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variety of other paintings and sketches were also purchased by Miss 

 Saltingstone. The laborious and regular Stubbs, a young man at ninety 

 years of age, supposed that life might be prolonged by art, to an indefi- 

 nite and far distant period ; but he found that nature stood in his way. 

 His death was a gentle sleep. — May we all die like Stubbs ! 



The famous Skewball, by the Godolphin Arabian, stands immor- 

 talized in doggerel. Few of my readers, sporting or not, but must have 

 heard of the race over the Curragh of Kildare, by 'Squire Merwin's 

 Skewball, when he "beat Miss Sportley, and broke Sir Ralph Gore." 

 This famous match, in which the whole country was interested, 

 made by 'Squire Merwin, that " pearl of Irish sportsmen," although ran 

 more than half a century ago, is still the burden of a song, chaunted 

 about the streets of London, to the well-known merry popular tune of 

 " Little John Alcock of Petticoat-lane." But the words have been so 

 misplaced, and the sense so transmogrified and improved by those emi- 

 nent and immortal poetic wits, who labour diurnally in the Long-lane 

 and other manufactories, that it is now, perhaps, impossible to recover 

 the original song, said to have been written and sung, on the occasion 

 of the successful race, by 'Squire Merwin's chaplain. The following 

 verse only, may be considered as really genuine, but the song is well 

 known, both as to tune and character, to have been the standing model 

 for such, on every occasion since. 



" And when that they came unto the ending post, 

 " Wicked Jemmy, he call'd for a bumper and toast; 

 ■'* Here's a health to all sportsmen, and to the grey mare, 

 " That lost all her cash on the Plains of Kildair." 



Matchem ranks among our stallions of the highest character, and 

 was a true and honest runner, but now and then out-footed, as by 

 Brilliant and others. Being sire of Conductor, he forms one of those 

 channels, through which the Godolphin Arabian blood has flowed to the 

 present famous stallion, Sorcerer. Matchem, own brother to Change- 

 ling, was got by Cade, dam by Partner, Makeless, Brimmer, Place's 

 White Turk, Dodsworth, out of a Barb mare. 



In 



