Sporting notions of present days and past

158 SPORTING NOTIONS
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this sort of stuff is repellent and repugnant to
the people whose opinion is worth taking. How
should they catch such an idea? They see
the flaming, flaunting, or miserably otherwise
advertisements, and must suppose those to be
acceptable to John Bull, because, in short, they
are
to be seen whichever way you turn, and
it is fair to conjecture they would not appear
at all if they were not marketable commodities.
Clever handling by the Press can work up
almost anything from a christening to an earth-
quake, into a boom, and humbug newspaper
buyers till they verily believe they are fervently
interested in something about which they in
their heart of hearts care precious little. Not
so much harm would be done if only the outside
public realised that tiffs and jars are as inevitable
in human sport as in human anything else
and blow one as promptly. All comes out right
in the wash—at least it would but for this
confounded outside interest. Does anyone
suppose that a big regatta at home generally
passes off without many little disagreements, or
a football match, or any other strong competition ?
Why, bless you, you would sometimes think
there must be bloodshed, and plentiful shedding
of blood, too, after so apparently a plain matter
as a mile foot-race handicap with a numerous
field. And may I ask those who have been
on the rails at a bend when a troop of horses
have been crowded by their riders, all wanting
the best inside berth—what have they, the
onlookers, thought, must happen when such as
did not kill each other in consequence of, at
the time, alleged deliberate foul play came back,
were weighed out, got off the premises, and