152 ATMOSPHERIC STEEPLE-CHASERS. 



assisting him in rising at it, and, what is of quite as 

 much importance, supporting him on landing, is out 

 of the question. Now all this is done by a horse- 

 man : his only fear is that his horse may refuse ; that 

 his powers may not be equal to the fence to be got 

 over; or that, from its extreme awkward nature, 

 he may fall. Of himself that is, his seat he en- 

 tertains no concern : and I firmly believe, if Powell 

 or Oliver wanted to go to Bath, and their horse could 

 take off at Hyde Park Corner, clearing Windsor 

 Castle in his way, they would consider it as pleasant a 

 mode of transit as you could give them. 



Talking of seat, I cannot help mentioning an in- 

 stance of perfection in this way that came under my 

 notice when seeing Powell riding Primrose in a 

 steeple-race (a sharpish little mare with ten stone on 

 her I think in this case she carried near, if not quite, 

 twelve). About the middle of the race they had to 

 face a bullfinch, with an honest fifteen-feet brook on 

 the other side : but what constituted the danger was 

 first, the coming to it was down hill ; secondly, the 

 horses could not see the brook till they rose at the 

 leap ; and, thirdly, there was but one narrow pene- 

 trable place in the hedge. For this of course they 

 would all make : and I consider, in such a case, racing 

 to it for lead to be one of the most dangerous ma- 

 noeuvres in a steeple-race. Fortunately, Powell had 

 sufficient lead to render this unnecessary: at it he 

 came, and over all he went : the weight told on poor 

 Primrose, and down she came on her knees on land- 

 ing. This kind of thing, hunting men know by expe- 

 rience, gives one about the same gentle inclination to 

 go over one's horse's ears that a cannon ball gets from 

 a quantum suff. charge of gunpowder. Not so, how- 



