242 SOME CURIOUS HORSES 



effort to jump — simply ran at it, and blundered 

 through it somehow. The next fence, in spite of 

 my shaking him up and letting him have the spurs 

 pretty smartly, he did in the same way, then 

 cleared one fairly ; but on my putting him at a 

 bar-way he never rose at all, but went full tilt at 

 it and smashed it to bits. I was a good deal dis- 

 gusted at these performances, but tried him another 

 day, a friend saying I did not rouse him sufficiently. 

 Anyhow, this next time I did so, but it had no 

 effect. He scrambled his fences in just the same 

 way, never, however, coming down. After this I 

 lent him to my friend (who thought I did not ride 

 him with sufficient resolution) for a day's hunting 

 by way of a trial ; and the horse signalised himself 

 so that I determined to part with him. He had 

 gone on in his usual way until we came to a brook 

 about twelve feet wide, but deep. I jumped it all 

 right, and looked back to see how my friend fared. 

 The brute of a horse did not attempt to clear it, 

 but actually galloped into it, turning a complete 

 somersault, so that he actually scrambled out on 

 the same bank he came from. Fortunately my 

 friend got his feet out of the stirrups, feeling that 

 the animal would not clear it, and was flung on the 

 opposite bank, merely getting his legs wet. After 

 this I sent the brute to Tattersall's, and got a very 



