MODERN ENCLOSED COURSES 179 



Common, on whom odds of 2 to I were laid, could finish 

 third only to Surefoot and Gouverneur, Mr. Merry's sensa- 

 tional horse winning by a length, while the French three- 

 year-old just beat the triple classic winner of the year for 

 second place. In all probability the pace was not strong 

 enough for Common in the early part of the contest. 

 Surefoot at that time was possessed of a shockingly bad 

 character, and a long price was offered against him at the 

 start. In the paddock, before the race, he was almost un- 

 manageable, and in going through the plantation on his way 

 to the course he reared up and pawed the trunk of a tree 

 with his forelegs, the exhibition being one of the most 

 curious ever seen on a racecourse. Nor did his chance look 

 a good one in running until the field were approaching the 

 distance. Then all of a sudden Surefoot shot out on the 

 outside, and, banging up the hill at terrific speed, settled 

 the two three-year-olds in great style. It was one of those 

 lightning-flashes that we occasionally see performed by a 

 good but wayward horse ; but had the winning-post been 

 a little further away the result would have been different, 

 as Surefoot was contracting his action and stopping fast in 

 the last fifty yards. Mr. Merry's horse carried extraordinary 

 substance and always ran best when big in condition, but 

 he was not a genuine stayer, and he certainly would never 

 have won the Eclipse Stakes at a mile and a half. At 

 the same time there is no particular reason why Surefoot, 

 a son of Wisdom out of a Galopin mare, should not sire 

 stayers, for it is quite possible that his want of stamina 

 on a racecourse was in a great degree caused by the fact 

 that he took a lot out of himself by fighting against his jockey 

 and by otherwise exciting himself whenever he ran. 



In 1892 was witnessed the most exciting Eclipse Stakes 

 which has yet taken place. Most of my readers will 

 remember that a colt and filly trained at Kingsclere 

 Orme and La Fleche were the best-class three-year-olds 

 of the year. Nor will it be forgotten that Orme was at- 

 tacked by mysterious illness during the spring, and was 

 unable to take part in the Derby, in which Sir Hugo un- 

 expectedly beat La Fleche. That Orme was poisoned must 



