126 • HORSE-RACING IN FRANCE 



of weight, which allowance, after the victory of 

 Souvenir in the French Derby (for which presumably, 

 as in the English Derby, there was never any difference 

 of weight between the candidates), was withdi-awn, just 

 as the allowance once made to French horses running 

 in England was gradually withdrawn. The ' coming 

 event,' however, so far as Souvenir's victory was con- 

 cerned, had duly ' thrown its shadow before.' At the 

 Paris Autumn Meeting in the previous year Saint 

 Aignan, a ' Western ' horse, belonging to M. D. Caille 

 and bred by M. Eobin (breeder and owner of Souvenir), 

 had won the Omnium (sometimes called ' the French 

 Cesarewitch ') and had been second to Palestro for 

 the Grand Prix de I'lmperatrice. Moreover M. Verry's 

 Vertu Facile, a iilly from the ' Southern circumscription ' 

 and winner of the Derby du Midi at Bordeaux, had 

 come to Paris and given Stradella some trouble to beat 

 her for the Poule d'Essai. So that the victory of 

 Souvenir and the 'South' or ' West' over the ' Big Stable ' 

 and the ' North ' had been in a measure foreshadowed. 



Now came the Epsom Summer Meeting, at which 

 the ' Frenchmen ' were very much in the shade. They 

 did not even run for the Derby, and in the Oaks the 

 ' Big Stable,' having been third on the Derby Day with 

 Baliverne for the Manor Plate, and second (and last) 

 with her for the Shirley Stakes the day after, could not 

 get a place with Alerte. Count F. de Lagrange cer- 

 tainly won the Two-year-old Stakes, against seven 

 opponents, with Vivid (who was to be tliird for the 

 Oaks next year) ; but then Vivid was not French, but 

 En<Thsli. At Ascot the 'Frenchmen' ran pretty freely, 

 but fTot more kicks than halfpence or Cups: Gentilhomme 

 (two years). Brick (two years), Allez-y-rondement 

 (tliree years), Alerte (three years), and Palestro (four 



