Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1892-11-04

We were riding along one day, | should
think, about fifteen or twenty miles from
| looked up and saw a
horse coming towards us. | said to
Holiday: "IIere comes horse running
away" "No," he says, sit Is trottng."
| said, "rm going to stop that man." L
did so. | asked if he would sell the
horse. He said, II will" "At what
price p" said 81 reckon will take $780,"
asked him if he would let my man ride
her little ways. He did so. Holiday /
turned off on cross road; when he got .
back his face was as white as a sheet. /
The only thing he said was BUY her
she is ghost" Well, was so much of |
a gawk that did not understand what
he meant by 81 reckon" | told the man
l was buying to sell-that he wanted too
much for her. He wanted to know how
much | would give for her. | told HIM
would give S15 for the horse, saddle and
bride. After great deal of talk, he
sold her to me. The only thing | asked
him was how old she was he said she
was coming six years old. In my opinion
she was not any older. TO describe her
color, the best description | could give
would be betw a very dark and light
brown, aid no white on her except
very small star; she had very fine points,
"A fine head and name and tail, and was
one of the incest drivers you ever saw.
This mare, Dolly Spanker, my brother
who is now dead-sold to J. Lewis for
John S. King for $500. saw when he got
home he was riding with another mare.
| asked him If the mare was dead he
said he had got her in his pocket; | told
him ne had not got the worth of the hairs
in the mares tail. Mr.. Lewis knew very
well he could not buy her of me for
$1,000. As to pedigree, there is no man
who knows it. Yours respectfully,
JAMES GILBERT.
132 Seventh street.
GENEVA, Sept. IS, 1892.
MR.. DUDLEY MILLER, Oswego, n. Y.
| could only reiterate what ! gave to
you in full at my house some days since
in regard to Dolly Spanker; as | told you,
she was a brown mare =; | think one white
hind foot; weighed about 1,O50; well
put together. a fine driver, and | can't
say whether was present when King
bought her of Gilbert or not, but | did
sell her to Delevan, and he sold her to
Harry Feter, and he sold her to his faith
err, and all told you about sending John
S. Dey to Bristol was true. but when
YOU get Gilbert's letter he will tell you
the same story that he did to me. His
full name is James Gilbert, Master, Buff
falo. John ). King is at Orange, y. j..
You had better write them both, and |
hope their memory will be little better
than mine. viii be glad to help you all
can. Yours truly, j. ). LEWIS.
Mr.. Clark NJ. Phillips did not state that
James Gilbert purchased this mare of
HIM, or anything like it, as Mr.. Gilbert
would have seen had he read Mr. Phillips
letter in the Horse Breeder, in addition
to the comments thereon. Mr.. Phillips
only material statement has always been
that he bred such roam tilly date not
given and sold her to f. V. Phillips.
1t has been suggested that this ques-
ton should be referred to the board of
censors for final decision, This may be
well. but it will be somewhat amusing
I trial. On the one hand Will be the evil
dence of Clark Nj. Phillips that at some
time later than 1852, when Henry Clay
was owned by Kent & Bailey, he bred a
roam filly by him which he sold young to
f. V. Phillips, who sold her when four tC
Joshua Phillips, and he sold her when
five QS5S or later to some unknown
party ''from the eastern part of the coun-
try" The board will then gravely con
slider the question whether this roam mare
was the brown mare in the hands of Gil
bert in 1871, then seven years old. SOLD
that year to Lewis for King, driven that
year by King and sold, 1852, to Deevan
driven by him two years (lS53-4} ant
turned over to the Felters, who bred her
to Hambletonian in 1885 and produced
George Wilkes, foaled in 1886. Possibly
at this point the board may be ena'
bled to decide without calling Gilbert tC
state where he really did get Dolly
Spanker, or Lewis to state that his in
formation was erroneous.
In view, however, of this remarkable
statement in the letter of John p. Ray tC
Mr.. Wallace: When Henry Clay was
being brought from the East to his home
in Western New York he stopped over
Durgan Ithe breeder of Castle Boy dRc
made a season at this place the tollowins
year when he became the property Of Hen
d Bailey," we think it would be well fol
the board to take the testimony of Mr.
w. A. Wadsworth of Geneseo, son OF
Col. w. W. Wadsworth, who owned Hen
ry Clay, and have him bring the books OF
his father and his fathers executors. We
have already shown from these book:
that Col. Wadworth bought Henry Clay
March p, 1915, and that his executor:
sold the horse Jan. ID, 1852. to Nelson
Thompson of Penn Yam. We now ap
pend letter from Mr.. w. A. Wadsworth
showing that the above statement in ital
les bears the ear marks of Ananias.
GENEsEo, n. Y, SEPT. 20, 1892.
Dear Sir Please excuse delav in an
swering, but had to get hold of severa
parties to be perfectly sure. There is nc
record that | can discover and all of whom
have enquired absolutely deny that the