FOURTH PERIOD : VICTORIA i6i 



9 St. each, against Lord Strathnalrn's gray horse 

 Avowal (by Confessor, dam the gray mare 

 Rocket, whose dam was an Arab mare of the 

 Nejdi breed), six years old, and, at an expense 

 of 500 sovs., did us the service of demonstrating 

 once more the superiority of a very moderate 

 horse, by an English sire and a half-Arab dam, 

 over a pure Arab of the best breed and of un- 

 beaten record ; for Alep, the favourite at 2 to i , 

 and even 4 to i, was beaten by thirty lengths. 

 His Royal Highness is now a constant runner, 

 but his success, unfortunately, has not been as yet 

 equal to that of his two great-uncles, George and 

 Frederick, of whom the former won the Derby 

 once and the latter twice, and would have to be 

 very great indeed to correspond with his en- 

 thusiasm and enterprise or with the desires of his 

 countrymen. 



Of the other most conspicuous owners and 

 runners of race-horses, during the present reign, 

 the chief places must be assigned, as winners of 

 the Derby, to Sir Gilbert Heathcote (predecessor 

 of Lord Rosebery at the Durdans, Epsom, and 

 perpetual steward of Epsom races). Colonel 

 Anson (afterwards General, Commander-in-chief 

 * II 



