1773 THE SIRS 75 



On Sir Charles, as one of the stewards in con- 

 junction with Mr. Ealph Dutton and the * polite ' Mr. 

 Thomas Panton, devolved the unpleasant duty of 

 virtually * warning off ' the Prince of Wales (in con- 

 nection with Escape, and Chifney's riding of him, 

 when the Prince behaved like the ' First Gentleman ') ; 

 and to him has been attributed, from the days of 

 Mr. Christie Whyte to those of Sir Francis Hastings 

 Doyle (writing in the ' Fortnightly ' of June 1881), and 

 even later still, the ' invention of two-year-old races,' 

 and attributed generally as if it were discreditable to 

 him. 



But creditable or discreditable, let the saddle be 

 put on the right horse. 



Was it, then, Sir Charles Bunbury who ' invented ' 

 two-year-old racing ? Mr. John Orton, of the well- 

 known * Annals,' a great authority, and others, assert 

 that two-year-old racing originated in a match run at 

 York between two youngsters of that age, belonging 

 respectively to the Kev. Henry Goodricke (a Pre- 

 bendary of York Minster, owner of the celebrated 

 * Old England mare,' and winner, generally under 

 somebody else's name, whether Mr. G. Crompton's 

 or another, of the Doncaster St. Leger on several 

 occasions) and a Mr. John Hutchinson (originally a 

 stableboy, and afterwards John Hutchinson, ' esquire,' 

 of Shipton, near York, a man of substance and a 

 breeder of famous racehorses, including Bening- 

 brough and Hambletonian, winners of the St. Leger, 



