THE CLASSIC RACES. 129 



entries have occurred in 1880(257) and 1890(233), 

 when Bend Or and Sainfoin won respectively. 



The terms on which the Derbv was first run 

 for were 50 gs. for each horse taking part in the 

 race, non-starters paying half that amount ; the 

 distance run during the first three years was one 

 mile, and the weights carried were respectively 

 8 St. for colts, and 7 st. 11 lb. for fillies ; the 

 weights were altered in the year 1784, and again 

 in the years 1801, 1803, i^07j ^s also in 1865. 



In 1782 the second horse began to be paid 

 ;!^ioo out of the stakes ; in 1 869 the sums given to 

 the runners-up were respectively ^300 and ^150 

 for first and second. At a previous date sums were 

 deducted from the stakes for police expenses and 

 the judge ! The stake run for by Diomed, the first 

 winner of the Derby, would amount to 1,125 gs., 

 and for the next ten or twelve years the sum raced 

 for was seldom under 1,000 gs. A good many 

 years elapsed before the 2,000 gs. was topped, 

 but a time was coming when even double that 

 amount was thought a small sum with which to 

 reward the owner of a Derby winner. In Lord 

 Lyons' year (1866) the stakes reached ^7,350, 

 and again in 1879 when Fordham won on Sir 

 Bevys, the sum of the stakes amounted to over 

 £y,ooo, whilst ;^5,ooo and even ^6,000 were on 

 several occasions placed to the credit of the owner 

 of the winning horse. 



On the day that Pyrrhus the First won the 

 Derby, which was in the year 1846, the "time" 

 taken to run the race was for the first time ascer- 

 tained — it was two minutes and fifty-five seconds ; 

 but on two or three occasions two minutes and 

 forty-three seconds was the time indicated ; whilst 



