for want of use or practice, forget to get game
as aforesaid, I will, at my costs and charges,
maintain her for a month, or longer, as often
as need shall require, to train up and teach
her to set game, as aforesaid, and shall and
will fully and effectually teach her to set
game, as well and exactly as is above men-
tioned.
" Witness my hand and seal, the day and
year first above written.
"JOHN HARRIS. X his mark.'
(t Sealed and delivered in the presence of
"H.PAYNE. X his mark."
DR. FRANKLIN'S ADVICE TO A YOUNG SPORTS-
MAN.
A gentleman of this description, from a too
eager pursuit of the follies of high fashion, had
spent the last guinea of his patrimony. At
length, after receiving insults from those whom
he had protected, and being denied a meal by
those whom he had once fed, fortune, in one
estate, more valuable than the first. Upon the
possession of it, young Nimrod waited upon
the late celebrated Dr. Franklin, who had
been the friend of his father, to beg his advice.
" What were the causes of their late misfor-
tunes?" enquired the doctor. " Lawyers,
quacks, gamesters, and footmen," replied the
applicant. " The four greatest parts of your
metropolis," rejoined Franklin. ' Butpoisons
(continued the doctor) in the political, as well
as medical world, nay, when judiciously ap-
plied, become antidotes to each other; my
advice, therefore, is, that you remember the
past conduct of the lawyers; this remembrance
will teach you to go to law, and by this you
will preserve your new-acquired property
from chicanery ; the practice of the quacks
should teach you to live temperately, and by
this you will escape the miseries created by
those mercenary monsters ; the gamester may
show you the necessity of forbearance, and
remind you of the old proverb, that * only
knaves and fools are adventures ;' and by this
your vigilance will be excited to take care of
your ready money: as to the idleness and in-
science of footmen, these will teach you the
pleasures of waiting upon yourself, in which
you will be sure to escape the mortification of
paying for torment in your own house. Go,
son of my friend, ponder these antidotes, and
be happy/'
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPOUTS.
81
The " FINISH" of TOM MOODY the crack Huntsman I
One favor bestow 'tis the last I shall crave,
Give a rattling view halloo, thrice over ioy grave '.
ATURE, makes us poor, only when we want
pessaries, observed the late Dr. Johnson,
ut custom gives the name of Pnrerty to the
ant of superfluities. The biography of hunts-
en, in general, independant of their feats in
le chase, might almost be contained in the
>ace of a few nut shells. From the best in-
rmation that we could obtain from a very
d Shropshire huntsman, respecting the late
OM MOODY, we understand that for up-
ards of thirty years he had been the
whipper-in' to Squire Forrester's pack of
ounds in Shropshire ; and also that he died
i the service of that gentleman.
It is said of the late Turn Moody, that he
was one of the happiest fellows in the king-
dom ; and likewise that he had not a spark of
envy in his whole composition ; indeed, gen-
erally speaking, he was happier than his
monarch, or the whole race of kings, if the
statement of the Poet be atiy thing iike cor-
rect, that
Unezy lies the head that wears a crown f
It is true that Tom Moody now and then
went to bed with rather a ' funny nob,' but it
was notdistractc d with the cares of the world ;
in truth, he had nothing to rifle his thoughts ;
to plague his mind ; or to put him on the fret
respecting his finances. Day light opened
G
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
upon Tom with pleasure, and the evening
brought him mirth and harmony ; indeed his
life was one complete steady course : he had
his regular employment for the Summer ; and
the sports of the field occupied his time
throughout the AV inter. Tom Moody was com-
pletely provided for as the term goes he
had no taxes to pay, his master made that
sort of troublesome affair to most folks ' all
right' to him ; and the idea of getting over a
tailor's bill never alarmed the 'crack hunts-
man :' all that he cared about Mr. Snip
was, that the latter gave to his toggery a regu-
lar sporting cut ; well knowing that the Squire
made-the ninth part of a man ' all happiness'
at Christmas, on the cash account. Tom
Moody was generally called by his acquaint-
ances ' a deep one ;' but he was quite out of
the hunt as to anything like a politician, and
he had, individually, as much respect for the
Outs as the Inns ; but, nevertheless, as if by
instinct, he had a very great respect for the
high-sounding character of a Parliament man ;
and Tom always appeared to stand in great
awe when in the presence of such a person ;
indeed, he had been taught from his cradle
to have a most inviolable respect for his
*' BETTERS !" Tom Moody never soared in
society above the idea of a ' serving man,'
and he felt contented and happy in his situa-
tion ; but he was very anxious to be called a
good ' whipper-in ;' and also to have the
character of being an excellent huntsman.
