The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-11-28
BID Allen Tr0tting Goose
BY W. H. GOCHER.

trim him this season before he pulled
up lame AZ Hartford found him one
Of the toughest nuts to crack that they
ever tackled"
Ed Allen. the party referred to, hav-
ing finished his meal. gave the arm,
which was broken at Toledo: a stretch;
looked across the table and said; i
suppose you do not believe that story
about the trotting goose"
"TeI 1t to the party" said Cox, "and
II they do not protest. / viii let 1t
pass"
Raised by Farmer.
We'll" said Allen, ''thst %trotting
goose was raised by a farmer who lives
near Des Moines. Iowa. He bred geese
for years and made a specially OF In
creasing their size. possibly by getting
In a cross OF swan or Canadian wild
goose, but Of that I am not certain.
Finally he got one that stood over
four feet high when on parade. One
| Of his boys made a sulky out OF a pair
Of bicycle wheels and began driving Il.
| When he got that goose under control II
trotted a quarter Of a mile on the road
very close to a minute.
THE first ! saw Of 1t was n morn
ing at the race track when the farmer
drove up to my stable with the goose.
sulky and boy In a wagon. The boy
exhibited It that morning and remained
at the track, the pair living in a stall.
After I had seen the goose trot I de-
cided that a little weight would give
It more stride. so / slipped a small pair
Of rubber bell boots that | had for
yearling colts on 1t and told the boy
to turn his mount loose. He logged off
slowly around the first u and set
the goose going near the quarter pole.
timed him the next quarter in AZ
seconds.
at was some sight to see that goose
sailing through the stretch with its
head up like an airy going horse, It's
wings half spread, and the boy in the
sulky shooting him along like Valentine
when he Is whisking a hoppled PAGER,
THE boy and the goose remained at
the track for two weeks. While theirs
it laid seven eggs, and you can believe
1t or not, just as you see fit, but that
boy sold them for enough to keep him
and his mount while they were at the
fairgrounds.
Last summer, when was laid of
with a broken arm, l telegraphed the
farmer n asked him if ] could secure
the trotting goose for exhibition pur'
poses at the fairs where Single G. had
engagements, In that way ! expected
that l could pick up enough money tC
pay a man to drive the horse until
could get back into the sulky.
81 received a letter from him whit
:, at Columbus the week that Miss Harris
M. defeated the little horse. In 1t HI
said that he would be unable to help M
out as the goose was then setting on {
| batch Of eggs from which he expected
!. to get a pair Of ganders larger thai
she was and which he intended to hav'
his boy break and drive to a pole car
as we'll as tandem and in races.
IT have a bid in for the pair and !
0 they come up to expectations am sat
t isfied that they will prove a greater at
l. traction at fairs than t%rotting dogs an
ostriches, or even some OF the horse
= that / have seen"
AS Ed Allen stopped speaking an
lit q cigar, Cox looked around the par
ty. All were silent. The waiter, wit
y a solemn face, looked at him an
= dropped a check for the dinner on tn
: table. It was paid while Tom Hanso
e was ordered to bring up the car S
that the party could get out OF tow
before someone called the police t
- learn II there we're any strays reporte
at headquarters.