Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1889-05-23
HOW SPOKANE WON.
A Graphic Account of His Great Victory Over
Proctor Knott at Louisville.

Examiner: The fifteenth Kentucky Derb,
will mark "a memorable epoch in the his
tory of the American turf. Only in Ken
tucky, only On Derby day. could such 4
| sight As that of to-day been witnessed
Never on Churchill Downs. save one-th,
great Mollie Me'arihy-Trn Brock racc-hai
there been 50 vast an assemblage. Nevei
| On that now historic spot has there bcei
81 great n Derby. never has that ASST,
race been run with greater credit to tn,
winner. II WAS another ease of Ilimyal
and Day Star: another case of Runnymed,
and Appolu; another ease of Gallict ano
Macbeth, in which turi history repeate,
itself.
| Ten minutes before the flag fell 20, ,OOt
throats mingIing the Kentucky cheer an,
the Tennessee yell, hoarscly thun,lcred .
welcome to the mighty Proctor Knott.
! brief quarter oi an hour later an,
I there were meme poor as to do hin
honor. Eight horses came to the post
4 visit to the betting stand disclosed hes,
/ odds
| Proctor Knott, to- Ioung's entire,
oonce Again and Eootmaksr). :; to l
| Sportsman and tassius. y to | each; Hin
doocrait, to I; Spokane. u to I, ans
Out bound, \ to I.
| The money poured ia on Bryant's hors.
IN - steady stream, until to :, was to u,
/ had against him. kentucky and Tennes
When the saddling hell rang the iir-,
horse on the track was Cassi,s, with Tara
up. lie had but few friends. and onl,
feeble cheers greeted the colors Of the I,ev
erick stables. Then came Milt Young,
pair, aud the sight of Murphy on Once
Again clicitr,i n hearty yell. Then cam,
Spokane, his irauti iiul chest nut coat shin
,ne like FURNISHED gold.
suddenly n mighty cheer went up, and
IA "A Ia. f..
paddock down the quarter stretch. II.
carried himself like the mighty hero that d.
IL, his head high in the air. lie looked iii
to run Tor a mans life. His long neck, III
ting int" well-placed shoulders. his great
depth III .irt, the immense length fr"m thu
shoulder points to the hip. his powerful
quarters and STILES, his long barrel, grea
cannon bones and elastic pasterns. all in,li
catcd the powers of an equine giant.
Beside him Spokane was as n Liliputian
4" IA Brobdingnag. 'ioing {. the post b,
seemed Ia fret II little. aud barnes had
great difficulty in holding him ia cheek
Finally he was led To the starting point by
the bride.
Following him On to he track came Him
doocrait. Outbound and Sportsman, hut
the crowd had only eyes for the great
Proctor. and the others passed by un-
noticed.
When the thrilling. all-perva,ling mur.
mur, They are oil. followed over the
quarter stretch like the rumble of thunder.
there was not man Who did not sharpen
hts eye ia the direction of the flashing oi
the red flag. The next instant found Hin
dooersft ia the head. Proctor Knott ~ his
saddle-girths, the latter half "A length
ahead of .ootmaker, who was closely fol-
lowed iy Spokane, Once Again, Cassius,
Outbound and Sportsman, the last four
bunched
Barnes Immediately sent Proctor Knott
to the front, and in ~ dozen Of his powerf al
strides the big gelding had taken tn. pole
from IIindoocrait.
II Immediately became apparent that
Proctor Knott intended to pursue the sa me
tactics adopted 10y his sire. Luke Blackburn.
the latter winning all of his three year-old
races by making the pace in the first ha Ii so
hot that IT burned up the field behind him.
Swinging into the stretch for the first
time. Proctor Knott was two open lenrt hs
To the good. his mouth gaping opcn and
Barnes saving his head from side to side.
liindoocraft. also under a pull and Running
strong. was second. while Bootmaker still
led the bunch behind by half length
Along the stretch they swept AT a terrific
pace, and when the grand stand was reached
IT was found the first half mile had been
covered in ISl, seconds.
Rounding the first turn. Proctor Knott
put another length of daylight bctwern him
and his field, while Sportsman, who had
been trailing behind, began gradually over
hauling his leader. First he passed out
bound, then Once Again. which had been
taken back by Murphy. then Spokane.
Bootmakcr and Hindoocrait, in the order
named.
Then kiley made play also for the fiy-
ing leader, and ia less time than il takes
10 write It had shot from seventh place to
third.
Still the mighty Proctor swept ON. and AT
the hall was three lengths To the good >po-
kane aud Sportsman cheek by jowl behind
him, fIindoocrait still running strong and
showing no signs Of distress. next in order
the Others bunchsd and moving up half a
length in the rear.
As they turned into the back stretch
Barnes, 10y an effort, succeeded in bringing
Knott back ~ good length and "a half. The
The bunch seeing this. and thinking he was
about to relinquish the position Of pace
maker, Immediately began closing M.
There was n stacking ri reins on all sides
llindoocrait forged ahead, tapping Spokane.
Who was second.
Murphy all this time had been holding
Once Again ia the ruck but now gave the
son of onandaga and Balack Maria hi. head
aud he shot to the lore like "a rocket. From
the last position at the hall he had. before
four furlongs had been covered, overhauIe,i
one after the other until hc landed at Spo-
kanes side. Barnes saw his competitors
gradually eating up the Intervening day
light aud Immediately let out ~ link
Again the Futuriiy here shot ahead Iik..
n ball from the cannon's mouth and AT TN,
three-puarter pole he was two lengths to
the good and appeared Ia he pretty well
extended, but Spokane hung on like - bull
dog, running easy and strong aud apInr-
emily rs fresh as when the ilag fell. Murphy
stil held the vantage he had gained on the
back stretch and lay alongside of uindoo-
craft the latter and Once Again being heads
on the first place.
As they turned the corner Cnssius made
his race, Faral bringing him with a rush
from the ruck behind, but he stuck in the
middle Of the bunch-his company WAS "A
little too rich for him.
As the head of the stretch was reached
the mighty Proctor began to falter. Slowly
but surely the fleetfooted son of Uytler
Ali closed in upon him like IA nemesis Only
"a length oi daylight separated them; then
q half; then as the head of the stretch was
reached a mighty roar went up from the
field and grand stand. The two horses
were blended in one. Spokane had tipped
him just az the mouth Of the stretch was
reached.
Then began a iull. the like of which WAS
probably meyer witnessed ON 70 race track
before. Three times aud three times three
Barnes poised his whip in midair and
brought IL down upon the Hanks of his
tiring steed. Proctor Knott never ninched
but took his punishment galnely.
On they came, stride after stride Az
they became fairIy Strengthened cut in the
stretch kiley began climbing upon Spo-
kanc's neck. His mouth was at Spokane's
ear when the sixteenth was reached whip
still undrawn and the sides oi his mount