The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1874-07-07

more durable, aud less liable to become
uusouud from common every day work,
or continuous severe driving
After discussing the Influence of Nam.
brine aud Messenger IN creating our pres.
ent trotting stock, Mr. Wallace proceeds
to consider the next Of the subdivisions in
which the essay is arraigned, under his
second heading:
I'd. If this prominence is justly given to Nam
brine and Messenger, they being thoroughbred,
may we not expect equally good result from other
thoroughbredsy
The author says There is 10 rule by
which we can determine the correct an.
swer to this inquiry, except in past ex-
perience. Toassume that a thoroughbred
horse cannot trot would be unphilosophi.
cal but to determine whether be has
trotted is a matter that is proper sub.
ject for investigation, and to That inves.
tigation | invite your attention" He
then gives detailed list of all the trot.
tiers of prominence that has appeared in
troitips history, with the claim Of being
thoroughbred, or of having thoroughbred
sres. He discusses the claims Of each
at considerable length, and discards one
after another until he arrives at the fol-
lowing conclusions:
Trotting horses strictly thoroughbred
pot one with record.
Trotting horses claimed to be thorough.
bred-six.
Trotters falsely claimed as by thorough.
bred sires-nine.
Trotters truly claimed as by thorough.
bred sires-four
The author says ain all the range of
well informed gentlemen before whom
this condcnse statement will come. | doubt
whether there is single one prepared to
believe it There must be some terrible
mistake one will argue If SO, please
correct it. There must be scores of
omissions another will say If so please
supply them. But permit me to say, after
you have sought for errors and omissions
till you have tried over and over again,
you will find, Substantially, the whole
truth in these twelve lines
The lesson thus taught by Mr.. Wallace
would 60 to discourage the use of thorough
bred blood when trotting speed was at all
desired, and were it to be accepted with.
out allowance, would produce most
wonderful change in the course very OK.
tcnsivcly adopted by n large proportion
of the most enteprsing breeders of the
day. There is however an impression Of
something wanting that at once strikes
the thoughtful reader Of Mr.. Wallace S
illustration, and while no fault can be
found with his argument SO far as he
carries it, a score Of unanswered questions
come crowding upon the mind before it is
willing readily to yield the loin: that the
blood Of the thoroughbred is valueless as
an auxiliary for the production of the trot.
ting horse for track purposes,
First the thought arises, why docs not
the illustration consider thoroughbred
dams as well as thoroughbred sires
Tten how many Of our trotters that 90
fast and stay far, have a thoroughbred
cross III the second removed? Again
how much has the thoroughbred suffered
in Mr. Wallacc's mode Of illustration
through lost pedgrees in these days Of nc
stud. books, when it is DO small tax to
remember the five required crosses nee
essary TO place an animal in the thorough.
bred list, while the loss Of Que cross con.
signed him to the other side which has
no crosses to prove, and not only that
swallows up every thoroughbred whose
pedigree is lost q?
Again if no thoroughbred sire Of the
present day seems capable OF giving us a
trottcr Of present day merit how are VIC
to know that either English Mambrino OF
his son Messenger, if recalled among US
could do more? If we are not to sup.
pose any speed from the modern thor.
oughbrcd that is not demonstrated why
suppose any from Messenger and Nam
brine? But they founded a race of trot.
tiers Well, how many generations did
it take them to work up the "instinct
to its present results? If they got nc
more speed then tnan q selected modern
thoroughbred may get mar shall we Place
any such exclusive value upon the OIL igin
al "instinct" they possessed, as to debar
us from expecting even to see parallel
case in all time? If the trottng horse
Of Messenger descent, with seventy year:
of selection and development, is better
in staying qualities than that which the
same period Of equal attention has de.
rived from lower bred sources, may We
not by aid Of the improved leaven o.
modern times, hope by absorbing thor.
oughbred bottom. blood in moderate guam
titles at me, to improve the average
staying qualities Of some of our more
flashy crosses, if not TO raise the standard
altogether?
Mr. Wallace has thrown open the door
to great and interesting question-one
that has from the earliest times been the
theme Of more worthless and bgoted
opinions than any ono subject connected
with the trotting horse The publication
Of the Register, with its pcdigrees and
tables Of performances, places for the
first time tangible evidence in the hand.
of students Of the subject, from which
approximately truthful and certainly val
liable conclusions may be drawn. 1t i,
true that many obstacles must yet be en-
cOuntered which, could they be set aside
would admit more light upon this inter
cstipg subject, but the ground covered by
the Register is very broad, and that ii
which it falls short, is but increasing
evidence that its establishment did no
occur day too early. In view of THU
question of thoroughbred blood, one o
these obstacles occurs in the unknown
links in the pedigree Of Seely's American
Star. This horse wss presumably tho
roughbred, but even with the extensive
researches of Mr.. Wallace regarding hi
pedigree, the point is not susceptible o
proof. All the characteristics of himsel
} and his numerous get, speak strongly il
favor of the hypothesis. At most, the