Show RACE FACE TO DEATH there la Is nover cover any lack of in dublin ballrooms and that year I 1 cannot help thinking that there was waa more than the usual asual proportion of attraction trao traction tion but of all the girls who compelled devotion there wi nobody quite quita so charming as aa mary macartney when she eho was presented at the castle the lord lieutenant administered his official kiss with peculiar unction auction and was afterward heard to say any that if his duties were always as aa pleasant ho he could bear a very tery frequent repetition of them the vico vice regal opinion wa svery ry cordially te re echoed by everybody and wherever mary went her progress was a scene of triumph the two hundredth was devoted to her to a man one dance in an ac evening was a thing to bo be proud of and it if she deigned to give any fortunate man two ho he was at once placed upon a pinnacle pinn aclo of social superiority finch and seymour were it her or devoted admirers and had bad 11 i all own way in her preference I 1 wont say affections for I 1 believe she could only have looked upon them as ai two editions of trio samo same man and they were so loyal to each other that they appeared to have the one special ton dresse in common with their other properties the two hundredth was about to have hava its great function of the year its iti regimental steeplechases steeplechaser steeple chases all the boat of the animals that had kone gone through the limiting hunting campaign were entered for the various events and themes the mesa table talk which for months had run upon scent find finish and tho the casualties of the chase turned to handicapping we weights bights and racing conditions F inch finch and seymour now ns as on othor other occasions took a foremost place each of them owned horses rather above the average in quality and orach each had one entered for the regimental cup As I 1 said before both of them wore were good performers in tho the pigskin and it was more than probable that if they started captain seymours mousetrap did I 1 tell you that seymour had just got his troop while finch was senior beater subaltern und and mr fincha sorcerer would start as equal fave favorites rites the two friends did all their training and galloping together and I 1 believe that though each intended to rido ride his horse out and do his hie best they did not much care how thy would bo be placed at the finish so long as one was first and the other second of course we expected all our friends to come to our race meeting and made plentiful provision for their entertainment given tho the officers of a cavalry regiment bent on making holiday add tents luncheon band and a fine spring day and you form a series of attractions which will collect people from far and near especially in ireland when the day of the meeting came it was all that could bo be wished there was a bright sun and a soft wind and there had bad been just a sufficient sprinkling of rain overnight to lay the dust and make the drive to the course delightful while the few light clouds in tho the horizon were not discouraging enough to prevent our fair friends from putting on their freshest and prettiest toilets coach after coach rattled over carlisle bridge each with a full load and each with a bit of muslin on the box br brakes alies carriages and cars innumerable the harveys doing honor to the occasions by volleys of chaff and many adornments on their light hearted selves and their apparently equally gay and light hearted well wall bred nags the race course was about eight mil miles as from the city in the howth direction and if tho the day were to have no other pleasure tho the drive down with occasional glimpses glimp soa sos of the beautiful bay of dublin celebrated in song was enough of enjoyment for any one wo we arrived at the deceno of action and the business of the day commenced the subaltern subal terns 8 cup was waa the first event and I 1 must say the boys did credit to the old two hundredth tho the senior subalterns subal terns were v ero lying by for the regimental cup and the juniors had the raco to themselves it was won by young molesworth whoso choso round shoulders and unconquerably ugly seat had caused much conflict of opinion between him and the old tiding master showed that it if he were not destined to shine in tho the monago menage he be had bail at any rate indisputable nerve and enough seat and hands to take him over a difficult country he afterward became one of our best beat men on a horse and won equestrian honors boners in many ticklish places then came an hours interval for lunch but of course those who going to ride lido had bad to put the muzzle on I 1 just looked into the tent before going to weigh and saw mary macartney looking as sweet as aa ever seymour and finch wore were both with her and alid she was wishing them good luck in their gallop As they aliey left her safely in the culo colonels nels charge I 1 heard board her bar say now mind I 1 expect you two to beat everybody else and I 1 shall the ie particularly nice to the one who wins wina I 1 may even give him two dances at the castle ball tomorrow night tho the two hundredth were pretty businesslike in matters of sport and there was none of the fuss and delay in the weighing room that too often marks the doings of amateur jockeys punctual to time the starters filed out of the paddock I 1 think there were eight of us seymours colors were rose joao and black cap and fincha blue and red sash mousetrap and sorcerer were a long way the host best of the runn nera ners to look at mousetrap was a bik big bony bay horse with rather a slack neck but bat the best of shoulders tremendous jumping power and a great turn of speed ile he required a workman to rido bim ni lg hi hitzner was waa easily rut ruffled ilett but in aymour a hands he be generally went like a lamb sorcerer wai wag one of choso exceptional horses that can take a turn tum at anything ile ho had bad gone through training in the riding school and on occasions was tho the best of chargers no he was so BO good looking that when he had bail a military kit on there was no horse in tho the regiment that looked more showy than ho he did but vie the whito white hairs haira on oil lis hia chestnut coat and the silvery looks in his big