TIME V. DISTANCE.

Press, Volume VII, Issue 794, 16 May 1865, Page 3

TIME V. DISTANCE.

' [From Porter's Spirit of the Times. I was not a little surprised Tin reading ' your issue of the 7th inst., to find that so world-renowed an authority as Bell's JAfe in London should fall into such an egregious error as the editor has done, in stating that " the best authentic time on record of a mile in England is 1.45." If he b.e not greatly wide of the mark, all the old authorities ot England are entirely at fault in regard to their records of speed, and the more recent ones have fallen into the same error : and yet, one can scarcely put his hand upon either of them that does not make particular mention of the fabulous flight of speed attained by Flying Childers and English Eclipse—tho " mile in a minute," and, in some of them, " the rate" fairly haunts you; and the positive assertion that, "in 1772, Firetail ran a mile in one minute four seconds," is invariably presented to your view. If there exist any authentic record of tho performances of Flying Childers, he ran over the Bound Course at Newmarket (3 miles, 6 furlongs, 93 yards), in 6 minutes 40 seconds, and over the Beacon Course (4 miles, 1 furlong, 138 yards), in 7 minutes 30 seconds. The former, at the rate throughout of 1*45 and a fraction; and the latter, at the rate of 1*47 and a fraction per mile. I have not at hand an account of Eclipse's performances. His best record is very short and comprehensive—he never was beaten, and never paid forfeit. But neither he nor any other horse ever ran at the rate of a mile in a minute, the impossibility of which I shall presently attempt to prove. The more recent exploit of Sir Tatton Sykes will add, perhaps, more satisfactorily to the proof that Sell's life is in error. In 1846, St. Leger Course, he ran 1 mile 6 furlongs 132 yards, in 3 minutes 16 seconds, which is at the rate of 1*47 and a fraction per mile. And how can it be accounted for, that Mr. Langley has entirely overlooked one of the performances of one of the best horses that has appeared in England during the present century ? In the memorable race of 1854 between West Australian, and Kingston, at Ascot, they ran 2i miles, the former winning by a head only, in four minutes 27 seconds, being at the rate of a fraction less than 1*47 per mile. In the mile race between tho celebrated Queen of Ttumps and Ainderby (subsequently this country), a gentle* man well known as one of the most successful "[turfmen in the Southern country was present, who measured the distance and timed the horses for his own satisfaction; and I am quite certain that I do not err in. stating that the time made on that occasion was one minute 42 seconds. I have Buch, confidence in his accuracy as a timer, and in his manifest good sense and judgment in all turf matters, that I do not doubt its correctness.

These last-mentioned performances bring, again to mind the oft-repeated statement of FrretaiTs mile in I*o4, which can only be reasonably explained by a mistake very" natural for a printer to moke in a transposition of figures, which should have stood I*4o, rendering it, even then, very extraordinary—but palpably absurd in its original shape. The best carrier pigeons, in thorough training, have rarely been known to fly more than 45 miles in an hour, and to accomplish this the weather must be clear and the bird in excellent condition. He starts at his best speed and maintains it throughout. This speed is at the rate of a mile in 1 mm. 20 sees., . and covers 66 feet of ground in a second. -- Now the " stride " of a race-horse is more generally 22 feet than over it. Instances are rare of their striding 24, though they sometimes occur. To run, therefore, as fast as the bird can fly, he is compelled to make three strides of 22 feet each within the second. What man of sound mind, at all acquainted with the powers of the horse, does not know positively that he cannot make three strides of any length within a second, and the farther he strides the fewer. He is compelled to make within that time? What possible chance then was there that Childers, Eclipse, or Firetail could have made" four srides in the same time, which they must necessarily have done to go at " the jeate. of a mile a minute ? " In the name- of Common sense let us have no more of this absurd and ridiculous fiction. . C * ' ' "*•'•" ■* J '~iS V-'