" Lady Bennett " and ''Joe Bennett." 135 



them in view, namely, the Master on his brown horse. Col. 

 Scurfield on " Sambo," young Mr. Fowle, of Northallerton, on 

 a chestnut horse, and myself on " Lady Bennett," and never 

 during the whole chase were we able to see more than seventy 

 or one hundred yards ahead of us, on account of the fog. 



[" Lady Bennett " (by " St. Bennett," dam by " Lord 

 Collingwood "), mentioned in this run, was the dam of Mr. 

 Robert Brunton's famous horse, " Joe Bennett," which won 

 prizes all over England, and was mysteriously poisoned and 

 found dead in his stable. " Lady Bennett," ridden by Bob 

 (who, in these days, frequently came out with the Hurworth), 

 beat all comers at the Middlesbrough Show, in 1859, for the 

 jumping class, when there was considerable competition for the 

 event. Mr. Parrington thought he had a chance, and Mr. Jack 

 Booth also thought he was in the running. However, Bob 

 beat them all, and repeated his victory at the Durham County 

 Show, held a few days later. He sold the mare to the Rev. T. 

 Duncombe Shafto, and, in the spring of i860, when Mr. 

 Parrington took the Hurworth, he was in want of some good 

 horses, and received a letter from Mr. Shafto saying that he 

 was giving up hunting, and if Mr. Parrington could find him a 

 useful horse to go in harness he would "swop " him for " Lady 

 Bennett." At that time John Hunter was at the " Vane 

 Arms," at Stockton, then the sporting centre of the district, at 

 which the race dinners, etc., were held, and he had a smart 

 mare, which Squire G. Sutton, Mr. Harry Fowler, and the 

 " young bloods " of that day very frequently hired to drive 

 out. She was a high mettled mare, and the aforementioned 

 " sports " were continually having accidents with her, and the 

 wonder was none of them were killed. One day, Mr. Harry 

 Fowler and Mr. Arthur Rowe were driving from Redcar, and 

 the mare ran away with them down Ormesby Bank. There 



