The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1894-08-02
SCAGGS' MARE POLLY.

The Secret of a Fast Mile Made on Cir
cular Track Some Years Ago.
They were talking about horses, and
more particularly about Nancy Hanks
wonderful record. Everyone seemed to be
more or less impressed with the marvel
BUSINESS of this record, except old Mr..
Scaggs, retired farmer.
She's fast; yes" he said; "but oncet
owned mare up on the farm as could
beat her. That mare was lightnin on
legs. Polly was her .name-named her
after Mrs. Scaggs' mother, and finer
woman you never met. She could bake all
around any other woman in the county,
an when it came to me bein sick she'd
nurse me tenderlier than as if wasn't
son-in-law at all, but her own boy. My,
how she could trotp'
your mother-in-law?" asked one of the
circle.
mo; the hoss," snapped Scaggs with
fire in his eye. "Im talkin about the
boss. bought her when she was eight
years old from Mrs. Tompkins She
wasn't much on looks, Mrs. Tompkins
wasn't, but she was business all through.
When her husband died she took charge
of the grocery, md added millinery de-
partment to it, md, by Joe! inside of year
she was able to close up the grocery md do
nothin but make hats. Tompkins used
to hitch her up to the delivery wagon, you
know, but of course"-
You don't mean to say that any man
was ever mean enough to hitch his wife
up to grocery wagon and make her haul
the packages about town." queried the in
quisitive member of the party.
"'Ain't said nothin O. the kind" re-
torted Scaggs. Don't you get too funny
Pm talkin about the boss. was goin on to
tell we how when old Mrs Tompkins got
maxim two dollar hats for the women folks
md sellin em to 'em for ten, she give up the
grocery business, md so didn't have any
use for the boss old Tompkins had used
| for drivin his delivery wagon. 1t hap
pened | wanted boss bout that time, md
so | called on old Mrs. Tompkins to talk it
over. See was only eight years old at the
time, and hadn't much style about her.
though she was calculated to be EASTERN
anything else in town. | asst old Mrs.
Tompkins what she'd take, md she said
twenty-four dollars.
That's pretty high for an s-year-old,'
says l. I'll give We dollar md half
year for the boss. That's twelve dollars
Make it two and she's yours says old
Mrs. Tompkins.
"'Throw in a hat for my wife, says l,
md it goes
Done says she.
$50 bridled her, paid the money md led
her home. Few days later some of the
boys, KNOWN as l had sportin blood, came
an asst me to let Polly trot on a mile track
for the record. My wife didn't want me
to at first, because she was little off her
feed md didn't approve of racin anyhow,
but when the boys offered purse of ten
dollars if she could beat 2:10 she let up. So
l said all right md we set date"
well, what was the RESULT" asked the
inqusitive youth.
1.-TWO four for the mile" said Scaggs.
1.-TWO fourf" cried the whole circle at
once.
yep" said Scaggs. But it was the
track as helped her. There was somethin
in the track as had ought to be give some
O. the credit, for the old mare couldn't
beat more'n four minutes on the county
fair grounds"
What was the special quality of the
track, Scaggs?" asked one of the party.
WAL" said Scaggs slowly, "as far as
could make out mile on our track warn't
more'n half mile on any other. "-Har-
per's.