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TOUTING THAT WAS THE REAL THING THINGI THINGThormanhy I Thormanhy of London Sportsman tells this tale taleI I was at Dortcaster he said before the St Leger in 1S3S and outside the livery stable in which 1 baited my horse I saw a man leaning against a doorway He had an unmistakably horsey look aliout him and was as I suspected a race course loiterer Just out of idle curiosity I spoke to him Well whos going to win the Leger I asked Without a moments hesitation he an ¬ swered us glibly as if he were announcing a fact that could not be disputed Don John and Ian will be second But how about Cobham the first favorlle I asked Cobham he answered In the same matter of fact manner as though there could be no possible doubt on the subject Cobham will break down at the end of the white rails opposite the Intake Farm What makes you state that so positively I inquired For these very good rea ¬ sons he replied Cobham is bad in his forelegs he has not had a real rattling gallop for many a day Besides ho is as fat as a bullock Now with his bad forelegs his weight of flesh and S St 7 Ib that was before the S St 10 Ib days on his back depend upon It hell never reach home And what makes you think that Don John is so certain 1o win Because I have watched him closely and I know theres never a horse in Doncastcr can go with him You may put that down as gospel truth truthI I was struck with the calm assurance with which the man spoke and I went and backed Don John for as much money as I could put on My prophet was right Don John did win and Cobham sure cnoiigti did break down though it was not at the end of the white rails But nearer home I won 700 nndljdetermined to give my prophet a hand ¬ some Jionor rlum for his excellent tip But I could find him nowhere He had mysteriously disap ¬ peared and I did not set eyes upon him again for many months When I did sec him it was in the last place in the world I should have expected to encounter him himI I was crossing the Waterloo bridge on the Fri ¬ day or Saturday I forget the exact date before the Derby of 1839 when I ran right up against him I recognized him at once and told him who I was adding that T had to thank him for pock ¬ eting 700 over the Leger As he had urgent business on hand and 1 was in the like position I asked him to come with me to a quiet tavern and have some dinner He consented When we arrived at the tavern and were seated I told him of my intention to remunerate him for his tip and begged him to accept a 20 note This he absolutely refused for some time to do and it was only by insisting on it that I forced him at last to take the money moneyHe He told me his story while we were discussing a bottle of wine after dinner and a very melan ¬ choly story it was I wont however trouble you with it now I Avlll only say that he was a man of good family and had been educated at Cam ¬ bridge but through his own irtlsconduct had come to grief We passed on tf the Derby prospects He had carefnlly watched ttie movements of every Jiorse and he assured me that Blcomsbury must win giving excellent reasons for his belief Well as you know Bloomsbnry did win and I pulled off a very good thing indeed Nor did I forget you may be sure my faithful and trusty tout toutOnce Once more and only once I was tempted to ask hisadvice and back1 hlsN selection That wng at the Doncaater meeting of the same Tear He gave me Charles XII with the same positive assurance as before AVhen the first two horses passed tlie dndgea bor the general impression was that Euclid toad woa and those who were la a position to see declared that it was so I made up my mind that I had tempted Fortune once too often and that at last she had jilted me But to my surprise and gratification I found that the judge had given Jt as a dead heat between Euclid and Charles XII I shall not easily forget the intense excitement with which I watched the running oil of that dead heat It was a near thing but Charles XII just did it and once more I landed a large stake so large that I could afford to give my tout a douceur of 100 100After After those three coups I decided that it would be rash to tempt Fortune any more With the money which I won on those three selections I went into business and how I prospered some of this company know well I never saw my tout after Charles XII s Leger though I was several times both at Doncaster and Epsom afterward and perhaps had I met him I should have been tempted to back his selection once more Nor did 1 ever hear of him again though he had my address and might have written to nie had he pleased But I have never forgotten and never shall forget that I owe my present comfortable position to a touts tip
