Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-08-25

good horses at the Los Angeles track,
twelve of them. and, as the track was hard
and fast-the same kind of a track as that
on which old Celebration had been beaten
sixteenth of a mile only "a couple Of days
before-the bookies chalked him up at 100
to l.
Ten minutes before Celebrations field
was due to go to the post one of those
Japanese current driZZles set in. without
the sun even being obscured. 1t didn't look
as II II meant to rain much, and only the
dead Weather-wiSe around the track fig
ured on the deluge soon to come. The
bookies, Gagged in as they We're. didn't no.
tice anything, and they went on laying the
prices for hard track
But select bunch of the dead-Wise ones
who were familiar with Celebrations great
ability as a mud hopper had their vision
peeled on bunch of rain clouds gallOping
in from the Pacific, and they got line of
dope working as to whether the rain
would break in time for the race The rain
cloud was moving right rapidly, and they
timed 1t to a hair, and they hustled into
the ring and began to spraddle their ones
and tWOs and fves around on Celebration.
Club Rinkie was of them. Club by
come miracle had maced somebody for $40
before making the track that day, and 80
confident was he that If the big rain got
there in time to muck up the track old
Celebration would win the race In the grease
that he got the whole $50 down on the an
Cient skate to cop In ten 81 bets with differ
ent bookies.
The horses were already on their way to
the post but they hadn't made half of the
distance to the barrier before the heavens
opened. 1t doesn't rain often out there, but
when 1t does it's earnest about IT. The
water came down in Jumps
- Hey. what did l tell you. boz l heard
a voice right behind me saying, and there
stood Club In the grand stand aisle, with an
imbecile grin on his homeIy mug. Can't
even see the judges stand from here, hey2
Half a minute o this and the track'u be
knee deep What did tell your
{" I suppose Celebration is just good
as in now. eh?' l said to him, feeling sort
of sorry for the bug and wondering how a
man who had been bucking the pony game
for so many years Club had could be so
hopelessly idiOuc.
" His numbers out and the red boards
down, replied Club, still with that imbe-
Gle grin on his features.
1T was so dark in the stand, and this
at o'clock in the afternoon, that l could
hardly see Club, although he stood right
behind me in one of the aisles. 1t was a
six-furloug sprint, and the horses started
on the yon side Of the track, opposite the
grand stand. OF course, not glimpse Of
the field at the barrier could be seen for
the blackness and the solid sheets of pelting
rain, but the bell In the judges stand tin
kled, showing that the field had got away
from the post, and then the folks in the
, stand settled down, almost IN silence, TO
await the result.
There was no roofing The horses could
not be seen, and there was nothing to root
about. Most OF the folks in the stand had
| played the favorite. as had, and everybody
| knew that the favorlte could hardly walk
| IN the mud. and the track was already a
| morass. So they kept still and just waited
| all but Club.
Club talked fast, as II to himself in a
| low key. 1t was q queer kind of mumbling
| he kept up. when came to think about 1t
! later.
| well, this Is one o my days, ] heard
| him humble to himself az he stood right
| behind me. I cop all righs. I've had bum
| break the last few years. but this is my day