Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-05-04
MILLIONAIRE HORSEMEN.
THE MAN WHO OWNS THE FAST
EST PAGERS IN THE WORLD.
Commodore Kittson's Vast Establish
ment fer the Breeding ana Rearing of
TrOtters and Runners-HOw Johnston
and Little Brown jug Rose from Or
scurity to Fame-Their History.

Commodore Kittson's Vast Establish
ment fer the Breeding ana Rearing of
TrOtters and Runners-How Johnston
and Little Brown jug Rose from Oh
security to Fame-Their History.
Chicago 7Fs5uge.
The fastest trOtter II the world, Maud
s., is-Owned by Mr.. William II. Wander
bilt. who, Ike most Of the descendants Of
the Amsterd dam Dutch. the first white set
tiers in New York, inherits a love for fast
horses. The tTOtter with the second fast
est recerd-Jay-EEe -See-is the property
of Mr.. I. Case. The two fastest PAGERS
the turf has ever known are the property
of Commodore \. w. Kittson, of St. Paul.
MINI, man who will shortly have COM
pleted the allotted age of three score years
and ten, and he takes to-day as great an
interest in matters pertaining to turf
sports as do the men who are moro than a
generation behind him in years as well as
experience. The horses referred to, John
stOn and Little Brown jug, have records
respectively Of 2.10 and 2.1154, these fig
ures representing the fastest miles ever
paced.
Commodore Kittson is man whose
wealth runs well up into the millions, and
he has accumulated it by more than half
century Of earnest application to bust
ness. over nifty years ago, when the West
was practically an unknown wilderness,
John Jacob Astor. the founder of the
family which bears his name, sent Com
m0dore Kittson, then a boy, into the Hud-
son Bay region as his agent in the pur-
chase of furs, and since that time he has
been prominently identified with the in
terests and developments Of the Northwest.
His fancy for fast horses, however, came
only when his income mounted into the
hundreds OF thousands per year, and he
has gratltled 1t in the most complete and
lavish manner. Four years ago his name
was wholly unknown in turf circles-nOW
he has more money invested in trotters,
PAGERS and thOroughbreds than any other
man in the wOrh, his total expenditures
in the purchase of horses and farms
whereOn to breed and raise them having
been in the vicinity Of $4,000, 900. At Mid
way, near st. Paul, he has one of the most
complete and best arranged stock farms
in the world, and on it are to be found
high-priced representatives, of every
prominent trOtting family. At Erden-
helm, near Philadelphia, is an immense
farm which he purchased two years ago
from Mr.. Aristides Welch, whose name
has been identified with the rearing of
th0r0ughbreds for quarter of a century.
1t was here that Parole, the horse that
went to England four years ago and as
founded the natives of that island by win
ming all the great spring handicaps in the
easiest possible manner, was born, and
the same paddock which was the scene of
his frolics as a colt witnessed also the an
tics Of his numerous brothers and sisters,
none OF whom, by the way, attained a
1.-THE of the celebrity which fell to the lot
of the brown gelding. On this farm,
which was purchased two years ago by
Mr.. KittsOn for the round sum of $780,
600, may be found hundred or so of the
best thOrOughbreds in the land. There
~, -A,IT A..
most fashionable strains of American
blood, as well as animals imported from
England at great expense in order that
the effects of their breeding may be tested
in this country.
THE TWO FASTEST PAGERS.
But with all these vast expenditures of
money the horses by reason of whose per-
fOrmanceS Commodore KittsOn is best
known are the two PAGERS alluded to in
the beginning of this article. 1t is only
within few years that PAGERS have re-
ceiYed more than passing notice at the
hands of the hOrsemen, and even now the
prices offered for them by trotting asso-
Citations are not large in amount. The
first PAGER that attracted notice was Po-
cahOntas, a famous old chestnut mare
who drew a wagon in 2.17% something
like quarter of century ago. She was
so fast and stout that the owners of other
horses lacked courage to make race
against her, and in consequence her turf
performances were somewhat limited,
One Of her descendants, also named Poca-
h0ntas, was purchased at low price by
Mr.. Robert Bonner about fifteen years
ago, and for many years was the pride of
his stable. The original POcahontas was
handled during the early years Of her life
by Mr.. WOOdmansee, who at that time
was a resident of Ohio. He is still alive,
ut a afr Of IL
one OF Commodore Kittson's horses a
mile in 2.24lI. His sons, Dan and Ben,
are Mr.. kittson's trusted lieutenants in
the management of his trOtting stock.
the former having charge of the farm at
Midway, while the latter is the manager
OF the stable of trotters and PAGERS that
travels through the country from spring
until fall.
JOHNsTON's HISTORY.
The histories of Johnston and Little
Brown jug are not generally known. The
former was bred near Berlin, Wis. his
sire being a horse of the Bashaw family,
and his dam mare whose blood lines
have never been satisfactorily established.
The man who raised him, like the breed
ers of a good many noted horses, was in
moderate circumstances. From the day
of his birth Johnston was a natural pa
Ger, and when four years old could easily
distance anything in the shape of horse
flesh around Berlin. There lives at that
place a man named Mather, who came to
Wisconsin a quarter of a century ago and
has grown rich in the banking business.
Three years ago Mather owned a team of
gray horses that could trOt a mile close to
three minutes. He was driving them along
acountry road one day when John Bassett,
who raised Johnston, came up to him with
neatly turned geld1ng that was a PAGER.
The talk turned on horses, and Bassett
said that his four-year-Old PAGER was a
very fast one. He could beat anything
around there, Bassett said. Wanting to
test the truth of this assertion Matber
told him TO drive ahead and he would fol-
low him with the gray team. Bassett
started up the PAGER, and in a moment or
so was lost in a cloud of dust leaving
Mather far behind, and wondering
whether his team had suddenly lost all
their speed. Although nothing of a horse
man Mather was an excellent fnancier,
and argued that if this horse could go so
fast at four years of age ne would with
proper training attain rate of speed that
would make him worth a great deal of
money. Bassett was poor and willing to
sell One-half of the horse; Mather was
rich and bought half interest for $3.50.
At that time the horse was known as Bar
ney. The following year he was brought
to Chicago by Bassett, and kept here
dbOuJ IWO luOuInS, QOlDS q mile at the
West Side track one day in 2.151I.
Before this performance he had been Of
fered for sale at $4,000, and it is probable
that fOur-ifths of that sum would have
purchased him, but after showing this
speed Bassett took him home again, and
subsequently disposed of his interest to
Mather for a nominal sum, the banker
thus becoming sole owner of the PAGER.
The following winter he arranged with
Peter V. Johnston, of this city, tc drive the
horse, and he was entered in several races
under the name of Charley M, having
been so called by the banker in honor of
himself.
When the horse reached Johnston's sta
bic in the early spring of 1888 he was in
bad shape, but careful attention soon
brought him round. About this time
''Eb'' Smith, of Milwaukee, a rOllicking
sort of man who had made considerable
money in the liquor business, became in
terested in the PAGER and finally purchased
a controlling half interest in him for ST.
800. The horses name was then changed
to Johnston, as a compliment to his new
driver, and last MAY made his first ap-
pearance in a public race in Michigan.
He passed through the circuit in that
State, not losing single heat, and came
back to Chicago with record of about
2.lI. At the great meeting held here in
July he was entered in a race that had for
starters three or four other horses. One of
these, Billy s., was owned in Buffalo. n.
I :, and his hackers were confident that
he could beat Johnston, they claiming