The Plymouth Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1878-1901, 1901-08-22
Wonderful Performance Of Best
Trotter on Earth
Ketchom's Horse has Broken More
Records This Season Than Any
Racer Ever Broke and Is the unds-
putcd King of the Turf.

prices yesterday afternoon to wit
ness what promised to be the
greatest struggle for suprem-
acy between harness horses ever
seen on a race track, and they
saw one heat that was never be-
fore surpassed in trotting horse
history-a pair of as game horses
as ever turned track, trotting
a full mile and finishing just a
half a length apart in 2:O34.
The Brighton Beach track
never saw such a crowd. No
running race ever drew so many
spectators. They came from all
parts of the United States. From
California, from New England,
from the middle West and South,
men who love the trotter poured
through the gates until the track
was literally flooded with human
ity. They filed the big cantil-
ever stand, crowded the lawn
until it was impossible to move
one way or another, flowed across
the track into the infield along
the rail, covered many teams and
coaches lined there, damned the
betting ring and 75-cent field,
and even stood upon improvised
grand stands outside the fence
along the back stretch.
1t was about $50 o'clock when
the drivers Ketcham and Geers
appeared before the grand stand
and obtained their positions for
a start by the flip of coin. Luck
was with the driver of Cresceus,
as he secured the pole, decided
advantage when two horses so
nearly equal in point of record
are considered. When, a little
later, the horses came from the
paddock they were wildly cheer
ed, and they looked fit for the
work before them. Fortunately,
too, the wind had died down to a
dead calm, so there was no OBJ
stacle in that line.
They got the word to a nose
and-nose start with Cresceus 60
ing the faster, which had sent
him to the front a length to the
good before reaching the first
turn, which he held 10 the quar-
ter, making that mark in O:304
This lead The Abbott had slight
ly reduced at the half, which was
reached in 1:014, and he was a
very close second at the three
quarter pole, in 1921.
The vast crowd realized that a
worlds record was about to be
made, and the grand stand arose
to it's feet, while the multitude,
which was in the space between
the stand and the track cheere6
wildly. Coming down the stretch
it was a battle royal, with The
Abbott very close up, but Ores
ceus, with his bulldog grip, KEEP
on, and just managed to beat his
opponent by a half length il
2:O34, the worlds trotting RECORD
in a race. To say that the an
nouncement created tumultuou!
applause only family conveys The
meaning of the expression.
A little over a half hour ha(
expired when the two CRANE
horses came out for their secont
trial, and were started under tn
same conditions that existed
in the first heat. They wer'
sent away beautifully, but Th'
Abbott had not travelled a hun
} dred yards before he made a dis
astrous break, and before h.
could recover his gait Cresceu
was in front. The Abbott, ono
} settled, made a good effort tt
overtake his opponent, but tn
son of Robert McGregor wa
out for victory, and kept on
passing the quarter in 0:314, tn
half in 1:O24, the three quarter
in lbs. and came rushing hom
the last quarter in O:314 doin'
the mile in 2::O64, with The Alb
bolt back of the flag.
> AS the race was best three i
five, Ketcham consented tina
Cresceus go another heat. Thi
! he did shortly before 5 O'Clock
accompanied by runner for tn
! first half, where he was joine