so that escape is impossible. The tip or type acts upon two pins, and returns to the equilibrium of its own accord when any passing vermin has fallen into the pit. I have visited it with Hopkinson, occasionally, after a week's absence, and found a motley company down below. The badger, pole-cat, wild-cat, weasel, and stoat, with hares and rabbits, are at times caught together; and although the wild animals make war upon the others when at large, they are found mixed together in a state of peace and safety, from the fear and abstinence which every beast of prey exhibits when first placed in unexpected confinement. B.

(To be Continued.)

BREATHES THERE THE MAN.

"Breathes there the man with soul so dead,"
As coolly to consume your bread,
Live in your house, your wine partake
His heart to cheer, his thirst to slake,-
Ride all your horses to a stand-still
And then lampoon you in a hand-bill?
"If such there be-go, mark him well!"
His end who cannot but fortell?
If, by some strange caprice of fate,
The gibbit creak not with his weight,
And shouts of gaping crowds beneath
Consign the monster to the death,—
Yet shall the prison yard behold
The wretch, to Satan doubly sold,
With brimless hat, and coat threadbare,
And trousers scandalous to wear;
Covered with vermin, filth, and shame,
Dragging with pain his wasted frame;
Till want and fell consumption seize
Their victim, rotted by disease!
He dies, without a friend to cheer
His parting soul, or lift his bier:
While passing thieves each other tell-
"That scamp, at last, has gone to
And think their coterie improved,
The foul lampooner thus removed!
So, by a miracle, unhung,

He dies, "unhonoured and unsung!"

!"

From Poems by G. F. CARNEGIE, Esq.

A VISIT TO THE ROYAL STUD AT HAMPTON

COURT.

By Nimrod.

ALTHOUGH it appears but as yesterday, it is now ten years since I committed the very imprudent act of subscribing to a bond, imposing upon myself a penalty if I wrote one line upon sporting subjects, for any periodical, save the old Sporting Magazine, or otherwise published matter of such a nature, either in my own name or under the assumed one of Nimrod, for the above named term. Why I was compelled to violate that bond, I need not again say, my statement and affidavit having been already before the public in these pages; but as the period of my exile is now expired, I took a trip to old England the last week in the last month, to look about me, and to prepare the way for my return.

As may be supposed, the objects I had in view during my late visit to England, and of course to London, were numerous, and my time was fully employed; yet, as I intend going to Paris on Monday next, for the races there and at Chantilly, where it may be expected that I shall see the owners of various continental studs, also the royal one of France, I thought within myself, that, in case of my being asked the question, it would appear strange in Nimrod to acknowledge, he had never seen the royal one of his own horse-celebrated country. Now there was no difficulty in doing this. From the character I had given me in Scotland of the gentleman now at the head of this part of the royal establishmentColonel Wemyss, Equerry to the King, and brother to the Member for Fife, and the joint manager of the Fife hounds-I felt assured I had nothing to do but to put myself into the Hampton Court stage and ring at his bell; so taking an early breakfast at Hatchett's-my old quarters when in London in more auspicious times-I was at his door by eleven o'clock in the forenoon, and was agreeably surprised at finding some of the kindest of my Scotch friends under his roof*.

The reception I met with at the Stud House was exactly what I was prepared to receive. Colonel Wemyss immediately sent for the stud groom, and although I should have considered that a sufficient compliment had been paid to me by being permitted to inspect the paddocks with him alone, the Colonel insisted upon accompanying me through the various departments of the establishment, notwithstanding the weather was far from being inviting, as it rained the whole of the morning. We were, however, attended in our walk by Mr. Worley, for such is the name of the stud groom-who, I was given to understand, has been in the service of our royal family upwards of forty years, chiefly with the

* Mr. Whyte Melville and his family.

