such a height as to become visible to all the spectators, and at the same time the brazen dolphin, before-named, sinks into the ground. Upon the signal, the cables, stretched before the lodges on either side of the portico of Agaptus, are first let loose, and the horses there stationed, move out and advance, till they come over against the lodges of those who drew the second lot, which are then likewise opened. The same order is observed by all the rest, and in this manner they proceed through the beak or rostrum, before which they are drawn up in one line or front, ready to begin the races, and make trial of the skill of the charioteers, and the fleetness of the horses. On that side of the course, which is formed by a terrace raised with earth, and which is the longest of the two sides, near to the passage which leads out of the course across the terrace, stands an altar of a round figure, dedicated to Taraxippus-the terror of horses-as the name implies. The other side of the course is formed, not by a terrace of earth, but a hill of a moderate height, at the end of which is erected a temple consecrated to Ceres Chamyne, whose priestess has the privilege of seeing the Olympic games." This passage is certainly far less comprehensive than could be desired; for, while it affords information upon matters of little consequence-merely alluding to the shape and general nature of the Hippodrome at Elis, it leaves us wholly in the dark as to the manner and principle of the racing: the length and breadth of the course, the metæ, round which both horses and chariots went, the distances between them, and in fact as to any understanding of the economy of the course, Of the actual size of the Olympic Hippodrome we are without any direct knowledge, but if we may venture to form a conclusion from analogy, we are enabled to draw our deductions from sufficiently clear premises. On the occasion of the appearance of Alcibiades as an actor in the Olympian ceremonies, of which I have before spoken, he brought seven chariots to contend in the games, and no doubt he had many competitors opposed to him. In a description of a chariot-race by Sophocles, (I think in the Electra,) he speaks of ten as engaged at once; and Pindar tells us of forty that ran at one and the same time. Now the Romans never permitted more than four to contend together, and we may therefore reasonably conclude that the Circus Maximus was far inferior in extent to the Elean Hippodrome. From Dionysius Halicarnassus, we derive accurate information of the dimensions of the Circus Maximus. He describes it as an oval building of three stadia, or fifteen hundred feet long, and four plethra, or four hundred feet broad. In the centre was a line of pillars, obelisks, and altars; at either end of which were the metæ or goals, round which the chariots and horses made their turns. Though we cannot, certainly, from these data, arrive at any correct estimate of the space allotted to the course within the arena of the Grecian Hippodrome, we may fairly infer that it was considerably more extensive than that of the Roman Circus: upon the equally interesting questions, the lengths and classification of the Olympic races, we possess much clearer information. I do not think it convenient to mystify those who simply read for amusement or curiosity with quotations and conveyances from musty volumes of "Heathen Greek," but merely referring the curious in authorities to Pindar, we 66 Pausanias, and Hesychius, proceed to offer the essence extracted from the gleanings of their pages. The earliest description of chariot, which find introduced into the Olympic games, was the complete" chariot, from its being drawn by four horses of full age. In the 93rd Olympiad came the chariot drawn by two horses of full age: in the 99th that drawn by four colts, and in the 129th that drawn by two colts. Of the harness used by the Greeks; how their horses were attached to their chariots; indeed of almost any item of their horsefurniture, we know little or nothing. They used the rein and the trace, we are certain, but beyond that we can go little farther than surmise. We find, in the writers above-mentioned, long compound words relating to articles of equestrian caparison, but whether they bore resemblance to any now in use, or, indeed, whether we understand the uses to which they were applied by the ancients, is very doubtful. I made inquiry of Mr. Henning, the modeller of the Elgin and other ancient marbles, whose knowledge of the equestrian antiquities of early Greece constitutes him an authority on all matters relating to them, for some information respecting the bits of which he had discovered any traces. He could not assist me beyond the fact that, on some of the Elgin marbles, which had been exposed to the rain, he discovered the mouths of the horses stained as if from the effects of brass or copper, which led him to conclude that they at some period contained bits formed of either of those metals. To return to the business of the racing. I have spoken already of the mete which were situated at the two extremities of the line of statues and altars that occupied the centre of the area of the Hippodrome. These two pillars (one of which served for the starting post, and round both of which the course ran,) divided the circuit of the arena into two equal parts, and were two stadia distant from each other. Now the race between the "complete" chariots, or those drawn by aged horses, consisted of twelve rounds, or forty-eight stadia, and that of the chariots drawn by colts, of eight rounds, or