274 THE HORSE IN HISTORY 



horse that it was Dennis O'Kelly's son of Eclipse 

 that won the second Derby, and that out of 127 

 races, including the first, Eclipse's descendants 

 had down to the year 1906 furnished no fewer 

 than eighty-two winners. 



Eclipse himself was sold as a yearling for 

 less than 100 guineas. Of his direct descend- 

 ants, a yearling filly was bought not very long 

 ago for 10,000 guineas ; a race horse in training 

 has fetched ,£39,375 at public auction ; two sires 

 have each produced stock that has won over half- 

 a-million sterling ; and other horses tracing back 

 to him in the direct male line have won the 

 "Triple Crown" nine times out of ten and 

 hold the record for the pace at which the Two- 

 Thousand, the Derby and the Leger have been 

 run. 



Upon one point all trustworthy authorities on 

 thoroughbreds and their performances, also the 

 principal historians of the Turf, and in addition 

 the leading " turfites" of our own period, are in 

 agreement, and that is that since the time of 

 Flying Childers the Turf, the world over, has not 

 known a horse faster than Eclipse was. 



This in itself is exceptional praise, but Eclipse 

 was to add materially to his extraordinary re- 

 putation, for while at stud he became the sire 

 of 335 winners who between the year 1774 and 

 the year 1796 won close upon £160,000 in 

 stakes alone, exclusive of cups and plates, and 



