CHAPTER II. 



TURF LIFE IN THE COLONIES. 



Racing men : their superstitions. "Women backers. Con- 

 trasts. Forestalling. Climate. Training tra?k. Press- 

 men. 



In no part of the world can be found more entliusi- 

 astic followers of the turf than in Australia, and I 

 may also add New Zealand, and that tight little 

 island, Tasmania. Racing, in my humble opinion, is 

 the most absorbing and interesting of sports. To 

 love horses is an inherent characteristic of Britishers, 

 and the bulk of the Colonial people come from good 

 old Britisb stock. 



In England the climate is very often dead against 

 enjoying racing under the most favourable circum- 

 stances, but in Australia there is very little to com- 

 plain of as regards the weather. 



Sunny skies in that favoured island are the rule, 

 and it is the exception and not the rule to be let in for 

 a drenching day's sport. 



