top boots ', and looked upon as one of the best gentle-
man ridefs in the nation. You have also the names of
the horses, and the colours of the riders, with every other
particular that can enlighten your minds, and make you
gentlemen sportsmen acquainted with this lively race.
You have now the opportunity to lay out your money
according to your inclination. The gentleman allows the
lady to ride what weight she likes, there being; a mutual
understanding between them upon the subject : there-
fore, she will not, like commoners, go ' to scale,' as she
will not be handled by any body before she starts for
the prize ; indeed, the Female Jockey is not considered



mounted her horse in the true spirit of a
cavalier ; and there was a great deal of tic
gallant-bearing attached to the character of
it ; the most experienced jockey could not
have been more at his ease, or have acted his
part in better style than Mrs. Thornton.

When first I strove to win the prize,

I felt my youthful spirits rise,

Hope's crimson flush illum'd my face,

And all my soul was in the race;

When dress'd and mounted 'twas my pride,

Before the starting-post to ride ;

My rival dress'd in pearly white,

The crowded Course to me delight.

In stands around fair ladies swarm,
And mark with smiles my slender form ;
Their lovely looks new ardour raise,
For beauty's smile is merit's praise.
The flag is dropp'd the sign to start,
Away more fleet than winds we dart ;
And though the odds against me lay,
The PKTTICOAT shall win the day.

Though now no more we seek the race,

I trust the Jockey keeps his place :

For still to win the prize I feel

An equal wish, an equal zeal ;

And still can friendship's smile impart

Delightful tremors through this heart ;

Indeed, I feel it flutter now

Yes, while I look, and while I bow.

My tender years must vouch my truth,

For Candour ever dwells with youth ;

Then sure the Sage .might well believe

A face like mine could ne'er deceive ;

If here you e'er a match should make,

t My life upon my luck I'll stake :

' And, 'gainst all odds, I think you'll sav

The PETTICOAT shall win the day. ,

any weight at all. Her importauce and self-possession
are the only objects for consideration. What does spirit,
fire, blood, and gaiety weigh, I should like to ask 1 1
answer nothing, my masters ! Such high bred qualities
are as light as air brisk as the wind and 2 to 1 to-
wards winning. You have also, at the same price, the
plain and simple pedigree of the female jockey. 'Ter
sire was a capital ' good un ;' her dam, a prime fleet
' un,' an Eclipse in character ; her brother, all that
could be wished upon the turf, for getting over the
ground like a sky rocket ; her sister, a Nonpareil at
all points, and above any price ; but her owner, her out-
and-out owner, the Colonel, from his ' upper crust' down
to his ' walker,' is a match for all England against any
thing for every thing alive either on the turf or turn-
pikefrom a mouse to an elephant : and nothing else
but winning belongs to his stable. And lastly { though
not the least in the above Catalogue of Excellency,
every point of the Female Jockey'is lip-top ; heragility
is captivating ; and she mounts her prad like the most
accomplished horseman in the world. Her movement*
defy expression ; her nods to the females, as she rides
over the Course, delightful ! but her smiles to the ap-
plauding gentlemen, in answer to the winks, hows, and
other marks of politeness towards her, as compliment*
for her daring exploit, are fascinating, elegant, and no-
thing else but winning. She is seated upon her high-
bred animal with all the firmness of a Nimrod ; she
holds her reins with the most perfect ease and style ;
and Chifney, in the best of his days, never displayed a
better knowledge of horsemanship than the Female
Jockey, and she flourishes her whip will all the good
taste of the leader of a band at a concert. In fact, she
is aJVon*cA/aPARAGON!! a PHENOMENON! 1 1
Old Vingarillo too, her prad, Is also a picture of good-
ness, from his peepers clown to \\\sf el locks ! Therefore,
my worthy sportsmen, do not lose this opportunity be
not too late but purchase this great curiosity this lift of
tote nothing like it having occurred in Yorkshire, or
in any other part of the globe sii.ce Noah's flood- -either
before or since that wet season of the year: and it is
York Minster to a brass farden that nothing like it
can occur again till we Lave a new generation of Le
human race 1 That's your sort .'.'.'



