THE HUMOURS OF THE RACECOURSE 103 



an idea what a lot of these fellows come over here from 

 your island. They gits warned off the course there 

 for some little game — foul riding, nobbling, or some- 

 thing of that sort ; then they puts an advertisement 

 into one of your sporting papers, saying their lowest 

 riding-weight is so much, and that they have no 

 objection to go abroad — which is very kind and con- 

 siderate of them, seeing they can git nothing to do 

 at home. Some of these Trenchers hears of this, 

 and gits 'em over. They'll only do for down in the 

 country here ; for they are too wide awake to hev 

 such characters up around Paris, where I calculate 

 the racing is pretty considerably different, and it 

 takes a good hoss to whip 'em there. Nothing 

 makes a Trencher — I mean these country fellows — 

 more proud than to hev ajocJcey Anglais. The long 

 and short of it is this : there are a lot of these 

 blackguards here, and when you whipped 'em all 

 yesterday, I heard some two or three say that if they 

 could get at the saddles, they should jist give your 

 stirrup-leathers a cut with a razor, and rub in a 

 little strong oxalic acid. That's all I know ; look to 

 it. Alid now let's hev a liquor-up." 



' We thanked our Yankee friend, and got back 

 to St. Servan as quick as we could. We found the 

 stables locked, but on looking at the saddles, which 

 were in a room close by, we discovered that the 

 stirrup-leathers of both had been finely cut. 



" Don't say a word about this at present," said 



