so. huntsman bitterly said to us the other day, "ninety out of a hundred care nothing for the sport, but only how to fill their bellies and draw their wages.' Well, too, might another wring his hands last season, when he saw a brother-huntsman so ill supported, and piteously exclaim" What a pity it is, those young men are so helpless." George Hills has gone to the Herefordshire; and Ennever, his late first whip, has succeeded him at the V. W. H. This pack is composed of Mr. Morell's pack, eleven couple from the Duke of Beaufort's, and some from Jem Hill's. The Old Berkshire will remove to their new kennels at Oakley in a few days; and very natty and nice they are. They have between thirty-three and thirty-four couples, nearly all bitches, and made up their numbers by a draught from Scotland, in addition to those they bought at Mr. Farquharson's sale. Tubney looks very desolate and melancholy, one or two magnolias near the front door only serving to make it doubly All the bitch houses are gone from the orchard; and soon the bones of Hercules and his fellows will be the only traces of the grand Morell dynasty. Perhaps they will go out to exercise with the celebrated Tubney ghost; and the "voices of the night" will be heard, cheered on by that spectral huntsman on Golumpus, or the old white, hard among the cubs in Tubney wood. Wild Rose, who once bloomed in its stables, has gone to the Duke of Beaufort's, along with Sir Warwick; and Rob Roy is the only one of his old stud that Mr. Morell retains. At Newnham they still murder the foxes; and we often wish that the M. F. H. Committee (which we last month spoke of as a club by mistake), were despots, and had the power of coming down with a fine, which we should make treble in a county M.P.'s case. In the Heythrop, the supply is as great as ever; and they know of at least fifty-two litters, though Ditchley is not quite so full as usual. The Chipping Norton kennels progress well, and, despite its beauties, they will not be sorry to leave those tumble-down buildings at Heythrop to the rats and the owls. The new stables at Chipping Norton have accommodation for twenty horses. One of their present stud is an own brother to the Holderness Peter Simple; he is the same light bay colour, but not nearly so lengthy or so slashing in his style. Mr. Morell's Sportsman's sort show well among the entries. Mons. du Bourxie, the purchaser of this dog, has been over in England. At present his pack only consists of the four couple he then purchased; and he has been, we believe, to the Atherstone for their draft. It is a sad pity that Sportsman was not sold as a stallionhound separately, instead of going to a country where, from his lameness, he is not valued. Tongue is what the foreigners all desire so, but we doubt whether he will find the Atherstone great in that respect. Melton was dull as we passed through it on August 17th, and they do not speak cheeringly of their winter prospects. Sir George Wombwell's goes to Lubbenham, Mr. Sidebotham goes altogether, and Mr. Naylor, a millionaire, takes the old club. In the Gartree Hill and Little Dalby part of the country there is said to be hardly a fox; and some whisper doubts about Melton Spinney, and do not think much of the chances of the Duke's new Thorpe Arnold cover. Lord Wilton is building new stables, and must now have accommodation for nearly thirty hunters. The floors are paved with adamantine clinkers, which are made from freestone in the neighbourhood of Little Bytham and Mount Sorrel. They cost 22s. a thousand, and weigh some 15 cwt., and their great advantage is that they never become slippery. Old Dick Christian, who will be eighty next March, is all ripe for another place this cub-hunting season, and can manage four miles over country yet, though five rather beats him. He and his son would also like to take in hunters at Melton to handle. Idas's stall at Melton seems to have been taken by Vitellius, who is quite a hunter sire. One of his best is in Mr. Gilmour's stud, and is christened April Fool, from his having been purchased on that morning. There were never fewer horses in Melton than at this moment; but, with an Indian peace, we may hope for brighter days. Mr. Rarey seems quite lost to sight and memory; but he has been busy teaching for Government, a task for which it is said that he (or rather Mr. Goodenough for him) demanded £25,000 to begin with, but had to come to very different terms. Looking back at the whole thing, we cannot but wonder at and admire the splendid audacity, which enabled them to sell as a secret what had been actually published in a pamphlet months before, and known to half Toronto. It does not do away with the original deception to say that it is necessary to see Mr. Rarey operate, in order to operate yourself. We find now that men have done quite as much by reading the book, and getting a few hints from persons who frequented the Round House, as if they had been there themselves. The actual modus operandi is simple enough, and it all depends on that indescribable sympathy, nerve, and touch which some persons possess, whether they can ever become operators. Still