Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-13
That's What Nancy Hanks Is Now
Called Because of Her Great
Race This Week.
RECORD OF THE FAMOUS MARE.
Opening Day of the Big Meeting of TrOt,
.ters and PAGERS Over the Lexington
Track.
BASEBALL NEWS OF LOCAL INTEREST.
Results Of Leading Turf Events in East and West
General Sporting News Of the Day.

This week may be one of the most memor-
able in the history of trotting. Everybody
is Low looking toward Lexington for new
records and not to California. The greatest
match ever made come off at Lexington this
week. Nancy Hanks enters with record
of 2:09, won on a regulation track, and
Allerton with 2:O9L to his credit, on a kite
shape. Should the weather prove favorable
and both horses be in condition the chances
are that the winner will lower the worlds
record. The mare is more likely than the
stallion 20 gain the laurel. She not only
ms better speed record, but has already
beaten Allerton in o match recently trotted
at Independence. As the Lexington track
is of the regulation shape there will be no
discount on the figures scored there.
THE PRESENT GREAT FEATURE
Without doubt Nancy Hanks is at the
present time the great feature of the tlot-
ting world and before the week or month is
over may be deemed something most
wonderful as trottcr. She is considered
the "Queen Regent and her history will
be interesting:
Nancy Hanks is a bright bay mare about
151S hands high, foaled in 1886. She was
bred by Mr.. Henry Boswell, a farmer, near
Lexington, Ky, and is by Happy Medium,
out of Nancy Lee, by Dictator; second dam,
Sophie, the granddam of Mike Wilkes,
215sz, by Edwin Forrest. Her breeding is
Of the choicest. and is strongly HANDLE
touian. Happy Medium is one of the
greatest sons of the great ''hero of Chester,
having sired more performers in the 2;39
list than any other except George Wilkes
and Electioneer. His progeny have, how
ever, been more distinguished for speed
than for staying quality, and upon this al
legt weakness the friends OF Allerton
build their hopes. The dam of Happy
Medium was Princess, by Andrus' Hamble-
tonian, mare with a strong infusion OF
thoroughbred blood, and the competitor
with Flora Temple in many hard-tought
race.
Mr. Boswell, the breeder of Nancy Hanks,
is-not especially known as horseman, but,
like thousands of other Kentucky farmers,
he has few mares and breeds from them.
Thus he sent his mare Nancy Lee, BY Die
tator, to Happy Medium, and when he
named the FLY which resulted Nancy
Hanks he did not send her to one of the ia
nous trainers and drivers, but let her roam
over The pleasant pastures of his farm. A
young man in Lexington with fancy for
trotter receive some training at his hands
and when she was 3 wears old the shreWd
horsemen of the Blue Grass country re-
garded her as a wonder. She made her
debut on the turf at Harrodsburg, Ky.. in
July, 1889, in a 3-year-old class, and easily
defeated a party of six, trotting the heats
she won in 2:274, 2:254. 2:251& The first
heat was won by Bonnie Wilmore, in 2:2SsL.
and concerning that heat have the author
iry of Mr.. Eph Simmons for the statement
that she gave it TO Bonnie Wilmore to let
him make a record. Could it have been
known hat it was to be up to this date the
only heat Nancy Hanks was destined to
lose, perhaps her owner would have been
less complaisant.
SOME MORE VICTORIES.
A week later, at Danville, Ky., she low
cred her mark to 2:2415, and that year she
won seven races.
In 1890 she again made her first start at
Harrodsburg, defeating very fast party in
stra ght heats and lowering her record to
2:19H AT Nicholasville, Ky, she reduced
her record to 2:lS in third heat, and at
Lexington, Ky, August %, she won in
2:l9lz, 2:1915, 2:14%, the last being the
fastest heat by 4-vear-old outside of CAL
itornia. Later, at Cincinnati, she trotted
third heat in 2:1T12, and at Lexington in
2J5 Z. Her peculiarity of finishing the
last heat of each race in faster time than
any other had been so pronounced that she
was credited with vast reserve of speed
that indicated q coming world beater.
After much difficulty match between
Nancy Hanks and Allerton was arranged,
and they are TO meet this week at Lexing-
ton, KY, purse and wager of $4,000 and
and glory beyond computation to be the re-
ward of the winner.
Allerton's record has already been pub
Ished in this paper. He may be beaten
-bie v-aol-