THE FORTUNA FILLY.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIV, Issue 816, 26 October 1905, Page 12

THE FORTUNA FILLY.

(By

HOWEL SCRATTON.)

CHAPTER XXVlll.—(Continued.; Lord Thistleton and Sir Robert came into the Paddock after the first race, in *high spirits and laughing like a couple of schoolboys; for the Newmarket air always acted as a tonic to the old associates, who had seen more meetings on the wind-swept heath than they would care to count. “ I wish I had been there to hear it!” laughed Sir Robert. “ Tell me again, Thistleton, old fellow!” “ Why, I was in the weighing-room with Phil Stokes, and there were some jockeys dressing in the other room, and we overheard what they said. You know Jim Price suffers a good deal from tender feet, and finds it very difficult to waste in consequence. Well, it seems that he had just taken off his walking boots, for we heard young Benny Miles, the light-weight, exclaim, “ ‘ By Jove, Jim, your feet do pen. (Pen is short for ‘ pen-and-ink,’ which is the ryhming slang for ‘ stink,’ you know). “‘Yes,’ said Jim, ‘but I can’t help it; I have tried everything I can think of, but it is no use!’ “ Didn’t you never try washin’ the blighters?’ asked Benny, and Price threw his boots at him as he rushed out of the room. Even old Stokes could not help laughing!” And the two old gentlemen went away arm-in-arm to look at the horses, chuckling as they went. John Straight and Joe Tritton were in the farther paddock, and they raised their hats as the two gentlemen joined them. “How are ye, Tritton?” asked Sir Robert, cheerily. John he had seen earlier. “ Very well, thank you, sir. I have to thank you for so very kindly lending me a trial horse, too, Sir Robert. I don’t know what I should have done without him.” “Oh, very glad; very glad!” Sir Robert replied. “ I hear that you have a pretty good filly?” “Yes, sir; if she bears out what Phantom City told me about her, she will win this race to-day.” “ Well, I am glad to hear it. I should like to see Helvellyn take the race, of course; but it is always pleasant to see new blood successful. I hear that this Mr. Chambers is quite a young man?” “ Oh, yes; only about twenty-six. He has not owned horses till this year.” “ Well, well. I wish him luck!” cried Sir Robert, as he moved away. The second race had been run, and Dash and Delia did not attempt to disguise their nervousness. Dash kept getting down from the carriage and hurrying to the paddock, where he would look at the filly for a few minutes, and then bolt back to Delia to tell her that she was still all right. Twitterton was almost as excited as the others, and Mrs. Baines chattered incessantly. But at length the horses were saddled and mounted, and made their way on to the course. It was a splendid sight to see these thirty of the world’s best animals going down to the post to do battle for the greatest handicap of the season. Delia clapped her hands as the bonny bay filly came dashing down the course, with little Pat Rooney in her new cap and jacket, sitting very still upon her. “ Oh, is not she lovely!” exclaimed the ladies with one voice; “and what pretty colours they are !” Then came the great Helvellyn, with Leicester Goatling on his back—a magnificent specimen of the thoroughbred horse. He cantered down with thundering strides. Presently, they were all assembled at the starting-post, and in a few minutes the rainbow line of silken jackets was seen to dart suddenly forward and the horses were on their way. Onward they came, up and down the gradients of the course, along the rolled track, which looks greener than the rest of the heath on account of the attention which is paid to it to keep it in order. For some time, even almost until they had reached the bushes, Delia could not see the Fortuna filly’s colours, but she could see that Helvellyn was out by himself on the far side, going strongly and well. Although he was her father’s horse, she felt sick to see him there, and her own favourite not in the first flight. At length she saw Rooney’s red cap

behind some horses on the near side, and he was evidently looking for an opening to come through. As they descended the hill into the dip the front rank separated, and Rooney got his chance. He steered for the opening, and as the field passed the carriage, Rooney let the filly out, and she sailed past her neighbours in the smoothest manner possible and was level with Helvellyn, but wide apart. “She wins! Fortuna filly wins!” screamed Delia, not caring what anybody thought of her. “Go on, Rooney! Go on!”

