248 A MIRROR OF THE TURF. 



bablllty that person was the engineer of the 

 opposition to Gully's horse. The two ultimately 

 became partners, or "confederates," in a good 

 many of the turf events of their day ; but it 

 is quite clear they were not acting in concert 

 at Doncaster on the occasion of the St, Leger 

 of 1827. At what date a formal partnership — 

 if any such ever existed — was entered upon 

 by Ridsdale and Gully is not known, but it 

 is more than likely they had on some occasions 

 " worked the oracle " together for their mutual 

 advantage before the period of their partnership. 

 Ridsdale had become a man of means, lived 

 in good style, and was at one time possessed of a 

 hundred horses, keeping up a liberal establishment. 

 Considering his beginnings, he was apparently 

 a man of considerable culture ; he possessed 

 some of the best books of the period, and also 

 read, or at any rate purchased, all the popular 

 magazines of his day, his living-rooms being 

 usually littered with newspapers and ephemeral 

 prints and pamphlets of the period. Well-trained 

 servants waited on his guests ; the productions 

 of his cook attracted the attention of his brethren 

 of the hunt ; his claret was of the best, so was 

 his port ; whilst his conversation was always 

 attractive, and his tongue fluent and persuasive. 

 He rode, of course, to hounds — indeed, hunting 

 was a passion with him ; he had a string of well- 

 bred hunters from which he derived by occasional 

 sales a handsome profit ; he bred and trained 

 at his place other horses as well, and was never 

 without a hundred or two with which to accom- 

 modate any of his friends who had run short 

 of money. 



