Breeding of Hunters. 271 



quently four in the field ; and thus, although no horse 

 could go much longer than ten minutes under such a 

 bruiser, he was always able to ride with the light 

 weights. As an instance of the effect of weight, we 

 may mention that the late Lord Spencer had once a 

 thorough-bred horse called Brocklesby ; a finer horse 

 could not be seen, but nothing would make him jump. 

 They took him to the bar, and he would go over it 

 almost any height ; but when they weighted him 

 with twelve stone of lead, he would not even rise at 

 it, and was used as a carriage horse ever after. A 

 jumper of old standing and less eccentric mind would 

 have not taken to the collar so readily. The cele- 

 brated John Warde is reported to have had a proof of 

 this when he put four of his retired Blue Ruin stamp 

 of hunters into his High Sheriff's coach. The two 

 law-chiefs found themselves describing a sort of zig- 

 zag movement behind the javelin men and trumpeters, 

 who had no doubt revived some old hunting-horn 

 associations ; and on appealing to the Sheriff, he 

 simply put his head out of the window, saying 

 " They're my hunters, my lord, and they're all jibbers 

 hang it ! but I'll get out and walk." 



Mr. George Payne's sale, about 1826, was the 

 greatest ever known, and twenty-six hunters and 

 hacks realized 7500 guineas. An odd incident oc- 

 curred at it, in consequence of a noted horse, called 

 Cottager, having had his name changed, when he 

 entered Mr. Payne's stud, to distinguish him from 

 another Cottager, which was there already. Hence 

 a gentleman at the sale, who knew of the greatest of 

 the two Cottagers by report, and had never seen 

 either, bought the one in the list for 400 guineas, and 

 found that he had got the wrong horse after all. 

 It is also not so very long since a commissioner was 

 sent to Tattersall's to buy " The Bank of England," 

 and bid for " The Banker" by mistake. The latter 

 was knocked down to him for 38 guineas, while 



