New-York tribune., 1916-07-14
LIGHTNING KILLS
THREE HORSES
AT RACETRACK
Belmont and Butler Lose
ThOrOughbreds - Big
Storm Mars Sport. ,
BY T.. ID. BURROWS.
a fash and crash In the storm-swept air.
And that was the end Of Nancy Fair.

Nancy, you see, was a promising two
year-old filly belonging TO August Bel.
mont. and she was booked to start in
the sixth race at Empire City track
yesterday afternoon.
But Nancy did not answer the bugle
call.
The reason was that Nancy, along
with her stable mate, Cockleshell, and
flly called Variety, owned by James
Butler, was struck by lightning during
the violent storm which hit the Yon-
kers hippodrome just after the first
event of the afternoon had been de-
cided. Nancy and Cockleshell were
killed outright and Variety was so
badly scared that she had to be shot to
put her out of misery.
A Heavy Cannonadc.
A soldier lately returned from "some-
where in France" would have been per-
fectly at home at the Eutler speedway
yesterday. Scarcely had Hathor and
Queen Of the Water settled the ques-
tion of which was the better two-ycar-
old filly this two-horse scamper being
the initial performance on the Empire
City programme than a terrific thun-
derstorm swept down from the north
east and gave truly startling imita-
tion of an engagement between the hos
tile armies of Europe.
In less than thirty minutes by the
clubhouse clock, so violent was the
downpour which accompanied the celes-
tial pyrotechnics. the circular track was
converted into sloppy swamp. through
which the thoroughbreds wallowed TO
victory or defeat.
Nancy Fair. Cockleshell and Variety
occupied adjoining stalls in the pad
dock stable. Next to them. IN the out
side positions, were Mr.. Belmont's flly
Ma.achite and his justly renowned
three-year-colt Friar Rock.
At the height of the electrical bonn
bardment a bolt of forked lightning,
following a steel girder which ran down
between the stalls occupied by Nancy
Fair and Cockleshell. tore through the
roof Of the stable and struck both OF
the horses, killing them instantly. Va
riety got an offshoot of the bolt in her
shoulder and was mortally wounded.
two stricken thoroughbreds, had just
been led out of her stall TO compete
in the second race Of the day. When
the lightning struck the boy who was
leading the Rock Sand flly was thrown
against the side of the barn. but the
horse was apparently unaffected. At all
events she ran creditable race, finish
ing second to Pan Maid, which fairly
revelled in the muddy going, and made
a post to post win.
Only Two Favorites.
Only two favorites out of six were
able TO get home in front, the storm
having PLAYED havoc with the track and
upset all true racing form. Sasin, held
as humbly as TO l by the genial
memory brokers, captured the feature
event of the afternoon-the Tarrytown
Selling Stakes-despite the fact that the
public choice, Captain +. b. Cassatt' 5
chestnut, Sun God, was believed to be
a sterling "mudder."
As matter of fact Sun God ran
bang-up race, but the Baiocchi colt was
Just fraction of an eyelash the better
of the two. In a terrific drive nome
through the slop Sasin managed to beat
the favorite to the wire by a neck
The other four horses in the race.
Pleione, Brooks, Miss Puzzle and JACK
Wheeler-fnished ten lengths behlnd
the contenders, in the order named. -,
Only two horses answered the can
for the first race, Clifford A. Cochran's
brown illv. Queen of the Water, being
an odds-on favorite over Willis Sharpe
Kilmer's imported youngster, Hathor.
for the fve-furlong dash. The latter,
1 l. SnpGU.
and easily took the measure OF the
daughter Of Waterboy.
After Pan Maid had captured the
second event from the almost stricken
Nalachite a bay colt named Daddy S
Choice. owned by Emil Herr and clever
ly ridden by Jockey Mink, took one
mile slosh from the imported horse
Cunbearer and J. o. Talbott's gelding,
Sandman II. The Herr entry gave an un-
expected exhibition Of gameness when'
pinched off in the stretch by the otner
two horses, he scooted around from
behind them and tore down the middle
of the track TO victory.
Herr. who is having splendid luck
with his horses this year, sent another
winner to the post in the hfth' Devii
Fish making wire to wire run
in front of five other good selling
nlaters. including the highly ttouted
Marrone Stable entry, Transit. keogn
took his mount up in front the moment
the barrier was sprung, and was never
headed. The best Transit could do was
~ come home third, three-quarters OF
q length behind Carlton G., which
Showed a deal of class in the stretch
Brother Jonathan, an imported speed
or owned by NJ. Hirsch, took the con-
cluding event of somewhat, terrlly-
inc afternoon, beating six other Two
vesr-olds, and thereby rewarding the
faithful form players.