The Irish standard., 1904-10-15
WON SMALL FORTUNE.
How 4 Priest made Wager Unknow-
ing1y and Won.

IAN Old Turfman's Story)
when somebody told me the other
day that Merces. the 2-year-old trick
that won good race at Saratoga with
the chalk at 10 to ]. belonged to a
New England clergyman dozed back
Il little stretch of fifteen years and
dreamed there for awhile" remarked
Il veteran trainer. who was better ac-
quainted with Artful's great-grandslre
IIindoo than he is with the winner of
this years Futurity, says the New
York Sun.
Zone Of the characters of the old St.
Louis fair grounds track during the
sos was Rricky McSweeney, whose
frrckles We're as red IS his hair. No
body was ever able to figure it out
how Bricky got by. He was never
known to win Il bet. although it was Il
matter of common notoriety that he
would bet as high as 80 whenever he
could get the 50. But lie was a good
natured Jonah man and he never lost
his belief that some old day he would
he there with enough of the scpia pa
pers to paper Il city school house.
''Bricky had the privileges of the
track. because he was always pos
Srssrd of some kind of badge horse
All Of Rricky's badge horses We're, of
course, gift plugs. They'd he left be-
hind by departing owners at the ter
mination of the racing season.
whenever an owner would try time
and again to poke one of his no ac-
counts into the money, only to have
the skate fall down. every time his
kidding friends would hand him the
suggestion. 'I'ricky McSwcency's
waiting for that one.' and so it hap
pencd that for eight straight years
l;ricky was never without some kind
of Il hoofc.l thing in his shed. emitting
him to get in at the gate and to move
around in the paddock.
."Hricky's finish WAS sudden.
One afternoon in the summer of 80
he WIS stnndin" at the paddock gate
leading out on to the track just as the
horses in Il big field of maitlcns We're
turning into the stretch. An old blind
Shr-hound that had been the pet of
the stables since the days of her pup
Il al
started to cross the track.
"a hundred stable hands yelled al
the old dog. but they yelled so hard
that they scared her, and she stood
paralyZcd plumb in the middle of the
track. and the big field of horses, al
ready close to the wire, bearing down
upon her ut full speed. The blind she
lMrnd Mhd been pal of Rricky'S for q
good many years. and lie wasn't going
to see her pounded into pulp under the
hoofS of the horses.
$50 just as the horses were speeding
under the wire only fifty yards away
tricky. against the warning cries of
the whole bunch huddled ut the pad
dock gate. hEpped out on to the track.
caught the old dog around her middle;
and. putting I'LL of his power into his
arms. tossed her over the inficld rail.
and she lit. unllurt, on the soft grass.
'l'ricky was Just turning to make
the few leaps for the paddock gate
when the first of the pulling up horses
hit him and knocked him down. and
then about ten of the eighteen maid
ems trampled on him. When the
stable hands carried him to the pad
dock enclosure 1t didn't take any ex-
pert eye to see that Bricky was about
to make Il quick cnsh-in.
"Onc Of the stable hands loped for Il
priest The priests cottage. alongside
his little church, was only about n
quarter of Il mile from the track en-
trance. and the kindly old man of the
cloth was leaning over the gasping
Bricky lust about in time.
''Brcky was Il Catholic and the
priest anointed him. The administra-
ton Of the final sacrament was
scarcely finished before Bricky's
| frecklcd face spread into one of his
ear to ear grins. and he nodded to the
cid priest to bend his ear a bit closer.
The priest did So
FEATHER. whispered Bricky, still
srinning, 4 haint got no kin. so I'll
leave my hoss to YOU
I Then Bricky cracked his last Joke
I with death only about minute away
| from him.
| He hMin't much of a boss, father.
he gasped, but you can melt him
down an git some tallow candles fl