Blue-grass blade. [volume] (Lexington, Ky.) 188?-19??, 1897-10-03
damaging to the public morals.


who are attracted to Lexington by
the horse races. They always bring
with them an extra supply of pick
pockets and of the lower order of
strumpets
Into our leading society there are
continually being foisted people who
have gotten rich from horse racing
who otherwise would never have
been noticed.
Their Toney and that OF the sa-
loon keepers and distillers goes
largely to pay the priests and preach
ers and EDITORS, and, of course, these
are not going to doanything to dam
age the race horse business and the
whisky business.
The cases of Major Clark and Cap
tain Treacy are just such as are hap
pening here all the time, and this
has been the case as far back as
Can rememOer.
The sufferers from the race horse
business are not merely the men
who indulge in the Sport" but, in
many instances, their wives and
children. l know some sad cases of
this kind.
OF course there are instances in
which race horse men succeed so far
as the getting of money can consti-
tute success, and their wives and
daughters, decked out in silks and
diamonds, become leaders of $50
ciety" and the churches, despite
their origin and lack Of social and
educational advantages; but the
general trend is to financial ruin
even, and, OF course, any man of
good brain, and rational aud proper
moral perceptions, must know that
no man can be truly happy man
who makes his living by horse rae
ing.
Life, at best, and under the most
favorable ciroamst stances, would have
an abunksancc of care aud trouble,
even il we all did the best we knew
how. No truly wise man will then
go out of his way to engage in bus
mess that is essen TALLY immoral.
l do not expect, by what say, to
influence Christians. Any man
whose judgment is so perverted, or
so weak, as TO be capable of believ-
ing that the Bible is true is necessar-
lily incapable of approaching any
argument, and especially one bear
ing upon morals, and any man who
is capable of protesting to believe
the Bible when he does not, is neces-
sarily so morally depraved that he
would not be influenced, by any ar
gument, to do good.
So that am limited, in my in
fuence, to lnfidels; and it is only to
intelligent Infidels who are patrons
and abettors of "the turf" that | add
dress these words.
Go on as you are doing and you
live and will die violating your con-
sciences and furnishing to our Chris
tian enemies good ground for saying
that Inidelity means immortality,
and they will say that though your
race courses have a thousand Chris
tians to one Intidel.
Price McGrath was one of our
most successful race horse men. l
don't know what he thought about
religion, but suppose he was "a Chris
tian because he gave a chandelier
that cost $500 to the Christian
church in Georgetown. OF course
the church took it as it will do any
thing that it can take, but that
church had enough of consistency to
shut its mouth against horse racing
while it got its light from that bust
ness.
Keene Richards probably did more
'or the race horse business than any
nan who ever lived in America. He
vas highly cultivated and refined
nan, but he wasted splendid for
,une on race horses and eied a bank
'upt.
James A. Grinstead was rich
Lexington banker, and perhaps the
eading race horse man OF the State,
md was one of the most popular
men | ever knew so long as his
money lasted, but l saw him sitting
m the side of the streets a neglected
,auper, and boy named Eddie kis-
;enger TO whom l have frequently
,een Mr.. Grinstead give five or ten
,ents, because he was a poor and al
a L1l.~a1 10 |