The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-03-27
The Horse Trainer.

a
watching a stable boy trot a horse Ut
and down. The word horsey man is
written all over him from the white felt
hat tucked on one side of his head to
the spurs at his heels. Clean-shaven
with massive jaws and square chin
and eyes that take in the most trltilne
detail. Tom Nolan was a thorough type
of the Irish horse trainer. Brought VI
as a boy in a prominent racing stable
at the Curragh, Tom had few equals IN
the saddle, and his honesty and straight
dealings with his employers, together
with that grit and dash which make a
Jockey, gained for him a name in the
racing world. He steered horses to vic
tory over all the great Irish steeple-
chase courses and many of the EnglSh
ones, and wherever he rode his mount
was the peoples favOrite. because Tom
was in the saddle, and Tom was the
peoples jockey" A great judge of
pace, with fine hands and an eye TO
seize at once a favorable opportunity
when it offered, it was no small wonder
that Tom stood at the top of his pro-
fession for years. He could tell to a
pound a horses capabilities, and he
knew to a perch when to come away
and win. We Irish dearly love the
horse: it is one of our national traits,
and that love exists in the rich and
poor alike ! well remember the many
enjoyable evenings we spent listening
to Tom as, seated on a big stone out
side his yard gate, he held forth on the
famous horses and riders of his day.
Yes, ] had the pleasure of riding
against Garry Moore. Twas at Punch
estown, the day he won the length of
a street on Liberator. A great horse
was Liberator, and Garry, well, he
could give us all a stone and a beating.
Yes, twas hard to shake off the Beas-
leys, they stuck to you like a leech.
Harry stole a march on me at Fairy
house and beat me on the post by a
head. Did l know the Cullens and
Terry Kavanagh? Why, should think
l did. When riding against them you
never were sure of winning until you
had passed the post. All, st. James, he
was the most fearless and determined
rider I ever met. When he collared you,
he glared at you: when he passed you,
he laughed at you. ] tell you, men,
Tom would so on. I'VE shall never have
the equal of those riders again, and the
horses, we'll, they had the pace and
staying power which the horses of our
day have not. Liberator. Roman Oak,
Frigate, Cloister. Manifesto. Come
away, where is the soil that could pro-
duce such horses as these?" and Tom
looked sternly around for denial, and
then he would continue to tell US of the
peculiarities of courses, and the many
stiff obstacles you encountered on them
and the numerous spills and hair
breadth escapes he himself had.
Tom was about 80, but for the past
ten years he had retired from the sad
die, owing to overweight. With the
money which he earned during his
jockey career he formed a training es-
tablishment, and a commodi0us and
up-to-date one y was. The stalls and
yard were th/ acme of cleanness and
neatness. as the stable boys each had
their own special duties, and though
Tom was a kind master. still any
breach in his boys duties would not be
passed over by him easily, and the boys,
knowing this, took care to do what they
had got to do and do it well. Tom was
the essence of charity. and to the poor
he would say, after giving them a six
pence of shilling:
Now, go to Mrs. Nolan and she will
give you your dinner. ! was in a bad
way myself once. and / know what it
is to be hungry"
Father Tom and Tom Nolan were the
ter the greatest pleasure TO have Fa-
Their Tom come into the yard to see the
various horses.
He taught me my religion, you know
that is, the little have Tom would
say, with a twinkle in his eye. I was
barefooted gOssoon when he first
came to the parish, and I would run
into an augur hole from him then. but
now. God bless him. the day l don't
see him ] don't feel all right
Every morning when Tom was at
home he was at mass. and Two beauti-
full stained glass windows in the pretty
village church bore his name under
meath as the donor. There was one
thing Tom detested and that was in
temperance, and any of his boys who
showed the least. sign Of drink was in
stantly dismissed When l say Tom
hated intemperance most in any boy.
l believe 1 make a mistake. He hated
cursing or swearing most Of all and
whatever chance of getting off the
drunkard had with him. the swearer
had none. Besides training for three
or four patrons, Tom always had about
six horses of his own, and with these
he managed to pun off many a good
stake. Great was the rejoicing in the
village when any of Toms horses won,
for the village looked upon the blue.
green sleeves and cap" (Tom's colors)
as their own What a fever of excite
ment used TO reign in the village the
day Toms horses We're running any
where, and how anXiously the result
would be awaited. Jim Scully was gen.
orally the first to CLEAN the news. for
ne haunted the poStoffice until the tel
egram came, and then if the message
was good. Jim would throw his old hat
up into the air with a shout of I'VE
won again. and if it was bad. he would
stink out of the pOstCffiCe with his head
down and funeral face with those
words on his lips:
I'm sure we're near another fall OK
rain, though it might be the finest of
flne summer days. 1t was interesting
TO watch Tom on the race course when
one of his horses was about to engage
in a race. You would be sure TO find
Tom, his horse and jockey, in the quiet
est corner Of the paddock.
like to keep my horse cool" he
would say, If YOU asked him why he
acted thus. He never allowed anyone
to saddle the horse but himself, and he
ran his hand many times under the
Eirths, buckles and straps before he
satisfied himself that all was right.
Though talkative man at home. his
mouth was shut on a race course. and if
one of his patrons approached him and
put this question, will your horse win
today, Tom?" he would quietly say
placing hand on the horses shoulder.