necessity of lucrative labour; for these sports and diversions have been invented, which, though not of equal use to the world with manual trades, are, nevertheless, equally fa\tiguing to those who practise them; and differ only in this point, that whereas one is an act of compulsion, the other is an act of choice. The man of rank and fortune, who voluntarily incurs fatigue, may be said to have no other motive than the preservation of his health; but to health may be added fashion. The old Duke of Grafton, with a robust constitution, and uninterrupted health, loved ease and sleep of a winter's morning better than the music of the horns and the hounds; yet he thought it necessary for a man of his rank and fortune to be a sportsman, and to keep and follow a pack of fox-hounds. He therefore ordered his servants to call him at five o'clock in the morning, on days of chase, and to pull him out of bed and dress him, though he should resist, or be unwilling to awake. In this order his Grace was implicitly obeyed, though he defended himself from the assailants with blows and imprecations.

mediately before the operation, was, in two days, astonishingly reduced, taking little or no food, and refusing drink almost entirely. My friend was absent from home, when the horse was bled, and the best account he could obtain of the accident was as follows:-From having been roughly handled before in the operation of phlebotomy, most probably the horse was very shy, and skittish on the approach of the farrier, who, in that rational spirit of revenge, by which these enlightened practitioners are too often actuated, first of all made a ligature round the creature's neck, so extremely tight, that he was nearly choaked. The phleme was then applied, and an unsuccessful stroke given with the blood stick. The horse, it seems, would not stand still to receive another, until they had twitched him so severely, that the lip, as well as the neck, was left tumid, and in a state of inflammation. In fine, several strokes were given before the operation could be completed,

Disagreeably impressed by this, and various similar cases which had come under my observation, I determined, on my return home, on a reference to such books as I had in my possession, which I hoped might afford me some light on the subject; I mean chiefly as to the most safe and proper method of bleeding horses, In the second volume of the treatise of Mr. White, veterinary surgeon, I found some remarks on the common method of bleeding, compared with the late introduction of the lancet, the author giving a decided preference to the former, adding, that even the author of the philosophical treatise himself or words to that effect→→ should not persuade him to adopt the use of the lancet in bleeding a

horse,

horse. Mr. White yet gives no decisive reasons for his preference of the phleme, unless his own habitual use of that instrument is to be view ed in that light. He seems to think there is danger and difficulty in the use of the lancet by a farrier; but does not every year's experience bring fresh instances of the danger and uncertainty of the phleme and blood-stick? Is it more difficult to puncture accurately with the point of the lancet, than to strike accurately with the bludgeon? Does not the whole depend on habit and practice? Have a proportional number of accidents resulted from the use of the lancet? Are not the opinions and authorities as numerous in favour of the new, as the old practice?—I mean of those who ought to be respected as judges. I request the favour, Mr. Editor, of some satisfaction on this point from your professional correspondents.

Taking it for granted that, by the author of the "Philosophical Treatise," Mr. Lawrence was meant, I turned to his book, and found him giving a preference to the lancet, and yet it appears, rather from the recommendation of others, than on any decisive experience of his own. He gives various instances of its successful use, and recommends a common small lancet. I am rather dubious on what he says (p. 305, vol. 2), that, "When a horse's head may be tied up to the rack, pinning the orifice is seldom necessary;" for although such practice be frequent enough, and the accidents from careless pinning, as he describes, are also frequent, yet the leaving a large orifice particularly unsecured by any compression, might possibly be attended with fatal consequences, and such accidents would be more probable in warm close weather. I hope to be

HORSE SWINDLING;

Or, how an honest Man may be aiding and assisting in swindling himself out of his own Horse--Farther, how having sold his own Horse, he may be arrested for the Money.

THE following most ingenious

tour was made by a capital hand, a short time previous to the date of Lord George Gordon's grand display, after his manner, in 1780. The writer of this weceived his infor mation soon after the event, and the hero of the piece was no less a man than Jack Rann; or, the famous Sixteen String Jack, the supposed favourite, true or false, of certain since honourable ladies.

Jack Rann, at his outset in life, went sometimes-according to a phrase of the old school-upon the running snaffle. He had a Pal, or confederate, of the name of Mawley, alias Macawley, long since por trayed at full length, in black and blue, upon a wooden ground. They obtained horses as they could, and sold them immediately to the best. bidder. They possessed a joint stock, and frequented fairs and races, making bets at the risk of stand or run; that is, of demanding the money in case of winning, or making themselves scarce in case the thing did not come off right. In short, they were on the watch for whatever might offer. For exam

E 2

ple,

ple, at an Epsom May meeting, when the town was so crowded, that stable room, indeed scarcely yard room could be found for the horses, Mawley observed a person of nearly his own age, and dressed very much like himself, give a very fine nag to a boy to take care of, who had already many under his care. Watching the gentleman to some distance, Mawley came back to the boy and demanded his horse, pretending he had changed his mind. The boy innocently took a shilling of him, and delivered the nag, paying very little attention, and being deceived by the similarity between the figures of the two men. Mawley instantly rode off with the horse, leaving his own to the care of his confederate.

From some such expedition as this, probably, these gentlemen had returned, when one summer evening they approached the Bunch of Grapes in Dirty lane, Southwark, at the door of which they observed a very likely gelding. The sight of this was so attractive, that they could do no less than inake a halt at the house, in order to see what card might turn up trump. They soon found the owner of the horse, a tallow chandler, a man of good circumstances, who having no farther occasion for a horse, wished to be a seller.

Rann immediately introduced himself as a dealer, and after some chaffering, agreed to give ten pounds for the horse; but a difficulty occurred-Mr. Rann had laid out all his cash, at a fair in Kent, and could only offer his note, at a month, for the purchase. The seller very prudently objecting to a proposal of this nature, from a perfect stran ger, Mawley took him up very short, with" Oh, Sir, if that be all, I will answer for Mr. Rann, as a man of known credit, and trustworthy,

and I shall do it in a way perfectly satisfactory to yourself. Get but his bill, and I will instantly put it into cash for you, only for the discount of a glass of wine. There were no stamps in those happy days; a slip of paper was brought, Rann gave his note for ten pounds to the tallow chandler, or order; the latter endorsed the bill, and Mawley gave him cash for it. The horse was delivered, and sold next day, by the co-partnership, for fifteen guineas, to a gentleman of the Temple, for the use of his servant. When the note became due, in course Rann was not to be found, and Mawley, according to the original intention, put it into the hands of a famous attorney of all work, of that day, who forthwith arrested the original endorser, the tallow chandler, and obtained the money, with some costs, the consequence of a demur the endorser had been advised to make. Thus the poor man paid a good round sum to get rid of his horse. But beyond all this, the attorney had the modesty to wait on him some days after the settlement, and to advise an action for the recovery of his horse, from the gentleman in the Temple, assuring his new client in expectation, that there could be no doubt of success.

The relater of the above facts, and eye-witness of the first transaction, died lately, leaving considerable property. In early life, he broke open his master's bureau, and stole from thence a gold watch and some cash. He yet obtained recommendations to a confidential service; in about three years, from which hợ absconded, having robbed his employer of more than a thousand pounds. After several years passed in obscurity, he obtained another confidential situation, in which, at least, he was never suspected. He

was