54 JOHN PORTER OF KINGSCLERE 



of him, for horses, like human beings, differ in 

 temperament and disposition. 



Pursuing this question of jockeyship into a 

 somewhat different vein, I may say that I have 

 seen three jockeys so gifted that they may be 

 described as geniuses. They represented three 

 distinct styles of riding. The first of them was 

 George Fordham. He rode with a medium 

 stirrup just short enough to clear the pommel 

 of the saddle with a little to spare. Taking tight 

 hold of his horse's head, he leaned slightly 

 forward, with his hands resting on the horse's 

 withers, thus throwing the weight on to the 

 shoulders. The position enabled him to drop 

 into the saddle and control a horse when in 

 difficulties, and drive him straight home at the 

 finish of the race. 



Then came Archer, with his long legs and 

 short body, riding with a long stirrup and a long 

 rein. He had many imitators, but " they were 

 not made that way." Archer was not a finished 

 horseman like Tom Cannon and others that I 

 could name. It was his indomitable energy, his 

 wonderful nerve, his power of embracing oppor- 

 tunities during a race, that made him so superior 

 to others. He was always ready to ride your 

 trials, he was generally the first to weigh out for 

 a race and the first at the starting-post; in fact, 

 his whole soul was in the business. 



The next to appear, and to set a very different 



