HORSE SENSE

NZ Truth, Issue 881, 14 October 1922, Page 5

HORSE SENSE

A Chat With Gloaming , ■ \ '. Catching a moment on the wharf when the Sydney boat arrived m Wellington and all the newspaper men were busy asking Greenwood and Mason what they thought of Gloaming and Billy Hughes, and the weather and other subjects of vital interest to the world, I had a word or two with Gloaming- as to what he thought about things m general. ' 'He pricked an oar m the direction ;of -the assembled scribes and their victims and whispered: "Hear those .'kids skiting? It makes me laugh to listen to their theories And suggestions.' Talk about horse sense — why some." of them have never matured from the neck upwards." '"'.'■' . "Meaning what?" I asked the old horse, who seemed .a .trifle sore — not physically— -about something. "Oh, all that damned rot about how we beat the favorite 'and how the favorite beat us,' and about tracks and grounds : and challenges and other blatherskite. . Whoo, it makes me tilled," he whinnied. "Well, give us the strength of it for 'Truth." ...,.- --"All right,- 'Spearmint', you've . al-. ways treated me • fairly; but there ain't really much to tell. I was fairly and squarely ■ 'otfted'- the first time I met Beauford m competition; tytit- it wasn't the first . time I met him privately. The night before we 'were all down' at Tattersal'i's together— Eurythmic and Violoncello and that mdb — and, to tell you the honest truths 1 think I had a bran mash too many: ■ 'v Any way, I was feeling a. bit .cheap when . I reached the course next day, and right off my bats, but I didn't put 'the heads' wise to what was up; and, mind you, don't for one moment thipk /that my horse friends had wilfully got me on a bend. It was just pure hospitality." "I know, Ijeen there myself." "Of course on the second meeting I had to be. more careful, and I picked at once that I .had Beauford's measure at any time, fit and w.e11." "Then how about lh|e third race?" ' "Now, brush your, brains up a little. I've always beqn brought up m a decent school of manners, and the horses over there treated me with such generosity and pally kindiiess that I couldn't gi-ab out lor everything on the table. A certain amount of respect is due to your hosts, .and though Beaufovd has money m the -bank to burn he has his reputation to consider, so I reckoned it- was a fair thing to take turn about." "Which was why you. won the fourth time?" . ; "Exactly: it left the honors even, and we were all satisfied-^-that is, we horses were, "and. it left our employees plenty of room to argue about our respectiveVcapabilities." . "How " about Greenwood as an owner?" ••'■ ■"Very -decent. I've known horses, that possessed much less capable and considerate ones, and m the meantime, at any rate, I don't propose to get rid of him.". . , , - "And Dick Mason?" "Quite a capable valet. In fact, I've never had' a better one, and I certainly shall retain him for a while longer, if .not altogether* It looks as if they'd finished blithering, so I'll just call them over and take them up town with me. Ta ta, old chap.- Call m at Tatt'.s at the end of the month .and I'll show you the Challenge Plate and we'll split a drench or two." "By the way, I suppose you're off to, a Mayoral reception now?" "Nix on- your Mayoral reception," he called over his shoulder. "When R. A. Wright is about I'm- only a lowclass pro. who runs for" money." '