Like Tom Brown, I felt myself drawn to the sporting set, and, as I was always an adept at athletics, soon won repute as an oarsman, and was well satisfied to be looked upon as the Yankee champion sundry amateur rowing-and boxing-matches, as well as in the lecture-room.  Of course, I was the mark for no end of good-natured chaff about my nationality, but was nearly always able, I believe, to sustain the honor of the American name, and so at length graduated in the “firsts” as to scholarship, and enjoyed the distinguished honor of pulling number four in the “’Varsity eight” in our annual match with Cambridge on the Thames.  Moreover, I stood six feet in my stockings, had the muscle of a gladiator, and was physically the equal of any man at Oxford.

After the race was over my special cronies hung about London for a few days, usually making that classical “cave” of Evans’s a rendezvous in the evening.  Two or three young officers of the Guards were often with us, and one night, when the talk had turned, as it often did, on personal prowess, the superb average physique of their regiment was duly lauded by our soldier companions.  At length one of them remarked, in that aggravatingly superior tone which some Englishmen assume, that any man in his troop could handle any two of the then present company.  This provoked a general laugh of incredulity, and two or three of our college set turned to me with—­“What do you say to that, Jonathan?”

“Nonsense!” said I.  “I’ll put on the gloves with the biggest fellow among them, any day.”

This somewhat democratic readiness to spar with a private soldier led to remarks which I chose to consider insular, if not insolent, and I replied, supporting the principle of Yankee equality, until, losing my temper at something which one of the ensigns said, I delivered myself in some such fashion as this:  “Well, gentlemen, I’m only one Yankee among many Englishmen, but I will bet a hundred guineas, and put up the money, that I will tumble one of those mighty warriors out of his saddle in front of the Horse Guards, and ride off on his horse before the guard can turn out and stop me.”

Of course my bet was instantly taken by the officers, but my friends were so astounded at my rashness that I found no backers.  However, my blood was up, and, possibly because Evans’s bitter beer was buzzing slightly in my head, I booked several more bets at large odds in my own favor.  As the hour was late, we separated with an agreement to meet and arrange details on the following day, keeping the whole affair strictly secret meanwhile.