CRITICISM OF OWNERS 



The number of slanders which can be uttered are 

 incredible. 



I remember hearing a man once go as far as saying 

 that Dean Swift was " not on the job " for a certain 

 City and Suburban. He knew it, he said, beyond 

 question, and all the wiseacres wagged their heads 



and said it was a " b shame," and that Joel was 



" hot stuff." Apart from the preposterous nature 

 of such a statement, I happened to have called at 

 34 Grosvenor Square the afternoon before the " City," 

 and the owner of Dean Swift had told me that the only 

 thing he thought could stop his horse winning was that 

 a man would come out of the crowd and shoot him. 

 He won. Does it ever appeal to you that a millionaire 

 would give anything to see his favourite horse win, 

 altogether apart from the bets he might win ? 



Dean Swift was something more than an ordinary 

 horse to Mr Joel, he was one of those who helped his 

 racing fortunes. With regard to the City and Sub- 

 urban, he won twice, and was placed on four other 

 occasions, and that is the animal the pot-house knocker 

 was talking about and the owner he was abusing. 

 " Jack " Joel, as he is known to his intimate friends, 

 has a great affection for certain animals he owns, and 

 would give a big sum for one of them to succeed. 

 Another horse whose career he followed with unusual 

 interest was Your Majesty. In 1908 he won the Leger 

 with him after having taken a race at Ascot and the 

 Eclipse Stakes as well. He would argue unceasingly 

 as to what a good horse the son of Persimmon really 

 was, and laughed at me for thinking that White Eagle 

 had a chance of beating him ; in a previous chapter 

 I have stated how White Eagle perhaps lost the race 

 through being sent to run in a race at Derby the 

 previous week. That was always Mr Atty Persse's 



268 



