The Pride of Our Village. 57 



ride the horse came down and tried him and was dehghted 

 w-ith his going, and when early spring came on and our 

 favourite was removed to his final training quarters on the 

 Sussex Downs, and we missed the people at the big house 

 and our trainer and jockeys, our little parish grew quite 

 dull. 



One day at luncheon the Vicar came in, looking as if he 

 had seen the Father of Evil himself. 



" What is the matter, Tom ? " asked his wife, quite 

 alarmed. 



"My dear, dear wife! I have just heard the moot 

 dreadful thing in the world," answered the parson. 



" What is it, my dear ? " 



<< Why, some villains have put some broken glass in the 

 favourite's gallop, in Sussex. I would have such fellows 

 hanged twice over, ay, and quartered, too." This he said, 

 forgetting that on the previous Sunday he had preached 

 forgiveness down to any extent, and even so far possibly as 

 forgiving a man who ran away with one's mother-in-law. 



I wonder how many hundreds of persons on cricket- 

 gi^ounds and elsewhere asked me if I could give them any 

 " information," knowing that my people lived in the parish 

 where the favourite used to be. To one and all I gave the 

 same answer, which was, that if they believed in anything 

 such as honesty on the Turf, they now had the chance of 

 backing a horse whose owner possessed that quality, and if 

 not, they had better leave it alone ; and moreover, that if I 

 had any so-called " information," I was not going to betray 

 the confidence of a man who had made me free of his 

 stables on the faith of my being a gentleman and not a 

 tout. 



The Derby Day approached, and we had the latest news 

 that the horse was safe in the neighbourhood of Epsom, and 

 that all was well ; and that to prevent mistakes some of the 



