48 



him two or three seasons, and last year they sent 

 me six mares at £2 \os. a-piece. That is my 

 reason. I cannot afford to keep him for nothing." 

 Lord Coventry told me the same years ago, with 

 respect to a very good horse he had. The difificulty 

 is to get sound mares to sound horses. I believe 

 there are many of them about the country, but unless 

 it is made a business in the trade you cannot get them 

 to send them to the proper mares. Of course, they 

 do not like the trouble and bother of sending them 

 far away, but if it was made a business to send 

 through the country, that is how it might be managed. 

 I took the liberty of asking a gentleman from 

 Prussia what he thought was the annual cost of all 

 their Government horses. After a little thought he 

 told me he did not think it exceeded ^100,000 a 

 year — a mere fleabite. I know a great many good 

 mares have gone, and I think it is very kind of Mr. 

 Walter Gilbey to tell us how possibly we may get 

 them back again, for I am perfectly certain that every 

 other horse you see in London is a foreign horse. 

 The name of " Cavaliero " brings back the remem- 

 brance of my old friend, who is dead — unfortunately. 

 He said, "You are very foolish in your country to 

 allow one of the finest strains to go out of it, and in 

 not having proper stallions under Government 

 control." I only hope that Mr. Walter Gilbey's 

 Paper will have the effect of teaching us to breed 

 good horses, for I think we are getting sadly deficient 

 in horses for riding and driving purposes. 



