STEEPLECHASING. 587 



riders in this race were Jem Mason, who made his first appearance in public, and 

 John Brown, of Tring, who is mentioned as one of the characters in the poem of 

 " Lord Lonsdale's Harriers." This was but the prelude to many more steeple- 

 chases at Aylesbury. In those days the Royal Buckhounds used to go there for 

 a fortnight, and the steeplechases used to take place during that very merry time. 

 Nearly all the horses which ran at St. Albans appeared at Aylesbury at one time 

 or another, and a couple of rather celebrated matches took place there. The first 

 was between The British Yeoman, ridden by Jem Mason, and Vain Hope, steered 

 by William Archer, father of Fred and Charles Archer ; the other was between 

 two horses the property of rival livery-stable proprietors at Oxford Mr. George 

 Symonds's Janus, ridden by Fred Enoch, who afterwards became a trainer, and 

 Mr. Perrin's Phoenix, ridden by Tom Price. The race resulted in a dead heat, and 

 as the owners would not divide it was run off, when Janus won by a bare length. 

 " The value of the stakes was only j" Mr. Fowler tells us. 



In the year 1859 Pratt's Club held a meeting at Aylesbury, when Lord Strathmore 

 won a couple of races on Charm and The Tartar respectively. Messrs. Blundell 

 and Dewar, who both figure in the pictures of the Oxford Drag, and who often 

 performed over the Aylesbury course, were first and second for the steeplechase held 

 in the Crimea, both riders distinguishing themselves in the course of the war. As 

 already mentioned, Oxford undergraduates had for many years held a cross-country- 

 meeting over Aylesbury Vale, first over the Broughton course, and later over the 

 Prebendal Farm. The dons of Oxford never encouraged steeplechasing, of course, 

 and at one period resolved to put it down altogether. The undergraduates, however, 

 had one champion in Mr. Neate, a Fellow of Oriel, at one time Professor of Political 

 Economy and M.P. for the city. He often hunted from Oxford, and on this 

 particular occasion stood up for Oxford's younger sons, and, to lend them his support, 

 entered for one of the races a horse which he called Vice-Chancellor. Every one was 

 wondering who the jockey would be, but the question was soon set at rest by the 

 Professor (he was no mean horseman) getting up ; he was in his shirt sleeves and 

 wore a tall hat. The brook was a very formidable jump in that year, and it proved 

 too much for Mr. Neate's horse, which fell in ; but the Professor consoled himself for 

 the mishap by saying that he had made his protest and vindicated the rights of those 

 in statu pnpillari to indulge in a manly sport. The year 1874 saw the Grand 

 National Hunt Steeplechase run at Aylesbury, the winner being Mr. C. Vyner's 

 Lucellum, Mr. A. Peel being second on Ballot Box. At that meeting there was 



