DANEBURY DAYS 



known of whom is the famous Cherry Duchess, the 

 dam of Energy, Enthusiast, and other good horses. 

 Danebury was somewhat badly off for a Derby 

 horse in 1866. About the most successful two- 

 year-old in the stable in the preceding season was 

 the Duke of Beaufort's INIr. Pitt, but this bay son 

 of The Prime Minister and Lurley, though he won 

 ten out of the twelve races in which he took part, 

 was not engaged in the Derby. Probably this was 

 a fortunate omission, as speed rather than stamina 

 was his strong point, and he never showed to any 

 great advantage after his first season. However, 

 the Duke of Beaufort had bought Rustic soon after 

 the Ascot Meeting of 1865, whilst the INIarquis of 

 Hastings purchased Blue Riband from Mr. R. 

 Cathcart, after he had run a dead-heat with ]Mr. 

 Pitt in the Colt Sapling Stakes at York. Rustic 

 was a chesnut colt by Stockwell out of Village 

 Lass, and was originally the property of Mr., after- 

 wards Sir Richard, Sutton. He had only run twice 

 without success when the Duke bought him, but, 

 as he was a great unfurnished baby, his second to 

 Baron Rothschild's Janitor in a Biennial at Ascot 

 looked very hopeful, for there have been few two- 

 year-olds that appeared susceptible of more im- 

 provement. John Day did not hurry or over-do 

 him, as he was not out again until he easily beat a 

 large but moderate field at York, whilst, when he 

 wound up by cantering home six lengths in front 

 of seven others for the Clearwell Stakes, a good 

 many people began to think that Mr. Sutton had 

 made a mistake in selling Rustic and keeping Lord 

 Lyon. All through that winter there was much 

 argument and discussion between the respective 

 partisans of " The Lord " and " The Lout," and 

 considerable excitement was manifested when the 

 time arrived for the Danebury Derby trial. The 



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