78 



CHAPTER VI 



Beaudesert and his bowed tendon — A too confident purchase — 

 ' Passed as sound ' — Geheimniss : her astonishing gift of speed — 

 Whipper In : an extraordinary tell-tale — A wonderfully strong 

 stable — A Two Thousand Trial— A double claim on Archer — 

 The Derby trial of St. Blaise— H.R.H. the Prince of Wales's first 

 visit to Kingsclere — Was St. Blaise a lucky horse ? — The trial good 

 enough to win nine Derbys out of ten — Charles Wood's masterly 

 riding of St. Blaise — Reasons for losing the Grand Prix — Accident 

 to Reprieve — 'A line' for St. Simon — Mr. Cloete — Purchase of 

 the Casuistry colt — Troublesome to train — Sale and re-sale of 

 Paradox — Scratched for the Cambridgeshire — Porter ceases to 

 train for Mr. Cloete 



In this place it is appropriate to mention that in the 

 autumn of 1878 Lord Alington requested Porter to 

 train Beaudesert for him for the Derby. His lord- 

 ship at that time had a few horses at the Percys'. 

 Beaudesert had been purchased after the Middle 

 Park Plate, in fact after the Houghton Meeting in 

 1878, from Lord Anglesey, the price being 5,000 or 

 6,000 guineas. The colt was brought to Porter at 

 Mrs. Aldcroft's stables for inspection. He had 

 cloths on his legs. Upon removing these the 

 trainer, to whom the most responsible and anxious 

 task incidental to a person in his profession had 

 been assigned, observed that Beaudesert was 

 afflicted with a bowed tendon, probably one of the 

 most serious infirmities which a horse can sustain, 



