movements, denominated TIME an un-
doubted safe one, in a variety of instances,
took the latter as the best sort of chance
towards winning.* Pourquoi ! Because the
weather might prove stormy, and the rider
* When Jack Carter fought with Robinson, the black,
at Monlsey Hurst, April 24, 1816, for a purse of 75
guineas, he polished off th<; man of colour in the short
tuace of seventeen minutes, and who had not half a
chance; but in a TIME fight, at Combe Warren, on
and his horses become deluged with rain i
Also, General Frost might appear on the
Course, powerfullyassisted bysome of his staff,
Messrs. Snow and Sleet, calculated to damp the
ardour of the hero of the tale, if not rather to
annoy and depress his feelings! He might
be out of condition altogether ! The tooth-
ache might suddenly attack him on starting !
A violent pain in the stomach might occur
during the match ! His bowels become out
of sorts ! His head, the great pendulum of
the whole, towards winning the match, might
be out of order ; and a variety of other little
cajnplaints that * the flesh is heir to ?" To
which might be added, his high-bred cattle,
on which he placed so much reliance, might
not exactly be "all right!" Likewise the
^ance that Mr. Osbaldeston might undergo a
~ -V ordr y sort f blindness during the race;
*. wt an uncommon circumstance where so much
ovfcrtion is requisite. t The above complaints
\v>;re all within the reach of probability ; and
one of them might have occurred to have in-
creased the ' Chapter of Accidents !' Therefore
TIME ought always to be backed as a winner
by those persons who entertain a doubtful
opinion that the event cannot be accom-
plished !
The day at length arrived for the match to
take place, and at the time appointed, seven
o'clock in the morning, Mr. Osbaldeston,
bang up to the mark in spirits, and ' fresh as
a four year old,' towards winning, accompa-
nied by his Umpire, Mr. T. Thelluson ; and
Col. Charitte with Mr. Bowater, on behalf of
the Colonel, appeared at the Dutch Stand.
The company was not so numerous as might
have been expected upon such an extraordi-
nary occasion ; but when it is considered that
the inhabitants of Newmarket have so much
Racing continually before their eyes the no-
velty ceases}: and accounts for the shyness
June '26, 1816, for 20 guineas a-side D. Carter did not
conquer Robinson in thirty minutes. The black fought
very shy, and Carter was very near losing the match
IE facr, after all, there was a demur about it Twenty-
eight minutes and a half had expired; and the fight not
half taken out of Robinson but it was alleged against
him that he went down without a blow and the Um-
pires decided in favor of Carter. See Boxiana, Vol. ii.
page 311,315.
t When Mr. Mytton, also of neck or nothing quality,'
rode from London to Stamford in less than five hours,
a distance of ninety-five miles, he was nearly stone-blind
on his entering the town. Therefore the chance was
much greater against Mr. Osbaldeston, who had to ride
twice as far as Mr. Mytton.
J Mr. Rogers, the respectable and intelligent book-
seller at Newmarket, observed to me, in a conversation
respecting the taste, or character of the inhabitants,
that prints of race-horses were not at all saleable articles
at Newmarket ; but that he had sold a great many
volumes of Boxiana ; something after the manner, if
the comparison will be allowed, " that a Prophet is
never believed in his own country !" And, vice versa,
at Bristol, the hot-bed once for Pugilists, and also the
native place of Jem and Tom Belcher, Harmer, &c., so
renowned in the History of Boxing, that, at the Fair
held in St. James's Church-yard, when milling was in
its zenith, Mr. Smeeton, who had a stall there covered
with books on Boxing, were totally unheeded by tint
Bristol people !
