170 



Within my own time our sport has lost many of its chief patrons, 

 but to my mind Ireland never lost the like of Lord Drogheda since 

 Henry Lord Waterford was killed in 1859. 



By a curious and melancholy fatality these three great sportsmen — 

 Lord George Bentinck in 1848, Lord Waterford in 1859, and Lord 

 Drogheda in 1892 — met with untimely and sudden deaths. 



I attended the funeral of Henry, third ]\Iarquis of Waterford, on 

 6th April, 1859, and I was also present at the funeral of Henry, third 

 Marquis of Drogheda, on 6th July, 1892, upon which occasions I saw 

 interred the remains of two of the greatest sportsmen and most useful 

 Irish noblemen that were ever buried in Ireland. 



Lord Drogheda was born on August 14, 1826 ; he was therefore within 

 six weeks of being sixty-seven years old. 



Although a visitor to our Irish race-courses only as an humble 

 sightseer, I was honoured by the late nobleman for many years with 

 correspondence and conversation upon racing matters, and he has 

 done me the favour of giving effect to suggestions of mine upon more 

 than one occasion. I have also had interviews with him upon other 

 matters, and I can say that I never found a man possessed of more 

 practical ideas, or one more agreeable to transact business with. I never 

 knew him to be a week without replying to a letter, no matter how 

 trivial might be the subject of it. 



Xow that Lord Drogheda is gone, another mentor must be sought 

 for to preside over Irish racing, but where will such as he be found ? 



