The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-08-21
SPORTING NEWS.
Rhythmic, the Blind TrOtter,
Doing Great Work.
Many Predict the Horse VIII
Get Worlds Record.
is A SENSITIVE COLT.
Driver Hudson Says He Can
Send Him in 2 :O4.
In All Of His Races Has Never
Made a Break.
is A SENSITIVE COLT.

Lexington, KY. Aug. 21-Will blind.
horse yet hold the worlds trotting rec,
ord? The famous trotting driver Scott
Hudson says SO and other Kentucky
trainers and drivers who have watched
the sensational black whirlwind, Rhytn-
mic, in his training this year concur
in the high opinion that the sandy
haired driver of Audubon Boy fame has
passed upon the sightless son OF OAK
land Baron. Hudson declared before
leaving Lexington that he would drive
the horse in 2:04 in a race before the
close of the season and that in 1903
Rhythmic would rob Cresceus OF his
crown. There Is no more interesting
story connected with any horse now
prominent in the trotting world than
that of the winner of the classic M. &
NJ. and other races last year.
Rhythmic is a Kentucky production
out and out, as his sire and dam were
both bred in this state, and all hail from
the one Standardization county. He
was broken as a 2-year-old, but after
showing his ability to trot fast even at
that tender age he was attacked with
pink eye. 1t was a long siege before
ne recovered. and then his sight was
affected. He had not gone totally blind
at the age of 3, when Doug Thomas
began to drive him on his three-quarter-
mile track near Paris. He could dis
Germ objects dimly, and this made him
sensitive and an unusually dangerous
colt to handle.
Thomas finally drove him a mile in
to trust himself behind Rhythmic with
a sulky Shortly after this perform
ance the colt became frightened and
ran away with Thomas finally turning
over the cart in Stoner creek. Neither
trainer nor horse was injured. Thomas.
however, had enough of the black horse
and Jesse Turney. his owner, turned
him over to Jan eS Hukill to handle the
rest of the season Hukill fever asked
anything fast of him, making no effort
to At him for racing last year.
Tnis season Turney made arrange
mentS with Scott Hudson to take the
horse. which in the meantime had be-
come almost totally blind. He can just
distinguish between light and dark and
notes the difference when a lantern is
brought into his stall at night. although
he cannot locate its direction. When
Hudson began to drive Rhythmic this
season the great horse had little conf
dence in himself and the noted driver
hooked a third line to his rigging, with
| only few days in this manner. as
Rhythmic soon learned his drivers
voice, and now a word from Hudson is
law to the blind horse.
| Hudson has yet to drive Rhythmic to
a break. After seeing the great horse
work the first quarter at the Kentucky
| Trotting Horse Breeders association
track in 81 seconds ]. L. Druien. the
wealthy Bardstown owner, who has On
ward Silver, Chase and other great
horses in training, offered $4,000 for
Rhythmic, but, acting on Hudsons ad-
vice, Turney declined the tender
Rhythmic is natural trotter and re-
| quires but little extra rigging He
wears quarter boots and shin boots be-
! hind and a three-ounce toe weight As
| an indication of his remarkable brush
it is only necessary to say that Rhyth-
mic trotted the last eighth of a slow
mile here in 141t seconds. 1:58 gait.
Hudson has confidence that Rhythmic
will sweep the country with an unbeaten
record, winding up the season by plac-
| ing his name in the list of winners OF
| the classic Pennsylvania
Being by Oakland Baron, a son OF
| Baron Wilkes and out of Duchess. by
Strathmore, Rhythmic is bred in the
same lines as Moke. l. ". Hardness
famous sire of the double Futurity win
ner, Fereno, 2:1O%. as Moko is by Ba-
ron Wilkes. out of a Strathmore mare
Rhythmic's dam. Duchess, now dead,
was a good race mare, going into the
| stud with a record of 2:2O11. Her foal,
a year older than Rhythmic, known as
Fair Promise. is credited with having
paced trial mile in 2:12E, but the
blind horse is all that she has left to
the turf which has shown any high class
| trotting instinct.