Some Fables on Horses.

Cricketer.

Probably, for research and widely diffused knowledge, spread over a long and laborious life, the work of that celebrated octogenarian, Dr. Cobham Brewer, who, at the age of eighty-five, brought out his new edition of “Phrase and Fable,” is, to my thinking, unique in its way, teeming as it does with interest to every class of both reader and writer.

As a sportsman, it appeals to me in many a page, and in culling a few tit-bits from it I may help to enlighten and enliven your readers on things not generally known.

Longchampsis, as we know, to-day, the scene of one of the most fashionable French racecourses, yet history tells us that every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in Passion week, the Parisians went there in procession in private carriages and hired cabs, all the smartly dressed men and women who wished to display their spring fashions. The origin of the custom being that there was once a famous nunnery there, noted for its singing. In Passion week all who could went to hear these religious women sing the Psalms. This custom grew into a fashion, although the nunnery no longer exists, the procession is as fashionable as ever, and so is the racecourse.

Lose the horse and win the saddle.A man made a bet of a horse that another could not say the Lord’s Prayer without a wandering thought. The bet was accepted, but before half-way through, the person accepting the bet looked up and said, “By the bye, do you mean the saddle also?”

A horseis worthy of especial notice here. A good horse is said to have fifteen points. He should have three properties of a man, three of a woman, three of a fox, three of a hare, and three of an ass—of a man, bold, proud, and hardy—of a woman, fair-breasted, fair-haired, and easy of movement—of a fox, a good tail, short ears, with a good trot—of a hare, large eyes, a dry head, and good running—of an ass, a big chin, flat legs, and a good hoof.

Neptune is supposed to have created the horse. When Athene, the goddess of wisdom, contended with Neptune as to which should give the name to Athens, the gods decided that it should be called by the name of that deity which bestowed on men the most useful boon. Athene created the olive tree, and Neptune created the horse. The vote was given in favour of the olive tree, and the city was called Athens.

The first person that drove afour-in-handwas, Virgil tells us, Ericthonius.

On the death of Smerdis, King of Persia, the competitors for the throne agreed that he should be king whose horse neighed first when they met the day following. The groom of Darius showed his horse a mare on the day appointed, and immediately it arrived at the spot on the following day the horse began to neigh, and won the crown for its master.

A horse in the catacombs was an emblem of the swiftness of life.

In Christian life the horse is the emblem of courage and generosity.

The horses of Diomed, Tyrant of Thrace, were flesh-eaters, and were fed on the strangers who visited his kingdom. Hercules vanquished the tyrant, and gave his carcase to the horses to eat.

In the British Army we have Elliot’s Light Horse, Paget’s Irregular Horse, The Black Horse, The Blue Horse, The Green Horse, The Royal Horse Guards, and The White Horse, as applied to particular regiments.

Both in mythology and history we have a multitude of celebrated steeds. Thus:—

Akabar.—A hot one. Was one of the horses of Sunna.

Abaster.—Away from the stars—belonged to Pluto.

Abraxus.—Was one of the horses of Aurora.

Actæon.—Effulgent, was one of the horses of the sun.

Æthon.—Fiery red. Was another horse of the sun.

Acton.—Swift as an eagle. Was a horse of Pluto’s.

Aligero Clavileno.—The wooden pin-winged horse on which Don Quixote mounted to effect the deliverance of Trifaldi and her companions.

Amathea.—No loiterer. Was one of the horses of the sun.

Aquiline.—Like an eagle. Raymond’s steed, bred on the banks of the Tagus.

Arion.—War horse. Hercules’ horse, given to Adrastos. Brought out of the earth by Neptune with his tridents. Its right feet were those of a human being; it spoke with a human voice, and ran with incredible swiftness.

Arundal.—Swift as a swallow. The horse of Bevis of Southampton.