He was a jolly companion, and quite * a
feature* in the village contiguous to the
* Squire's Estate' * and the name of TOM
MOODY the whipper-in,' was well known
for miles round the country.
It was whispered that, in his early days,
Tom was very fond of the company of the fair
sex ; but, nevertheless, he always had the
reputation of being too sound a sportsman
to attempt anything like poaching on the
manors of other persons ; yet a present now
and then of a partridge, pheasant, or any other
little article of game, always rendered Tom
Moody a welcome visitor at the house of his
friends ; indeed, whenever he could spare
any time from the sports of the field, he used
frequently to declare to his brother sports-
men, that he never felt happier than when en-
gaged in a little ' small talk' with the fair
daughters of the creation. The actions of
Tom Moody were simplicity itself: and if he
did not feel the expressions of Anacreon,
Moore's celebrated song in praise of ' Lovely
Woman,' or he could not give so elegant a
turn to the verses contained in the ballad as
some of the high-bred swells, yet Tom was
equally alive to the ' milk of human kindness'
possessed by the softer sex, and entered into
all the spirit of the words with as much
gallantry :
Dear creatures we can't do without 'em,
Ihey are all so sweet and seducing to man !
But, at the village ale-house, Tom was quite
1 at home !' and if, perchance, he let his score
run to a greater length from accident or other
circumstances, making rapid progress towards
Chalk Farm,* it operated considerably more
upon his feelings until the sponge had per-
formed its useful office, than the accumula-
tion of the National Debt did on the minds
of our alarming financiers. Tom, it should
seem, had made up his mind to live all
the ' days of his life ;' and although not
addicted to drinking, and very far from the
character of a Sot, yet he w r as by no means
viewed as an abstemious man ; indeed, on the
contrary, he was fond of a glass of grog ; and
as to choice, Tom preferred it being made
stiff-isl\ than otherwise ; and he could also
take oft' a pint or two of * humming October,'
without moving a muscle or winking his eye.
The constitution of Tom Moody was as sound
as a roach " a pleasant, cheerful glass or
two," said Tom to his friends, " will never
hurt any body, provided they do as I do to
get up early in the morning and snuff the
fragrant gale take plenty of exercise in the
open air; and a day's hunting is sure to put
any little excess over night to rights, without
the aid of Old Drench' tm, the apothecary. "
Better to hunt in fields for health unbougbt, "
ee the doctor for his nauseous draught.
Tom never troubled his friends that he was
out of sorts, or that he was labouring under the
complaint of the head-ache ! He was always
happy to meet his acquaintances in the even-
ing to recount over the sports of the day ; and
it was quite a treat to hear Tom Moody give
the ' view halloo !' He was a merry fellow
and fond of hearing a good chaunt at all times,
but he preferred those songs which related to
sporting ; neither was Tom in the least degree
backwards when called upon to add to the
harmony of the evening. The following
ballad was a great favorite with him, and
the spirit and character which he infused
into it, rendered the above song not only a
crack affair in its way, but it frequently pro-
duced for Tom a very loud encore ; so much
satisfaction did this chaunt give to the mem-
bers of the club :
THE PLEASURE OF THE CHASE,
A southerly wind, and a cloudy sky,
Proclaim a hunting morning.
Before the sun rises we nimbly fly,
Dull sleep and a downy bed scorning.
To horse, my boys, to horse away,
The chase admits of no delay :
On horseback we've got, together we'll trot !
On horseback-, &c.
Leave off your chat, see the cover appear
The hound that strikes first, cheer him without fear;
Drag on him! ah, wind him, my steady goo'tl hounds s
Drag on him ! ah, wind him, the cover resounds.
* " Chalk Farm." A cant phrase for credit at .a
public-house : showing the extent of a customer's
orders by the number of chalks scored against his
name bt-htud the door inside the bar, or upon a slate ;
it likewise points out the good/uif/i possessed by the
landlord towards his debtor.
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
How complete the cover and furze they draw !
Who talks of Barry or Meynell ?
Young Lasher he flourishes now thro' the shaw,
And Sauce-box roars out in his kennel.
Away we fly, as quick as thought ;
The new-sown ground soon makes them fault ;
Cast round the sheep's train, cast round, cast round,
Try back the deep lane, try back, try back,
Hark ! 1 hear some hound challenge in yonder spring
sedge ;
Comfort bitch hits it there, in that old thick hedge.
Hark forward ! hark forward ! have at him, my boy?,
Hark forward ! hark forward ! Zounds, don't m:ikc a
noise.
