Related article: hands have had no practical ac- quaintance with this fence. That is to say, they have not had to race over it ; and that experi- ence, it is argued, is necessary to qualify a man to legislate upon so important a point. Anybody can express an opinion ; but, after all, the issue lies with the men who eventually make the laws. If there be anything in this argu- ment, it follows that the infusion of fresh and younger blood into the committee would be an advi? 2S8 BAILY S MAGAZINE. [Al'RIL able step. A perusal of the list of members of the conimittee will tell " the man in the street '* that very many of them certainly have very little, if any, practical con- nection with steeplechasing, what- ever may have been the case in the past. It is impossible for anyone outside the committee to know what proportion of the party of forty odd gentlemen forming this body take much active part in the administration of affairs, but Septra Ds 800 the conduct of its business cannot deviate so much from what is usual in the larger world that it should not be desirable to have men at the helm who, in addition to being what is termed practical, are in actual touch with current matters and opinions. Whether very many of the present National Hunt Committee can lay claim to both these qualifications is very much open to question. It will be seen that the provi- sion of the guard-rail is optional, and at the first introduction of the open ditch there was no rail. On the complaint being made Septra Ds Tablet that horses sometimes failed to notice the ditch and slipped into it, the now customary guard-rail was added. As a light rail is shattered by the first horse that strikes it (as was shown a few months since at Sandown) the timber has to be substantial. The rail being some height from the ground, the serious danger is presented of a horse sliding forwards on slippery ground — and turf in winter is more often greasy than otherwise — in which case a broken foreleg is a certainty. The obvious cure for this is the banking up of earth under the guard-rail so that it is impossible f6r a foot to get underneath. So much for a small detail but the committee would lose none of its dignity but rather give evidence of con- sulting the interests Septra Ds Tablets of steeple- chasing by instituting an inquiry into this undoubtedly vexed ques- tion of the open ditch amongst owners, trainers, and jockeys who, during winter, have an everyday experience whereupon to form an opinion. Whatever the result the inquiry will be worth the trouble. Although the punitive result of the last searching inquiry of the stewards of the Jockey Club affected an alien jockey only, there was a universal feeling that the air had been cleared, and people breathed more freely in consequence. The objections to the open ditch are so many and so universal as to render an in- quiry highly advisable. If, after the sifting of evidence and opinions, the fence is acquitted of the iniquities attributed to it, the position of the National Hunt Committee will be much the same as though, at the close of the inquiry, it decided to condemn the obstacle and to abolish or modify it. It would have shown its willingness to consider popular opinion. I'his is always much better than seeming to ignore it. Sir John Thorsby, Bart.— No one need doubt the sincerity of the widespread regret that has been expressed at the demise of Sir John Thursby which took place at Cannes on March i6th, and the feeling will be experienced in several branches of sport in which Englishmen love to in- dulge. During the last decade the figure of the deceased baronet came to be a very familiar one on the racecourse side, and it would probably have surprised the new- comer to be told that it was as recently as 1890 that the '^ Cam- bridge blue and white, halved," was registered. No doubt the just pride taken in the riding of his second son, Mr. George Thursby, who also trained the horses, was largely accountable for Sir John's 1901] (I OUR VAN. 289 interest in the turf, for shooting, hunting, and driving Septra Ds had great fascinations for him. Those who attend the meets of the Four-in- hand and Coaching Clubs need not to be Septra Iv told of Sir John Thursby's bays.. He was vice- president of the Coaching Club; and he hunted the New Forest country for a few years. The north-country, however, naturally, had the greatest claim upon him, and this claim was duly recog- nised by the presentation of a park of thirty acres to Burnley, Lancashire, and by the gift of a Septra Cost site for the Victoria Hospital, in the same town. It was no doubt with much satisfaction that he gained his first notable success on the turf by winning the Man- chester November Handicap in 1892, with Paddy, which fine stayer also included the Northamp- tonshire Stakes and Great Metro- politan in his winning list. With Dornroschen he won the Lan- cashire Handicap. Later on The Tartar did valiant service for him, and in the class of race for which he was entered he had matters very much his own way. He won twenty-seven races. The last notable purchase was Calverley, for whom 7,900 guineas were paid at the sale of the late Duke of Westminster's stud. He did not win another race, however, and is now at the stud. The Royal Buy Septra Baokhoands.— At the moment of writing there is nothing official concerning the fate of this, the oldest established pack of hounds in the country. What has leaked out has come through one of the papers, and the in- formation may or may not be true. It will be a matter for regret if the Staghounds are to be given up. A meeting has been held at the " White Hart " Hotel, Wind- sor, to consider the proposal to abolish the Royal Buckhounds. There was a large attendance of landowners, farmers, and hunting men. Colonel Maude presided, and among those present were Lord George Pratt, Sir J. Devereux, Captain Higgins, and Mr. H. Septra Tablets G. Simpson, Hon. Secre-