430 GENTLEMEN BY RIGHT. 



race as well as a professional jockey was so reduced 

 in fortune as to be obliged to have recourse to riding 

 for the public as a mean of support, we might very 

 appropriately style him a gentleman -jock, because he 

 would be both a gentleman and a jockey, and perhaps 

 such a character exists; but in a general sense the 

 term is inappropriate and absurd. If a kind of inter- 

 mediate character was intended to be specified, I can 

 only say I should consider him a most useless one ; 

 for he would not, by habits, standing in society, or 

 probably manners, be a fit associate for the gentle- 

 man, nor would he, in point of ability, be able to 

 compete with the jockey. To render races to be 

 ridden by gentlemen select, latterly, they are in some 

 cases specified to be ridden by Members of such a 

 Hunt or Hunts, Members of such Clubs, or Officers : 

 this I consider as hardly fair ; for a man may be a 

 perfect gentleman, and not come under either of these 

 denominations: he would therefore be without any 

 good reason excluded. I think we might put the 

 thing in a more tangible and definite position, if races 

 were appointed to be ridden by gentlemen, yeomen, 

 or jockeys. This would make three clearly different 

 characters of riders, neither of which could interfere 

 with the other. I conclude the first intention of races 

 to be ridden by gentlemen was of course as a means 

 of gentlemen running and riding their own horses 

 among themselves, to the very proper exclusion of the 

 professional rider, with whom, of course, in ninety-nine 

 cases out of a hundred, gentlemen would have no 

 chance. Those appointed to be ridden by gentlemen- 

 jockeys were, I suppose, intended to let in a middle 

 class of persons, neither quite gentlemen nor quite 

 jockeys. The instituting amusement for all classes is 



