Steeplechase Riding 199 



accompany him round the boxes wherein the 

 yearlings reposed, a large proportion of them 

 being the grey-ticked young Buchanan's. 

 Whilst on the tour of inspection, one of the 

 lads in attendance came into the stable, ex- 

 hibiting a very fine specimen of what is 

 vulgarly called " a black eye." Taylor's keen 

 optic fixed him at once, and the proprietor 

 of the black eye obviously jibbed under the 

 inspection. He began in a somewhat lame 

 and halting manner to explain — 



" I — I had a bit of an accident, sir, last 

 night, sir. I was just a-runnin' into the 

 cottage, sir, and I runned against the door- 

 post, sir, and — and — and that's how I got 

 this black eye, sir." 



Taylor waited patiently for the whole of 

 the explanation ; then with an absolutely 

 immovable face, he replied — 



" Quite right. Tommy. Always tell the 

 truth, my boy, whatever it costs you," and 

 turning on his heel, he led the way out of the 

 stable, leaving the hero of the overnight "scrap- 

 ping match " a crushed and withered thing. 



