Celebrities of the Past TJiirty Years 177 



ever won a race I remember Mr. Powell 

 saying, "This young horse will make me 

 another Bloodstone" — words of prophecy, 

 indeed. 



One of his first efforts in public was on 

 the old Croydon course. For the honour and 

 glory of the Koyal Artillery Drag we backed 

 him, and the bookmakers, I remember, laid 

 us nice healthy prices, for the young Torpedo 

 horse was doing a bold thing in tackling 

 Cameronian on the flat, the latter beinof 

 at that time almost invincible. Our joy 

 was correspondingly great when we saw the 

 young one sticking to the favourite all the 

 way up that tiring hill, and finally beating 

 him. Midshipmite is a very big jumper, 

 and of his many riders none handled him 

 so well as poor "Billy" Sensier, though the 

 horse ran very well in the Liverpool under 

 Mr. Atkinson's able guidance. On that 

 occasion he overjumped himself, after get- 

 ting four miles of the journey, some say 

 "pumped out," and others, including, I 

 believe, his jockey (who ought to know), 



M 



