lordship, value forty guineas, and a case of pistols value forty-four guineas. It would have been an insult to this noble animal to have paid the purchase in money, and therefore, in a man- ner exchanged for these warlike articles. He was known by the name of Belcher ; bad fought 104 bat- tles, and had never been beat. A more warlike pe- digree, or nobler blood, could not be boasted by any of the canine race in England. To his other great and good qualities, he added a singular instinct, by which he was enabled to know a brave man from a coward ; and he was as much attached to the former, as he dis- liked the latter. His lordship was so pleased with his purchase, that he declared no money should part bin* and his dog. DUKE OF QUEENSBERRY, This celebrated sporting character, is descended from an illustrious Scottish family, several of his an- cestors having been intermarried with the blood royal of the Caledonian kings. Many of this high race have held high and honourable situations in the country 524 SPORTING ANECDOTES. which gave them birth ; and since their residence in- this, they have been noticed with particular attention by our sovereigns. On the death of his father, the last earl, his lordship- succeeded to the family estates, and became well known both in London and at Newmarket, during al- most fifty years, by the familiar name of Lord March* Being very young when he came to his title, and enter- ing early into the world, it so happened that he form- ed a decided and almost unconquerable taste for the amusements of the turf. Indeed the situation of a young nobleman, when he first starts in life, may be said to be peculiarly painful; for, being brought up to no useful or honourable profession, and seldom accus- somed, until maturer years have ripened his judgment, to assume the character of a senator, occupations of a more gay and volatile nature too frequently engross bis attention, and not seldom engulpb his fortune. The late Duke of Bedford, one of the most amiable and high-minded men of his age, exhibits the most sa- tisfactory proof that genius and abilities of. the first class are not exempt from failings of this kind, and that even an intercourse with grooms, and a certain, degree of familiarity with the stable, does not always preclude the exercise of talents, or the practice of the most distinguished virtues. While yet a boy, the Earl of March is reported to have acquired a certain species of distinction, by his gallantries in the capital, and his exploits at the race- ground ; and he shone at once the meteor of the turf, and the drawing-room. A handsome person, of which lie has been particularly careful, joined to a splendid SPORTING ANECDOTES. 525 equipage, a title, and a fortune, all of which were heightened by manners highly polished, and conversa- tion that seemed bewitching, ensured to him the smiles of the fair. But however he might occasionally cull from the parterre of beauty, the subject of these me- moirs had neither then nor since selected a matrimo- nial bouquet for his own use. To one lady, indeed, who had been allured from the genial clime of Italy, by the blandishments of an operatic life, and the hopes of a splendid fortune, his lordship is said to have been long and warmly attached. This temporary connec- tion, indeed, gave birth to many jokes, as a celebrated man of wit* of that da}', was supposed to have en- joyed a species of co-partnership in the smiles of the fair warbler. But if this nobleman has never yet led a willing partner to the temple of Hymen, it is neither the fault of the beauties of the present nor a former age, as many of our young ladies doubtless burn with the same ardour for wealth, splendour, and a ducat coro- net, that their grandmothers and great granddames exhibited half a century ago. It must, therefore, be, -and assuredly is, the particular fancy of this peer, him- self, that has precluded a species of alliance which would have ensured legitimate heirs to his large for- tune and numerous titles. , In another line, to which we have also alluded be- fore, this nobleman has been particularly fortunate. Although, like an illustrious duke, whose name has already been mentioned, he possessed a great attach- # The late George Selwyn, Esq, 526 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ment to the pleasures of the turf, yet he never was the pre}- of sharpers. Indeed both of these noblemen may be supposed to have descended on the race ground,, completely armed, in the same manner that Minerva proceeded from the head of Jupiter ; and of one of them in particular, it might be said, even while a boy — " In troth thou'rt able to instruct grey hairs, And teach the wily African." But in order to prevent pillage it became necessary for Lord March to place no reliance whatever upon jockeys, to trust all to himself, and to depend solely upon his own ability and exertions. Two memorable achievements of this kind will never be forgotten by the disciples of the whip. The first occurred in 1756, when his lordship, properly accoutred, in his velvet cap, red silk jacket, buckskin breeches, and long spurs, not only bucked his own horse for a considerable sum, but actually rode him. This contest, which took place on the race-ground at Newmarket, when the earl had attained his twenty sixth year, was not, however, with an inferior, either in blood or fortune; for his antagonist, on this occa- sion, was no less a person than a Scotch nobleman, addicted to the same sports as himself, and whose fa- mily, like his own, had been allied to the kings of his native country. This trial of skill between the Achilles and the Hector of horsemen, of course attracted the notice of the public, and the ground was covered at an early hour with all the fashionables of that period. Lord March, thin, agile, and admirably qualified both SPORTING ANECDOTES. 527 y skill and make, for exertion, was l^e victor of the day : tohiin was given the meed of fame, and the re- ward of activity ; and no conqueror of the Olympic games ever received greater plaudits. The other contest was with an Irish gentleman-, usually known by the appellation of Count O i ate, much celebrated about the middle of the last century for his bets and his oddities. In consequence of a conversation at a sporting meeting, relative to running against time, it was suggested by the Eail of March, that it was possible for a carriage to be drawn with a degree ot celerity hitherto unexampled and almost in- credible.* Being drsired to name his maximum, he un- dertook, provided he had the choice of his ground, and a certain time for training, to draw a machine with four wheels not less than nineteen miles within the space of sixty minutes. As it had been already discovered,' that a race horse might be urged to such a degree of speed, as to run over a mile in a minute, this, which allowed about three to a carriage, did not appear so surprising to the knowing ones for a short space of time ; but the continuance of such a rapid motion during a whole hour, staggered their belief, and many of them were completely outwitted. As much depended on the lightness of the machine, application was made to an ingenious coach- maker — Wright — in Long Acre, who exhausted all the re- sources of his art to diminish the weight and friction as much as possible ; and silk is said to have been re- curred to in the construction of the harness, instead of leather. It then became necessary, to select four blood horses of approved speed, and, what was far more difficult to procure, two honest groom boys — 528 SPORTING ANECDOTES* Erret and another — of small weight and tried skill, t» manage them. The course at Newmarket having been pitched upon for the trial, a mile was marked out there; and, although several horses are said to have been killed in training, yet it soon became evident that the project was feasible. On the arrival of the appointed day — August 29, 3 750 — which was to decide bets to the amount of many thousands pounds, the noble and ignoble game- sters repaired to the spot pitched upun : the jockeys mounted ; the carriage, constructed partly of wood and partly of whalebone, was put in motion, and, rushing on with a velocity almost rivalling the pro- gress of sound, darted within the appointed time to the goal ! On the demise of George II. the Eail of March was appointed one of the lords of the bedchamber to his present Majesty, which place he held until the year 3 789, when, giving his vote to the famous regency business, in support of the Prince of Wales, in opposi- tion to the premier, after a service of nearly thirty years, he was dismissed from his employment. To one enjoying his immense wealth, a circumstance of this kind, at least in a pecuniary point of view, could not give a moment's uneasiness ; and to the writer of this article, who has beheld him acting in what seemed to be a painful official situation, his dismission appears in the nature of a triumph, rather than in that of a disgrace. But there is no accounting for the feelings of others; and an apprenticeship at court might have, perhaps, rendered the dismal red brick, and dark cloisters of St. James's dear to those accustomed to traverse the SPORTING ANECDOTES. 529 apartments of this gloomy and monastic pile. In such a case, an arrow shot from the hand of royalty, al- though perhaps pointed by another, might inflict an Acteon like wound — haret laleri lethalis arundo. The late Lord Bute, who is said to have been in no small degree partial to his countrymen, took the Earl of March under his patronage at an early period of life, and, in addition to the situation already alluded to, exerted his influence, in another point of view ; for, in tl e beginning of the present reign, his lordship was elected one of the sixteen peers of Scotland, and continued to enjoy that honour, in about six succes- sive parliaments, until it became unnecessary in con- sequence of his attainment of an English barony. At length, on the demise of the late Duke of Queens- berry, the Earl of March succeeded to that title, and at the same time, obtained a very considerable addi- tion to a foitune already very ample, particularly a very valuable estate in Wiltshire. Other honours were also showered down upon his Grace, for he was elected a knight of the thistle. He also obtained a place of some emolument, that of Vice- admirable of Scotland, which he afterwards resigned in behalf of his old and intimate friend, as well as opposite neigh- bour, Lord William Gordon: and, in 178ft he be- came an English peer, by the style and title of Baron Douglas. Many jokes have been levelled at his grace, and some of the diurnal writers seem to have actually lived at his expence ; yet he appears to have invariably ex- hibited a generous foibearance, and was perhaps one 2 a 5S0 SPORTING ANECDOTES. of the first to laugh at the rude puns, and coarse al- lusions, which have taken place relative to him. In point of fortune the duke is affluent ; for he not only possesses immense estates, but is said to keep a larger sum of ready money at his banker's, than any other nobleman or gentleman in the kingdom. He has been enabled to obtain a degree of wealth necessary for his independence, by means of a well regulated economy. He is not a churl, however, either in his table or his appearance ; for no one entertains his friends with more hospitality, or exhibits a greater number of splendid carriages, well dressed servants, and rich liveries, on gala occasions. His grace appears almost every fine morning, in front of his house in Piccadilly, sitting in a cane-chair, in the balcony, enjoying the sight of the passengers ^ and, if we are to credit report, not wholly insensible to female charms. He resides next door to the Earl of Yarmouth, whose lady was brought up under his immediate inspection, whom he has always cherished with a certain degree of paternal affection, and to whom, if we are to believe report, he intends to be- queath a considerable part of his fortune. Formerly, when it was the fashion to dress in a splendid manner, his grace complied with the custom of the day ; but now that good sense begins to prevail, in respect to the decoration of person, he conforms to the temper of the times, wisely preferring elegance to tawdry finery. The duke possesses a very fine taste for music. He does not indeed, we believe, like his friend the late Lord Kellie, who attained an unrivalled excellence on the violin, delight in instrumental; but we know that SPORTING ANECDOTES. 