Babicca.—The simpleton. The Cids’ horse. He survived his master two and half years, during which time nobody was allowed to mount him, and he was buried before the gates of the Monastery of Valencia, and two elm trees were planted to mark the spot. This horse’s name arose because Roderigo in his youth was given the choice of a horse by his god-father, and chose a rough colt, and his donor called him Babicca, a fool, for doing so, but Roderigo transferred the name to his gift horse.

Barjadowas Ronaldo’s horse, of bay colour, once the property of Amadis of Gaul. He was found in a cave guarded by a dragon, which the wizard slew. He is said to be still alive, but flies at the approach of man, and no one can hope to catch him.

Babico.—Swift, like Zanthos, his sire was the West Wind, and his dam Swiftfoot the harpy, and was given by Neptune to Peleus.

Bayard.—A bright bay. He belonged to the four sons of Aymon, and grew larger or smaller as one of these four mounted him.

Bevis.—The swift. The horse of Lord Marmion.

Black Agnes.—Belonging to Mary Queen of Scots, given her by her brother Moray, and named after Agnes of Dunbar.

Black Saladin.—Warwick’s famous horse. Coal black. His sire was Malek, and it was said of him that when the race of Malek failed the race of Warwick would fail also, and so it came to pass.

Borak.—The lightning. The horse that conveyed Mahomet from earth to the seventh heaven. He was milk white, had the wings of an eagle, and a human face with a horse’s cheeks. Every pace he took was equal to the furthest range of human sight.

Brigliadoro.—Golden bridle. Orlando’s famous charger, second only in swiftness and wonderful powers to Bayardo.

Bronte.—Thunder. A horse of the sun.

Brown Hal.—A model pacing stallion.

Bucephalus.—Ox-head. The celebrated charger of Alexander the Great, who was the only person that could mount him, and he always knelt down to receive his master. He was thirty years old when he died, and Alexander built a city as a mausoleum, which he called Bucephala.

Capilet.—A grey horse of Sir Andrew Aguecheek, spoken of in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night.” A capilet signifies a small wen on a horse’s neck.

Celer.—Swift. The horse of the Roman Emperor Verus, that was fed on almonds and raisins, covered with purple, and stalled in the Imperial palace.

Cæsar.—A model Percheron stallion.

Copenhagen.—The Duke of Wellington’s charger that he rode at Waterloo. Napoleon’s favourite charger was called Marengo, and was represented in the famous picture by Vernet of Napoleon crossing the Alps. His remains are now in the United Service Museum in London.

Cyllaros.—Named from Cylla in Troas, a celebrated horse of Castor and Pollux.

Dinos.—The Marvel. Was Diomed’s horse.

Doomstead.—Was the horse of the Fates.

Ethon.—Fiery. Was one of the horses of Hestor.

Fadda.—Was Mahomet’s white mule.

Fiddleback.—Was Oliver Goldsmith’s unfortunate pony.

Galathé.—Cream coloured. Was a horse of Hector’s.

Grané.—Grey coloured. Was Seigfried’s horse of marvellous swiftness.

Grizzle.—Grey coloured. Was the skin-and-bone animal that carried Dr. Syntax.

Haizum.—Was the horse of the Archangel Gabriel.

Harpagos.—A rapid carrier. One of the horses of Castor and Pollux.

Hippocompés.—A horse of Neptune that had only two legs, his hindquarters being a dragon’s tail.

Incitatus.—The Roman Emperor Caligula’s horse, which he made a priest and a consul. Its manger was of ivory, and it drank out of a golden pail.

Jenny Geddes.—Was Robert Burn’s mare.

Kantaka.—The white horse of Science.

Ganhama of India.—Mentioned by Budda.

Kelpie.—The colour of seaweed. The water horse of fairy mythology.

Lampos.—Shining like a lamp. One of the horses of the Sun.

Lamri.—The curvetter. King Arthur’s mare.

Morocco.—Bank’s famous horse. Its shoes were of silver, and one of its exploits was to mount the steeple of St. Paul’s.

Molly.—Sir Charles Napier’s mare that died at the age of 35 years.

Orelia.—The charger of Roderick, the last of the Goths. Noted for its speed and symmetry.

