262 SALE OF LORD GEORGE' S STUD. 



(brother to Touchstone). With Blaze they won 

 the Hopeful Stakes at Newmarket, but with 3 to 

 1 betted upon him he was beaten for the Clearwell 

 by Mr Payne's Glendower. During the winter Mr 

 Villiers, who found no difficulty in discovering 

 plenty of excuses for Blaze's defeat in the Clear- 

 well, backed him very heavily for the Two Thou- 

 sand. Blaze was trained at Whitewall by John 

 Scott, and was thought to be the best colt in his 

 powerful lot. Simultaneously the two confederates 

 backed Loadstone very heavily for the Derby ; and 

 in order to control the latter horse, Mr Villiers pre- 

 vailed upon the late Lord Clifden to purchase a 

 moiety of Mr Mostyn's stud. When this sale was 

 concluded, on March 28, 1 848, 1 had got Loadstone 

 forward in condition to run for the Two Thousand, 

 and had induced Mr Mostyn to keep Surplice for 

 the Derby. The Two Thousand was to be run on 

 April 25, so that there was only an interval of four 

 weeks before the race took place. When Surplice 

 and Loadstone became the property of Lord Clif- 

 den, my plans and arrangements for the future 

 were all upset. It was determined not to pull out 

 either horse for the Two Thousand, but to keep 

 them out of Blaze's way. Never was a young 

 nobleman more glaringly deprived of a good stake, 

 which should have been his legitimate property, 

 than Lord Clifden, when he was induced to strike 

 Loadstone and Surplice out of the Two Thousand, 

 which either of them would have won in a canter. 



