and appears to have paid very frequent 

 visits to the place to enjoy the sport he 

 was anxious to encourage. He kept race- 

 horses, and in his purchase of the Markham 

 Arabian* we have evidence that he did 

 not spare endeavour to procure the best. 

 It is true that this horse proved a failure 

 on the Turf; that his indifferent performance 

 did something to discredit the Arab in the 

 eyes of Englishmen, and no doubt con- 

 tributed to check the importation of Eastern 

 sires for racing ; but his failure does not 

 affect the fact that his purchase goes for 

 proof of King James's desire to improve 

 the breed of racehorses. Many foreign 

 horses were imported into England during 

 this reign. The Spanish horse still held 

 its high reputation; in 1623, the Duke of 



* There is some doubt concerning the price paid 

 by the King for the Markham Arabian. The Duke 

 of Newcastle, in The New Method of Dressing Horses 

 (1667) says : " Mr. Markham sold him to King James 

 for five hundred pounds," and this statement has 

 been repeated by Sidney and other writers. In the 

 Times of September i, 1878, however, a correspondent 

 signing himself " H " drew attention to the follow- 

 ing entry in the " Records of the Exchequer : " 

 " Item, December 20, 1616, paid to Master Markham 

 for an Arabian Horse for His Majesty's own use 

 ^"154. Item, the same paid to a man that brought 

 the same Arabian Horse and kept him 11. 