Pale Horse.—On which Death rides.

Pegasos.—Born near the source of the ocean. The winged horse of Apollo that Perseus rode when he rescued Andromeda.

Phæton.—The shining one. A steed of Aurora.

Phlegon.—The blazing one. One of the horses of the mid-day sun.

Phrenicos.—Intelligent. The horse of Hiero of Syracuse that was the winner of the Olympic prize for single horses in the seventy-third olympiad.

Rubicon.—With a dark tail and some white hairs. Astolpho’s horse in Orlando Furioso. Its dam was Fire, and its sire Wind, and it fed on unearthly food.

Ronald.—Was Lord Cardigan’s thoroughbred chestnut horse, with white stockings on the near fore and hind feet, that carried him through the charge at Balaclava.

Rosabelle.—Mary Queen of Scots’ favourite palfrey.

Rosignol.—Was the palfrey of Madame Ghatalet, of Crecy, the lady with whom Voltaire resided for ten years.

Shinfaxe.—Shining mane. The steed which draws the car of day.

Sleipnor.—Odin’s grey horse, that had eight legs, and could traverse either land or sea. He typifies the wind, which blows over land and water from eight principal points.

Sorrel.—The horse of William the Third, that used to catch his foot in a mole-trap, and ultimately caused his death. He was blind of one eye and mean of stature. Is ill-fitted to carry a king.

Strymon.—Named from the River Strymon in Thrace, and immolated by Zerxes before he invaded Greece.

Vegliantino.—The famous steed of Orlando, meaning “the little vigilant one.”

Zanthos.—The chestnut coloured. One of the horses of Achilles that announced his approaching death when unjustly chidden by him.

O’Donoghue’s White Horse.—Denotes the waves, which come on a windy day, crested with foam. The spirit of the hero appears every May-day, and glides to sweet yet unearthly music over the lakes of Killarney on his white horse, preceded by groups of young men and maidens, flinging spring flowers in his path.

We have the phrases: “A dark horse”—one whose merits are unknown. “Flogging a dead horse.” “Riding the wooden horse”—a military punishment, a sort of flogging stool, now abolished. “I will win the horse or lose the saddle”—neck or nothing.

“They cannot set horses together.” That is, they cannot agree.

“The Trojan horse” is a deception, a hidden danger.

“It is a good horse that never stumbles.” Every one has his faults.

“To get upon his high horse.” To give one’s self airs.

“To set the cart before the horse.” To reverse the right order of things.

“When the horse is stolen lock the stable door.”

“Working on a dead horse.” Doing work which has already been paid for.

I could continue to play on this horsey fiddle almostad infinitum, thanks to old Dr. Brewer, who very clearly illustrates how from the most ancient days the horse came to the forefront in mythology, history, poetry, and romance. The one quadruped created for the benefit of man, and honoured with the first place from the earliest ages in man’s affections. Notwithstanding the fact that in these last days man has devised sundry inventions aimed at his dethronement, such as steam and motor power, let us hope that he may long survive those machinations.

In the illustrious days of Roman greatness it is worthy of note that the horse was promoted almost to divine worship, as, indeed, he had been in Grecian mythology. The Emperor Caligula made him a priest and a consul. We have come to regard horses as of some value, when we are not afraid of appraising one of them at nearly £40,000, and selling our casts off at £20,000 and upwards.

The fables which I have ventured to string together here may have their transient interest, and help owners of racehorses with a few appropriate names for their best. This will aid to prove the truth of their worth, and show that although the world has grown older, and the age of romance and love of mythology has passed away, the horse in all his beauty and perfection is with us still, and we trust that he ever will be so.

Borderer.

HOT ON THE TRAIL.

THE WORRY.Photos by T. C. Bristow Noble.]

The Advent of the Otter-hunting Season.

Never, perhaps, was otter-hunting more popular than it is to-day, though it is one of the oldest sports in existence. Even as far back as the reign of King John otters were hunted with hounds throughout the summer months. But until comparatively late years the sport seems to have always been that of the few rather than, as now, that of the many. In a great measure it owes its increasing popularity to the more generous spirit that happily now prevails among sportsmen.

