314 STEEPLE-CHASING. 



He knows all that the jockey knows, and more. To merit the 

 higher title he must possess an intimate acquaintance with 

 the horse, a readiness of determination, a promptitude of re- 

 source which would not be confidently expected from the mere 

 jockey. So it is with the ideal chaser. He has not only 

 learned how to cross the regulation track ; he is sure on his 

 legs, and, aided by a hint from the reins, understands how to 

 collect himself for different efforts and to shape himself for dif- 

 ficulties. Many horses are altogether excellent at home : they 

 jump the familiar training- ground in perfect style ; but when 

 sent away to run in a race they speedily get into trouble, fall, 

 refuse, or otherwise disconcert themselves and their belongings. 

 Jolly Sir John, a prominent favourite for the Grand National 

 of 1883, is a case in point. At home he could not make a 

 mistake, had no idea of a refusal, and never fell. At Liverpool 

 he bungled at the first fence and came down at the third ; 

 at Sandown and elsewhere he also came to grief. On the 

 other hand, horses which have once run over a course w^ill 

 frequently run specially well afterwards, w^hile a horse which 

 has fallen at a certain obstacle is very likely indeed to fall 

 again. 



A clever horse, as the phrase goes, is a treasure. Slow 

 animals that are fairly good fencers frequently win races simply 

 because, having learnt their business, they stand on their legs ; 

 and however much a horse may answer to the description of a 

 'natural jumper,' he has to learn to be clever, cleverness being 

 to a large extent the result of self-confidence born of ex- 

 perience. 



It iS; however, in a great measure futile to emphasise the 

 advantages of actually natural countries, for the reason that they 

 are not procurable. Numbers of steeple-chase meetings are 

 held yearly near the metropolis, for example, and if they w^re 

 not held on ground set apart for the purpose at Sandown, 

 Kempton, and other familiar places, where could they be run ? 

 The argument is not tenable that here the fences are of a 



