262 



ing him as likely to have the gout; a supposition he could not endure; 

 the gout being, in his opinion, a disease of indolence. I once rode with 

 him to Sutton, to see a large Wildair colt, vhich he was about to put 

 into training, and which he seemed to fancy from its blood, must prove 

 a capital Racer. On the contrary, it appeared to me likely to turn out 

 one of those, which invariably make it a point to run stoutly behind. 

 The late George Carter, who called himself a history painter, and in 

 whose signal vanitj' the Empress Catharine found so much amuse- 

 ment, shewed me a portrait of Medley, which he was employed to paint 

 by a club, for the consideration of twenty-five guineas, but which he re- 

 fused to deliver to his employers, they declining to make stakes, without 

 which the brush must remain dry and still. It is a good mechanical 

 likeness, if now in existence. After the breaking up of the coffee-house. 

 Medley, subsisted during the short remainder of his life, upon an annu- 

 ity of fifty pounds, allowed him, I believe, by his sporting friends. 



The sportsmen of that day must recollect the Horse Copper-bottom, 

 and that he was at last in the hands of a gang of escrocs, who fell out 

 and had a number of law-suits about him. After Lord Mansfield had 

 tried several causes to determine the property of this Horse, grown wearj*^ 

 of such re|)eated litigation, the old judge said from the bench, with 

 that peculiar dryness of manner, which was natural to him, and in a ca- 

 dence equally peculiar — " What a Godalmighty's name, gentlemen, will 

 you never have done running this Copper-bottom, ha !" 



In 1779 I saw a number of people return from Guildford Avith very 

 long faces. They had lost their money in the following way: On the 

 last day of the race, Old Slim, Old Damper, Miss Harvey, by Eclipse, 

 and a Horse of Hull's, met to run for the Town Plate. It seemed to be 

 settled that Damper was to win, and five to four was the betting upon 

 him against the field. But a Newmarket Horse entered in the name of 

 Flush, no other than Humbug, by Chrisolite, a Horse which had ca- 

 pital speed, and had won large sums at Newmarket. By an almost 

 incredible inadvertence, many regular betters, I was informed, were actu- 

 ally ignorant that it was Humbug, against which they laid their money, 

 at four to one ; four sporting heats were made of the race, and the 

 Horse under the new name of Flush, humbugged a number of sports- 

 men 



