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STORIES OF ENGLISH TURF NOTABILITIES. This anecdote brings to my memory a somewhat similar one of which Mat Dawson was the hero, which I give in the words of the friend who has kindly supplied me with it. When Mat trained for Lord John Scott, his brother the duke paid him a. visit, and as a matter of course he took him tlte duke down to see his stud. Mat being in attendance, Lord John leading the way from box to box, describing each one as he went along, always crying "Wattle" this was the duke, "come and see this one. Wattie; I think this one will win the Derby," and so on, until presently Wattie and Mat fell a. little behind. Then Mat taps him on the shoulder. "Now, Wattie, when his lordship goes to bed tonight, slip down and I will give you a glass of toddy." Wattie accepted. What transpired deponent sayetli not; but next morning Wattie let the cat out of the bag with a hearty laugh, and their Matthew Dawson discovered to his horror and morv tification that he had been hobnobbiing with the duke of Buccleuch; but Wattie gave him a firm shake of the hand, saying he was the right man in the right place and a jolly good fellow. And the mention of Mat Dawson reminds me o a curious story of which his brother Tom, of Tup-gill, was the hero. When Ellington won the Derby in 1S55, Tom Dawson, of Tupgill, who trained the colt, won about 2G.C00 pounds. On the Monday after the race lie went to Tattersalls to receive his money. The whole of it was paid to him in bank notes. After the settling he dined and took the train for home, first having packed his bank notes in an old leathern hat case, without any lock, hut simply tied with a piece of string. Mr. Dawson fell asleep in the train, and when the guard, who knew him well, awoke him at Northallerton and told him he must change carriages, Mr. Dawson got out of the train leaving the old hat case behind. In those, days telegraphy was not quite so simple a matter as now and Mr. Dawson did not recover his hat case for a whole week, during which time it had traveled to Edinburgh, Aberdeen and various other places. Ultimately it came back to the rightful owner, with tlte string neither cut nor untied, and with all the bank notes safe inside. I need hardly sthy tliat Mr. Dawson, with that astuteness that rarely forsakes the professional turfite, took particular care not to display the slightest anxiety about his hat case, but merely Informed the station master that he had preserved the article for a good many years, and as there were some papers in it which could not possibly be of any use to anyone but himself lie should like to recover it. I will bring these random recollections to an end with an amusing adventure of Mornington Cannon and Cordelier, on the Cesarewitch day of 1891. As the horses that afternoon were leaving the Birdcage to contest the Autumn Handicap, one of the fiercest storms known at Xewmarket for a long time swept over the heath. The hail stones came down like pistol bullets and Cordelier, maddened at the tempest, swerved, made for the rails and ran through them, getting his head under the second line of posts and sending Mornington over the rails and right into a carriage, the door of which was at the moment open. Two ladies were inside and on the front seat lunch was still uncleared. The popular young Continued oa second page. STORIES OF ENGLISH TURF NOTABILITIES. Continued from first page. Jockey pulled himself together a bit and assured his astonished hostesses that ho was not hurt, and at once accepted their kindly suggestion of a glass of wine. Mornington had been wasting hard to ride Victorlcus at 7st. 121b., so hard, indeed, that it is believed that lie could have actually ridden 7sl. 101b. that day, and lie had not had time since the Cesarewitch to lunch. He therefore took the opportunity of observing that he was very hungry. The ladies, though they had not precisely invited him to come in. were delighted to entertain him; and so, while the other jockeys who had weighed out for the race were being drenched, wind-smitten and battered by hail stones at the post. Morny Caunoii sat dry and comfortable in the carriage re-galing himself with chicken and champagne in boots and breeches. As Morny afteward remarked, it- was rather an odd way to call on ladies in a carriage at lunch time, over rails and head first; but alls well that ends well. Thormanby in London Sportsman.
