THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 



The former — the pedagogues — returned suitable acknowledg- 

 ments for all favours. The Doctor presented Hobart with a 

 splendidly bound edition of the moral Lucretius ; and Jack 

 Hall invited him, with his friends, to a flash dinner "up 

 town." ' 



' Capital ! ' exclaimed the Captain ; ' we had none of that 

 work at Harrow ; but I think, from my experience of them, 

 most schoolmasters would get monkey's allowance if left to the 

 generosity of their pupils alone to reward them, although I do 

 not see why they should ; as, after all, they only do their duty 

 towards them, although many of them arc, like young coachmen, 

 too fond of the whip. As for myself, I had rather be a horse- 

 keeper to the Holyliead mail than a schoolmaster ; and does 

 not somebody say, " Qunn Jupiter odit pedagogum facit " ? But, 

 Inkleton, when speaking of Oxford, and the fun you had there 

 in our time, you appear to have forgotten Jem Howell, and the 

 " Birmingham Day," one of the best of his order, out of the 

 University, and Costar's favourite servant.' 



' Forget Jem How^ell ! ' exclaimed the Baronet ; ' you might 

 as well suppose I sliould forget to eat my dinner to-day at the 

 " Bush." I consider Jem quite a pattern-card of a stage-coach- 

 man, both in figure and dress ; and he appears as if he were made 

 on purpose to meet a north-east wind, with the thermometer at 

 zero, over those Oxfordshire hills. Then, what a voice he has ! 

 — what an eye ! — in fact, what an expressive countenance 

 throughout, under that broad-brimmed hat ! ' 



' That was not much amiss of Jem, the other day,' said 

 Hargrave, ' respecting the new Bishop of Oxford. " I wish 

 they'd gin (given) it Oolly," said Jem (the gentleman's name 

 was Wo(jlley); "he'd have made a rare bishop, for he's not only 

 a scholard, but a gemman, and that's more than can be said of 

 all on 'em. They tells me scholardship opens men's minds ; it 

 may be so, but it shuts their purses devilish close — at least I 

 find it so on this road. I never remember getting more than 

 one shilling from a passenger in black, in a shovel hat, but 

 once since I have drove this coach." But it is Jem's very dry 

 manner of expressing himself,' resumed Hargrave, ' that gives 

 a zest to these trifling stories ; in fact, they would not be worth 

 repeating without it. I saw an old woman go up to him, the 

 other morning, in Oxford, and say to him, " Be you a-going to 

 Iji-nnmiagem to-day, Master Howell?" "No, ma'am," replied 



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