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
403
of spectators at the above early period of the
morning. However, the preliminaries for
starting were soon settled between the parties
appointed to watch the proceedings of the
match the watches of the Umpires being set
and locked up, Mr. Osbaldeston prepared to
mount : he was dressed in a purple silk jacket,
doe skins, and a black velvet cap ; but some
little surprise was expressed that he did not
wear any flannel ; but Mr. Osbaldeston was
so warm within with the certainty of winning,
and ' eager for the fray,' that he stood in no
need of auxiliaries to give him courage, or to
raise a doubt in his mind on the subject. It
is true, that he wore a broad riding belt with
whalebone round his waist, which proved of
essential service to Mr. O., more especially
as he advanced towards the conclusion of his
unrivalled performance.* He started upon
EMMA, who went the first round of four miles
in nine minutes.
PARADOX, his second horse, had likely to
have proved unfortunate to him. Paradox,
like his name, was not exactly to be made out,
he proved rather stubborn at starting, and very
nearly rubbed his leg against the wall of the
stand. But Mr. Osbaldeston soon persuaded
Paradox to alter his conduct, and the Prad
took the hint, and finished the four miles in
good style.
LIBERTY, a cheerful sound to every person,
went over the ground steadily ; and CORONER
was equally on the alert towards doing his
duty.
OBERON, a little, but capital horse, seemed
almost to enter with the spirit of victory, like
his rider, and got over the ground in first-rate
style. Twenty-five miles and a half had been
completed in the first hour.
DON JUAN, although not a great Don in this
match, nevertheless did his work quicker than
some of the horses which appear on the list.
MORGAN RATTLER, whose steps should be
lively at all times, if he had any music attach-
ed to his character, rendered assistance to his
rider : PARADOX improved in the eyes of the
spectators by a more intimate acquaintance ;
and CANNON BALL, although not so swift as a
shot, and also long enough on the list, as to
time, in performing the round yet the aim
was completely answered.
CLASHER, in the tenth round, broke down a
short distance from home, and trotted to the
finish of his journey in a bad state ; but Mr.
Osbaldeston did not heed the above circum-
stance a jot, as he was perfectly aware that
accidents cannot be avoided; yet nothing was
the matter as to alter his opinion of winning
the bet.
Although CORONER proved himself rather
* The sketch of the above Match, and a portrait of
Mr. Osbaldeston, which appears in the title-page of this
work, is copied, by permission, from a spirited and
beautifully coloured engraving, drawn by Mr. H. Alkin
on the Course at Newmarket, and published by Mr.
Moofe, in West-street St. Martin's-lane.
an obstinate beast in his second round, never-
theless he was managed with considerable
tact by his able and undaunted rider, and
completed his ride in 8 minutes and 40 sec.
On the conclusion of the fourteenth round,
after LIBERTY had done her work for the
second time, Mr. Osbaldeston took a toothful
of brandy and water ; indeed, it could scarcely
be denominated refreshment.
EMMA ran on the wrong side of the post in
the fifteenth round ; but the squire soon made
it all right : DON JUAN followed in successful
style ; and little OBERON delighted the spec-
tators by doing her journey in 8 minutes and
30 seconds. CANNON BALL kept up a sure
pace; and ULTIMA was nothing wanting.
TRANBY, like his master, nothing else but a
good one, and game to the back bone, proved
the best horse rode by Mr. Osbaldeston during
the day. TRANBY performed four rounds,
and all of them were done considerably under
nine minutes-. Sixteen miles done in 33 mi-
nutes 15 seconds, is quite character enough
for any horse, without another word. But
Mr. Gully has always been distinguished for
the possession of good horses. We, most
certainly did not hear Mr. Osbaldeston, but
we were told that he was so pleased with the
movements of TRANBY, that a gentleman
caught the sound as Mr. O. was riding by
him, humming the well-known sporting song
I ride as good a trotting horse as any man in Town,
He'll trot you
FAIRY, aye, indeed, she tripped it along as
light as any Fairy, and got over the course
in the short space of 8 minutes and 8 seconds :
and her second attempt.
