AND TIMES OF JOHN OSBORNE 217 



ments, the former going for the Queen's Plate and 

 Meta to fulfil her liabilities in the Downshire Stakes 

 and the Purdysburn Stakes. 



Mr. Greer relates " I can well remember Mr. and 

 Mrs. Batt being at the meeting in great style. The 

 good lady, who used to bet heavily, had a plunge on 

 Meta the first day for the Downshire Stakes, which 

 were so-called after the Marquis of Downshire. There 

 was a field of fourteen runners. As they came into 

 what is called ' The Dip,' John Osborne was lying 

 absolutely last on Meta, and looked hopelessly out of 

 it. There were but a couple of furlongs yet to cover. 

 One would have certainly thought, so close was the 

 finish, that it was going to be a dead heat amongst 

 three of the others, and that Osborne wasn't in the 

 race at all. When they came to the bottom of the 

 rise ' Johnnie ' began to ride gently, and, creeping up 

 inch by inch, he won, amid great excitement, by a 

 head. The three next horses were locked together, 

 ''heads,' or little more, separating them from Meta. 

 After ' Johnnie ' had weighed in, he walked up to the 

 grand stand with his greatcoat on. As he passed, 

 Mrs. Batt remarked 



' Osborne, you did keep me in suspense there.' 

 'Yes, ma'am,' replied the jockey, with a merry 

 twinkle in his eye, ' but after all, there's nothing like 

 liaving a " bit " up your sleeve.' 



' The next day nearly all the same horses ran again 

 for the Purdysburn Stakes, Meta carrying a 14 Ibs. 

 penalty for her win in the Downshire Stakes. Thus 

 penalised, her chance looked a hopeless one against 

 the three others that had finished so close to her on he 

 first day, and, as a result, each of them was a better 

 favourite than Meta, about whom Mrs. Batt was 



