130 EACECOUBSE AND COVERT SIDE. 



glass of slierry was necessary to put things 

 straight. 



After this it is not to be wondered at that in 

 passing through the ring he took ,£200 to M50 

 about his horse twice, and was noisily cheer- 

 ful until hoisted upon Playfellow's back, when 

 the demeanour of the big grey, excited by the 

 unaccustomed crowd, made Purleigh wish with 

 much sincerity that he had left the champagne 

 alone, and still more sincerely that he had never 

 got on the back of a monster that did not know 

 how to stand still, and fought for its head, and 

 generally made itself horribly offensive. 



At length, however, the eleven were all 

 mounted, and they file out of the extemporized 

 paddock and on to the course. Playfellow, 

 feeling a very uncertain hand on the reins, pulls 

 and bores, and very nearly unships her rider, a 

 contrast to Ked Kover, who is inclined to be 

 skittish, but who yields obedience to a firm, 

 light, restraining hand. If Purleigh had dared 

 to use his whip, or dig in his spurs, he would 

 have almost accepted another =£200 to £50 ; but 

 the only thing he can do is to determine to sell 

 the beast at the earliest possible moment, and to 

 hope that he will fall into bad hands. 



Heartsease seems to bear her light blue burden 

 proudly, and Lady Selstead's kindly whisper that 