MORGAN RATTLER was quite at home a
second time, when tried ; and Lord Lowther's
colt, by Acorn, not only a * rum 'un to look at,'
but a * good un to go,' was much admired as
to condition. Mr. Osbaldeston now took a
* tiny bit' of refreshment, and a drop of brandy
and water, and who appeared confident to the
echo. But he determined to lose no time,
and anxious to finish his work in the quickest
time possible, he was mounted again on
TRANBY ; and, as if he had gained new spirit
by this trifling relaxation, he got over the
ground in the short space of eight minutes.
SKIRMISHER, by Smolensko ; GUILFORD,
and DOLLY, were all good ones, and satisfied
their gallant rider that he was ' getting on
well !' Considering himself safe, Mr. Osbal-
deston now partook of a lunch in the stand ;
and although wet through, he would not
change his clothes. His attendant, or Nurse,
if we may be allowed the expression, Harry
England, a downy one, wide awake, and who
can see his way as far as most people in this
bustling world,and who also will never give any
thing like a chance away if he ' knows it,
adhered to the good old maxim in this instance,
to ' push along, keep moving,' in order to win
a race he got Mr. Osbaldeston again to his
2 D 2
404
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
work, before his limbs felt stiff, or any thing
like chilliness should come over his frame.
Few men, in the sporting world, that we have
met with in our travels, can be ' trusted alone !'
better than the gay, merry, late landlord of
the Green Man !
IKEY SOLOMONS had nearly proved a very
disastrous horse to Mr. Osbaldeston ; and
might have lost him the match. Ikey was
going a slashing pace when he made a floun-
der, and Mr. O., standing in his stirrups,
shot over his head. This, at all events, was
going farther than he intended; and Ikey
Solomons bolted * for a hundred yards before
he was again grabbed. To say that the above
* untoward circumstance' did not alter the
complexion of things for a short period would
be wrong; or that Mr. Osbaldeston was not put
out of his way by it for a few minutes would
he equally untrue but look to the result,
Like a game cock of the highest breed, he was
at the scratch in a twinkling ; off like a shot ;
and finished the round well ; though not so
quickly as heretofore. It is true, Mr. Osbal-
deston came in a little distressed and his oppo-
nents were raised in hope a * tiny bit ;' but
the game of Mr. O. is so good at all times
that his motto appears to be " Death or Vic-
tory."
On TAM O'SHANTER he became all right ;
and Ikey Solomons and the fall were com-
pletely obliterated from the tablet of his
memory.
EL DORADO came in very lame ; but, never-
theless, the round was done in 9 minutes and
20 seconds. Keeping up the ' look of win-
ning,' and nothing else !
COVENTRY and RrwcLEADEB, kept the ' game
alive ;' and TRANBY, for the third time, was
swift indeed. One hundred and forty-four
miles were completed in six hours and seven-
teen minutes.
IPSALA, SKIRMISHER, GUILFORD, STREAM-
LET, DONEGANI, HASSAN, FILLY, RINGLEADER,
TRANBY, and COVENTRY, all did their rounds
in the most satisfactory manner to the backers
of Mr. Osbaldeston.
COVENTRY and IPSALA repeated their
rounds so as to put the thing beyond all doubt
and success was completely within the
reach of Mr. Osbaldeston a SOVEREIGN to
ninepence.
STREAMLET had to encounter a violent
squall of nine and wind ; and, to prove the
out-and-out game of Mr. Osbaldeston, he stood
it like bricks and mortar, unmoved by the
rude and overwhelming elements ; but not so
STREAMLLT, the animal turned round from its
violence near the fir-trees, and in all probability
would not have faced it again for some time,
but his master, like the pilot thut weathered
the 'storm,' steered STREAMLET through the
round in nine minutes.
Comparison*, it is said, arc odious; but there was
omethiug rather ominous in tke name for bolting.
DONEGANI, although the longest except Ikey,
Solomons, performed his round quite time
enough, to the satisfaction of the visitors.