A stormy sky, o'ercharg'd with rain,
Both hounds and hunstsmen opposes ;
In vain on your mettle you try, boys, in vain.
But down, you must, to your noses.
Each moment now the sky grows worse
Enough t<> make a parson eur-e :
Pick through the plow'd ground, pick through, pick
through,
Well hunted, good hounds, well hunted, well hunted,
If we can but get on we shall soon make him quake ;
Hark ! I hear some honnds challenge in the midst of
the brake,
Tallio ! tallio, there ! across the green plain ;
Tallio ! tallio, boys ! have at him again !
Thus we ride, whip, and spur, for a two hours' chase,
Our horses go panting and sobbing,
onng Madcap and lln>t begin now to race,
Ride cm Sir, and give him some mobbing.
But, hold alas ! you'll spoil our sport,
For, though the hound, you'll head him short,
Clap round him, dear Jack, clap round, clap round,
Hark Drummer, hark hark hark, hark, hark,
back.
e's jumping and dangling in every bush ;
ittle Riot lias I'a.-tenei! !'i- teeth in his brush ;
r ho-hoop, who-hoop, he's fairly run down !
'ho-ho<>j), &c.
Tom Moody used frequently to go to the
/'/:,'.< Head to have a look at the Shropshire
YH ,s- paper, but he scarcely ever glanced his
fes towards the price of stocks ; the majority
i the House of Commons ; or the advertise-
lents of " Sales by Candle!" " Aye," said
rj, " Here is what I want to see, who won
last great main at cocks at York ! The
winner of the St. Leger Stakes at Doncaster
aces ! and how the odds are upon the high
red cattle entered for the Derby these are
ic subjects that I like to inquire into !" Any
ling concerning a steeple chase he would
eruse every line of it with the most rapturous
elight ! But for a Fox HUNT ! it was worth
ny thing to behold his ecstacy and view his
ctions his whole frame was at work ! he
rould not only read the account of it with
ic most unbounded glee, but he felt such an
nimated enthusiastic interest in any thing
especting the chase, that on his concluding
le paragraph he would give the " Who-
oop !" so loud as nearly to crack the ears of
le by standers, and almost strong enough to
ndanger the safety of old dame Bungard's
hina cups and saucers in the bar, which had
een handed down from father to son for up-
tvards of a century ! Upon one memorable
ccasion, when Tom was in better trim than
isual, the old lady observed, "La! Mr.
Moody, you have given the ' who-who-hoop' as
ou call it, so very loud and strong to day, that
have absolutely set all my tea cups and
saucers dancing !" " I am not at all surprised
at that circumstance," said a gentleman from
London who was present " his voice is music
itself: I am astonished, delighted, : and
scarcely know how to praise it enough, I
never heard any thing half so so attractive
and inspiring before, in the whole course of
my life ; and the tones of it are as fine, deep,
and mellow as a French horn !" Indeed,
Tom Moody well deserved the title of a * crack
HUNTSMAN ;' and a better one, it is said, could
not have been met with all over England ; he
was nothing else but a huntsman it was meat,
washing, and lodging to him ; nay, breakfast,
dinner, and supper to Tom the whole year
round. He was a very high-couraged rider :
aud he performed such extraordinary leaps
at times, as to have intimidated the boldest
horsemen in the field ; but Tom Moody had
been reared and trained to the duties attached
to the character of a huntsman from a mere
boy ; and he was fond of it to excess ; in his
cups he often swore, that other persons might
say what they thought proper about enjoy-
ment or pleasure, but to him " there HNM
nothing like hunting.'" Tom would not suficr
a pack of hounds to hunt through a field of
sheep ; neither would he have them taken oil'
their noses ; and he also possessed one of the
first requisites towards constituting a good
huntsman, a never-tiring activity. Tom Moody
was neither conceited nor obstinate ; but he
improved his knowledge by experience, and
turned it to good account upon all occasions.
Another most important feature in his conduct
was, that he always kept his hounds healthy
and steady, and he likewise made them love
and fear him. In fact, no huntsman ever
knew how to make the most of a pack of
hounds better than the late Tom Moody did ;
or, to bring them into the field with greater
vigour. As a judge of the constitution of his
hounds, he was truly eminent ; and whenever
they were at fault he always made his oast
with judgment ; he was likewise patient and
persevering at all times, and never gave up a
fox whilst there remained a chance of killing
him. Such were the qualities possessed by
the late Tom Moody towards establishing his
character as a "crack HUNTSMAN."
