AND TIMES OF JOHN OSBORNE 85 



CHAPTER VI 



" Now let excited Yorkshire vent 

 Her roar of triumph long up-pent." 



STILL in the " fifties," we come to the closing years of 

 that decade when young John Osborne, by his improv- 

 ing skill as a light-weight jockey, was adding, steadily 

 but surely, lustre to his name. His father's stable was 

 now well established and tenanted by a useful class 

 of horses. But let John himself continue the tale in 

 his own matter-of-fact way : 



"Augury of ours, in 1856, was a real good 

 mare. Saunterer and Augury were bought at 

 auction by my father as foals from Mr. Jacques. 

 They were knocked down to him for 50 guineas 

 each. A filly, named Valhalla, he bought at the 

 same time for 25 guineas. In those days there 

 were few foals bought, and that is why they 

 were got so cheap. Augury had curbs, and 

 was never fit to run in the early part of her 

 career. She was very backward as a two-year- 

 old when she ran at Beverley and Catterick 

 Bridge, being beaten on both occasions. The 

 first time she was really ready was at York, 

 when she ran in the ' Convivial/ Blink Bonny 

 was her great opponent there. My father knew 



