The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1874-08-27

/ he "Maid" was wayward child
From the date Of her h,r h ON the
iarm OF John b. Decker. IN Wautap,
townships, Sussex county, y, Y, in
the spling Of 1885,, to the age of six
Years, she distinguished herself in
many ways. but never as a trot,er.-
She was unders,zed. nervous, and
fretfnl, and utterly refused heavy
farm work Mr.. Decker, her owner,
SAYS he never z I any work out OF
her but twi q, on. half day in plow-
ing corn and one half in drawing
stones. Once she was hitched to a
harrow, but after short distance
she reared backward and entangled
both her hind legs IN the cross-p piece
OF the harrow and so injured those
members. that when she goes out for
her morning walks, it is said. she still
shows signs of stiffness behind. cans-
ed by this fall i'll early life. From the
time she was six months old until
Mr.. Decker sold her, she was used as
race horse, though without her own
er's knowledge. The boys on the
farm, of course, as bows do, were
anxious to know which was tn, spec
diest horse, and at an early day they
found it was the "Mail." And so,
nj er the ''old man had gone to bed
they would take her out Of the pasture
or stable Whenever race could be
made up and run ON The road after
night. She beat everything tha,
could be brought 10 run with her, so
that finally none bat the uniformed
from 3 distance could be found to bet
against her. These races were made
up nj the country stores and loung-
ing places III the evening after farm
work was over. aud the race run the
same night after the "old man" had
gone to bed. No training, no grooms,
no jockey, no weight Tor age--just
a man or a boy in his bare feet,
mounted bareback, with his toes hug
ging the mares belly like a leech,
was the style; and the "Maid" no
doubt enjoyed it more than she has
some OF her late races in The trottiny
ring. One day, in The summer of
1863, two men were out buying hor-
ses for the army, and stopped all
night at Mr.. Decker's, and in the
msrning bought the maid" OF
him for two hundred aud sixty dollars,
and started for home. leaving the
mare behind them. On their way
they mel Mr.. To,npkins, who knew
the h'tle mare, and bought her of
them for three hundred and sixty dol
lars The TWO men also knew her
and h.hcved that she could be made
"A trot or, but were wiling to make
one hundred d liars by their morn
ing's bargain. The next day Tomp-
kins sold her 10 Alden Goldsmith. an
excel, nj Judge oi horse flesh, q.
Blooming Grove, Orange county. n.
V. for six hundred dollars. From
him she took the name OF Goldsmith
Maid. lie kept her iii pretty steady
training under driver named VIM
Bodine, to whom, more than any 9TH
er living man, should be awarded the
credit OF FIRST bringing the mare out
The renowned Budd Doble, who now
drives her SO hands ,nely, had not
then either 81 Ell or heard of her
While in training for the trotting
course she was so frrtiul and irritable,
so determined to run at every oppor-
tunity instead of trotting, so hard to
bring to trot after breaking from
that gait, that Mr.. Goldsmith MANY
times determined to give up The
training and sell her at any price, but
his patient driver maintained his abid
ing faith in her, and assured his EN-
ployer that she was the fastest animal
on his premises, and would come out
at last a great trotter, and finally per-
suaded hum tokcep her, which he did
until this driver SO brought out her
points that Mr.. Goldsmith, in Nov
1868, sold her to B. ,jackman and
Budd Doble, for twenty thousand
dollars. These geilenen sold her to
Mr.. II. n. Smith, for the sum of thir-
ty-seven thousand dollars. Mr..
Doblc st,ll drives her. She made her
first appearance in public in August,
ls65.-E'dtsriiie Joundi.