240 RACING. 



nearly two hours, and were subsequently found to be the result 

 of a corrupt bargain between the starter (who was dismissed 

 from his post in consequence) and a knot of rascally betting- 

 men, who had laid heavily against Mameluke. From that 

 time, until a comparatively recent date, the art of starting 

 horses, as practised by the late Mr. McGeorge, and at pre- 

 sent by Mr. Arthur Coventry, had not been invented. The 

 same system prevailed as that referred to in Pick's ' Authentic 

 Historical Racing Calendar of all Plates, Sweepstakes, Matches, 

 &c., run at York from 1709 to 1785.' Thus we find that, 

 upon A.ugust 21, 1759, there was a great two-thousand-guinea 

 match at York over four miles of ground, between Lord 

 Rockingham's Whistlejacket by Mogul, and Mr. Turner's 

 Brutus by Norris's Bolton. ' This,' says the primitive reporter, 

 'was an exceedingly fine race, being strongly contested the 

 whole four miles, and won by a length only. Whistlejacket 

 was rode by John Singleton, and Brutus by Thomas Jackson, 

 who both showed great skill in horsemanship, and so jealous 

 were they of each other gaining advantage at starting that 

 they called one another back several times.' Turning to the 

 records of Crucifix's races about eighty years later, the same 

 tactics, as we shall find, were still maintained. Lord George 

 Bentinck's famous filly made her first appearance in public for 

 the July Stakes in 1839, which she won in a canter, with young 

 John Day on her back. Two days later she was again pulled 

 out for the Chesterfield. 



After an amazing number of false starts all got away except 

 Merle, who was left behind. Notwithstanding that the flag was 

 still up, they went right through and made a good race of it. Lord 

 Albemarle's Iris winning by half a length ; Crucifix was second, 

 having by her immense stride made up for a veiy bad start. This, 

 unfortunately for that popular nobleman, Lord Albemarle, was 

 pronounced to be no race, and all ran it over again after several 

 more false starts. The running in the second heat was made by 

 Crucifix as far as the hill, where Iris took it up, and enabled young 

 John Day to ease his mare ; on reaching level ground, he resumed 

 his lead, and won in a canter by two lengths. 



