A BATCH OF CURIOUS MATCHES 33 



ing da3^s was of shorter duration than on the first 



occasion. From my own personal observation of the 



merits and demerits of each horse, I am of opinion 



that for any given distance of ground the English 



horse would always , show his superiority ; but for 



slow, continued, and indefinite work the Arab is far 



superior. They seem to be able to go for ever at 



their own pace, but if fairly extended they shut up 



almost immediately. Thus in our race-meetings we 



have always found that in the five-mile race the 



English horses can beat the Arab by a mile. I think 



there is no doubt but that the heat alone caused the 



defeat of the mare, as, calculating it at the outside, 



she could only have gone forty miles, and, at the 



pace described, under ordinary circumstances it would 



be next to nothing to a well-trained horse; but it is 



a difficult question to conceive the heat in the desert, 



with no kind of vegetation or shade near, and with 



the sand reflecting back upon you. On getting in 



between two sand-hills, the temperature may be best 



imagined by fancying yourself in a hot oven. On 



this day we had not a breath of wind. What would 



it have been if a " khamseen," or hot wind, had been 



blowing ? 



E. T. 



'Cairo, May 28, 1865.' 



This was not considered conclusive either, and 

 BelVs Life for a few weeks was flooded with corre- 



D 



