35 



Meeting-street road, were known by no other appellation than the Big 

 path, and the Little path. Mr. Niohtingale continued a lease of the 

 property, on which he laid out the New Market Course, until the year 

 1770, when he resigned it to Mr. Strickland ; the Course was very gene- 

 rally called Strickland^s, whilst under the direction of that gentleman 

 but it was the same as the old New Market Course. 



There were races in March. l77l, at Cluilifinny. 



Mr. Daniel Ravenel, referred to above, bred at his plantation, called, 

 *' Wantoot," in St. John's Parish, many fine horses. He commenced as 

 early as the year 1761. His prin(;ipal brood mares were Gray Pleasant, 

 Moll Slammakin, Lucretia and Paise. His most distinguished colts and 

 fillies were Foxhunter, dropt 1767, out of Gray Pleasant, by Mr. Edward 

 Harleston's bay horse Prince, who was got by Mr. Wm. Middleton's bay 

 horse Spotless — a bay filly called Carolina, dropt 1768, out of Moll 

 Slammakin, by old Brutus, and a bay filly called Lucy, dropt 1773, out 

 of Rose, by Frier (imported). Something more will be said of this 

 celebrated mare in another part of this book. 



Mr. Ravenel kept up his bi'eeding establishment on a very extensive 

 scale to the year 1785. He bred at different seasons from Prince by 

 Spotless, Starling, Brutus, Frier, Flimnap, all imported stallions. 



Mr. Fi'ank Huger, who lived at Midway, in the same parish with Mr. 

 Ravenel, also owned many fine horses. The late Nicholas Harleston, 

 Esq., of Bossis, in St. Jolin's Parish, (who was himself upon the Turf,) 

 used to sav that Mr. Huger was the most macpiificent horseman he ever 

 saw, and frequently related, in justification of his opinion, the following 

 incident, which he witnessed : — He said, soon after the celebrated im- 

 ported Arabian horse, Abdallah, sixteen hands high, and never ridden, 

 arrived in {lie country, he was visited at his stables l)y all the admirers 

 of horse fiesh in the vicinity. On one of these occasions, Abdallah 

 having been led out before the crowd, one of the bystanders jokingly 

 observed : " Huger, you are an intrepid horseman we all know, but you 

 dare not mount Abdallah !" Mr. Huger, without a, remark, immediately 

 put his hand upon the flowing mane of, the snorting animal, and with 

 one bound x'aulted upon his back. With all the confidence of consum- 

 inate skill, he sat like an equestrian statue, unmoved — like a Centaur, a 

 part of the horse himself, guiding with a steady hand the astonished 

 animal around the enclosure, with an ease and dexterity astonishing to 

 every beholder. 



After the year 1760, an increased spirit was manifested in the sports 

 of the Turf in South Carolina. Races were announced to take place 

 in various sections of the low country. In 1768, there were races on 



