CHAPTER XXXIII 



AMERICUS GIRL AND OTHERS 



-- P.P.P." and the Owner — Best on Turnpike going — Raking in Ready 

 — Confidence over Ignorance — Preliminary Pow-wows — The Late 

 Sir A. A. Apcar — Counsel with the Racing Mind 



In speaking of Mr Peebles, who trained Velocity, there 

 are several incidents in connection with strongly 

 expressed opinions in the Express, the inspiration for 

 which came to an extent from this trainer. Not that 

 he ever gave me an owner's confidence, but he would 

 not be cryptic if I put a straight question. Mr Peebles 

 is quite a personality. His father was a rich man, own- 

 ing paper mills, and " P.P.P " had an early taste for 

 horses, and was and is an excellent gentleman rider. 

 He is particularly skilful with race-horses, as his record 

 will show, but I am not out to write his life and ex- 

 periences. There was many a pleasant little pow-wow 

 over Americus Girl when she was winning all her races 

 — he trained her. Mr Ledlie, her owner, lived, when 

 in London, at the same hotel as I did for a long time, 

 the Waldorf. Americus Girl was perhaps one of the 

 most brilliant sprinters ever in training. She looked 

 so beautiful, too, on nearly every occasion she ran. 

 A beautiful rich chestnut, she had a strong dislike 

 to anything in the way of heavy going. Mr Ledlie 

 has on occasions walked to the front door of the hotel 

 with me and looked up Aldwych saying : " I wish they 

 could run the race on this road : it would suit my mare." 

 Well, she had her bits of luck with regard to conditions 

 on a racecourse, and usually profited by them. 



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