Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1895-02-15
"SEELYS AMERICAN STAR"
tFrom the Horseman, Chicago.l

editorial columns OF one or your con
tempOraries. The article purports TO be
criticism on the pedigree of this horse
recently given to the public by us. The
writer, being profoundly Ignorant of the
whole subject, seems to suppose himself
especially fitted for its discussion. lie
saws: "When Seely's American Star was
alive, men just as painstaking and OBJ
serving as Mr.. Battell studied his points
and established his pedigree to Their
satisfaction" We did not know before
that pedigIees were obtained by study
ing points, and what the writer means
by establishing his pedigree to their
satsfaction," we shall leave him to eX-
plain. He closes his article by the as
sertion that the real pedigree of Seely's
the majority of breeders until it is rec
Orded in the American Trotting Regis
ter. The article in question would be
utterly worthless but for the fact that
Backman. the well-known breeder of
Stony Ford. y. Y. who owned large
number Of the daughters of Seelv' 5
American Star. and whose opinions,
therefore, regarding the stock are en-
titled to consideration. Mr.. Backman
is reported as saying:
81 take no stock in the new pedigree
furnished by Mr.. Battel for oeely's
American Star. When | was a young
man | was almost constantly on the
road in New England, especially in Yer
mont aud New Hampshire. collecting
money for the firm with which | was
then engaged. drove and saw hun
dreds of the best Morgan horses and be-
came familiar with their striking points.
They were, as Il rule. high-headed and
shOrt-2aited horses. When | started to
found a stud at Stony Ford | hunted up
all the best daughters of Seelv's Amer-
can Star that could be bought, with the
object of breeding them to Rysdyk's
HambletonIan. Nearly forty of these
mares, including Alice Van Duzer, Lady
Brown, Fanny Fern, Lizzie Walker,
Lady Mead, Maggie Jones, Lady Darl-
ing, Kitty Mills, Montgomery Maid,
Fannie Star Emma Mills, Lady Falls,
Lady Rockafellow, Wells Star, Mary
Hulse. Trustus Webb, Emma lIOyt,
Fanny Harris. Lady Durland and Imo-
gene, grazed in my pastures, or lie
buried on the farm, aud as drove them
and had so much to do with them, their
striking characteristics became as famil-
lar to me as the Morgans did in my more
youthful days. The sons and daughters
of Seely's American Star were lowhead-
ed and long, gated, with wide action be-
hind, just the reverse of all the Morgans
that | knew. 1, therefore, cannot ac-
cept the opinion of any one that Seely's
American Star was the son of an inbred
Morgan. If like produces like, Il low
headed and long-gaited type could not
come from an up-headed and short
gated type
We have shown by an amount of EVIL
dence that is overwhelming. and that
comes from some of the most dlsting-
uished horsemen in the country, that
knew Seely's American Star well, that
Seely's American Star resembed in a
most marked degree the Morgans. OF
course, as matter of fact the get of this
horse must have largely resembled him,
and must Therefore have largely re-
sembled the Morgans. Mr. Backman
says nothing about this except to adj
vance his theory in regard to gait. We
know that COnklins American Star and
King Pharaoh that went to Missouri,
both sons of SPely'S American Star, were
most pronouncedly Morgan horses in
shape and quality Sheriff Broadhead
of Kingston, n. Y, said of another son :
Lewis LeFevre bred son of Seely's
American Star, "A sOrrel, solid chunk of
a horse" which is not very bad off
hand description of a Morgan.
The Stars were trotters, had spread
gait--amost a necessity in the natural
trotter, for it enables him to extend him
self without striking his front feet with
is Mr.. Backman's opinion that the Nor
gans ought not to do this. As soon as
they do it they become dangerous rivals
of the Hambletonian family, the family
Mr.. Bacllman is breeding. Mr.. Back
man bases his opinion upon, he says,
quite an extended acquaintance with the
Morgans. In order to get the full force
of his objection he will have to tell us
exactly how these MOrgans that he was
acquainted with were bred; to what
particular family they belonged. Were
they descendants of Sherman Morgan,
and, if so, of his son Cock of the Rock,
and of the particular son of Cock of the
Rock that we are discussing, Coburn's
Starr And were they the descendants
of Coburn's Star when crossed to the
particular mare that was the dam of
Seely's Star, mare of unknown breed
inU2 so that n will ha nuita imnoaoihla