531 he is an eminent judge of vocal performance, and has attained such a facility in the science, as to be able to hum the songs and accompaniments of any new opera in his way home from the Haymarket. Pie himself has also been known occasionally to accompany a lady on the harpsichord ; and even to exhilarate the festivi- ty of a convivial meeting, by a solo of his own. The duke of Queensberry spends a great portion of the year in the metropolis ; and indeed, the view of the Green Park from his house can scarcely be equal- led, in point of mere scenery, by any portion of the kingdom. Having rendered his residence larger and more commodious, by a stair-case to the basement story, he may be seen every forenoon, either ascend- ing from this, or descending, by means of a little iron stair-case, to reach his vis-a-vis, mount his little black forester, or get into a single-hori?e chaise, which ap- pears to have more of the antico nwdi-nio than any thing appertaining to him. About five o'clock in the summer, he generally drives in a sociable to his house at Richmond, which is built upon the margin of the Thames, and so situated as to command a beautiful prospect both by land and water. There he spends the evening in festivity, enjoying the sound of music, surrounded by friends male and female, and not un- mindful oi the second line of the celebrated distich of Martial — " Balnea, Vina, Venus consuraunt corpora nostra, Sed vitarn faciunt Balnea, Vina, Venus." His grace was formerly acccustomed to make longer excursions, and to spend several weeks at a time at his seat at Amesbury, in the immediate neighbourhood 2 a 2 532 SPORTING ANECDOTES. of Stonehenge. It was once the residence of that Du- chess of Queensberry who acquired no common share of celebrity by her patronage of Gay. He is ground landlord of the town of Amesbury, and also lord of the manor. The house is a noble building, like all those built by Inigo Jones, who was the architect ; and the present possessor must be al- lowed to have made great improvements in the grounds, having not only enlarged them, but planted an adjoining hill, at the foot of which the Avon beau- tifully meanders, after passing through the gardens. Nor ought it to be omitted, that he has generously appropriated this charming seat to the victims of devo- tion; and thus proved, by a noble action, that if his Grace the Duke of Queensberry has not zeal sufficient to found a nunnery, he has at least munificence and generosity enough to protect a few antiquated devotees, who consider seclusion from mankind as absolutely necessary for their salvation ! MR. DANIEL LAMBERT. Tins extraordinary character and eminent sports- man was born on the 13th of March, 1770, in the parish of St. Margaret, at Leicester. From the extraordinary bulk to which Mr. Lambert has attain- ed, the reader may naturally be disposed to enquire whether his parents were persons of remarkable dimen- sions. This was not the case, nor was any of his fa- mily inclined to corpulence excepting an uncle and an aunt on the father's side, who were both very hea- vy. The former died during the infancy of Lambert, in the capacity of game-keeper, to the Earl of Slam- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 533 ford, to whose predecessor his father had been hunst- man in early life. The family of Mr. Lambert senior, consisted, besides Daniel, of another son, who died young, and two daughters who are still living, and are both women of common size. The habits of the subject of this memoir were not ia any resper.t different from those of other young persons till the age of fourteen. Even at that early period he was strongly attached to all the sports of the field. This, however, was only the natural effect of a very obvious cause, aided probably by an innate propensity to those diversions. We have already mentioned the profession of his father and his uncle, and have yet to observe, that his maternal grandfather was a great cock-fighter. Born and bred, as it were, among hor- ses, dogs, cocks, and all the other appendages of sporting, in the pursuits of which he was encouraged, even in his childhood, it cannot be matter of wonder that he should be passionately fond of all those exer- cises and amusements which are comprehended under the denomination of field sports, as well as of racing, cocking and fishing. Brought up under the eye of his parents till the age of fourteen, young Lambert, was then placed with Mr. Benjamin Patrick, in the manufactory of Taylor and Co. at Birmingham, to learn the business of a die- sinker and engraver. This establishment, then one of the most flourishing in that opulent town, was af- terwards destroyed in the riots of J 795, by which the celebrated Dr. Priestly was so considerable a suf- ferer. Owing to the fluctuations to which all those manu- factures that administer to the luxuries of the comma- 2 a a 531 SNORTING ANECDOTES. nity are liable from the caprices of fashion, the wares, connected with the profession, which had been cho- sen for young Lambert, ceased to be in request. Buc- kles were all at once proscribed, and a total revolu- tion took place at the same period in the public taste with respect to buttons. The consequence was, that a numerous class of artizans were thrown out of em- ployment, and obliged to seek a subsistence in a different occupation. Among these was Lambert, who had then served only four years of his apprentice- ship. Leaving Birmingham, he returned to Leicester to his father, who held the situation of keeper of the pri- son in that town. Soon afterwards, at the age of nineteen, he began to imagine that he should be a heavy man, but had not previously perceived any in- dications that could lead him to suppose he should ever attain the excessive corpulence for which he i& mow distinguished. He always possessed extraordi- nary muscular power, and at the time we are speaking of, could lift great weights, and carry five hundred weight with ease. Mad his habits been such as to bring his strength into action, he would doubtless have been an uncommonly powerful num. That he was not deficient either in physical strength or in courage, is demonstrated by the following ad- venture, in which he was about this period engaged. Standing one day in his father's house at Leicester, liis attention was attracted by a company of Savoyards, with their dancing dogs and bears, surrounded by an immense concourse of spectators. While they were exhibiting, a dog which had formerly been accustom- ed to travel with a similar company of these grotesque. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 555 performers, and now belonged to the county goaler, hearing the sound, flew furiously upon a very larg* bear, whose overbearing force, and weight soon crush- ed him to the ground. " Give her tooth," said the Sa- voyards-, irritated at the interruption of their exhibi- tion, and making preparations to take off the muzzle of the bear. Mr. Lambert being acquainted with the master of the dog, and knowing that, in this case, the animal would be exposed to certain destruction, went out, and addressed the people with the intention of pacifying them, and prevailing upon them to suffer the dog to be taken away. Deaf to all his remonstrances, one of the Savoyards, still persisted in pulling off the muzzle, the dog being all this time underneath, and in the grasp of the bear. Enraged at the fellow's obsti- nacy, he protested he would kill the bear if it lay in his power, and snatching from the man's hand the pad- dle or pole with which they manage these animals, at the moment when the muzzle was removed, he struck, the bear with all his force, fully intending to dispatch her if possible. Bruin was for a moment completely stunned with the blow, and the dog seized that oppor- tunity of disengaging himself from her clutches. En- raged at this fresh attack, she turned towards her new antagonist, who kept repeating his strokes, but with- out being able to hit her head, which she protected from his blows with ail the dexterity of the most ac- complished pugilist. During these successive attacks, the dog, faithful to the friend who had so opportunely stepped to his aid, continued to exhibit the most as- tonishing proofs of undaunted intrepidity, till he was at length caught up by one of the by-standers. The weather was frosty, and the pavement was slightly S36 SPORTING ANECDOTES. glazed from the trundling of a mop. Here, while thus busily engaged in belaboring his formidable foe, Lam- bert fell, but rose again with the utmost agility. Bruin was now close to him ; he had a full view of her tre- mendous teeth, and felt the heat from her breath. The danger became pressing, and as his shaggy foe was too near to admit of his using the weapon, he struck her with his left hand such a violent blow on the skull, as brought her to the ground ; on which she declined the contest, and " yelling fled." Dnring the fray, a smaller bear had been standing upright against a wall, with a cocked hat on his head : in conse- quence of the retreat of his companion, this ludicrous figure now appeared full in front of the victorious champion, who brandished in his hand the up-lifted pole. The beast, as if aware of his danger, and ex- pecting to be attacked in his turn, instantly took off the hat, and, apparently in token of submission, tum- bled heels over head at the feet of the conqueror. Meanwhile the populace, terrified at the approach of the ursa Major, began to retire in a backward direc- tion, still keeping the unsuccessful combatant in view, till they tumbled one after another over some loads of coal that happened to lie in the way. The scene now became truly ludicrous, forty people were down at a time, and there was not one but what ima- gined himself already in the gripe of the irritated ani- mal, and vociferated murder \ with all his might. The Savoyards, who were, after all, the greatest ■sufferers by this tragi-comic representation, applied to the mayor, and demanded redress. The magistrate en- quired where the fray happened, and was informed that it took place in Blue Boar Lane, in the parish of SPORTING ANECDOTES. 537 St. Nicholas — the inhabitants of which have for many years been distinguished by the appellation of Nick's Ritfs. " Oh !" said he, " the people of that parish do just as they please ; they are out of my jurisdic- tion ;" and gravely dismissed the disappointed com- plainants. — It was two years before this company of itinerant performers again ventured to make their ap- pearance in Blue Boar Lane. On this occasion one who happened to be rather before the rest, perceiving Mr. Lambert sitting at his door, gave notice to the others, who dreading a repetition of the treatment they had before experienced, instantly retreated by the way they had come. His father having resigned the office of keeper of the prison, Mr. Lambert succeeded to the situation. It was within a year after this appointment that his bulk received the greatest and most rapid encrease. This he attributes to the confinement and sedentary life to which'he was now obliged to submit, which produced an effect so much the more striking, as from his at- tachment to sporting, he had previously been in the habit of taking a great deal of exercise. Though lie never possessed any extraordinary agility he was still able to kick to the height of seven feet standing on one leg. About the year 1793, when Mr. Lambert weighed thirty-two stone, he had occasion to visit Woolwich in company with the keeper of the county goal of Leices- ter. As the tide did not serve to bring them up to London, he walked from Woolwich to the metropolis with much less apparent fatigue, than several middle- sized men who were of the party. 