Gentlemen Riders 



THE EARL OF MINTO 



("Mr. Rolly.") 



Towards the latter part of the last century, amongst the 

 numerous lodging-houses at Cambridge patronised by those 

 members of the University who, either from disinclination or 

 want of accommodation, were not residing at the Colleges they 

 respectively belonged to, there was one in particular, known as 

 " French's," which had long been recognised as an establish- 

 ment to which none but the leading sporting lights of the 

 'Varsity had right of entree. At no time possibly had its 

 reputation been better sustained than from 1866 to 1869, 

 during which period there were sheltered under its roof tree 

 the Earl of Minto (then Viscount Melgund), Lord Aberdour, 

 John Maunsell Richardson, Cecil Legard, the two Fitzwilliams, 

 and Leopold de Rothschild, all names to conjure with in the 

 world of sport in the near future. 



Son of the third Earl of Minto, the subject of our memoir 

 was born on July 9th, 1847, and in due course went to Eton, 

 where he distinguished himself greatly as a sculler, dividing 

 the honours for supremacy with Corkran major. From thence 

 he went to Cambridge, and it was whilst there that he was one 

 of the four riders chosen to represent the 'Varsity in the 

 celebrated match at Aylesbury in 1865, when Cambridge won. 



In the course of the race he unfortunately managed to 

 knock over Lord Willoughby de Broke, who was riding 

 the favourite for Oxford, the latter always declaring afterwards 

 — in fun of course — that " Roily " Melgund was specially told 

 off for that purpose by the other side. 



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