Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-08
FIDDLER RINGING" CASE.
Con fession of Western Horseman
Clears Up Matters.

NEW YORK January S.-R. w. Dunn a
western horsemau from whom 1t was sara
Freedman. who was entered as Cataract at
Jamaica, was stolen, has made COMES
sion TO the Pinkertons which proves con-
ciusively that the men Thomas l. trom-
well and Ben A. Chllson, recently ruled on
the turf by the Jockey Club for completely
in The Fiddler ringing case at Morris
Park In 1903 were justly punished. Dunn
declares that Chilson and Cromwell were
the rinEleaders of a gang that made bust
ness of ringing horses at various race
tracks and that they cleaned up S2ooooo on
the different coups that went through With
out detection According to Dunn, Crom-
well and Chilson began operations with the
horse Mcnamara, who was "rung at New
Orleans several years ago as Hiram john
son. The latter was an old skate VINO
had never won a race and the event looked
like a walkover for Sam Hildreth's Major
Tenny. Mcnamara was painted Tor the oc-
CASTOR his bay coat being changed to a
deep chestnut by peroxide OF hydrogen. AS
Hiram Johnson the horse won in gaIIop,
and suspicion was instantly aroused. But
when y. MathieSon, In whose name the
ringer won was asked to produce him,
1t was discovered that the horse had been
stolen. 1t turned out that the conspirators
had beaten the Butte pool rooms out OF
Sts3 900. with 10000 more picked up at Hot
Springs and s., 600 additional d the track.
Dunn asserts that Mcnamara was con
Cealed at Deeth, New, until The Fiddler
coup was ready. when the horse was quietly
shipped TO New York. The gang had pur-
chased The Fiddler for 81, but won sew
eral races with him before sending him to
Morris Park, where he was entered in
cheap selling race. Mcnamara was sub
stituted. and the trick Melted $4,000 for
the combination. The Fiddler being shown
in the paddock two days after the race
when the stewards began an investigation,
while Mcnamara was taken west to an
other hiding place. AS The Fiddler Nc
Namara, according to Dunn, was run at
Hot Springs In the early spring of 1904,
but was not recognized by Judge Joseph A.
Murphy. Later he ran several races at
Union Park. st. Louis. In August of that
year The Fiddler died and the gang had to
get another horse. Freedman was selected
and in Dunn'S name on several occa-
sions until II was decided to make him dis
appear. Then Dunn admits that he started
the story that the horse had been stolen
from him.
Freedman was taken to Deeth. New.
where he was kept under cover until last
September. when he was shipped east. Then
an attempt was made to ring him under
the name of Cataract, but the scheme was
nlpped in the bud and the horse was found
TO have been painted Dunn also asserts
that the gang "rung" the mare Abba l., at
Hawthorne as F'lorista some time ago and
beat the books out OF bundle of show
money. IL was persistent work on the part
OF the Pinkertons that led to the exposure
OF Cromwell and ChilsOn, who will never
be allowed to indulge in racing on any of
the tracks in this country or Canada Crom-
We'll, Dy the way, still insists that he was
an innocent party and believes that In time
he can convince the Jockey Club that he
has been untustiy treated. The exposure
has put race-track officials on their rnettIe
so That IT is safe to say IL will be a long
tlme before another combination of this
operations.