124 HORSE-KACING IN FRANCE 



was convicted of ' foul riding ' (whereby lie got liis 

 ' mount ' Retento into the second place), and the first 

 and second horses were consequently disqualified. At 

 Epsom Spring Meeting the French horses — to wit, 

 Palestro, Gentilhomme (two years), Le Marechal (two 

 years), Finlande, Gaulois (two years), and Mademoiselle 

 de Champigny (then Mr. Angell's) — ran without much 

 success or credit ; but at Newmarket Craven (where 

 the ' Big Stable ' did badly with Baliverne, Attrape- 

 qui-peut, Alerte, Finlande, Gabrielle d'Estrees, Royal- 

 lieu, Gaulois, and Gisors [gelding], as also Mr. Lowther 

 did with his French acquisition Exactitude) Absinthe 

 won a sweepstakes in Count F. de Lagrange's name, 

 and so did Le Marechal (elder brother of the subse- 

 quently distinguished Consul). 



Nor previously to the Epsom Summer Meeting did 

 the ' Big Stable ' or any other representatives of the 

 French Turf show to advantage in England, though 

 Baliverne in the name of Baron Niviere walked over 

 and divided stakes with the noted Little Lady, and 

 Palestro, Maubourguet, and Royallieu, in Count F. de 

 Lagrange's name, won a race apiece, the two former at 

 Newmarket First Spring (where also Le Marechal ran 

 a dead lieat), the other at Chester (the Palatine Cup 

 Stakes). By the way Royallieu was sold this year to 

 go to the assistance of our horse-breeding colonists, 

 friends, and kinsmen in Australia. 



In France, however, it was a little different, for 

 the ' Big Stable ' (thougli beaten for the Frencli Derb}^) 

 won at the Paris Spring Meeting the Prix du Cadran 

 with Compiegne, the Prix de Longchamps with AUez-y- 

 rondement, tlie Grand Prix de I'lmperatrice (now Prix 

 RainboAv) with Palestro, and the Poule d'Essai (some- 

 times called French Two Thousand) Avith Stradella ; 



