Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-21
A THAAKLESS TASK
Caring for a Man Who Wins
at the Races.
IT WORKS BOTH WAYS
SOMETIMES THE MAN HAS REA-
SON TO BE GRATEFUL.
And Again He Might Have Made a
Fortune if He Had Been
Left Alone.
IT WORKS BOTH WAYS
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
A diverting turf story with new twist
to 1t came out Of Hot Springs on the day
following the beginning of the winter rae
ing at the Arkansas resort.
A turf follower whose protracted Ill luck
had become sort of dismal Joke among
his friends succeeded in putting over a
winner that brought him 1900 clean
up on the inaugural day Of the meeting.
Flushed with his success, the betting man
placed the entire $12, 900 on a horse in
the next race that he figured to be good
thing"
His friends endeavored to argue him out
Of such foolish move, but he was obsti-
nate and determined. So, four of his
friends deliberately kidnapped him from the
track. They dragged him to carriage out
side the gate, tossed him into the vehicle,
had him driven to the Hot Springs railroad
station. loaded him into train bound for
Little Rock, and accompanied him there to
see to 1t that he cooled out properly and
regained his judgment.
The horse that the kidnapped man had
been wild to place his $4,000 winning on
was beaten at the wire by a nose in the
last jump.
"a man Is lucky to have friends like
that" was the comment of a trainer who
Is wintering string at the Benning track,
when he READ the story. Inc racing leTH
for them is yankers.' I've seen many an
excited betting man saved from crushing
defeat by friends Of his of the 'yanker
breed. The thing sometimes works the
other way, too, but in the long run the man
who has some 'yanker' friends gets away
the best of 1t.
up at Saratoga, during the early days
of last summers meeting there, l saw a
couple of 'yankers' pulling friend out
of the track grounds. They got busy with
their chum directly after he had cashed on
the second race. He had beat both Of the
first two races on the card, and beat both
of them big, and his pair or friends the
'yankers,' were there to see to it that he
didn't let his big take-down slip away on
the remaining four races.
"They were right behind him In the pay
off line after the contirlnatio of the second
race, and when he'd slipped the yellow
mess OF paper that the pay-off man gave
him into his nankeens they grabbed him.
one on either side
Just Made Him Leave.
"'Well, come on they said to him in a
sort of mandatory, you're pinched tone. You
for the buzz-ride back. You've got yours
"They started to escort him toward the
huddle of automobiles, but he wriggled and
struggled, trying to pull away from them.
"I'r go after the third race he said to
them, some snappily. Lemme loose. Lego
me. l want to play that thing of John
"His friends, the pair of yankers, ex-
changed determined glances with each
other.
"'Play nothing one Of them cut In.
Member what you told us before you
came out with us, don't you? You said
that IL you put the first two over, a herd
of wild mustangs couldn't get you to play
anything else on the card today, didn't
you? Well, that goes. Come on
'But he tried with all his might and main
to pull himself loose from their grasp.
Turn me loose he commanded Them
but they only shook their heads and hauled
at him the harder. L want to paste just
few on this Siglight thing-I hear It's in.'
I'll go with you after the third, honest In
jun. But I don't want this Madden nudge to
get by me-
You're a-coming right now, matey.' said
the pair of 'yankers,' in unison, and then
they extended themselves and all but pick