41

were lying blissfully on their side in
the sun-warmed shallows. A couple
of roan fillies were playing tennis,”
with rackets strapped to their right
fore-hocks.

“There is worse to come,” said the
shade of Doctor S. As I followed him
toward the barn, a golf-ball flew past
my right ear, followed by a neigh of
“Fore—nnrff!” and a young bay mare
cantered past with a mashee in her
teeth.

Just outside the barn, we found nine
Houyhnhnms’ standing by the fence of
a miniature paddock, gazing with
rapt attention at a collection of toy
animals, guarded by a regiment of
tin soldiers—how my Uncle ‘Toby
would have relished those diminutive
militarists—inside the enclosure.

“See,” said my companion, “this no-
ble race, that once scorned all others,
now looks with admiration on the in-
significant images of the beasts of the
earth—even on the most despicable

form of man, the lowest of the
Yahoos!”



a

~
ae
ee



As we entered the great barn, we
heard a confusion of musical sounds,
that made me long to be listening
peacefully to Lillibullero. Looking
into a stall at my left, I saw two
young Houyhnhnms playing a duet
on a piano;° two more listened ecstat-
ically to a victrola;’ in the center of
the room a white® and a chestnut?
mare were dancing with two bay stal-
lions; in a corner, a jet stallion with

°M. L. H. and L. McC.

4M. D. C.

’'B. B., M. D. C. (who seems to have had
several HOBBIES); M. E. C., E. M.
M., J. E. P.) E. E.S., V. E. T. (appro-
priate initials for an owner of HOBBY-
HORSES), and the poor Houyhnhnm

who went mad over tin soldiers must
have been the mount of D. H. N.

6J. W. C. and M. G. D.
“A, D. and G. A. P.
8M. B. N.

8S. D.





37



“Cab Calloway” embroidered on his
halter was neighing at the top of his
lungs;° his teeth looked unpleasantly
large.

My companion pulled my sleeve—I
felt from my heart for the mournful
expression in his eyes—and I followed
him to the largest stall, at the end of
the building. Doctor S. bowed his
head sadly as he opened the gate:
within sat several small groups of
young Houyhnhnms. Four were ar-
guing over a bridge table in one cor-



ner;” five were reclining on a divan-
like structure, knitting horse-blankets
of fantastic hues’—heaven forgive me
for ever having called the Shandys
mad—three more were neighing over
an art collection on the walls; two
or three were reading in spite of the
din’—magazines and detective stor-
ies, O Eugenius!—one was poring
over a collection of insects and bee-
tles’—which my father, Walter Shan-
dy, could never abide—another was
painting marionettes, into which a
companion filly was putting a mechan-

10M. C.
Elbe AG Vien Kou Mer VienRevarnde COWS

“H. E. B., M. D. C. (truly, this HOBBY-
rider keeps a whole stable), L. V. B.
Ce Ke Eland je Aww

Soe De PALA ED eVes nies nike
ACS Con 18a do 12ep) Milos IDS GE

1D Mer Lee

rea Comey