178 A Sportsman at Large 



frankly telling him that Dark Crystal was not fit to run ; 

 but that-, being anxious that my son should have the honour 

 and glory of owning a divider of such an important event as 

 the Champion Puppy Stakes, I should welcome an " arrange- 

 ment." But the cannie Scot was dead against sacrificing 

 such an obvious advantage as he held. I then offered him, 

 as accredited agent oj his master (and not as a personal bribe, 

 as he subsequently declared), twenty-five pounds to agree to 

 a division among three, if Humphrey's dog won his course. 

 He said he could not agree without communicating with Sir 

 Robert, which of course was an impossibility. Well, there 

 was nothing to be done but to withdraw our bitch from the 

 Stake, and this was reluctantly effected. 



Shortly afterwards I received a notice from the National 

 Coursing Committee to attend a meeting at Liverpool, on the 

 day of the draw for the Waterloo Cup, to explain my 

 manoeuvres. At first this did not disturb my equanimity 

 in the least. I was perfectly clear in my own conscience, and 

 felt adequately protected by the N.C.C. rules ; but I was 

 warned that certain members of the committee were dead 

 keen on " putting it across," and " outing " me ; that the 

 complainant was none other than the Earl of Sefton, and that 

 there were others (on whose questionable operations I had 

 commented on a certain occasion during a competition 

 for the Blue Ribbon) who were on the war path. My friends 

 and I am glad to say I had many among the noble army 

 of coursers set about a counter-attack (of which I knew 

 nothing) with such good results that in addition to its British 

 contingent, a powerful bunch of sportsmen representing 

 Irish Clubs crossed the Channel for the purpose of seeing 

 justice and right triumph. 



Now, as the issue was one of vital importance to me, and 

 as I had been warned, as stated, of the cabal that was being 

 engineered for my undoing, I determined to take no risks ; 

 so I induced my good friend " Willie " (afterwards Sir Charles) 

 Mathews who later became Director of Public Prosecutions 

 to accompany me to Liverpool, with a view to the protection 

 of my name and interests as a sportsman and a gentleman. 

 The meeting of the N.C.C. Committee was held at the Ex- 



