62 A TROT, AND A DINNER PARTY. 



from that which would have been in England the type 

 of equine beauty. It is true they had fine sloping 

 withers, excellent shoulders, arms of colossal strength, 

 were well ribbed up, and short-barreled, that their 

 quarters were powerful almost to a fault, and well let- 

 down to the houghs, but their rumps had that peculiar 

 angular fall from a little way behind the whirlbone to 

 the tail, which is known to the sportsman as the 

 goose-rump, and is in Europe generally regarded as a 

 proof of Irish blood, many of the best hunters of that 

 country, as also many, I might almost say most, of 

 the best trotters of this, are observable for this malfor- 

 mation- -for such it must be regarded, so far at least 

 as beauty is concerned, though not perhaps activity or 

 speed. 



The color of these clever animals, which certainly 

 bore no similarity to the celebrated English cob, much 

 less to the stanhope or cabriolet horse, with which all 

 the bystanders were acquainted, was a deep, rich, 

 glossy chestnut, very far removed, indeed, from the 

 dull and washy tint which is generally known as sor- 

 rel ; for in the shadow they would certainly have been 

 esteemed browns, perhaps even blacks, but the moment 

 the sunshine played on the smooth and satin lustre ot 

 their well-groomed and well-conditioned coats, there 

 was no hue or tint of metallic gloss and radiance 

 which might not be seen playing over them. 



Their long, thin manes, and well squared docks 

 were of the same color as their coats, perhaps a shade 

 or two darker ; but they had each four white stock- 

 ings up to the very houghs, and a broad white blaze 

 down the centre of their faces, which, however, far 

 from detracting from their beauty, rather increased 

 it, by increasing their similitude each to the other, and 

 by adding I know not what to their style of jauntiness 

 and peculiarity. 



The vehicle to which they were attached by rounded 



