“… As to your coming down, when you do come, I wish you to stay a week or ten days. You must go with us a-coursing; and I will take care to have a good field for sport provided.… If you never saw any coursing, you have a great pleasure to come; and you will see William ride his pony and leap over the ditches.” Amongst new acquaintances of this year was no less a person than Dr. Mitford, probably introduced to Cobbett by Sir William Elford, who was a vigorous Windhamite. The Doctor’s passion for coursing consolidated a friendship which lasted for several years; and we find Cobbett visiting him in December, 1806, at Bertram House, near Reading, from which place several articles in the _Register_ are dated. Miss Mitford has several pleasing recollections of Cobbett, for whom she had considerable esteem.[7] But, of all his Hampshire friends, there was none so staunch as Viscount Folkestone,[8] a rising whig politician of the day; a man who endeavoured to carry the principles of his pretentious Party into practice, and honestly believed that Mr. Cobbett was, with all his untamable vigour, one of the best exponents of the current political aspirations. Although the time came when, in 1834, their opinions diverged on the Poor Law question, their mutual regard lasted to the very end. FOOTNOTES [1] The Parliamentary Debates. [2] John Cartwright (1740-1823) was the boldest and the bravest champion of free speech, for forty years or more, during the reign of George the Third. Indeed, he was not unjustly styled “the Father of Reform.” In early life he was in the navy, but left it after a short period of service, and became an officer in the militia. He produced a number of pamphlets, advocating all those ideas of popular rights which have since his time been generally accepted in England, the first one being in support of American Independence, published in 1774. But his writings were heavy in style, and could not live beyond his own times and the occasions which they served. Major Cartwright’s personal character was lofty and amiable, and Cobbett appears to have regarded him with peculiar affection. On one occasion of the Westminster Anniversary Dinner, in 1816, an opportunity occurred, under the following circumstances, of entering upon a protest, against the Major being overlooked among the new men who were finding it worth their while to pin their faith to the cause of Reform:--After the two members were toasted, as usual, there appeared the name of Brougham! Mr. Cobbett’s wonder at this was changed into indignation upon finding Major Cartwright’s name at the bottom of the list; and he declared he would not sit any longer at the table unless an alteration was made. So Brougham’s name was taken out, and the Major’s put in its place.