216 TRAINERS WITHOUT TRAINING 



heart, and Barber as fond of billiards as he was of 

 racing, or any other species of gaming. The two were as 

 eccentric in manner as characteristic in dress. Barber 

 always wore a black suit, loose-fitting trousers, resting in 

 wrinkles on a substantial boot, a swallow-tail dress-coat, 

 with a clerical necktie and hat to match. Fancy wearing 

 such a dress in a betting-ring, by the side of his partner, 

 who resembled a badly-dressed keeper, if you substituted 

 trousers for the leggings generally worn by the game- 

 killing fraternity ! I should much doubt if either of 

 these sages ever saw a racehorse until on the course. 

 From fortunate speculations on other people's horses, 

 they formed a stud of their own. Saxon was thought to 

 be the trainer, and Barber to attend to the commissions; 

 though I think, in most matters, they acted conjointly, 

 and like so many cooks, spoiling their own good things. 

 From what date their confederacy commenced must be a 

 matter of surmise, for Barber ran many horses in his 

 own name, as did Saxon also. The latter in 1851 had 

 Black Doctor, wlio did him good service ; but, like 

 Yelloiv Jack, he was more noted for the number jf times 

 he ran second than for the races he won. He was 

 second for the Chester, Manchester, Doncaster, and 

 Ascot Cups, being beaten by Joe Miller in the latter very 

 easily. These were disappointments, but a greater one 

 befell him subsequently, when Mary had to put up with 

 running second to Sultan for the Cambridgeshire. This 

 was, however, due to his own mismanagement. The 

 mare was not more than half fit when she ran, and stood 

 still from want of training when she had at least a stone 

 in hand. Barber had many running in 1856, and 

 probably others before that, which had not until this 

 time been doing him much good. Pretty Boy fell at 

 York, which may have prevented his winning the Great 



