RIDING RECOLLECTIONS 



" weaker brethren," but what a dog in the manger 

 must the weaker brother be ! 



I have never heard that these " huntingf 

 parsons," as they are called, neglect the smallest 

 detail of duty to indulge in their favourite sport, 

 but when they do come out you ma)' be sure to 

 see them in the front rank. Can it be that the 

 weaker brother is jealous of his pastor's superiority 

 in the saddle ? I hope not. At any rate it 

 seems unfair to cavil at the enjoyment by another 

 of the pursuit we affect ourselves. Let us show 

 more even-handed justice, if not more charity, 

 and endeavour at least to follow the good man's 

 example in the parish, though we are afraid to 

 ride his line across the fields. 



It would be endless to enter on all the different 

 styles of horsemanship in which fine hands are 

 of the utmost utility. On the racecourse, for 

 instance, it seems to an outsider that the whole 

 performance of the jockey is merely a dead pull 

 from end to end. But only watch the lightest 

 urchin that is flung on a two-year-old to scramble 

 home five furlongs as fast as ever he can come ; 

 you will soon be satisfied that even in these 

 tumultuous flights there is room for the display 

 of judgment, patience, though briefly tried, and 

 manual skill. The same art is exercised on the 

 light smooth snaffle, held in tenacious grasp, that 

 causes the heavily -bitted charger to dance and 



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