The Sport of Our (^Ancestors 



various places where Mr. Sponge got himself invited to 

 stay, and the difficulty that all his hosts and hostesses had 

 to get rid of him, are described by the hand of one who 

 was a master in setting forth the snobbishness to which 

 human nature can sometimes stoop. Surtees's description 

 of Sponge's visit to Jawleyford Court is admitted by many 

 good judges who have never been out hunting in their 

 lives to be the very best of its kind. His portrait of Jawley- 

 ford is a masterpiece. He takes less time to paint Jawley- 

 ford than he takes to paint Jorrocks. Jorrocks occupies a 

 whole book, like Tom Jones. Jawleyford with his shoddy 

 picture gallery, his rabbit-pie luncheon, his frock-coated 

 address to the tenantry, his sour claret, his false good fellow- 

 ship, and his weakness for a title, are all done with the 

 greatest ease in some half-dozen chapters. It is difficult to 

 say which of the facets of Sponge's visit to Jawleyford Court 

 is the most amusing. Our own choice is the wet morning in 

 the art gallery. It would be sacrilege to try to describe it. 

 The frames of mind of host and guest cannot be better 

 indicated than by the books they were reading. Jawley- 

 ford, as a sacrifice to cultivation, had been reading Disraeli's 

 'Lord George Bentinck,^ though it is doubtful if he under- 

 stood it. Still, it was the book of the day that should be 

 on every gentleman's table, even if the leaves were uncut. 

 Sponge's pursuit of literature was confined to a close study 

 of the invaluable ' Mogg's Cab Fares. ^ From this promising 

 antithesis of outlook the author gives us a comedy scene 

 which must be read to be appreciated. 



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