TROTTING FAMILIES. 51 



Diomed owes this distinction to the high quality of 

 a few trotters that have descended from him in the 

 maternal line. If the pedigree of all horses that have 

 made 2.30 or better were consulted, Diomed's name 

 would appear so seldom as to make his part in the 

 development of the trotter seem very insignificant. 

 But when the pedigrees of the select few that have 

 trotted in say 2.12 or better are examined, Diomed's 

 name appears so frequently as to suggest something 

 more than a series of coincidences. 



Before stating a few of these cases, I will take a 

 brief glance at Diomed's history. The first "Derby" 

 was run at Epsom on May 4, 1780, and it w T as won by 

 a "compact, well formed chestnut colt, the property 

 of Sir Charles Bunbury." This was Diomed. He 

 was bred by the Hon. Richard Vernon, of Newmarket, 

 and foaled in 1777. Diomed was by Florizel, by King 

 Herod, and his dam was the famous Spectator mare. 1 



James Rice, who wrote a History of the British Turf, 

 says : " It has been the fashion to underrate the Derby 

 victory of Diomed, but the history of his three-year-old 

 career on the turf shows that he was a good performer, 

 and won or received a forfeit in all his engagements, 

 proving himself thereby one of the best three-year-olds 

 of his time." 



Diomed was brought to this country in 1799, having 

 been purchased for the small sum of fifty guineas, at 

 the age of twenty -two, and he died in 1808, which was 

 also the year of Messenger's death. He left, as I have 



1 To show the Oriental richness of his pedigree, it is sufficient to 

 state that he traces to the Leeds Arahian nine times ; to the Darley 

 Arabian seven times; to the Byerly Turk five times; to Curwen's 

 Bay Barb twice ; to the Bald Galloway once ; to the Godolphin 

 Arabian twice ; to Flying Childers four times ; etc. 



