ENGAGED FOR ROUGHSIDE 



one. Mrs Langtry had won a rich stake and the Gold 

 Cup, and she congratulated me on winning. I got the 

 usual five-guinea fee and that's what the Ascot Gold 

 Cup was worth to me that year. And the Stewards 

 blame jockeys for betting ! Merman was an old horse 

 at the time ; it will be remembered he won the 

 Cesare witch in 1897 when a five-year-old. 



Another interesting experience was over Roughside 

 in the Chester Cup. I didn't know much about him 

 but I had read up his performances and I had a sort of 

 presentiment that I ought to ride him. I told George 

 Chaloner who said : 



" Wliy have you got such a fancy to ride that horse ? 

 Why, he has been hurdling and he won at the game 

 too." 



That made me keener than ever to get the mount if 

 possible, but I took no action at all to do so for I didn't 

 know the owner ; but one day somebody came to me 

 at Sandown Park where Roughside was in a jumping 

 race and said, " Will you ride Roughside for Mr 

 Atherton Brown ? He is ill now but I am told to 

 ask you." And without any hesitation he added, 

 " You're on a monkey if you win." 



Of course I accepted the mount and I looked for- 

 ward to the race for I had got a peculiar fancy that I 

 should win it, in fact without being familiar with the 

 horse's capacity I knew that from the work he had done 

 on the race-course hurdling he was as hard as nails, and 

 might easily be capable of going from end to end. 



It was just as I thought. Slipping away at the start 

 I made my own pace — waiting in front. When they 

 came near me I would increase the pace a bit and when 

 I slowed they did. I lost no more ground than a 

 champion cycle rider. I remembered what the owner's 

 friend had said about my five hundred pounds and 

 M 177 



