BLAIR ATHOL'S DERBY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 5, Issue 1276, 12 January 1883, Page 2

BLAIR ATHOL'S DERBY.

.The following strange' story In conneq- ( lion withjone' mosV famous races 'ever run over the hiitorio downs at Epsom is told by! Mr, ; Corbett,of ,the ; ;f.' Sporting Times"' j V;• ''7 }ij ;■{ f:.0: "When General Peel won the Two Thousan 1. Jackson and Steel, v the; (flvia-, 1 than bootmakers, who irivAtiably 'followed the fortunes of Lord Glasgow and Tom Dawson, won a great, staWiindjthay a)soj stood very heawy l on'the'hoMe /olr tfie''Derby, for which they had taken all the long prices, the agreement .between the confederals was that Whom! in reality Jackson owned, for th# Derby, so tfo->h< cleared for Q'enVralTeel."^ ! ""^Jacfison, hTjr-. ever, had;, neither the cool., miud,; calm judgment) nor firm purpose of Steel, and was incapable, of -great enterprises." His confederate fearing that' if Jackaoh went to the Newmarket betting rooms, elated as he was on thVnjght of the Two Thousv and,,he 'itei, jot | 'ffigj&d of him , ndt!'tq i j leive .'hid which werp street. Ja'fiksori' 1 ted J 1 provided' Steol and his partner would come-and sit with him,] as, he could not'bear to be alone. They, remained ; with: ; hini^ s till; nearly and' when/all, ,as they thought, safe they left. Crossing the road they taetr someone they knew, and, prasently-Peeohj loptjrig rounfi saw Jackson iSkiillfing u'nder'a window so as to escape observation on his way to the White Hart. Steel uttered an expression -op jdisjgiisfc and determined to wash his hands 'ofsuch aj weak, confederate.-; Jaokson. •went to the 'Whlce'Hart', got druiik/'atid 1 being bantered aboui Blair Athol backed him to .win somo thousands, and as there was! no getting* oiit' the' horse was obliged to run; He" was saddled at .Tottenham Corner and galloped down' the course led by Caller Ou. -In the race. General Peel overpowered-his jockey,"and taking the lead at the mile post made play at a terrific pace.. Blair Athol, not being used to a racecourse, did not under-' stand the business, and for a long way lie' ran very; green. Warming to his workf however, he overhauled General "Peel at the Grand Stand, and clearing liim: in a few strides, 'gained a most'jbrilliaiit victory, wliiloj Jackson and Steel'netted only about: a fifth of what they wquld have won if he, had not" started; The Boheme, as told us by one of the principle actors, was Ithis had won a hatful ojn General Peel for the Two Thousand; and we stood a raker for the Derby. This, of course, we should have won had Blair Athol not run. General Peel having' won the Two Thousand and. Derby in & cantor, people.,would Imve said he was;one/of;the biggest] wonders ever known,' and'he' would have, bjeeii an evermoney chance for.:the'St.-'Leger. 1 We should have' 1 laid' -him all the Bummer, and ;we i should have had Blair Athol i tV ourselves, as, after not running in the Elerby, the piitlio-Wjodld'.not have etobd' liim, more:, ilarticularly in .the face ,of ; General Peel. We should have begun' 6ur commission at about 50 ; to. 1, and ■clpjre'd the. i ring out 1 of every sliilling' they had, arid won more at one coup; ddbe pxeviooßlx*.'. Ali this, was upseti through,, Jaokjon getting drank at.the ,White Hart. , i