86 JOHN PORTER OF KINGSCLERE 



I told Sir Joseph that if we treated Satyr with 

 care, and had him lightly fired, we might be able 

 to win the Royal Hunt Cup with him the following 

 year, for, as I pointed out, he would, at Ascot, be 

 running uphill, and on a course over which he had 

 already won. I was told to do what I thought 

 best, and, much to our satisfaction, the horse got 

 over his troubles nicely. As soon as there was 

 betting on the Royal Hunt Cup, Sir Joseph backed 

 Satyr to win him ;^i 8,000, but as he wanted to 

 know the full strength of the position, we arranged 

 for a trial about a week before Ascot. In that 

 gallop the ligaments " went " again. The situa- 

 tion looked hopeless, and we regarded it in that 

 light. 



I had several horses running at Ascot that year, 

 including some two-year-olds, and wanted an 

 older horse to walk on to the course with them 

 when they went to do their morning's work. 

 Sir Joseph told me to use Satyr for that purpose. 

 "If," he said, ** they see him on the course, I 

 may be able to hedge some of my bets." So to 

 Ascot Satyr went, and the first morning Jem 

 Adams rode him a gentle canter. For a week 

 he had never been out of a walk — he was sound 

 enough for that exercise — and while in his box 

 had spent most of his time soaking his legs in a 

 pail, a la Bedminster. After the canter Adams 

 rode the horse up to where I was standing, and, 

 with an aggrieved tone in his voice, said : " This 



