St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-07-14

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day by the correspondent of the GLOBE.
Down here in New York, and the same,
l opine, exists elsewhere throughout
the land, there is the feeling that no
better Jockey ever threw a leg over
horse in this country, and it is known,
in addition, that he is the soul OF honor,
and suspicion of crookednesS has never
been linked with his name.
Isaac hadn't any objection to talk of
his sensational and successful career IN
the saddle, which covers something
like fourteen years, but before doing so
he remarked with a smile, 'Well, !
know that you newspaper men have
the name Of writing just what one
doesn't say, but [ don't believe any
thing so harsh of you, and then l have
always been treated so kindly by the
press, and feeling very proud of my rec
ord, I'll tell you the story" and he
did.
1T is pleasant for me to recall the
past. It's months and years, no matter
what the future may have in store for
me, will always be the happieSt of my
life look back to them with delight
full memories and keen enjoyment. |
they were tiled with the sunshine of
success, in which few shadows ever fell.
HOW ISAAC BEGAN.
sit was in 1874, when fourteen years
old, that | first entered the training
stable of Williams Il Owen, then at the
Lexington track. | commenced as an
exercising boy, and weighed seventy
pounds" Isaac had to laugh as he
thought of himself in those old days.
Somebody has said, and it has almost
become recognized as a fact among
those who care anything about it, that
my first public mount was a win,
the race being the Blue Grass
stakes at Louisville Sept. q, 1876.
My horse, Springbraneh, won, It's true,
but it wasn't the first time ! had been
the leader passing the Judges. The
wear before, 1875 rode several races at
the Crab Orchard tack, this state, and
one of them | won on Glentina. That
was my first victory on a regular track.
| had a mount on Lady Greenfield at
the same place previous to that on
Glentina, which was a losing one, but
the event marked The real beginning of
my Jockey life, as it was the first race L
WIS ever III on such course. At Crab
Orchard l rode at Seventy-tour
pounds, which is the lightest l ever
reached; yet during the seasons of
1876, III and '78 | was down to ninty-
five pounds, and occasionally a little
under.
GOOD WORDS FOR AN EARLY MOUNT.
My first big stake victory, however,
was on Vera Cruz in the st. Leger,
at Louisville, in the fall of 1877, )" and
Isaac once more smiled. Il have often
thought of that day. Success made me
very happy. But before the st. Leger
winning. and in addition to the stakes
following the Glentina and Spring
branch victories, | won the Cumberland
stakes at Nashville with Vera Cruz, the
Fiily stakes at Lexington with Fon-
witch, and the Wiley stakes at the same
place with Vera Cruz. The last three
races were run in 1877, and have always
thought [ should have won the Ken
lucky Derby that year, also, had not
Vera Cruz, my mount, been left at the
post Vera Cruz was a superior race
horse. but lever sound, and when this
is considered his career was all the more
remarkable. rode him in the Breck-
inridge stakes at Baltimore the same
year, and on election day at Jerome
Park, beating st. Martin and Barricade
in a special sweepstakes. With the eX-
ceptiOn of Checkmate, the son of Virgil
and Regain was the best horse ! rode
during my engagement with Williams
d Owen, which ceased in 1878.
REACHING THE TOP.
''Then | signed to ride for the late J.
W. Hunt Reynolds, in whose employ
remained until his death, which oc-
Cured in 1880. Even then l continued
to ride for his widow, now the wife of
the turfman and breeder, Col. l.. p.
Tarlton, until engaged by Mr.. COrrigan,
q ,,,F1 fIN.
1878 and until 1884 l rode many cracks
events in fact, this was one of
the most successful periods of my
career. When my engagement
with Mr.. Corrigan terminated, in
1915, l signed with E. j. Baldwin.
and have remained in his employ ever
since. In regard to this year have not
yet entered into an agreement to ride
for any particular stable. but if do not
don the cOlors of the California turfman
l will in all probability ride for the
Dwyer brothers. My relations with
MI. Baldwin, however, have been so
pleasant that | dislike to sever my con-
nectiOn with his stable, nOtwithStand-
ing the inducements offered for my
services by several prominent Eastern
racing firms.
FREELAND A TOUGH CUSTOMER.
''What do | consider the best horse l
ever rode? Well. that's poser. There
was Leonatus, on which | won eight
straight races without ever lifting my
hands, in fact, l really don't know how
good he was. Whenever l straight
ened Oh him he just went to the 'front.'
and that was the end of it. Then, too,
old white-faced Freeland. Well, per
haps he wasn't "a summer coon,' as the
stable boys say. He would get beat
when out of condition. but when
once in fix he was a tough customer.
The hardest races of my life were on
him in his series of contests with
Miss Woodford. First he beat her a
length or more, then just nose, and a
few days later she turned the tables on
him by head victory, but when they
next met he proved his supremacy con-
clusively by finishing three lengths to
the good. Superior race mare as she
was, he was Il shade better, and few
horses on the turf in recent years pos
sessed more speed or finished their races
with more marked resolution and game
ness. For long time the idea pre-
vailed that he was gutter, but know