Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-11-20
SOME FAMOUS WAR HORSES.
Steeds That Were Ridden BY Lee,
jackson and Others.

= The selection Of war horse, one
that will stand the hardships Of an
active compaign, requires keen dis
elimination and judgment. A mere
horse will not do. Aside from this
conformation, which should be more
or less compact, and bone which
should be Of dense quality and Of fair
ly good size, he must have some pre-
tensions of good breeding. Without
the latter no horse can stand the wear
and tear of active service in the field,
q service more exhaustive than any
other known, because frequently he
must go on short rations while being
ridden desperately for hours at a
time, and frequently compelled to go
supperless to bed. In addition to
breeding he must have such necessary
qualities as intelligence, good disposi-
tion and cheerfulness Of tempera-
nnent and must respond promptly to
his masters command, whether on
yhe firing line or on review. AS a
general proposition the better the war
horse is bred the better fitted he is for
his arduous duties.
When President Theodore Roose-
,Felt rode to the war with Spain he
selected a Texas-bred horse Of me-
tiium size. bay in color, and which he
called Texas, in honor Of its native
state. 1t proved TO be one of those
wiry and tough beasts for which the
southern plains are noted, and Of the
breed Fremont rode in his long and
rapid trips in times Of stress and dan
iyer In southern California, sometimes
covering over 100 miles in day. the
animals one forage being buffalo
grass. To be historically correct,
however, the president took to Cuba
two horses, one of which died while
being landed, the survivor being Tex
iis. The latter was the presidents
mount during his service in Cuba and
returned with him to Oyster Bay.
There he died a few years since, and
the president, ou. of gratitude for the
faithful service Of the beast, gave him
a decent burial on Sycamore Hill.
Doubtless some day the president will
erect over Texas remains a monu-
ment on which will be inscribed fit-
ting words.
Gen. Robert E. Lee, like nearly all
the Lees, was not only splendid fig
ure on a horse, but fine horseman
ard a good judge Of horse. When
a young man, and in middle life, he
lifted a dash of thoroughbred in his
mounts. His father, the celebrated
Tight Horse Harry" Of the Revolu-
ti0nary war, was, next to Washing
ton,. the best horseman in the Conti-
Mental army, and the most command
ing figure. The Lees of Virginia in
herited their love for the horse and
ease, grace and skill in the saddle
from a long line of ancestors who had
served their king in the field. 1t was
one of Robt e. Lees progenitors,
Lionel Lee, who rode to the Crusades
with the Hon-hearted Richard, and 1t
is reported that the coat Of armor
worn by this Lee can still be seen In
the Tower Of London. 1t was Gene
raj Lees father who imported into
this section the celebrated Lindsay's
Arabian from New England. The
horse stood in the District Of Colum-
bia one or two seasons subsequent to
the Revolutionary war, and 1t is a
matter Of history that his get were
highly priced here and In Virginia.
Washington and Light Horse Harry
had noticed during the war that the
New England men were mounted on
horses Of unusual beauty, strength,
courage and endurance, and learned
that nearly all were descendants Of a
horse called Lindsay's Arabian.
Whether he was a fullblood or not is
not known. It was at Washington's
suggestion that Henry Lee purchased
the stallion. Pure-bred Arabians are
classed in the stud books as thorough
breds and can be registered as such.
General Robert e. Lees favorite
war horse was a cob-built gray geld
ing called Traveller, probably named
after the celebrated running horse
that his father had once owned which
was a son Of the thoroughbred Trav-
eler. The gray gelding was foaled In
West Virginia, where General Lee dis
covered him, and he rode him in ev-
cry battle in which he was engaged
from the siege of Richmond until he
surrendered the Army Of Northern
Virginia at Appomattox Court House
to General Grant. Traveller survived
his master one or two years, when his
life was cut short by lockjaw, one of
his fore feet being punctured by a
rusty nail. While at the head of
Washington and Lee university at
Lexington, General Lee was in the
habit of taking daily outings on Trav-
eler, and quite frequently might be
seen riding along the streets Of the
town with a little miss perched In
front Of him on the saddle bow.
General Ulysses s. Grant had a
great fondness for good horse and
was a prime judge Of horseflesh as
was his antagonist Lee. During the
Civil war he lad many mounts. but
the horse he liked best and priced
most was a small-sized bay-gelding,
which was taken from the plantation
Of Jefferson Davis in Mississippi while
the general was engaged in the siege
Of Vicksburg, and which he named
JEFF Davis. JEFF, from the date of
ownership, was the generals constant
companion. He rode him on nearly
all the stricken fields Of the south
west. The faithful beast carried him
safely through the morasses, bogs and
entanglements Of the Wilderness and
along the bloody trenches in the re-
gion around Spottsylvania Court
House. He witnessed. with his mas
ter, the terrible slaughter at Colo
Harbor, where $4,000 Federals turn
ed rigid faces to the sky In upward OF
one hour; he bore the general across
the James and in front of Petersburg;
ne traversed the long lines for months
mt all hours Of the day and night
When the end came he shared his
masters triumphs, and IL a dumb
hn