The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-10
$4,000 AT The STATE FAIR.
,ROWD HTSHED TO SILENCE By
THE COFFIN or A SOLDIER.
.s 600 People See Major DeInar Smash
Ills Own ReOrd-smathers Wins the
First HOnOrs OF the Day With Ida
Higbw God In Race with Miss whitney.


First HonOrs OF the Day With Ida
H,shw God In Race with Miss whitney.
SYRACUSE, Sept. 9--From a bowl OF
stainless blue the midday sun shone down
on some thousands Of fair goers, gathered
m the dusty platforms at the West Shore
station. Vendors Of toy balloons, whips
and bright -colored canes. Of peanuts and
Of popcorn threaded through the crowd,
adding their cries to the chatter and laughter
of the throng. Apart from these stood
a little woman in black, staring with tired
usefulness up the road to the west Pres
eptlv the West Shores eastbound train
rolled in. driving the crowds aside as the
biz engine painted to a stop.
The crowds noises swelled louder a.
,ranmen tried to tell the people that this
was not the fair train. Then from the bag
gage car, four men in smutty blouses Of
checked blue and white, lifted with some
thing of tenderness an oblong box. un-
nain,ed, vet as sinister in sight az il II had
been wrapped in deepest crepe. As though
A master had ordered it. a path opened
for the little gray mother.
Sounds fell to low monotones, then stilled
10 a hush, as she moved falteringly up the
aise of silent merrymakers. At that mo-
nent the fair train swung in on the other
track and bells changed. The awakened
crowd remembered the fair and surged
70 the cars. leaving the little mother on
the pine box to sob a greeting to her soldier,
home from the Philippines.
Something like 10000 people went to
the State Fair to-day, for 1t was Grange
nav. and an excursion rate of one-third
Of the regular fare was q lure TO the farmer
who had put his crops away and knew
hs own prosperity. They filled the two
grand stands. the clubhouse. the standing
room on the lawns and the inner field at
the racetrack until tho sharps said that
one could have counted $4,000 people In
the enclosure, a crowd Of which Morris
Park or Sheepshead might have felt proud.
Assuredly the Changers got their moneys
worth II one did not want grand stand
seat. it cost but Is cents to see q well ar
ranged programme Of trotting races. to
witness Major Delmar do the second fastest
mile ever trotted, smashing his own record
and the track record, to say nothing OF
tallyho races, amateurs to wagon and a
continuous horse show performance in
the ring inside the mile track, where hunters,
academy saddlers and high steppers Of all
sorts and to all kinds Of equipages were
put through their PAGES.
Those who think the racing sport needs
tho stimulant of betting found their way
to the oyster privilege, which u contained
in "A tent almost up to the first eighth pole.
Here the fence which encloses the States
p.operty makes a sudden divergence out
ward. returning to the accustomed forma-
lion thirty feet further on. This small piece
Of land is. according to tradition. outside
the fair grounds, although you can't we'll
r't to it without first entering the grounds.
and you can't get back to the fair grounds
without meeting gatemen.
Here the oyster known as Wlque, b. q ,
by Queeohy, owned by Alta Mcdonald Of
Albany sold at 325 a dish to $40 for the
field, made up of such oysters as e. f.
$mathers's Wentworth and W: Fl. McCar-
thys Palm. Leaf Mr.. Smathers's taste
which he .consuIned as rapidly As served
Along with Mr.. .Smathers from New
York came a book1naker whose face is
as we'll known, on the Metropolitan tracks
He didn't look a bit the farmer. and yet
lie was promptly approached by youth
of the middle-State appearance, whoSasked
e1citedly-
"sav. did you see what that Teller bet
on Why, he bet a roll of bills that big
The name Of the horse Here he comes
now That's the Teller with the field glasses
over his shoulder Ask him what horse
it was
OF course the man with the field glasses
looked up then and asked for the loan of
leadpencil; The bookmaker's eyes were
dancing with delight as he handed out
the pencil Then the slouchy youth pro-
ceeded, nudging him hard:
ASK him now what he's betting on
Go ahead. quick; the race will be on In a
minute"
with the glasses looked around suspiciously
and said:
IF tell you something can you keep It
to yourself? Well I'm betting all this
money for Scott Hudson. the driver; and.
we'll how much do you want to bet? Better
give me your money and-why there's
Smathers coming along here. 1t won't
do for him to see me tipping you on; just
slip me the money now
Il say, jim said Smathers coming along
side. If you'll lay me to ! against Vent
worth III bet you 81 900 on him.
I'm busy" pleaded the bookmaker.
Cant you sec I'm lending this gentleman
Ndu JVHCHE NbihVB icci ycullB hBdtll
is fifteen years since I've played this time
honored game =.
The tout took his hat of and bowed
Excuse me, mister, he said, I rang the
wrong bell
Mr.. Smathers's reputation as a plunger
won him the first honors of the day. People
hau been reading Of his lofty bets on
McChesnev and others Of his stable, and they
expected to see him come to the fair grounds
swathed in thousand-dollar bills. When
b. came out on the track behind Ida High
wood for the match race with Miss Whit
hey. driven by Senator Horace White Of
Syracuse, the farmers stood up and gaped
al him. They all knew Senator White.
most Of them well enough to call him Hor-
ace and expected to hear Smathers shout
challenge at tn, Senator to make the race
for million or so.
AZ it was, Senator White had a most
'NasNerating time Of it, for Miss Whitney
would - ' race, insisting on breaking at each
sCor" just rs she came to the wire. After
'rc.One half hour. during which time
She fed with sugar and cajoled and
'ea-ed and pleaded with, she went to the
wire in shape to get the word from the
judges, then sulked and tried TO go through
tho fence. Ida Highwood went on and
won bv half mile. Miss Whitney then got
her stride and finished in a fashion which
l1dcated that it would have been race
II h had been in the mood
When Smathers came back to the stand
re was again pointed out ~ the reckless
helipr Of great fortunes, while one man
gathered a circle about him as he related
how he'd known Smathers when he had a