118 TALES AND TRAITS OF SPORTING LIFE. 



of one of England's best of nobles, and so are bound to 

 behave like gentlemen, or, at any rate, to try and pass, for 

 the nonce, as honest men. 



But that bidding- we shall hear no more ! That cour- 

 teous unaffected welcome has at length died out from 

 amongst us. The presiding spirit of the place, whose 

 genial nature and kindly bearing went so far to com- 

 plete the charm of the scene his hospitahty had created, 

 has been called away. It must be our duty to guard 

 such a monument to his memory, and to show how a 

 nobleman may attach himself to the precarious pursuits 

 of the Turf, not only without shame or tarnish, but with 

 ever-increasing honour to himself and to his House. If any 

 instance were wanting to illustrate the condition of an 

 English gentleman, we could scarcely bring a better than 

 that of his Grace the Duke of Richmond, as he lived at 

 Goodwood in the race week, sharing with others the sport 

 he loved so well, and *^ diffusing its pleasures far and wide 

 to thousands upon thousands of the less fortunate of his 

 countrymen." The rise, in fact, of Goodwood as one of 

 the great race meetings of the year* is almost altogether 

 identified with the career of the Duke. His Grace was 

 bom in 1791, and the first day's sport in the park took 

 place in 1802. This was a Hunters' Stake, Farmers' 

 Plate, gentleman-jockey kind of business, associated, no 

 doubt, a good deal with the foxhounds then to be foimd 

 in the famous home kennels. For seven or eight years 

 more the meeting made but little advance, and in 1811 

 there were six races, with a match or two, and about a 

 dozen of horses in all to make out two days of it. In the 

 year following, however, the Duke, then Earl of March, 

 attained his majority, and the Goodwood Cup was first 

 instituted. Not that the heir could have had much to do 



