ndred spirits, and the lovers of the characteristic
and the humorous meet with a greater variety of genuine eccentricity,
unalloyed with any baser or offensive material. Matthew Temple himself
is a great original, pure Somerset, perfectly good-natured, ever ready
to oblige, and although for many years the commander-in-chief of the
Castle, is yet in all the chicanery of his

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profession, and the usual obtrusiveness of a landlord, as unlike the
generality of his brethren as a raw recruit is to an effective soldier.
Old Master William Partridge is also worthy of notice as the father of
the turf, and then if you would ride to hounds, no man in Bath can mount
you better, or afford you such good corn, great attentions, and a warm
stall for a prime hack. Rich in anecdote, and what is still better, with
a charitable purse and a worthy heart, there are few men who have earned
for themselves more respect in this life, or deserve it better, than
William Handy, Esq. the once celebrated equestrian, who having realized
a handsome competency, retired, some years since, to Bath, to enjoy his
_otium cum dignitate_: here, at an advanced age, with all the spirits
of youth, and a lively interest in every thing relating to sporting, you
will meet with the character I have described; and, take my word for
it, will not be disappointed in the likeness. Among the bon vivants of
Sportsmans' Hall I must not omit that care-killing soul Captain Beaven,
whose easy flow of good-humour and love of good sport is not less
conspicuous than his love for a pretty lass, and his delight in a good
song and a cheerful glass. Honest George Wingrove, a wealthy baker,
and the patriarch of the room, will never prove a crusty customer, I
am sure; and if that good-looking fellow Mead, the riding-master, does
sometimes "o'erstep the modesty of nature" in his mode of addressing
his pupils, adopting the familiar style of addressing them by their
christian name--as, for instance, "set upright, Sally; more forward,
Eliza; keep your rein-hand more square, Ellen;" and soon; he
hath, however, yet many good points that amply compensate for this
perverseness of habit. Among the genuine good ones, the real thing, as
the sporting phrase has it, not a biped in Bath beats Tom Williams, who,
agreeable to our Eton Gradus, is good at every thing: a more jovial,
worthy-hearted, respected soul breathes not within the merry court
of King Bladud, and very ~303~~few there that ca