Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1867-08-14
9}tisfFJlaag.
AMONG THE TROTTERs.

Captain MCGOWAN, Dexter, Brown George and
Fearless-"PersonalA Appearance" Of the Fast
Ones.
A correspondent Of the Torld gives a
racy sketch Of a visit to some of the
well-known fast trotters at Island Park
Course. The first one looked at was
Capt. McGowan," a request for which
boon made to the owner was answered
by a reference to the valet and major
domo of the animal. This functionary,
like most of his profession, affects a certain
naughty reserve, and, like all his prefes-
sion, chews tobacco and expectorates with
profusion. But though a horseman he
is human, and the hinges of his heart
are lubricable, by what the Tribune calls
"rum," though for fact his ostlership
takes gin-cooktail sour. The cookies Of
his heart (what are the cookies of a man. S
heart p having been thus warmed, we
venturned to approach him on the sub
iect nearest our own. Might we see the
"Captain ?" ''Yaas, I s'pose so, ," was the
reluctant reply, and under protest, as it
we're, he produced the key and led the
way gloomiIy to the stables. The key
opened the door of large, loose box,
where was a beast ofwhich it could.Only
be seen that it was a qUarupedal, 50 low
did its blankets hang, and so completely
was the rest of it swathed in red flannel
bandages Our guide, philosopher and
friend stripped off some of the wrappings
in silence and exposed his treasure to
our view.
We gazed. "That's what you call a
black-roan, isn't it ?"
With a derisive snort, "That's what
we call a steel-roan, my young friend
He amt much to look at, but he kin
trot, he kin"
"Captain McGovan," in point Of fact,
is a scrubby, wiry, bOb-tailed "steel-
roam" nag, such as no one would look
twice at if he were before a Washington
Market butchers cart, and no one would
expect to see anywhere else. But he has
certainly shown himself possessed of more
endurance than any horse that ever trot-
ted. In the last generation the horse
"Tom Thumb" was thought a miracle,
because once he trOtted twenty miles
within the hour. "McGowan" has done
it three or four times, and his match
Yesterday was against the best time Of
"Prince" miles in twenty eight min
utes and a few seconds. His owner was
ready to back him to almost any amount
to beat it. We ventured to inquire if the
"Captain" was kind.
"Jes's kinds a kitten"
Encouraged, we put for the hand of
hesitation to patthe "Captain's" haunch,
and the Captain" put forth the near
hind leg of lightning to perforate our
abdomen. We were half an inch out OF
range, but we sat down in a water buck
ct with extreme precipitation, and re-
marked to the effect that that was mis-
taken "kindness."
"Wall, he don't like strangers very
much, the Captain don't, that's fact. "
We asked his pedigree, and our tutor
began unctously to recount that he was
damned by So-and-so, who sired by
Thingumbob, who in turn was damned
by the other, and then returning to his
subject, struck off on the Captains" an
cestors in the male, and run that back
with equal particularly. If he had
known his own pedigree half so far, he
would have had The advantage Of most ol
Fifth avenue. All VIC remember Of the
horses genoalogyis the concluding state
ment that he is "higher thoroughbred
than any other trOttin' hOssin America
! We rubbed up our sporting reading
and "reminiscences a little, and ventured
to remark that "Ethan Allen" had very
pretty turn ofspeed, but We were met BY
the assertion that the "Captain" could
trot "Ethan Aliens" condemned head
off. Why, then, we asked, had not "Mc.
GoYan" been matched more in mile heats