The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-04-23

scat of James 3. Richardson, OF South
Carolina.
The first real racing around New
York began in 1919. course had been
laid out in Washington city in 1902,
and racing began In the District OF
Columbia only two years after gov
ernment began there. In 1923 the first
Of the great North and South match
races was run 1t was the result Of the
defeat of Sir Charles by American
Eclipse at Washington in the fall OF
1922. Colonel William r, Johnson, of
Virginia, the ''Napoleon OF the Turf
then challenged the New Workers to
national race at New York. John c.
Stevens, kinsman of Walter Living
ston, who was racing American Eclipse,
accepted the gage. A purse Of 100000
side was put up and the race was
practically Eclipse against the world
the Long Island horse thus proving a
worthy successor 10 the Great English
Eclipse whose owner on a wage placed
Eclipse first, the rest nowhere.
There were some 10000 people TO sec
the race and the entire United States
WAS in fever of excitement concern
ing lts outcome, slowly as news went
in those early days. The Southern
favorite WAS hurt on the long trip to
New York. Colonel johnson dined too
well on Holsters and wine the night be-
fore and couldn t be at the track. The
South centered its hopes on Sir Henry.
He won the first heat of four miles,
Eclipse won the second. and in the
third the Northern horse led all the
way. The cynical John Randolph. Of
Roanoke, turned away and said; ''lt
was not Eclipse, but the Holsters that
heat Sir Henry.' So firmly did the
Southerner believe that their defeat
was only ''little hard luck" that
they tried to match another race for
$4,000 side, but the New Workers re.
fused because of the gambling feature
being so apparent.
In those days the long four. mile heat
races which required a horse to make
from eight to sixteen miles IN a single
race, were the popular feature. Aged
horses had the advantage then, and
the turf was very different thing
from what it has been since the riso
of the sprinters. The national course
at Washington was patronized by every
president from Jefferson to Van Buren.
Colonel Tayloe Of Mt. Airy was the
head of the institution, and Gabriel
Duvall, Justice of the United States
Supreme Court, was also member of
the jockey club. Andrew Jackson, al
ways great turfman, while president
entered n colt III the name of his sec
retary, Major Donelson, and was in
furiated when the purse was won by
Commodore Stockton s Langford.
The oldest course In the West was
that established at Lexington, In the
heart of the Blue Grass Of Kentucky,
In 1926, and at which meetings were
hold rnoulnr1y= until
Not even the Civil War stopped the
sport there, meetings being held twice
each year except in 1862, when Kirby
Smith S army was encamped on the
course at the time for the fall meeting.
The first great match race In the West
was at Louisville in 1899, when Wag
ner, Louisiana horse, defeated Gray
Eagle There was an immense crowd
and the people OF the whole State were
excited about it. Henry Clay WAS the
center of crowd of a score of SEN
To see the race. Not a Kentuckiau
bet dollar on Wagner, but the Louis.
Iana horse won the race, This great
race was to be repeated in that partic.
ular feature just so years later, when
Spokane beat Proctor Knott in the
Derby, and all kentucky !
went dead broke.
The great North against the South +
race of 1912, when Fashion defeated
the Southern horse Boston; the Peyton
Stakes run in Nashville In 1913, richer /
than any American stakes ever before .
run, and equal to the English Derby, ,
and st. Legcr, in which j. Kirkman's /
Peytona defeated Wade Hampton &
Herald; the famous performances of .
Black Maria: these arc but a few of
.hc great racing events of the United
States before the Civil War, which .
we're run over and over again IN tavern
for 20 or 80 years.
In The Tribune of Wednesday Mr.
aaskin will continue his letter on