Turf History. 1 7 



Assault (the latter of whom was tried to be the best) 

 — throughout their two-year-old season in 1847. One 

 of the strangest gleams of luck visited Lord Glasgow, 

 when he swept away five matches and a forfeit on the 

 '52 Houghton Saturday. Lord Exeter also sent an 

 express to Burleigh in 1843, and brought Reversion 

 from his Burleigh paddock, who, fat and unprepared 

 as he was, contrived to break down Tedworth for an 

 810/. stake, before they had reached Choak-Jade ; and 

 not a man was at Doncaster in 1849, who does not 

 remember how Semi-franc was equally hastily sum- 

 moned from the Easby straw-yard, the moment it was 

 ascertained that Belus could hardly move a leg, and 

 how, after bolting all over the course, he ** lost the 

 cripple," who hobbled home in the course of the after- 

 noon, long before they got to the Neatherd's house. 

 When Chatham and Attila bade each other defiance, 

 at four years old and the A.F. post, the betting was 

 merely on the point which would break down first ; 

 and the crowd and the pair were luckily put out 

 of pain, by a compromise in the presence of the 

 starter. 



For actual excitement during a race, we never saw 

 anything equal the deciding heat for the Voltigeur 

 St. Leger, as the crowd pressed on to the course from 

 the bend, and left to all appearance scarcely a four- 

 yard space for the horses. Poor Bobby Hill's state of 

 mind was wondrous to mark. He had been dread- 

 fully put out, because some of the crowd had ironically 

 advised him to put some brandy into the water which 

 he had brought for his horse from Middleham ; and 

 even gone so far as to allude to the honoured cow 

 which had been specially put into the Turf Tavern 

 box, to air it over-night. Burning for revenge, he had 

 stationed himself close by the judge's chair, to hear 

 his doom, and even then his admiring friends would 

 not let him alone. '* Hes beat, Mr. Hill,'' said one of 

 them, as the vast crowd closed in behind the twain 



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