The Life of a Great Sportsman 



Since this 'period the race has gone on increasing in public 

 favour steadily every year, and it is certain that, the deteriora- 

 tion in steeplechasing generally notwithstanding, never within its 

 history was it more popular than at the present time, as witness 

 the enormous crowds which assemble on every occasion, no 

 matter what the class of competitor. Many a hunting-man I 

 could mention who, in the words of Horace, "gaudet equis, 

 canibusque, et aprici gramine campi," would not go out of his 

 way to attend an ordinary race-meeting, never dreams of 

 missing a Grand National, looking at it, indeed, as a fitting 

 wind-up to the hunting season. 



Nor is this feeling confined to the sterner sex, our hunting 

 ladies being just as keen on the subject as their lords and 

 masters, many of them not content merely to look on, but 

 taking the trouble to walk round the course beforehand, and 

 inspect the jumps. 



I have frequently heard the remark that these are bigger 

 than we are accustomed to meet with whilst hunting, but it 

 should be remembered that when you are on foot obstacles 

 look very much larger than when seen from the top of a big 

 horse. As might be expected in these enlightened times, 

 there have been many alterations and improvements of recent 

 years, not only in the course itself, but in the stand and 

 arrangements generally, conducive to the comfort of not only 

 trainers and their charges, but the general public, with the 

 result that at the present moment there is not a race-meeting 

 to be named whose patrons are better looked after than by 

 Messrs. Topham at Liverpool. 



My First Mount. 



When I first made acquaintance with the Grand National, 

 exactly thirty-eight years ago, on which memorable occasion 



' 268 



