Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-09-22
JOHNNY MURPHY'S GIFTS.
Mr.. Bonner Gets the Noted Jockey to
Perform Two Extraordinary Feats.
Nelr York SIM

While Johnny Murphy was exercising
Mr.. j. ROberg's mare on the track of the
Gentleman's Driving Park on Tuesday.
Mr.. Robert Bonner, Mr. Charles Back
man, Mr.. Carl Burr, John j. Quinn, and
j. II. Jonas, who were together on the
club house stOOp, fell to talking about
| him. Murphy is a noted trainer and
driver. He has been so long at his work
that his record runs back to Dexter. Be
cause of his sterling honesty Mr.. +. A.
Buck long ago christened him Honest
Johnny Murphy. Because of the hue of
his hair the late Charley Foster nicknamed
him the Red Prince. His honesty was re-
ferred to on Tuesday, and this story was
told of him; Murphy was the protege of
Hiram Woodruff. Hiram was as honest a
man us ever followed hOrsefesh. Hiram
had trained his hand and eye so that his
accuracy of aim when he threw at a mark
was wonderful. He never missed. One
trick he was fond of was the blowing of
straws ut mark. He reached perfection
at this On his deathbed he called his ia
vOrite, Murphy, to his side.
johnny" said he, ''you never threw
a race, did yOu?"
'No, SIR" said Murphy.
'Do you see that speck on the Wall?'
eyes, SIR"
The great hOrseman took a straw, put
one end of it in his mouth, and with a puff
actly to the speCk across the room. This
was done with great solemnity.
johnny" said Woodruff, 'as sure as
/ you saw me hit that mark, if ever YOU
/ throw race I'll come out of my grave
and haunt you"
The next story was also about Woodruff
and Murphy. When johnny was a mere
boy he rode Dexter in the great match
| against time that that monarch among
] hnrCnG in LftNh dob hot
! $4,000 against 81, 800 put up by George b.
! Alley, DeXter's owner, that the horse
! could not beat Flora Temples time of
| 2:l9M. The trial was made on the Fashion
! course in Jamaica. When Johnny and
! Dexter were ready, Woodruff said ''Now,
| Johnny, you go to the first quarter in "a
seconds. I'll he there when you pass,
and I'll tell you then what to do the rest
OF the way"
Dexter dashed up to the quarter exactly
/ on time, and Woodruff threw up his hands
and shouted: $50 on the rest of the mile
! your own way. You've got better head
! than | have" Dexter trOtted the mile in
! the then unparalleled time of 2:1S 1-5.
| Thus the way was led to a discussion
among the gentlemen on the club house
| stoOp of JOhnny's remarkable gift of
measuring time.
Johnny can take my horse there,''
! said Mr.. Bonner, "and drive him mile
within one or two seconds of whatever
| time | tell him to make" Then Mr. Bon
ner called Murphy to him and said /:
! Johnny, take my horse out on the track,
/ put him to a sulky and drive him a mile
within two seconds of the time 1 tell you,
and I'll give you $40 bill"
so Murphy put the horse to a sulky and
! presently awaited the word from Mr.
Bonner.
"Drive him the mile between 2:35 and
2:3T," said Mr.. Bonner.
Away went the horse with Murphy in
the sulky guiding the animal with the
| lines, though apparently letting him have
his own way entirely until toward the
end of the journey. The spectators on the
oop saw, after the three-quarters, that
the horse was going too fast, but it had
been agreed that no one should say word
to Murphy, and no one did Murphy had
no watch. Almost at the same time they
noticed that Murphy suddenly pulled the
horse up and kept him in hand at a slow
ing gait to the end. He had driven the
mile in 2:3512.
''Now," said MIR. Bonner. E'another one
of JOhnny's remarkable performances is
the stopping Of a watch exactly at given
time. For instance, he can take my watch,
put it to his ear, keep it there, and stop 1t
at exactly the siXtieth sacond.'
Murphy took Mr.. BOnner's watch and
performed the feat twice in succession.
''Perhaps you don't know how remark
able that is" said another member of the
party to Mr.. Bachman, 'but I'll bet YOU
you can't stop the watch at sixty seconds
while you're looking at it,
Mr.. Bachman took the timepiece and,
trying twice, failed each time, partly be-
cause it is difficult to stop stop watch
exactly where you want to, and princi.
pally because the challenge made the great
stock breeder nervous and tritie clumsy