io8 My First Steeple-chaser. 



pock-marked and freckled. His clothes fitted him as tight as if he 

 had grown in them. Coat, waistcoat, and trousers were cut in the 

 approved sporting style, back-stitched, double-stitched, and strapped. 

 -It seemed as if nothing could tear them; and upon the Vet., who 

 was by no means shy, requesting if he might feel the thickness of 

 those fine trousers, and remarking upon the apparent excellence of 

 the quality, the man good-humouredly remarked, "You're in the 

 west of England now!" His low-crowned hat and a formidable 

 cutting whip lay on the table, and I felt certain, at first sight, that 

 the man was a jockey. The whole performance of weighing had 

 been watched from the back parlour by these two men through the 

 little window which commanded the shop, and they were now 

 eager to get at the bottom of what they began to consider a mystery. 

 They soon told us all they knew about the coming race, how many 

 horses were likely to start, who would ride them ; and in the course 

 of conversation, the brown screw came upon the carpet, but about 

 him they were quite in the dark ; they had all seen him, and 

 watched him at exercise ; knew that he had come from a distance, 

 and as they could well see that his slight lameness was of old 

 standing, they naturally thought that he would not have been sent 

 so far, if it was likely to interfere much with his going. Great was 

 the jolly butcher's surprise when I told him this was our horse, that 

 we had no jockey for him, and that I had come into his shop 

 casually to weigh, in case the forlorn hope of steering him should 

 fall to my lot. Words can hardly express my delight when I heard 

 him remark, "This mount would just suit you, Jem 3" and when 

 the young man replied, "I should very much like it," I felt as if 

 luck had turned right in our favour. It is true, I knew nothing of 

 either men, but I felt relieved of an immense responsibility. Any- 

 how, Jem could hardly be a worse jockey than myself. There was 

 something honest and straightforward about both men ; and the 

 very fact of their being ensconced in that little back parlour, instead 

 of joining the noisy crowd which were assembled at the Woolpack, 

 proved that, like ourselves, they were outsiders. We soon learnt 

 Jem's history. He was indeed a second Tom a farmer, living 



