THE GROOM 123 



He must not mind being called shabby. Surely a 

 man is not to make himself miserable for the sake of 

 being called liberal. Of all charges that of shabbiness, 

 " closeness," is the commonest and easiest made. If 

 a man's stomach is not equal to the "drenching" 

 dinner-giving entails, and he is sparing of his feeds, 

 he is called shabby. If he gives dinners and does not 

 push his wine, he is said to be trying to save it. If 

 Dick Sharpwit tries to do him with a horse, and fails, 

 Dick dubs him a " screw ; " and so they ring the 

 changes on the charge through all the transactions of 

 life. Nothing, however, insures a man the charge of 

 shabbiness equal to foiling another in a do. It is 

 propagated with double rancour, for the delinquent to 

 screen himself and get his revenge. The man must 

 lead a wretched life who troubles himself with think- 

 ing what "the world says of him." 



It may generally be remarked, in looking over a 

 hunting field, that the Grooms who are the neatest 

 and best turned out themselves, have their horses 

 best turned out too. This turn-out of self is difficult 

 to define, varying, when out of livery, according to the 

 taste of the wearer, and when in livery, restricted a 

 good deal to the cut and putting on of the clothes. A 

 woolly - hatted Groom has always a shaggy - headed 

 horse. That is a rule admitting of no exception. 

 Dingy-clothed Grooms, with inky-looking tops, have 

 always dull-coated, ill-conditioned horses. Fellows 

 with Britannia-metal-looking spurs, gloveless fists, 

 sloggering boots with the straps hanging out, unbrushed 

 coats, burst seams, stained waistcoats, flying-ended 

 neckcloths, generally have their chokebands as tight 

 as they can draw them, and the head - stalls of 

 the bridles flapping about, with buckles and bits as 

 dull as pewter. Some fellows can " dress the Groom " 

 and can do nothing else. Others, again, are fond 

 of horses, just as a child is fond of a kitten ; but, 

 as to any real hard work about them, that they have 



