SIXTY YEARS ON THE TURF 



to Hungerford, near by which place Wild Dayrell 

 was trained by Rickaby, the grandfather, I believe, 

 of the present jockey. So soon as the trainer heard 

 of the proposed dastardly outrage he picked on the 

 suspect, and without a word of explanation pitched 

 him neck and crop out of the stable. From that 

 moment till the hour of the race Wild Dayrell was 

 carefully guarded by trustworthy attendants, and, 

 with Bob Sherwood in the saddle, won by a couple 

 of lengths from Kingstown. It was currently 

 reported at the time that the intending " nobblers " 

 of Wild Dayrell had, apart from laying him, sub- 

 stantially befriended Kingstown, the property, by- 

 the-bye, of Harry Hill. With the unmasking of 

 the plot came a rare disturbance "among the dove- 

 cots " of those who " pulled the strings." They had 

 taken such liberties that they had to get on some- 

 where somehow : with the result that Wild Dayrell 

 started at even money. 



Of all the cold-blooded murderers whose names 

 are discoverable in the calendars of crimes probably 

 none deserves more execration than William Palmer 

 of Rugeley, who rightly expiated his monstrous 

 deeds on the scaffold. In the way of Turf 

 business I had many dealings with Palmer, but, 

 fortunately for myself, he never owed me a large 

 sum of money, and though I frequently visited him 



73 



