i6 THE BLUE RIBBON OF THE TURF. 



its neiohbourhood. Some writers tell us that the 

 glories of the Derby are beginning to wane, and that 

 in a few 3'ears it will be shorn of its interest. It may 

 be so, but in the meantime the evidence is very much 

 the other way. A few years ago the value of the 

 Derby stake exceeded S3vi3-a thousand pounds. Nor 

 has the attendance of tne public diminished on the 

 great holiday. In 1SS5 it was said to be the best on 

 record, and the takings at the Grand Stand entrance 

 were plethoric. Certainly the Derby may, in time, 

 lose some of the interest which attaches to it, seeing 

 that there are now so many good meetings held in the 

 immediate vicinity of the great city ; but there will 

 still remain an immense number of thousands who 

 will never see any other races than those which talc3 

 place on the Derby Day. 



