stroke of the Leister. Nearly two hundred salmon and salmon trout had been taken; few weighed less than five pounds and some exceeded ten. These were equally divided among the men; and when taken home would be split open and dried, or, as they call it, "kippered;" and this food forms the principal part of their winter subsistence. The value they set upon the fish fresh from the water, was about Is. 2d. each on an average.

A fire was lit-all the men drew round-the whiskey was brought out -the pipes lit, and the exploits of the evening talked over. All restraint was laid aside,-boisterous mirth and reckless glee became the order of the night, and many were the threats vented against spies and informers. But to us, as strangers, the greatest courtesy was shown, and though the "manner of speech," might be rude, the speaker was serene, and well could we see, that so long as we made one of that rude gang each man there felt bound towards us with the same ties that knit men in the bonds of fellowship in any cause. We could not, however, but contrast the way in which this evening was spent, with the usual quiet manner in which a fishing day, with one or two old cronies, is generally wound up by lovers of the gentle craft. However, this was no place for moralizing; "The night drave on wi' sangs and clatter," and every now and then one of the party would leave the room to see that no one was watching or overhearing our proceedings. At length the signal for departure was given, and when the coast was declared to be clear, the party, one by one, left the house, and dark figures might every now and then be imperfectly seen, in the cold grey twilight of a December morning, passing down the quiet village street, each bearing home the booty obtained on the previous "Night's Leistering." March, 1842.

Тоно.

PROSPECTS ON THE MOORS.

THE reports from Scotland, and the vicinity of the Yorkshire moors, are of the most cheering character. They all concur in stating, that grouse will be found this season in more plenty than has been the case for several years past. This they attribute to the favourableness of the weather during the period of incubation, which was neither too hot nor too wet, either of which extremes generally proves fatal to two-thirds of the young during that process. Poults are getting strong on the wing, and out of danger from heavy rain, by which numbers, when very young and weak, perish. Partridges and pheasants are likewise very forward, and promise more than an average number.

THE FRENCHMAN AND HIS HORSE.

BY NIMROD.

WITH the exception of a few of the aristocracy of Paris, and such of their countrymen as have visited England, and sojourned there for some time, it has always struck me that a Frenchman was never intended to mount a horse. At all events, he never appears less at his ease, or so little to advantage, as when he is seated in a saddle. He seems to look upon the horse as a mere beast of burthen, or of draught, and is, therefore, quite unable to appreciate him as we do, in all his noblensss of character, and as contributing to an almost infinite degree, to the pleasures, as well as to the convenience of man.

But we cannot be surprised at the little pleasure a Frenchman takes in the services of this noble animal. In the first place, his system of riding-not rising to the action of his horse by the aid of his stirrups, destroys his enjoyment of him in his most ordinary, as well as most enduring pace-the trot. For one horse that can carry his rider pleasantly, and with safety, when cantering, a hundred are trotters; and no man that does not rise to the action of the latter, can endure that pace for any length of time. Suppose all sportsmen in England who are not so fortunate as to possess cantering hacks, were to ride as Frenchmen do-that is, ride "hard" as the term is-in what condition would they be to go through the fatigues of a long chase, after having ridden twenty miles to the place of meeting on a hard-trotting horse?" With the exception of Lord Lynedoch, I never saw any British sportsman attempt this system of riding “hard,” but the term, as hard as nails," may be applied to that sporting old nobleman, who appears to bid defiance to time, inasmuch as he is now breeding horses for his own riding, although past his ninetieth year.

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I have resided in France upwards of ten years, and I can safely say, that excepting in Paris I have not seen half-a-dozen French persons of either sex, taking what we call a ride for pleasure or exercise. A Frenchman seems to find his account in nothing of the sort; neither will he take a drive for pleasure, although he may have a carriage and horse in his stable-yard. In fact, both carriage and horse are looked upon by him merely as the means of transporting his own carcase, or those of his family, from place to place, and at a pace but little better than that of a funeral in England.

A French farmer on horseback is quite sui generis. He cannot be mistaken for a native of any other country under the sun, and I will endeavour to describe him. In the first place, it is only when on horseback that he ever wears a hat, by which reason, the said hat, from the little

wear it gets, lasts its wearer nearly half his life, consequently it is of all forms but the one at the time in vogue; and as Matthews said of the sleepy coat, it is very "long since it had a nap." Then, the entire of his dress is miserably adapted to the saddle. He oftener wears shoes than boots-seldom stockings under the latter,-in the summer never—and his trousers, which are made of the most flimsy materials, working upwards with the action of his horse, added to his blue blouse, equally flimsey, swelling with the wind, gives him, on the whole, the most uncomfortable appearance.

Then his saddle; it requires the pencil to give anything like a correct impression of this, for it defies the pen. In the first place, it has generally the appearance of being forty years old, and never cleaned since the day on which it was made. The pummel is of uncalled-for height, tipped with brass; such is the cantel; and the seat of it is as hard as a blacksmith's anvil. But the stirrups! could any one imagine that the following method of affixing them to the saddle, should, to the present moment, be adopted by French saddlers? The leathers make their appearance through holes in the flaps, and the buckles are in exactly the position in which they come in contact with some part of the rider's thigh. Then they are placed more backward, nearer to the rider's person than our's are, so that nothing like a resisting force can be obtained from their use, as they are almost in a perpendicular line with the rider's person. And what stirrups! they are nearly black with rust and dirt, and in all forms but the right one. The bridle is always a sharp curb, the snaffle being little known in France, either for saddle or draught horses, A head collar is invariably attached to the bridle.

But there are two other distinguishing features in a French farmer on horseback, and generally a third. He does not carry a whip, but a stick with a knob at the lower end of it, whilst the upper end is attached to his wrist by a string. It has the appearance of a walking stick with the end reversed. Secondly, he never travels without his great coat or cloak, and his white linen wallet, in which he generally takes something home with him. To prevent these being injured by coming in contact with the dirty sides of the horse, a leathern quilted flap is suspended from the saddle on the right and on the left. The third distinguishing feature is a pipe in his mouth, and a French farmer rarely, if ever, passes a public house without alighting and taking a goût of the worst description of ardent spirit-the common l'eau de vie, which ought rather to be called l'eau de mort.

This, reader, is no caricature of the French farmer on horseback ; but should you have occasion to address him, you will find him every thing you could desire a man in his grade of life to be. missed your road, he would go out of his own way to show

NO. XX.-VOL. IV.-NEW SERIES.

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