442 HOKSE POBTEAITUKE. 



They do not give Never Mind a thought, and those who 

 have put a few dollars on him are loud in their denun- 

 ciations and contemptuous notices, characterizing him as 

 a dunghill, shoemaker, and every opprobious epithet they 

 can think of. We will now give him a little more than 

 half a pint of sherry, mixed with the same amount of wa- 

 ter. Give him a swallow of gruel first. I really believe 

 he has a taste for that twenty-year-old juice, as he licks 

 his lips and looks better pleased than he has for some 

 time. Walk him very slowly, and have everything in 

 readiness before the bell rings. 



That summons from the judges was to acquaint me 

 that a complaint had been made that you were not trying 

 to win, and praying that they would appoint another 

 driver. It is ten to one that it is the work of those who 

 are betting on the other horses, hoping to have a driver 

 selected whom they can control. Well, the benefit of a 

 good name rarely fails one in an emergency. The judges 

 have known me for many years, and when I assured them 

 we were determined to win, if we could, they required no 

 other guarantee, in spite of the clamors of the complain- 

 ants. This forcing a change of drivers cannot be too 

 strongly reprobated, and I would recommend that the 

 evil of pulling horses be abolished, by punishing those 

 who do it so severely, that they will not have the oppor- 

 tunity of doing it again, rather than by taking the man- 

 agement away from those who, being more conversant 

 with the horse, know the best manner of handling him to 

 win. I presume the man I sent to buy pools has followed 

 the instructions too closely, buying every one till it was 

 apparent that Never Mind had claims they were over- 

 looking. 



In driving this heat you can make a rush at the start, 

 and take the pole at once, or you can lie closely behind 

 till you enter the home stretch. I am satisfied that you 