The member of the angling society and the owner of the private fishery are no longer at war with the interesting little quarry, that is, on those rivers which are visited by otterhounds, and on many that are not. Indeed, it is more than probable that in a few years’ time it will be considered as discreditable an action for a private person to shoot or otherwise destroy an otter, as it is to secretly kill a fox in the Midlands. During the season that is slowly commencing there will be twenty-four packs of otterhounds hunting in the United Kingdom, as was the case last year. The first meet took place on April 6th, when the Essex Otterhounds, which Mr. L. Rose still continues to hunt, met at Witham Station.

This was an early start indeed. The water must have been very cold, and the hounds in consequence could have shown no great keenness. The truth is, April is too early a month in which to make a commencement. It is wiser by far to wait till about the middle of May before bringing the hounds from their kennels. By this time the countryside is putting on her most resplendent mantle, the water is growing warm at last, and followers and hounds alike can thoroughly enjoy the sport.

It is not a sport that only the rich can indulge in. Almost any and everybody can afford to follow it, whilst rarely has the agriculturist occasion to complain of damage being done to either his crops or fences by the followers. It is gratifying to notice that masters are determined to put a stop to the increasing practice of riding to otterhounds. Apart from it being quite unnecessary to be mounted, horse people are often a danger and always a nuisance among the legitimate following.

There is, moreover, a growing inclination to utilise the rough-coated hound to a greater extent than hitherto. But one of the most pleasant features of modern otter-hunting is the large number of ladies that follow and subscribe to the various packs, coupled with which must be the fact that there are now two lady “masters”—Mrs. Walter Cheesman, the Master of Crowhurst Otterhounds, and Lady Mary Hamilton, who owns the Hamilton pack, which, as we write, was given to her a few days ago by Mr. R. Carnaby Forster.

The two photographs that we reproduce herewith were taken during a recent run and kill with Mrs. Cheesman’s hounds.

A Hundred Years Ago.

Cockings. Royal Pit, Westminster.Monday, April 15th.—The grand main of cocks, between the Hon. George Germaine (Potter, feeder) and Mr. Wilson (Lester, feeder), consisting of twenty-seven main and twenty byes, commenced fighting. The following is a statement:—

Setters.—Walters for Mr. Wilson and young Potter for Mr. Germaine.

Before fighting, 11 to 8 on Potter; after Monday’s fight, 6 to 4 on Lester; after Tuesday’s fight 7 to 4 on Lester; after Wednesday’s fight, 11 to 8 on Potter; after Thursday’s fight, 12 to 10 on Lester; after Friday’s fight, even betting.

The whole of the fighting was remarkably good, and did much credit to both the feeders and setters.

In the short space of two hours in the afternoon of the 19th ult. [March] Mr. Isaac Pearson, of Poolbank, near Kendal, killed ten woodcocks at eleven shots on the woody grounds at Whitbarrow.

The following curious circumstance happened on Monday, the 17th ult. The Allendale Foxhounds pursued a fox for some time on Staward banks and the grounds adjacent, until at last poor reynard was under the necessity of taking shelter in the crags; and the sportsmen, with greatest difficulty, opened the hole and secured their prey, which, upon examination, was found to be a large bitch-fox. She was taken to Bishopfield, where, to the great surprise of the keeper, on the Thursday following, she brought forth six fine young cubs, which are at this time with the mother, and are all likely to live.

Home Circuit.—Brownv.Boxall. At Kingston, March 27th, this action was brought against the defendant for having in his possession a tunnel net for catching partridges, contrary to the statute of Queen Anne. The fact of finding the net at the defendant’s house was proved by one of the Duke of York’s gamekeepers. The net was produced, and it appeared to have been recently used, as a great many partridges’ feathers were sticking to it. No defence was made, and the plaintiff had a verdict for the penalty of five pounds.

