MILITARY STEEPLECHASING 271 



happened three or four times in the race, yet he was 

 possessed of such a turn of speed, that he recovered his 

 place after each refusal and eventually won by a couple 

 of leno^ths. 



If the alleged "first steeplechase on record" ever 

 did take place, history repeated itself on the 21st of 

 August 1866. While the officers of the 17th Lancers 

 were at mess a match was made between Mr. Walmesley 

 and Mr. Edgell to ride across country by moonlight 

 from Aldershot to Ash Station for ^10 a side, the riders 

 to wear their nicrht-shirts over their mess dress, and 

 not to ride more than 100 yards of road altogether; 

 distance about 3^ miles. About 10.30 p.m. the whole 

 party, consisting of 25 horsemen (including officers 

 from the 3rd and 8th Hussars), went to the starting- 

 point. The moon shone brightly, but a thick mist 

 hung heavily over a great deal of the country to be 

 crossed, in some places rendering it almost impossible 

 to see the fences at all. Both horses went away at a 

 good pace, Mr. Walmesley leading over the first three 

 fences, two of which were timber, the third being a 

 rotten bank out of a lane, which fully tested the powers 

 of his well-known old grey The Pup. Mr. Edgell then 

 came up, and both crossed a post and rails. They soon 

 reached some low ground, where the fog almost entirely 

 obscured the fences, and the pace, which had up to then 

 been good, became slow, and both horses had some 

 narrow escapes over the awkward places which had to be 

 crossed. The first check occurred at a gate, where both 

 refused. Mr. Walmesley eventually cleared it, but Mr. 

 Edgell forced his horse through it, literally smashing the 

 gate to pieces. The crash was heard distinctly in the 

 stillness of the night a quarter of a mile off. The riders, 

 then guided by the signal lights of Ash Station, kept 

 well together till both jumped simultaneously into the 

 road, about 80 yards from the winning post. An exciting 