2A5 538 SPORTING ANECDOTES. The inhabitants of Leicester are remarkable for their expertness in swimming, an art which they are encou* raged to practise by their vicinity to the river Soar. From' the age of eight years Mr. Lambert was an ex- cellent swimmer, and such was his celebrity, that about ten years ago all the young people in his native town who were learning to swim resorted to him for instruction. His power of floating, owing to his un- common buik, was so great, that he could swim with two men of ordinary size upon his back. We have lieard him relate, that on these occasions, when any of his young pupils manifested any timidity ; he would convey them to the opposite bank of the river from that on which they had laid their clothes, and there leave them to find their way back as well as they couldl By these means they soon acquired that courage which is so indispensably necessary to the attainment of ex* cellence in the art of swimming, Mr. Lambert's father died about five years after his son's appointment to be keeper of the prison, which office he held, till Easter 1805. In this situation he manifested a disposition fraught with humanity and benevolence. Whatever severity he might be under the necessity of exercising towards the unhappy objects committed to his care during their confinement, Jie never forbore to make the greatest exertions to assist; them, at the time of their trials. Few left the prison without testifying their gratitude, and tears often be* «poke the sincerity of the feelings they expressed- Hijs removal from the office was in consequence of a wish on the part of the magistrates to employ the prisoner^ in the manufacture of the town. As a proof of th,e approbation wbich (lis conduct had merited, they, set- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 539 tied upon him an annuity of 50/. for life, without any solicitation whatever, and what was still more gratify- ing to his feelings, this grant was accompanied with a declaration, that it was a mark of their esteem and of the universal satisfaction which he had given ia the discharge of the duties of his office. Such were the feelings of Mr. Lambert, that no longer than a few months ago, he abhorred the very idea of ex- hibiting himself. Though he lived exceedingly retired at Leicester, the fame of his uncommon corpulence had spread over the adjacent country to such a degree, that he frequently found himself not a little incom- moded by the curiosity of the people, which it was- impossible to repress and which they were continually devising the means of gratifying, in spite of his reluc- tance. A gentleman travelling through Leicester, conceived a strong desire to see this extraordinary phenomenon, but being at a loss for a pretext to introduce himself to Mr, Lambert, he first took care to enquire what were his particular propensities. Being informed that he was a great cocker, the traveller thought himself sure of success. He accordingly went to his house, knocked at the door, and enquired for Mr. Lambert. The servant answered that he was at home, but that he never saw strangers. " Let him know," replied- the curious traveller, " that I called about some cocks." Lambert who chanced to be in a situation to overhear what passed, immediately rejoined : " Tell the gentleman that I am a shy cock." On another occasion, a gentleman from Nottingham was extremely importunate to see him, pretending that he had a particular favour to ask. After considerable 2 aQ 540 SPORTING ANECDOTES. hesitation, Mr. Lambert directed him to be admitted. On being introduced he said, he wished to enquire the pedigree of a certain mare. " Oh ! if that's all,*' re- plied Mr. Lambert, perceiving, from his manner, the real nature of his errand, " she was got by Imperti- nence out of Curiosity." Finding, at length, that he must either submit to be a close prisoner in his own house, or endure all the inconveniencies without receiving any of the profits of an exhibition, Mr. Lambert wisely strove to over- come his repugnance, and determined to visit the me- tropolis for that purpose. As it was impossible to pro- cure a carriage large enough to admit him, he had a vehicle constructed expressly to convey him to Lon- don, where he arrived, for the twenty-second time, in the spring of 1 806, and fixed his residence in Pic- cad illy. His apartments there had more the air of a place of fashionable resort, than of an exhibition ; and as long as the town continued full, he was visited by a great deal of the best company. The dread he felt on coming to London, lest he should be exposed to indignity and insult from the curiosity of some of his visitors, was soon removed by the politeness and attention which he universally experienced. There was not a gentleman in town from his own county, but went to see him, not merely gazing at him as a spectacle, but treating him in the most friendly and soothing manner, which, he has declared, is too deeply impressed upon his mind ever to be forgotten. The spirit of politeness which always prevailed in the presence of Mr. Lambert, was such as, was, perhaps, never observed on a similar occasion. The very Qua- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 541 kers by whom he was visited felt themselves moved to take off their hats. It is but natural to suppose that among the numbers who chose to gratify their curio- sity, some few exceptions should occur. Thus one day a person perceiving, previous to entering the room, that the company were uncovered, observed to Mr. Lam- bert's attendant, that he would not take off his hat, even if the king were present. This rude remark being uttered in the hearing of Mr. Lambert he imme- diately replied, as the stranger entered : — " Then by G , Sir, you must instantly quit this room, as 1 do not consider it as a mark of respect due to myself, but to the ladies and gentlemen who honour me with their company." Many of the visitors seemed incapable of gratifying their curiosity to its full extent, and called again and again to behold to what an immense magnitude the human figure is capable of attaining; nay, one gentleman, a banker in the city, jocosely observed, that he had fairly had a pound's worth. Mr. Lambert had the pleasure of receiving persons of all descriptions and of all nations. He was one day visited by a party of fourteen, eight ladies and six gentlemen, who expressed their joy at not being too late, as it was near the time of closing the door for the day. They assured him that they had come from Guernsey on purpose to convince themselves of the existence of such a prodigy as Mr. Lambert had been described to be by one of their neighbours, who had seen him; adding, that they had not even one single friend or acquaintance in London, so that they had no other motive whatever for their voyage. — A striking illustra- tion of the power of curiosity over the human mind. 542 SPORTING ANECDOTES. Great numbers of foreigners were gratified with thr Contemplation of a spectacle, unequalled, perhaps, in any oiher country. Among these a Frenchman, ac- companied by a Jew, seemed extremely desirous, from motives best known to himself, of persuading Mr. Lambert to make an excursion to the continent, and insinuating that under his guidance and management lie could not fail of obtaining the greatest success. *' Vy you not go to France?" said he, " I am sure Buonaparte vill make your fortune." Supposing that such an inducement must prove irresistible, he added : " Den vont you go to Paris?" Lambert, who had too much good sense, to be the dupe of a designing Mon~ sieur, rejoined in the emphatic style of a true son of John Bull,—" If I do, I'll be d d."— " Vat you tink of dat now h" cried the astonished Jew to his mor- tified and disappointed companion. Among the many visitors of Mr. Lambert the cele- brated Polish dwarf, Count Borulawski was not the least interesting. The Count, having made a fortune by exhibiting his person, has retired to Durham to enjoy the fruit of his economy. Though now in his seventy-first year, he still possesses all the graceful- ness and vivacity by which he was formerly charac- terized. Mr. Lambert, during his apprenticeship at Birmingham, went several times to see Borulawski, and such was the strength of the Count's memory, that he had scarcely fixed his eyes upon him in Piccadilly before he recollected his face. After reflecting a mo- ment, he exclaimed that he had seen the face twenty years ago in Birmingham, but it was not surely the same body. This unexpected meeting of the largest and smallest man seemed to realise the fabled history SPOTTING ANECDOTES. 543 of the inhabitants of Lilliput and Brobdignag, particu- larly when Lambert rose for the purpose of affording the diminutive count a full view of his prodigious dimensions. In the course of conversation, Mr. Lam- bert asked what quantity of cloth the count required for a coat, and how many he thought his would make him. — " Not many;" answered Borulawski. u I take goot large piece cloth myself — almost tree quarters of yard." — At this rate one of Mr. Lambert's sleeves would be abundantly sufficient for the purpose. The count felt one of Mr. Lambert's legs : " Ah mine Got !'* he exclaimed : " pure flesh and blood. I feel de warm. No deception ! 1 am pleased : for I did hear it was de- ception." Mr. Lambert asked if his lady was alive;, on which he replied : " No, she is dead, and (putting his finger significantly to his nose) I am not very sorry, for when I affront her, she put me on the mantle-shelf for punishment." The many characters that introduced themselves to Mr. Lambert's observation in the metropolis, fur- nished him with a great number of anecdotes, which a retentive memory enables him to relate with good effect. One day, the room being rather crowded with com- pany, a young man in the front, almost close to Mr. Lambert, made incessant use of one of those indis- pensible appendages of a modern beau, called a quia- aing-glass. The conversation turned on the changes of the weather, and in what manner Mr. Lambert felt himself affected by them. — m What do you dislike most?" asked the beau — * fe To be bored with a quizzing- glass," was the reply. A person asking him in a very rude way the cost of 3 544 SPORTING ANECDOTES. one of his coats, he returned him no answer. The man repeated the question with the observation, that he thought he had a right to demand any information, having contributed his shilling, which would help to pay for Mr. Lambert's coat as well as the rest. " Sir," rejoined Lambert, " if I knew what part of my next coat your shilling would pay for, I can assure you I would cut out the piece/' On another occasion a lady was particularly soli- citous to have the same question resolved. " Indeed, madam, answered Mr. Lambert, " I cannot pretend to charge my memory with the price, but I can put you into a method of obtaining the information you want. If you think proper to make me a present of a new coat, you will then know exactly what it costs." A person who had the appearance of a gentleman, one day took the liberty of asking several impertinent questions. Mr. Lambert looked him sternly in his face, but without making any reply. A lady now entered the room, and Lambert entered into conversation with her, on which the same person observed that he was more polite to ladies than to gentlemen. " I can assure you, Sir," answered Mr. Lambert, " that I consider it my duty to treat with equal politeness all those whose behaviour convinces me that they are gentle- men," — " I suppose," rejoined the querist, " you mean to infer that I am no gentleman." — " That 1 certainly did," was the reply. Not yet abashed by this reproof, he soon afterwards ventured to ask another question, of a similar nature with the preceding. Irritated at these repeated violations of decency, which bespoke a deficiency of good sense as well as good manners, Mr. Lambert fixed his eyes full upon the strange* : " You SPORTING ANECDOTES. 545 came into this room, Sir, by the door, but " — " You mean to say/' continued the other, looking at the window, " that I may possibly make my exit by some other way."—" Begone this moment," thundered Lambert, " or by G— d I'll throw you into Picca- dilly."