352 IRISH SPORT AND SPORTSMEN. 



Red Vixen and Fairy Queen, for the Mare's 

 Plate, in September, at the Curragh. She won 

 the Foxhunter's Stakes at Ormond, beating Mathew, 

 Firefly, and Fireaway. She subsequently won the 

 Kilrue Cup carrying i2st. ylb. ; St. Leger, 5 yrs. 

 1 2 St., was second; Mathew, aged, list. 81b., third; 

 Miss Tisdall, Blister,' and Stoleaway, were beaten 

 off. 



Great was the astonishment of turfites when, soon 

 after these performances, Saucepan, ridden by Mr. 

 William M'Donogh, beat her at Cashel. This was the 

 mare's last race that year. In 1847, she ran for the 

 Liverpool Grand National, and Mr. M'Donogh ac- 

 cepted ^10,000 to ^100 about her winning. She was 

 as fit as the proverbial fiddle when leaving Worcester 

 for Liverpool, and was conveyed there in a van, and 

 arrived safely the Saturday before the race. Early 

 next morning, the boy who had care of her came to 

 Mr. M'Donogh and told him that she was amiss. He 

 immediately went to see her, and noticed that she 

 seemed to be hungry, starving in fact, and chewed hay 

 and corn but could not swallow it, owing to an affec- 

 tion in the throat. He telegraphed to a very intimate 

 friend of his to come to him at once. Consultation 

 with his friend gave little satisfaction, as the 

 busy tongue of rumour had driven the mare to 

 100 to I, and Mr. M'Donogh, like Sternes Starling, 

 found he could not get out. About twelve o'clock 

 the night before the Grand National, when Mr. 

 M'Donogh had been some time in bed, the servant 

 came and told him that a gentleman wanted to see 

 him on very important business; he was naturally 

 opposed to having an interview with any one 