Otter-hunting.—On Thursday, April 24th, the hounds of Andrew Corbet, Esq., of Acton Reynald, in the county of Salop, threw off at Ternhill, and, opposite Fordall, hit on a drag which led them to a covered drain between the two pools at Buntings-dale, from which an otter was immediately bolted into the lower pool, where he showed excellent sport for forty minutes, and was killed in high style. On Friday, the same hounds resumed the sport, throwing off at Brook’s Mill, near Combermere, in Cheshire, where they were again successful in finding and killing a large dog otter. On Saturday, this famous pack threw off at Norton, above Drayton, and came down water to Peetswood pools, where they found a remarkable large otter, weighing 23 lbs., which was speared by Mr. Davies, after a chase of two hours.

The Sportsman’s Library.

The latest addition to the popular “Fur, Feather and Fin Series” of monographs is Mr. T. F. Dale’s contribution on the fox.[14]A most entertaining volume he has put together, for he combines practical knowledge with much reading; and the preparation of the work has evidently been a labour of love. There is not a phase of interest relating to the fox upon which the author has not touched, from the secrets of the animal’s normal life to the part he plays in fable and legend. He opens his first chapter with the apt remark that “the survival of the fox is the most notable fact in his natural history”; and of the British fox this is especially true: it was Ralph Holinshed, if we mistake not, who in Queen Elizabeth’s time offered the explanation of the fox’s survival in the suggestion that he must long ere then have been exterminated but for the indulgence shown him by the farming classes out of goodwill to the sporting tastes of their landlords. In course of his remarks on the species and varieties of foxes the author touches upon the disputed question of fox-dog hybrids, and clearly leans to the belief that such crosses do occur under favourable circumstances. He will have the weight of expert opinion with him in his observations on scent. It is, we think, generally accepted as a fact that the scent of individual foxes differs, at least in degree; but is it certain that Asiatic foxes leave no scent? We may grant that absence of this quality would be of distinct advantage to a weak animal in countries where beasts of prey occur; but does not scent confer an advantage on the owner as well as a disadvantage? We should be inclined to think that the heat of the sun was largely accountable for the lack of scent noticeable in Indian foxes.

Mr. Dale puts forward a theory to account for the preference often shown by the breeding vixen for a badger’s cete which commends itself; he suggests that the presence of the badger offers a measure of protection against the invasion of terriers—an advantage which perhaps would be fully appreciated by an animal so intelligent as the fox. True, not every badger has a welcome for the fox which takes up its quarters in the cete, as witness the cubs killed by badgers, after the method which makes the cause of death unmistakable; but we must allow for the varying temperament and disposition of individual members of any given species.

“WHEN ALL IS QUIET.”From “The Fox”: “Fur, Feather and Fin” Series. (By permission of the Publishers.)

An excellent and suggestive chapter is that on the “Education of the Fox,” and one that greatly tempts us to quotation; one remark only we reproduce, however, for the benefit of the soft-hearted people who see nothing but “cruelty” in foxhunting: “Hunting is his life: being hunted, but an episode.” There is the whole history of fox-life in a sentence. Early in the next chapter, on “The Mind of the Fox,” however, Mr. Dale hazards the conjecture that “it is not certain that he (the fox) is in reality more intelligent than other wild animals.” Flat treason this, Mr. Dale! Does not nearly every page of this most readable and thoughtful book of yours plead for a verdict in the contrary sense? We grant the cunning of hunted deer and hare, we accept their wiles as proof of high intelligence; but we cannot have it that the fox, the most assiduous of hunters and the most assiduously hunted, does not excel these in sagacity and resource. We would base our contention on the principle that a beast of prey which owes his existence to his skill and talent for circumventing other wild creatures, must of necessity develop higher mental faculties, more acute reasoning powers, if you will, than one which finds food ever ready to his mouth; and we would urge that your own wide knowledge of fox habit and wile fully justify your subsequent observation that the “intelligence which is necessary for the survival of the race is very marked.”

