HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH HORSE. 63 



They were mostly accidental trials of strength and speed, and there were no 

 running-horses, properly speaking none that were kept for the purpose of 

 displaying their speed, and dedicated to this particular purpose alone. Regular 

 races, however, were now established in various parts of England, first at 

 Garterly in Yorkshire, then at Croydon, at Theobald's on Enfield- chase, and at 

 Stamford*. There was no acknowledged system as now no breed of racing- 

 horses; but hackneys and hunters mingled together, and no description of 

 horse was excluded. 



There was at first no course marked out for the race, but the contest gene- 

 rally consisted in the running of train-scent across the country, and sometimes 

 the most difficult and dangerous part of the country was selected for the 

 exhibition. Occasionally our present steeple-chase was adopted with all its 

 dangers, and more than its present barbarity ; for persons were appointed 

 cruelly to flog along the jaded and exhausted horse t. 



By degrees, however, certain horses were devoted to these exhibitions, and 

 were prepared for the race, as far as the mystery of the training stable could 

 then be explored, somewhat in the same way as at present. The weight of the 

 rider, however, was not always adjusted to the age or performances of the 

 horse ; but no rider could start who weighed less than 10 st. 



The races of that period were not disgraced by the system of gambling and 

 fraud which in later times seems to have become almost inseparable from the 

 amusements of the turf. No heavy stakes were run for ; and no betting 

 system had been established. The prize was usually a wooden bell adorned 

 with flowers. This was afterwards exchanged for a silver bell, and " given to 

 him who should run the best and farthest on horseback, and especially on 

 Shrove Tuesday." Hence the common phrase of " bearing away the bell." 



Horse-racing became gradually more cultivated ; but it was not until the 

 last year of the reign of James 1. that rules were promulgated and generally 

 subscribed to for their regulation. That prince was fond of field-sports. He 

 had encouraged, if he did not establish, horse-racing in Scotland, and he 

 brought with him to England his predilection for it ; but his races were often 

 matches against time, or trials of speed and bottom for absurdly and cruelly 

 long distances. His favourite courses were at Croydon and on Enfield-chase. 



Although the Turkish and Barbary horses had been freely used to produce 

 with the English mare the breed that was best suited to this exercise, little 

 improvement had been effected. James, with great judgment, determined to 

 try the Arab breed. Probably he had not forgotten the story of the Arabian 

 that had been presented to one of his Scottish churches, five centuries before, 

 He purchased from a merchant, named Markham, a celebrated Arabian horse, 

 for which he gave the extravagant sum of five hundred pounds. Kings, how- 

 ever, like their subjects, are often thwarted and governed by their servants, and 

 the Duke of Newcastle took a dislike to this foreign animal. He wrote a 

 book, and a very good one, on horsemanship ; but he described this Arabian as 



* Boucher, in his History of Stamford, tain distance of him, as twice or thrice his 



says, that the first valuable public prize was length, or else to be " beaten up," whipped 



run for at that place in the time of Charles I. up to the mark by the judges who rode to see 



It was a silver-gilt cup and cover, of the value fair play. If one horse got before the other 



of ^8, provided by the corporation, twelve score yards, or any certain distance, 



t This perhaps requires a little explanation, according as the match was made, he was ac- 



A match was formed called the " Wild-Goose counted to be beaten. If the horse which at 



Chase," between two horses, and a tolerably the beginning was behind, could get before him 



sure trial it was of the speed and hunting pro- that first led, then the otherwas bound to follow, 



perties of the horse. Whichever horse obtained and so on, until one got 240 yards, the eighth 



the lead at twelve score yards from the starting part of a mile, before the other, or refused 



post, the other was compelled to follow him some break-neck leap which the other had 



wherever he went, and to keep within a cer- taken. Berenger, vol. ii. p. 188. 