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



131



Old Vingarillo, the horse, also seemed
proud of the ' lair charge' entrusted to his
care. The ladies, in general, were inter-
ested in the success of one of their own
sex, except ;i few old maids, \vho appeared
rather squeamish on the subject, and who
observed one to another, behind their fans,
that it was a very bold undertaking for a
female to contest a race upon a public race
course; and that the Colonel, out of respect
to propriety, ought to have prevented such an
exhibition taking place. "Yes ladies," ob-
served an old sporting gentleman, " but you
are aware, sometimes, that the grey mare is
the better horse." It is impossible to describe
the intense interest which this match excited
during the race ; and the shouts of the " PET-
TICOAT FOR EVER," resounded from one end
of the course to the other. On starting, it
was 5 and 6 to 4 on the PETTICOAT; and, in
running the first three miles, 7 to 4 and 2 to 1
on Mrs. Thornton's winning; indeed, success
seemed to be so certain on her part, that the
oldest sportsman in the stand betted in her
favor. In running the last mile she lost
ground, in consequence of her saddle-girths
having slackened, and the saddle turning
round. Her opponent, taking advantage of
this circumstance, pushed forward, and
passed her ; the lady after using every exer-
tion :

Push on, my dear lady pray don't the whip stint,
To beat such as you, must have the heart of a FLINT !

but, finding it impossible to win, she pulled up
at two distances from home, when Mr. Flint
won the match.

It was difficult to fay, whether her horse-
manship, her dress, or her beauty, were most
admired, the tout ensemble was unique. Never,
surely, did a woman ride in better style.
The race was run in nine minutes and Jifty-
nine seconds. The dress of Mrs, Thornton
was a leopard-coloured body with blue sleeves,
the vest buff, and blue cap. Mr. Flint rode
in white. Thus ended the most interesting
race ever run upon Knavesmire. The follow-
ing jeu d'esprit was handed about on the
occasion :

" The beau monde will condemn what I write, beyond

doubt,
And some simpering young misses will giggle and

pout;

But the odds that I bet shall be TWENTY to one,
That such an exploit ne'er by WOMAN was done."

Not at al! dispirited by defeat, Mrs. Thornton
publicly challenged her antagonist to ride the
same match in the following year, his horse
Thornville against any one of three she would
bring, and he might select, and which should
be hunted by her through the season. The
challenge, however, was refused by Mr. Flint.
No words can express the disappointment
felt at the defeat of Mrs. Thornton. The
spirit she displayed, and the good humour with
which she had borne her loss, greatly dimin-
ished the joy of many of the winners. From



the very superior style in which she performed
her exercising gallop of four miles on the
preceding Wednesday, betting was greatly iu
her favor; her saddle turning round was not
attended with the slightest injury to her per-
son, nor did it in the least damp her courage,
while her horsemanship and close-seated riding
astonished the beholders, and inspired a
general confidence in her success. Not less
than 200,000f. were pending on this extra-
ordinary match, perhaps more, if we include
the bets in every part of the country : and there
is no part, we believe, in which there were not
some. It is but common justice to observe,
that if the lady had been better mounted
she could not, possibly, have failed of success.
Indeed, she laboured under every possible
disadvantage ; notwithstanding which, and.
the ungallant* conduct of Mr. Flint, she flew
along the course with an astonishing swift-
ness, conscious of her own superior skill, and
would, ultimately, have out-stripped her ad-
versary, but for the accident which took
place.

A SKETCH OF THE LATE COLONEL THORNTON.
The late COLONEL THORNTON was one of the
gayest of the gay members of the turf; and dur-
ing his life-time he was considered one of the
most practical sportsmen of the age. Indeed,
his whole life was devoted to the Sports of the
Field. His family had been established for
some centuries in the county of York, where
they have enjoyed the most valuable and ex-
tensive possessions. The most ancient bears
the family name, being called Thornton cum
Bucksby, of which mention is made prior to
the period of William the Conqueror-. Colonel
Thomas Thornton was born in St. James's,
and received the early part of his education
at the Charter House : from thence he went
to the University of Glasgow : at this seat of
learning he attended to his studies with the
most indefatigable assiduity, and acquitted
himself to the entire satisfaction of his instruc
tors, and much to his own credit. During the
vacations he was accustomed to pursue the
sports of the field with the most lively ardour,
but not to the injury of his studies. At nine-
teen years of age his father, Colonel William
Thornton, died, and left him sole possessor of
his great estates ; but such was his good sense,
that he remained at the University for three
years afterwards, deputing his mother *o su-
perintend his affairs, 'ihe Colonel had very

* We cannot for a moment entertain an opinion,
that the ladies meant any thing unfair in the conduct
pursued by Mr. Flint during the race towards Mrs.
Thornton ; neither did they assert that any thing like
crossing, or jostling, occurred in the four miles ; but
that as a man of gallantry, he ought to have permitted
his fair opponent to have won the race. But, perhaps,
Mr. Flint would have felt rather chagrined to have
had the laugh, against him ; and also averse to the
observation that he had been "beaten against his will,
on horseback, by a woman ;" which, most undoubt-
edly, would have been the fact, if the saddle of Mrs,
Thornton had kept its situation.