— No second injunction was necessary to rid him of this obnoxious guest. After a residence of about five months in the metro- polis, where we believe his success was fully adequate to his most sanguine expectations, Mr. Lambert re- turned in September, 1806, to his native town. We shall now proceed to state what we have been able to collect relative to the habits, manners, and propensities, of this extraordinary man. It is not improbable that incessant exercise in the open air, in the early part of his life, laid the founda- tion of an uncommonly healthy constitution. Mr. Lambert scarcely knows what it is to be ailing or in- disposed. His temperance, no doubt, contributes to- wards this uninterrupted flow of health. His food dif* fers in no respect from that of any other people : he eats with moderation, and of one dish only at a time. He never drinks any other beverage than water, and though at one period of his life he seldom spent an evening at home, but with convivial parties, he never could be prevailed upon to join his companions in their libations to the jolly god. One of the qualifications that strongly tend to promote harmony and conviviality is possessed in an eminent degree by Mr. Lambert. He has a tine, powerful, melodious voice. It is a Strong tenor, unlike that of a fat man, light and un- embarrassed, and the articulation perfectly clear. Mr, Lambert's height is live feet eleven inches, and Si6 SPORTING ANECDOTES. in June 1 805, he had attained the enormous weight oT fifty stone, four pounds. He never felt any pain in his progress towards his present bulk, but increased gradually and imperceptibly. Before he grew bulky he never knew what it was to be out of wind. It is evident to all those who are now acquainted with him, that he has no oppression on the lungs from fat, or any other cause; and Dr. Heaviside has expressed his opi- nion that his life is as good as that of any other healthy man. He conceives himself that lie could walk a quar- ter of a mile, is able to go up stairs with great ease, and without inconvenience, and notwithstanding his excessive corpulence, can not only sloop without trouble to write, but even keeps up an extensive cor- respondence, insomuch that his writing-table resembles the desk of a merchant's counting-bouse. Mr. Lambert sleeps less than the generality of man- kind, being never more than eight hours in bed. lie is never inclined to drowsiness either after dinner, or in any other part of the day; and such is the vivacity of his disposition, that he is always the last person to retire to rest, which he never does before one o'clock. He sleeps without having his head raised more than is usual with other men, and always with the window open. His respiration is so perfectly free and unob- structed, that he never snores, and what is not a little extraordinary, he can awake within five minutes of any time he pleases. All the secretions are carried on in him with the same facility as in any other person. We have already adverted to Mr. Lambert's fond- ness for hunting, coursing, racing, fishing, and cockl- ing. He was likewise well-known in his neighbourhood as a great otter-hunter,. Till within these fiveytar$, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 547 he was extremely active in all the sporis of the field, and though he is now prevented by his corpulence from partaking in them, he still breeds cocks, setters, and pointers, which he has brought to as great, or perhaps greater perfection than any other sporting character of the present day. At the time when terriers were th* vogue, he possessed no less than thirty of them at once. The high estimation in which the animals of his breed- ing are held by sporting amateurs, was fully evinced in the sale of the dogs which he brought with him to London, and which were disposed of at Tattersal's at the following prices: Peg, a black setter bitch, forty- one guineas ; Punch, a setter dog, twenty-six guineas; Brush, ditto, seventeen guineas ; Bob, ditto, twenty guineas; Bounce, ditto, twenty-two guineas; Sam,, ditto, twenty-six guineas; B*ll, ditto, thirty-two gui- neas ; Charlotte, a pointer bitch, twenty -two guineas; Lucy, ditto, twelve guineas. Total, 218 guineas. Mr. Mellish was the purchaser of the seven setters, and. Lord Kinnaird of the two pointers. If Mr. Lambert has a greater attachment to one kind of sport than another, it is to racing, for which he al- ways manifested a peculiar preference. He was fond of riding himself, before his weight prevented him from enjoying that exercise; and it is his opinion, founded on experience, that the more blood and the better a horse was bred, the better he carried him. During his residence in London, Mr. Lambert found himself in no wise affected by the change of air, unless he ought to attribute to that cause an occasional, mo- mentary, trifling depression of spirits in a morning, *uch as he has felt on his recovery from inflammatory 548 SPORTING ANECDOTES. attacks, which are the only kind of indisposition he ever remembers to have experienced. The extraordinary share of health he has enjoyed has not been the result of any unusual precaution on his part, as he has in many instances accustomed him- self to the total neglect of those means by which men in general endeavour to preserve that inestimable blessing. As a proof of this, the following fact, is re- lated from his own lips. Before his encreasing size prevented his partaking in the sports of the field, he never could be prevailed upon when he returned home at night from these excursions, to change any part of his clothes, however wet they might be, and he put them on again the next morning, though they were perhaps so thoroughly soaked, as to leave behind them their mark on the floor. Notwithstanding this, he ne- ver knew what it was to take cold. On one of these occasions he was engaged with a party of young men in a boat, in drawing a pond. Knowing that a prin- cipal part of this diversion always consists in sousing each other as much as possible Lambert, before he entered the boat, walked, in his clothes, up to his chin into the water. He remained the whole of the day in this condition, which to any other man must have proved intolerably irksome. At night, on retiring to bed, he stripped off shirt and all, and the next morn- ing, putting on his clothes again, wet as they were, he resumed the diversion with the rest of his companions. Nor was this all; for lying down in the bottom of the boat, tie took a comfortable nap for a couple of hours, and though the weather was rather severe, he experi- enced no kind of inconvenience from what might justly be considered as extreme indiscretion. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 549 HORSE CHASE UPON THE FROZEN SEA. That very judicious and entertaining traveller, Mr. Joseph Acerbi, speaking of his passage over the Gulf of Bosnia, is highly curious and interesting. " When a traveller is going to cross over the gulf on the ice to I inlands the peasants always oblige him to engage double the number of horses to what he had upon his arrival at Grioleham. We were forced to take no less than eight sledges, though being only three in company, and two servants. The distance across is forty- three English miles, thirty of which you travel on the ice, without touching on land. This passage over the frozen sea, is doubtless, the most sin- gular and striking spectacle that a traveller from the south can behold. I expected to travel forty-three miles without sight of land, over a vast and uniform plain, and that every successive mile would be in ex- act unison, and monotonous correspondence with those I had already travelled ; but my astonishment was greatly increased in proportion as we advanced from our starting-post. The sea, at first smooth and even, became more rugged and unequal. It assumed, as we proceeded, an undulating appearance resembling the waves by which it had been agitated. At length we met with masses of ice heaped one upon the other, and some of them seemed as if suspended iti the air, while others were raised in the form of pyramids. On the whole, they exhibited a picture of the wildest and most savage confusion, that surprised the eye by the novelty of ns appearance. It was an immense chaos of icy ruins, presented to view under every possible iorm > 5 SL50 SPORTING ANECDOTES^ and embellished by superb stalactites, of a blue gree« colour. Amidst this chaos, it was not without much fatigue and trouble that our horses were able to find, and pursue their way; it was necessary to make frequent windings, and sometimes to return in a contrary direc- tion, following that of a frozen wave, in order to avoid a collection of icy mountains. In spite of all our ex- pedients for discovering the evenest paths, our sledges were every moment overturned to the right or the left, and frequently the legs of one or the other of the com- pany raised perpendicularly in the air, served as a sig- nal for the whole of the caravan to halt. The incon- venience and the danger of our journey were still far- ther increased by the following circumstances. Our horses were made wild and furious both by the sight and smell of our great pelisses, manufactured of the skins of Russian wolves or bears. When any of the sledges were overturned, the horses that belonged to it, or to that next to it, frightened at the sight of what they supposed to be a wolf or bear, rolling on the ice, would set off at full gallop, to the great terror of both passenger and driver. The peasant, apprehensive of losing his horse in the midst of this desert, kept firm hold of his bridle, and suffered the horse to drag his body through masses of ice, of which the sharp points threatened to cut him in pieces. The animal at last, wearied out by the constancy of the man, and dis- heartened by the obstacles continually opposed to his flight, would stop; then we were enabled again to get into our sledges, but not till the driver had blinded the animal's eyes : but one time, one of the wildest and most spirited horses in cur train, having take« SPORTING ANECDOTES. 551 flight, and completely made his escape, the peasant who conducted him, unable any longer to endure the fatigue and pain of being dragged through the ice, let go his hold of the bridle. The horse, relieved from his weight, and feeling himself at perfect liberty, redoubled his speed, and surmounted every impediment; the sledge, which he made to dance in the air, by alarm- ing his fears, added wings to his flight. When he had fled a considerable distance from us, he appeared, from time to time, as a dark spot, which continued to diminish in the air, and at last totally vanished from our sight. And now the peasant, who was the owner of the fugitive, taking one of the sledges, went in search of him, trying to find him again by following the traces of his flight. As for ourselves, we made the best of our way to one of the isles of Aland, keep- ing as nearly as we could, in the middle of the same plain, still being repeatedly overturned, and always in danger of losing one or other of our horses, which would have occasioned a very serious embarrassment. During the whole of th;s journey on the ice, we did not meet with so much as a man, a beast, a bird, or any living creature. These vast solitudes present a desert abandoned, as it were, by nature. The dead silence that reigns is interrupted only by the whistling of the winds against the prominent points of ice, and sometimes by the loud crackings occasioned by their being irresistibly torn from this frozen expanse : pieces thus forcibly broken off, are frequently blown to a con- siderable distance. Through the rents produced by these ruptures, you may see the watery abyss below; and it is sometimes necessary to lay planks across these rents, as bridges, for the sledges to pass over. 552 SPORTING ANECDOTES. After considerable fatigue, and having refreshed our horses, about half way on the high sea, we at length touched at the small island of Signilskar, about thirty- five English miles distant from where we started; but from the turnings we were obliged to make, not less than ten miles might be added. All this while, how- ever, we were kept in anxious suspence about the fu- gitive norse, supposing him lost in the abyss ; we had even prepared to continue our journey, and had put on new horses to the sledges, when with inexpressible pleasure we espied the two sledges that went in pur- suit, returning with the fugitive. The animal was in the most deplorable condition imaginable; his body was covered all over with sweat and foam, and was still enveloped in a cloud of smoke. Still we did not dare to come near him ; the excessive fatigue of his violent course had not abated his ferocity; he was as- much alarmed at the sight of our pelisses as before; he snorted, bounded, and beat the snow and ice with his' feet; nor could the utmost exertions of the peasants to hold him fast have prevented him from once more making his escape, if we had not retired to some dis- tance, and removed, the sight and sense of our pelisses. From Signilskar, we pursued our journey through the whole of the isles of Aland, where you meet with post- houses, that is to say, places where you may get horses. You travel partly by land, and partly over the ice of the sea. The distance between some of these islands is not less than eight or ten miles. On the sea, the natives have had the precaution of fixing branches of trees, or putting small pines along the whole route for the guidance of travellers in the night time, or direct- SrOIlTING ANECDOTES. 