BRITISH TURF. 17 



flat at Newmarket for a 1000 gs. He performed 

 the distance in 58 minutes and 10 seconds ; five 

 to two in his favour at starting. He was rode by 

 a boy, about 4st. 71b., who did not appear in the 

 least fatigued. Considerable sums of money were 

 betted on the event, it being the greatest perform- 

 ance ever done in England, by one horse, before 

 that time. 



In October 1791, at the Curragh Meeting in 

 Ireland, Mr. Wilde, a sporting gentleman, made 

 bets to the amount of 2000 gs. to ride against 

 time, viz : 127 English miles in nine hours. On 

 the 6th of October he started in a valley near the 

 Curragh Course, where two miles were measured 

 in a circular direction. Each time he went round 

 the course, it was regularly marked. During the 

 interval of changing horses, he refreshed himself 

 with a mouthful of brandy and water, and was 

 no more than 6 hours and 21 minutes in com- 

 pleting the 127 miles, having 2 hours and 39 mi- 

 nutes to spare. Mr. Wilde performed this match 

 with ten blood horses from the stud of J. Daly, 

 Esq. Whilst on horseback, allowing the odd mi- 

 nutes for changing horses, he rode at the rate of 

 20 miles an hour for six hours. He was so little 

 fatigued that he was at the Turf Club house, in 

 Kildare, the same evening. This feat was, however, 

 greatly surpassed by that of Mr. Osbaldiston at 

 Newmarket, which we shall describe in another 

 part of this work. 



VOL. II. c 



