A MISSED BARGAIN 



most uncomfortable all round, and the Jockey Club may 

 have become uneasy through the many innuendoes put 

 about. Some of the backers failing to settle too made 

 things worse than ever, and there were wholesale 

 charges of doping. 



Wlien in America on the visit just mentioned I again 

 asked " Pittsburg Phil " whether he intended to take 

 a holiday in Europe for a time, and sometimes he 

 thought he would, and then he changed his mind ; but 

 the more he thought of it he said the more he preferred 

 to stay where he was. By the way, I have just read 

 some statements attributed to " Phil " about part of 

 his career which I should like to give a different version 

 of, especially for those sporting men in America who 

 read this. 



One of these refer to a horse named Previous who 

 belonged to Mike Dwyer. It is stated that he was a 

 very sulky horse who would not get away at the post 

 for many jockeys, in fact not extend himself at all. 

 He was never a sulker but he liked certain conditions 

 of going better than others. Wlien I beat Hamburg 

 on him it was another case of Caiman and Flying Fox. 

 I kidded Taral who rode Hamburg and just headed 

 him. 



It was curious that when Previous was a two-year- 

 old Mike Dwyer said to me that he was going to sell 

 him and had received an offer of 900 dollars and he 

 should let him go. " Don't do that," I said. " If 

 you want to part with him I'll give you 900 dollars, but 

 keep him and you'll win races." But it took a lot of 

 persuasion to bring it about. I spoke to Charlie 

 Dwyer and begged him to induce his father not to part 

 with the animal. It was then arranged that I was to 

 ride him in a Plate, which I won ; shortly afterwards 

 he took another event as well. Later on he was put 



163 



