72 THE HISTORY OF NEWMARKET. [Book II. 



king that there were no such valuable mares at the 

 court of the Kine of France." Ratto assured the 

 king that if the mares were less good than the king 

 deserved, yet he besought him to accept the loving 

 service of the marquis, who had shown all the mares 

 to Master Thomas Sieno {sic), (whom Henry sent to 

 Mantua to obtain thoroughbred horses for him), 

 requesting he would take such as he pleased to gratify 

 the king's taste, but that Master Thomas declined 

 doing anything of the sort. Ratto added that the 

 marquis had a stud of Barbary mares, of " miche " 

 and of jennets, and of great mares, which he offered 

 to the king, " together with his territories and children, 

 and his own person." Thereupon the king desired 

 Ratto to return many thanks to the marquis in his 

 name, inquiring what he could do to please him. 

 Ratto replied that the marquis was the king's good 

 servant. The queen was present during this conver- 

 sation, which induced Ratto to put " the bright bay " 

 through his paces in the Spanish fashion, exhibiting 

 the horse to the admiration of everybody. The king 

 said to him, "Is not this the best horse?" He 

 answered in the affirmative, to the gratification of the 

 king, who approaching the horse patted him, saying, 

 "So ho, my minion."'" After this the king caused 

 Ratto to be asked secretly what present would please 

 the marquis, " and he replied nothing but the king's 

 love ; though his intention was evinced of purchasing 



* Mr. Rawdon Brown says : " Mention is made of this horse in the 

 '' Fioretto delle CronicJie di Mantova,' p. 72. He was a Mantuan 'barb' 

 or race-horse, and the marquis had been offered for him his weight 

 in silver, but preferred making a present of the animal to Henry VIII." 

 — S. P. Venetian, vol. ii., p. 162. 



