Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-09-13
ROBERT HONNtR:S STABLE.
Ahe Rich Published Whose Hobby 1,
valuable EsFse Flesh.

ice Howard in PhiladeIp,i:a Hss
Mr.. Bonner is very Extraordinary man. /
have known him since was boy. l have
never seen him out of taper, although he has
developed immense am1nts of energy at diff
ferent periods of our acqhintance. He is no.
| table in several lines of Id, partly as the owner
of the Ledger, partly as he proprietor of the
largest and most exrensit and most important
stables in the world and partly as liberal do
nor TO worthy Theological and literary institu-
tons; but in this letter I'm treating of the Pc
culiarities Of New York ators, more especially
as they take hold of theil physical recreations
and pleasures.
Mr. Bonner tells me tla when he first began
to push the ledger. alons about 81, he was in
very bad health. That As the time. YOU re-
member. when he startle the country by TAX
ing page OF the New Ytk Herald for the adj
yertisement OF his Ledgerand, when twitted as
being sensational advertiser, he hired another
page i'll the same journal n which were printed
the advertisements Of Hpe,'s Weekly alone
mat shreWd dodge pu the Ledger and the
Heehiy on the same plan in the minds of all
who Thought about it at d and carried Mr.. Bon
ner's point. He was trolied about thirty years
ago with constant headche and vertigo and
troubles OF various sorts nd kinds and his ply
stefan directed him tory riding. He did So
but the exercise was too solent, and he was in
duced to purchase sparDf horses.
The very first day he Tnt up the road, then
known as Harlem lane, hfOvertOok Commodore
Vanderbilt aud Col. Harer, who were the only
two men lntown who ow ed notably fast horses
They easily passed Bonnie whenever they cared
to. and he finding healtland rest in the exer-
else. determined from tat time on to own
horses that no one could bass. and the conse-
quence is that. going on rom one purchase to
announcer, beginning with Intern and Mate way
back In 1889. until tO-dayWhen he is the owner
absolute OF Maud and retrospective owner of
Jay-Eye-See, he has expelled all told, not less
than 100000.
In his stables. in addti In to Maud, are Dex-
ter and three full sisters son and daughter of
Flora Temple, the three faious mares, Peerless
Lady Palmer and Flatbus Maid. and Pocahon-
tas. A record, you knot is term applied
only to the rate Of speed hOwn by a horse i'm
public race for money. b Bonner never trots
his horses tor money, no brses owned by him.
or raised by him, no matte how fast they trot
nor in the presence of ho{ MANY people they
trot. ever get, while owned by him, technical
record. For instance. If Mud S. within the en-
SUNG SIX weeks lowers he record second. so
far as the record is concerted she will continue
to be rated at 2:09s4. NJ Bonner expects to
have her make a mile in 2.6 and will be disap-
pointed If in time she dcsnt do even better
than that
asked Mr. Bonner If he wouldn't give me an
idea of what he had in hisstables in such Ian
guage as would be of iterest to the general
reader. He laughingly assAted, and with char
acterlstic modesty began. He said: 'In the
nrst place we fave Dexter, with what is techni-
caliy called a record of 2:17r, made on Buffalo
Park when it was % feet s iches over mile. 1t
has since been reduced % an exact mile so
some OF its managers inforl me, and is now at
least three seconds faster tim it was then. Five
Thousand people saw him tot on another slow
track Fashion) in 216, without break or a
skip. Ten follow Grafton! who was timed at
Cleveland by large numbs of well known gen.
tlemen in215]3; Joe Elliott who trOtted a pub
lie trial in Mystic Park. Bosbn, in 2:151s; STAR
tie. who four days before hewas five years old,
with Commodore Dodge, lobert Fletcher and
previously advertised trial 2lssl; he after
wards repeatedly trotted u 2:l9 in Fleetwood
Park; PocahOntas. che only torse besides Starte
that has ever trotted on Fleetwood in 219; she
has since then trOtted ine:172l on the three
quarter exercising track ormy farm; Wellesley
Boy. who has record az q fiye-year old of
2:2G12. and who. when sewn years Old trotted
on my track in 2:191l; Peeress, who carried the
great trainer and honest diver the late Hiram
Woodruff, in 2:23114 to wagon, the fastest mile
ne ever drove any horse public Or private;
Molsey. with record ofi2:21sl. and trial in
2:lSl4; Music, with a recorder 22115 in fourth
mile. and trial in 2:232l on three-quartcr
track, which is not adaptel to her long stride:
John Taylor, with a recOfi on Fleetwood of
20; Walton, the four-yearold. by Burger. that
trotted trial last August several months be-
fore bought him, at Poulhkeepsie in 2:2711l8;
Eric. who has the fastest our year-old record,
2:2o]4, and Lady Stout. Who has the fastest
three-year-old record, 229. In addition to the
above are the following viii have trotted in 2:3O
or better: Astoria. full sistr to Dexter; Mamie
g., by Edward Everett; Lily Hughes, by Jupi-
ter; Ada Duroc. by Messenger Duroc; Uncle
Sim. old Lady Moscows Erandson; Malice. by
Woodford MambriIo. dam by Alexander's Alb
dallah; Billy Button, by Edward Everett. dam
the dam Of Lottery; Bruns by Hamblctonian,
and Prince Imperial. Flora Eemple's colt