14 THE INFLUENCE OF 



yet, even they, have probably done so at the sacri- 

 fice of openness of confidence and perhaps of friend- 

 ship. Trust no one is the motto of turfites. Keep 

 the key of your saddle-room yourself; let no one, 

 not even your trainer, see your weights. Pay your 

 jockey the salary of a judge, and then have no 

 security that he will not deceive you. The state 

 of the turf is like the state of Corcyraea of old. 

 Every man thinks, that unless he is actually plot- 

 ting against somebody, he is in danger of being 

 plotted against himself, and that the only safety 

 he has lies in taking the initiative in deceit. The 



sole object is to win — 



"Eem 

 Si jDOSsis recte, si noii quocuiique modo rem." 



Take care you are not cheated yourself, and make 

 the most of any knowledge of which you believe 

 yourself to be the sole possessor. 



What is the result of such a pursuit ? what its 

 moral ? The destruction of all generosity, all trust 

 in others, all large-mindedness : and the encourage- 

 ment instead, of selfishness, of extravagance, and of 

 suspicion. 



The man whose friendship was warm and gener- 

 ous, who would help his friend to the limit of his 

 powers, goes on the turf and becomes warped and 

 narrow, labouring, apparently, always under the 

 suspicion, that those whom he meets are trying, 



