AND TIMES OF JOHN OSBORNE 459 



most famous Yorkshire jockey, born in 1715, was fifty 

 years in the saddle, and died at the age of eighty-five. 

 That John Osborne's strength and skill as a horseman 

 were not deteriorated to any serious degree after forty- 

 six years' riding is testified to by his third on Baron 

 Hirsch's colt. Hearty and vigorous even in his sixty- 

 eighth year, John rides in all home trials frequently, 

 and at exercise every morning, galloping with others of 

 the team in the same manner as he did more than half 

 a century ago under his father's admiring eye. While 

 the patriarchal John Singleton rode half a century in 

 public, for which one must give him credit as being a 

 grand stayer, we are almost disposed to wager, in this 

 year of grace 1900, that John Osborne, bar accident, 

 will be riding amongst his " feathers " on Middleham 

 Moor for the next twelve months at least; and in the 

 event of him doing so, he will out-rival old Singleton's 

 record, for it is more than probable the latter, whose 

 career was in the last century, only rode half the 

 number of horses in his time that " Johnnie " has thrown 

 his legs across in his career. To say this much of him 

 means that he has never abused his sound constitution ; 

 that he has maintained a happy, well-balanced tempera- 

 ment ; lived a God-fearing life, observing and practising 

 the rules of health by always being temperate in his 

 habits, dispositions, and aspirations. 



Francis Buckle rode until he had attained his sixty- 

 fifth year, and that his nerve was strong to the last was 

 evidenced by his running on Lord Exeter's Green 

 Mantle at the second October Meeting of 1828, even 

 after she had played a series of circus pranks at the 

 post. It was written of Buckle that it would have 

 been as difficult to turn the sun from his course as to 

 induce him to deviate from the path of duty to his 



