CHAPTER VI 



GOOD GREY HUNTERS 



Two qualities of grey horses— A surplus of grey horses left in England 

 — Colour and climate — Colour and the elements — Whole colours 

 for the foreigner — Greys favourites — Pedigree of a grey Arabian 

 horse — Few thoroughbred greys — Gimcrack, 1760 — Steeplechasing 

 greys — Sir Reginald Graham's opinion on colour — Mr. Merthyr 

 Guest's and the Blackmore Vale greys — Mr. C. B. E. Wright's greys 

 and chestnuts at Badsworth — The Earl of Lonsdale's chestnuts and 

 grey horse Marble and White Cap — Frank Gillard's Belvoir Grey 

 Bob — Will Wells " makes " Grey Bob — The Hon. Lancelot Lowther 

 and the Belvoir Grey Bob memento, and his The Rake, by Hay- 

 maker—The Rev. J. P. Seabrooke's Top Bar— Sir Gilbert Greenall's 

 greys, Fox-catcher, Phantom, and Bubbles— Mr. E. W. Griffith's 

 Grey Friar— The Duke of Beaufort's Grey Skin and Will Strap 

 — Grey John, the horse of a lifetime— Captain H. T. Timson's grey 

 — Some cheap grey horses — The wedding greys. 



"The Grey Mare is the better horse." — Butler. 



Many grey horses are to be seen out hunting, and 

 it is hard to find a bad one amongst them — a sweeping 

 assertion that we would not commit ourselves to 

 about any other colour in horse-flesh ! But this 

 may be half explained by the fact, that amongst 

 grey horses there seems to be no medium quality ; 

 they are either sterling good ones, or their common- 

 ness is so apparent that they are drafted for utility 

 purposes. The best grey horses undoubtedly show 

 a strain of Eastern blood, generally in a brainy/, 

 well-cut head, so that they can claim a pretty long 

 descent, calling to mind the spirited fines written by 

 Lindsey Gordon— 



" We, too, sprung from mares of the prophet of Mecca, 

 And nursed on the pride that was born with the milk, 

 And filtered through Crucifix, Beeswing, Rebecca, 

 We love sheen of scarlet and shimmer of silk." 



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