no A MIRE OR OF THE TURF. 



appeared at Doncaster to assist at its celebration, 

 such as the eccentric James Hurst, who came to 

 the paddock dressed from head to foot in sheep- 

 skin garments and drawn in a carriage of his own 

 make by his tame dogs, or occasionally by an ass, 

 and sometimes attended by a few tame foxes ! 

 On one occasion ten false starts took place before 

 the genuine race was run; that was in Altissidora's 

 year ( 1 8 1 3), when seventeen horses came under the 

 charge of the starter. A speculative occupant of 

 the grand stand, after the eighth false start had 

 taken place, laid 100 to 20 against the next attempt 

 being successful and also 100 to 30 against the tenth, 

 and won his money. In the year 181 9 the great 

 Doncaster event was run twice ! Two years after- 

 wards, Gustavus, which had won the Derby, was 

 expected to win the St. Leger also, but he was 

 defeated by Jack Spigot, a northern horse. 

 This was the first great struggle between the 

 southern and northern trainers, and the latter, 

 who entertained a profound contempt for New- 

 market men and their modes of training, prophesied 

 that they could never win a St. Leger — a prophecy 

 that was speedily shown to be erroneous — and the 

 race is now seldom won by a horse trained in the 

 northern stables, the latest Yorkshire-trained 

 winner, if I am not mistaken, being Apology. 



Large amounts of money usually change 

 hands over the race for the St. Leger, the horse- 

 loving Yorkshiremen being fond of making a 

 bet ; many sums of considerable amount are 

 risked by persons who habitually speculate on 

 the race. It was recently calculated by a gentle- 

 man well versed in such matters that during 

 the St. Leger week, over fifty thousand individual 

 bets would be made in Doncaster alone, the 



