Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-04-28
STILL IN HIGH FAVOR
Good Horses Are as Much in Demand
as They Ever We're,
NOTWITHSTANDING THE AUTOMOBILE
A General Revival of Interest in
Driving and Riding
SPEEDWAYS ARE POPULAR


Written for The Evening Star
That a horseless age is at hand has been
the cry for several years both in America
and Europe. The frequent and confident
statements of academic military men that
cavalry could no longer be counted a useful
arm in war. owing to the great power Of
modern artillery, hardly less than the sue
cess of the electric street car, the extensive
use of the cycle and the boom of the auto
mobile, have made this cry seem plausible.
But as yet the cry is not justified by the
facts. 1t is true that electricity is rapidly
monopolizing the urban transportation of
passengers, and that pleasure carriages
moved by motors are every day becoming
more popular but nevertheless the horse
less age is still a long way in the future.
The military sharps whose beliefs were
based on theory instead of practice have
discovered. through tho bitter experience
of the British in South Africa. that cavalry
Is by no means obsolete branch of the
army. Indeed. lack of horses has been by
all odds the most serious drawback Lord
Roberts and the other British generals have
had to encounter. At this moment British
agents are securing the world for remounts.
and often paying eXorbitant prices for the
same simply because the cry of coming
horseless age was taken too seriously few
years back by the breeders. But while the
current military demand for horses has
much to do with present stiffening prices.
it is only one of the causes responsible
therefor. The passing of the demand for
car horses, which caused the ruthless
slaughter OF tens Of thousands OF animals
Of that grade, inaugurated a permanent
condition. but today. in New York, Chicago
and other big cities of the United States,
there Is a more pressing call for horses of
the better grades than has been known for
years. General prosperity is responsible for
this. and its influence on the horse market
is twofold. Unprecedented business activity
calls for great numbers Of draft horses, and
| an abundance OF money. well distributed,
naturally increases riding and driving for
pleasure, and the demand for harness and
saddle horses. The bicycle and the auto
mobile have their places and are certain
to remain in favor. but nevertheless there
is large and growing element that cannot
be satisfied with steeds Of steel.
Great Vogue of Coaching.
There was much talk about the passing
Of the coach q century ago, when the rail-
roads began to make Roadway But the
coach has not yet been supplanted. It
has merely been transformed from a thing
of necessity to a thing of luxury. Coach
ing has now become social function. and
is more popular at the end of the nine
tenth century than ever. Indeed, accord
ing to the professional whip, Aurei Batonyi
New York and elsewhere authority
on the subject. there is eight times as
much coaching today as there was before
the advent of the locomotive.
Boston, Philadelphia, Newport and New
York are the chief eastern centers for
coaching enthusiasts. but the fascination
of the sport has also been felt in Chicago
and few other western cities. The use
Of the coach as a social diversion has for
some time been known in southern Cali
fornia, even though In some Of the rough
| and mountainous western districts it is
still used as a common carrier.
New York's Public Coaches.
But you do not have to own your own
| coach to enjoy the sport of riding on
high seat behind four spirited steppers in
and about New York. For the general
public there are coaches running regularly
on which a seat may be had by any we'll
conducted individual who has the price in
his pocket. Perhaps the Good Times and
the Pioneer are the most popular Of the
public coaches. This year the latter is
run by Reginald Rives and George R.
Read. making the trip daily between the
Holland House and the Casino at Ardsley
The Good Times is run by Aurel Batonyi,
as in former years. between the Waldorf
Astoria and the Abbey at Ipwood starting
at and returning about g. which brings
Lie pdSSSu6eTS uOIl6 III Time TO Qr6SS Tor
dinner.
The Good Times is being run on the cush-
ion plan again this year, to the great de-
light Of certain enthusiasts who cannot af-
ford or do not care to have coaches of their
| own. By this plan the amateur can secure
the drivers cushioned seat for considera-
ton, thus for one day at least cutting as
wide coaching swath as If he were the
proud owner Of coach himself. But money
enough to pay for the privilege is not the
only qualification required. To sit on the
cushion and flourish the whip and finger
the ribbons you must first give evidence
that you are qualified for the task. It is not
an easy matter to tool a four-in-hand. The
arm must be strong, the wrist deft and
pliable and the fingers nimble yet firm with
the reins. A lack of aptness or muscle may
place the holder of the whip in most
| humiltating, not to say dangerous, position,
and careful preparation is undertaken by
all who wish to shine as experts. For
weeks, therefore, the amateur Whips of
New York have been in almost daily train
ing for the recently opened coaching sea-
son. and 1t Is hardly necessary to say that
the disciplining Of coachless coaching en-
| thusiasts brings no inconsiderable revenue
to the Golfers Of the professionals.
Undoubtedly the cushion plan is good for
the general coaching cause. since, now and
then, inspired by the pleasure 1t has given
him to drive a coaching party composed Of
his friends, the whip Of a day concludes to
stretch q point, and invest some thousands
in a coach and four Of his own. The cush-
ion seat on both the Good Times and the
Pioneer has already been booked for nearly
the entire season. Both were to start on
their first trips about April 1; neither did
so. owing to the lateness OF the season.
however. but both have now been running
for some days.
The coach as a social factor Is not wholly
recent development. though Its popularity
has grown remarkably of late. The coach
Good Times for instance, has been in this
country many years. having been brought
here by James Gordon Bennett, and used by