Whether this advice reached Rooney or not, he certainly did not neglect to act in accordance with it, and the beautiful filly breasted the hill like a hare and passed the winuing-post three lengths in advance of Helvellyn, who was second. Mr. Twitterton threw his hat into the air, and shouted “Hooray ” with all his might, and Dash would have done the same, but his emotion deprived him of the power of speech. “Be quiet, John!” said Mrs. Baines, “how can you behave like that? Why don’t you run to see the winner come in? Delia and I will follow!” At these words Dash suddenly recovered his faculties, and shouting, “Come on! come to the paddock!” he jumped out of the carriage and ran through the carriages and round the back of the stands to the gate of the Birdcage, and his filly was just coming across from the course gate to weigh in as he reached the weighing-room door. Dash leaned upon the rail of the unsaddling enclosure, and looked at the beautiful mare who had made it possible for him to indulge the most cherished desire of his heart, and & great gulp of gratitude was in his throat, but his pale face and slightly trembling lip did not betray a tithe of the agitation which was consuming him. Lord Thistleton and Sir Robert came out of the Jockey Club stand. “ Hard luck, old man, being beaten when it looked as if Helvellyn had the race at his mercy at the Bushes.” “ I am not at all surprised,” answered Sir Robert. “ John Straight asked me to lend them Phantom City to try this filly. It seems that she belongs to a friend of John’s—l don’t know him, but I think he is quite a young fellow—and she won a good trial with the old horse; so we knew there was danger ‘ in that quarter; but here is old Stokes, grinning all over his face—l told him we were afraid of this filly, and, by the look of him, he must have backed her!” “Hullo!” cried Sir Philip Stokes. “I backed first and second on your tip, Bob I I am sorry they did not finish the other way about, though!” “ This is a good filly,” answered Sir Robert. “ and it was asking Helvellyn too much to expect him to give her twenty-six pounds. I don’t believe any horse in England could do it!” “ They say the owner won a pile of money on her,” remarked the judge, “ and I hear that it is almost his first appearance on the turf. Fancy having the luck to win a Cambridgeshire to begin one’s racing career!” “ He is a friend of John Straight’s, I must be introduced to him,” said Sir Robert. “ I want to congratulate him on his good fortune!” “ There’s Straight, with Helvellyn,” cried Lord Thistleton, “ let us ask him to introduce us.” “John!” said Sir Robert. “Yes, sir,” answered John. “ I want to congratulate your friend, Mr. Chambers; you had better introduce me to him. I was so near owning this filly myself that I take great interest in her.” John Straight’s face twisted into a comical smile, as he said, “ You know that ‘ Mr. Chambers’ is only an assumed name, but I think I had better call him by it, as he may prefer not to have his real name known.” “All right, where is he?” asked Sir Robert. “ There he is, over there in a grey overcoat, leaning on the rail,” answered John, pointing to Dash, who had his back to them. “ Come on, then; I want to speak to him. You do the honours, John.” Mr. Straight went up and touched Dash on the shoulder, and he instantly turned round and was face to face with Sir Robert, Lord Thistleton, and Sir Philip Stokes. “Dashwood Fynes!” they exclaimed, in chorus. “ Why, how the devil! Surely you are not Mr. Chambers?” “Yes, indeed I am, though, Sir Robert,” replied Dash. “ And you are the owner of the Fortuna filly?” ejaculated Sir Robert. “ And you have jolly near broken the ring!” exclaimed Lord Thistleton. “ And you had the impudence to humbug me in my own Court yesterday, so that you should be able to get here today!” said Sir Philip Stokes. “I don’t