it must be allowed that even the ten-guinea gentlemen are not nearly so sore as one would have expected. Every one has an admiration for genius, in whatever line of life it shows itself; and hence it is no wonder that so many of them say that to see him operate, and to feel assured that whatever case he took in hand would always succeed, at the time at least, was worth all the money. Not having had to pay, ourselves, we can readily forgive him the deception on another ground, viz., that if he had not charged a high price he would never have been noticed. It is all very well for people to start up now, and "We knew all this-we practised horse-taming all our lives-we could do all this;" but the answer is, you failed to excite the slightest attention in the sluggish English mind-you tamed no Cruiser-you brought no zebra under your feet. As it is, the thing in Mr. Rarey's hands attracted such attention, that we have horse-breakers who never saw Mr. Rarey in their lives, buying this penny or sixpenny pamphlet, and getting their horses down, and shaking kettles filled with old stones above them, with the greatest success. One told us the other day-" I save my horse and three days' trouble." Whether Mr. Rarey will ever open groom classes now, is very doubtful, as it would be hard to fill them in the face of his pamphlet, and so many good pupils up and down the country. Those who did make up his £20,000, or whatever it may be, must comfort themselves with the thought that they had some very exciting amusement during the London season, and that they have been bled for the good of horse-breakers and horses in general. They must look upon it simply as a pious fraud." 66 say Having to go into West of Cumberland, we looked in at Sunbeam and Seagull by the way, in their pleasant seaside home near Harrington. Captain Spencer was absent at an agricultural show; but his trainer, John Irvine, was there, amid the pheasants, pigeons, speckled Hamburghs, &c., which share his and his master's affections with the shorthorns and the longtails. John is one of those sterling home-spun enthusiasts, who would rather be crucified or blown from a cannon than sell a dog's chance; and coming from an atmosphere of downy turfites, it was quite refreshing to meet with him. We found him in high feather, and soon had him busy recounting "The fields he won, The prestige he restored;" and showing, with corresponding action, how his dog went "this way and that way" with his hare. He seemed in his heart to hang slightly to Seagull, whereas the "country-side" and the coursing world won't be weaned off their affection for the red. John does not use much flesh for his running dogs, and has evidently a contempt for jelly. Biscuits dipped in beast or sheep's-head broth seem his great resource; and certainly his dogs looked in "Jack's-all-alive" order even now. By three o'clock in a hot summer, he is out on the Willimores behind the house, giving them their exercise; and sundry cock grouse have often led the gallops for Sunbeam there, as they rise and skir for many a furlong along the top of the heather. We were introduced, to begin with, to the first litter of puppies ever got by Sunbeam; and a fine lot they were-four dogs and three bitches, all exactly the colour of the old dog. There were two more dogs originally; but one died, and the other got smothered by its too anxious dam, Spectre. This bitch is by Figaro out of Shuttle; and after being purchased for £29, she ran twice, and broke her leg at Brougham Whinfell. This is also her maiden effort as a mother, as she has twice missed to Judge. She is a wonderfully fine lengthy brood-bitch, with all the Figaro character in the head. Sylvan and Seneca, two promising saplings by Judge out of Punchbowl, and who are to make their maiden appearance at Biggar, were on one side of the kennel-yard; and there was also another black sapling, Selim, by Rob Roy out of Star of the West, who was some three months younger, and the only one left out of a litter of seven, upon whom the distemper descended. This malady played havoc among the young Judges last season; but the next will see several two-season dogs and a cloud of his saplings in the slips, and will either make or mar him. Last season he had sixteen or seventeen bitches at ten guineas—not one more than his public character deserved. Village Girl (who is not Captain Spencer's), Stiletto, and Solon, were the other principal components of the Prospect House lot. The latter is a tall dog, blue and white, with rather a coarse Roman head, and built all over for speed rather than staying. He can lead anything in the kennel to his hare, and out of his five contests he has won three. Seagull, who still keeps his kennel-name of Reveller, Sidonia (late Archibald), who was bought along with him from Mr. Randall, and Sunbeam were in a place by themselves-the latter, with a due regard to effect, lying between his black companions. Certainly he is worth walking thirty miles, with peas in your shoes and burrs in your shirt, simply to see. We never met with a more evenly built dog-elegance itself-strong all over, and yet not one ounce of