THE IJFE OF A SPORTSMAN 



on a horse worthy to be called a 1 muter, tliat is, a horse oi' 

 power; whereas, your nine or ten-stone sportsman is too often 

 mounted on what is called ' a nice little horse,' to carry liis 

 Aveight ; in other words, a cat-lego-ed weed, not wortliy tlie 

 name oi" hunter, and which gets knocked backwards, or tvirned 

 lieels upward, by a strong grower in a hedge, whicli the liorse 

 of a twelve-stone man would drive before him, or break. Then, 

 to use a vulgar expression, Hargrave liad the nerves of a bull- 

 dog, in the field, and would turn from no fence that he con- 

 sidered there was a chance to get over when in chase ; but 

 was free from the folly of taking unnecessary leaps, merely 

 to display his horsemanship. And, perhaps, one proof of liis 

 good horsemanship may be gatliered from this fact, — his 

 horses had both been purchased, at his request, when young 

 and 7'aiv, as the term is, that he mio-ht have the task of making 

 them liunters by his own hand ; and capital hunters did he 

 make them, althougli ditiering nuich from each other. Rupert, 

 a large-bodied, sleepy-looking bay gelding, about fifteen hands 

 two inches high, with long shoulders and quarters, and short 

 back, standing over a great deal of ground, upon short and 

 large legs; wanting nothing in his mouth except a plain 

 snaffle bit, but requiring spurs in his sides over almost every 

 yard that he went ; would leap timber, either flying or standing, 

 according to his rider's pleasure ; was one of the best creepers 

 in the world, consequently, seldom got into scrapes ; and 

 wanted nothing but a turn more speed to make him one of the 

 best hunters in the world. He was, however, as stout as steel 

 and — no small recommendation to an Oxford man's horse — 

 he could ' come again,' as the grooms say, very quickly, after 

 a hard run, and was good, on the average of sport, for four 

 days in a fortnight ; at all events, for three. 



Toptlwrn, his other horse, was an animal of a different 

 description. In the first place, he was better bred ; and, in 

 the next, in a form altogether diflferent from Rupert. He was 

 what is called an ' up-standing horse,' nearly sixteen lumds 

 liigh ; not large-bodied, although an excellent feeder, and with 

 very good legs. As a fencer, he was quite out of the common 

 way, both at height and width, although there was one imper- 

 fection in his fencing, from which he derived his name ; and 

 here he was the very reverse of Rupert. He was not only not 

 a creeper — much less a standing leaper — but so far from 



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