When he comes to such matters as fox preservation and the home and haunts of the fox, the author of necessity is on much trodden ground, but nevertheless he has the art of putting familiar facts in a new and entertaining form. Incidentally it may be noted that the old-time method of dragging up to the fox’s kennel is still followed by the Fell packs as well as on Exmoor. Those who know not the coastline of Somerset and Devon will find much to interest them in the author’s remarks on the cliff-haunting foxes and the difficulties of killing them; but Mr. Dale does not believe that foxes which settle in a covert inland ever, of their own will, return to the cliffs. This, we imagine, is highly probable; the advantages of covert life appear to compare more than favourably with those of a cliff existence.

In the chapter on “The Hunted Fox” we again naturally encounter the question of fox intelligence, and here we find ourselves in complete accord with our author. “If there were none but clever foxes we should soon give up hunting; if there were none but simple ones we should soon have no more foxes to hunt. The variability of the fox (as regards his intelligence) is an advantage to the race and to the sport.”

The suggestion that one cause of the degeneracy of foxes is that more of the straight-running (i.e., simple-minded) are killed than of the cunning foxes which use their wits to beat hounds, deserves notice. The dodging fox lives longer to reproduce his kind, endued with his qualities of cunning and wile.

When considering the “Fox as Outlaw,” Mr. Dale gives some very interesting figures relating to expenditure on hunting. He calculates that in a certain country the money spent by the master and members of the hunt on horses, hounds, food, and wages, represents £36 per head spent on each fox killed. It would not be difficult to prove the expenditure much larger, but the argument will serve as it stands. Passing over the “Fox in Fable”—proof, surely, of the superiority of wisdom attributed to the fox from very early times—and a very interesting chapter on jackal-hunting in India, we have a few pages on what we may call the economic aspects of the fox, as represented by the pelts of his foreign relatives. The work concludes with a chapter on the congenial topic of hunting. The ethical view of the matter is boldly faced, and the gist of the case is simply that foxes must be killed, and if not fairly killed by hounds, would meet their fate in some other way, probably more painful. The fox fulfils his mission in this country as a medium for the distribution of cash where it is most wanted, and as a source of pleasure; and all hunting men will heartily agree with the writer of this charming book when he says that “hardly any animal has, in the long history of its race, been of more importance in the literature and life of man, or is more interesting as a study of animal life and mind.” Mr. Archibald Thorburn’s drawings are most admirable.

Polo in 1906.

The polo season of 1906 commenced at Rugby and Leamington early in April, and has been continued up to the time of writing in the most glorious weather, which reminds one more of the middle of June than the beginning of April; it is only to be hoped that we shall not have to pay for it later on. Warwickshire seems to start polo before the other clubs, and in greater numbers than any other county; on April 9, there were 17 players at Rugby and 16 at Leamington.

The prospects of the London season never were brighter, and the only difficulty for polo managers will be to satisfy their clients with the number of matches that they are able to allot them, provided only the weather is favourable.

The great difficulty for polo players, who have not already mounted themselves for the season, will be to supply themselves with handy, easy ponies that they can play on; for I think it will be found more than ever this year that the supply is not equal to the demand.

The great increase in the all-round demand for good ponies and the improvement of polo in England is, I think, due in a large measure to the number of civilian teams that have been started in London during the last few years; it is not only due to the fact that the players in these teams improve their own play through playing constantly with the same men against other good teams, but after playing in a team they are never again satisfied with members’ game polo, and they go away to their county clubs and teach these what they have themselves learnt in London, to the all-round betterment and benefit of the game.

I append a list of the probable civilian combinations this season, in addition to which there will be teams representing Worcester Park, the Crystal Palace, and Kingsbury, and probably Hatfield and Essex.

American Freebooters.

I. Bell, J. I. Blair, R. J. Collier, F. J. Mackey.

Beavers.

W. Roylance Court, Capt. Phipps Hornby, A. M. Tree, F. Barbour.

Eden Park.

