258 MODERN FARRIEE,. 



this trial." Amelia raced, I believe, about sixty or 

 seventy years ago, was the best mare of her year, 

 and a great winner at Newmarket ; and Mr. Chafin 

 had the above account, about a week after the trial 

 had been made, from the father of the present Sir 

 John Lade, an eye-witness. The particulars are in 

 all probability to be found in one of Cheney's, that 

 is to say, the earliest Racing Calendars ; but such 

 experiments by no means deserve the countenance 

 of sportsmen, being in their very nature barbarous, 

 and almost unavoidably likely to be productive of 

 irreparable injury to the victims of them. There is 

 a deception in the appearance of the bred horse, 

 particularly in the bone, which, from the fineness of 

 the skin and smoothness of the hair, does not show 

 bulk so prominently as the bone of the horse of a 

 coarser breed ; and there are many cart-horses which 

 cannot stand in competition with some of our racers, 

 for size of the leg bone below the knee. Sampson, 

 the sire of Bay Malton, measured eight inches and a 

 half round the smallest part of his fore-leg, and nine 

 inches round the same part of his hinder leg.' 



All racing transactions and information relative 

 to the turf are comprised in the annual Racing Ca- 

 lendar, published by Messrs, Weatlierby, of Oxen- 

 don-street, London. These Calendars commence in 

 1727. Pick's Calendar, published at York, Card's 

 Guide to the Turf, Bodger's prints of the Newmar- 

 ket Courses and Exercise Ground, and the General 

 Stud Book, are also useful to Sportsmen. According 

 to the Calendar for 1753, there were then in England 

 seventy courses in which regular annual races were 

 held, and one in Scotland, and sixteen covering stal- 

 lions advertised. In 1777, ninety-one courses in 

 England, three in Scotland, and eleven in Ireland, 

 and eighty-nine stallions advertised. In 1816, 

 eighty-two courses in England, three in Wales, 

 nine in Scotland, six in Ireland, and fifty-seven 

 stallions advertised to cover in England. It is pro- 



