PUIICHASING HORSES. 149 



who ride with them, for did it not, as it would com- 

 paratively stop the horsemen, the hounds would have 

 it all to themselves." 



" But, according to your own account, what with 

 hills in one country, the being obhged to be near 

 hounds in the other, and the blind fences you speak 

 of in the third, a horse ought to be a very clever 

 hunter to be able to carry one in all of them." 



** If," said Mentor, " you had studied for a week, 

 you could not have found a more applicable and ex- 

 pressive title than ' a clever hunter.' Such is pre- 

 cisely the kind of horse I should recommend to you ; 

 one that (you will excuse my saying so) will, to a 

 certain extent, teach you to cross a country instead 

 of your having to teach him. But being very clever 

 only in a very limited way shows superiority, and by 

 no means promises the extraordinary attributes of 

 Mr. 's horses, or others of the same known cele- 

 brity, as regards fencing, speed, and lasting powers. 

 Give me ten five or six-year old horses, I will answer 

 for it in two months I make eight out of the ten what 

 may be fairly termed clever hunters." 



