The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-08-07

prove one of the surprises of the meeting.
Stevens is a grand Splinter, and is a man 10
strong on a long sprint. and depends large
" upon these to win out over men speedier
by fifths Of 2 second for hot finishing
eighth or finishing twelfth. in which space
many a championship Is really decided.
- THE BLACK RIDER.
These are four of the white riders, but
there is a fifth rider known 10 rank right
among them. and he Is black. His name is
Marshall Taylor, Indianapolis boy born
and bred. and the only gentleman of coloh"
to ever make his mark upon a wheel. Tay-
Tor is. indeed, a hard nut to crack. His
showing made this season against the best
of the white men has given him ranking
second to none. He has beaten Gardiner,
the leader in the race for the championship,
six out of nine times they have met. has de-
feated Champion Bald six out of eight times
they have met. and against Cooper he has
also prevailed with a score of five to three,
ueIeated the eoiored lad three out of five
times, and Freeman, the Oregonian, has
the same record against Taylor.
Freeman is AMMAN to be watched. Last
spring, after his winter or training in Phil
adelphia, he shot into great prominence by
clever victories. over Cooper, Jap Eden,
the champion of Holland, and Jack Robert
son, of England, in the Brassard races at
Ambrose Park. Brooklyn. Then fate fol-
fused TO see him. referees disqualified him
Tor team work. and for long time he failed
70 score to his advantage in the champion
SHIPS. In the hands of Charles Ward, a
wrestler, whose home is in Indianapolis,
the young man has been coming gradually
to the front, and upon the basis of his rid
ing at Buffalo, where he was given second
to Bald by inches, he is a likely dark horse
In the coming races.
Earl Kiser, the half-mile national cham
pion. is a candidate, but conditonally, for
kiSer is reported to be on the verge of
serious attack of malarial fever His show
Ing in the championship records is evidence
the Dayton Demon" a name given him
owing to his wonderful kangaroo sprint of
cooper and Loughead on several notable
occasions in match races where the purse
was was YER very large. Kiser became known as
seemingly his beyond dispute
For some time there has been dread
among those who have fought at meet after
meet for the championships dread that
some man who has not been a circuit fol-
lower would enter the races at this meet
where the points are ten times the number
In the regular circuit championship races,
and. cleaning up the field with these in
creased points, walk off with the cham
Pionsnip. one of the possible stumbling
docks was Fred Loughead, the champion
of Canada and the quarter-mile and one
mile national champion of this country last
SSdSOL. IOuSnedQ reJ1reQ from circuit work
with his colors flying, but like all Others
could not entirely give up the sport. His
late performances up in Canada, having
come to the ears of the circuit men, brought
some wonder among them as to the possible
entry into these races of their old and suc
cessful rival. Lougheads entry is not re-
celVed, and 1t is probable that the scare
was so much time wasted While express
ing no fear at all of the consequences, the
lief when they learned that Loughead was
not one of those against whom they must
''go it blind
1t may be that John S. Johnson will fill
the place made vacant by the failure of
Loughead to enter and be the puzzle of the
meet. johnson has met none of these men
during his present racing season, but has
made most excellent sprints in races off the
circuit these Sprints having led to many
a conjecture of the probable result in COM
petition with the men whom he seemingly
avoided Johnson has refused to enter the
circuit competition but has issued unavail-
ingly, challenges to Gardiner Cooper. Bald
and Taylor, to meet him in match races for
"a substantial side bet He comes to the
meet with the same offer, naming triplet or
quad pacing for the series of match races
He will now meet the men he challenged
and meet them in open competition, when
results will tell the tale better far than idle
speculation may do.
1t was in 1896 that Tom Butler made his
cyclonic rush up the ladder of fame in the
championships at Louisville. Tommie fol-
lowed up his victories in the championships
and defeated the pick of the field of that
time, in open race after open race until
nearly the close of the racing season.
Butler all but won the championship of the
season and should have had it, with proper
care, to the close of the racing season. His
lapse from form in the late days of the cir
cult lost him the championship. During 1897
he was far from in form and in the early
days of the present season, after careful
training, was tipped as a championship
winner. He failed to come up to expecta-
tionS and finally retired from the circuit to
prepare for a new onslaught. What he may
do after a month or more off the circuit is
another of those problems that gives to the
championships of 1898 delicious flavor of
uncertainty.
And while picking the men out one by one
in this way there is yet the possibility that
there may be another who has been over
looked and who will gain that for which so
many are seeking at this meet, the lead in
the championship race and the consequent
prestige which means so much in the hnish-
ing months of the circuit. In the cham
pionship tables below there is field for close
study for those who would make their Sc
lections for the three championship races
of this meet, the half-mile, the two-mile
and the one-mile, the latter the most i'm
portant and to be run in the closing hours
of the meet
Nineteen championship races have been
run on the circuit this season, the prevail
ing distance being the mile, at which dis
lance ten or just over the half, have been
seen while three have been at two miles,
two at one-half mile and one each at the
quarter and the five miles. Two have been
at the third mile. The mile championship
ranks first in Importance, the half-mile next
and two-mie next. Last season Loughead
won the one-mile. Kiser the half-mile and
Fred Hoyt, of Bridgeport, the tWo-mlle. 1t
is highly probable that none of these three
men will be present to defend their titles,
although it has been reported that Fred
Hoyt was going through course OF Spe-
cial preparation with just that object in
view Gardiner has won seven, Cooper
four Taylor three, Bald and Stevens each
two and Butler one of the races run.
STANDING OF THE CRACKS.
a oh IA m DiOnShinS is
figured upon the number of points gained
of the total ridden for on the basis of a
possible winning of every race. The follow
ing tables show the standing of the men:
The Points Table
Name Starts lists DDS 3ds 4ths 5ths. Pts.