Gentlemen Riders 



Steeplechase at Sandown on his b.g. The Madhi, by Happy 

 Land — Miss Brownie. This was a charger and hunter on 

 which the same year he was second for the Southdown Hunt 

 Point-to- Point, and won the Sussex Plate at Ringmer Steeple- 

 chases. Another horse he owned and ran in several races was 

 Belisarius H., by Pero Gomez. This horse had had a curious 

 career. As a two-year-old he belonged to the Duke of 

 Beaufort, and won some good races, afterwards going to South 

 America, where, after winning several times, he was brought 

 back, and sold to Colonel Yardley. He was, however, soured 

 for races, and after giving him some awful falls, schooling over 

 the open ditch, would never face one again. At last his owner 

 put him in a hunters' selling hurdle race at Plumpton, which 

 apparently he could not lose. There was a big field, and lOO 

 to 8 was a nice price, but, alas ! he could only get second, 

 and he was allowed to go, to become a Brighton cab horse. 



The following year, 1892, Captain Yardley won the Grand 

 Military Handicap Steeplechase at Sandown, on Captain 

 H. B. Purefoy's Grigou, and rode General De la Poer 

 Beresford's b.g. Faust, by Faro, in the Grand National. 

 " Faust," says Colonel Yardley, "was one of the best hunters 

 I ever rode, and was unlucky not to win this National. At 

 the canal bend the second time he was going well with me in 

 front alongside Cloister (who was giving us two stone), and I 

 felt confident no other horse in the race could beat us. Alas ! 

 directly after, he broke down, but jumped the last fences on 

 three legs, got into the paddock with difficulty, and it was a 

 long time before he could be moved from Liverpool. Cloister 

 won in record time, and Faust eventually got sound enough to 

 give his owner many good hunts, but not for racing again. 

 Owing to a great trial gallop Faust had a suspicion of a leg 

 before starting, and by a pre-arranged plan I threw up my 



334 



