570 A HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH TURF. 



Lord Dupplin's Petrarch was another of John Dawson's charges, and won the 

 Two Thousand after his owner had declared with Kaleidoscope. He was full of 

 quality, but extremely delicate, and difficult to train, and only finished fourth for 

 the Derby. In the St. Leger he could do no less, however, than follow in the 

 victorious footsteps of Lord Clifden, of Neiuminster, and of Touchstone, his sire, 

 his grandsire, and his great-grandsire. He was sold for 12,000 guineas (only 2000 

 more than he had cost) to Lord Lonsdale, and was handed over as sound in wind 

 and limb as when he had first come to Warren House. Luke, who had steered 

 Petrarch in the Two Thousand, also rode Mr. Naylor's Jester for the Cesarewitch 

 of 1878, and brought off a chance that was almost equally unexpected. The winner's 

 starting price was 20 to i, and the placed horses were quoted at 50 to i and 66 to i 

 respectively. It will not be forgotten, too, that at one time John Dawson had 

 under his care both St. Simon and Perdita //., and it was from Mr. Benholm that 

 John Porter bought the mare for the Prince of Wales after her racing days were 

 over, and thereby founded the prosperity of the Sandringham stud. 



It was Matthew Dawson who trained St. Simon during his unbeaten career. 

 He was very properly regarded as the doyen of his profession, and from his first 

 Derby winner in 1860 to his last in 1895, he had a great record on the Turf. 

 Between Thormanby and Sir Visto came Kingcraft, Silvio, Melton, and Ladas. He 

 also trained the winners of five Oaks, five Two Thousands, and half a dozen victors 

 in the St. Leger and the One Thousand. Indeed, to write of Matthew Dawson, 

 especially during the era when he was with Lord Falmouth at Heath House, would 

 be to give details of almost every race worth winning at the time. But the first 

 years of his arrival at Newmarket were not unmixed with disappointment, and 

 one instance of this may be mentioned to show that the best of trainers cannot 

 escape a bad time now and then. Two of his earliest employers were the Duke 

 of Hamilton and the Duke of Newcastle, for Lord Falmouth was then with Boyce. 

 With them were connected the names of Julius and of Leonie, already mentioned. 

 But in 1868 among the two Dukes' youngsters was a big colt called Wild Oats (bred 

 by Lord Dorchester from The Golden Heron by Wild Dayrcll], whose own sister, 

 Hue and Cry, ran a double dead-heat, and was rather easily beaten in her 

 third attempt. Stephenson, the biggest and boldest bookmaker of his day, " knew 

 something," with the result that after Chatclherault and Abstinence from the same 

 stable finished first and second for the Chesterfield Stakes, he opened out with 

 most extraordinary odds against Chatelherault for the Derby, "betting to lose," as 



