East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-10-20
HOW THE CHAMPION TROTTER WAS BRED

Those who remember the Oregon
state fair of 1908 and the excitement
caused by the suspension of the
driver, w. G. Durfee, for holding
back the beautiful trotting mare,
Sweet Marie and refusing to let her
start with any other driver, will be
much interested in the following ac-
count OF the breeding and accomplish
ments OF that fast stopper, written by
Ben Benjamin for the San Francisco
Call:
The breeding Of Sweet Marie, possi-
bly, the greatest campaigner of all
times, was an accident.
AS a general rule, the stars OF the
light-harness world are the result Of
a desirable intermixture of blood
lines. It was a theory of the late Sem
ator Stanford to have a thoroughbred
close up, and many Of the dams at the
once famout Palo Alto were thorough
breds.
Many fast performers came from
Palo Alto, including Sunol, who once
reigned queen of the turg owing to
cutting the fraction of second off
the 9:OS% record of Maud s, which
stood for so many years. While Sem
ator Stanford met with conspicuous
success. he did prove that his pet the
ory beat the old method of breeding
trotting-hred stations to trotting-bred
mares. That the breeding of a cham
pion trotter is a good deal of lot
terry is emphasized in the case of
Sweet Marie.
This wonderful mare-the grandest
ever hitched to a sulky-was bred by
a poor colored man who knew abso-
lutely nothing about blood lines or
pedigrees. Through the courtesy of
Ed Smith. the well known light-har-
ness starter of the California circuit,
the writer is able to give much here
tofore unpublished history about this
wonderful campaigner.
One March morning in 1889 Charles
Durfee, the well known driver and
breeder, left Los Angeles for the east
for the purpose of purchasing a
young stallion. He was accompanied
by Charles Lockhart, who was about
to secure the nucleus of a breeding
farm which he was about to start
near Burbank, Los Angeles county.
Durfee purchased the then 2-year-old
Mckinney. by Alcyone, a son of George
Wilkes and Cannon Ball. a 3-year-old
stallion by Simmonds. The writer
had the privilege of inspecting both
importations on the day of their ar
rival. Every one posted on light
harness topics knows that Mckinney
has become the greatest sire OF speed
in the world, having more 2:10 trot-
ters to his credit than any other stall
lion. living or dead. Among the breed
mares purchased by Lockhart was
Lady Rivers, by Carr's Mambrino
this mare from d. X. Edwards, who
bred her when a resident of Salinas
Susie was used as a buggy mare.
Lockhart did not make success OF
his breeding venture, owing to the
drop in value of all harness horses
and Lady Rivers was sold to E. K
Beuchly OF Los Angeles. She proved
to be a very balky mare and of no use
for driving purposes. Consequently
Benchly consigned her to. the sale:
ring. where she was acquired by Johr
Schumacher. the Los Angeles photog-
rapher, for $3.50. Schumacher could
do nothing with the mare, as she alb
solutely refused to be driven. After
she broke several carts Schumacher
determined to get rid of Lady Rivers
at any cost But no one wanted the
high-strung mare.
The Schumacher family own prop
erty on Spring street, Los Angeles
and employed a colored man named
Billy Smart to cart away the refuse a
81 per week. Frank Schumacher tO!t
Smart that he would give him Lady
Rivers IL he continued to take away
the refuse. Smart refused the prop
osition. but said that he would take
the mare provided that she be bred
to some stallion. AS Schumacher hat
the privilege of breeding to McKin'
ney, who was then an unknown guam
tity, the bargain was consummated
Frank Schumacher saved s52 ant
Smart got Sweet Marie, as that wa:
the result of the mating of Mckinney
and Lady Rivers.
Smart kept Sweet Marie in pasture
until she was years old, at which
age she was broken. In the fal
Smart turned her over to a coloret
trainer named Sam Washington She
showed a mile in 1926 Y and was pur'
chased by Milo NJ. Potter, the wei
known hotel man. He drove her a
the matinee races at Agriculture