Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1879-06-23
BIRDsALL's SOFT I
How He Euchsrsd the Boys at a Horse
Race.

Virginia Ner.) Chronicle
"Speakin' of horse racin'," said
Jailer Birdsall last evening to a select
coterie in the city Jail, the tricks of
the turf being under discussion, az
had my dose once an I'm a horse
thief If l haven't kept it dark for
eighteen years. | was keepin' a big
stable on B street in 60, and there was
a sight O racin' goin' on in them
times and | wanted my fin in every
thing O. that kind. 1 was younger
and fresher than | am now. Two
horses, a black and gray, were brung
up from Genoa to run for $1,000 a side
at the track near Long Valley. The
race was to come off on Saturday.
and there was seine heavy bettin' On
the thing. | was holding back for
points before putting up my coin.
Bill Harness comes to me THURSDAY
an puts up the prettiest lob /
ever hear tell of. You don't
remember Bill, l S'pose. Well. he
was lynched over to Phoebe in II;
poor fellow. We took Rough Hardy
in an it was agreed that the swag
was to be divided equal. II was a
pretty job, and the chief beauty of il
was that it was so almighty easy and
simple. 1t was just for Hardy an me
to take the horses out the night afore
the race an speed EN- round the track
till we found their pace. 1t wouldn't
be no trick, then, at all, for US to haul
in all the pools and clean up handsome.
The nags was in my stable, which
made the business just too easy. Fri.
day night me an Hardy set TO work
and got the jockies blind, stavin
drunk, an by midnight they was as
limp an senseless as a pair O. lines.
Hardy an me, when we got EN- SO
they couldn't tell a stirrup from a dis.
lance pole, laid EN- out in the straw
in an empty stall, an took the black
and gray out for practice. 1t was a
pretty moonlight night, clear as day.
an eyerythin' worked slick. | rode
the black, an it beat the gray easy.
although they was both powerful good
goers. Then | took the gray an Hardy
took the black, so there couldn't be
no suspicion of roots agin one another.
and still the black Almost distanced
the gray. We Jest laughed till the
tears rolled down our jaws, when we
led them horses back TO their stalls. 10
think Of the soft thing we had on the
boys, an Hardy an me was quite will
lin to put in about two hours rubin
down them hyeTs,so as to remove all the
signs o the work they'd been through.
The race was mile heats, best two
in three, an me an Hardy was on the
track good an early next day takin'
everythin that was offered agin' the
black. We both had scads in them
times, an when the start was made
we'd about $4,000 on the black be.
tween US. We let up bettin' lest out
of pity for the poor devils that took us
up so innocent and eager. Every now
an then Harness an Hardy an me
would meet an 90 an take q drink an
roar out laughin' so you could hear Us
a mile. When the horses started
Hardy an me felt bigger'n old Grant.
II kind o surprised US to see the way
the gray lifted his feet though. am
when he came in a length ahead ~ the
black it kind O. made US feel uneasy
about the gills, OF course We knowed
it was the burned Jocks fault. an
managed to git to him an slip five
twenties into his fin. Let her out
this time, / SEE. IF the black wins
you'll get two hundred more He
give a wink an nodded. Boys. YOU
kin roast me if that id gray didn't
distance the black in the second heat !
In ten minutes was blind drunk an
k9oy'd no more till moFnig, Then |
oiled my shooter an started out 10 find
Hardy. fId found him he wouldn't
. been wqter-hght long, ! was sure
he'd put the Job Hp on nle on tho track
Friday night, We didn't happen to
meet. Friends looked out 10 that,
know now. Harness wasn't nowhere
around, an | found he'd gone 10 the
bay. 1t wasn't forty-eight hours aforc
the whole town was howlin' with de.
light at the way Hardy an med been
eat up. IL vas that cussed Harnes.
an his gang. They'd loaded the shoe,