CHASING AND RACING 21 



am about it I may as well run over the remarkable 

 career of this champion " pony." At Ranelagh and 

 Hurlingham she became an institution — a sort of 

 fashionable idol. She was as good over the sticks 

 and between flags as she was on the flat. In "jump " 

 races I confided her handling to my friend Harry 

 Bentley, a most accomplished horseman, a crack shot, 

 and withal a man of brains and literary accomplish- 

 ments. He won on her at every time of asking. 

 On one occasion this slip of a thoroughbred carried 

 no less than fourteen stone ten pounds over the 

 miniature Ranelagh Steeplechase Course (two miles) 

 and won in a canter. 



After having ridden her myself to victory eleven 

 times without ever having to ask her to pull out 

 anything extra in order to slam her fields, she at 

 length broke down. Winfield spared no pains to 

 restore her once more to racing trim, and at last 

 imagined that she was sound again. She was saddled 

 at Ranelagh, and at one time it looked as if the 

 monotony of her triumphs was to be maintained ; 

 but when entering the straight, and making her usual 

 effortless but remorseless run, she suddenly faltered 

 and nearly fell. She hobbled in, a hopeless cripple 

 and never ran again. Meanwhile I had exploited 

 her in the provinces far and wide, and everywhere 

 successfully. 



One day Jesse came to me wearing a mysterious 

 expression. " Squire," he said, " isn't it time we got 



