The Washington herald., 1911-09-24

lRst week.
From the day it rose at Indianapolis. in
July, the season of Iight-harness per-
! formances has been Que of the most
brilliant in the long history OF the light
harness turf Time and again have
| worlds records been broken in heat races
and in assaults against time. UhIan re-
mains the king of trotting geldings, and
there is nothing in sight at the present
moment that promises to dethrone him
in the near: future. The Harvester, king
! of trotting stations. has a few days re-
naming to him in 1911 to make good the
| boast that he is a twO-minute horse.
Columbus, not now in the Grand Circuit,
| follows the Michigan State fair meeting.
| and rs the Columbus track is the fastest
In the chain of tracks over which Grand
Circuit. horses perform, the great stallion
may do at that point all that his ad-
mirers have predicted for him.
The Harvester's last great chance to
lower his record of 2:O1 this season will
be at the Lexington meet and if he is
| right new record will be established.
| OF late weather conditions have been
against the son of Walnut Hall. In some
States the weather has almost brought
indianapolis State fair lost $4,000, and
the Minneapolis State fair lost upward
of $4,000. The State fair held at Hart
ford was also a loser on account of bad
weather, and the New York State fair,
held week before last at Syracuse, also
lost money by reason of wet spells. After
Lexington. the Geers stable of horses
will probably go into winter quarters at
Memphis. Other stables owned in the
West and Southwest will probably trav-
erse the Oklahoma and Texas circuits.
while Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio owned
horses will probably come East to Laurel,
Md. where the purses are Of Grand Cir
cult size.
There can be no doubt of this fact, be-
cause the Laurel authorities are already
receiving entries from some Of the best
stables that have been travelling the
Grand Circuit. HahwOrthy, 2:05 IA, who
has been in the Geers stable throughout
the season of 1911. is sure to take part in
the 1000 free-for-all trot at Laurel and
there will be plenty of horses OF his
caliber to try him out for the big end
of the purse. If there be any one in
doubt that the LauIe officials are not on
the job and mean business all they have
to do is to take a trip to Laurel as The
Washington Herald man did last week,
and inspect what is going on Unless one
sees il with ones own eyes one cannot
realize the stupendOus project now being
FASTENED to completion at that point.
The grand stand, with a seating ca
pacity of 5000 persons, will be completed
the early part of this week. The agri-
cultural hall will be ready for exhibits
at the latter end of the week at most.
and the mile track will be ready for
horses to work over by no later than the
middle Of tine week. The offices. jockey
room, saddling paddock. &c, are,
even as we write, in readiness. Up to
the hour of writing 4O7 stalls, all of the
very best material, are in readiness. On
Tuesday next 800 more will have been
completed, making in round numbers 6OG
stalls. The chute, for unloading will be
ready tomorrow. 1t will. be long enough
to unload seven cars at time. The sid
ing from the Baltimore and Ohio station
into the track will also be ready on the
same day, so that a horse train can be
unloaded without delay.
Upward of sixty running horses were
at the track Thursday last, mostly from
the Middle and far West, and car loads
>of horses are being unloaded every day.
During the coming week the influx of
runners from points East and West
promises to put the track officials to
liclT lTuIlpS 10 care Tor tnem. II is
stated with positiveness by Racing Sec
retary Brown that by next Saturday 500
thoroughbred horses will be under shelter
at the track To demonstrate this asser-
,tion, Mr.. Brown produced his entry lists.
Seeing is believing. Not less than 4S7
entries have been made up to date in .
the ten stakes, which makes an average
of fOrty-eight horses for each stake
These entries include horses from some
Of
contipent due, probably, to the large
amount of added money given away A
striking feature of these entries is that
the small as well as the large stables |
throughout the country are represented.
No purse for runners will be less than
$500, while a number of valuable handi-
caps will be run between stake days
These are given as an added attraction,
for it is turf axiom that good purses
bring good horses, make large fields, and
large fields always guarantee keen and
exciting contests. While the, betting ring
always attracts a certain class of people |
who love to speculate. the bettor is as
one to ten as compared with the great |
mass of persons Who patronize race
tracks for the love OF the sport, and
because they like to see close and excit-
ing contests between good horses. Mr..
they call for In all. the Laurel manage
mr-sc will give away in premiums, purses, |
a0d stakes the immense sum of S1O4, 900 |
in twenty-six days. Nothing like it has
ever been known in this section of the
country, and this is what makes the |
coming State fair and race meet at
Laurel an event to stir the blood and |
excite a riot of enthusiasm
-
The foot tbat en- noo T., ,,,,-..z ,,.,tY - I
distributed to light-harness horsemen |
alone is something to interest every man !
who breeds a standard horse in these [
and other parts of the country. No other |
race track management in this section |
has ever dared to make such a bold |
proposition. Every purse offered Is of |
Grand Circuit size. For the. free-for-alI |
trot and for the free-for-all pace the |
purse in each event is 5000. Yhere is not |
a mixed race on the card of the FIVE |
days trotting meet II the trotting meet
ing draws as wen as the fair managers
hope 1t will. there is a strcng probability /
that an attempt viii be made to make
the track a membertof the Grand Circuit I
in 1912. What this means to the light
harness interests of this immediate Sec
tion is easy to forecast. To Washing |
i