152 REMINISCENCES O* SONEPORft. 



Mercedes backed and made favorite by her stable at 

 Rs. 300, Wily Pedestrian bringing only Rs. 70. For the 

 Selling Race Bangle, Princess, Chaste Susannah and Speech- 

 less all fancied, and bringing on an average a hundred each. 

 The Bettiah Cup treated us to a great race between all, bar 

 Dacoit, who was soon beaten. Jimmy Robinson rode Bea- 

 consfield as well, as Southall rode Caractacus badly, and 

 midst deafening cheers the Chupra boy's horse got home by a 

 neck. Wicked won the Durbangah Purse easily enough, but 

 now came an upset, for Wily Pedestrian got off with a flying 

 start in the Welter, and was never collared; Speechless and 

 Susannah ran a good race for the Selling Stakes, the horse 

 winning, because the Chaste one swerved at the finish. Jim- 

 my's Blackbird finished up the day by winning the Pony 

 Race. 



The morning of Sunday, the 26th, came on in the midst 

 of rain, iron-grey clouds and general gloominess. The over- 

 cast sky, the drizzling of the rain, and the cold, desolate ap- 

 pearance of the tents, made between blankets the most com- 

 fortable place where one could lie and ponder on the strange 

 ways of Providence, which at one fell swoop had turned the 

 bright merry meeting into a sad-looking gathering. The piti- 

 less rain which poured down till the shamianas began to give 

 way, and tents to sway in an alarming manner, brought out 

 the latent energy of burly planters and still more burly civi- 

 lians, who might be seen with kodallies in hand cutting the 

 channels round their separate tents, to let the water run clear, 

 and hammering down the tent pegs to keep them from slip- 

 ping out of the earth softened by the penetrating " jupsie." 

 This continuous drizzle rendered the roads over the " deara" 

 lands something awful. Tenacious mud, strong enough to 

 act as book-jack to some gentlemen, who were observed to 

 quietly go into their tents in a limping manner on returning 

 from the ghat. It was afterwards found out that this was 