Amongst the oddities, who visited the club
at the Stag's Head, was " Old Amen," the pa-
rish clerk, one of the Caleb Quotem sort of
folks in society :
Geography is my delight,
Ballads, Epitaphs, 1 write,
Almanacks 1 can indite,
Graves i dig, compact and tight,
Steeple sound,
Corpse to the ground,
Chymery,
Rhymery,
Songs inditing,
Epitaphs writing, &c.
who would undertake every thing, but who
did nothing well ; yet one of the corner-pins
of the club, and who was very much attached
to Tom Moody. He was a prime wet soul
G 2
84
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
but, nevertheless, a complete man of business ;
and it used to be his boast, when checked now
and then by some of the sober members of the
club, on account of his being too much ad-
dicted to drinking. " Never mind," retorted
Old Amen, " I can give you Scripture proof
for every thing that I do ; therefore listen, ye
Pharisees,, ye reprobates, ye sinners, and
learn, that there is a time for every thing in
this probationary life there is a time to dance,
a time to sing, and a time to drink ; and, if
these three things do not make a man dry,
why then you may say, that Old Amen is no
conjurer.'* The parish-clerk was a sort of
butt for the club to crack their jokes upon ;
but he, nevertheless, took it all in good part ;
observing, at the same time, that he would much
sooner put up with a skit upon him, than lose
a good customer ; besides, said he, I shall
have my time when I will be one with them.
Tom Moody, who was very fond of having a
bit of fun with Old Amen whenever the
opportunity offered, * would blow out his
jacket; or, as they say in the country, would
give him a ' skin full' of the prime old brew-
ing at the squire's, which had been in the
cellar for a great number of years, and in point
of quality was more like brandy than ale.
This Tom did on purpose to hear the clerk
chant with rather more than an audible voice
above all the congregation at church which
made the parson stare all the folks to stare ;
but no person was in the secret, except Tom,
that it was owing to the potency of the squire's
ale, such sonorous sounds were produced from
the lips of the clerk.
Old AMEN, in order to be grateful to Tom
Moody, for his attention and good nature to-
wards him, one evening, when the former was
at the clubj and rather * fresh,' he mustered
up courage, and thus addressed the * crack
HUNTSMAN' : " My dear Tom, you know we
are all liable to die once in our life time ; and,
perhaps, it may come to my turn first you know
we are here to-day, gone to-morrow ; put under
the sod next ; and perhaps forgotten altogether
in a little month ; but, for the friendship I bear
towards you, if I live the longest, I will write
your epitaph ; and may I be d d if I will
suffer you to be 'earthed' without leaving some
remembrance behind you. TOM MOODY, the
prime 'whipper-in' shall not be forgotten by
his friends ! " "I am much obliged to you,
Old AMEN," replied Tom, " I want no
epitaph ; I have done nothing in life to deserve
an epitaph." " Stop, stop a bit," said the
clerk, with a loud hiccough, " but you are a
good fellow, and all good fellows deserve an
epitaph. Besides, it encourages trade, and
that is a substantial reason why you should
have an epitaph ; only ask the stone-mason
if I am not right." "'No, no, my Old Boy,"
replied Tom Moody, " I thank you all the
same, but I will not trouble you to write an
epitaph on my account. I have been often and
often in at the death, and repeatedly joined in
the loud huzzas; therefore, 1 should not like
exactly to steal off, as it were, to my cover,.
without some of my friends saying, there goes
poor TOM MOODY, we will see the last of him.
And as I do not think it would be proper or
decent for you, Old Amen, as one of the per-
sons belonging to the church, to join in what
I am now going to request of the club to do
for me, I take the will for the deed. But
if the members of the club will give A
RATTLING VIEW-HALLOO OVER MY
GRAVE, when I am called by the Master of
all things to give up the chase, I shall die
contented." The members of the club at the
Stag's Head assured Tom, that the persons
who might chance to survive him, would
almost split their windpipes in his service,
not only out of respect to him as a prime mem-
ber of the club, but to do him that justice he
deserved as a ' crack Huntsman/ " And,"
said the Old Clerk, " why certainly, Tom, my
occupation is a grave one ; and my office re-
quires propriety of demeanour ( hiccoughing j y
if I must not join in the halloo, I can tcink at it,
and that will be all the same. But come, Tom,"
said he, " don't be down-hearted, because we
have been talking of ' giving up the Ghost,'
you are worth a thousand 'dead ones' yet;
therefore, give us a toast, and one more song,
when we shall finish the evening like jovial
souls : (singing).
