He "earned a reputation for honesty and talent combined, excelled by none of his compeers." Elsewhere, it is said that he rode scrupulously to orders and could not be induced to bet. Some other accounts dispute this, saying he occasionally bet like all jockeys, but was careful and shrewd. It is said that even though he rode many trials of horses, he would never afterwards reveal how they had performed. He was, in fact, "One of the most honourable and meritorious men of his class has been ever encountered," "one of the most respectable and honourable knights of