late Duke of York, having accompanied his royal highness to Germany. His appearance is highly respectable-that of the old fashioned, trustworthy servant of some great personage; but what is far superior to appearance, (oftentimes a cheat), he is said to po sess, in substance, all the good qualities required of him. Of this indeed, Ica partly form a judgment from what I myself saw. Every thing in and about the paddocks, and the sheds, was in the very best keeping, and the stock, both old and young, appeared in the highest possible condition. The goodness of the hay indeed-a material point with brood mares-may be estimated from the following fact. There were several Scotch (polled) cattle in the paddocks, which were quite fat enough for the butcher, although they had eaten nothing else throughout the winter; and the oats the mares and the young stock were eating were of the very finest growth-so much so as to induce me to inquire the price given for them, which I found to be 27s. per quarter. In fact the comfortable and secure state in which the mares-including those not belonging to the king, but sent to the different stud horses-are to be seen in the Hampton Court paddocks, forms a striking contrast with the uncomfortable and insecure state in which they are to be seen in many that I have visited, and those of high renown. On inquiring what allowance of corn was given to the young things, I was told "as much as they will eat" or, vulgo dictum, "the belly is the measure."

I had no conception of the extent of this establishment, and was surprised at finding there were no less than forty-three paddocks, varying in size from three to five acres each. The land is of excellent quality, which is indeed apparent from the closeness of the bite; and every paddock contains a roomy shed, with doors of that width which precludes the possibility of accidents so frequently arising from narrow ones. But what a breeding stud would these paddocks be equal to, if each paddock was divided as ought to be the case, for they are much too large now-into two, or even into three! I was informed that they are rented of her Majesty, whose property they are in virtue of her office of Ranger of Bushey-park.

At the time I visited it, the Royal Stud consisted of

COLT FOALS.

A CHESTNUT COLT, by The Colonel, dam by Scud, out of Goosander, (the dam of Shoveler and Sailor)

A BROWN COLT, by Tranby or The Colonel, out of Galatea, by Amadis, out of Paulina, by Sir Peter

A CHESTNUT COLT, by The Colonel, out of Scandal, by Selim, (sister to Scratch and Scornful)

A BROWN COLT, by The Colonel, out of Posthuma, (the dam of Posthaste)

A BROWN COLT, by Bizarre, out of Young Mouse, by Godolphin, out of Mouse, by Sir David

A CHESTNUT COLT, by Taurus, out of Miss Clifton, by Partisan, out of Isis, by Sir Peter

A BAY COLT, by The Colonel, out of Locket, by Blacklock, out of Miss Paul, by Sir Paul

A BROWN COLT, by Peter Lely, out of Miss O'Neil, by Camillus, out of Miss Craigie, (Birmingham's dam)

A BAY COLT, by The Colonel, out of Spermaceti, by Whalebone

A CHEST COLT, by The Colonel, dam by Partisan, out of Pawn, (sister to Penelope)

A ROAN COLT by Sir Benjamin Backbite, out of Miss Craven

A BAY COLT, by Parre, out of Young Espagnolle, (sister to Rapid Rhone)

A BAY COLT, by The Colonel, out of an Arabian Mare

FILLY FOALS.

A BAY FILLY, by Sultan, out of Rachel, by Whalebone, out of Moses's dam

A BAY FILLY, by Emilius, out of Ada, (sister to Augusta)

A CHESTNUT FILLY, by The Colonel, out of Peri, (the dam of Sir Hercules)

A BROWN FILLY, by Čamel, out of Codicil, by Smolensko, out of Legacy, by Bening brough

A CHESTNUT FILLY, by Priam, out of Delphine, by Whisker

A BAY FILLY, by Tranby, out of Elfrida, by Whalebone

A BAY FILLY, by Grey Comus, out of Xarifa, by Moses

BROOD MARES.

BELVOIRINA, by Stamford, dam by Mercury-covered by Acteon
ELIZABETH, by Rainbow, out of Belvoirina-covered by Camel
MARIA, by Waterloo, out of Belvoirina - covered by Camel

A CHESTNUT MARE, by Oscar, out of Camarine's dam-covered by The Colonel
RACHEL, by Whalebone, out of the dam of Moses-covered by Reveller
SPERMACETI, by Whalebone, dam by Gohanna-covered by Priam

SCANDAL, by Selim, dam by Haphazard-covered by Actæon

POSTHUMA by Orville, out of Medora, by Selim-covered by The Colonel SULTANA, (sister to Sultan) by Selim, out of Bacchante-covered by The Colonel and Actæon

