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see there are no fences and nothing dividing it from the grass but 

 drains over a foot deep and two feet wide, with banks of mud thrown 

 off the road on the inside. Sweeping round this turn at the Soldiers' 

 Home, going ten miles an hour, the near wheel, over which I was 

 sitting, ran up on the bank. In the twinkling of an eye the car was 

 sent flying upside down, and the driver in a tangent from his seat ; 

 the other two fellows went sprawling all fours, while I described, 

 from the near to the off side, a back somersault so complete that I 

 landed on the road in the sitting position which a second before I was 

 in on the car. The sensible old horse luckily stood stock still, 

 and when we picked ourselves up we found no one had sustained 

 the least injury. Not so our habiliments. In a pretty pickle our 

 evening clothes were with mud, for in the darkness down v/as coming 

 the rain in torrents. Neither was injury done the car beyond having 

 the iron rail of the driving-seat bulged in. This, they said, was 

 caused by the weightiest part of my body coming in collision with it 

 in my aerial transit ! 



We now arrive at the Stand House. See now before you, my friends, 

 our historic Curragh racecourse. Yonder to the left is the four-mile 

 post, used only for the Queen's Plates. Starting there is seen, in 

 their stride, the horses coming along that wide stretch at foot of yon 

 slope. Sweeping round the post, near the chains they pass the stand 

 outside the rails, going far away to the left by the starting post, and 

 finishing up the straight from the chains ; thus doing their four miles 

 without travelling twice over the same ground, except for about two 

 furlongs. Can you beat that at Newmarket, or have you in all your 

 courses a better run-home? 



Here, at back of the stand, is Waterford Lodge, called, as you know, 

 after "The Marquis." Close by lived for years old Davy Canavan, 

 who sixty years ago trained at Gurteen for Mr. John Power. It was 

 he who trained Valentine, Tidy, and other celebrated horses, the 

 property of the popular, but unfortunate. Squire of Gurteen. Canavan 

 was a good horseman of the old school, and his sons William and 

 David were equally so of a more modern era. 



Old Davy was sent to Leicestershire in charge of a horse to a 

 gentleman who had bought him from Mr. Power. The horse was bred 

 near Tramore and was a famous hunter, but necessarily unaccustomed 

 to water, of which we have very little in Ireland. The new owner 

 was well pleased with the appearance of the horse, and amongst other 

 questions asked if he was good at water, to which Davy replied, 

 " Arragh ! why wouldn't he ? Wasn't he bred in sight o' the say ! " 



Hamilton Lodge, close by the Stand House, is where James Dunne 

 trains a few horses. He, too, is of the good old school, and was an 

 accomplished horseman in his day. At this lodge, nigh a hundred 

 years ago, dwelt ^Ir. Robert Hamilton, a benefactor to Irish racing, 

 of whom more anon. 



Passing under the Piailway bridge we see half a mile off the Curragh 



