56 Silk and Scar lei, 



Tilton. Tom Thumb, Robin Hood, Gift — he bought 

 him from Lord Mornington when he was Wellesley 

 Pole — and Lazarus were some of his great Leicester- 

 shire horses. Then there'd be Minister, a Httle chest- 

 nut ; he used to ride him in the Vale. He'd stop at 

 nothing with him. It was a great speech of his, if 

 he ever saw a horse refuse with his whips — " Throw 

 your heart over, and your horse will follow!' He never 

 rode fast at his fences. I've heard him say, scores of 

 times, " When a ina7i rides at fences a hujidred miles 

 His Style of an hour, depend tipon it he funks!' He 

 Riding at Fences, got ^ many falls. He always seemed to 

 ride loose, quite by balance, not sticking with his 

 knees very much. He used to think he was round- 

 chested, like a ball. I've heard him joke, and say that 

 was the reason he never hurt himself falling. He 

 never made nothing of his leaps ; he'd turn round in 

 his saddle over the biggest, when he was in the air, to 

 look for his hounds. He always went slantways at 

 his jumps ; it's a capital plan. The horse gets his 

 measure better ; he can give himself more room : if 

 you put his head quite straight, it's measured for him ; 

 if you put him slantish, he measures it for himself. 

 You always see Mr. Greene ride at fences that way. 

 He was just a coming out when Mr. Smith was master, 

 and he put him up to many a clever thing in riding. 

 He'd another dodge, when he rode at timber ; he 

 always went slap at the post : he said it made the 

 horse fancy he'd more to do, and put more powder on. 

 His Desperate Nothing ever turned Mr. Smith. If 

 Leaps. -yye had come near the Coplow, I'd have 

 shown you that big ravine he jumped — twelve feet 

 perpendickler, blame me if it ain't, and twenty-one 

 across ; it's been nearly the same these forty years. 

 They had brought their fox nearly a mile and a half 

 from the Coplow, and he went to ground in the very 

 next field. He was riding Guildford, a very hard 

 puller, and go he would. The biggest fence he ever 



