Breeding of Hu n tors. 259 



churchwardens, as clever a winner as his fondest backers 

 could wish. 



But we must bid good-bye to Brocklesby and all its 

 hunting glories, and wend our steps to the little hunt- 

 ing metropoHs of Leicestershire. It was here that 

 Cannon Ball made himself a name, and season after 

 season proved the sire of a very gentlemanly class of 

 brown and chestnut horses, which ran from fifteen-two 

 to fifteen-three, and inherited almost universally his 

 white face, round barrel, and short legs. He was 

 himself a beautifully rich brown, with a white blaze 

 and three white legs, but his stock had all rather up- 

 right shoulders, and his success was not proportionate 

 to the immense amount of superior mares that were 

 sent to him. Umbriel bears some strong general re- 

 semblance to him, as we remember an ex-jockey 

 coming up to him as he took his last parade round the 

 paddock, before the Derby, and apostrophizing Tem- 

 pleman with — " Why, Sim ! there's old Cannon Ball 

 back again !" We think it was a young Cannon Ball 

 which took Sir Tatton's fancy so much in one of his 

 Leicestershire journeys, that he purchased him, and 

 for fear of accidents, led him all the way back from 

 Louc^hboroup;h to Sledmere himself, and was hailed 

 by Lord Althorp from his post-chaise on the road. 

 Even in Sir Tatton's early days (when he thought 

 nothing of riding to London to be measured for a new 

 coat, and walking eight miles before breakfast simply 

 to see his horse fed), he was always wont to walk by 

 the side of his hunter the greatest part of the way to 

 cover, and he still preserved his old practice, even at 

 eighty-five, twice a year, when he set off at four 

 o'clock in the morning with his young horses to and 

 from the marshes. Yorkshiremen still proudly avow 

 that in handling young horses and hedging tools he 

 had no rival, let alone his quiet Quaker-like readiness 

 and terseness of retort, on such as ventured to take a 

 liberty. How quiet his reproof to a young bloo(^., 



S 2 



