Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1892-12-02
SOPHRONlA, THE GREAT-GRAN.
DAM OF NANCY HANKS.

In" VI iNHiNNI F1ANNO.
Nancy Hanks, now the trottng queen,
has as yet in the direct maternal line no
great brood mare, like Miss Russell, Mid
night or Flora, famous for having pro-
duced several with low records, and the
many prominent stock farms where fash
ion is followed to the extreme, not only
as regards the standard, but also as con-
corning the unwritten law which for
several years has been almost as impera-
tive, that every mare must be either her.
self producer or have some great or at
least producing mare for her dam or
grandam, would have had no place for
the superbly bred Nancy Lee, until after
her now famous daughter as a three
year-old had demonstrated that she pos
sessed the right qualifications for trot-
ter and had actually entered the 2 80
list.
While generally the standardized ones
with producing dams or grandams are
actually preferable, there are exceptions,
the most numerous being the untried
daughters of superior thoroughbreds
when by the best trottng slres.
Notwithstanding the fact that the ped
igree of Nancy Hanks, particularly as
regards her first, second or third dam, is
not as prolific in noted performers as
many others, and that her sire has in
his pedigree no great brood mare like
Maintain Moi h.,
taken as whole, are certainly far super
Tor to those of any champion trotter
which has preceded her, and it is per-
haps an open question whether there has
not been as much real merit in her dam,
grandam and great-grandam, combined
with what is actually as good or better
breeding, than is possessed by either of
her champion predecessors.
Quite full particulars relative to Sophv,
the grandam. and her produce, which
included Nancy Lee, the dam of Nancy
Hanks, was given in the Horse Breeder
of September II, while in more recent
number, and also in one of year ago,
cuts and descriptions of the famous mare
herself were given. In the breeding of
Sophronla there was, after all, some
thing of an element of accident, or at
least the results were different from what
were desired, as has been the case in the
history of the near ancestors of several
other famous trotters.
About 1919, which was the year Ham,
bletonlan, Ethan Allen, George M. Pat
chen and several other quite famous pro-
genltors were foaled, DR.. Hobson, a ply
siclan practicing in Fayette county, KY,
wished to breed a superior saddle horse
to use in his practice, and his idea was
that from stOutly bred thoroughbred
he could produce one of great endurance,
which is particularly desirable tor ply
sician with an extensive country prac-
tice where the roads are generally bad.
Accordingly he leased of Col. Robert
lines thoroughbred Bertrand mare.
and arranged for her to be bred to Brown
Pilot, highly bred horse, most of whose
produce were very superior under the
saddle. the fOal to be delivered as wean-
ling.
The contract was carried out. and the
result was good-sized quite fine chest.
nut hlly, Sophronia, which, like Nancy
Pope, the dam of Pilot Jr.,was so near
ly thoroughbred that she not only had |
no natural inclination to pace, or even |
go the saddle gaits, but was decidedly |
Inclined to pure, square trot that it |
proved almost impossible to train her to |
any of the saddle gaits, the running walk
being the only one at which she made
even fairly good showing. For this
reason Sophronia was broken to harness
and sold to DR.. Robert Bryan, whose
practice was chiefly in or near the city
of Lexington, and who nearly always
drove instead of riding. BY him this
mare was driven quite hard until when
six years old she injured one of her
ankles so as to necessitate being turned
out for time, and for that reason he
mad her bred.
The following spring it was evident
hat she would permanently have
stiff ankle, and shortly before
line for her to foal he sold her at a low
'rice to Mr.. Hart Boswell, who with this /