The Washington herald., 1907-10-27
Nv DEXTER NfARsHAI.L..


found in the little suburban town OF
Maisons-Lafitte, not more than half an
hours ride from Paris, on the Railroad
of the West For it is there that four
or five OF the seven or eight Americans
who have become most prominent train
ing French race horses for a living and
as a career, make their headquarters
H. Eugene Leigh. from Kentucky, bus
lest trainer and most conspicuous eXpon-
ent Of American methods in France,
comes hrst on the list by reason Of his
achievements. Wallace Davis, from New
York. whose establishment also is at
Maisons-Lafitte, has been training horses
for the French tracks a little longer
than Leigh, and stands very high, yet
Leigh 0utclasses him in number of horses
trained as well as all the other trainers
from the States. Nash Turner and Henry
Shields. both of whom came 10 France
as jockeys, are highly successful train
ers. Turner in fine establishment of his
own. although not on such an extensive
scale as Leigh's, and Shields for one Of
the Lazard brothers, big French bankers.
Archie Mcintyre is training for Ed ellis.
the English owner. William Bryan has
a training stable Of his own, Dhuleep
Singh. the Hindu prince, being one of his
patrons. Johnny Campbell trains for
Gus Phzer. the American owner. All
these American trainers are at Maisons-
Lafitte
Two Train at ChantiIIy.
AdeIbert Relf, brother of Johnny Reiff,
who went over from France to England
20 win the British Derby with Orby for
Richard Croker. trains at Chanully, and
so does Eddy Ross Most Of the Ameri-
can trainers now in France went there
TO ride horses not TO train them, and
some of them, Ike Turner and Shields,
still ride occasionally. But these five.
Turner, Deb ReiT, Archie Mcintyre Ross
and Shields. have practically lived out
their riding days and now are in the
trainers class permanently.
II is quite within bounds 10 say that
all the American trainers in France are
making money; possibly some ofethem
are not making as much. net pei an
mum as Vanderbilt is paying William
Duke, his saIaried American trainer. but
some are making a good deal more. no
doubt. And there is no reason why
their earnings and profits shouldn't in
crease with the years. since the racing
authorities Of France, and the French
race-going public as well, are convinced,
firmly and permanently. that there is no
way to keep French racing az its best
except TO have the horses trained aC-
whenever possible. by American trainers
As matter OF course, in such circum-
stances. there are plenty Of Frenchmen
who claim that their methods are now as
American" as those OF The Americans
themselves Doubtless these Frsuchmen
try to master the American way. and
viii train all horses IutTusted to them m
faithful imitation of the methods they
have seen applied by Leigh and others
during the last Few years. Some say,
however. that the Frenchmen can't ac-
quire the American method by studying
it or initiating il, since its most essential
principle is the treatment of each horse
according to its own Individuality and
except IN the large so 20 speak, not ac-
C0rding 10 rule, but Leigh says the
French trainers are coming on wonderful
ly well, and that some Of them are doing
great work
Trainers Born, Not Made.
Those who disagree with him argue that
the trainer, like the Jockey. is born, not
made, and that while the English jockey
born to the business nine times in ten
may grasp the essence Of American meth
DDS, neither the French trainer nor the
French jockey born and bred, IS able to
- SO; that, in fact, they might just about
as reasonably try to learn 10 fly.
MaisOns-Laffitte has about fifty training
establishments within its borders, there
being many English as we'll as American
and French trainers The town is dOmi-
mated by racing and racing men entirely
and It's population includes an unusually
large proportion Of Britons and Ameri-
cans.
Not only is the English tongue spoken
as freely as the French-and perhaps
more scat the training quarters, but IL
is to be heard all over the town, in the
cafes and wine shops and on the streets,
particularly from the cab drivers; some
times pretty badly mangled, OF course
but still English II is n mixed j, %
Anglican English, however, and not at
ali American: for, below the Jockeys
grade. American employees in French rae
ing are about as scarce as in any other
business which Americans go into in
France
English and Anglo-American employees
are in the majority at all the training
quarters, however, the Anglo-French gen
orally being of pure English blood though
often half-caste, as the children Of Eng
lish jockeys. or stable boys. born of
French wives, are termed at Maisons-
Lafitte. Their English lacks the aspirate
altogether and is one Of the most curl
ous things in language TO be found any
where IN the world.
Lcigh's 700 Victories.
Eugene Leigh, the best-known trainer
in FranCe-for more horses and more
winners at that have been prepared 10y
him for the track than by any other one
trainer, either American, English, or
French-has 2 big series OF stables at his
AIaisons-Lafitte headquarters, with stall
capacity for 1O1 horses in training and
twenty more at his overflow stables near
by
He has no track upon his grounds. as
Vanderbilt has, and there are no art tiles
I'm his stables as there are al Edmond
Blanc's luxurious headquarters at St.
Cloud, but there is plenty OF room or
his place for ordinary exercising. while
the track upon which 30 give the horses
The necessary gallops is near by, and
the stables are fitted with every known
contrivance, sanitary and otherwise for
-he health and comfort Of the horses
some Of these filed the French with un-
JOunded astonishment when first put in.
nut to-day they look with approval upon
hem all, not excepting even the clever
American machines which VIII groom q
horse as well and as thoroughly in a