FLEUR-DE-LIS, by Bourbon, dam by Stafford-covered by Emilius

ADA, (sister to Augusta) by Woful, dam by Rubens-covered by Acteon
ELFRIDA, by Whalebone, out of a sister to Gaberlunzie-covered by Priam
GALATEA, by Amadis, out of Paulina, by Sir Peter-covered by The Colonel
DELPHINE, by Whisker, out of My Lady, by Comus-covered by Sultan
A BAY MARE, by Partisan, out of Pawn-covered by Acteon

A GREY ARABIAN MARE-Covered by Rubini

PERI, (dam of Sir Hercules)-covered by The Colonel

MISS CRAVEN, by Mr. Lowe, dam by Soothsayer-covered by Acteon
XARIFA, by Moses, dam by Rubens-covered by Rubini

MISS O'NEIL, by Camillus, out of Birmingham's dam, by Orville-covered by
Sultan

WINGS, by The Flyer, out of Oleander, by Sir David-covered by Acteon
MISS CLIFTON, by Partisan, out of Isis, by Sir Peter-covered by The Colonel
YOUNG MOUSE, by Godolphin, out of Mouse, by Sir David-covered by Emilius
YOUNG ESPAGNOLLE, by Partisan, out of Espagnolle, by Orville-covered by Logic
SISTER to Sailor, by Scud, out of Goosander-covered by The Colonel
LOCKET, by Blacklock, dam Miss Paul, by Sir Paul-covered by Acteon
CODICIL, by Smolensko, dam Legacy, by Beningborough-covered by The Colonel
BLACK DAPHNE, by Juniper, dam Spotless, by Walton-covered by Taurus
GULNARE, by Smolensko, dam Medora, by Selim-covered by Sir Hercules
LA DANSEUSE, by Blacklock, dam Madam Saqui, by Remembrancer-covered by
Camel

MARPESSA, by Muley, dam Clare, by Marmion-not covered
BURDEN, by Camel, out of Maria, by Waterloo-not covered
NANNINE, dam of Glaucus, by Selim-covered by Rowton

Actæon 15 gs.,

The prices of the stud horses are, The Colonel 20 gs., Cain 15 gs., Rubini 12 gs. per mare. On my asking the question, I found there were not so many mares sent to the stud this year as the last by somewhere about twenty-the number having been fifty last year, and only a little above thirty this. But nothing is more fluctuating than the name and fame of stallions to produce race horses, as all past experience has shown, with a few rare exceptions.

The first object of my curiosity was the two Eastern horses lately made a present of to the King, by the Imaun of Muscat, together with two brood mares, and a fine 74 gun ship. The one is a black, and the other a bay horse, and I shall dismiss my account of them in a very few words. The newspapers say, they know not in what way the "the valuable gift of the horses is to be acknowledged," but doubt not its being one worthy of the King of England. Now if I were the King of England, I would accompany the returned compliment with a hint that the Imaun of Muscat need not trouble himself to send any more such live lumber to my dominions. It is as bad as "coals to Newcastle," for we have horses twice as good in our own studs. As for the bay horse he has not even the characteristics that mark the real horse of the desert. The other horse may get hunters, but with the exception of his thighs he has few racing points, and is of extraordinary mean appearance. Some allowance however should be made for their having so lately arrived in this country. Two mares also accompanied the stallions, one of which produced a colt foal on the passage. There are also two grey Arab stallions in the stud, presents from the King of Oude; and an old Arab mare; but none of them will bear looking at in company with King William the Fourth's stud.

We next visited the stallions. I bad not seen The Colonel since the last day he ran, but having once seen him is enough to enable one to know him again. He is a noble animal-worth that big ship full of pseudo-Arabians—and his stock are, like himself, very full of bone. Of their racing powers I can say nothing, that being now quite out of my line, nor did I ever know much about it; but it appears that out of such a mare as Posthuma, he can get a runner*. Posthuma was put into the royal stud at the enormous sum of eleven hundred guineas!

Actæon is a splendid animal, and more like a modern race horse than The Colonel. When we look at his stock, and see what they have done, we need no longer marvel at a thousand guineas having been given for him, to the Viscount Kelburne. But in fact they are all splendid animals, I mean the four stallions-and of that stamp which offers a chance of their produce being good for something, if they cannot race. What a hunter would The Colonel have made if he had been used solely as such! The brood mares are thirty-three in number; I saw them all but one, * Posthaste, Colonel Peel's.

NO. LXI.-VOL. XI.

F

C