Gentlemen Riders 



Limber, when, singularly enough, of the eighteen jockeys who 

 rode in the race, all were professionals except himself. It was 

 a very fast run race and the course an extremely stiff one, one 

 of the most formidable of the obstacles being a very high 

 knife-topped bank. 



Miss Hungerford was a real good mare, her best perform- 

 ance of all, perhaps, being at Stratford-on-Avon, when, in 

 receipt of 7 lbs., with her owner in the saddle, she beat 

 Congress, ridden by Mr. E. P. Wilson, over three and a half 

 miles, his best distance. 



" Mr. Roily " also rode the mare in the Grand National of 

 i875» which he was always of opinion she would have won 

 but for being knocked over the second time round. 



They were quite by themselves on the left-hand side of the 

 course, so as to keep out of the crowd, when an Irish jockey 

 on Sailor deliberately charged into them, with the result just 

 stated. 



The Limber stable began the year 1875 very well, at the 

 Lincoln Spring Meeting, where the five horses they ran all won 

 in the hands of " Mr. Roily." 



On Zero, belonging to Mr. Richardson, he also won several 

 races. This was the horse who gave him such a terrible fall at 

 Valentine's Brook, the last time round, in the Grand National 

 of 1876, of which so many different versions have been given 

 at various times, that we take this opportunity of stating 

 exactly what did occmy. Zero was going splendidly, and, near- 

 ing Valentine's, just behind Shifnal and Jackal, who were leading, 

 his jockey got a real good steadier at him. The horse jumped 

 the fence in his stride, almost touching the left-hand flag, with- 

 out disturbing a twig, but came a tremendous cropper on 

 landing, falling head over heels, in fact. Tom Cannon hap- 

 pened to be on the spot, and, with his assistance, *' Mr. Roily" 



360 



