Mr. Darley's Arabian : high life, low life, sporting life : a history of racing in twenty-five horses
by McGrath, Christopher (Author)
Summary
"In 1704 a bankrupt English merchant sent home the colt he had bought from Bedouin tribesmen near the ruins of Palmyra. Thomas Darley hoped this horse might be the ticket to a new life back in Yorkshire. But he turned out to be far more than that, and although Mr. Darley's Arabian never ran a race,... Full description
- Part I. Roots
- "The most esteemed race amongst the Arrabs both by Syre and Dam"
- "The cross strains now in being are without end"
- A groom with a view
- A day at the races: Outwood Racecourse, Wakefield, 4 September 1745
- "He won as many hearts in Newmarket as he lost in Scotland"
- Part II. Rakes
- "Eclipse first, the rest nowhere"
- Breeding discontent
- The way ahead
- A day at the races: Epsom, 16 May 1793
- The regeneration gap
- Part III. Ringers and wrong 'uns
- Nobblers, broken heads and the "artful dodger of the corps"
- The west awake
- "I see a rum set in my day...But these beat all calculation"
- A day at the races: Doncaster, 17 September 1845
- "Mr Palmer passes me five times in five minutes"
- Part IV. Age of the iron horse
- Full steam ahead
- Old sweats and new money
- A day at the races: Epsom, 20 May 1863
- "She is my brood mare. the others are my hacks"
- A day at the races: Alexandra Palace, 1 July 1868
- "The lad rode as well as any could"
- Part V. The fast set
- "My God, Berkeley, this is too hot!"
- A day at the races: Ascot, 17 June 1897
- "He is far ahead of the lot, even with all his faults"
- Jewels in the crown
- Part VI. War horses
- "All their young men are killed"
- A day at the races: Epsom, 6 June 1923
- "I have no method. Method is imitation. I invent."
- Part VII. Raising the stakes
- "Chuck, what I tol' you?"
- A day at the races: Churchill Downs, 2 May 1964
- "Bang him on the nose early, Bobby. Make his eyes water."
- "They'd run through a wall for you."
- "I'd be surprised if there's ever been a better horse."