3/8 STEEPLE-CHASING. 



lengths out of her course. These two having been thus got 

 rid of, it appeared as if the luckless Savoyard would make 

 amends for previous misfortunes, but he crossed his legs on the 

 flat, and came down, to the intense annoyance of his rider, 

 Mr. George Lambton, who had not moved on the horse, and 

 felt that the object of every gentleman rider's great ambition 

 was within his grasp. Danebury this year sent two repre- 

 .'^entatives to the post, Mr. Leopold de Rothschild's Aladdin 

 and Mr. E. W. Baird's Playfair, and of the two the fancy of 

 their trainer, Tom Cannon, rather leaned to Aladdin. The 

 winter had been severe, and training operations delayed by 

 frost ; but, luckily, on the long grass of the Houghton Downs 

 the going is nearly always good when horses cannot gallop in 

 many other places, so that these two had an advantage in 

 condition over most of the remainder. The winner turned up 

 in Playfair, ridden by G. Mawson, for though Mr. Baird had 

 a desire to ride his own horse, to reduce himself to the weight, 

 lo St. 7 lbs., without losing strength, was found to be practi- 

 cally impossible. That Frigate might have won is shown by 

 the fact of her only having been beaten ten lengths after losing 

 so much ground. It was her third appearance in the un- 

 fortunate place of second. W. Nightingall, who finished third 

 on that gallant little steeple-chaser Ballot Box, had been offered 

 the mount on Playfair, but declined and chose the other be- 

 cause he was so ' very anxious to ride the winner.' The best 

 jockeys, it will be seen, do not always make the best choice. 



General satisfaction was felt when, in 1889, frigate at length 

 succeeded in the task she had vainly essayed so often. The 

 animals most esteemed this year were the veteran Roquefort, 

 12 St. 7 lbs. (Usna, who had not run since the accident of 

 1888, was entered, but soon struck out, having failed to stand 

 a preparation), the subsequent winner, and an excellent hunter 

 called Why Not, both these latter carrying 11 st. 5 lbs. 

 Mr. C. J. Cunningham, half owner of Why Not, rode him- 

 self, and made an admirable fight, but, after a hard finish, 

 Mr. T. Beasley got the Irish mare home first by a length. 



