THE TWO THOUSAND 315 



best two-year-old in England at 5 lb., and but for Wells, 

 his jockey, making too sure of his winning, my horse 

 would have been beaten. The race itself and the result 

 is soon told. North Lincoln took a decided lead imme- 

 diately after starting, and Wells looked round to the 

 other jockeys and said ' Good-bye,' and increased his 

 lead many lengths more, till nearing the distance, when 

 Promised Land, who had been lying second all the way, 

 began to creep up, passed him at the stand, and won 

 cleverly, the rest all being beaten a long way. It was a 

 heavy betting race, as North Lincoln had won all his 

 races before with the greatest ease, and I did not think 

 anything could beat mine ; so we won a good stake, and 

 also had backed him heavily for the Derby at long odds. 

 He had only one more engagement that year in the 

 Criterion, when the two met again at even weights ; and 

 Wells, this time riding a waiting race, just won, the 

 Land being second. I may here point to a rather curious 

 coincidence. The two horses met but twice as two- 

 year-olds, and each beat the other ; and again as three- 

 year-olds they met the same number of times with a like 

 result. 



North Lincoln was not in the Derby, for which race 

 and the Two Thousand Promised Land became a strong 

 winter favourite. He did well through the winter, and 

 in the following spring was tried a mile as follows : 



Promised Land, 3 yrs., 8 st. 7 lb. - - 1 



Schism, 3 yrs., 7 st. 12 lb. - - - - 2 



Nimrod, 3 yrs., 7 st. 3 lb. - - - - 3 



Bevis, 3 yrs., 6 st. 7 lb. - - - - 4 



All stable-lads riding; won by a length cleverly, two 

 lengths and a neck separating the others. As Bevis had 

 just won the Northamptonshire Stakes, and Schism soon 

 after won the Longleat Stakes at Salisbury by five 



