The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-10-02
WORLD FAMOUS HORSES.
Some Discovered In ths Depths Of
Obscurity by the Merest
Chance.
Luck, With Impartial Hand, Points
Out Great Horses and
Warriors.
How ssms Of Them Were Fsund Out
Long List Of Great "Flnds"-
Great Sires.

Israel Putnan, renowned ~ a fighting
general In the annals of the revolutionary
war; "Old Hickory" Jackson, the hero of
New Orleans and the president Of = great
nation, and Fabius Maximus, of ancient
times, might have remained humble hus-
bandmen until death came up on his old
white horse and claimed them IA his own,
had not luck. in the shape of iii -yisnged
war, beckonsd them to the battle field.
from which they retired with their brows
wreathed with the laurel crown of victory.
and awoks the next morning to find them
selves famous. We have Putnams and
Jaeksons and Mol Pitchers among horses
also, and In many cases these squins heroes
and heroines have become scanned with
Times wrinkles ere smiline-faced Dame
Fortune deigned to wavo her wand o'er
their heads and transform them into favor
ties of lovers of = good horse-sire, dam or
performer.
One Of the greatest sires of ~trotters and
PAGERS, Blue Ball, who has been most appro-
pristely named "the Poor Mans Horse
was overlooked 20 completely by his owner,
James Wilson, for many years., that he
never bred him to any mare, but used Blue
Bull in the capacity OF "teaser'' to q jack
of some pretensions near Nashville. Ind.
Breaking from his attendant ono day, he
served the mare he was "teasing," and the
result was Purity, who tretted In 2:3O. 10
Blue Bull, the dsspised old PAGER, who was
in the stud only eleven years. belongs the
credit Of producing ffty-fve ~trotters and
eight PAGERS in the ''oharmed circle" this
to tho cover of about 300 mares, not always
to the hest, by any means--a marvellous
showing truly. Blue Bull was about six
teen years old before his worth was discov-
cred. =.
PAGERS of 1891. belon ged to q Hickman
county. Tennessee farmer. who, bsing a
fair Judge OF a horse, thought to give Ok
man, who was anything but o beautiful
beast, "a whirl' over the Hermitage track,
near Nashville. Tenn. The party in charge
and ut length advised the farmer to take
the animal back at once to his native heath
and place him aaain in the p!ow. whore he
thought O1man belonged. The owner of
the horse was about to turn about and do
-pnrt %sorrowfully for home, when the guar
dian OF the race track, in a spirit of fur,
allowed a negro youth to hitch up a fast
PAGER in order ITO make a monkey" out OF
the man with the ''hayseed' horse. Tho
pair set out, and to the amazement of the
joker, ErduA OAEHGu, VIM AaA AoVoI o0s
foot on a raes track before. not only
threw dust in the other PAGERS eyes,
but went one of the fastest half-miles
on record. Tho RAGS track man, recovering
after a time from his amazspaent, wanted
to buy the green horse. but Oxman's
owner had enough 'horse sense'' to feel thai
he had a mighty good animal and wouldn't
have it. 1t is only a piece Of luck that this
phenomenon is ont of the pillow this minute.
lie is now owned by the Oxman Bros, of
GRANVILLE, Ind.
Goldsmith Maid, Rarus, Ocoident and
smuggler, the PAGERS Dallas and Little
Brown Jug we're finds of the first water,
and the latter once sold for only $50, and
was not considered at the time any TOO good
"buy'' at that figure. Dallas, .2:l11a. only
Tennessee. Goldsmith Maid pulled q milk
wagon for a long ti1no in and around Deck
number Of turf authorities, and
even then her light came out from
under the bushsl and dazzlsd the trottinR-
horas world With its brilliancy. ASS race
marc she has never been equallcd, taking
number of races won and her average time
into consideration. although the tracks are
faster nowadays and several appliances in
been patented since the old queen trod the
the turf. Goldsmith Maid was seventeen
when she made hor record o f2:14 in Ssptem.
Der, 1874, at Boston.
%Smugglcr was "dsveloped' by the now
celebrated trainer and driver, Charles Mar
win, and from an obscure portion of the
then 'swild and woolly west"-Kansas-
came cut on eastern tracks and beat the
best known stations of tho day. eventually
becoming the champion with a record Of
2:15A. smugglsr's breeding on tho DAM
side ID still shredded in mystery, and, with.
out such . handler as Marvin, the great
horse piaht never have bean heard Of. HI
WAS foaled at Columbus, O., and was ter
when he made his record.
1hs immortal Elactionscr, sire OF seventy
eight ~trottsrs and one PAGER with records o.
$50 or better, was not thought on0-tifth al
much of by his New York owner az Messen
ger Duroc, and Mr.. Backmnn did not thinl
great deal OF Senator Stanford's knowl
edge Of horssology whom no chose E!ec
tionser for $4,000 instead of Messenger
(who was then nine years of age. had NO
been brought to this country of the Crane
climate and mated with the splendit
matrons selected by tho owner OF Palo Alto
he might have been given little or no chanc'
to distinguish himself had he remained al
stony Ford stud, whose master thought lit
tic Of Eleotionear and would have giver
him, in all probability, aecond-rats nlares
The history of ,Waxy, Rrandam of. tn
world-famoun Sunol, has been written most
too recently to 60 into it again. but il is in
teresting in the extreme. It shows that thil
mare, q thoroughbred daughter Of Licking.
ton and the Keenon mare, who was b,
Branner's Eclipse (sire also of Nantura, til,
dam Of Longfellow) was a "cast.of'' Q
Philip Swigsrt of Kentucky, he sending thu
fily with eight head Of horses across tn
plains to California in 1864 in charge o
John p. Welsh, with orders to sell, race o
do anything he pleased with them, takin,
half tho profits. AS a race marc Waxy wa
not a bowling success, and at a sale Of tn
Ewigert stock held at San Jose in 1866,
think. Waxy passed into the hands of
gentleman named Woodland, who paid onl,
$3.50 for her. She produced to the covor O
Gan. Benton that great brood mare
Waxuna. dam of Sunol. The origina
contract entered into "bet6cen Phil
Swigert and John p. Welsh ia now in til
possession of Joseph Cairn Simpson, tn
veteran turf writer and horseman, Ms is til
list OF horses mold by N. Hayes, OF San Joae
wherein was Wa1y. The bresding on tn
dAm's side was left blank on Hayes bill o.
sale, and caused no end of confusion il
after years, when il WAS claimed by man,
'"trottina blood' oranks that Waxy was no
\ thoroughbred at all.
Maud s. herself was sold for n rittano
by A.. j. Alexander, OF Spring Station, Ky.
to Capt. Stone, after whose daughter, Mau,
Stone, the trotting queen was named. Ihi
worlds ~trotting record holder of over al
years made het best time (2:0Ssd) wlel
eleven years old, over the Cleveland trncl
on July 30, 1885.
Keno Il. amt out OF the Iowa woods Las
season, when seven yeRrs of age, an
a1,aval ~, m tn, - nv,H Inv hta uhea -