102 THE ENGLISH TURF 



As many of our readers will know, the horse has never been great 

 in substance, but the fact is that what substance he has got he 

 carries in the proper places, and never where it is only an en- 

 cumbrance. On Thursday one could count his ribs, and yet the 

 horse was quite the reverse of thin. In appearance he has un- 

 doubtedly improved, and, as has always been the case with him, the 

 more he is examined the more difficult it is to find a fault. Of 

 course, there was never any horse foaled about whom nothing in 

 disparagement could be said, but if we remark that Flying Fox 

 might be an inch and a half longer in the neck, and had rather 

 a prettier head — without the drooping ears — we have said all that 

 we can possibly urge against him." 



In 1900 the Prince of Wales won his second Derby, and, 

 curiously enough, the winner is a full brother to Persimmon, 

 who carried the Royal colours to victory in 1896. That 

 Diamond Jubilee will ever take quite the same high rank 

 as a racehorse that Persimmon did cannot be affirmed or 

 denied as yet, but that he is a Derby winner of more than 

 average merit seems quite certain, yet no Epsom hero of 

 modern times has had a more curious history or given such 

 totally different running. 



The Coventry Stakes at Ascot was chosen for the d^but 

 of this handsome colt — who was foaled in the Diamond 

 Jubilee year, and named by the Princess of Wales — and so 

 well had he been tried that only the slightest shade of odds 

 was offered against him, though such previous winners as 

 Vain Duchess, Chevening, and Bourne Bridge were in the 

 field. John Watts had the mount on the Prince of Wales' 

 colt, and as they approached the distance it looked as if he 

 was about to win easily enough. Two hundred yards from 

 home, however, the colt swerved badly to the left, and 

 putting no heart into his work when pulled straight again, 

 could only finish fourth to Democrat, Vain Duchess, and the 

 French filly Lucie II. This was a bad beginning for one of 

 such distinguished lineage and great good-looks, but worse 

 was to follow, and in my experience I can recollect no future 

 Derby winner behaving worse than Diamond Jubilee did in 

 the July Stakes at Newmarket. For this event there were 

 half a dozen runners, and as the other five seemed to be 