SKIRMISHER, the last horse required to give
eclat to this wonderful match, finished the
business at nine minutes before four o'clock
or, in other words, this immense undertaking
was completed in EIGHT HOURS AND
THIRTY -NINE MINUTES, having one
hour, and twenty-one minutes to the good !
His reception by the Public, on winning the
match, was of the most enthusiastic descrip-
tion ; and numbers of sporting gentlemen were
at a loss to show him the extent of their ap-
probation. Some seized hold of his hands ;
others patted him on the back ; and several
shouted out " OSBALDESTON for ever ! Osbal-
deston against any man in the world ! He wins
FIVE points out of six, and let any person make
the match," &c., &c. He came in like one
of those Choice Spirits who think nothing im-
possible to achieve a match if he " wills it !"
flourishing his whip over his head. A
jolly venerable farmer was so delighted with
the success of Mr. Osbaldeston, that, in the
ecstacy of the moment he complimented him
with the view-halloo in fine rattling style.
Mr. Gully, Harry England, and Tom Oliver,
three of the right sort of persons at such a
time, rendered him some little assistance to
dismount at the Stand; on ascending which,
he was honored by tbe congratulations of Lady
Chesterfield and her sister, Mrs. G. Anson,
who had driven from the race-course to be in
at the ' winning" of this extraordinary match
(to be recorded in the BOOK OF SPORTS), some-
thing after the manner, we Suppose,
""That none bat the brave deserve the fair !"
There was no nonsense no affectation-
about Mr. Osbaldeston., nor no Benjamin Bolus
required to take him in tow, and prescribe
for him with a face as long as my arm, under
the impressive idea to take great care of him-
self ! Mr. Osbaldeston is his own physician
an excellent trainer a soul above Buttons
and a man who does not meet difficulties
half-way. Harry England prescribed physic
to Mr. O., as a cooler a-
Throw the physic to the dogs;
I'll hare none of it,
said Mr. Osbaldeston, with a smile upon his
countenance, and, without further ceremony,
he mounted Cannon Ball. He started at a
tidy pace, followed by all the horsemen, to his
lodgings at Perrin's in Newmarket, where he
made his bow to those gentlemen who had
done him the honor to attend him to the hotel.
A warm bath removed, or rather prevented
any thing like stiffness about his limbs, and a
comfortable nap in jBed-fordshire not only
composed his feelings, but, in the course of
two hours, enabled him to meet his friends to
partake of a good dinner and the pleasures of
the festive board. Such was the climax to
this unparalleled match in the Snorting
World.
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
405
Mr. Osbaldeston did not ride the exact
round course, which is some furlongs under
four miles ; but by going outside of it, getting
into the Beacon, about Choke Jade, touching
on the Bunbury Mile, and coming home close
to the ditch, he made it a four mile course ;
and at the end of each round he changed his
horse. Mr. O. had a leg given him up each
mount, in consequence of the impossibility of
making the horses approach a wooden horse-
block, turfed over, and erected in front of the
Stand.
Previous to the above match, Mr. Osbal-
deston had been in close training for a week,
riding most of his horses ; his constant exer-
cise was of the severest description. He
hunted his hounds in Northamptonshire, and
afterwards, with two hacks he rode sixty-one
miles to dine at Newmarket.
During the match, as might be expected, a
variety of opinions were expressed upon the
subject some thought Mr. Osbaldeston, after
he had done upwards of 100 miles, appeared
rather weak ; and that one of the horses was
rather troublesome to him. Such might have
been the case ; but, upon the whole, his cool,
game, high-spirited conduct as the theme
of all the spectators, and the majority of per-
sons present entertained the opinion, from the
first moment of his starting, to the completion
of the match that he always looked like
winning his countenance was a complete
finger-post to his mind. Mr. John Gully, not
only anxious to assist his friend, but likewise
interested in the success of the match gene-
rally met him at coming in towards the con-
clusion of it, and laid hold of his horse.
