3 o8 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. 1 On the other 

 hand, horses which have once run over a course will frequently 

 run specially well afterwards, while 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 were 

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

 Kempton, and Croydon, where could they take place? The 

 argument is not tenable that on these courses the fences are of 

 a certain size, that horses have to clear an obstacle much in the 



1 Later in his career he did better. 



