"When you are a gentleman," said he, "should you ever journey on a
horse of your own, and you could not have a much better than the
one you have here eating its fill in the box yonder--I wonder, by
the bye, how you ever came by it--you can't do better than follow
the advice I am about to give you, both with respect to your animal
and yourself. Before you start, merely give your horse a couple of
handfuls of corn and a little water, somewhat under a quart, and if
you drink a pint of water yourself out of the pail, you will feel
all the better during the whole day; then you may walk and trot
your animal for about ten miles, till you come to some nice inn,
where you may get down and see your horse led into a nice stall,
telling the ostler not to feed him till you come. If the ostler
happens to be a dog-fancier, and has an English terrier-dog like
that of mine there, say what a nice dog it is, and praise its black
and tawn; and if he does not happen to be a dog-fancier, ask him
how he's getting on, and whether he ever knew worse times; that
kind of thing will please the ostler, and he will let you do just
what you please with your own horse, and when your back is turned,
he'll say to his comrades what a nice gentleman you are, and how he
thinks he has seen you before; then go and sit down to breakfast,
and, before you have finished breakfast, get up and go and give
your horse a feed of corn; chat with the ostler two or three
minutes till your horse has taken the shine out of his corn, which
will prevent the ostler taking any of it away when your back is
turned, for such things are sometimes done--not that I ever did
such a thing myself when I was at the inn at Hounslow.
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