'Tis my will, when I die, not a tear should be shed,
No /ncjacet engraved on my stone ;
But pour on my coffin a bottle of red,
And say that my drinking is done.
" You are a jolly Old Cock," replied Tom,
" and I cannot refuse you any thing ; and
now for the huntsman's toast: " Here's horses
strong, dogs healthy, earth's stopped, and
foxes plenty !" " Bravo ! " said Old Amen,
" you see my glass is empty ! Silence, Gen-
tlemen, for Mr. Moody's song :"
TOM MOODY was my father, and Tom Moody's son ;
And down in these parts I were born,
When but a saucy urchin, scarce half a handful high,
I followed the fox and merry horn ;
Both dad and mammy prais'd me, I was their only
joy
And they call'd me their very merry, sporting-headed
boy !
To be with horses, dogs, and sporting men, it ever was
my joy,
Which so pleas'd the merry, little, sporting-headed
boy.
But soon I shot up taller, ill weeds they grow apace,
No boy was more fond of life and fun,
The ruddy glow of healthfulness stood laughing in
my face,
And I brought down the birds with my gun.
So I shot the game, kiss'd the girls, my life was full of
joy,
See there goes the merry, funny, sporting -headed
boy.
For bunting, shooting, fishing indeed, sporting waa
my joy,
And with the hounds all alive was the sporting
headed boy
Now dad and mam are dead and gone, and I'm crack
whipper-in,
The view halloo is my great delight!
Then I rise with the Sun, and to kill the fox think
no sin.
To me what a glorious sight!
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
86
Then to be a prime huntsman, that will only crown
my joy,
Twill make me dance and sing, like a sporting-headed
boy.
I like my lass, take my glass for friendship Ls
my true joy
And ' () the days when I were young' a sporting-
headed boy.
The drinking of the above toast produced
another, and another sentiment ; the song also
gave a greater zest to the evening's amuse-
ment ; and after the glasses were emptied, as
a matter of course, * Old Amen ' and Tom
Moody could not part without having some-
thing more to drink : thus glass succeeded
glass, the parish clerk, according to the mem-
bers of the club, got gloriously pious ;* nay,
quite troublesome, and Tom Moody was com-
pelled to get off the Old Parish Clerk as well
as he could ; but the former quitted the club-
room, reeling and singing:
Mat Mudge, the sexton of our town,
Though oft a little heady,
The drink not so his wits could drown,
But some excuse was ready :
Mat said the Parson lov'd a sup,
And eke also the clerk ;
But then it kept his spiritx up,
'Mongst spirits in the darkl
Swore 'twas his predecessor's fault
A cursed drunken fellow,
The very bells to ring he taught,
As if they all were mellow ;
Hark ! hark ! cried he, in tipsy peal,
Like roaring topers as they reel
Hark ! wha* a drunken pother :
Another cup and then What then ?
\\hyanothei'.
" Another cup and then,' said Mr. Round-
paunch, the Churchwarden, that old Amen,
I verily believe, would empty the largest
butt in the cellar, with a cup at a time, and
never leave it till he was carried home ; and
then he would not be satisfied without
another!" But, if I am not mistaken, it is
the same with most of the parish clerks in the
kingdom ; they eat and drink so much at other
people's expense, that they never know when
to leave off." If there is a wedding " Old
Amen " comes in for his fee, and perhaps for
something to whet his whistle ; if it is a christ-
ening, of course the parish clerk must drink
the health of the young Christian ; and if it is
& funeral, sorrow becomes dry and he wets
both eyes, in order to keep up his maxim, that
" there is a time to drink" and grieving's a
folly ! "
The above Club at the Stag's Head was well
attended once a-week by the " topping" trades-
men of the town, who, after the fatigues of
the day were over, used to unbend a little, by
hob-nobbing together, as it is called, in order
to attend to business the next morning with
more vigour. The 'stags,' as they were
called, were generally a bit ' sporting-like ; '
and as the squire was a great feature in the
*' Pious!" A cant phrase for a person being very
much intoxicated ; but it is rather a perversion of the
word we must confess, without it is ironically used
against the cloth I"
neighbourhood his splendid establishment
his crack pack of hounds, and his fine stud of
horses, and the numerous gentlemen and vi-
sitors from London, who attended the HUNTS,
gave a decided tone and feeling to the conver-
sation contiguous to the mansion of theesquire-
The blacksmith -WAS interested in it; the farrier
obtained work through the hunts, and the
tailor found employment, either to repair or to
make garments for the dashing fellows, who
appeared in the field. The butcher, of course,
could not be done without, after the sports of
the daj were over ; the saddler was a person-