214 A MIRROR OF THE TURF. 



;^279, and being quite pleased, stopped business 

 and contented himself the last day with looking 

 on at the gambling of others, and so making his 

 visit to Altcar a profitable and pleasant holiday. 



Two thousand people, it is averred, will each 

 bet, on the average, £i over every course which 

 is run at Altcar, which, on the Cup alone, would 

 represent in stakes alone a sum of over ^125,000. 

 These figures — they are but rough calculations at 

 their best — may be taken for what they are worth, 

 as affording an index of the gambling which is 

 incidental to the modern " Battle of Waterloo." 



Apropos to the name " Waterloo " Cup, it 

 may be mentioned that it is not at all of heroic 

 origin ; as a matter of fact, the stake originated 

 in the Waterloo Hotel, at Liverpool, which has 

 long since disappeared, its site being included 

 in the buildings of the central station. This 

 hotel was in its day a hostelry of some degree 

 of fame and a choice resort of the coursing 

 fraternity. In that house, then, in the year 1835 

 the stake was originated, and run for in the 

 following spring for the first time, eight dogs 

 only taking part in the contest, the winner being 

 Melanie, a dog belonging to Mr. Lynn, the 

 landlord of the house. Such was the origin of 

 the present great Altcar contest. At first an 

 eight dog stake, it speedily became one for six- 

 teen and then for thirty-two greyhounds. In 

 1857 the Waterloo Cup reached its present 

 dimensions, and has ever since continued a 

 sixty-four dog stake. 



