Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-08-02

and an advance of full second made over it hy hr' Nancy Hanks and Mascot with in four hs from thc date when the bi cycle s,'' :S first tried in public.
 OthC. les regarding tho feasibility of the rr,: i at either gait being placed at two minutes are now forced to acknowl- edge that this crowning feat is likely to be seen before the close of the century, and the New York Times declares that the more sanguinc spirits are hopeful that the hitherto unapproachablc goal will bo reached during the present season.
 In selecting the most likely candidates for this great honor the trOttcrs must be rejected. Not Alix herself or any of tho younger stars that give promise of reach ing d high place in the Armament that bounds the diagonal gait have even q re- mote chance to improve the present speed limit at the trot by tho 324 seconds that stand between it and even time. Monroe Salisbury will be satisfied if his famous prOtegce gets down to 2:02 in her 7-year-old form. She has not made very brilliant beginning, though her milo in 2:0724 at St. Joseph iS considerably faster than she could go during the first week in July last season.
 The apprehension that Alix was on the verge of a breakdown when she made her debut at Red Oak last month is not shared by Salisbury or his trainer Mcdowell. Both admit that tho mare was treated be- fore she left California, tho process known as ''dotting" being employed. They stout ly aver that there was no serious trouble, the needle being used merely to take down the swelling that is found about the ankles of almost every horse that has been in training for any length of time. It is fur thCr explained that Alix has not had suffi "iCnt work to enable her to carry her speed, as shown at Rcd Oak, where sho stepped tho first quarter in 30I2, but could only do the mile in 2:l1. As tho season advances those who havo charge of the trotting champion are confident that she will improve and bc ahle to hold her own against all corners.
 The challenges issued on behalf of the queen for match with any other trottcr up to $5, GOO q side doubtless sent out to show that the mare is ready to defend her title in spite of the reports that sho is lamN or SOTO.
 There are two other trOtterS whose form entities them 1o he considered in q contest with AfiX. or these Dircctum has meas urcd swords with hrr on two occasions, the first time Late in 1893, when ho was at his best, and sht, had been practically out of training fur a month. The race, which was really a hipIotlrume, camo off at Fleet wood park, Ncv: York, and merely showed how a trotter of the highest class like Alix, when out of condition, can be made to look very cheap beside one that was mp to the form Dircctum had reached after his brilliant campaign in the south and west. On the renewal of the rivalry last October at Boston the conditions were reversed, and it was the black giants ;Scnor that proved so vulnerable. As both of these cracks seem to be doing well at present, n third meeting between them should result in faircr test of their respective merits than has yet been obtained. Dircctuln has already trotted in 2:06 and seems approach ing his 1893 form. His owners have offered