THE MODERN THOROUGHBRED. 71 
Miles. 
1. Merry Bachelor, by Tartar, which he rode . 4 
2. Wildair, by Cade, dam by Steady ac 4 
3. Juggler, by Rib, dam Sister to Regulus . . . 4 
4. Forrester, by Croft's Forrester, dam by Surly . 3 
5. Rover, by Brother to Bolton . . . ... . 4 
6. Jack o’Newbury, by Babraham, dam by Justice 4 
7. Adolphus, by Regulus, out of Miss Layton . 3 
8. Jessamy, by Spot, out of Bay Broklesly . , 3 
9. Prince T’Quassaw, by Snap, out of Dairymaid . 3 
Merry Bachelor (second time) Soto 6 3 
Wildair (ditto) . a 8 
Juggler (ditto) . 3 
Rover (ditto) 3 
10. Hambleton, by Swiss 3 
Adolphus (second time) . a OLY 
504 
Allowing the odd minutes and seconds for the fifteen changes, this 
makes the rate exactly two minutes per mile, which was the fastest rate 
made by Mr. Osbaldeston in any of his four-mile stages when doing his 
200 mile match, and then only by one horse, Tranby. And thus we 
get some definite idea of the performance of the horses of those days, 
which we can by and by compare with those of our own. 
THE MODERN THOROUGHBRED. 
To prFINE the thoroughbred horse of the nineteenth century is easy 
enough, because it is only necessary to adduce the law that he must 
appear in “The Stud-Book.” Without this testamentary evidence no 
other will be received, nor even theoretically can any other be adduced. 
By some it is supposed that he is a horse descended from sires and dams 
of Eastern blood, that is, either Turks, Barbs, or Arabs; but this has 
long been known to be a fallacy, for we find numerous gaps in almost all 
the old pedigrees, which there is every reason to believe ought to be 
occupied with the names of native or Spanish mares. But though “The 
Stud-Book” is thus received as the existing authority on this matter, it 
is open to a question whether it may not be desirable to amend it by 
introducing into its pages horses and mares which can be proved to be 
stainless for a certain number of generations. The subject is a difficult 
one, for while it is comparatively easy to keep a record year by year of 
the foals as they are dropped, it is extremely difficult to obtain satisfactory 
proof of similar facts which occurred six generations back, and this would 
be the earliest period at which it could be supposed that the stain of 
impure blood could be washed out. For instance, supposing a thorough- 
bred horse is put to a common mare in 1859, and the produce is a 
filly in 1860; this filly might again breed a filly in 1864, and have a 
grand-daughter in 1868, and a great grand-daughter in 1872, and so on 
to the year 1870, when the produce would stil! be composed of one sixty- 
fourth part common blood and the rest thoroughbred. But twenty years 
would elapse without any public record of the facts, and we all know how 
difficult it is to disprove any statement made under such circumstances. 
The safest plan, I believe, is to adopt the course now pursued, unless it 
can be shown that it is expedient to cross the blood of our thoroughbred 
stock with some other strain for the sake of improving it. An Eastern 
horse is at once admitted as being supposed to be of pure blood, and 
there is therefore no difficulty in his case, nor would ‘there be any in the 
other to which I have alluded if a public declaration were made before- 
