AND OTHER SKETCHES 131 



Star, is a fac simile of the bill issued by the Newcastle 

 Turf Club in 1841 : 



''Newcastle Turf Club, June, 1841. 



''President — D'Arcy Boulton, Esq. 



" Stewards— The Sheriff of the Newcastle District, 

 Geo. S. Boultbee, Esq., Donald Bethune, Esq., John Craw- 

 ford, Esq., J. S. Innes, Esq., Wm. Weller, Esq., H. Cov- 

 ert, Esq. 



"Treasurer — ^Wm. Weller, Esq. 



"First Day, Tuesday, 22nd June — The Cobourg Plate 

 of £100, free for all horses. Heats, two miles and a dis- 

 tance. Two-year-olds, a feather, three-year-olds to carry 

 6 St. 6 lbs. ; four, 7 st. 9 lbs. ; five, 8 st. 4 lbs. ; six, 8 st. 10 

 lbs. ; and aged, 9 st. Horses bred in British North Amer- 

 ica, allowed 8 lbs. The winner to be sold for £200, if 

 demanded within one-quarter of an hour after the race. 

 Entrance, £5. 



"The Queen's Plate of £25, for horses (the bona fide 

 property of subjects of Her Majesty two months before 

 the day of running) . Three-year-olds to carry 9 st. 3 lbs. ; 

 four, 10 st. 7 lbs. ; five, 11 st. 3 lbs. ; six and aged, 11 st. 7 

 lbs. Heats, one mile and a distance. Gentlemen riders. 

 Entrance, £5. 



"A. G. Allan, Secretary." 



A glance at the above shows the Cobourg Plate in those 

 days was worth a hundred sterling, equal to $500 Cana- 

 dian currency. In fact, I saw $600 purses hung up in 

 Toronto thirty-eight years ago. It will always be a de- 

 batable point that will be stoutly defended on both sides, 

 whether we have made much improvement in breeding 

 the thoroughbred in Ontario. Remember, that the pres- 

 ent going at Woodbine is infinitely faster than the tracks 

 at London, Hamilton, Whitby and Kingston were, and 

 I'm not altogether certain in my mind, but that Nettie, 

 Jack Vandal, Bay Jack, Terror, Jack Bell and such could 

 hold their own with the present race of provincials. 



Of course we hear a great deal about the naughty do- 

 ings in those days, but page for page the record then was 

 just as clean as it is now. "White man is mighty uncer- 



