SIXTY YEARS ON THE TURF 



worth nearer five thousand, whereupon Hawkins, 

 who was acting for the Company, quietly passed a 

 note up : " Never mind what he was worth. Tell us 

 how much you got out of him." The Company im- 

 mediately gave notice of appeal, and Hawkins said 

 to me, "We appeal, Hodgman. And as sure as 

 you're a living man we'll beat you." He was a true 

 prophet ; to the Company went the second trial ; and 

 I tried for the " rubber." The second appeal came 

 on before Lord Chief Justice Cockburn, with (I 

 think) Justices Smith and Payne. The latter, being 

 the juniors, dehvered their judgments first, and went 

 solid for the Company. Their senior, however, was 

 against them, he stating that he totally and entirely 

 differed from his learned brothers. He considered 

 the Company's servants guilty of gross negligence in 

 leaving girders about a place over which valuable 

 horses had to pass. " I will," he said (I am writing 

 from memory), "go so far as to say that if I had 

 been in the habit of inviting friends to dinner, 

 and one night I dug a hole, and told them nothing 

 about it, and one of them fell in, and was injured 

 I should be responsible." This was, I thought, 

 common sense, though not in any way satisfactory 

 seeing I had two to one against me. I saw 

 Hawkins outside the court, laughing at me ; and I 

 went to him. " What did you tell me this morning, 



111 



