A WORD FOR GEORGE HALL 229 



manage to keep, for any length of time, to one or the 

 other hence his perpetual troubles. 'The Squire of 

 Wantage,' as Argus used facetiously to call him in the 

 Morning Post, must have been at best but a bad financier, 

 and singularly unfortunate in his monetary transactions ; 

 for I believe he was scarcely, if ever, out of the hands of 

 money-lenders and lawyers, and in debt to all of whom 

 he could borrow anything. He was served with more 

 partly-printed papers, probably, than any man in the 

 world ; indeed, he used to say they would have covered 

 the walls of his own house. He died at about the age of 

 seventy in straitened circumstances at his house at Tit- 

 comb Regis, leaving a widow and son to survive him. 



These are by no means the only instances I could 

 point to where men have presumptuously undertaken to 

 do things they were totally unfitted to accomplish, and 

 unconsciously worked their own ruin. It is true an acci- 

 dent may have made their fortune, as it has made for- 

 tunes for others before them, but only to complete more 

 speedily their downfall. Nevertheless, Mr. Parr was a 

 wonderful character. Talented he must have been, and 

 as persevering as he was reckless in the waste of the good 

 things that came to him. 



I have mentioned George Hall, his factotum, and can- 

 not close this chapter without a word in praise of a 

 character as marked as it was curious in type. He spent 

 his life in the faithful service of his employer, who, with- 

 out his aid, would have lost much of his claims to atten- 

 tion. George would first attend to the toilet of the 

 horses, and then to that of their master. Moreover, he 

 rode them at exercise, in their trials, and for their races. 

 He was patient in riding, and steered many to victory 

 under difficult circumstances. In fact, the colours he rode 

 in were, through his instrumentality, better known than 