132



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



early in life imbibed a strong partiality for the
pastime of hawking ; being determined to bring
that sport to the height of perfection ; and also
to lay the foundation of that celebrity which
he afterwards acquired for his breed of horses,
and every species of dog calculated for the
diversions of the field. On leaving Glasgow,
Colonel Thornton repaired with his hawks,
dogs, &c., to his estate at Old Thornville,
where he remained but a short time ; after
which he went to the Metropolis, and became
a member of the Savoir Vivre club, which had
been recently instituted : the leading plan of
which was intended to patronize men of genius
and talent; the late lord Lyttleton, and the
right honorable Charles James Fox, were then
members of that club, as well as many other
celebrated characters of the day : although
gambling constituted one of the predominant
features of the Savoir Vivre, the Colonel was
never led to share that diversion ; indeed, he
was always averse to cards and dice, and, to
show his marked disapprobation of gambling,
over the chimney piece of the Library of
Thornville Royal was a marble slab, whereon
was graven the following words,

" Utinam hanc veris amicis impleam."

the established rule of this house, all
bets are considered to be off, if either of the
parties, by letter or otherwise, pay into the
hands of the landlord one guinea, by five the
next day."

After following every diversion which York-
shire offered to him for several years, he be-
came desirous of witnessing the sports of the
Highlands of Scotland, whither he repaired,
and passed the best part of seventeen years in
succession, wholly occupied in the several
pastimes which were gratifying to his mind.
In Scotland he kept a regular diary of his
sporting pursuits, &c., and employed an artist
to execute drawings of the antiquities and
picturesque scenery of the country, from which
he selected a few, and caused them to be en-
graved in a very finished style, and published
in a work, under the title of " A Sporting
Tour through the Highlands of Scotland, by
Colonel Thornton."

To the great astonishment of his friends, he
jmrchased of his late royal highness, the duke
of York, Allerton Mauleverer, in Yorkshire,
for one hundred and ten thousand pounds ; but
obstacles to other men were soon overcome by
the enterprising disposition of the late Colonel
Thornton ; and", however the country gentle-
men in the neighbourhood thought it totally
impossible for him to accomplish such a heavy
purchase, he paid for it by instalments, ac-
cording to agreement, in the short space of
twelve months. The Colonel immediately gave
the above estate a new designation ; and it
was afterwards known by the title of Thorn-
ville Royal. An erroneous opinion having
Ereviously gone abroad that Colonel Thornton
ad won Allerton Mauleverer at a gaming
table, from the duke of York. But, in order



to render his sporting pursuits more complete,
he purchased the estate of Boythorpe in the
Wolds, for the purpose of coursing and hawk-
ing, where he erected the present mansion,
known by the name of Falconer's Hall.

Thornville Royal was always the scene of
festive hospitality ; and no gentleman was
calculated to do the honors of the table better
than the late Colonel Thornton. His diversi-
fied talents, his quickness of repartee, his
facetious stories on all topics, and his good-
natured acquiescence with the request of his
guests, rendered the table of the Colonel the
great resort of the neighbouring noblemen and
gentlemen : his wines were always of the first
quality ; and the Colonel was noflincher from
his glass ; indeed, he had obtained the cha-
racter of being a * six-bottle man.' He was a
convivial subject, and all his songs were to
the following effect :

LET PHILOSOPHERS PRATE ABOUT REASON AKD

RULES.

Let Philosophers prate about Reason and Rules,
And preach musty maxims design'd but for fools ;
From a brisk sparkling bowl brighter sentiments flow,
And I find myself wiser the deeper I go :
We can teach them to live, and by practice explain
What in theory only they never could gain,
Draw the cloud from their eyes that o'ershadows the

soul,
And enlighten their heads with a sip from my bowl.

May the pedant be lost in his phantom pursuit,
Wliile I revel in wine and with bumpers recruit ;
Since the wisest, can never perfection attain,
Why should life proffer sweets and enjoyment* ia

vain?

Let not man, then, his time in such foppery waste.
Ur refuse mingled sweets with the bitters to taste ;
But thus let him waft to Elysium his soul,
In an ocean of liquor, his vessel my bowl.

