PH YSIOGN OM Y. 177 



Without previous knowledge of the animal, I 

 candidly confess (and let those laugh at the idea 

 that please to do so) I should greatly hesitate in 

 buvins: a horse with a bad treacherous looklno; 

 countenance. Many worthy men and many well 

 disposed horses are, I grant, unfortunate in this 

 particular. We should not value a friend the less 

 for it ; but it would certainly not induce us to 

 form an acquaintance with the man possessing it, 

 without cogent reasons for so doing. Then why 

 should we with a horse. A good countenance in 

 mankind is no doubt often deceptive; a forbid- 

 ding one is certainly more honest ; for on it we 

 see in characters legible — bew^are ! Few men, not 

 from choice, but circumstances, have had a more 

 extensive acquaintance w^Ith man than myself, 

 and, perhaps, not one man in a thousand from the 

 same cause has made acquaintance with more 

 horses. I have found rogues with prepossessing 

 countenances in both ; but I never, to my recol- 

 lection, had to do with man or beast of forbidding 

 countenance that proved apostate to the sign 

 nature had put up indicative of what w^as passing 

 within. Ugly as sin either may be : this has no- 

 thing on earth to do with a forbidding aspect. I 

 do not hold a pug dog very handsome as to face, 

 and I knew a girl as like one, excepting in colour, 

 as she well could be ; but she was the best and 

 merriest little girl in existence ; everybody loved 

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