Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-10-29
KING OF TURF
IS ETERNAL.
In Greatest Race Ever Wit
messed on American Track
He Wins $4,000 Purse

King of the American turf. horse
proved himself yesterday at Laurel
track, a horse. very properly named
Eternal So long as records are eN-
.ont this performance will be remem-
hered by followers of racing
The two-year-old championship Io %as wa
OF stake. with a purse worth SSo.vVV'
AZ 49, handv little fortune. and this
Eternal and his jockey. Andy senut-
ttnoer determined to win over Billy
KeiIv who was nosed out oy tne
norrowest margin, due entirety To
the shrewdness of the rider: -
Onlv once before in the history u
.1ovrol park has such vast thFohs
tanned the stands, the oettlhs @ Le
"a every place where II was pos
aitSa Tor a human being to get aho
that other time was last year, "nen
Hourless and Omar Khayyam ran
their memorable race. ~ .hou-
Retween twelve and ntteeh ~ ~
sand people, men and women s..,,
ed from all parts OF tne S,Tngton
Philadelphia. New YORK. 1Iace
poitImore and every other Plt
,,.Larein there are horse lovers seh'
Its quota. 49, .rains were
lab
.oi,od NOT the maudlin crowd "hlSn
iced to follow the game IN tue
Jeys hut the best people the
lovers of the sport OF KINGS ssno.
down TO view these two superb 1893
machines in action. From palti'
snaciaI trains were run and the ohIs
nIace not occupied on these u"'i'
was the locomotive. e.to-a
Throughout the season. at SaI 80
at Aoueduct, at Jamaica ana at 80
tracks Billy Kelly has peeh en- -,
tened the greatest colt OF tue 80
,,;an who know, And some haa even
h hlen Cor as TO proclaim him the
sa.ost horse that ever trod an Amer
;oan track. Yet yesterday Billy Mas
haaten nv his greatest rival the ohIS
SoIt u,hich was able to measute
strides with him and the horse thal
No. haen the dark shadow On H'e
trail all season-Eternal.
With each victory Billy won anu
o,,t of all his starts. he had oEly
Suffered defeat twice prior TO Fes'si-
a., Commander ]. K. L. ROSS ms
gunner. heard the challenge "a 1A'!les 1s
NcClelland, of Kentucky the
of Eternal. Down through the niouens ,os
of racing this summer that mas oee"
the one fued of the American ~
oughbred world, for TINS con sss
hatween the Canadian naval ohicel'
and. the Kentucky horseHiah "''eN
ed into real rivalry. 49,
The setting was tense when the
,in,a drew near for the big event.
-Four other races had preceded II anu
the vast throng had worked ltsell up
into a pitch of excitement htIhs loL
such a race of champions. Each h"lse
rad his hackers and the lines az 'he
pari-Mutuels struggled and tougat
TO bet on their choice.
THE choice was Billy Kelly. There
was s7s.1O4 bet at the machines ana
when they paid it was S44o .or 'he
winner. showing that most or those
whs were willing to back their op'h-
ions"had Billy Kelly in ''e~'
Vel and neck. the race -tai ed,
while the band played "Hs Was Bred
in Old Kentucky" and nerves were at
the breaking point as the thorough
breds dashed from the post Tor the
most sensational finish over witness
ed on the American track. AS one
sporting writer described 1t:
Ears back, teeth barred and with
names and tails straight out on the
wind. like mounts of the faoled
Valkyrie the two colts came. Inch
by inch Billy Kelly gained while close
TO $1,000 maniacal humans screamed
at the top of their concerted lung
power, most of them pleading Tor
Billy Kelly to do more than any horse
ever born could do AMI he alraost dlt
ii.
with only a little more than a
hundred yards to go. there was full
open length between his uutstretched
nose and Eternal's fast-hylng hoofs,
yet that open space disappeared IS
though in one great leap.
ITO Eternals flank came Billy
Kellys outstretched nose, then 1t
looked for a moment Us though they
were even, but just for moment.
Under one last, desperate cut from
the lash. Eternal surge1 forward like
a mad thing and passed the wire
winner by a scant head in finish
that may be equaled in some CLASSIC
of the turf to come in the future. but
which can never be surpa i3a1."