2o8 BREEDS OF POLO PONIES. [Chap. VIII. 



well mounted, and I am inclined to think that Manita 

 is his favourite pony ; I suppose she has got faster 

 with age ; anyhow I saw her playing well in the 

 Champion Cup, Ranelagh Open Cup and Dublin 

 Open Cup of 1901. 



CALIFORNIAN PONIES. 



There must be many good ponies in California, when 

 we see such examples of the breed over here as Rex 

 (Fig. 47), Follow Me, and Santa Romona (Fig. 

 89). As a rule, it is not easy to find out from what 

 part of the continent American ponies come, but I 

 should think it not unlikely that California sup- 

 plies a fair proportion. They probably keep most 

 of their best ponies for their own use, as Mr. Charles 

 Raoul Duval told me he had sold a pony in 

 California for ;^300, and that he knew another which 

 fetched ^600. 



Rex and Follow Me, I believe to be about as good 

 as any English ponies, and I have had plenty of 

 opportunities of judging, for I have played against 

 them very often. 



Santa Romona, which now belongs to my youngest 

 brother, is a marvellously handy pony. She has been 

 through many hands ; on one occasion she was sold at 

 Tattersall's for fourteen guineas, and on another she 

 fetched twenty-six guineas. Her record for 1901, 

 however, is a good one. Between May 15th and 

 September 7th, she played in 40 matches, in 35 of 

 which she was on the winning side ; that is, she 

 played on an average five matches every fortnight. 

 She played in the winning team of the Champion Cup 

 at Hurlingham, the Open Cup at Ranelagh, the Open 