thirty-two stadia-the former equal to six, and the latter to four Grecian miles, or one-fifth less than the same distance according to our measurement. Here we have the length of course performed by the equipages according to the classes to which they belonged; and to this simple expedient all attempt to bring them together appears to have been limited. Lots, indeed, were drawn for places, but in a race extending to a dozen rounds, the constant changes must have rendered that a precaution of little consequence. That the science of the course should have remained in so rude a condition among so polished and astute a people as the Greeks is a puzzling anomaly. That art had been employed in cultivating the breed of the horse from the very earliest ages, we have reason to infer from many pages of ancient history. Laomedon, one of the early kings of Troy, is represented as possessing a race of great renown for the purity and excellence of its blood; and so celebrated was the breed of Adrastus that its origin was held to have been celestial. How inexplicable then does it seem, that during the existence of the Olympic games, which extended over a space of a thousand years, the system of racing practised by the most polished people in the world, should have been so permitted to remain in the condition in which we find it by the records that have reached us. It would be indeed strange, if such were the case: it requires but that a proper view of the subject be taken, to enable us to arrive at a far different conclusion. It is impossible to conceive a people, who have bequeathed us such immortal monuments of their wisdom, their power, and their perfection in all the arts of civilization, failing in a design of such social importance as the introduction of racing into their great popular games, from want of skill in its organization. If we look carefully into the old system of the contests between chariots, as well as those between mounted horses in the Elean Hippodrome, we shall soon discover that they were by no means intended as mere trials of speed. Courage and ardour, in both men and horses, were the first and infinitely the most essential properties. Let us for an instant imagine the start for a chariot race. They draw up abreast, perhaps forty-even suppose twenty-constituting a field of eighty horses! not a quarter of a mile before them is the pillar round which all must turn, and on which the eyes of the charioteers are eagerly intent. The trumpet peals, and away they burst with a crash like the artillery of heaven. The barrier has fallen, and they press for the one point. What courage, what skill must they possess, who steer this fearful passage. What perfect obedience, what training, what strength and speed should distinguish the coursers chosen for so desperate an encounter. But the dangers and difficulties they had to contend with were not confined to such as were incidental to the race itself. Artificial annoyances and perplexities of various kinds were placed at different points of the course, such as called for a high degree of training in animals exposed to them. In the description of the Olympian Hippodrome by Pausanias, already quoted, mention is made of one of these artificial obstacles-the altar of Taraxippus. It is not necessary to go the whole way with the Grecian, and suppose that some supernatural horror affected such horses as were compelled to pass that illomened shrine. We can easily conceive that, it being deemed necessary to devise some means of subjecting the horses, engaged in the chariot races, to a sudden and violent alarm, those who were chosen to conduct the business of the games were at no loss to accomplish it. Some artifice, and one as powerful as ingenious, no doubt, was practised, by which, in many cases, as we are told by Pausanias, "the consternation of the coursers was so great, that, regarding no longer the rein, the whip, or the voice of their master, they broke and overturned the chariot, and wounded the driver. The charioteers, therefore, failed not to offer sacrifice to Taraxippus, in order to deprecate his wrath and render him favourable to them." The better to support my position, that speed was not the quality alone in the horse that the Greeks designed to foster and promote by the introduction of racing in the Olympic games, it will be necessary to examine the manner in which the contests between the riding horses were conducted. These races were of two kinds-that of the Celes, or horses and mares indifferently, and that of the Calpé, for mares only. I cannot find that anything like weighting was practised in these contests; in fact, we are inferentially assured that such could not have been the case, as in all instances the jockeys rode in puris naturalibus, and without horse-gear of any kind, except the bridle. I have not been able to discover whether the ages had anything to do with the system of classification, neither can I find any allusion to the lengths of the various courses, but the stratagems used by the riders are dwelt upon by all who have written of these games. When the final struggle approached, the jockeys were to be seen vaulting from their steeds, and finishing the race, leading them by their bridles. There is a great deal of obscurity as to the regulations by which this evolution was provided for; that it was obligatory, there cannot be a question. It is clear that no purpose of speed could have been served by it, as also that it was not adopted on all occasions. When Philip, of Macedon, and Hiero, of Syracuse, contended in the race of riding