APPENDIX. 199 



tuted the present system of hard riding to hounds, and a 

 horse known to have been ridden by him, it is said, would 

 at any time fetch £20 more than the ordinary price. 

 Speaking of the classic proportions of a horse, and the 

 perfection of the art of riding in connection with his lord- 

 ship as a sportsman, Colonel Apperley, remarked some 

 years ago, " Unless a man sits gracefully on his horse, 

 and handles him well, that fine effect is lost. As the poet 

 says, he would be incorporated with the brave beast, and 

 such does Lord Forester appear to be. His eye to a 

 country is also remarkably quick, and his knowledge of 

 Leicestershire has given him no small advantage. On 

 one occasion he disregarded the good old English custom 

 of * looking before you leap,' and landed in the middle 

 of a deep pool. ' Hold on,' a countryman who saw 

 him, shouted to others coming in the same direction. 

 ' Hold your tongue — say nothing, we shall have it full in 

 a minute,' said Lord Forester." The Colonel added, 

 " In consequence of residing in Shropshire, a country 

 which has been so long famous for its breed of horses, 

 he has a good opportunity of mounting himself well. 

 He always insisted on the necessity of lengthy shoulders, 

 good fetlocks, well formed hind legs and open feet ; and 

 knowing better than to confound strength and size, 

 his horses seldom exceeded fifteen hands. On anything 

 relating to a hunter his authority has long been con- 

 sidered classic, and if Forester said so it was enough. 

 Lord Forester will always stand pre-eminent in the 

 field, whilst in private life he is a very friendly man, and 



