Six writs were served upon Lord George and six upon his
partner, Mr. Bowes, in the year 1843, but the plantiff failed to prove
the making of the bets and it is obvious that the statute was
unworkable. The attempt to put it into force merely shows the condition
of racing at the time and the opposition which men who were honourable
in their motives had to meet with in their efforts to guard it against
reproach, as far as their sporting instincts allowed them.
In 1844 Lord George had as many as thirty-eight horses running in races,
and his estimated expenses in 1845 for sixty horses in training were
about L40,000, while, the value of the stakes was about L18,000, so that
to make racing pay he had to rely upon the success of his betting
transactions.
Disraeli called him the "Lord Paramount of the British Turf," which well
described his ascendency at the time.
Notwithstanding the magnitude of his bets, Lord George was always cool
in temperament while other men who, though they might be quite able to
stand a loss, were full of nervous excitement when only a small sum was
risked.
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