CASES AND RACES 107 



" what has he bought but this corpse of a pubUc- 

 house if the Hving breathing spirit of the Ucence is 

 taken out of it." 



He got his case, after a roar of laughter. 



The case of the inquest held in a loft near Naas, 

 I had in a book. The jury, twelve men true and 

 stout, gathered to hold an inquest on a servant 

 who had died suddenly. They were consulting, 

 when the floor of the loft gave way, and down they 

 fell among a herd of bullocks which were fattening 

 in an outhouse underneath. 



The result, as may be imagined, was a noisy 

 one. I have the cutting from the newspaper. 

 It runs : 



" Between the cattle roaring and the jury bawling 

 the noise was terrible." 



But the local paper here, reporting the case 

 added a comment of its own. 



" Fortunately for itself the corpse remained 

 above." 



The swearing at horse cases is so hard and decided 

 that it is taken very Httle notice of. It is looked 

 upon as a species of natural event that both sides 

 should He as best they are able. 



A barrister told me how he had a man come up 

 to claim damages for injury who did not appear 

 to be ill. 



" But were you hurt ? " thundered counsel. 



" I was not to say hurt but fatally twisted," 

 responded the claimant with dignity. 



