58 THE RACING WORLD 



yearling, for the reason that his outlay will be 

 chronicled in the papers and get him talked about. 

 There is the professional owner, again, who makes 

 a business of racing and often does well ; though 

 some of the tribe are apt to sail very close to the 

 wind, to run dangerous risks, and if they do not 

 get into trouble with the Stewards, occasionally 

 find the situation extremely threatening and 

 awkward when explanations of past performances 

 are required. 



I belong to none of these categories — for it 

 is of myself that I have been persuaded to write, 

 on the ground that actual experiences are likely to 

 convey information, and possibly to afford some 

 useful hints to other aspirants to ownership ; and 

 though the personal pronoun which will have to 

 come in pretty frequently has an ugly look, I can 

 only apologise for it, and rejoice that it affords no 

 clue to identity ; for I confess that if I thought 

 there was danger of being known I should have 

 evaded my present task, which indeed looms 

 formidably. 



Well ! — it is difficult to begin, to get into one's 

 stride, as it were — I had always taken what may 

 be called a keen outside interest in racing, and 

 knew with more or less intimacy several men who 

 ran horses. It had never seemed likely that I 



