TO TRY ROSE DE MAI 



Bordeaux. Two lost their lives in this race, including 

 that charming man Loraine Barrow who was well 

 known both to the editor of this book and to me ; he 

 had his home at Biarritz where he was generally liked. 

 I had breakfast with him the day before he was killed 

 by the accident to his car. Charron took a party with 

 him including tw^o ladies in an ordinary touring car 

 and finished well up in the race. But then he was a 

 superb driver and had nerves of steel. He offered to 

 take me but I preferred to see them all go by at 

 different places. 



It was my friendship for Charron which led to my 

 trouble with the Societe d'Encouragement. Charron 

 had no trainer but prepared various horses for himself 

 and others at Chantilly. The day before the Prix du 

 Diane he came to me in great trouble saying that Rose 

 de Mai had been suffering from a cold and begged me 

 to come down to have a look at her. Later in the day, 

 the ow^ner, w4io was a member of the Jockey Club, told 

 me in his curious English how good it was of me. 



" Mr Charron has told me," he continued, " and I 

 cannot thank you in sufficient way. Ah, but it is 

 terrible, and you are a good man to be so kind." 



I shall never forget the journey down to Chantilly 

 in the car for I had to give up the front seat to a lady 

 and I was frozen sitting at the back. Indeed I began 

 to think what an idiot I had been in coming for there 

 wasn't a shilling in it for me. The visit did lead to all 

 sorts of trouble as the sequel will show. We stayed 

 at the Conde for the night, and were up early. I had a 

 good look at the mare, a very handsome animal. She 

 coughed once or twice and slobbed at the nose. How- 

 ever, I got up on her and Charron rode Limonade, who 

 was her constant companion at exercise. There was 

 no intention to gallop them of course and we trotted to 



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