HAND. 8 1 



who possesses this enviable knack in an extraordinary 

 degree. 



Many of us can remember " Cap " Tomline, a pro- 

 fessional "rough rider," living at or near Billesdon, 

 within the last twenty years, as fine a horseman as his 

 namesake, whom I have already mentioned, and a 

 somewhat lighter weight. For one sovereign, " Cap," 

 as we used to call him, was delighted to ride anybody's 

 horse under any circumstances, over, or into any kind 

 of fence the owner chose to point out. After going 

 brilliantly through a run, I have seen him, to my mind 

 most injudiciously, desired to lark home alongside, 

 while we watched his performance from the road. He 

 was particularly fond of timber, and notwithstanding 

 that his horse was usually rash, inexperienced, or bad- 

 tempered, otherwise he would not have been riding him, 

 I can call to mind very few occasions on which I saw 

 him down. One unusually open winter, when he hunted 

 five and six days a week from October to April, he 

 told me he had only fifteen falls, and that taking the 

 seasons as they came, thirteen was about his average. 

 Nor was he a very light-weight spare, lengthy, and 

 'muscular, he turned twelve stone in his hunting clothes, 

 which were by no means of costly material. Horses 

 rarely refused with him, and though they often had a 



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