" there's not in the wide world," etc. 37y 



them full credit for their great powers in this par- 

 ticular. 



At the time I wrote what follows, I was on duty 

 in Ireland, and resided in it six years afterwards : 

 never will the joyous hours I have passed in that 

 neglected, but fertile land be obliterated from my me- 

 mory : my recollections of the kindness, hospitality, 

 and truly disinterested friendship and attentions I 

 ever received from her joyous, open-hearted sons, and 

 the happy hours I have spent among them, are as 

 fresh and green in my memory, as the fields that 

 characterise the Emerald Isle. I wrote thus, or to 

 this eiFect. 



My friends on the other side of the water are kind 

 enough not to forget me : whenever anything brilliant 

 (in the sporting way) takes place, I hear of it, and 

 thus (at least on paper) again cross countries that 

 have been the scenes of many exciting moments. 



Thus the link so dear to me is not broken : in 

 return I have been often requested to send over my 

 ideas of the comparative merits of English and Irish 

 hunters ; this is perhaps as high a compliment as my 

 English friends could pay to my judgment as a 

 sportsman. 



The Irish horse possesses in an eminent degree 

 three most essential points in a hunter, great physical 

 strength (for his size), astonishing bottom, and is by 

 nature a leaper : he is usually a compact, deep-ribbed 

 but cross-made horse, with famous legs, and plenty of 

 bone and sinew. I have remarked, and my opinion 

 has been backed by the best judges, that among a 

 field of Irish hunters, you will scarcely see on'e that is 

 not clean on his legs : if they would but give their 

 horses fair play this Avould be still more the case, but 



