The sun., 1901-06-30
RACEGOERS OF ODD TYPES.
THERE'S TIE RAILBIRD. WHO Knows
ALL ABOUT THE GAME.
He WIN rsn Yea Al About II, Toe. n Yea wui
Ltstsn-Ths Man VINO Knows That the
Race d FiIed--The Roaring Piksr-Art
Of the rout-0hosts Of the Track.


Race l. Fired-Ths Roaring Piksr-Art
Of the Toat-ohosts Of the Track.
There are some types Of folks who visit
rsoetraoks that never seem TO disappear
or die out remarked ono OF the oldtime
employees at the Sheepshead bay course
the other afternoon. you'd almost be WILL
ing to believe that these types were originally
cut with a die. so little do their descendants
or Successors vary from the originals.
For example. there's the rough. scedy.
unprosperous- looking chap who takes up
his place with his arms on the rail right by
the judges stand about fifteen minutes be-
fore each race. I've seen different shapes
Of him. but all OF the same general type. on
raoetracks all over the United States. any
time these past twenty years. To those
who take places on either side OF him at the
rail he dilates upon his knowledge OF the
game His knowledge Is rarely or never
exact. his dates arc invariably wrong but
that doesn't bother him. lie expatiates
anyhow. One OF the men near him says
for instance
We'll, this favorite Is at to In the bet
ting. and Of course he's bound to win
Huh. don't you believe anything like
that fr minnit. young fellsr. replies. oon-
temptuously. this authority Of tho rail. I
seen hundreds o. shortsr-prioed horses nor
any 1 to dumped In my time-yes. an
shortsr-priced ones than to 90. whom IL
comes TO that
Here one Of tho men at either side OF the
rail oracle 10 apt TO express mild disbelief.
and this starts the seedy chap going
Don't believe II. heyY' he eIclaims
nolsiy. Well. I'll tell you what III do
I'll be you an even hundred and the man
doesn't look a. II he has q hundred cents
and probably hssn't-'Ill bet you an even
hundred that ] seen Tsmmany git beat onet
wen he was at to 100 In the books an when
he was played by some plungers, at that
Now. this statement Is utterly iDe1aot
Of course. for while Tammany was beat when
at very short price owing to the fact that
he broke down, the to 100 abatement is pure
foolishness. But he argues II out with a
pretty leathery pair OF lungs. and. as In
ninety-nine cases out OF hundred the chaps
beside him are not raoegoers OF great
many years experience in fact the fellow
usually picks out the young ones TO impress
he always gets away with his proposition.
He knows all about the conformation
Of a thoroughbred as a thoroughbred ought
to be. too. 1t seems and as the horses parade
10 the post his critical remarks are eagerly
listened TO by those around him near the
rail. each hoping tho oracle will approve Of
the conformation and general LOOKS OF the
horse he has backed As rule the wise
man approves OF very few OF the horses
L never seen a short-Coupled horse like
that VT that didn't back up wen IL come TO
real racin'' he remarks of a horse that IL a
notorious gutter thus rendering his state
ment perfectly safe. Or he will say. as the
thatll gt over the distance you can always
tell "A stayin horse by his rungy look an the
way he -tan's over thc grOun. and IN point
ing out horse OF this kind he Is perfectly
safe in the knowledge that the one he has
indicated has reputation as distance
This acute person Of the rail never. under
any circumstances, names to those around
him the horse that he has backed until tho
animals fash under the wire Thon he tells
them all, with slow. puck"rlng grin OF great
astutenesS. that he played the winner OF
course nothn' else TO IL. he says II was
case Of stake horse Tunnin' agin q lot O
sellin' platerS.' he adds. and the chaps who
haven't PLAYED the right one wonder vaguely
them and plays such an unhcaTd-of number Of
winners cant contrlye 10 get himself decent
suit Of clothes. and why he wears a pair OF
shoes badly broken AT the sole~
Another exceedingly wise individual on
all rucetracks all over the country every day
when racing is going on IL tho fellow who
dried This chap Is in all walks Of life. from
shoe clerk with an afternoon OF TO tout.
"'It's hyrd, he SAYS 1t wasn't a, case O.
shakin' dice fr the baby. but it's fixed all
right all right and you hear me-
He II often asked. pertinently enough.
how he knows that the race = t'yed. where
his left eve. or sticks his thumb IN his cheek,
thereby giving an impression of almost pre-
tcrnat'irRl wisdom
Bound to go through he goes on An
1Q1l
70 the ono I'm telin' you They'll only look
like, they're runnin'. but the one thCy'' re dead
to come along and cop the dough
This fellow is rarely a tout lie /, as often
as not chap who has heard a rip on the horse
thar he, mentions, and he desires TO max"
hciary of real inside information. II IA tho
purest vanity that inspires him. And hs
makes his contention as to fixed rnces stick
who does almost irreparable harm to tho
turf For II, ~ II bound to happen occaE-
ionally. the horse that he tells his friends
has been selected TO win really docs win. the
formation, particularly II they are mex
perieuoch in turf matters. leave the track
convinced for life that tho game IL dshOi,-
est which It most decidedly ia not.
The commoneSt and greatest nuisance
on the track. because he Is tho noi-lest, ~
the occasional track visitor who makes pix
ing bets and then rolr- when his horse -
heat lie viii bet, say s. on a ~ 10 shot
and the horse IL beat n block Then he be-
gins hc dOe-U '. as n rue. know Inc Nr~t
principle OF racing, nor the form OF the horses
aud as often A. no he plays his ~ to I shot
purely on hunch But to hear him when his
plug i soundly trounccd you would fancy that
the roaring plker had stood to win about
sac oOO on the stake.
That. where they burned me out on a
Job, he yellS. That /, whore got the strong
arm for fair. Didn't see him pulled all the
haCkstrctCh. heyt Well, ! did. all night
and he soes these things most Uraculpu.ly.
undcr-tand. without the aid Of ned-g glH--rs.
n his horse hasn't been actually pulled.
then he declares that the boy on the horse
was fixed, and that the lad had never mudo
a move on the Gnima! from the beginning
10 the end Of tho race. Or II the manner
render this sort of statement mauitrStly
iiiotic to hi4 hearers. he will deliberately de-
clare that he happens to know that the beaten
long shot was never meant to win, and that
he i perfectly certain that the skate had
been given two large buckets Of WAter be-
fore the rHce Just 80 that he could not pos
sihlv run,
The roaring piker always declares that
his beaten plug stood 10 win him trrU endous
amount Of money. lIo may he wearing
hat that obviously cost him no more than a
dollar, and vet lac has the erroutcry to At
tempt to pose. with his mouth. a. a pluugor.
The character Of the tout on the track
has completely changed in the pn~t few YEAR,
according 10 the public idea ~ 1t. But hs
hasn't The track tout best known TO public
fancy j. n tough. pure and simple a raucou--
voiced illiterite shnbblly-Clad tough, with
a certain uleaguOusncss of speech and per-
tua~ivsu"S~ oi auurr who tackles hlS mark,
whisperingly and pretcndS TO DO attached
to "A stable, and who depends largely upon
tho pafoig Of the trIC 10 help him through
with tho man he selects tO blk. Thi- fellow
hoo almost Cntirply di,aupppr.d an fla. T,Ytn