Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-04-22
Vicious Horses Tanned.

New York Times goth.

New York Times Goth.
Cosmopolitan Hall was transformed into the
liveliest sort of hppodrone last evening. A
firmly knit young man, blonde, feet III
inches in height, wearing black silk jockeys
Jacket, corduroy trousers, and pai- of high
riding boots was the principal actor. His
name was Oscar R. Gleason. His pupils were
three vicious stallians, and with them he had
successfully three sort OF Gr&co-Roman
wrestling matches. Intensely exciting the
contests were, but Gleason's indomitable will
power and virile strength finally conquered
brute force in every instance. karey's brute
force in breaking horses. Offut's somewhat
similar methods, Hamilton and Rockwells
more humane methods. and Wagner's crude
attempts at what Gleason achieves were all
eclipsed in the work of this young man, who
styles himself horse educator.
The entire floor OF the hall was fenced in like
circus, and pen in the centre 20 feet square
contained magnificent English cob stallion
about Is hands high, dark brown in color.
| His owner a gentleman of this city, said that
no one had ever vet been able to mount his
back, and that his vlciousness and propensity
| as a kicker had made him useless for driving
purposes. He was loose and without harness
and bride when Mr.. Gleason entered the pen
with his whip.
The horse looked surprised at his visitor,
attempted to bite him and to kick him. Both
efforts failed. but the whip snapped sharply
about the 1.-THE hind legs. Gleason stood
firmly on his feet and repeatedly said, "Come
here" When the animal moved toward him
all was well. If he turned away. crack,
went the whalebone, and the feet shot in air,
only to get a couple more cuts. The butt of
] = I'LL
behaved the lash few when he turned away.
In three minutes Gleason had the horse fol-
lowing him about like dog. Then in a half
minute each the horse was made acquainted
with halter and bride, first being allowed to
see and smell them with both eyes and nos
| t-ils
| The pin was removed and then rope was
put about the horses body slipped up between
the fore legs and through the bride, and one
end was tied to post. Then the whip was
| shaken and snapped in his face, and when the
horse tried to kick the rope prevented him
from doing so, and that trick was pronounced
wiped out of his existence. After each les
son the horse was petted and followed Glea-
son without any effort to break away.
| Then was introduced the bit which Gleason
says is the most effective weapon in the
world. A slight rope with slip moose was
passed about the neck, the end was wound
around the lower jaw, thus far being like the
old Yankee bride that Rarey, Hamilton, and
Rockwell used. But Gleason carries it up
around the head just back of the ears, and
putting it under the upper jaw, the bride
ends by passing it through the original loop
about the neck. With this on the horses, af
ter few sharp snaps from the single end of
the bride, they are conquered. TWAS shown
when Gleason leaped on the stations back,
rode him about the ring, and made him lie
down in the sawdust as meek as lamb, but
this latter not accomplished until after
man and horse had struggled vigorously and
viciously for the mastery tor five minutes.
| Once PROSTATE Gleason sat on the stallion.
stood on him and taught him to have no fear
by firing about him a perfect fusilade of
whip cracks and thrashng the sawdust OF all
sides. hideous din, made up of changing
tin pans, rafting sleigh bells and banging
bass drum, was kept up about him and he
| lay perfectly passive after few preliminary
struggles. After this this thoroughly sub
dued animal was taught the fact that "whoa"
meant whoa" by vigorous treatment, and a
few lessons against kicking were admins
tered.
To accomplish this three tin pans strung
together were fastened just at the crupper so
that they fell down over his tail. That
startled the animal, and he must have thought
that an avalanche had struck him when Glea-
sons assistant shook them rapidly against his
TANKS and set him to jumping in every di-
rection. Before Gleason got through with
this performance the animal considered the
whole thing joke and rather enjoyed it
Then, harnessed to sidebar buggy, the stall
lion was sent about the ring. A band played
loudly, the pans ratified, sleigh bells rang, a
pistol was fired, and. though the racket at
first crszed the horse, before Gleason got
through he drove him up to interview the
drum, the tin pans and the bells, and the
cowed animal stood quietly before them while
Gleason fred a revolver over him six times
and let him go. a bewildered, subdued, but
still beautiful stallion
A handsome chestnut stallion, who re-
fused to let blacksmiths come near him, was
taught to lift both fore and hind foot at the
word of command when Gleason had worked
at him for ten minutes. Then came the star
performance of the evening. A handsome
dark bay stallion of l64 hands and $50 lbs ID,
a brother of the famous trOtter CliIgstone,
was beaten for the first time since he was bred
in Ontario. A week ago Sunday he chewed and
kicked his keeper to death, and short time
before chewed another mans hand off. He
was brought here from Montreal on Sun.
day. and his owner came into the ring and
stated that Gleason had never seen him until
last night. In one minute by the use of a
whip and pistol, the latter fired to brighten
the animal, Gleason was able to approach
him and caress him.
Then the little bride was put on; shackles
were attached to his front feet and ropes
stretched from them through ring in stout
girth. With this apparatus Gleason intended
to teach him to lie down. The rope arrange
ment brought him to his knees, but for fifteen
minutes he refused to yield to all efforts to
make him lie down. The animal kicked,
reared aud plunged, and for that time the air
was full of Gleason, his assistant, and the
horse. flying in all directions. The audience
began to run away.
keep your seats" shouted Gleason. "He
won't get away" and he did not Finally he
was on his back, and after kicking and strug-
Cling for five minutes longer Gleason had him
mastered, sat on him as he lay in the dust
cracked his whip, ratified the pans and bells
about him and fred the revolver over him
He had yielded, and tonight Gleason will try
to break him to wagon.