553 tng them how to find out the right way after the falls of snow." JOHN TALL, THE HUNTSMAN. John Tall, aged S7 years, huntsman to the late Sir Frederic Rogers, Bart, of Blatchford, Devon* was born in the parish of Cornwood, near Blatchford, in the year 1719, and very early in life evinced a great predilection in favour of hunting ; so much so, that he would constantly give his parents the slip, in order to attend about the neighbouring kennels and stables, so as to get all the information he could on his favo- rite subjects of horses, hounds, and hunting ; or, when- ever he had an opportunity, he would go out with the hounds, and follow them, on foot, throughout many a long and hard day's sport. This strong and early propensity not only recommended him to the hunts- man, but also attracted the notice of his master, W. Savery, Esq. of Slade, near Blatchford, and he took him into his service, where the'fol lowing extraordinary circumstance occurred, in the course of a few years, to elevate him to the appointment of huntsman; a situation, which of any other in the world, he con- sidered as the summit of all earthly happiness. The accident which gave rise to his promotion, was this : — In the dead hour of the sight, the hounds were* extremely noisy, and Mr. Savery being at that time* much indisposed, the huntsman, anxious that his mis- ter should not be disturbed, rose from his bed, and in- cautiously went into the kennel for the purpose c£ quitting them, without taking his whip or any other •means of defence; aud either from the hounds not 2ji 554 SPORTING ANECDOTES. knowing him, or finding him to be unarmed, and con- sequently that it was in their power to be revenged for the many stripes and blows he had before given them, for he was a rigid canine disciplinarian, they all com- menced a most ferocious attack upon him — got him down— tore him to pieces, and literally devoured a con- siderable pait of him, before any discovery was made of his melancholy situation. This took place about the year 1 740, in the kennel belonging to Slade, then in the possession of Mr. Savery, but now the property of John Spurrel Pode, Esq. who has rebuilt the house in a modern style, preserving only ihe centre part of the old edifice, which consists of a spacious lofty apart- ment, a large gallery in it, with a gothic arched roof of old English oak, very curiously carved; and no doubt can be entertained, from the construction of it altogether, but that it was originally a place of divine worship; most probably a chapel appertaining to the mansion. It is now converted into an entrance-hall, and a very handsome one it makers; from which, as well as its singularity and antiquity, the seat is in ge- neral called Slade Hall, Mr. Pode, the present owner of it, kee; s an excellent pack of harriers : indeed few gentlemen's seats in the neighbourhood are so well situated for the enjoyment of all the sports of the field. But, to return to the subject of thes-e memoirs— He remained about twenty-five years in the service of Mr. Savery, when the death of that gentleman occasioned h»m to be thrown out of employment, but the very ex- cellent character he had acquired, both as a huntsman and a faithful servant, easily recommended him to the notice of ihe late Sir Frederic Rogers, Ban. who ap- pointed him his huntsman, in which situation he re- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 553 mained nearly forty years, when the death of his se- cond master again deprived him of his place; for the present Sir John Rogers was then in his minority, and not having finished his studies at the university, the hounds at Blatchford were Consequently discontinued, and the venerable old huntsman, with his careful and well-earned savings, amounting to a small competency, retired with a cheerful uncorrupted heart, and an un- broken constitution to enjoy the fruits of his faithful services in a small farm and a mill, which himself and his eldest son still carry on at a short distance fiom the seats of his late masters; where he exhibits the happy effects of a life spent in healthful exercise, cheer- ful service, and uniform temperance; for although now in his eighty-eighth year, yet he stands very up- right, and is nearly six feet high, being scaicely bent down in the smallest degree by the heavy hand of time: his sight, his voice, and in short all his mental and corporeal faculties are but very little impaired, his complexion is florid as that oi a healthy man only forty or fifty years of age. lie is rnpabie of walking twenty or thirty miles a day with the greatest ease, as it is by no means uncommon for him to go on foot to Plymouth, twelve miles from his residence, dine with a son he has living there, and walk back again in the evening. His passion for hunting still holds nearly the same* power over him as it ever did, for if by chance the hounds come within his hearing, he cannot resist the temptation. The farm and the mill are left to the care of his son, and you will see him following the hounds on fool, with the activity of a man only forty or fifty years old. The writer of these utmurs was present, 2 b-2 556 SPORTIX© ANECDOTES. lately, and saw liim run the \vhole morning after the hounds when a leash of three hares were killed, and apparently he felt no fatigue, but enjoyed the sport with as much glee as any young man then present in the field. Here let those who lead a life of riot and dissipation, who pervert the order of nature by consuming the night in debauchery, and wasting the greater part of the day in the relaxing indolence of a bed ; here let them take a lesson from a healthy old sportsman of eighty -eight, and from the happy and salutary effects of a life spent in temperance, early hours, and in the invigorating sports of the field. Then, instead of suffering undef ail the baneful effects of gout and rheumatism, shat- tered nerves, and universal debility, they may ex- claim, with the subject of these memoirs, and in the language of our immortal bard : " Though [ look old, yet I am strong and lusty, For in my youth I never did apply Hot and rebellious liquors to my blood j . Nor did I with unbashful forehead woo The means of weakness and debility. Therefore my age is as a lusty winter* Frosty, but kindly." DEEP PLAY. The late General Ogle was a noble minded man, a pleasant companion, a sincere friend, and a most indulgent parent. His only failing— which in these fashionable dissipated times the fashionable will nctf call a fault — was bis unconquerable attachment to ,play. SPORTING ANECDOTES. 557 A few weeks before he was to sail for India, he con- stantly attended Pain';, in Charles Street, St. James's Square, where he alternately won and lost large sums. One evening there were before him two wooden bowls full of gold, which held fifteen hundred guineas each : and also four thousand guineas in rouleaus, which he had won. — when the box came to him, he shook the dice, and with great coolness and pleasantry said— " Come, I'll either win or lose seven thousand upon this hand : will any gentleman set me the whole r Se- ven thousand is the main." Then rattling the dice once more, cast the box from him, and quitted it, the dice remaining covered. Though the general did not consider this too large a sum fur one man to risk at a single throw, the rest of the gentlemen did, and for some time he remained unset, lie then said — " Well, gentlemen, will you make it up amongst your" One set him 500/. another 300/. — " Come/' says he, " whilst you are making up this money — 7000/. — I'll tell you a story." Here he began to relate a story that was pertinent to the moment; but perceiving that he was completely set, stopped short — laid his hand upon the box, saying, " I believe I am set, gentle- men ?"•*-" Yes Sir: seven is the main." He threw out! then with astonishing coolness, took up his snuff box, and smiling, exclaimed, " Now gentlemen, I'll finish my story, if you please L" OWEN CARROt, THE CELEI5RATED IRISH HUNTSMAN. Tins man died, some time since, at DufTry Hall, the seat oi Caesar Colciough, Esq. at the advanced 2 b 3 6m spotting anecdotes. age of 06; ne.ar 60 years of which he passed in th« Colcluugh family. Being originally a fanner, he had such an inclination for hunting, that he always kept a horse of his own, and hunted will) the hounds of Co- lonel Colelough for many years ; but when the late Adam Colelough set up a pack of his own, he came and hunted hiss hounds at first for his amusement; but as he lived at too great a distance, to be always regu- lar, Mr, C. gave him a farm near him ; and he acted in the triple capacity of huntsman, steward, and mas- ter of the family. During the rebellion, in 1798, he and his family acted with uncommon fidelity to their employers; as one of his sons, when Mr. C. was obliged to fly, came down and remained to protect the house and property ; and he never quitted his post. Another of his sons brought off horses and clothes to his master, at the risque of his life, when he was in- formed where to find him ; and during that period the old man buried a large quantity of the family plate, which he aiterwards conveyed to a place of salety. Unt:l the last year of his life, he regularly went out with the hounds, and fas voice retained its clearness and sweetness ; he was well known to all sportsmen in that part ot Ireland. Mr. Kelly, thelate judge, about 1 s n age, some time since, spent a day at DufTry }] II, ' . see a hui t with him. At one period, his ana'his he se aj amounted to lOo* years, and yet nei- ther cojjld be beat- As the custom in Ireland is to attend funerals, lor 70 years he never missed one with* in many miles. SPORTING ANECDOTES* 55$ THE KNOWING ONES TAKEN IN. At the Rural Revels, in 180t, on the Dicker, in Sussex, called the Bat and Ball Fair,, the knowing ones in horse-racing were completely taken in by a younker, who came there just as the horses were en- tering for a large silver cup, mounted on a shabby looking mare, with her legs bound- up, and having the appearance of a complete cripple; the youth, whose exterior was as mean as that of his mare, said, alter surveying three horses which had already been enter- ed, and which were walking aUmtin- sU-the j*f&c ef ornament, u Dang it Fve a great mind to enter my Old Mare;" the bye-standers smiled contemptuously at the young man, and sneeringly advised him to do so,. Tiie deposit having been made, and the mare en- tered, the youth declared he had a twenty pound note in his pocket, which he would bet, his mare won the cup; the bet was presently taken, and others to nearly double the amount laid.. On preparing for the ra:e, the knowing ones were not a little surprised at .finding the young man's old mare converted, by rub- bing off a coat of dust and sweat, and by taking the bandages from her legs, into a fine blood filly, and the shabby looking youth, by throwing off a ragged coat and waistcoat, was as instautly transformed to a smart looking jockey, in a satin jacket and cap. The race coniui^nced, and the old mare, with apparent dif- ficulty, won the first heat : at the second she easily distanced all compeliiors ; and the youth hav- ing received the cup and his bets, resumed his shabby coat, remounted his bit of bluud, and rode off, 2 B. k. 5(50 SPORTING ANECDOTES. saying, " I hope, gentlemen, you'll remember the Old Mare!" MIRACULOUS ESCAPE. A few months since, as Captain Jones, of the Royal Flintshire Militia, quartered at Hythe, who had that morning accompanied the regiment to field-exercise, on the heights near Folkstone, was standing with se- veral officers, near the edge of the cliff, the earth sud- denly gave way, under him ; in consequence of which, he was instantly precipitated to the distance of 28 yards, in an oblique direction from the top ; but was most providentially stopped in bis fall by a small abut- ment on the surface of the rock, against which) his foot accidentally struck. In this dreadful situation he lay suspended, near a quarter of an hour, without daring to move, before any effectual assistance could be ren- dered him. Scarcely, however, had this distressing circumstance occurred, when Thomas Roberts, a pri- vate in the regiment, alarmed at the truly perilous si* tuation of his officer, endeavoured, at the obvious risk of his own life, to extricate him; but unfortunately, in the attempt, liberally fell from the top to the bot- tom of this tremendous precipice, being a distance of 54p feet, of which 26 1 feet were quite perpendicular. Providentially, the latter in his fall did not touch the captain, who, anxious to save him, had already ex- tended his hand to him for that purpose. During this interval, a rope was expeditiously procured from the signal-house, and a noose being made at one end, it was lowered to the spot where Captain Jones lay ; when he, with much difficult)', succeeded in fastening SPORTING ANECDOTES. 