102 A MIRROR OF THE TURF. 



of which, as they rush past the winning-chair, are 

 as nearly as possible locked together. Other 

 races in which the competitors are much fewer, 

 are quite as difficult to judge ; races, for instance, 

 in which the first three horses are running widely 

 apart from each other, on a very broad race- 

 course. In such instances no one but the re- 

 cognised authority can tell which is first, the 

 guesses of lookers-on during the decision of such 

 events being often wide of the mark. 



Curious instances have frequently been re- 

 lated of hats being thrown up by enthusiastic 

 bettors as a token of rejoicing before the winning 

 number has been officially signalled, and great 

 has been the chaofrin of these enthusiasts when 

 they saw the number of their horse placed second 

 or third. Upon one occasion a gentleman who 

 had backed a high-mettled steed belonging to 

 a friend of his to win him a sum of about 

 ^15,000, watched the race with intense anxiety, 

 and saw, as he thought, his friend's horse 

 just beaten on the post. Imagine his joy, 

 therefore, when the numbers went up, when he 

 found that instead of being just beaten he had 

 just won. Many an opposite tale could be told 

 of men who, before the winning number was 

 hoisted, felt certain they had won a fortune, 

 when alas ! their horse was only awarded the 

 second or third place. Still, the judge maintains 

 his high position; he may make an occasional 

 blunder in his award, but his honesty of purpose 

 remains unquestioned, although on some of his 

 judgments are dependent large amounts of money. 



On the determination of a race there may be 

 hundreds of thousands of pounds at stake, and 



