Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1894-12-27
THE HISTORY OF HIS DEVELOP
MENT
BUDD DOBLE'S INTERESTING RE
VIEW
BY Slow, Patient Labor the Harness
Racer Has Become What 1t Is
Eighty-Eight Years of Progress
How Long a Trotter Will Last.

American trOtting horse of today. 1t
was on October 10, 1859, that 30
was beaten for the first time in the
history of the trCtting turf. On that
day a small, bob-tailed bay mare
known As Flora Temple trotted a mile
in the third heat of a race at Kalama-
zoo, Mich, in what was then thought
the incredibly fast time of 219 81
Previous to that day the worlds best
trotting record-also made by Flora
Temple, in race on September >,
1S56,-had been 2.24 II. 1t was on
September 2S, 1892, at Terre Haute.
Ind, that Nancy Hanks trotted a mile
in 2.04. 1t will thus be seen that a
period of 33 years elapsed between
the day when go was first beaten
and the day OF which the worlds
trotting record was placed at its pres
sent mark-204. The American trot-
ting horse has been evolved from the
thoroughbred and the draft horse in
a period of less than 100 years.
The first trotting mark of which
we have any record is 80, made at a
short mile track in Harlem, n. Y, in
the year 1906. At Philadelphia in
1910 a trOtting record of 2.4S ID was
made. For a long period thereafter
the aim of trotting horse breeders
seems to have been the production of
animals that could travel long dis
tances in moderately quick time, rath-
er than those which could 60 a mile
at a very high rate of speed. AS a
consequence, for very considerable
period all races were at long distances,
and we do not hear much more about
mile records until 1915, when Lady
Suffolk reduced the marke to 90 ID,
which was not lowered until 1910,
when a horse named Pelham, thought
to be a converted PAGER, lowered it a
second and a half. Then Highland
Maid put it at 2.27. Flora Temple
then came to the front with her mark
of 2.24 ID, and her still better one
Of 2.19 81, as stated above. 1t was
not until June 80, 1867, that Flora
was deposed from her proud position
Of queen of the turf by Dexter, who
on that date shaded the record to 2.19,
and on August II of that year he re-
duced it to 2.17 IA, which was re-
duced to 2.17 in 1871 by Goldsmith
Maid, who gradually reduced her mark
until in 1874 it stood at Oh. This
was not shaded until August 8, 1878,
when the figu-es '2.13 1-4'' were put
up to the credit of FIrus.
In October of the following year st.
Julien, a California trotter reduced
the record to 2.12 81, and on August
u, 1880, he put it at oil 81, Maud S
| making the same mark on the same
day, both records being made so sep
arately against time and over the
track at Roches' or, n. Y. Maud S
on September Is of the same year
| trOtted against time in 2.1O3 at Chi
cagO, and at Rochester, n. Y, on Au-
gust 9. 1881, she reduced the record to
30 IA This remained unchanged till
August /, 1884, when, Jay-Eye-See
trotted a mile in 30. On the follow
ing day. at Cleveland, O., Maud S. re-
duced the record to 200 "a, and on
July 30, 1885, not quit a year later,
she trotted again at Cleveland against
time in 2.0S 81. This mark remained
unchanged until October so, 1891,
when SunOl reduced it to 2.0S IA. but
it must be borne In mind that Maud's
record was made over a regulation or
OvalShaped track, while SunOIs was
made over a kite-shaE2d track, so that
Maud's performance was quite as
good as, if not better than, that of
Sunol This mark was not beaten I'M
til September %, 1899, whvn Nancy
Hanks, driven by myself, trotted a
mile over a regulation track at Terre
Haute, Ind, in 204 This mark has
never yet been surpassed or even
equaled by a trotting horse, and still
remains the trOtting record. 1t will be
seen from the above that it required SO
years to reduce the trotting record fom
2.59, at which it stood in 1906, to
,. 10 81, made by Flora Temple in
1859, a gain of 0.39 IA. while it re-
quired a period of 33 years to reduce
it from 2.19 81, at which it stood in
1859, to 2.O4, made by Nancy Hanks in
1892, a gain CT only Ole
The first steps toward making
trOtter are taken at the stock farm
where he is bred. There are great
enclosures about 70 by 100 feet, or
often much larger in which the young
stock is allowed to run about during
the day. The youngsters are separa,
ed according to their age, yearIings
in one paddock, tWO-year-olds in an
other and so on. Mothers milk at first
forms the sole sustenance of the lit
tie equine. His mother is fed from
fiat, shallow vessel Laced upon the
ground, and when her colt has at
tanned the age of about one month he
will begin to nibble at the contents
of his mothers dish and is allowed to
do so without hindranca. He is en-
tirelly removed from his parent. and
thereby Weaned when he has reached
the age Of six months. and carrots. |
turnips, potatoes and crushed oats and |
wheat then comprise his diet. He is |
broken to the ha ter at the early age |
of six weeks if it is intended to give |
him a yearling record. Halter break !
ing may be always easily accom- I
plished if the colt has been judiciously |
accustomed to mans voice and pres
ence, but it may be difficult if he has i
been allowed to run wild without ever
being spoken to or petted Never give
4 very young colt the idea that you are
going to impose upon him an irksome
task. Let him think you are playing
With him-not working him. You may