knowledge, but it can help to win a race. The English system is a matter of good horsemanship, but we must admit that the French system has more chances of success if the horse does not fall.

In my opinion, the jockeys Hatchet and H. Andrews are brilliant exceptions respecting the way steeplechases are generally ridden. Hatchet has a very remarkable method of riding over fences, and I always follow him with great pleasure, because his style bears out the theory which I am never tired of maintaining—namely, that there is only one way of riding. There is only one kind which is always good on the racecourse as well as for hacking, and without it success is either pure luck or mere knack.

To see Hatchet ride a steeplechase is a great treat for a connoisseur. He remains glued to the saddle, and daylight is never seen between him and it. On coming up to a fence he does not lean back, for he knows that the impetus of the hind quarters would throw him forward. He gets well down into the saddle and rounds his back so as to keep his seat and suppleness. He holds his hands low, his arms half-extended, and the reins just sufficiently felt to keep him in constant communication with the mouth of the horse. He evidently yields his fingers at the same time as he does his arms, because he is never pulled forward at the moment when the horse stretches out his head and neck to jump. He keeps a nice feeling on the reins—more by the play of the fingers than by that of the arms—even during the wild speed of a race, which is a fact that few sportsmen will admit. Also, he keeps his position before, during, and after a jump. With him there is not the slightest shock ; everything is smooth and perfect.

I often hear people say on racecourses that if a horse is going to fall, nothing will prevent him, but we can deceive ourselves. It is evident that if an animal makes a mistake and fails, he will fall ; but what I want to say is that a mistake