STEEPLECHASING. 597 



The Returned. Thirdly, the winner Discount had up to the time of his winning 

 been a complete failure at everything. In 1845 Mr. Loft's Cure- All, who ran as 

 the nomination of Mr. W. S. Crawfurd, and was ridden by her owner, was bought 

 a few months previously for ^50, and was described as "a short-legged, compact, 

 strong, and rather coarse-looking animal." A strong field of twenty-nine started in 

 1847, when Mat hew, the favourite, won, he being the first Irish horse to carry off the 

 Liverpool race. The Irish brigade mustered rather strongly, as Mat hew, Saucepan, 

 Miss Tindall, St. Leger, and Brunette were all claimed as being Irish. Mathew, a 

 blood bay, standing about 15 hands 3 inches, by Vestris, was bred by Mr. John 

 Westrop, of Coolreagh, near Scarriff, in 1838. He won several races in Ireland, 

 before coming to England, and often ran against Brunette. The latter was a very 

 famous mare. She was a black, or very dark brown, foaled in 1834, and bred by 

 Mr. Walker in Co. Meath. She was by Herciiles, dam by Yeomanry, grand-dam 

 by Welcome.- She did not run till she was seven years old, when she won the 

 Meath Gold Cup at Trim in a canter, ridden by a young farmer named Murray. 

 Mr. Knaresborough (very likely the owner of Dan ffConnell, who started at 

 Liverpool in 1837) then bought her, and in his colours Brunette won the Kilrane 

 Cup twice in i8'42, the year in which the race was instituted, and again in 1843, 

 the year in which Alan McDonough at the last moment entered Peter Simple, 

 just then at : his best. He was, however, third only, Brunette winning easily, 

 though ten lengths behind at the last fence. The mare won a number of other 

 races all over Ireland ; but, like so many good performers, she never had a foal 

 that could have won a saddle at a country meeting. Brunette was subsequently 

 sold to the Hon. W. Hely Hutchinson, of Palmerstown, and died in 1855, in 

 the twenty-second year of her age in foaling to Portrait. 



Matkciu tried to win again in 1848, but was cannoned against and knocked 

 clown, so his chance was extinguished ; some other much-fancied horses fell, so 

 The Chandler, ridden by his owner, Captain Little, achieved what was generally 

 thought to be a lucky victory, especially as at that time " The Little Captain," as 

 he was often called, had not had very much practice in steeplechase riding, and 

 had to fight out the finish with his old tutor, Olliver, on The Curate. Captain 



o 



Joseph Lockhart Little, the "Josey" Little of many friends, was born in 1821 at 

 Chipstead, Surrey, joining the King's Dragoon Guards, in which regiment he 

 remained until 1848, when he exchanged into the Sist Foot, in consequence of 

 having lost his money by the failure of a bank. When he first received the news, 

 VOL. in. u 