Relaxed from the cares of the world let me live,
'Gainst the rude stream of life that I never may strive ;
With a friend to partake, and a girl to adore,
O what mortal more happy ? what man could wish

more ?

Dull, mechanical mortals nere look and repine,
That their hearts ne'er can glow with such feelings as

mine ;

But such feelings, such joys, receive birth in the soul,
When thus mellow'd, thus rear'd, and refined in my

bowl.

The Colonel was very much attached to
works of art ; and few houses bad to boast of
a more diversified and choice collection of
paintings than Thornville Royal. With re-
spect to Sporting subjects, the most celebrated
pictures of Gilpin and Reinagle, painted under
the immediate direction of the Colonel, adorned
the walls of the above mansion. The celebrated
picture of the Death of the Fox, by Gilpin,
afterwards engraved by Scott, was much
admired in the Sporting World. Amongst the
Thornville Collection were to be recognized
several of the Italian and Flemish masters
Guido, Caracci,Teniers, Wonwerman, Rubens,
Vandyke, &c.

As a breeder of Sporting animals, the fol-
lowing list sufficiently prove the acknowledged
excellence of the late Colonel Thornton.

HORSES. Icelander. A noted racer, bred by
Colonel Thornton, which won twenty-six



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORra'.



133



malches, and was the first foal bred by the
Colonel. The sire of this horse was Grey-coat
and his grandsire Dismal. Jupiter. This ce-
lebrated blood-horse was of a chesnut colour,
he was got by Eclipse, dam by Tartar, grandam
by Mogul, Sweepstakes, &c. : in 1777 he won
one thousand pounds at Lewes, two hundred
at Abingdon, and one thousand at Newmarket ;
and, in 1771, two hundred and forty at New-
market. Truth. A remarkably steady hunter.
Stoic. A. famous race-horse, which won a
match at Newmarket for one thousand guineas.
St. Thomas. A race-horse which beat Mr.
Hare's Tu Quoque, the bet being five hundred
guineas, each gentleman riding his own horse.
Thornviile. A celebrated hunter. Esterhazy.
A most remarkable blood-horse, being master
of any weight, and active in all his paces; of
which animal a very beautiful engraving has
been executed by Ward, from a picture of
Chalon.

DOGS. Foxhounds. Merlin. A well-known
fox-hound, bred by Colonel Thornton. Luci-
fer. A most remarkable fox-hound, the sire of
Lounger and Mad Cap, of equal celebrity.
Old Conqueror. A matchless fox-hound, sire
of many well-known dogs in the annals of
fox-hunting. POINTERS. Dash. An acknow-
ledged fine pointer, which sold for two hun-
dred and fifty guineas. Pluto. A celebrated
pointer. Juno. A remarkable bitch, which
was matched with a pointer of lord Grantley's
for ten thousand guineas, who paid forfeit.
Modish. A bitch of acknowledged excellence.
Lilly. A most remarkable steady bitch.
Nun. It is only necessary to state that seventy-
five guineas were refused for this bitch.

GREYHOUNDS. Major. A dog of very great
celebrity, and the father of Colonel Thorn-
ton's breed of greyhounds. Of this animal
a very beautiful engraving, from the masterly
hand of Scott, has been published. Czarina.
a bitch of equal celebrity. Skyagraphina. A
matchlesa hound. N. B. For each of these
hounds the most extravagant sums were of-
fered, but rejected.

SPANIELS. Dash. This animal is esteemed
the ne plus ultra of this species of sporting
dog ; the Colonel having used his utmost en-
deavours to bring the spaniel to perfection.

BEAGLES. Merryman. This celebrated dog
is sire of a pack, which exceeds all others for
symmetry, bottom, and pace. The beagles of
Colonel Thornton would tire the strongest
hunters, and return to kennel comparatively
fresh.

TERRIERS. It would be necessary to notice
Colonel Thornton's terriers, if it were only on
account of his justly celebrated Pitch, from
whom are descended most of the white terriers
in the kingdom.

HAWKS. Sans Quartier, Death, and the
Devil, were three of the most celebrated birds
ever reared by Colonel Thornton during his
pursuit of hawking, and were allowed to dis-
tance any birds of the kind which had ever
been flown at the game.



