90 FESTINA LKNTE. 



horse: it is, however, quite in character. Men of 

 very large fortune (and I, if thus circumstanced, 

 should be one of the first to do so) may keep race- 

 horses solely for the pleasure they derive from the 

 very harmless, I may say laudable, emulation of 

 possessing and producing the best of the most beau- 

 tiful animals in nature, and feel a truly English and 

 perfectly gentlemanlike pride in seeing their horses 

 win, quite independent of the advantage of pecuniary 

 gain : but as not one man in a hundred keeping race- 

 horses continues long on the turf with merely such 

 inducement, the term useful as applied to a race- 

 horse is as applicable as it would be to any other horse 

 where his services were devoted to making money, 

 or at all events to the endeavour to do so. " Useful" 

 is therefore properly applied to that description 

 of horse, racer or cart-horse, that in the long run 

 appears most likely to put money in his owner's 

 pocket ; and as a race-horse, I consider the horse that 

 can make the running is the one most likely for a 

 continuance to do it. In the first place, these from 

 end-to-end horses are generally such as can come out 

 very often : their getting older is not so much against 

 them as it is against the flyers, as the increasing 

 weight will not stop them, as it unquestionably will 

 slighter and more speedy horses : and further, we 

 have it in our power to make the race such as to suit 

 the stout horse. We may, till a horse's qualities are 

 known, sometimes coax or humbug others into making; 



' O C 



slow running ; but so soon as it is found a race so 

 run is the forte of any particular horse, it can be done 

 no longer. But we can always go away with a horse 

 unless in a very particular case, where a boy might 

 get shut in by three or four old jocks ; though even 



