2 THE BLUE RIBBON OF THE TURF. 



condescended to chronicle events of the turf: nor for 

 many years was it otherwise, the Derby not ohtainino-, 

 in common with other races, more than a bald 

 record. 



Seeing that more than a century has passed away 

 since the race was instituted, it would be most in- 

 teresting to know the year in which any person now 

 living first saw the Derby run for. Is it possible, for in- 

 stance, that anj'one is still living who saw the Duke of 

 Grafton's Whalebone win the ' Blue Ribbon ' in 1810 ? 

 If so, that person, who will now have passed the age of 

 sevent3?-nine years, must have been a mere child, but 

 it is not of course impossible that some octogenarian 

 may to-day be alive who witnessed the race for the 

 Derb}^ of the year named. Selecting the races of 

 later years, the chances of some of those having been 

 witnessed by persons now living are much increased. 

 In the year in which the battle of Waterloo was 

 fought (1815), Whisker won the Deiby. Seventy-five 

 3'ears have elapsed since that memorable battle took 

 place, but not long ago paragraphs were going the 

 round of the press about 'Waterloo veterans ' being 

 still in life, and so it may well be that persons are 

 yet among us who witnessed some Derby victories 

 of the 3^ears beginning, say, with 1825. It would be 

 of exceeding interest to find out and know something 

 about the person or persons now living who were pre- 

 sent to see the Derby run, say, even sixty years since. 



When the great race was instituted newspapers were 

 not numerous, and 'news' was much scarcer than to- 

 day, not much, apparently, being 'made' of such passing 

 events as were thought worthy of the brief chronicles 



