148 THE RACING WORLD 



though it is true that horses cannot now move for- 

 ward to escape from a kicker, the field are so close 

 together that if an animal lets out he cannot do 

 nearly so much harm as he often used to do. How 

 many jockeys, I may ask, have been badly injured ? 

 But admitting all this, there are certain valuable 

 advantages about the gate, and, by the way, one 

 very curious thing in connection with its intro- 

 duction, and this is that it has, in my opinion, 

 suffered more at the hands of its friends than of its 

 enemies. One or two of the writers who have 

 been its main advocates are for some reason or 

 other regarded with so much contempt and detesta- 

 tion by the majority of their brethren that I am 

 sure the gate has not been fairly judged, simply 

 and solely because these advocates have eulogised 

 it. Others seem to have said : " So-and-so likes 

 the gate and backs it up ; that's enough for me ! 

 I dislike it and am going to run it down." I am 

 really inclined to believe that if the chief backers- 

 up of the gate had been against it, much less would 

 have been heard in condemnation ; though of 

 course owners and trainers of horses that have an 

 incurable antipathy to it, or that begin slowly from 

 it, will naturally be bitter. For one thing the 

 more inexperienced boys have undoubtedly a vastly 

 better chance with a barrier. In the days of the 



