their horses, accompanied by that unexplainable hissing noise. The kicking-boards are of hard elm. It is noticeable, too, that the pails of the establishment are painted with the colours of the trainer. The jockeys who ride for this stable invariably wear a blue jacket and black cap, hence the pails are painted blue, with black hoops. This rule seems to be general.
A corner of A. Hayhoe's stables.
There are some half-dozen cats about the place, and whilst the various horses are being pointed out a sight is presented, of frequent occurrence here, but highly interesting to the stranger. Wiseman is a beautiful chestnut of six years. The horse has a splendid record, and from a "two-year old" upwards has brought many valuable prizes to its owner. But Wiseman is never so happy as when a pet cat is lying down on the straw of its stall and purring at its feet. The cat, however, has strayed from its customary place, and has managed to get on to the back of Nickel, another horse some distance from Wiseman's place of abode. The cat, moreover, has also taken up a kitten with it, and Nickel's back presents a most pleasing picture with a pair of feline jockeys on it. We stay for a moment to admire Rentpayer, which cost 2,350 guineas, and we are by no means unmindful of the beauty of Lady Primrose, a sister of Lady Rosebery.
Then the head stable lad imparts a highly sensational bit of information. It was away back to 1875 when Prince Batthyany's Galopin won the Derby. Our friend here had charge of the horse. "Why, do you know, sir," he said, "I slept in the same stall as that horse did for three weeks, so as to make sure that not a living soul got near him; and then when the beauty was sent to Epsom to run in the great race, and win, sir, as I knew he would, although there were a couple of detectives watching, yet I stood outside the stable door all night. I was rewarded though, sir, wasn't I? Didn't the beauty ride home grand?"
Courtyard, John Dawson's stables.
A sort of trap door above is pointed out to us. This is the shoot down which the corn comes, and the hay and straw is brought down in a similar fashion. Some fifteen hundredweight of straw is used every week. The granary is over the stables, as are also the rooms allotted to the boys who live on the premises. One hundred and forty sacks of oats can be easily stored away in the granary, and it is