In speaking of the bodily activity of Colonel
Thornton, few men, perhaps, have ever given
proofs of such extraordinary powers. Among
various other matches of a similar nature, the
following, it is conceived, will be amply suf-
ficient to substantiate this fact : In a walking
match which the Colonel engaged to perform,
he went four miles in thirty-two minutes and
half a second. In leaping, Colonel Thornton
cleared his own height, being five feet nine
inches, the bet being considerable. In another
match it is stated that he leaped over six five-
barred gates in six minutes, and then repeated
the same on horseback. At Newmarket the
Colonel, on horseback, ran down a hare, which
he picked up in the presence of an immense
concourse of people assembled to witness this
extraordinary match.

With respect to shooting, either with the
fowling-piece, rifle, or air-gun, Colonel Thorn-
ton has given the most incontestible proofs of
the steadiness of his hand, and the wonderful
correctness of his sight, not only in bringing
down the game, when pursuing the pastimes
of the field, but also at a mark, in which his
precision has never been surpassed.

Notwithstanding the numerous pursuits of
a sporting nature which occupied the Colonel's
mind, he seldom lost sight of those refinements
which characterize the man of literature and
taste. His valuable collection of pictures, at
Thornviile Royal, sufficiently indicate his taste
for the fine arts ; and the correct journals
which he invariably kept during all his ex-
cursions to Scotland, &c., are sufficient testi-
monies of his diversified talents and classic
pursuits.

During the short interval of peace with
France, in 1802, the Colonel repaired to Paris,
for the purpose of viewing that capital ; after
which he travelled through the southern pro-
vinces, and part of the conquered territory,
where he pursued with avidity the sports
which characterize that kingdom. On this
occasion the Colonel had an artist to accom-
pany him, and he kept a journal of the events
that transpired. From this diary, a very
entertaining tour was produced, intituled,
" Colonel Thornton's Sporting Tour through
France," &c. In the course of this tour ap-
pears a very entertaining and comparative
view of the sports of the two countries, which
the Colonel's acknowledged excellence as an
English sportsman has rendered not only
entertaining, but scientific and useful.

This gentleman was not only devoted to the
pursuits of Actaeon and the pleasures of Bac-
chus, but Venus and Cupid were likewise his
idols, having, in the autumn of 1806, led to
the hymeneal altar Miss Corston, of Essex, an
accomplished young lady of some fortune.

Upon the Colonel's giving up his commis-
sion as Lieutenant-colonel of the West York
Militia, he was drawn into York by the sol-
diery, who, as a testimony of their gratitude
and love, presented him with a beautiful me-
dallion and splendid sword.



134



PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.



With respect to the corporeal pains inci-
dental to human nature, Colonel Thornton
appeared perfectly unacquainted with them :
he experienced the most trying accidents, but
the hand of Fate seems always to have been
extended to preserve him. Rest is generally
esteemed the balm of human life ; yet the col-
onel copiously drank of the juice of the grape
and remained with his friends till the return
of dawn ; he was awake at the usual hour,
and, while the world was buried in sleep, he
frequently occupied an hour or two free from
head-ach, with a mind calm and collected.
It was evident the Colonel had imbibed one
opinion, viz. " Time is precious : life is but
a span ; we should therefore make the best
use of it." In fine, the greatest persecution
that could have been entailed on Colonel
Thornton, would have been for him to have
passed a week in idleness.

NATURE had favored the late Colonel Thorn-
ton with an iron-like constitution ; and few
men could compete with him over the bottle.
His spirits, to the last moments of his exist-
ence, were buoyant in the extreme ; and it
might be said of him that he was determined
to live all the days of his life, something after
the manner of the pleasing and well-known
duet,

Begone, dull Care, I prithee begone from me :
Begone, dull Care, you and I shall never agree
Long time thou hast been tarrying here,

And fain thou would'st me kill ;
But, i'faith, dull Care,

Thou never shalt have thy will.

Towards the latter part of his life the Colonel
became rather embarrassed in his circum-
stances, owing to a variety of causes ; and his
fine collection of paintings was brought to
the hammer in June, 1819, at Hickman's Gal-
lery, St. James's-street. His last residence
in England was in Edge ware-road, but his
house was more like a garrison than the dwel-
ling of a private gentleman ; and it was to-
tally impossible to obtain an entrance without
previously being put in possession of the
counter-sign. The Colonel was so closely
besieged, to use his own words, by the ' Har-
pies of the law/ that the above precaution
was absolutely necessary to prevent being
taken, " Body and bones," without a moment's
warning. But nevertheless he kept a good
table ; always in good spirits, and prepared
for the worst, ' come what might,' and where
he carried on the war with the most perfect