Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-02-17


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Monmouth Park. Even that looked to be a
good price. 1t looked so good to Mike
Dwyer. who owned Hanover. that he sprad-
died around $4,000 to win such cigarette
change as 200 on his horse.
80 that my young hardware friend s
ticket looked like piece of glowing radium
in dark room when the western horse won
his race with the corners of his mouth bit
CURED into laugh. He had got even
money, So, 600 to $1,000, on his combination.
and the proprietor of the room on red to
buy the ticket for 5000 two minutes before
the horses went to the post at Monmouth
Park
Not for s., 9g9.99. the young fellow. who
had the weght-lifter's harness on some
by this time. replied. You can buy two
whole unsmoked cigarettes for cent, and
l might as well have that penny as you,
pal
Well. said the proprietor OF the room,
here's the last time I'll come at you. I'll
slip you $3.50 for that ticket now. and no
questions asked. Take it or leave it,
II tried to kick the fool boy on the leg and
edge him over to a corner to tell him some
things that 1 knew of in connection with
horses listed on the betting states at such
prices as l to 15 and even worse figures
than that. l wanted. particularly, TO tell
him about one l once saw beat when his
price was l to GO. l did the best l could
with him.
"'Well, 1 know all that was his pig
headed reply, but l just want to have the
satisfaction of clappng ticket like this
on the desk and getting all of it without
any of that wabbly laying-off stuff. | hate
hedger, and Hanover ought to be l to
LOCO at that
Just then the key began to click. and so
incompetent a horse as Laggard went out
and beat the eternal stuffing out of the
peerless Hanover, that hadn't let horse
get within heliographing distance of him
that year. Hanover just didn't feel like
running that day, that's all.
1T wasn't only a defeat for Hanover, it
was a disgrace. l We seen young persons
mingled up with the horse game kick
themselves in Il good many languages, but
never with SUCH a wealth of elaboration
and detail as was exhibited by that young
hardware clerk with the $1,000 ticket rem
dered useless and imperative by the throw
ing down of The horses of the century.
X
About ten years ago there was a truck
driver out in St. Louis who had the gee-Gee.
microbe pretty bad. One day he turned up
at the old fair grounds track with IS In his
dungarees and the winners all picked to q
moral.
He had 'em written down. on a piece of
yellow wrapping paper with the stub of a
carpenters pencil, and he went to eight
lay him $500 to 81 against his repertoire of
selections. The horses were nearly all
cockroaches, and the layers figured that
they might just as well annex those ace
spots to pay for the hack ride back to town.
THE truck driver walked around the
grounds with his bunch of eight combina-
ton tickets calling for S6,400 to So with one
of those r-but-gettingi nto-line
CLEANS in his head agctes, and he was the
butt of the gang in the ring. Then the
races began. and five of the truck drivers
picks waltzed right out of the pump to
cleanup victories.
Scratches had reduced the last race to
a field of two by the time booking was
due to begin on that final race, and one
of the horses-the one the truck driver had
picked-so far outclassed the other that
most of the books held him out in the bet
ting and quit their Stools while some of the
layers chalked him up at to 20.
by this time the bookmakers who had
laid $500 to 81 against tho truckman's picks
were dripping good deal at the forehead.
and they got together and summoned the
yannigan and asked him If he cared to sell
out at the rate of $500 each for his paste
boards.
"'Well, yes, to oblige youse,' replied the
truck driver and he stuffed $4,000 into his
overais and went into the stand to enjoy
the race
THE l to 20 trick was cranky devil and
as soon as he got out on to the track, the
other one docilely following lin, he gave a
series of buck-jumps, and away he went
ike an Ice yacht he raced LOT q Iull TWO
miles before the boy could get g hold on
him, and then, when they faced the ribbon,
the crab beat the to 20 thing something
easy.
Language? You ought to we heard
those stung layers-op rather, you oughtn't
to We heard EN-!
y X
II believe the biggest combination ticket
that was ever scrubbed in this country
was written for Steve LHommedieu, the
former plunger on the eastern tracks. but
now a high-gaffer elsewhere. This was
three-horse ticket, and 1t called for $4,000
for 5000.
'It wound up with thing nat had been
leans tracks between Presbyterian and Isa--
hey. LHommedieu had the Isabey end of
1t, and the proprietors of the Hot Springs
room in which the ticket was written had
the shutters all ready to put up and screw
into place for good when the price came In
with / to 2 against Isabey.
They didn't often get out Of line in those
days, those New Orleans layers, on short
field things and 1t looked. from the price,
as If Isabey was already being cooled out
and smiling for a soft mash. The room
people made overtures to L'Hommedieu on
ing the tall aigrettes then. and he told them
that he'd hang on and wait at his hotel for
the furniture van.
ssThat was q heart disease calling off of
q race. not only for L Hommedieu himself,
but for the large and painting gang of busted
mace him for getaway coin. To make 1t
worse, 1t was such a close thing on the wire
that the operator in the room first called
out that Presbyterian had COPIED. following
this up with the mistake yell couple OF
seconds later, and the announcement that