561 it round his body; and was thus gradually drawn up by the spectators, who still for some time doubteu the possibility of rescuing him ; however, at length, he happily escaped without having sustained any material injury. The soldier, though terribly cut and bruised in the head and various parts of his body, was taken up alive, and without a single bone being fractured, on the beach near a large stone-quarry, and immediately con- veyed to the regimental hospital, at Hythe ; where, to the utter astonishment of every one, he is now able to walk about, and is declared by the surgeon of the regi- ment to be out of all immediate danger. The height of the cliff having since been accurately- taken, by an officer of the regiment, is found, by actual admeasurement, to be as follows, viz. Yds. Ft. Oblique distance of Captain' Jones's fall 28 or S4 Perpendicular height from the above point downwards - 87 — 26' 1 Remainder, again oblique, to the base . 68 -—204- 183 or 549 FEMALE INTREPIDITY. The singular contest which tork place between the Pady of Colonel Thornton, and Mr. Flint, in i80-lj must not only stand recorded on the annals of the turf, as one of thp most remarkable occurrences which «ver happened in the sporting world ; bi*t likewise a* 2 b5 56% SPORTING ANECDOTES. lasting monument of female intrepidity. The follow- ing are the circumstances which gave rise to this ex- traordinary race. An intimacy once existed between the families of Colonel Thornton and Mr. Flint, the two ladies being sisters, when the latter gentleman frequently partook of the exhilarating bottle at the hospitable board of Thorn ville Royal. In the course of one of their equestrian excursions in Thornville Park, the lady of Colonel Thornton and Mr. Flint were conversing on the qualities of their re- spective horses; and (as it generally happens where a spirit of rivalry exists) the difference of opinion was- great, and the horses were occasionally put at full speed for the purpose of ascertaining the point in ques- tion ; Old Vingarillo, aided by the s-kiifulness of his- iair rider distanced his antagonist every time, which so discomfited Mr. Flint, that he was at length indu- ced to challenge the lady to ride on a future day. This challenge was readily accepted (on the part of the lady) by Colonel Thornton ; and it was agreed that the race should take place on the last day of the York August meeting, 1S04-. This curious match was an- nounced in the following manner: — A match for 500gs, and a lOOOgs. bye— four miles — between Colonel Thornton's Vingarillo, and Mr. Flint's br. h. Thornville, by Volunteer. — Mrs. Thorn- ton to ride her weight against Mr. Flint's. This match having excited much curiosity, and many observations in the newspapers, we shall here give the extract of a letter to one of the editors, dated York, Wednesday evening, August 22, three days previous- to the race—- SPORTING ANECDOTES. 5()3 " This day after the races Mrs. Thornton, mounted upon Vingarillo, took an exercising gallop of four miles. She was dressed in mazarine blue* and wore a neat black jockey cap, looked very well, and was in high spirits. She went off in a canter, sat her horse amazingly tight and sung; at times put him to the top of his speed, winded him, and shewed that she had all his powers perfectly at her command. All the knowing ones were astonished at the style of hnrsfship in which she performed her gallop, and declared it equal, if not superior, to any Chiffney or Ruckle, of Newmarket celebrity. Unfortunately, when within about three distances of being home, the saddle girths gave way, and she came with considerable violence to the ground. You cannot conceive the interest we take in our fair equestrian, or the anxiety which her fall produced among those who witnessed it. I am happy, however, to assure you, that she did not sustain the slightest injury. Being a smart, active, elastic figure, she recovered her feet in a moment, did not appear in the least alarmed, made light of the tumble, and walked from the course in the same good spirts with which she came upon it: She will exercise again to- morrow, when, no doubt, every possible care will be taken to prevent the recurrence of a similar accident. Indeed [ hope we shall have no reason to regret this circumstance, as it may prove the me ins of prevent- ing the like on the day of tiial, when such a mishap would be more serious. u And, now Sir, to come to that which appears the grand source of curiosity and interest among many of your silly contemporaries—* The sporting Mrs. Thorn* 2b6 564 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ton is to ride the four miles, in buck skin breeches — she is to ride in doe — she is to ride like a man." Jn contradiction to these assertions, made by idle scribblers, who ridicule that spirit in a woman which they do not themselves possess ; the lady did not wear buckskin breeches, or doe skins, nor did she ride astride. These witlings certainly manifested a great depravity of lash, when that heroism which was admired in our female ancestors, and formed a distinguishing quality of our great and glorious Elizabeth, is treated and received with levity. But to proceed with the ex- tract: — The betting is now six to four upon Mrs. Thornton ; and, I think, will be probably more in her favour be- fore Saturday. " This city, and every gentleman's house in its vici- nity, are now as full as they can hold. Should more company come, I know not where they can be accom- modated,. Every part of the kingdom appears to have, furnished its quota. I own I am not surprized at this result. It required all the dashing talents of Colonel Thornton, which are ever contriving something new with which to astonish the sporting world, to make so extraordinary a match; and in no place could the scene be laid with such eclat and effect as in York- shire." On Saturday, August 25, this race took place, the following description of which, appeared, in the York Herald : — " Never did, we witness such an assemblage of peo- ple as were drawn together on the above occasion— 100,000 at least. Nearly ten times the number ap- peared on iMiavesiijtie than did on the day when Baj SPORTING ANECDOTES. 565 Malton ran, or when Eclipse went over the course,, leaving the two best horses of the day a mile and a half behind. Indeed expectation was raised to the highest pitch, from the novelty of the match. Thousands from every part of the surrounding country thronged to the ground. In order to keep the course as clear as possible, several additional people were employed • and, much to the credit of the 6th Light Dragoons, a party of them also were on the ground on horseback,, for the like purpose, and which unquestionably was the cause of many lives being saved. u About four o'clock, Mrs. Thornton appeared on the ground, full of spirit, her horse led by Colonel Thornton, and followed by Mr. Baker and Mr. H. Roy n ton: afterwards appeared Mr. Flint. They started a little past four o'clock. The lady took the lead for upwards of three miles, in a most capital style, Pier horse, however, had much the shorter stroke of the two. When within a mile of being home, Mr. Flint pushed forward, and got the lead, which he kept. Mrs. Thornton used every exertion;, but finding it impose sible to win the race, she drew up, in a sport smanslike style, when within about two distances. " At the commencement of the running, bets were 5 and 6 to 4- on the lady: in running the three first miles, 7 to 4 and 2 to 1 in her favour.. Indeed the oldest sportsmen on the stand thought she must have won. In running the last mile, the odds were in fa- vour of Mr. Flint. " Never surely did a woman ride in a better style. It was difficult to say whether her horsemanship, her dress, or her beauty, were most admired: — the tout inscmble was unique. 566 SPORTING ANECDOTES. " Mrs. Thornton's dress was a leopard-coloured body, with bine sleeves, tlic rest buff, and blue cap. Mr. Flint rode in white. The race was run in nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds. " Thus et'ded the most interesting races ever rare upon Knavesmire. No words can express the disap- pointment felt at the defeat of Mrs. Thornton. The spirit she displayed, and the good humour with which she has borne her loss, have greatly diminished the joy of many of the winners. From the very superior style in v\hich she performed her exercising gallop of * four miles, on Wednesday, betting was greatly in her "favour; for the accident which happened, in conse- quence of her saddle-girths having slackened, and the saddle turning round, was not attended with the slightest injury to her person', nor did it in the least damp her courage; while her horsemanship, and close seated riding, astonished the beholders, and inspired a general confidence in her success. " Not less than 200,0001. were pending upon Mrs. Thornton's match; perhaps more, if we include the bets in every part of the country, and there is no part, we believe, in which there were not seme. " It will be seen, by the time of performance, that Haphazard was the best horse at the meeting. Seldom have we witnessed a meeting at York, where the races have been so well contested. Almost the whole have been run, and the horses rode, in a style of great su- periority.. To add to the pleasure attending the meet- ing, the weather has beeu most favourable, and the company numerous and fashionable." It is but justice toouserve, that if the lady bad been better mounted, she could not possibly have failed of SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 567 success. Indeed she laboured under every possible disadvantage; notwithstanding which, and the uhgal- lant conduct of Mr. Flint, she flew along the comse with an astonishing swiftness, conscious of her own superior skill, and would, ultimately, have outstripped her adversary, but for the accident which took place. Still confident of success in the event of another trial, the following humorous article was inserted by the lady in the Y'ork Herald. " Having read in your paper, that Mr. Flint paid me every attention that could be shown on the occa- sion of the race, I request you will submit the follow* ing Elements of Politeness to the gentlemen of the turf, for them to sanction or reject, upon any future match of this kind taking place. Element 1. — Mr. Baker, who kindly offered to ride round with me, on account of the dangerous accident I met with on the Wednesday before, from my saddle turning round, was positively and peremptoi i'y refused this permission. Element 2. — At the starting post, the most distant species of common courtesy was studiously avoided ; and I received a sort of word of command from Mr. Flint, as thus — ** Keep that side, Ma'am!" For a morning's ride, this might be complimentary ; but it was here depriving me of the whip-hand. I did not expect Mr. Flint to shake hands with me, that I understand being the common prelude to box- ing. Element 3. — When my horse broke down in the lerrible way he did, all the course must have witnessed 3 568 SPORTING ANECDOTES. (he very handsome manner in which Mr. Flint brougnt me in, i. e. left me out, by distancing me as much as he possibly could. If these should be received as precedents, the art of riding against ladies will be made most completely easy. Challenge. — After all this, I challenge Mr. Flint to ride the same match, in all its terms, over the same course next year — his horse, Brown Thornville, against any one he may choose to select out of three horses I shall hunt this season." The following reply (written by some poetic wag for the gentleman) appeared in the public prints, with the introduction of which we shall conclude this interest- ing article. 