The Godolphin Arabian, 167 



prospective bargain of a thousand for him, if alive at 

 two years old. The bird-in-the-hand style of dealing 

 was, however, more to Sir Tatton's taste, and when he 

 put the ultimatum to them, of paying five hundred 

 guineas down for his foal, or running the risk of his 

 terms two years hence, they would not leave him, and 

 got hit for their fancy. The dam of these greys was 

 a short-legged Cervantes mare, and the last of her race 

 produced twins in 1858, to Rifleman. They are the 

 only twins that were ever reared at Sledmere ; and the 

 colt which did its best to baffle Snarry's long deferred 

 hope, by driving its sister from the milk, was even in 

 its very foal-hood the most perfect fac-simile of its 

 sire, when he was in training, that the eye of man 

 could conceive. 



Comus's first season was by far his most brilliant 

 one. Only seventeen mares were sent to him at Mr. 

 Kit Wilson's, and sixteen colts and one filly were the 

 harvest. All Mr. Henry Pierse's mares were among 

 them, and his Rosette and sister to Rosette bred 

 Reveller and Ranter, the first and second for the St. 

 Leger ; while The Marshal, another of the Comuses 

 in Croft's stable, was third. Only four Comuses were 

 in this race ; and in Theodore's year only three 

 started, and beat everything but him. It was with 

 Runt by Reveller, that Mr. Parr drew his first winnings 

 at Haverfordwest ; and the blood at one time promised 

 to achieve great things with its mares ; but Lucetta's 

 descendants, save and excepting the brilliant but 

 eccentric Phlegon, were unworthy of her, whatever she 

 was sent to. As a general thing, she either missed or 

 they died as foals. Ascot had a good deal of coarse- 

 ness about him, and so had his son Fernhill, who was 

 rather an ungenerous horse himself, and got all of his 

 stock, that we have seen, save and excepting Gorsehill, 

 of a decidedly common stamp. 



Humphrey Clinker was the biggest of the Comuses, 

 and though he did prophesy of himself pretty loudly 



