Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-08-22
TO TROT IN TWO MINUTES.
An Expert ON Trotttug HOrses Think
This Time Will he Made

From the New Haven News
Prof William III. Brewer, OF Yale college
has made the evolution of the American tro,-
ting horse the subject of much careful research
and study. Prof Brewer owns the most COM
plete collection OF ancient and modern books
relating TO horsefesh i'm all It's forms 90 be
foand in New England. Yesterday the profes-
sor gave an interesting review Of the progress
OF frotting in America
ut is not known exactly" he said "when
horses began TO trot against time. Englishmeu
had always run their horses. and had trained
them for that. So the English horse is seldom
If ever put TO the trot on trials of speed II was
In the year 1906 that the New York Spectator
made mention OF a horse which had trotted a
mile In two minutes and fifty-nine seconds
which at that time was without precedent.
horses, were in colonial times extremely strin-
gent. In the early part OF this century they
got around the laws against horse races by troi-
ting their horses alone and timing their speed
by a watch. This was a purely American dis
coTery. After while the horse laws were so
modified as 10 allow "triais OF speed" as they
were termed TO be given at certain periods OF
the year with impunity. IL was not until 1918
that the first trot for money was given, when
Col. Boyd, of Maryland, bet Major Jones' OF
Long Island, $1,000 that mo horse could be
produced that could trot mile in less than
three minutes Boston Blue produced,
and covered the mile in just three minutes.
This was held 10 be wonderful feat in those
times. and Boston Blue was taken 20 England
and exhibited there. la 1925 the New York
trotting club was organized and built a course
at Jamaica, l.. l., which WIS probably the fast
est trotting track in the world From that
time trotting became general sport and was
adopted by the mass OF the people who owned
horses, and that very thing guara nteed fits prog.
ress. The record in ISIS OF Boston Blue, Of
three minutes, was broken In 1924 by Tom Gal
liant in 2:40, in the same year by the Tread
well mare I'm 2:34. In 1880 by Burster In Dbl,
Il took nine years To lower the last record
which was done In 1S43 by Lady suffolk
in 2.2S, and In the next year by the same horse
In 2:26i2. But IL was left to Flora Temple 10
astonsh the country when she made her cele-
brated time, 2:194, in 1859. Flora Temple
from that time became household word.
Ladies wore Flora Temple bonnets, boys
smoked Flora Temple cigars, politicians drank
Flora Temple whisky. 1t is not probable that
any one trotter will e yer again create such en-
thusiasm. Her winnings were very large in
deed. Then came Dexter lowering the record
twice before retiring from the turf. Then Gold
smith Maid, whose speed and fame are said TO
have brought her owners "A quarter OF million
dollars. Then Rarus, st. Julien, and Maud s.
whose recent performance of 2;osss stands be-
fore the world without an equal.
"Thus, you perceive the great lowering OF re-
cords since trotting was inaugurated, I'm 1915.
been lowered, and Mr.. Bonner is authority for
the statement that he expects Maud 5. will sur
pass her time OF day or two ago before the
summer closes. 1t Is my firm opinion. based ON
many years OF deep study Of the evolution OF the
trotting horse, that before another generation
passes we shall hear of trotting horses who can
make a mile under two minutes. Horses are
bred nowadays for the single purpose Of bring
Ing out their trottfng qualities, just In Eng
land they are bred solely with reference 10 rum
ming. Now, III lot of thoroughbred horses are
bred within themselves, without admitting
any mongrel blood, and IL they are trained
solely for trotting, there is no question that man
can bring the record down 70 two minutes and
under.
"Mr. Robert Bonner, wto owns Maud s., ridi-
cules such an idea, and he may think this
impossible result. 4 am aware, as he says,
that trotting Is an acquired gait for horse and
that running Is his natural gait. But still my
theory holds, and LII the thoroughbred frotter 10
carried through one generation after another,
we shall one day see u horse which can trot In
two minutes"