136 ONLY THE MARE 



US. They laid me 3 to 1 against the mare, but I 

 stand to lose nearly £500. 



" You see now what I w^ant. I ride quite 1 2 

 stone, as you know ; the mare is to carry 1 1 stone, 

 and you can just manage that nicely. I know you'll 

 come if you can, and if you telegraph I'll meet you. 



" Your's ever, 



Bertie Peyton. 



"P.S. — Nellie sends love, and hopes to see you soon. 

 No one is here, but the aunt is coming shortly." 



I was naturally anxious to oblige him, and luckily 

 had nothing to keep me in town ; so that afternoon 

 saw me rapidly speeding southwards, and the evening, 

 comfortably domiciled at The Lodge. 



Bertie, who resided there with his sister, was not 

 a rich man. £500 was a good deal more than he 

 could afford to lose, and poor little Nellie was in a 

 great flutter of anxiety and excitement in conse- 

 quence of her brother's rashness. As for the mare, 

 she could gallop and jump ; and though we had no 

 means of ascertaining the abilities of Blankney's 

 chestnut, we had sufficient faith in our Little Lady 

 to enable us to ''come up to the scratch smiling;" 

 and great hopes that we should be enabled to laugh 

 at the result in strict accordance with the permission 

 given in the old adage, *' Let those laugh who win." 



