The "Old Mortality" of the Turf. 309 



readily understand) in winning the prize. I 

 have omitted, however, to state that Henry 

 Dixon's contributions to the Mark Lane 

 Express soon had the natural effect of 

 elevating that journal above all its agricul- 

 tural contemporaries. The modest preface 

 to ''The Druid's" last book, "Saddle and 

 Sirloin," refers to this period of his life : — 



" The title of this work pretty well ex- 

 plains its nature. ' Sirloin ' speaks with 

 ponderous emphasis for itself, and ' Saddle ' 

 has a triple bearing on horses, sheep, and 

 pigs. The work is, in fact, a record of what 

 I have seen and heard during the last eleven 

 years in the course of my summer rambles 

 from Cumberland to Cornwall. My business 

 among the leading breeders was in connec- 

 tion with ' The Herds and Flocks of Great 

 Britain ' for the Mark Lane Express, and 

 with sundry prize essays in the Royal Agri- 

 cultural Society s Journal, the main points of 

 which are here briefly reproduced. A large 

 share of attention has been given to cours- 

 ing ; but racing and fox-hunting have been 

 passed over somewhat lightly, as I have 

 alreadv devoted three books to them." 



