THE STATE OF THE ODDS. 277 



begins more than a year before the races are run ; and 

 during the interval, the odds laid against the different 

 horses engaged in them vary repeatedly, in accordance 

 with the reported progress of the animals in their 

 training, or with what is learned respecting the inten- 

 tions of their owners. Many who do not bet them- 

 selves, find an interest in watching the varying fortunes 

 of the horses which are held by the initiated to be 

 leading favourites, or to fall into the second rank, or 

 merely to have an outside chance of success. It is 

 amusing to notice, too, how frequently the final state 

 of the odds is falsified by the event ; how some f rank 

 outsider ' will run into the first place, while the leading 

 favourites are not even f placed.' 



It is in reality a simple matter to understand the 

 betting on races (or contests of any kind), yet it is 

 astonishing how seldom those who do not actually bet 

 upon races have any inkling of the meaning of those 

 mysterious columns which indicate the opinion of the 

 betting world respecting the probable results of ap- 

 proaching contests, equine or otherwise. 



Let us take a few simple cases of e odds,' to begin 

 with ; and, having mastered the elements of our sub- 

 ject, proceed to see how cases of greater complexity 

 are to be dealt with. 



Suppose the newspapers inform us that the betting 

 is 2 to 1 against a certain horse for such and such a 

 race, what inference are we to deduce ? To learn 

 this, let us conceive a case in which the true odds 

 against a certain event are as 2 to 1. Suppose there 



