MONARQUE AND HIS SATELLITES 81 



and his compatriots ; but its exceptional brightness, 

 as so often happens, was but the precursor of a deeper 

 gloom than ever prevailed before, to continue till the 

 autumn of 1860. 



Balagny, Goelette, Etoile du Nord (winner of the 

 French Oaks and a stable companion of Mademoiselle 

 de Chantilly), La Maladetta, Nuncia, Phoenix (the fore- 

 runner of a more famous and more notorious Phenix), 

 Ventre Saint-Grris (who started first favourite for the 

 Goodwood Cup), Wedding, and Zouave, as well as 

 Martel-en-Tete (who was to win the Prix du Cadran the 

 next year), all ' bred in France,' of all ages from two years 

 to six, had run in England once or oftener (Zouave no 

 fewer than five times, twice ' placed ') without doing any 

 good ; Mademoiselle de Chantilly herself had dimmed 

 the splendour of her opening success by two subsequent 

 failures ; and, sad to relate, the same Epsom Spring 

 Meeting which had seen her triumphant had seen 

 Monarque ' break down ' in the race for the Great 

 Metropolitan. There is an end, they say, to everything 

 but Cromwell Eoad ; and so there was an end of 

 Monarque's racing. He had been ' hard at it ' since 

 1 854 ; he had certainly ' beaten more than beat him,' 

 and at the stud he was about to commence a career 

 which would throw his performances on the race- 

 course altogether into the shade. The estimate given 

 of him as a race horse by a fair-minded compatriot 

 is as follows : 'It is certain that, though he always 

 displayed an indisputable superiority in France, and 

 though he achieved two brilliant [?] successes in Eng- 

 land, he was not fit to compete, without a consider- 

 able advantage in weight, against English horses 

 of tlie first rank.' There was good reason to say so ; 

 for this year 1858, again, Saunterer went over to 



G 



