THE HISTORY OF THE BELVOIR HUNT 



the story he must have been an oldish man, but was still a 

 fine rider, and he delighted in making what he considered 

 to be a good deal with the gentlemen of the hunt. Now the 

 Marquis of Granby (as he then was) was riding to the meet 

 at Croxton Park from Belvoir, and had arrived within a field 

 or two of the Park, when he saw Cap Tomlin galloping 

 down the hill in front of him and making straight for a deep 

 and wide brook which runs on the left-hand side of the hunt- 

 ing ride, and when he got within a few yards of the brook 

 he shouted out, " Forrard away, hark forrard, yoicks over," 

 at the same time waving about his right arm ; the horse took 

 a magnificent leap and cleared the brook in fine style. Lord 

 Granby, being short of horses at that time, naturally thought 

 this horse would be exactly what he wanted. He therefore 

 rode up to Tomlin on arriving at the meet, and said to him, 

 " You seem to have a fine hunter there, Mr. Tomlin." His 

 answer was, " Yes, my Lord ; and he is as good as he looks. 

 Just the horse for you, my Lord ; he can jump anything you 

 like to put him at." So then and there they came to a deal, 

 Mr. Tomlin, of course, asking and obtaining a large price for 

 the horse. Shortly afterwards Lord Granby gave the horse 

 a trial with the hounds, and he soon found that no power on 

 earth could hold the animal, and he ran clean away with 

 him, and had to gallop him round and round a deep 

 ploughed field before he could stop him. He afterwards 

 tried him with all the strongest bits and bridles in the Belvoir 

 stables without any effect. Of course he had to get rid of 

 him as soon as possible for a mere song, and he soon after- 

 wards found out that Mr. Tomlin was being run away with 

 when he saw him jump the brook on the riding-way to 

 Croxton Park, and cleverly pretended that he was making 

 the horse do it on purpose. Many other good stories are 

 told of this celebrated horsedealer. On one occasion he 

 followed George, Lord Forester, at that time M.F.H., all the 

 way from Melton Spinney, where the hounds had left off 

 hunting, to Knipton Lodge, near Belvoir, in his anxiety to 

 sell him the horse he was riding, although Lord Forester 

 repeatedly told him he would not buy the horse at the price 



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