Richland beacon., 1888-05-26
A BRAVE OLD HORSE.
DeNter's Part i'm the Development of
Fast Time on the Track.

marks an era in equine development.
He did not reduce as greatly as some of
his phenomenal predecessors the speed
of trotting horses, for when he made his
best record very low mark had already
been reached. To beat Flora Temples
time of 2:19I by one second and three
| quarters, was as great feat as to beat a
2:40 gait by several seconds. When Maud
S. reduced her wonderfully low record
by quarter of a second it was regarded
as more wonderful improvement than
that of one or two entire seconds would
have been when her record stood at a
/ higher figure and could more easily have
been beaten.
Forty odd years ago the best trotting
| record stood at 2:40. That figure was
used in slang to illustrate all fast men,
fast methods and fast movements.
Horses had not then been trained to
trotting, and the possibilities of develop
ment in that direction were not even
family imagined. After this record had
stood for years, and was supposed to be
the best that could be made, horse
named Bippo, in 1913, completely frac-
tured it by trotting mile i'll 2:2S. This
also remained for years the best time
made, and again the world interested in
sports settled down into the easy belief
that the best possible trotting time had
been accomplished. But such was not
the case. A few years afterwards Jack
Rossiter, a horse without a pedigree.
that had, when young, dragged a hotel
baggage wagon around the streets
of Western city, and was afterwards
trained for the turf, trotted in 2:22. The
next reduction was by Flora ToI,ple, q
mare also without pedigree, who i'm
proved this time by q seconds, making
record of 2:l9l. This in turn was
broken by Dexter at Buffalo. Aug. IA,
1867, when he trotted mile in 2:17,,
He was bought on the track by Robert
Bonner for S35, 900, and that remarkable
amateur owned him to the time of his
death. Mr.. Bonner has also bought
each of the fastest trotters on the turf as
they appeared from time to time, down
to Maud S., with her record of 2OS,.
More time, skill and money have been
devoted to the development of a fast
! trotting gait in horses than to almost
any improvement in machinery which
the inventive genius OF man has under
taken. To increase by few seconds OF
the fraction of q second on a mile the
speed of single trotting horse has re-
quired years of training, and to keep
and train trotting horse costs as much
as it costs to keep a small-sized family
of moderate desires in the comforts and
necessaries of life. The multitude and
quality of horses that have been so kept
and trained indicate the vast expenditure
that has been bestowed upon these eX.
periments. The best horses, except
Maud s., have made the best time long
after they had passed what was supposed
to be their maturity, at 8 or 9years OF
age, and she may cease to be an excep
tion. Flora Temple, at nearly twice
that age, did her best work. This is an
other evidence of the expense involved
in training trotters. Half the lifetime
of horse, Is or 16 years old, is required
to develop its best speed at this gait, and
often the improvement is but few sec
onds or less in trotting mile.
A good old age for an ordinary horse
is eighteen or twenty years. The age o.
Dexter at his death was thirty years
But since he was purchased by Mr.
Bonner he has had not an easy time, lik,
any other fortunate and retired indivi
dual. With enough to eat-and horst
never eats too much-with Just the exer
else that he required for health, he hat
all the chances for long life that the ca
pacities of his species and good consti
tuition could have allotted to his share
The old friends of Dexter in Chicago
where he was once owned, will be slat
to learn, in his death, according to hi
magnificent owners order, he does no
go to the bone yard, but has q fit grav
in a country field. where the appl
blossoms are beginning to display thei
new-blown tints of beauty and to maxi
the verral air delightful with their frag
rance, and where the tall grass in sum
mer will wave in the breeze above hi
remains.