TnE GROOMS 0PINI017. 9. 



and mysteries. Clean and smoothly shaved, not the slightest 

 stubble upon his chin or cheeks was visible, and a roll of pink 

 flesh, lying over the edge of the cambric wisp, proved that he 

 practised little self-denial in those good things which his 

 master's boimtiftd board supplied. 



"Well, Sir Digby," repeated he, jerking the badger-pied cap 

 over one of his angular organs of vision, " what do ye think o' 

 the colt 1 " 



" It will save me infinite trouble 7iot to think, Robert," replied 

 the tall, slender, and gentleman-like figure by his side, drawing 

 a cigar from his lips, and slowly twisting the oiitside leaf to a 

 fine and taper point towards the end. " Give me your opinion." 



"Ha !" exclaimed our head gi'oom, diving, or trying to dive, 

 his hands still deeper, and placing his legs still farther apart, 

 " and I can give it, too, and no mistake. I've looked after more 

 colt-foals and filly-foals than fall to the lot o' most men, let 

 them be bred, born, brought up, live and die, in whatsomdever 

 stables you can name. The first thing I was learned — the 

 alphabet o' my edication, so to speak — was the points of 

 a goodoss. I took to 'em. Sir Digby — as I've often heard 

 my lamented deceased guv'nor say, with the tears o* pride 

 a-biling over in his blessed eyes — as nat'rally as when a little 

 sucker I took to my dear old dam's buzzum. He used to say — 

 I ^nean the deceased guv'nor — that a real, genuine judge o* 

 the points of a goodoss must be born one. 'There's no drivin' 

 the talent into him,' the lamented deceased once said of a 

 summer's evening when a-knockin' the ashes out of his pipe — 

 poor wenerable file ! he's nothin' more than a pinch of ashes 

 himself now. Sir Digby — *it must come like blood from his 

 thumb when pricked, Robert. You, my son, have that talent 

 :&'om your sire, and I from mine, as it was in the beginnin', and 

 so on. We come into the world born head grooms — and all 

 head, too — not your brush and curry-comb, p-s-h, wisp, and 

 elbow-sweaters. J^o, Robert, we leave that to be done while 

 tve look on, and that's the tribute — if I may be allowed so to 

 call it — ^which is paid to genius.' " 



