OLD BOXES. 49 



CHAPTEE IV. 



THE FARMER'S STORY. OLD BOXES. CHESTERFIELD 

 FAIR. A FINE HORSE. THE HOME ROAD. ~A SPIRITED 

 NAG. THE HORSE GROWS WHITE. A VERT OLD 

 FRIEND. SMASHERS. DEALERS IN SOFT-'UNS. 

 PASSING THE NOTES. INJURED INNOCENCE. COMING 

 THE BOUNCE. THE COUNTRY INN. THE TRAINERS. 

 CONFEDERATES. A COPING REPOSITORY. PRE- 

 TENDED BIDDERS. OLD BOBY. FOUR POUNDS FOB 

 THE BARGAIN. A SELL. 



I WAS lately amused by a coping incident, which a 

 farmer related to me. He said, 



" I had made up my mind to sell ' Old Boxer/ a brown 

 horse with two white heels ; I bought him at four years 

 old, and had worked him on my farm for eleven years, 

 and although fifteen years old, he was sound ; my sole 

 reason for parting with him was, that he could not mas- 

 ticate his food properly (owing to the irregularities of 

 his teeth), so as to be kept in proper working condition ; 

 our farrier rasped and filed his teeth, from time to time, 

 but all to no purpose, and at last he advised me to sell 

 him. I took him to Chesterfield fair, and sold him to 

 some horse-coping chaps for 6." 



I interrupted him here. 







