The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1873-09-23
Agricultural department.
CONDUCTED BY ALBERT MAN.
The Morgans in Kentucky.

rhe MOrgans in Kentucky.
The wel.known contributor to the Spir.
II of the Time, S. 7. H., has been visit
ing the farm Of Col. Robert S. Strader,
at Bulletsvile, Boone Co., Ky, and in a
description Of his stock thus expresses his
views of the Morgaus, and advantage of
breeding from developed trotters
The leading breeders of the blue grass
regions conhne themselves to the most dis.
tinguished branches of the Messenger fam.
ily-the Abdallahs and Mambrinos, and
regard the Morgans as buffers, but pos.
sessing speed at very short distance.
But Col Strader, impressed with the fact
that the Clays and Morgans have more
brilliant record in the number ard speed
of their representatives than the Nam
brinos, has introduced the noted black
Morgan stallion Draco to cross on the
high bred trotting and thoroughbred mares
of Kentucky. When Draco landed on
the sacred SOIL his size astonished them
all. lie stands fifteen hands three inches
high, and has great length Of body and
width Of quarters in proportion to his
height. lie is the longest, broadest.bod-
led horse for his size ever examined.
His legs are very stout, the bones being
fat and wide, the joints strong and clean,
the shoulder points very prominent, the
back well curved and arched, the loiDs
remarkably broad and swelling full with
stout muscles, the hips smooth, yet stand
ing well out, while the stiles and second
thighs and hooks and broad hind legs dis
play wealth of power and endurance and
stamina that command your admiration.
The head is rather large and not finely
finished, while the neck and withers are
not so clean and blood-like US most trot-
ting sires in Kentucky. La these respects
he resembles all the Eastern-bred STALL
ions, which are uniformly shorter in the
neck, coarser in the jowl, rougher in the
head than the Western.brcd trotters But
when you stand by his side and take a
profile of his frame, you see very distinct
ly the " trotting pitch" displayed-that
is, his form is low to the ground and the
body slopes rapidly from the high hip
bones down to the sharp shoulder points,
just as they do in most trotting horses
when bending down to their greatest
speed Nearly every trotter, when stand
ing still, will show this trotting pitch, ="
and uone more rcmar kably so than Draco.
These peculiarities-his length and
breadth, and power Of bone and muscle,
and " trotting pitch Impressed me ia.
vorably while he was standing before us,
but they were all magnied when he was
driven on the track. His long, low, stea
dy stride, nicely balanced by his knec.ac-
ton, that lifted his forefeet promptly out
of the way and obviated the necessity of
grabbing boots; and his powerful hind
action, neither wide nor close, but so true
in line it economical all superhuous
muscular force, and enabled him to gath
er with ease and rapdity, gave us a fine
speciman of faultess trotting action. That
exceedingly able judge of trotter, DR..
Herr, quietly remarked Draco don t
look like Morgan to me, he is on grand
er scale. He looks like the first cross of
the Mambrinos." To me he is better
stock horse than Ethan Allen, because he
has more size and power. Draco was
fcaled in June, 1858, the property of
Robert Lane, Danville VT, and was sir
cd by Young Morrill,, he by Old Morrill,,
he by the Jennison horse, son Of Young
Bulrush Morgan, he by Old Bulrush, he
by Justin Morgan. The dam OF Draco
was sired by the Holt horse, he by the
Bailey horse, he by Woodbury. Morgan,
and he by Justin Morgan. Thus, Fear.
naught, Draco is a closely inbred Morgan
He beat every stallion Of his day, except.
ing Ethan Allen and George Wilkes and
won a race and record Of 2:2S 10 a Sc
yerely.contested match OF mile heats.
His son Draco Prince has record OF
2:24 4. and many others Of his sons and
daughters have meritorious performances
accredited to them in the turf annals. So
that he is not only an inbred Morgan and
developed trottor, but the sire of trot-
tiers. Heretofore trotting sires have not
been generally developed tfotters. 1t is
amazing how successful these undeveoped
sires have been. Rysdyk's Hambletonian
and DR.. Herr i Mambrino Patchen arc
the most distinguished examples But
who can approximate to their increased
usefulness if, like Ethan Allen and George
NJ. Patchen, they had been developed
trotters? Their trotting ambition and
trotting muscle and trotting form would
undoubtedly have been intensified. In
this regard the breeders Of running horses
are decidedly in advance Of the raisers Of
trotters. When they desire to produce a
race.horsc they mover avail themselves Of
the services Of an unframed thoroughbred,
no matter how rich pedigree or how
brilliant the performances of his full
brothers and sisters. On the contrary,
they reduce the chances of failure by
breeding to thoroughly tried and devel.
oped winner like Lexington or Leaning.
ton. If like produces like, the thorough.
bred breeder is justified in making only
winners his favor;te stock horses, and the
rasers of trotters in Kentucky should fol.
low the example Of Col. Robert Strader,
and Coons, and Wilson. and DR.. Price,
and DR.. Herr, and others-of placing al
the head Of their harems developed trot.
tiers. In my judgment, they will produce
a race Of trofters superior in speed and
bottum to any that have honorcd the
American turf.