GAPER AT THE DERBY. 109 



the Whistle, Alice Hawthorne, and six others. 

 After the race I said to his Lordship, " Where 

 would Gaper have been had he run ? " His reply 

 was, " He would have been in Epsom town before 

 the others reached the winning-post ! " Robert 

 Hesseltine, who trained Alice Hawthorne, re- 

 marked, "If Gaper can beat Discord at 16 lb., 

 as stated, the Derby will be won by the Sussex 

 nag by little short of a hundred yards." As I 

 understood that John Day had laid 20,000 to 

 250 against Gaper, I took an opportunity of ad- 

 vising him in a friendly way not to risk such a 

 sum, and at the eleventh hour he got Mr Gully 

 to take 20,000 to 3000 for him about the 

 horse from Lord George, losing on the balance 

 2750. The tremendous play made by Gaper 

 cut down more than half the field at once ; the 

 hill settled the chance of many more ; and as 

 the leading horses neared the turn five only were 

 left in the race. Gaper came gallantly round 

 Tattenham Corner with a lead of a couple of 

 lengths, and had such a winning look about him 

 that shouts of " Gaper wins ! " rent the air. " Gaper 

 was fit to run for a man's life, but we apprehend 

 that the course was a trifle too sticky for his 

 action." Such was one report of the race. Another 

 said : " Lord George's horse rattled round the corner 

 at such awful speed, and looked so well, that ' Gaper 

 wins ! ' * Gaper wins ! ' was shouted from hundreds 

 of throats ; but he ended by being fourth in the 



