216 MB. SPONGE'S SPORTING TOUR. 



appeared below its slightly curred brim was of the pepper-and-salt 

 mixture of — say, fifty years. His face, though somewhat wrinkled 

 and weatherbeaten, was bright and healthy ; and there was a 

 twinkle about his little grey eyes that spoke of quickness and 

 watchful observation. Altogether, he was a very quick-looking 

 little man — a sort of man that would know what you were going 

 to say before you had well broke ground. He wore no gills ; and 

 his neatly tied starcher had a white ground with small black spots, 

 about the size of currants. The slight interregnum between it and 

 his step-collared striped vest (blue stripe on a canary-coloured 

 ground) showed three golden foxes' heads, acting as studs to his 

 well-washed, neatly-plaited shirt ; while a sort of careless turn 

 back of the right cuff showed similar ornaments at his wrists. His 

 single-breasted, cut-away coat was Oxford mixture, with a thin cord 

 binding, and very natty light kerseymere mother-o'-pearl buttoned 

 breeches, met a pair of bright, beautifully-fitting, rose-tinted tops, 

 that wrinkled most elegantly down to the Jersey-patterned spur. 

 He was a remarkably well got up little man, and looked the horse- 

 man all over. 



As he emerged from the stable, where he had been mastering 

 the ins and outs of the establishment, learning what was allowed 

 and what was not, what had not been found fault with and, therefore, 

 might be presumed upon, and so on, he carried the smart dogskin 

 leather glove of one hand in the other, while the fox's head of a 

 massive silver-mounted jockey- whip peered from under his arm. 

 On a ring round the fox's neck was the following inscription : — 

 " From Jack Bragg to his cousin Dick." 



Mr. Puffington having drawn up his mail-phaeton, and thrown 

 the ribbons to the active grooms at the horses' heads in the true 

 coaching style, proceeded to descend from his throne, and had 

 reached the ground ere he was aware of the presence of a stranger. 

 Seeing him then, he made a sort of half obeisance of a man that 

 does not know whether he is addressing a gentleman or a servant, 

 or, may be, a scamp, going about with a prospectus. Puff had 

 been bit in the matter of some maps in London, and was wary, as 

 ah people ought to be, of these birds. 



The stranger came sidling up with a half bow, half touch of the 

 hat, drawling out, 



" 'Sceuuse me, sir — 'sceuuse me, sir," with another half bow 

 and another half touch of the hat. " I'm Mister Bragg, sir 

 — Mister Richard Bragg, sir ; of whom you have most likelv 

 heard." 



" Bragg— Richard Bragg," repeated our friend, thoughtfully, 

 while he scanned the man's features, and run his sporting ac- 

 quaintance through his mind's eye. " Bragg, Bragg," repeated 

 he, without hitting him off. 



