154 THE ENGLISH TURF 



club is to encourage gentlemen riders, and various events 

 are confined to the amateur. The membership also em- 

 braces many of the best class of owners apart from the 

 gentlemen riders, and these supply the entries for the con- 

 fined events. At times the proceedings become somewhat 

 farcical, but the meeting is generally understood to be a 

 relaxation from the sterner work of the summer campaign, 

 and it may be mentioned that if anything out of the 

 common occurs, such as a display of indifferent jockeyship 

 or want of knowledge as to the exact course to be run, 

 it is always in connection with a minor event, in which 

 amateurs are riding at welter weights. In the two- and 

 three-year-old weight-for-age races professional jockeys are 

 always employed, and the Hurstbourne Stakes has now and 

 again been won by the best youngster of the year. 



All things considered, Stockbridge was quite one of the 

 pleasantest meetings of the racing year. It was held in 

 early July, and the course, situated in a lovely country, 

 was one of the prettiest and best in the kingdom. Not a 

 quarter of a mile beyond the winning-post was the historic 

 training establishment of Danebury, and the middle day, 

 when the Stockbridge Cup was run, drew the local holiday- 

 makers in force. Accommodation in the little town was in 

 great demand, and many of the cottagers made their year's 

 rent by subletting for the meeting. The old headquarters 

 of the club were at the Grosvenor Arms Hotel, but many 

 of the members took country houses for the week, and some 

 again stayed at Andover, within a seven-mile drive of the 

 course, while others journeyed from Southampton each day. 

 The club was very loath to leave Stockbridge, but the owner 

 of land forming a portion of the course refused to let it 

 again for racing purposes, so there was no option. 



Northampton is one of the old meetings which has 

 managed to survive the march of the times, and which 

 has known few changes for many years, though some slight 

 improvements in the stands and rings have been made. 

 Two meetings are held annually, one in early spring and 

 one in late autumn, and the former fixture is much the 

 more important, the programme including three races of 



