St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1888-06-07
Ole Galeduniau.
Prepared for the Caledonan by ARTHUR F. STONE.
THE MAPLEWOOD STOCK FARM.

Prepared for the Caledonian by RTHUR F. STONE.
THE MAPLEwOOD STOCK FARM.
w. s. BaiIey's stock Farm at East Hard
wIck.-Morgan Horses.-How n PractI-
cal Horse Farm is Run.-Some Trotters
and How They Became SO.-CObden,
the $4,000 Beauty.-Movement and
Lambert b
"Vermont is famous for three things
good horses, maple sugar and pretty
girls =
The first are feet the second sweet,
And all are exceedingly hard to beat"
1t was many years ago that our Yer
mont poet, the late J. G.. SAKE, penned
these sentiments, but the ideas have
long since become truths that will go
on forever. Especially is the first
proposition true that Vermont horses
are fleet. A lover of good horses wants
a horse that possesses some speeding
qualities, and careful examination of
the records shows that a little Morgan
blood does not keep the trotters from
going fast and also produces horse
unsurpassed as a roadster. The Nor
gan star is once more in the ascendant
and the time is soon coming when
Vermont farmers and breeders will re-
gain the prestige which they held 35
years ago when the fame of the hardy,
handsome, little MOrgans was at its
height. People have come to realize
that these horses prove themselves to
be remarkable roadsters, and the Nor
gan blood does not prevent them from
getting to the wire.
The MapIewOOd Farm.
1t was in April 1886 that William S.
Bailey came up from Massachusetts, to
breed Morgan horses at what is now
known all over this section as the Ma
plewOOd stock farm at East Hardwick.
He is a young man who is very enthu-
siastic in his work, progressive in his
methods and withal a perfect gentle
man. His father, j. l.. Bailey, was
once an East Hardwick boy but is now
a successful broker in Cambridge,
Mass. The son is chip of the old
block, and the latch-string of the Ma
plewOod stock farm has never been
pulled in and never will be as long as
a Bailey lives there.
The farm is situated midway between
the villages of East Hardwick and
Greensboro and contains about 300
acres of fertile land together with a
little woodland. The farm has been
in the Bailey family for over 100 years,
or from it's first settlement, and its high
location, its unfailing water supply and
its fertile soil peculiarly adapt it for
its present uses. From the rich grass
lands ale cut annually 100 tons of hay
for the stock while other plats yield
oats and corn or furnish good pastur-
age.
TrOtters and Their Traits.
With one exception the stations are
harnessed daily and driven about six
miles. The road to Greensboro is well
adapted for speeding horses and any
sunny day one may see some good
trOtting if he chances to be around. 1t
is Mr.. Bailey's intention, however. to
lay out half-mile track as soon as
possible where the horses can be eXer-
cised and get accustomed to trOtting
abreast and squirting. Any of the
horses can be harnessed into buggy
aud driven to town or even farther if
necessary. If one has the impression
that a fast horse is by virtue of its
speed unsafe visit to this farm will
soon remove his false impression. The
horses are gentle and can be driven by
n lady or a child. These excellent
traits are due to the kindness which
the animals always receive at the farm.
The whip is always handy but never
used unless it becomes an absolute ne
cessity. The horses are trained to
mind the voice both in the barn and in
the harness, and simple "WhOa" will
change a 2.30 gait of trotter into q
walk and then full stop.
Some Facts and Figures.
At Palo Alto, Senator Stanford's ia
nous trotting ranch in California, a
colt is Immediately disposed of if he
fails to develop trOtting qualities. Not
so here. The MaplewOOd stock farm
is breeding good trOtters but is also
raising fine rOadsters, family horses
that are gentle, handsome and trust
worthy. Lovers of good horses are
beginning to appreciate the fact that
"blOod tells" aud that ''cheap horses
breed cheap colts" When Mr.. Bailey
came here he had two or three stations
whose past record was comparatively
unknown and whose future was before
them. Today he has one of largest
and most valuable stock of roadsters
and trOtters in Vermont. His line of
stations is headed by Golden, the
$4,000 beauty, while his stock of
brood mares includes several standard
mares and others of individual merit
sired by some of the best stock of the
country. Among his stock of 35 horses
can be found as fine specimens of the
Morgan as any in the state. His trade
extends all over New England and
Southern Canada and bids fair to reach
the South and West as the value of his
stock and their progeny increases. It'll
confidently predicted that at no distant
day the turf will see descendants of
Golden or Movement in the 2.30 list.
The care of the horses is entrusted to
George COllyer and A. d. Osgood, both
competent and lifelong hOrsemen.
The Stallion Golden.
The beautiful chestnut stallion Cob
den came from WATERFOWL, Mass, and
was purchased for $1,000. Mr.. Bailey
values him at $4,000 and would be
very unlikely to part with him at that
figure. Golden is by the best son of
Ethan Allen and his dam is Ethan's
best daughter. He traces directly by
one of the shortest lines to Justin Nor
gan and may well be considered rep
resentative Morgan horse. From any