horses, we cannot suppose that they laid aside the imperial purple, or exhibited as voltigeurs. The general system, however, was certainly that already described; and that it embodied an exhibition of great skill, and a contest of powerful interest, needs no other proof than that it had all Greece for its spectators. I have adopted that which I conceive the most convenient, and certainly the least presumptuous way of supporting the opinion I have seen occasion to express, upon the design of the equestrian exercises introduced into the great festival at Elis. Racing, as a sport whose end was to contrast the speed of horses only, was unknown to the Greeks. Whether it was known at all to the ancients will be a future consideration, our present business being solely with those celebrated games, of which, by a very general error, it is regarded as having formed a part. The chariot races at Elis were essentially warlike exercises, and nothing else. Ardour, spirit, strength, and courage, combined all the physical properties required of the animal about to engage in them. And even did not the character of those contests convince us of this, the construction of the Grecian horse, handed down to us by her living marbles, would be proof past gainsaying. The courser of the frieze of the Parthenon, is a highly artificial creation; a perfect union of those particular qualities, the possession of which constituted the degree of his excellence. Peace was all but unknown to the Greeks. War was the great concern of their lives, and to it their pleasures were made to apply and administer. Their social code may, indeed, be regarded as typified in Lucian's celebrated dialogue between Solon and Anacharsis. To fit her citizens for the field, was the object and sole purpose of those who first gave to Greece the renowned festival at Olympia. So long as it endured, throughout the whole civilized world there was an incentive to improve the original species of the horse. Is it asked what connexion is there between the subject of this chapter and the history of the Turf? The reply is a plain one: art received its earliest stimulus to cultivate and improve the noblest animal in creation, when the first war-horse was seen in the Olympic games. SPORTING IN THE BRITISH PROVINCES OF NORTH AMERICA. To the Editor of the Sporting Review. I HAVE just read an article in your excellent REVIEW on the dearth of field-sports in the New World, written by one who appears to know something of sporting, but which I cannot allow to pass without comment. Your writer begins with declaring that there are actually no fieldsports properly so called in the whole Continent of North America, and that, with the exception of a little horse-racing, the Americans have actually no recreations or amusements that would appear to come under the general code of Sporting. He also says that America is not better off as regards shooting, woodcocks being found in small numbers, and snipes not abundant. The author of the "Backwoods" has either forgotten, or else is not aware, that, besides the United States, there are certain British Provinces in North America, called New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, to which his observations do not apply; that there the right old English feeling is kept up, and such sports as the country affords are enjoyed in a sporting manner. Let me inform him that at Halifax there is a highly respectable and well-conducted Jockey Club, and that regular races, which continue three days, take place there annually, and that, in future, it is expected there will be two meetings during the season. A cup, value 100 guineas, is given every year for three-year-olds, thorough-breds only; and it may be stated that as much attention is paid to pedigree in those Provinces as he will find in England, while more care is taken to have an authentic record than appears to have been the case in the matter of Bloomsbury here. The legislatures of those Colonies have, at various times, appropriated large sums for the purchase and importation of thorough-bred horses and mares, and their produce is fast spreading over the whole country." Tandem Clubs," in the various colonial towns, have made that a favourite style of driving, and a thorough-bred leader is now considered "quite the thing" with British North American fashionables and sporting men. Hurdle races have been introduced of late, and have become very popular; although I have seen a number in New Brunswick, the only accident I remember happened to Lord William Hill of the 43rd, who broke his collar-bone in going at a stiff double hurdle. At the last hurdle race at Fredericktown, Longlegs, the property of the Honourable Mr. Baillie, bolted, and carried his rider handsomely over a pair of horses that were standing attached to a gentleman's carriage near the course; a proof, at all events, that Longlegs is not bad at a leap. Your writer does not seem to be aware, either, that there is abundance of fly-fishing, both for salmon and trout, in those Provinces, which may be enjoyed to any extent in the most sporting and gentleman-like manner. Let him try the vicinity of Halifax, or the river Nashwaak, near Fredericktown, and he will confess that the salmonfishing is not amiss. Let him visit river Philip in June, and he will find there parties of sportsmen killing the beautiful sea-trout, from three to seven pounds weight, in quantities, and, at the close of the day, enjoying their iced-claret and Madeira, at a most reasonable rate, in a very clean and comfortable inn by the river side. But fly-fishing |