It has been said, but we do not vouch for
the truth of the assertion, that with all the
horses possessed by the parties connected with
the above great undertaking, that the stable
was not so well conducted as it might have
been, where so much depended upon TIME
a few seconds a loss, but a minute or two posi-
tively dangerous ; and at one period of the
match there was something like uncertainty
as to the arrival of horses ; and also that some
rounds had been accomplished by Mr. Osbal-
dtston before the " lookers out' for spare
horses had made it all right. Be that as it
may one thing is decidedly clear, connected
with this match, that Mr. Osbaldeston had
perfectly satisfied himself (barring accidents)
he could win it in TEN hours to the greatest
certainty ; that he could also win in NINE by
taking 1000 sovereigns to 100 ; and also en-
tering most fully into the spirit of the follow-
ing motto,
Forti et fidell nil difficile .
It was the opinion of the best-informed upon
the subject, that had the day have proved
fine, the ground in a better state, and Mr.
Osbaldeston had not been thrown off Ikey
Solomons he would have accomplished his
great task in less time say, from 12 to 15
minutes sooner than is recorded.
A List of the Horses, their names, and the time,
which each Horse performed the round of Four
Miles.
m. sec.
1 Emma 90
2 Paradox 9 20
3 Liberty 9 25
4 Coroner 9 15
5 Oberon 9 40
6 Don Juan 90
7 Morgan Rattler 9 13
8 Paradox, 2nd time 90
9 Cannon Ball 23
10 Clasher 9 25
11 Ultima 9 10
12 Fairy 95
13 Coroner, 2nd time 8 40
14 Liberty, 2nd time 90
15 Emma, 2nd time 9 21
16 Don Juan, 2nd time 98
17 Oberon, 2nd time 8 20
18 Cannon Ball, 2nd time .... 9 45
19 Ultima, 2nd time 90
20 Tranby 8 10
21 Fairy, 2nd time 88
22 Morgan Rattler, 2nd time ... 9 28
23 Colt, by Tramp 8 58
24 Dolly 8 58
25 Acorn 92
26 A horse by Smolensko .... 8 52
27 Tranby, 2nd time 80
28 Skirmisher 9 25
29 Guilford 8 25
30 Dolly, 2nd time 8 45
31 Ikey Solomons 12
32 Tarn O'Shanter 9 40
33 El Dorado 9 20
34 Coventry 90
35 Ringleader 8 42
36 Tranby, 3rd time 8 15
37 Ipsala 8 20
38 Skirmisher, 2nd time . . . . 8 15
39 Guilford, 2nd time 910
40 Streamlet 8 f.O
41 Donegani 9 12
42 Hassan )
43 Surprise (Filly) 9 10
44 Ringleader, 2nd time 9 30
45 Tranby, 4th time 8 50
46 Coventry, 2nd time 9 30
47 Ipsala 2nd time 90
48 Donegani, 2nd time 10 15
49 Streamlet, 2nd time 90
50 Skirmisher, 3rd time 9 40
Mr. Osbaldeston, at the close of the match,
said he would give a plate of 50, to be ruii
for by the above horses. The above plate was
won by Lord Lowther's Smolensko Colt, three
years old, 7st. lOlb. (Chappie), was the win-
ner, and Donegani second (Conolly).
In consequence of considerable chajfing (as
it is termed in the slang of the day) having
taken place respecting the above match
" that any cripple, &c., could have done it
with the same horses," Mr. Osbaldeston, to
400
PIERCE EGAN'S BOOK OF SPORTS.
put a stopper on the matter, addressed the
following letter to the Editor of Bell's Life,
on the subject : the following is an extract :
" Sir, there are men, I have no doubt," ob-
serves Mr, Osbaldeston, can do the match in
the time I did, and in much less, who only
ride 7 stone, if they are to be called men.
