What is the nature of Paul's partnership with Bassett in "The Rocking-Horse Winner"?

In D. H. Lawrence's "The Rocking-Horse Winner," Paul and Bassett—the young protagonist and his family's gardener—have partnered together to gamble on horse racing. The partnership is equal in the sense that its success hinges upon both partners holding up their end of the agreement.

Paul is too young to make the bets himself. He also does not wish his mother to find out, as he believes she would put a stop to it. For these reasons, he must rely on Bassett to place the bets for him. On the other hand, Bassett must also rely on Paul, as he is the one picking the winners.

Bassett used to be "batman" (i.e., servant to a British Army officer) to Paul's uncle, Oscar Cresswell. After injuring his foot, Oscar helped Bassett get a job as a gardener for Paul's family. At the start of "The Rocking-Horse Winner," the pair have already been partners for a while, building up quite a stockpile of money. In a sense, Bassett has now also become "batman" to Paul, though it does not take away from the latter's reliance on the former.

The pair's process is as follows: Paul rides his rocking horse, where he gets an idea of who to bet on:

"Sometimes I'm absolutely sure, like about Daffodil," said the boy; "and sometimes I have an idea; and sometimes I haven't even an idea, have I, Bassett? Then we're careful, because we mostly go down."

As Paul is too young to do so, Bassett is the one who must go place the bets. He is also responsible for holding on to their winnings for safe keeping. The two of them only place large bets on horses that Paul is "absolutely" certain will win. Until Uncle Oscar discovers Paul's gift of luck, the pair keep this a secret from everyone else in the family.

What deal does Paul make with Bassett and Uncle Oscar in "The Rocking-Horse Winner"?

In "The Rocking-Horse Winner," Paul reveals to his uncle Oscar that he has gone into partnership with Bassett, the gardener. He first went to Bassett for information about horse racing, and now they have an arrangement whereby Paul gives Bassett tips on the winners he predicts and Bassett places bets for Paul. Oscar is dismissive of this arrangement, but he is persuaded that there is something in it when Paul picks a winner, Daffodil, that Oscar did not believe had a chance. Paul also reveals that he has made over three hundred pounds so far by betting on races in partnership with Bassett.

Paul offers to make Oscar a partner as well, so long as he keeps the secret. He says that he believes all three of them are lucky. Oscar is still skeptical but is convinced when he has spoken to Basset and seen all the money that Paul has won. Since he won another twelve hundred pounds on Daffodil, this now amounts to more than fifteen hundred pounds, a very large sum. Neither Bassett nor Oscar has any idea how Paul manages to pick so many winning horses, but Bassett says that it seems "as if he had it from heaven." The three of them, therefore, form a profitable racing syndicate.