The record-union., 1893-11-14
A MEMORABLE RACE.
The First Pony Express Across the
Continent.
How the Trip Was Made From sacra-
mento to st. Joseph. and
100000 Won.

Referring to some old time races, the
Breeder and Sportsman republishes the
following description of race that stands
unparalleled in this country, or perhaps
any other, taken from an old Western
paper. 1t has passed from the memory
of many and will be news to the public at
large.
In 1859, st. Joseph, Mo-, was the ter
minus of railroad communication. Be-
yond, the stage coach, the saddle horse.
the OK team and prairie schooner were
the means of transportation thence to the
Rockies and the Pacific slope.
In the winter of 1S59-60 there was a
Wall street lobby at Washington trying
to get S5,00O,000 for carrying the mail
overland for one year between New York
and San Francisco. The proposition was
extremely cheeky, and William II. Rus
sell. backed by Secretary of War Floyd,
resolved to give the lobby a cold shower
bath. He therefore offered to bet 500, 900
that he could put on mail from Sacra-
mento, CAL, TO ST. Joseph, Mo-, that
could make the distance--l $50 miles-in
ten days. The bet was taken and April
18th fixed upon as the day for starting.
Mr.. Russell called upon his partner and
plains, A. b. Miller, and asked him if be
could perform the feat.
Miller replied: es, sir, | will do it,
and by pony express.
To accomplish this Miller purchased
800 of the tieetest horses he could find in
the West and employed I25 men. Eighty
OF these men were to be post riders. These
he selected with reference to their light
weight and known courage 1t was very
Qc al hat bc Ioa l.Na cd Ii,rh
as possible; therefore, the lighter the man
the better. 1t was necessary that some
portions OF the route should be made at
the rate of twenty miles an hour.
The horses were stationed from ten to
twenty miles apart, and each rider would
be required to ride sixty miles. For the
change of animals and the shifting of the
mails two minutes were allowed. Where
there were no stage stations at proper
distances tents sufficient to accom-
modate one man and two horses would
be provided. Indians would sometimes
give chase, but their cayuse ponies made
but sorry show in their stern chase after
Miller's thoroughbreds, many OF which
could make a single mile in 1:46.
All arrangements being completed,
signal gun on the steamer Sacramento
proclaimed the meridian of the 18th of
April, 1S69-the hour for starting-when
Border Ruffian, Mr.. Miller's private sad
die horse, with Billy Baker in the saddle.
bounded away toward the foothills in the
Sierra Nevada, and made his ride of
twenty miles in forty-nine minutes. The
SHOWS were deep in the mountains and
one rider was lost for several hours in a
snowstOrm, and after the Salt Lake Val
ley was reached, additional speed became
necessary to reach st. Joseph on time
From there all went well until the Platte
was to be crossed at Julesburg. The
river was up and running rapidly, but
into the flood the rider plunged his horse.
only, however, to mire and drown in the
qulcksand.
The courier succeeded in reaching the
shore with the mail bag in hand, and
travelled ten miles on foot to reach the
next relay. Johnny Fry, d popular rider
of his day, was TO make the finish. He
had sixty miles to ride and six hours to
do it with. When the last courier arrived
at the siXty-mile post, out from st. Jo-
Seph, he was one hour behind time. A
heavy rain had set in and the road was
slippery. Two hundred thousand dollars
turned upon single minute. Fry had
just three bours and thirty minutes in
which to win. This was the finish of the
longest race for the largest stake ever run
in America.
When the time for his arrival was nearly
up at least 5000 people stood upon the
river bank, with eyes turned toward the
woods from which the horse and rider
shortly emerged into the open country in
the rear of Elmwood, one mile from the
finish. Tick tick tick went thousands
of watches. The time was nearly up
but seven minutes remained. Hark a
shout goes up from the assent bled throng:
HE comes He comes ~ The noble lit
tie man. ''Sylph," the daughter of Lit
tie Arthur darts like an arrow from the
bow and makes the run Of the last mile
in LOO, landing on the ferry boat with five
minutes and ten seconds to spare!