Many fox-hunters, and even jockeys, before
the performance, thought it impossible to do
it in nine hours ; but now, the very same men
say any FOOL can do it ! If they are correct,
pray what can a wise* man do ? Double, at
least : but, perhaps, no wise man will be fool
enough to try / 400 miles in 17 successive
hours and 12 minutes will puzzle all the wise
men of the East ! It is the pace which a man
is obliged to maintain, with such short inter-
vals between every four miles, that distresses
him, from which the MUSCLES have not time to
recover. Two hundred miles in 10 hours
would be no performance to talk of putting
on the extra steam of six miles an hour tries
the wind and strength. A man riding 14st.
could do it in ten hours, if a good horseman,
sound wind and limb, and with good pluck.
Whoever accomplishes it in EIGHT HOURS and
forty-two minutes, riding list. 31bs., will
find ' his stockings tied up tighter than he ever
had them tied up before,' to make use of a
waterman's phrase !
Various rumours have gone abroad as to
the sum I won, and great exaggeration exists ;
some say 10,000 ; some 20,000 ; and some
even 36,000. After deducting all expenses,
I shall not net more than 1800, owing to the
supineness and bad advice of my friends.
They would not exert themselves for me, nor
would they allow me to back myself ' in the
Ring ;' because, they said, I should spoil the
betting; and if I would only be quiet they
would get plenty on for me. I followed their
advice ; but they never bet a shilling for me,
but kept humbugging me to the last.
" * It was all right !' They knew I would
have betted 3, 4, and even 5 to 1 on the match,
two nights before, and kept me quiet to fill
their own pockets at 6 to 4, which they did
pretty handsomely at my expense. I never
was afraid of any thing but sudden indisposi-
tion, and at no one period of the match would
I have taken Ten to One about the nine hours ;
I had time enough to dine with the Lord
Mayor of London, and do it in ten. My
friends' advice to keep quiet was something
like the advice given to Dawson, who was
executed] for poisoning the horses at New-
market. They persuaded him a pardon was
close at hand, even up to the moment of his
execution, merely to keep his mouth shut, as
1 dead men tell no tales' they say.
* * * * *
li Having been pestered to death by so many
inquiries about the match, and having been
chaffed so much about the match, and a jockey
doing it in eight hours, I thought it best to
put a complete statement in the paper, and
also to add the following challenges to the
whole world, but of which one, at least, I
should imagine, may be selected for their
adoption. I have named large sums, because,
in my attempting or accomplishing any of
them, I should incur a great expense, and
risk my health and stamina, and it is not
worth my notice for less. I address myself
to all the sporting men in England, and surely,
as a body, they can stump the ready against
me alone, if they think it a * good catch.'
Should no man, or body of men, come forward
to take up any one of my offers, I trust I shall
not be bothered with * it is nothing to do AN
OLD WOMAN can do it and a jockey can do
it in eight hours,' and so on. I merely back
myself on my own stamina and determination ;
and a man of my age challenging all the
world to back a man of any age against me, is
unparalleled in the history of any sporting,
and hardly to be believed. I will, however,
appear at the scratch whenever called upon,
both with the needful, and my own carcase
ready for the fray. The following are my
offers :
THE CHALLENGE.
" I challenge any man in the world, of any
age, weighing or carrying my weight, to ride
any distance he prefers, from Two hundred to
FIVE HUNDRED MILES, for TWENTY THOU-
SAND POUNDS ! But if he will only ride
200, or 250 miles, I will ride for Ten Thousand
Pounds. Or, I will ride against the Jockey
of seven stone, whom they talk of backing to
ride 200 miles in EIGHT hours, receiving 30
minutes for the difference between seven stone
and eleven stone ; or, I will take 10,000 to
3,000, or 20,000 to 6,000, that I ride Two
hundred miles in EIGHT HOURS, which, it
must be allowed, would be a wonderful per-
formance for eleven stone odd; and, I THINK,
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE at least, a single accident
would lose the match ; and I should scarcely
have time to mount and dismount. Ian
always to be heard of at Pitsford, near Nor-
thampton.
" GEORGE OSBALDESTON.
" Pitsford, Wednesday, Nov. 16."
INDEX
Page.