The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-12-27
TO DIG UP HAMBLE1ox1Ay,s BONES.
Skeleton OF the Great Horse to 10 Placed
In the Metropolitan Museum.

In the Metropolitan Museum.
Unless the present plans OF some well-known
New York horsemen go wrong. visitors to the
Metropolitan Museum of Natural History will
soon see the bones of the noted old trotting sire
Rysdyk's Hambletonian articulated and on
view In the corner of the building. Several
weeks ago John H. Wallace, the founder of the
~trotting stud book. visited the museum for tho
purpose Of making a study of DR.. Wortman's
collection of fossil horses. which IL said to be
the best in existence. He found skeletons and
agmen tracing tho development of the spe-
cies from the period of the hve-toed animal no
larger than a fox, which the geological
sharps say was 1000, 900 years ago. down TO
a comparatively recent age. But there was no
mounted specimen OF the modern horse. Wal
lace thought that the museum should have
such a thing. and that O representative Ameri-
can ~trotter's remains would best fill the bill.
He accordingly volunteered to pay for getting n
skeleton. and suggested to DR.. Workman that
the horse of all horses for the place WAS Rys-
dyk's Hambletonian. tho progenitor of moro
than 95 per cent. Of all the fast ~trotters now on
the turf.
he was buried with honors on the highest point
of William NJ. Rysdyk's little farm in the viii
iage Of Chester. Orange county. and some years
laIss a a SoSs't The sn eravs p'U at tkia sn time a small mai
plot of ground, including the grave of the old
Charles BscEman. tho founder Of Stony Ford
Stud; Guy Miller, said to DO the first man who
ever placed q leg over Hambletonian's back, and
James Q. Rowland. who owned Hambletonian's
son Polonius, the sire of the sensational trotter
Page. 2:00X. These veteran Orange county
horsemsn were made trustees or tho property
for ninsty-rine years. and IL was 10 them that
Wallace applied for permission TO remove the
remains of the old horse. All were pleased with
the project and readily consented.
According TO DR.. Workman. there Is even now
a chance that the skeleton may DO found to bo
imperfect. but as tho ground ID high where the
old stallion rests. 1t is hoped that this VIII NOT
be the case. The museum authorities Will prob
ably do their work within the next few weeks.
Tho bones OF many other great horses are on
exhibition In different museums throughout
this country and Europe; The skeleton OF
sons, who died at Gov. Stanford's Palo Alto
ranch in California u few years ago. is mounted
and on exhibition at the farm along with Pal0
Alto. 2:OSJ4. the son OF EIectioneer, VINO Was
the champion trotting stallion of his day. The
bones Of George NJ. PRtchen, 2:2i19, VINO was
CONAN Institution At Washington. The skeleton
of Hermit, the great English race horse ana sire
OF race hors es, was presented by MS owner,
Henry Chaplin, to the Royal veterinary Col
iege of London. 1t has been Rrticulated and Is
now in the museum Of that institution,
1t is we'll known that the earliest OF the fossil
horses had Ave toes, then four, three, ana nhal-
ly one; but even the common run Of modern
horses show traces OF three in the rucltnentary
splInt bones.
1T is ths Intention OF the authorities OF tho
Metropolitan Museum of Natural History 10
representative thoroughbred race horse, a high
class troLter, a draft horse. and q common
scrub. with "A view to showing the comparative
quality Of the bones OF all.