308 A FOREIGNER. 



straight along : stop tlicm sliort, or turn them round 

 quickly, the secret is out at once ; but this is of course 

 avoided when shown for sale. The horse I allude to 

 was a very good-looking harness-like horse, five-years- 

 old, and worth fifty if he had been sound : he was in 

 the hands, or at least was most of his time in the 

 hands, of one of these Mr. Kascals : he was not only 

 a good, but a superfine scrcAv to him. On one of the 

 various occasions of this horse being sold, I was much 

 amused at the fellow's consummate impudence and 

 ingenuity. Some of my readers may have to learn 

 that a horse thus injured in the spine is, in dealers' 

 slang, termed a " German," Avliy I know not : and 

 from this I suppose is by some also called a "foreigner." 

 On the occasion to whidi 1 allude, a gentleman was 

 veryproperly abusing thefellow — whowasan English- 

 man much to the credit of my countiy ! — for selling 

 him this horse. The fellow's reply was, first, " Did I 

 warrant him sound ?" — " No, you did not : you said 

 you could not, as he had a corn." — "Well, so he has 

 a corn." — " Yes, you scoundrel, but you did not tell 

 me he was broken-backed." — "No, nor he ain't bro- 

 ken-backed : he is only chinked a bit. Did not I tell 

 you he was a furriner^ and that was why I sold him 

 so cheap ? " — " Yes, you did ; but what has his being 

 a foreigner to do with his back ? " — "Why, everything : 

 if I told you a horse was a huck^ I suppose you'd 

 know his eyes warn't right, wouldn't you ?" — " No, 

 indeed I should not." — "AMiy, then, more's the pity ! 

 I say, Jem (continued the fellow to some friend going 

 by), I sold the furriner to this gemman ; told him he 

 was one ; and now he wants to know what that has to 

 do with his back ! " — "Does he ?" said the fellow; "let 

 him get on him an' he'll know." — " Now," says Mr. 



