84 SPORTING REMINISCENCES 



Captain O'Grady Delmege has won too many 

 point-to-points for me to remember. To see him 

 out hunting riding at Tiger (Colonel Reilly, who is 

 here now and no better man to hounds, a real 

 old-fashioned " thruster ") in a fast hunt, was a 

 nervous sight for onlookers. J. O'G. showed me 

 a drop over a coped wall on to the road near 

 Adare which they galloped at together one day, 

 and *' hopped off the road like peas," as he put it. 



One story I must tell to show Captain Delmege's 

 quickness with the people. 



It happened quite lately, at Listowel races, 

 where an EngHsh prize-fighter, rather loudly 

 garmented, having come over to Ireland, thought 

 he would take in an Irish race meeting as an 

 experience. He did so with due contempt for the 

 somewhat ragged crowd outside. Unfortunately 

 for him and other people a hot favourite won, 

 and an outside bookie who had laid against it 

 beyond that which he was able melted discreetly 

 into space when he saw the horse coming home 

 alone. The stranger mounted his stool to watch 

 the race, next minute he found himself surrounded 

 by an over anxious crowd of people who had 

 backed the winner. Tickets were thrust into an 

 astonished hand. Denial and exceeding pungent 

 language was in vain. Both men wore check 

 suits and both were what the Kerry men called 

 " furriners." 

 From a mistake it ^rew to be a struggle for life, 



