Sam Chifney. 91 



to his form, as he easily defeated Pavilion afterwards 

 in a 3OOO-guinea match at Lewes, and was repeating 

 the feat for the same sum, over the same course, 

 when he broke down. 



When Sam thus gained his first great laurels at 

 Newmarket, he was not unknown in Yorkshire, as 

 his maiden appearance on Knavesmire, in "Mrs. 

 Thornton's year," had been signalized by a winning 

 mount on Lady Brough, against their three great 

 jockeys Jackson, Clift, and Peirse. The slack-rein 

 doctrines of his father had been so much sneered at 

 by these Northern cracks, that he determined to sup- 

 port the honour of the family, and show them, on 

 their own ground, that he could ride his mare in that 

 fashion and win. Accordingly (as the somewhat 

 puzzle-headed turf reporter of those days remarks), 

 " Young Chifney, in the last sixty yards, threw down 

 his reins loose on Lady Brough's neck and flogged 

 her, and afterwards held up his whip loosely to threaten 

 her ; by this she was thrown in with more precipita- 

 tion, as it were headforemost, and was thought to run 

 no risk of the filly changing legs, which is sometimes 

 the case from additional whipping." The tykes, who 

 were very jealous of the honour of their jocks, did not 

 relish their defeat at all ; and when Sam informed his 

 brother, on his return, that he could " lick their heads 

 off" Will, with all that admiration of his father, and 

 that true Newmarket contempt of provincial riding 

 (which has received a considerable check for some 

 years past), replied that " it would be a shame, Sam, if 

 yozt couldn't, after such tuition as you've had'.' 



Having thus fairly fought his way to eminence, Sam 

 had the best mounts for nearly all Perren's masters, 

 among whom Mr. Thornhill had just begun to rank. 

 The mount he had for Lord George Cavendish, on 

 Florival, against Petronel, produced some very great 

 riding on both sides, and Buckle had the mortification 

 of being worsted by a head. In the Violante v. Selim, 



