TOD SLOAN 



and beginning of 1899 that I would sooner have been in 

 London fighting over certain races which I had won 

 and lost, than be in New York. I had to answer so 

 many questions ! Some of them sounding so curious. 

 People who did not know England a bit, nor the 

 conditions of English racing, were very odd. The 

 majority of the queries put to me were as to how this, 

 that and the other backer had got on, what they had 

 won and how far they had taken the knock " playing 

 the races." The more delicate and interesting phases 

 of the racing game were not inquired into. Certainly 

 old friends among trainers used to ask me what they 

 did in England under certain conditions but, I am 

 afraid that generally I did not tell them exactly what 

 they wanted to know, for I was determined not to 

 criticise English methods — then. 



Certainly it seemed strange to be back in New York. 

 I suppose I was getting a bit Europeanised or some- 

 thing. I know I could not quite take the interest in 

 some of the matters which I used to think were the 

 beginning and end of everything. 



It was curious to compare New York with London. 

 I had heard that many Americans, and Australians 

 too, had come to England and had drawn contrasts 

 between everything which they had seen in London 

 and which at first they didn't like and what they were 

 used to at home. I confess that had been a little of 

 my own idea when I went back after the 1897 season. 

 An American may long to return if he has accom- 

 plished something ; if he has not he is likely to have 

 only one idea : to go home and bury himself. But 

 when I returned at the end of 1898 things began to 

 seem a bit different ; it was the life around town which 

 bothered me. In some ways it seemed so much 

 brighter in New York but at times I seemed drawn 



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