H.R.H. THE PRINCE OF WALES 



it was a little startling to find that at least seventy 

 men had one and all played a leading part in the 

 boxing of Persimmon, and Marsh had finally to 

 explain that he did not feel justified in disbursing 

 the whole amount of the Derby stake money, 

 particularly as the formality of winning the race 

 had yet to be gone through. 



" The Prince's Derby " must always remain such 

 a landmark in Turf history that it does not need 

 mucli description in these pages. There is no doubt 

 that Persimmon and St. Frusquin were two really 

 great horses, and each had a staunch body of 

 adherents prepared to maintain that his especial 

 pet was the better of the pair. In his verses on the 

 great match between The Flying Dutchman and 

 Voltigeur, " The Druid " wrote : — 



Yorkshire's momentous question 



Is for ever set at rest, 

 The difference between her cracks 



Is scarce a length at best, — 



and I think that these lines will equally apply to 

 Persimmon and St. Frusquin, especially if we 

 substitute " neck" for " length." For reasons which 

 I have just explained, the result of their meeting 

 in the Middle Park Plate must be entirely ignored. 

 Persimmon beat St. Frusquin in the Derby by a 

 neck, and the latter had his revenge in the Princess 

 of Wales's Stakes, in which an advantage of 3 lb. 

 enabled him to gain a half-length verdict. Thus it 

 will be seen that there was really nothing in it 

 between them, and the one that happened to be 

 caught at his very best on the day just pulled 

 through. Those who were not at Epsom on that 

 memorable third of June missed a scene that 

 had never been witnessed before, and which can 

 scarcely be repeated. It is the earnest hope of 



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