A USEFUL RACE-HORSE. 89 



can) "Jump off with the lead, and keep it" By 

 keeping the lead, no stable boy would suppose he was 

 meant to fight for it with every horse that comes 

 alongside him, but to keep going along at that pace 

 that will either choke the best horses or they you. 

 After the trial we took of our colt, and finding he can 

 go the length as soon as it ever has been run, or very 

 near it, we have a right to hope he is as good or better 

 than anything in the race. If some lusus naturce has 

 come out, we can't help it : but we shall be pretty 

 sure of not being where many will be that is, if we 

 are fortunate enough to bring the colt out as good as 

 he was on the day of trial. 



At all events, I am quite sure, if race-horses were 

 more carefully tried than they usually are as to the 

 effect weight has on them relative both to pace and 

 distance, much trouble and expense would be saved to 

 their owners. 



However impolitic (not to say impossible) it may be 

 to try horses repeatedly enough to come at their best 

 attributes in point of weight, distance, and pace 

 collectively, it should not deter us from getting as 

 near this great desideratum as circumstances and the 

 well-doing of the animal will allow. 



I have supposed having tried a horse four miles 

 under seven, eight, and nine stone, and that, so far 

 as time goes, we have found out at least one thing, that 

 he can carry a moderately high weight at a telling 

 pace and a long length. This, as I before said, has 

 at all events proved that we have a horse we can 

 depend upon for a particular kind of race, and that 

 he is consequently a very useful one. The term useful 

 may appear an inappropriate one (to persons un- 

 acquainted with racing matters) as applied to a race- 