know -what the young men at the Bar are coming to!” . Just then Mr. Twitterton came up, with Mrs. Baines and Delia. When Delia saw her father talking to Dash, she knew that the cat was out of the bag, so she went boldly up to them. “You here, Delia? Whatever are you doing here?” demanded her father. “ I came with Mrs. Baines; we wanted to see the Cambridgeshire run.” “ And did you know that this enterprising young gentleman was the owner of the winner?” asked Sir Robert. “ Oh, yes, dad,” she said, taking her father’s arm coaxingly, “ I planned it all with him.” “You planned it with him? Pray, what have you to do with planning things with him?” “ Only that he had not much money, and we thought if he bought a racehorse and won a race with it, he would get some; and now he has won it, and he will never bet any more!” “ I expect he will have enough work to do now to keep him pretty busy at Chambers,” put in Mr. Twitterton. “ Oh, by the way, Twitterton, I see that you have been granted silk—let me offer my felicitations!” said Sir Philip, heartily. ’ “Thanks —yes; and so Fynes will step into my junior practice.” “Well done, Fynes ” said the judge. “ I should think this is the greatest day of your life !” “ There is one thing that I want more than either practice at the bar or winning the Cambridgeshire,” Dash said quietly, while Delia, who knew what he meant, blushed violently. “What is that?” asked Sir Robert. “ I should have thought you had enough to make you happy for one day.” Dash took Delia’s hand, and said simply. “ I want Delia—l want your consent to her being my wife—everything else is nothing to me!” <c Bravo!” cried Lord Thistleton. “Well spoken, my lad—go on, Bob; give him your consent —don’t keep him in suspense on a day like this!” - Sir Robert took Dash’s hand and shook it warmly. “ Lord Thistleton is right,” he said. “It is not often that a young man wins a Cambridgeshire and a wife on the same day, but you can have her !” Delia pressed her father’s arm, and said, “Thank you, dad!” “ There is another secret which I think ought to be made known,” said Sir Philip Stokes. “ I don’t think Twitterton ought to keep his news from us on a day like this!” “No; I agree with you,” said Twitterton. “ I think I ought to tell you that I have the great happiness to be engaged to be married to the charming lady next to me *” , . j T J “ Mrs. Baines!” exclaimed Lord Thistleton. “Oh, well, next to marrying you myself, I would like Twitterton to marry you —let me congratulate you both!” “ Come along, let us all go back to London and finish up the day with a dinner at the Carlton!” cried Sir Robert. “ I feel as if I should like to have all the most indigestible kickshaws they can us, just to celebrate this great day.” “ Bravo, dad, and we must have Mr. Straight and Mr. Tritton, too; and, of course, our commissioner, Mr. Nuthall!” “ Yes, you had better find Nuthall, Dashwood, and invite him; and you go and tell Tritton, John,” said Sir Robert. “I am sorry, but I know Joe Tritton will not be able to be one of the party, said John Straight. “ I made an appointment for him to call on Lord Vange in the evening, to arrange to take over his horses; and he could not break it, even for the pleasure of joining your party.”

“ Very well; you will come, I suppose?” “Oh, yes; I shall be delighted. I feel as if I had had a good share in bringing about this marriage, for I was in Miss Delia’s confidence the whole time!” “You ought to be ashamed of yourself for not telling me, then! But come along, let us go to our traps. We will meet at the station—Lord Thistleton and I must call at our rooms first to tell the servants we are going to town; John, we can give you a lift ” And so they separated for the time being, and as the fly which carried Dash and Delia, with Mr. Twitterton and Mrs. Baines, left the racecourse, poor old Gravy was amongst the crowd, twanging his guitar and singing the song which he had sung in the train, going to Epsom. 'lt’s your beauty,’ he said, ‘I admire, not your pelf; Though, of course, if it’s handy to find on the shelf, I could do with a bit of cold mutton myself, For I’m feeling quite fagged out and jady!’ " “ Poor old chap,” said Dash. “ Here, Gravy! I want you!” The minstrel stopped singing, and approached the carriage, doffing his tall hat. “ Here’s a fiver for you,” said Dash. “And here’s another!” cried Mr. Twitterton ; “for the sake of auld lang syne!” “ Thank you, gentlemen, thank youAnd thank you, beautiful ladies!” cried the singer, overjoyed. “Good luck to the Fortuna filly!” The carriage drove away and soon reached the station, whither Sir Robert had sent a messenger to engage a reserved carriage; and the happy party reached London in good time to assemble at the Carlton at eight o’clock for the best dinner the hotel could offer them. Then when the dessert had been put upon the table, Sir Philip Stokes raised his glass and said, “ I propose the health of the two happy pairs, coupled with the name of the winner of the Cambridgeshire—by the way, she must have a name —what is it to be?” “ Delia promised to tell us after the race,” said Mrs. Baines. “ Very well, Miss Ashingdon, I call upon you to name the filly, and I will couple that name with the toast!” Delia blushed. “ I thought of a name for her,” she said, “ but I don’t know whether it is a good one.” “ What is it? Let us hear the name!” said Sir Philip. “It is ‘True Love,’ ” answered Delia, red to the roots of her hair. “Coupled with True Love !” concluded Sir Philip exultingly. “True Love!” exclaimed the men, as they raised their glasses, and the ladies shyly echoed the word. THE END.