WITH THE PROPHETS. 179 



racing affairs fancied by subscribing that they 

 would obtain " somethinof Qrood," whilst the fact 

 of three wniners of three races, and a second 

 and third in two more being given to start with, 

 was thought sufficient evidence of the do7za fides 

 of the advertiser. 



For three or four years Mrs. Merryweather 

 experienced a prosperous time, customers being 

 numerous, as, by means of her system of sending 

 different horses to different persons one or more 

 batches of them were certain to have had 

 winners sent to them, and these fortunate ones 

 were not slow to sound the trumpet of her fame 

 among their friends, so that on some occasions 

 she enjoyed a run of success. How her career 

 ended I cannot say from personal knowledge. 

 Fred Booth, a frequent visitor to " Jessop's," and 

 afterwards a bookmaker in a considerable way 

 of business, used to relate that she married one 

 of her clients, a wholesale grain merchant in the 

 North of England, who had found his way to 

 her house intent on giving the prophet a very 

 handsome present in return for a double event 

 which she had been lucky enough to send him. 

 The gentleman was greatly surprised on dis- 

 covering that his tipster was a woman, and a 

 good-looking one, possessed of refined manners ; 

 and according to Booth, who spoke as if he 

 knew the gentleman, the story came to a con- 

 clusion in the neighbouring church in the most 

 orthodox fashion. 



I can from personal knowledge describe the 

 doings of one of the tipping fraternity. About 

 the year 1842 or 1843 \S ^"^ ^^^ ?>Mr^ which of 

 these years it was), I went one evening to 



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