H. Bucknall, F. Rich, P. Bucknall, P. Bullivant (F. C. Nash, Secretary).

Ireland.

A. Rotherham, S. Watt, P. O’Reilly, C. O’Hara.

Magpies.

C. Grenfell, R. Grenfell, Capt. Gosling, Duke of Roxburgbe, Duke of Westminster, Capt. Long, F. Bellville.

Moonlighters.

J. Pearce, N. Baring, J. B. Dale, J. Lawson.

Moreton Morrell.

C. Garland, Lord Wodehouse, I. Bell, W. S. Buckmaster, C. P. Nickalls.

Parthians.

Capt. F. W. Barrett, Lord Kensington, Capt. Mathew Lassowe, Capt. C. Hunter, W. B. Burdon, G. R. Powell.

Roehampton.

M. Nickalls, C. P. Nickalls, Capt. H. Wilson, Capt. H. Lloyd, P. W. Nickalls.

Rugby.

Lord Shrewsbury, Walter Jones, G. A. Miller, C. D. Miller, Capt. E. D. Miller.

Tiverton.

M. de Las Casas, J. C. de Las Casas, L. de Las Casas, A. de Las Casas.

Ranelagh.

Capt. H. Jenner, Hon. A. Hastings, Capt. de Crespigny, Capt. Hon. F. Guest, F. A. Gill.

Rokeby.

Capt. Dunbar, Capt. A. Harman, Capt. Lee, Comte J. de Madre.

Three of the best of the London players will be much missed this season. Mr. F. M. Freake has temporarily retired from the game, and Captain Heseltine has joined his regiment in India, which has caused Mr. Buckmaster to abandon the attempt to produce an old Cantab team. They will be much missed in London, as they were a very fine team, and for the last eight years have always been either runners up or winners of the Champion Cup.

Another great loss to London polo will be Mr. U. O. Thynne, who has decided to give up the game for a time. He has run the Magpie team for a number of years, and his place will be hard to fill.

The great attraction of the London season will be the visit of the Irish team, who distinguished themselves so much last autumn by winning the Irish Open Cup and the International match in Dublin. They are engaged to play exhibition matches at Roehampton, on June 9th and 13th, against Rugby and Roehampton, and on June 6th at Hurlingham. The International match, Englandv.Ireland, will take place at Hurlington on June 16th, and the team is also expected to play in the Champion Cup.

As regards regimental polo prospects are fairly bright, but some of the regiments labour under great disadvantages.

The 7th Hussars are at Ipswich, and find themselves without a ground to play on; they have, however, one squadron at Weedon, where they can get plenty of play, and though they have only just come home they have every intention of producing a useful team at the Tournament. The 7th Hussars, like the 9th Lancers, no matter how the regiment changes, are always formidable. The 9th has just proved the truth of this in India, by defeating the hitherto (for four years) invincible 15th. Indeed, their most formidable opponents turned out to be the 17th, of whom the same may be said as of the 7th and 9th.

The Inniskillings will probably be without the invaluable services of Major Haig, who has had a serious illness, but is, I am glad to say, on the high road to recovery.

The 20th Hussars will probably lose Captain Lee, whose broken leg has taken a very long time to mend, and he is not in the saddle yet.

The 8th Hussars had some very good players last year, and the transfer of Major Wormald from the 7th should strengthen them and enable them to produce a really good team.

The 11th Hussars were so near the Inniskillings last year that with very slight improvement they should prove themselves dangerous competitors for any regiment.

The Household regiments will be represented probably by much the same teams, except that the Blues may find themselves stronger by the inclusion of Lord A. Innes Kerr, who has joined them from the Royals. In fact, the prospects of a most interesting Regimental Tournament are of the best.

The Champion Cup is sure to produce a good contest with such teams as Roehampton, Ireland, Rugby, Ranelagh, and Moreton Morrell competing for it, and the County Cup should be very even between Rugby (last year’s winners), Cirencester, Eden Park, and the best of the Yorkshire clubs.

I append a list of the tournaments that will probably take place, with the dates.

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