Dick Christian again. 3 1 



to ten years old. They haven't the animation of a 

 young horse ; those young uns will still try to struggle 

 themselves right, and they'll not touch you if they can 

 help it. I'll be bound I'd be safer riding twenty 

 young horses, than one old one. When a horse made 

 his start to jump, I always knew if he was going to 

 fall. I prepared myself ; if he took off collected at his 

 fence, I could keep him so ; if he was falling, I could 

 clap my hands on his withers, and get clear of him, 

 and keep the reins too. These great natural jumpers 

 are desperate dangerous ; they won't collect and get 

 out of danger ; if people get killed, a hundred to one 

 them great natural jumpers does it ; when they're a 

 little pumped down we comes with a smasher, and you 

 gets killed, or goes on by yourself into the next field. 

 I hate larking with horses. I mind Mr. The effects of 

 Nevill and that chestnut mare of his. Larking. 

 Verbena (Lord Southampton had her when he was at 

 The Quorn), he thought her the best animal he ever 

 rode. Once I see him jump three gates with her, 

 coming home from hunting, and she stops dead at the 

 fourth, and she was never the same after. I see her, 

 after that, refuse a gate with Dick Burton, when he 

 hunted The Quorn. " Sptir her again. Name r I 

 says. Dick never sees me to this day but he hails me 

 with them words before we shake hands. Mr. Nevill 

 spoilt Reindeer just the same way ; he was a grand 

 entire horse ; and Mr. Coke offered him 500 guineas 

 for him. We were coming from hunting one day, and 

 he says, ^^ Lets have a lark, it will do Reindeer good.'* 

 I couldn't get him off it nohow ; nigh the end of the 

 fourth mile, we comes down together. " There, we've 

 done it now, sir," I says ; the very next fence we 

 comes to, a very small one, he stops. I made him 

 have it ; but he was a lost horse from that day. No 

 end of trouble with him. 



I must have a bit of a peck at this Ralph Holding, 

 Rarey. I should like to know if he can the Horse-tamer. 



