CHASING AND RACING 55 



by a dismal whining outside the kennels and a devil 

 of a rumpus within. Quickly throwing on some 

 garments he sallied forth to find a couple and a half of 

 the draft that had been sent to Wales at the door of the 

 kennel in a pitiable state. They were nothing but 

 skin and bone, and the pad of every foot was raw or 

 blistered. One of these poor, faithful creatures, a 

 bitch appropriately named Truelove, was at her 

 last gasp, and in spite of unremitting attention she 

 passed away ; whilst it was weeks before the survivors 

 regained anything like condition. As for the missing 

 couple, nothing was ever seen or heard of them again ; 

 their fate was a mystery. Needless to say that Pilot 

 and his brother Pieman were not sent back to 

 Wales. I preferred to refund the cheque for which 

 they had been exchanged, and to overlook their want 

 of an inch in height. 



Verily we of the M. and H.V.H. had a merry time. 

 In addition to the venerable and squeaky Snaith I had 

 three others in the green livery to whip in to me, viz. 

 the inevitable Ted Jaquet, and my brothers-in-law, 

 Ronald and Wilfred Barlow, neither of whom had 

 previously had experience of equestrian exercise ; but 

 they took to it like ducks to water, and soon became 

 efficient and helpful horsemen, though at first they bit 

 the dust with monotonous regularity. Their sisters, 

 Miriam and " Freddie," were even more enthusiastic, 

 and shaped so well in their apprenticeship with the 

 boys in green that in later days, when following ** the 