'to " Flint, Respondent— Thornton, Appellant, My Pegasus dull, has the honour and pride To acknowledge your elements bright: And first, though yoir hint that I took the wrong side t The end of the race prov'd it right. In courtesy, next, 3 7 ou are pleas'd to suggest, That I was deficient on starting ; But to give you the lead was clearly a teat, How civil I was at the parting. I denied you a. friend to ride by, I confess, And for why N > — not for the sake of the pilff But I wish'd to enjoy, in a case of such bliss, All that pleasure and honour myself. Four-fifths of the race, you must candidly own, You had the " whip hand," while behind 5 humbly pursued, till your nag " was broke down."-— Then bejoreyou to go sure was kind! SPORT TNG ANECDOTES. 569 But believe to the Fair I am warmly inclin'd— To be always polite I am ready ; Tlio' my Horse was so rude as to leave you behind, I will ne'er run away from a Lady. To your challenge anew, I beg to reply— When your Ladyship's made evVy hot, I'll be proud to attend, the contest to try, For the honour again of your wit." THE MUTTON-LOVING POINTER. " I have a fine pointer (said a gentleman to his friend) staunch as can be at birds, but I cannot break him from sheep." His reply was, that the best way would be to couple him to the horns of an old ram, and leave them in a stable all night, and the discipline be would receive would prevent his loving field-mut- ton again, The same person meeting the owner of the dog sometime afterwards, accosted him thus, " Well, sir, your pointer is now the best in England, no doubt, from my prescription." — " Much the same, sir, for he killed my ram, and eat a shoulder I" ARGUMENTS A POSTERIORI. Two Leicester sportsmen were beating the meadows about Aylstone, and one of them taking aim at a snipe, brought it down on the other side of the canal, which had been cut near that place, and contains wa- ter breast high. Unable to cross the water, and thus gain their prize, they engaged a working-man, for six- pence, to strip and carry them over. The fellow per- formed his engagement with one of them> and the$, 510 STORTING ANECDOTES. after carrying the other as far as the middle of the water, he declared he would set him down in that place unless he would give him a shilling. This being positively refused, the man kept his word, and throw- ing his rider oft' his shoulders into the water, ran away, Our sportsman, however, being a good shot, took his revenge, for, as the fellow was mounting the bank, he discharged his fowling*piece, and lodged the whole contents in his posteriors. The man was severely* though not daugerousiy, wounded. The sportsman, who was one of the faculty, generously lent his assist* ance, and having administered a dose bo well calcu- lated to euii the fellow*! pranks m future, he felt per* fectly contented at his own ducking. A PARABLE, ADDRESSED TO REP0RT>CATCHERJ3. Upon the credit of a clerical sportsman, the fol- lowing recipe was lately given for catching wild geese ; —Tie a cord to the tail of an eel, and throw into the fens where the fowls haunt. One of the geese swallow- ing this shppery bait, it runs through him, and is swallowed by a second and a third, and so on, till the string is quite full. A person once caught so many g< ese in this manner, that they absolutely flew away with him J TROTTING MATCH. In a provincial town, a gentleman was exhibiting* at the door of an inn a capital trotting mare, which she had been engaged in ; when a butcher of the town stepping up, offered to trot his bia/'k poney against her SPORTING ANECDOTE!*. 571 for twenty guineas. A smile of contempt was the only notice he at first received. However the knight of the cleaver persisting in his original otier, the bel was accepted, and the next morning appointed for the match ; lour miles from the spot where they then were. The black poney was one of those shuffling bits of blood, which are very commonly the property of butchers. Its owner appeared at the starting post, mounted on its rump, with his tray before him, and, by way of swith, as he called it, brandished a small marrow- bone. He was allowed the start, when immediately afterwards, as h:s competitor was rapidly passing him, he rattled a flourish upon his tray, which, of course, had the instantaneous effect of frightening the high mettled mare into a gallop. This repeatedly was the case, and as often, according to the etiquette of trot- ting matches, was the too hasty beast obliged to stop and turn round ; and thus, ultimately, the black poney was made to win hollow. EPITAPH ON AN OLD SPORTSMAN, Rlader, here lies a genuine son of earth, Like a true fox hound sportsman fro a his birth ; O'er hills and dales, o'er mountains, woods and rocks* Willi dauntless courage he pursued the f'>x. No danger stopp'd him, and uo fear dismay'd, He sceri'd at fear, and dai gei eras his trade. But there's a b-.un'* ne vjortal c n o'er-leap, Wide as eternity, as high >.s dee. , Hither by death s unerring ^ps pursu'd, By that sagacions scent which none elude : By d strong pack of fleeting years run down ; He leaves his wiiip — where monarch's leave their croweu 572 SPORTING ANECDOTES; No shift} no double, could this hero save, Eatth is his kennel, his abode the grave. Still let us listen to his parting voice, That sound, which once made all the world rejoice,* Still Exton's plains and Walcot's woods resound, With the shrill cry, that cheer'd the opening hound, Vavk forward j mortals t forward ! hark away ! To the dread summons of that awful day, When the great judge of quick and dead shall come a And wake the mould'iing corpse to meet his doom j For this important hour may each prepare, JViidst all enjoyments, this your constant care; Above this world let ycur affections live, Nor seek on earth what earth can never give j With stedfust f'uith, and ardent zeal arise, Leap o'er time's narrow bounds, and reach the skies. PJIILLTS IN LOVE. A grORTING TALE. Talking with a learned physician,f a great con- noisseur in pointing and setting dogs, upon the subject of puppies, he told the following singular tale of a bitch he had, of the setting kind. As he travelled from Midhurst into Hampshire, going through a country village, the mastiffs and cur dogs ran out barking, as is usual when gentlemen ride by such places; among them he observed a little ugly pedlar's cur particularly eager, and fond of ingratiating himself with the bitch. The doctor stopped to water * We presume the poet has here availed himself of poetical licence; unless he means (abstractedly speaking) the Sporting World. Ed. f The late Dr. Smith is supposed to be the person here aV ludectto, SPORTIXG ANECDOTES. 575 upon the spot, and whilst his horse drank, could nofc help remarking how amorous the cur continued, and how fond and courteous the bitch seemed to her ad- mirer; but provoked in the end, to see a creature of Phillis's rank and breed so obsequious to such mean addresses, drew one of his pistols and shot the dog dead on the spot; then alighted, and taking the bitch into his arms, carried her before him several miles. The doctor relates farther, that madam, from thai: day, would eat little or nothing, having in • a manner lost her appetite; she had no inclination to go abroad with her master, or come when he called, but seemed to repine like a creature in love, and express sensible concern for the loss of her gallant* Partridge season came on, but she 1 had no nose ; the doctor did not take the bird before her. However, in process of lime Phillis waxed proud. The doctor was heartily glad of it, and physically apprehended it would be a means of weaning her from ail thoughts of her deceased admirer; accordingly he had her con- fined in due time, and warded by an admirable setter, of high blood, which the doctor galloped his grey stone-hojse forty miles an end, to fetch for- the pur- pose. And that no accident might happen from the carelessness of drunken, idle servants, the charge was committed to a trusty old woman housekeeper ; and, a,s absence from patients would permit, the doctor assiduously attended the affair himself. But, lo ! when the days of whelping .came, Phillis did not produce one puppy but what was in all respects the very pic- ture and colour of the poor dog he had shot, so many months before the bitch was in heat. This affair equally surprised and enraged the doctor. 2 574 SPORTING ANECDOTES, For some lime he difleied, almost to parting, with his old faithful housekeeper, being unjustly jealous of her care: such behaviour before she never knew from him; but, alas! what remedy ? He kept the bitch many years, yet, to his infinite concern, she never brought a litter, but exactly similar to the pedlar's cur. Me disposed of her to a friend of his in the neighbouring county, but to no purpose; the vixen still brought such puppies; whence the doctor tenaciously main- tained, that bitch and dog may fall passionately in love with each other. eeynard's sagacity. A fox having been hard run, took shelter under the covering of a well, and, by the endeavours used to extricate him from thence, was precipitated to the bottom, which was 100 feet. The bucket being let down, he instantly laid hold of it, and was drawn up a considerable way, when he again fell ; but the same method being resorted to a second time, he secured his situation, and was drawn up safe; after which he was burred off, and got clear away from the dogs. WORDS TAKEN LITERALLY. A capital farmer in Lincolnshire had a favourite greyhound, which was generally his kitchen compa- nion, but having a parlour party, he ordered his dog, by way of keeping that room clean, ,to be tied vp. About an hour after he enquired of the servant if he had done as he directed. " Yes, sir, I has."— " Very well^".-." I dare say he is deed before now."—-" Wfcy, SPORTING ANECDOTES. 575 damn you, you have not hanged him!" rejoined the master. " Yes, sir, you bid me tie him up!" M ALL HIS FAULTS. A celebrated veterinarian writer was once re- quested to give a professional opinion upon a new pur- chase, from one of the fashionable receptacles, for figure, bone, speed, and perfection; when, upon the purchaser's anxious enquiry whether it was not a fine horse, and exceeding cheap dlforty, the cautious exa- miner felt himself in the awkward predicament of ac- knowledging he certainly was, had he possessed the advantage of seeing his way in or out of the stable! " Seeing his way in or out ! why, what the devil do you mean?" — " Only that this paragon of perfection is totally blind! Was he warranted sound to you?" — " No, I bought him with— all his faults /" PARALLEL BETWEEN A NEVMARKET GROOM AND A MINISTER OF STATE. The groom, notwithstanding his views are very dif- ferent from those of the minister, must possess the same talents, and often exert them upon similar subjects; though horse-racing is an idle diversion, and the ad- ministration of a government a most important em- ployment. If the minister must have sagacity to pe- netrate into the characters and dispositions of men, so must the groom. If the minister must comprehend a very extensive and complicated scene of things, to judge with probability of future events respecting mat- 516 SPORTING ANECDOTES. ters of state ; tbe groom must observe and consider in* numerable circumstances, equally complicated and various, to judge as probably of events relating to matches. Tbe minister must scheme, and so must the groom j the minister must have recourse to artifice and cun- ning, so must the groom ; but this cunning must be subordinate to powers of a higher class ; for both the minister and groom, if their paramount principle be cunning, will impose only on themselves and fools. The thorough good groom, like the able minister, moves in a large circle; they both judge of the pro- bability of an event, not from considering that it has once happened, but from a knowledge of the causes which will probably produce it. The groom as well as the minister, must also judge for himself; and not rely implicitly on the judgment of another, whatever may be his character for sagacity and discernment; Ihey will, therefore, in every instance, avail themselves of their own abilities, which, by undeviating deference to the authority of others, would become useless. Both the statesman and the groom are convinced, that to produce the event which they desire, a great variety of circumstances must concur, many of which lie wholly out of their power; neither of them will be ignorant of the probability in his own favour; nay, upon some occasions, they know it is their interest, in a general view, even to make an attempt in a parti- cular instance, where there is but a possibility of sue* cess. The good jockey will generally profit more from be- lieving what deserves credit, than from suspecting what does not deserve it, and so will t e able states* SPORTING ANECDOTES. 