52 STEEPLECHASING 



winning by three lengths ; but no sooner had he been 

 pulled up than the old horse reared, fought with his 

 fore-legs, and dropped down and died in a few minutes. 

 Some cute person then proceeded to lodge an objection 

 against Elmore receiving the stakes, upon the ground 

 that Grimaldi did not return to the winning-post, which 

 was of course true ; but the objection was overruled. 

 Red Deer overreached himself in the last field, tore 

 off a shoe, and fell ; but, being remounted, struggled 

 in third. 



1837 



So many steeplechases were run in the years 1835 

 and 1836 that hopes were entertained of the next season 

 bringing with it still more sport. So far as the metro- 

 politan district, however, was concerned, this anticipation 

 was not realised. A few small sweepstakes had, it is 

 true, been brought off, but on the authority of Bell's Li/e,^ 

 a power in the world of sport in those days, they had all 

 been productive of wrangling or some other equally un- 

 lucky incident to prevent the best horse winning. The 

 series of steeplechases at Aylesbury had come to an end ; 

 it therefore remained for Coleman, " the father of steeple- 

 chasing," and St. Albans, to fan if possible the flickering 

 embers of cross-country sport. As it happened, how- 

 ever, Coleman was just at this time (1837) thinking of 

 letting the St. Albans steeplechases die out. He ex- 

 plained that the meetings brought a great deal of business 

 into the town. There was not so much racing- then as 

 now, and, according to Coleman's account, people used to 



^ The late Mr. Walsh, editor of The Field, used, before he occupied 

 that position, to write the accounts of the principal coursing meetings for 

 Belts Life. He once told me how on one occasion he was late for some 

 important meeting, I think it was either that of Waterloo or Amesbury. and 

 on the authorities learning that the representative of BclPs Life was not 

 present, it was resolved to wait for a time. " Such a compliment," said Mr. 

 Walsh, " was never paid to any paper before or since, to my knowledge." 