tall tail showed the blood of old war look and he bo had a largo share of the biti pace cleverness and staying power that marked his bis great ancestor As an we rods down the course I 1 could hear bear the few bookies who were present s tho the ring reckoning up the chances of the field in stentor iw cries of 15 5 to 1 4 har bar two 1 I 1 7 was aidin tiding g a confidential old buntel hunton which was warranted to stand up over tho country but I 1 had only entered hill libin to mako make up tho the raco and unless most ot tho the others come came to grief I 1 had bad not tile the smallest chance to be heard of at the alio finish fillish thore there is not much dl in starting a steeplechase and we all got away vary very well wo we negotiated d tho the first three ur four fences without tiny any casualties but then wo we legan to thin out a little hard mouthed old J jado ado went outside the flag at tho the first turn and lie he did not manage to stop her till sho she had gone half a milo mile toward dublin wilson and mackworth fell at tho the water jump to the unconcealed satisfaction of the crowd which had bail collected there and there wore were only five of us left jacky thompson was wag lending leading seymour and F finch inch were riding sido side by side evidently intending to wait till we were nearer homo home and then come to the front and finish together about a length behind them was wag percy and I 1 brought up tho the rear there was a long stretch of grass rather down hill on the farther side of tho the course from the stand and hero we began to put on the pace percy evidently thought it was now or never and that if he allowed himself to get too far behind ho he would not bo be able to push forward again so BO bo be mado made a determined effort and shot past seymour nud and finch I 1 think old mousetraps Mouse traps temper must have been upset by boeing ft A hordo passing so BO close I 1 saw him shake his head and try to got aw away alty from seymour Boy mour the next fence was a bank with a ditch on the taking off side it was waa nothing of a place really but only required qu fred a little cire care thompson got avex ovex cleverly clovo ily and gercys horse took the whole in liis his stride then camo came seymour who had hardly steadied mousetrap but oven even so the horse ought not te tc havo have made a mistake perhaps ho he was flurr ried or there may have boon a stump bricking up where a bush had bad been out away I 1 dont know howit how it happened but the liff ilso hit something lost his big feet and fell on the bank seymour was all right and got clear nt at once slipping bauk bade into the ditch I 1 told you finch had been alongside of seymour and lie ho was close behind him at the fence sorcerer jumped it beautifully but to my horror as aa he was kicking back at the bank I 1 saw faw the hoof on his off hind foot strike the head of seymour who loll fell down even amid the rattle of the tha horses it seemed boomed to me that I 1 could he hoai th the 0 dull crash of broken bono bone nud and I 1 was waa sure that a terrible accident had happened so sure was waa I 1 that though one does not often pull up in a race I 1 stopped my horse which indeed had not now tho the smallest chanco chance dismounted aud ran to pick up seymour poor follow I 1 I 1 lind had not been mistaken ini taken and could almost trace the print of the cruel horseshoe on the back of liis his head he way waff nearly kris senseless eless and just muttered cold cold 1 A small asdall crowd had begun to collect and I 1 borrowed a couple of friezo coats coata from two sympathizing countrymen trying with them to cover my iny poor friend and laid him in as caay a position its as possible the race glasses at tho the stand had bad seen that something serious had happened and our good old surgeon macpherson camo came up on a trooper which lie ho had bad taken from one of our men who wits was keeping the ground when lie ho had bail examined the injury his lind kind faco fa cofell fell as aa ho be said fear the uwe e of thu the skull is ia fractured if so it is ia only a question of hours fortunately the accident had find happened near the road an and d a carniago oar car riago was quickly procured in which chich seymour was placed and taken away awat by macpherson when I 1 camo came back to tho the stand I 1 found that finch had won tho the raco race easily and was still quito quite unconscious that his friend was hurt I 1 did not toll tell him tho the particulars but only said that it lad had been thought better to take seymour saymour back bacic to dublin iio he pulled a wrapper over liis his racing jacket j on oil a hack aback nud and started at a gallop in pursuit immediately afterward I 1 met mary MacaTt macartney noy sho she had a very tory whito white lace faco 4 aud and tears in her deep violet eyes as aa she ehe besought me ino to toll her if the accident had been dangerous I 1 mado made the tha test lest of oc things thing but she ehe I 1 think divined tho the end truth anama and mado dober her mother take her homo home thoro there was waa a heavy cloud over everybody for the rest of the day and though wo got through all thy the races on tho card there ther ewas was little spirit in anything and wo we were glad when we were ablo able to break up thoro there was little chaff or fun on the drive homo bome we to had a miserable timo time of alter nato mato hopes and coara about our comrade but in three days all wa was 9 over finch wai inconsolable though fortunately neither lie ho nor any one else at the tha timo time knew that ho he had bad boon been tho the cause of seymours death itam it was alway aldaya s supposed that mousetrap had kicked his master in his struggles to recover himself when ho he fell I 1 have never told the real story till tonight and yon will not let I 1 it t go further sir thomas finch Is ia a groat great swell now but I 1 dont think ho be would learn leani without deep pain that however innocently ho he wai wag the cause of tile tho death vacancy by which lie ho got the troop that g aso io him tho the first start in his career carcer ahl t became of mary macartney oh blo is lady finch and yon iny my I 1 think sho she is 18 still as aa beautiful fu I 1 an and charming as aa eyer eifer p pall a 11 mall magi M gs aaa |