APPERLEY

apperley, charles james (1777-1843), english sportsman and sporting writer, better known as "nimrod," the pseudonym under which he published his works on the chase and the turf, was born at plasgronow, near wrexham, in denbighshire, in 1777. between the years 1805 and 1820 he devoted himself to fox-hunting. about 1821 he began to contribute to the _sporting magazine_, under the pseudonym of "nimrod," a series of racy articles, which helped to double the circulation of the magazine in a year or two. the proprietor, mr pittman, kept for "nimrod" a stud of hunters, and defrayed all expenses of his tours, besides giving him a handsome salary. the death of mr pittman, however, led to a law-suit with the proprietors of the magazine for money advanced, and apperley, to avoid imprisonment, had to take up his residence near calais (1830), where he supported himself by his writings. he died in london on the 19th of may 1843. the most important of his works are: _remarks on the condition of hunters, the choice of horses_, &c. (1831); _the chase, the turf, and the road_ (originally written for the _quarterly review_), (1837); _memoirs of the life of the late john mytton_ (1837); _nimrod's northern tour_ (1838); _nimrod abroad_ (1842); _the horse and the hound_ (a reprint from the seventh edition of the _encyclopaedia britannica_) (1842); _hunting reminiscences_ (1843).