278 THE POST AND THE PADDOCK. 



in-law, the Hon. Kobert Grimston, on her back. 

 She stood only fifteen-two, lengthy and very thick 

 through, big plain head, of course, and had strong but 

 heavy shoulders. In her fencing, instead of landing 

 on her hind legs, she " pitched " upon her shoulders, 

 probably owing to the formation in that part, but 

 still she never fell. Earl Craven afterwards put her 

 to the stud, but she never threw a foal worth its corn. 

 While a thousand guineas for blood-yearlings is 

 becoming an every day occurrence, the rage for giving 

 that price for hunters has quite died away; andwehave 

 not heard of such a figure since it was refused both 

 for Harlequin and Limner. Up till 1770-80, even 

 two hundred guineas was hardly dreamt of, and the 

 first hunter we can find any trace of, as having fetched 

 that price, was one sold about that period by Mr. 

 Valentine Knightley to a Mr. Alexander Small, the 

 son of a well-known Buckinghamshire rector. Stubbs 

 has preserved the outline of this favoured horse, 

 Monarch, in a pleasant Fawsley shooting picture, 

 where he stands " steady" behind his master ; but he 

 gives one much more the notion of an animal ready 

 to screw and creep through any kind of fence on a 

 cold scenting day, than one which meant going. 

 Prices perhaps reached their culminating point in 

 Lord Plymouth's time. His Lordship (who could 

 never be called a hard rider) gave Sir Bellingham 

 Graham 1,000 guineas for Beeswax and Freemason ; 

 while 700 guineas was the figure both for Little John 

 and a very soft mare, which he fancied from the style 

 in which she went along with Mr. Peter Allix in a 

 single run. He also gave 600 guineas for the sixteen- 

 hand Cervantes horse, off which Mr. Osbaldeston 

 broke his leg for the second time in the Atherstone 

 country, and out of which "The Squire" had already 

 had six years' work. This mania has had its day, and 

 although a racing man has at present three three-year- 

 olds in his stable which averaged 1,200 guineas a 



