BLIND HOOKEY 



Our introduction to Blind Hookey — that is not the 

 name under which he ran — took place on the Johannes- 

 burg Market Square. He had just been purchased at 

 auction by a couple of greasy Hebrew horse-dealers from 

 among a string of sorry-looking ponies, mules, and donkeys 

 which had been sent in for sale from different parts of 

 the Rand, Cape Colony, and the Orange Free State. 



Blind Hookey was a clean-legged, well bred, well 

 groomed and fed Basuto pony, standing a trifle over four- 

 teen hands high. In short, he looked as though he had 

 just stepped out of a racing or polo stable. He stood as 

 quiet as a lamb before the auctioneer's portable rostrum 

 while he was being " put up," but we noticed an amused 

 kind of smile passed over the sun-tanned visage of the 

 worthy knight of the hammer as he knocked down the 

 galloway for the comparatively small sum of £22 — guinea 

 bids do not obtain at South African horse sales — to the 

 " Peruvians," who, delighted with their bargain, led 

 Blind Hookey over to a rattle-trap four-wheel " spider," 

 which stood a little apart from the noisy crowd assembled 

 round the place of sale. 



Feeling somewhat sore that we ourselves had not bought 

 the pony, we determined to see how he went in harness 

 and to that end_followed the jubilant horse-dealers across 

 the dusty square to watch the operation of inspanning. 

 Blind Hookey, with ears laid back a little, remained 

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