The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-06-05
French Coachers are the Horses to
Raise.

French Coachers are the Horses to
Raise.
Miller & Sibley, of Franklin, Pa,
sold pair of one-half blood coachers
at their sale in New York, May 10Th
and 18th, for 81, 800. The following is
from the Breeders Gazette of May 18th,
1896:
Miller & Sibley have at their Pros
pect Hill farm, in Pennsylvania, forty
trotting-bred mares with records.
They have at Mr.. Todhunter's farm,
in Kentucky, fifteen trotting mares.
These fifteen will be bred to the Elec-
tioneer trotting stations Electric
Bell and Belsire. OF the forty mares
lat Prospect Hill. four will be bred to
the trotting stallion Cecilian, and
thirty-SiX will be bred to the French
coach stallion JAYNE. Miller & Sibley
will breed, in all, tifty-tiye trotting
mares this season. Nineteen will be
| bred to trotting stations, and thirty
six will be bred to French coacher
with view to getting heavy carriage
| horses.
These tS-cOnfirmatory of the
Gdzette'S recent statement that this
| firm would breed fewer mares to
trotting stations, and more to a
French cOacher-were given to the
writer by Hon. Joseph G. Sibley in a
conversation last week, in New York,
They need no comment. They are of
| special interest as tending to prove
how absolutely correct the Gazette
has been in urging upon it's readers
the breeding of heavy harness horses.
Only those who have perused the
! various turf papers can have any
idea of the abuse and vilIification
| which they have heaped on the for
eign breeds of harness horses, and on
the Gazette for advocating their use
in getting heavy carriage horses.
Now the action of Miller & Sibley
and the Hamlins has set before these
same sheets very SavOry mess of
"crow," which they will proceed to
devour with the best grace posi- ble
The Gazette begs leave to tender to
it's misguided contemporaries the as
surance of it's distinguished consider
alton, and wishes them all success
in the digestion of the ''bird" served
up to them.
The story of Miller & Sibley's car
riage horse breeding operations, as
related by Mr.. Sibley is an interest
| ing one. The progeny of the first
French coacher they owned was at
first disappointing. They were large
framed and rather raw, as youngsters.
and did not mature so early as the
| rrotters. In consequence, some of
them were consigned to farm work
when broken. A pin can be stuck
right here. The Gazette has repeat
| eddy stated that If in breeding to the
imported harness horses high class
carriage horse is miSSed-which will
sometimes be the caSe-the farmer, at
least has valuable horse This is
what Miller and Sibley thought they
had while their half bred French
coachers were maturing The Ham
Inns were disappointed likewise, and
sold many Of their half breeds: Miller
& Sibley kept theirs. One day a
farm team came to Mr.. Sibley's
house. His critical eyes fell upon the
| horses, and he demanded of the dri-
yer what they were He was an
swered that they were half bred
French coachers consigned to farm
| work. He ordered them stripped of
| the harness, and, whip in hand, he
tested them for action. This done,
he said ''bring that pair of horses to
| my stable when you next come, but
behind and not in front of the wag-
on" This team is one that will be
sold this week at Madison Square
Garden as high class pair of car
riage horses.
Mr.. Sibley loves fast horse; he is
broad minded enough to appreciate
the other kind'of harness horse: he
drives road horse; he likewise
drives fOur-in-hand team to twelve
passenger break, and he knows the
difference between a roadster and a
coach horse. He understands the
present market for large, handsome,
high headed, resolute, high acting
horse, suitable to pull the coach
break, landeau, brougham, mail phae-
ton, and kindred heavy vehicles. He
has found, by experience, that he can
produce such horse by the cross of
the French coach stallion on trotting
bred mares. He earnestly advises
against the cross of the trotting stall
lion on the French coach mare.
And this is why thirtysix out of
| fifty-tive trotting mares in the Pros
pect Hill stud will be bred this year
to French coach stallion.