312 THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 



a person named Harvey, famous for his beefsteaks, aa 

 also for the fish sauce which still bears his name. It was 

 composed of about thirty members (at least seventy have 

 been numbered since), including the best and most 

 experienced amateur coachmen of those days, at the head 

 of whom was the great John Wall, the father of the field 

 and the road, as he was even then called in the sporting 

 world ; and a curious circumstance occurred on the first 

 day of our hero making his appearance at it. George 

 IV., then Prince of "Wales, was changing horses at the 

 door of the inn at which the club dined, and was in- 

 formed that his health was that moment about to be 

 drunk by the members, with three times three. The 

 Prince afterwards acknowledged the compliment to one 

 of the party, at Carlton House, adding "Was not old 

 John Wall among you ?" On being answered in the 

 affirmative, he replied " I thought I knew his halloo." 

 Then there was another well-known and amusing 

 character, a member of this club. His name was Price. 

 His scene of action was on the Great Western Road, on 

 which he worked, as an amateur, nearly as regularly as 

 any coachman upon it. But it is for this evening's 

 exploits that his fame is recorded here. After five bottles 

 of hock, which he could put under his waistcoat, at a 

 sitting, without being much affected by them, he would 

 fill a bumper, and, placing the glass to stand on his head, 

 he would sing a song, in which the names of every coach- 

 man and horse-keeper employed on a certain coach from 

 London to Plymouth, were introduced. Nor was this all, 

 he would, at the same time, go through the manoeuvres 

 of hitting wheelers and leaders, without spilling a drop 

 of his wine ; and after he had drunk it off, he would run 

 the empty glass up and down the large silver buttons of 

 his coat, with very singular effect. Then the following 

 anecdote speaks to the prevalence of his ruling passion 

 for the coach-box. At the time to which we have been 

 alluding, the French revolution was raging in all its 

 horrors. The subject being discussed in his presence, he 

 took a letter from his pocket, and thus addressed those 

 who were present : " What's the French revolution to 

 me 1 Here is Bill Simmons, the first man that ever drove 

 the Exeter mail out of Exeter, turned over to the heavy 

 coach, and against his will. Now, that is ichat I call a 

 revolution ! " 