muscle misplaced. As he looked up at us, with that small bitch-head and beautifully mild eye, and we scanned those points in connection with his forehand and legs, we thought we had never seen such delicate grace and power combined in a greyhound before. He was four years old on May 13th, and he is so well and fresh, that Captain Spencer fully intends to aban don all thoughts of private life for him, and to run him for the Biggar Cup. We believe that he is a light feeder, and not difficult to train, and we never heard a dissentient voice as to his being one of the most perfectly smooth runners that ever went from the slips. He has not the tremendous racing speed which some dogs possess, but few ever worked a hare like him. The white belly is always seen coming round with them, like the crack of doom, at the turns. His sire, John Bull, who broke his neck in striking at a rabbit, as it darted into its hole, was wonderfully game, but lacked pace. Sunbeam only ran four hares before he appeared in public, and his first course was with Star of the West on Mr. Curwen's estates, near Workington. His brother got lamed, and we think that Southport and Blushrose were the only others of that litter which were trained. Captain Spencer has two puppies by Black Cloud out of the former, but they were gone to quarters. Thrice have Sunbeam and Seagull been tried, and they are said to have beaten each other once, and to have had one "no-go." The red weighed 62lbs. when he ran at Altear in 1857, but Irvine drew him 2lbs. lighter this year. Seagull runs at nearly 62lbs., though to the eye he is much the heavier dog of the two. He is especially difficult to get ready, a strong feeder, and won't leave the horses when they are walking. He neither plays himself nor likes to see others play. If he were not muzzled when the canter begins, he would have at his companions like a wild boar. He has cut the flesh out of them pretty severely as it is; and Sunbeam, who got to fighting with him one day, bears the Seagull crest in several places. To look at, he is more rough and ready than beautiful, with hardly the length, and certainly not the fashion of Sunbeam, but resolute to a fault, and ready to jump a house to get to his hare. In fact he requires a very strong first course to get him properly within bounds, and moderate his rushes, and, like all the Bedlamites, the stronger the hare the better it suits him. His old owner, Mr. Randall, will not easily forget the towelling he gave his kennel successor, the eighty-guinea Richmond, first in his course and then in his bye, at Altcar. The trainer of Jeanie Deans burns for revenge both on him and Sunbeam; but "Who's afraid?" is John Irvine's watchword. Perhaps no kennel ever possessed at one time two such first-class dogs, and yet so utterly opposite in their styles of going. But we must not forget Sidonia, by Ranter-a very nice little dog, and a Newmarket winner. It will no doubt fall to his lot or Solon's, to try the three saplings before Biggar, and if they can beat him they will stand a good chance of earning their biscuits. And so after stopping to look for a moment at the little bay Arab stallion in the stable (whose sweet-looking head had to endure a twitch both on nose and ear before he would give in), and the bay-sheeted hunter, who was, like Sir Roger de Coverley, "clearing his pipes in good air," as he walked round and round in his paddock, reflecting on days to come with the Cheshire and Mr. Lawson's, we bade good-bye to the Cumberland cracks, with the hope to meet them in form at the Waterloo, and turned us Doncaster-wards. REVIEW OF YACHTING EVENTS, 1858. (Continued.) "Come on! my comrades of the sea! But sport the purest that can be, Following the course of dates, the matches of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, which were sailed on the 6th of July, next claim our attention. At this regatta there were three distinct matches and four prizes. The yachts entered were classed as under, and handicapped for tonnage at the usual rate : SECOND CLASS. For yachts which had not won a prize in the R. T. Y. C. matches within the last two years. With such entries as these, nothing was wanted but wind. Occasionally during the match, this pretty little fleet was favoured with merry breezes; but at other times the wind was very light and baffling, and so changeable as to go a round-and-a-half of the compass during the day; therefore it was anything but a good test of the merits of the respective vessels: "good-luck" standing a better chance than any other event in the match. Indeed, so tantalizing was the weather, that the course was curtailed about two miles above the Chapman Head; and after sundry other choppings and changes of wind, the winning goal at Erith was finally gained-Vampire being first of the fleet by five minutes, and therefore (though only a third-class yacht) entitled to the first prize, value £40-a silver-gilt vase. The Pearl was second yacht, and entitled to the second prize-a silver-gilt jug, also of the value of £40. And the Emily being first of her class was winner of These yachts, Staunch and Quiver, did not start. N |