577 man ; for both will be superior to that fatal error of a contracted mind, indiscriminate suspicion. As thf con- duct of the good groom, and the good statesman, will be thus regulated by reason, neither of them will be mor- tified at the blind censures of other men, or at a disap- pointment which can only happen by causes which they foresaw without power to prevent, or by some ac- cident which could not be foreseen; but this very dis- appointment, which short-sighted men will impute to* an error, by the enlarged mind of the statesman, will perhaps be improved into a means of future advan- tage. THE PRIEST AND OSTLER. O.vce at some holy time, perhaps 'twas Lent, An honest Ostler to confession went, And there of sins a long extended score, Of various shape and size he mumbled o'er; Till, having clear'd his conscience of the stuff, (For any mod'rate conscience quite enough) He ceas'd. — " What more?" the rev'rend Father cried— " No more ! M th' unburden'd penitent replied. ** But," said the artful priest, " yet unreveal'd There lurks one darling vice within you, though conceal 'd •-— Did you, in all your various modes of cheating, Ne'er grease the horses' teeth, to spoil their eating ?" " Never !" cried Crop — So then, to close each strain, He was absolv'd, and sent to sin again. Some months from hence, sad stings of conscience feeling.. Crop, at confession, soon again was kneeling-. When lo ! at ev'ry step his conscience easing, Out popp'd a groan, and horses' teeth, and greasing. ** Santa Maria !" cried th' astonish'd priest — " How much your sius have with your days Lncreas'd t 2 C 578 SPORTING ANECDOTES. " When last I saw you, you deny'd all this." " True," said the Ostler, " very true it is j And also true, that, till that blessed time, I never, Father, heard of such a crime !" HUG OF FRIENDSHIP; OR, THE CORDIALITY OF BEAR. Leopold, Duke of Lorraine, had a bear, called Marco, of the sagacity and sensibility of which we have the following example : — During the winter of 1709, a Savoyard boy, ready to perish with cold in a barn, in which he had been put by a good woman, with some more of his companions, thought proper to enter Marco's hut, without reflect- ing upon the danger which he ran in exposing himself to the mercy of the animal which occupied it. Marco, however, instead of doing any injury to the child, took him between his paws, and wanned him, by squeezing him to his breast, until the next morning, when he Suffered him to depart and ramble about the city. The Savoyard returned in the evening to the hut, and was received with the same affection. For the following days he had no other retreat ; but what added much to his joy, was to perceive that the bear had reserved part of his food for him. Several days passed in thi§> manner. One day, when one of them came to bring his mas*- ter his supper, rather later than ordinary, he was asto- ' nished to see the animal roll his eyes in a furious man- ner, and seeming as if he wished him to make as little noise as possible, for fear of awakening the child, whom he clasped to his breast. The animal, though rave- nous, did not appear in the least moved with the food SPORTING ANECDOTES, 579 which was set before him. The report of this extraor- dinary circumstance was soon spread at court, and reached the ears of Leopold, who, with part of his courtiers, was desirous of being satisfied of the truth of Marco's generosity. Several of them passed a night near his hut, and beheld, with astonishment, that the bear never stirred as long as his guest shewed any in- clination to sleep. At break of day the child awoke, was very much ashamed to find himself discovered, and fearing that he would be punished for his rashness, begged for par- don. The bear, however, caressed him, and endea- voured to prevail on him to eat what had been brought him the evening before ; which he did, at the request of the spectators, who conducted him to the prince. Having learned the whole story of this singular alli- ance, and the time of its continuance, the prince or- dered care to be taken of the little Savoyard, who, without doubt, would have soon made his fortune, had he not died a short time after. FINIS. JAMES CUNDEE, PRINTER* London, SPORTING WORKS JUST PUBLISHED'* THE SPORTING DICTIONARY, And Rural Repository of General Information, upon every subject appertaining to the Sports of the Field, by William Taplin, Author of " The Gentleman's Stable Directory." In Two Vo- lumes Octavo, Embellished with Six elegant Engravings, price One Guinea in boards. And six other elegantly engraved Plates by Medland. The Designs of which were taken on tire Ground; Price 11. lis. 6d. boards. Also a superior Edition, with the Plates coloured after Life, (Price 31. 3s. boards.) THE SHOOTING DIRECTORY, BY R. B. THORNHTLL, ESQ. THE Attention of every Sportsman is requested to- this Work, as it is presumed it will be found the completest Compilation yet published on Shooting to which it is entirely confined. It treats largely and minutely on the following Subjects:— Dogs, Table of British Dogs, Management of ditto, Breeding of ditto, Pointer, Setter, Spaniel, Cocker, Grous, Partridge, Phea- sant, Woodcock, Snipe, Hare, Fowling Piece, Recoil, Range of Barrels, Loading of ditto, Scattering of ditto, Double ditto, Patent Breech, Gunpowder, Shot, Game-Laws, Certificate, Game- Laws respecting Gious, Black Game, Bustard, Partridge, Phea- sants, and Hares; Stealing of Dogs, Duty on ditto, Distemper, Shooting, and a great Number of very valuable Receipts, and various other Subjects too numerous to come within the Limits of &n Advertisement ; and it is to be hoped, thai, after a Perusal of this Work, the Price will be considered small, when compared with the Prices of all tH other Publications on this Subject. THE OUTLINES OF THE VETERINARY ART. Or the principles of Medicine, as applied to a knowledge of the Structure, Functions, and (Economy of the Horse, the Ox, the Sheep, and the Dog ; and to a more scientific and successful Manner of treating their various Diseases, by DeEabeare Blaine, professor of animal Medicine, in Two large Volumes. Ocfavo, illustrated by Nine Anatomical Plates, price 11. 5s. boards. ■ ■' This extensive Work", (which consists in the whole of above 1S00 Pages) is divided into Three Parts. The First gives a ge- neral View of the History of Medicine, both Human and Ve- terinary, and of the History and Elements of Chemistry and com- parative Anatomy : the Second is confined to the Anatomy and Physiology of the Horse ; and the Third treats of the Causes, Symptoms, and Cure of the Diseases of the Horse, Ox, Sheep and Dog. In the Execution of this comprehensive Pian, the Author deserves considerable Credit. This Publication is illus- strated by Nine Anatomical Plates; of the Engravings of which the Author himself speaks modestly, but the correct Drawing of which he can venture to assert, since they are his own Delinea- tions from a«tual Subjects." MONTHLY REVIEW, MARCH, 1804. RURAL SPORTS, BY. W. B. DANIEL. The following are among the interesting contents of this Work :— Dog ; Fox ; Stag ; Hare Hunting ; Coursing ; Hare ; Rabbit ? 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PROPOSALS SUBMITTED TO fitiblemen, and Gentlemen Sportsmen, and Amateurs of the Fine Arts* FOR PUBLISHING BY SUBSCRIPTION TWO ELEGANT SPORTING PRINTS, In which trie interesting Scene of the FOX BREAKING COVER, and the DEATH of the FOX, WILL HE ACCURATELY DELINEATED. TO BE ENGRAVED IN THE LINE MANNER, BY Mr. JOHN SCOTT, By whom the Plates to the " Sportsman's Cabinet" were executed. H^ll Colonel Thornton having granted permission to the Proprietors to engrave his inimitable picture t: the death of the fox, painted by S. Gilpin, Pv. A. they have engaged P. Rf.inaglk, A R. A. (whose abilities are well known in this particular Department of the Arts,) to paint a Companion, re- presenting the fox brkaking ccvFR, bolh of which will be pub- lished on the following Conditions : The Prints will be 27 inches by 21 inches; price to Sub- scribers, Three Guineas the Pair. Proof Impressions, Six Guineas. On paying a Deposite of One Pound for the Pair of Prints, and Two Pounds for Proofs, an engraved Ticket will be delivered to the Subscribers, signed by the Proprietors, which will entitle the Bearer thereof, when the Prints, are ready, to his Copies, in rota- tion, on Payment of the re- mainder of the Subscription- Money. For the facility of Subscription, Noblemen and Gentlemen who reside at distant parts of the Kingdom, and are in- clined to encourage this Un- dertaking, are requested to forward the Deposite Money by their Agent, or by Post to whom the Proprietors engage to transmit, by return of the same Conveyance, the Tick- ets, hs before specified. The Prints will be completed in the Space of 1808, and will be punctually delivered in the order of Subscription ; therefore, the necessity of an early application must be obvious, as the Price will be advanced to Non-Subscri- bers. Elegantly printed in Foolscap Svo. and enriched with Nine tiful Engravings, by Mr. John Scott, from original Pai | lpnn . by Mr. Sartorius, price 6s. 6d. boards ; ntin<*s THE CHASE; A POEM : To which is annexed, FIELD SPORTS : by William So- jmerville, Esq. With a Sketch of the Author's Life ; including a Preface, critical and explanatory, by Major Topham, of the Wold Cottage, Yorkshire. engravings on copper, contained in the work. In View ; full subject Fox Unearthed ; Vignette Vignette, Prince's Feathers, grouped with various Sporting Apparatus Unkennelling the Hounds : full subject. Perfect Hound ; Vignette. Hare in Form, ditto Stag at Bay ; tuli subject Otter; its Haunts described j- Vignette Otter Ranting; full subject. WOOD engravings. Monument of Somerville, as di- rected by Lady Luxborough. Fox in Ambush Fancy Design, Preface Stag's Head on an Altar French-horn and Couples. 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In Two Volumes'super-royal Quarto, price Seven Guineas ii boards, ' SPORTSMAN'S CABINET; OR, CORRECT DELINEATIONS OF THE VARIOUS DOGS USED IN THE SPORTS OF THE FIELD : Including the Canine Race in general. Consisting of a Series of RICH AND MASTERLY ENGRAVINGS. OF ©berp SDtstwrt 36teetu From Original Paintings, taken from Life, purposely for the Work r BY P. REINAGLE, A. Ii. A. Engraved in the Line Manner by Mr. JOHN SCOTT; and interspersed with beautiful Vignettes, engraved on Wood by Mr. BEWICK, of Newcastle. THE Wor£ is illustrated by a comprehensive, historical, and systematic Description of the Different Species; their Qualifica- tions, peculiar Properties, and predominant Propensities ; the various Pursuits and agreeable Sports to which they individually become appropriate, and the Means by which they are respective- ly trained. Occasionally interspersed with authenticated Anec- dotes of the Sagacity, Memory, Fidelity, Affection, Courage,. Perseverance, and every other distinguished Feature, appertain- ing to each particular Kind. Including such remarks upon Gieyhounds, Hounds, Pointers, Spaniels, and all Dogs engaged in the Sports of the Field, as will necessarily comprehend a Col- lateral View of Hunting, Coursing, Shooting, &c. with a complete Review of the different Diseases to which they are subject, and the most approved and efficacious Modes of Treatment and Cure. Concluding with a scientific Disquisition upon the Distemper^ Canine Madness, and the Hydrophobia. SYDNEY R. SMITH Sporting Books Canaan, New York "f» ■*»i ;# ?$ r«.id^«-