round this corner, into this Lane. Here it is; this is
it to the right."

We entered a sort of coach-yard, which was filled with
a motley and mixed crowd of people. I was greatly
disappointed in Tattersall's. Indeed, few things in London
have answered my expectations. They have either exceeded
or fallen short of the description I had heard of them.
I was prepared, both from what I was told by Mr. Slick,
and heard, from others, to find that there were but very
few gentlemen-like looking men there; and that by far
the greater number neither were, nor affected to be, any
thing but "knowing ones." I was led to believe that there
would be a plentiful use of the terms _of art_, a variety
of provincial accent, and that the conversation of the
jockeys and grooms would be liberally garnished with
appropriate slang.

The gentry portion of the throng, with some few exceptions,
it was said, wore a dissipated look, and had that peculiar
appearance of incipient disease, that indicates a life
of late hours, of excitement, and bodily exhaustion.
Lower down in the scale of life, I was informed,
intemperance had left its indelible marks. And that
still further down, were to be found the worthless lees
of this foul and polluted stream of sporting gentlemen,
spendthrifts, gamblers, bankrupts, sots, sharpers and
jockeys.

This was by no means the case. It was just what a man