TOD SLOAN 



and we secured her for three thousand francs. 

 That was the start of the stable. The filly was 

 Campenoise, who afterwards won many races. We 

 put her in charge of Adament Douliere, who trained at 

 Mons for the President of the Jockey Club, M. Coppee. 

 He was one of the nicest men I ever met in Belgium 

 and would take any amount of trouble with horses. 

 Campenoise never ran in a Selling Plate after that. 

 The first time we ran her, in Lord Torrington's colours 

 of course, she won, and we had already made a nice 

 profit on our investment. All we touched seemed to 

 turn into money for a time, until the end of the season 

 came. Lord Torrington went off for a trip to the 

 West Indies and I decided to spend a week in Paris. 

 It was at the time of the floods. Paris was lighter and 

 ga^'-er than at any time during the first war winter of 

 1914-1915. There was plenty of excitement too when 

 the water was reported to be rising so many inches a 

 day. But at the hotels and restaurants no one was upset. 

 It was just something to look at and wonder about. 



In the spring of the year Mr George Edwardes sent 

 over for me to ride a trial for him at Ogbourne and I 

 went. It was my first meeting with his trainer, Pat 

 Hartigan. 



After several rides Mr Edwardes asked : " Well, 

 how's the stable getting on in Belgium ; do you want 

 one or two ? " 



There was an old horse I had seen who had first been 

 leading the two-year-olds, been switched on afterwards 

 to some older horses and even then had not finished. 

 Then my eye caught a black but I was told I couldn't 

 have him. Then I suggested I would like the old 

 horse, who proved to be Abelard II. 



" Oh, choose anything else but him," said Pat 

 Hartigan. " Don't take him ; he's too useful." 



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