94 STEEPLECHASING 



a mile from home, when he was to come through and win 

 if he could. Tom Tug, however, happened to be an 

 inveterate puller ; overpowered his rider from the start, 

 and, after the first fence was jumped, he tore along at 

 the head of all the others until he ran himself to a stand- 

 still, and when Tom Tug pulled up, his rider was so 

 exhausted that he could not dismount without assistance. 

 About a week before the race he met with an accident 

 which no doubt weakened him, and for some time after 

 the finish he was in a half-fainting condition. The 

 winner, Discount, they say was judiciously ridden. His 

 original name was Magnum Bonum, and after running 

 unsuccessfully in some minor races, he was sold in 1842 

 to a Mr. Denham for /^8o, and was resold at a small 

 profit to Mr. Payne, a Market Harborough horse-dealer. 

 Payne sold him for something like ^350 to a Leicester- 

 shire hunting man, who, after a couple of rides, offered 

 Payne ^50 to take him back. Several of the Leicester- 

 shire hard riders tried Magnum Bonum, but could 

 make nothing of him, and all declared that he was no 

 hunter. He therefore hung for some time on Mr. 

 Payne's hands, and he offered him more than once 

 to Mr. Ouartermaine, the Piccadilly dealer, who each 

 time he saw him bid less money for him than before, 

 and when he at length bought him, Mr. Quartermaine 

 renamed him Discount. 



1845 



There had been a somewhat sharp frost during the 

 night preceding the race, so Lord Sefton called together 

 the owners of the horses, and left it to them to say 

 whether the race should take place on the appointed day 

 or not. All the owners but two answered in the affirma- 

 tive, so the contest came off as arranged, but Knight 



