CARBINE AT STUD

Carbine was retired in October 1891 with career earnings of £29,626, that remained a record in Australasia for thirty years. Only a few months earlier in July, Wallace had purchased 700 acres of land next to the Broadlands Stud of Albert and Septimus Miller, on the Lerderderg River close to the township of Bacchus Marsh. The area was noted for its dairy farming although the success of the Miller Brothers is reportedly what drew Wallace to the region. He paid £20,000 for the property that was to be named Lederberg Stud. Here he installed Carbine alongside his other Melbourne Cup winner in Mentor.

At stud, the horse continued his quirky ways. He disliked getting his head wet, to an extent that a “hat” was devised for him to keep the top of his head and his ears dry during inclement weather, and that hat traveled with him to England, where he also wore it. When at stud in England, he received regular ridden exercise. The first few minutes consisting of bucking, after which his long-time groom, Jack Cunningham, who came with him from Australia, would slap him on the neck, “Come on, Old Jack, don’t make a fool of yourself any longer,” after which he would walk on a