220 TRAINERS WITHOUT TRAINING 



his considerable successes, commencing at or about the 

 time of Rataplan, he had a very large string of horses. 

 But many of them never saw a racecourse, wherein he 

 showed his wisdom, which, in its way, was not often 

 wanting. I never remember seeing him with more than 

 two or three horses at any meeting. This may partly be 

 accounted for by the fact that he mostly bought old 

 horses without engagements, and only entered them a 

 short time before the event, in any race in which he 

 thought they would be likely to win and no man did 

 this better. It may, no doubt, have been pleasant to see 

 them victorious, but it would not have satisfied me ; for 

 as to any tangible results, it was but ' grasping the 

 shadow without the substance/ How strange is the 

 contrast of so meagre a string, with the numbers that 

 some of our best trainers have at different meetings ! I 

 remember sixteen or seventeen from one stable running 

 at Ascot, and some thirty at Goodwood. But of course 

 these were horses engaged a long time before, and taking 

 their chance of success. Parr had no such inducement, 

 as he preferred to keep running his horses at all sorts of 

 places for the smallest of stakes. 



Mr. Parr commenced his racing career auspiciously in 

 1839, with the small number of two platers, and won his 

 maiden race with Malton, at Gorhambury. From this 

 date to 1846 he does not seem to have increased his stud 

 materially, nor to have 'run for anything beyond selling 

 and other small races. Twin, after running seven times, 

 was fortunate in winning a stake of the value of 24 ; 

 and Trojan, on his victory, enhanced the contents of his 

 exchequer by another 25. Subsequently, he seems to 

 have increased his stud to about a score, still of the same 

 plating character ; though in Giselle he aspired to high 

 honours, by running her for the Cesarewitch, and spoilt 



