TRAINING AT HAPHAZARD 213 



CHAPTER XII. 



TEAINEES WITHOUT TRAINING. 



Training at haphazard The brothers Stebbing Own Flalcatcher and 

 other good horses Accidental success and ultimate failure Barber 

 and Saxon First association Horses owned conjointly and sepa- 

 rately, and their doings Mistakes in selling Oaks victory and 

 subsequent decline Saxon and the thief. 



Mr. Thomas Parr First start His patrons A large stable and 

 few runners Love of plating A mystery ; how was it done ? 

 Training from a hayloft Sale of Fernhill and Isoline Embarrass- 

 ments A lucky release Bovine appearance of Rataplan Disap- 

 pointment in the St. Leger Misuse of good horses ; Saucebox, 

 Fisherman, and others Mortimer's defeat at Chester Curious 

 excuse How he got Weathergage ; unexpected performance and 

 curious treatment Errors in training A word for George Hall. 



* NOTHING succeeds like success ' is a truism ' as old as 

 the hills,' and likely to be as lasting. You may be the 

 cleverest person in the world, and the whole world may 

 know it ; but if you are not lucky, your talent, however 

 brilliant and judiciously applied, is not appreciated, and 

 every action of your life is criticized and condemned. 

 Reverse the case, and you find men without ability or 

 energy, if but momentarily fortunate, praised for virtues 

 which they do not possess, which are only to be found in 

 the imagination of admirers more foolish than them- 

 selves. 



In the training of racehorses there have been more 

 instances than one, in which professors guiltless of the 

 rudimentary principles of their profession have been 

 successful beyond expectation. In these cases, it is 

 true, the success has not been of a permanent nature ; 

 yet, whilst it lasted, brilliant enough to have given them 



