The New York herald., 1921-08-07
A RINGING APPEAL
FOR HARNESS HORSE
Manager Of Mrs. ]. s. Sylves-
ter's Show Stable Analyses
Existing Situation.
ny THOMAS FAY WALSH.

by THOMAS FAY WALSH.
Why do 50 few people exhibit harness
horses? Why is Judge Moore the sole
remaining exhibitor in the four-in-hand
classes? Why do some shows have to
cancel their harness classes for lack OF
entries?
There must be some cause for the
dearth Of harness horse exhibits. with
out which a show is as monotonous as
a forced diet OF bread and water. Let
us find this cause and remedy it before
the harness horse disappears entirely.
Is 1t the lack OF harness horses in
tie country? la It the high cost OF
transportation? Has the Judging any
thing to do with II?
The answer 10 these questions is no.
They may be contributing causes. but
their effect is very slight. The blame,
IN my opinion, and In the opinions of
the exhibitors / have talked with, lies
wholly with the horse show managers
l will explain.
$4,000 EauipnEe Wen S55.
A few years ago l assembled four
which was shown and won at a prom
inent horse show The four horses cost
! $500, the coach So,5oo, the harness
$780, The livery for the men. the robes,
, whip. chains and appointments brought
the total well over ST.. 900, but it was
magnificent turnout. There were three
other exhibitors, and it was thrilling
| sight TO watch those coaches, beautifully
\ horseG, to hear the music of the chains,
to see the clever driving of the whips
| No wonder the spectators were wildly
/ enthusa site.
\ The first prize was $50. of which 50
| had been paid for the entrance fee. The
! balance would not cover the shoeng OF
/ the horses After the class the horses
had to be scraped and walked, the coach
! washed, the harness and steels cleaned,
\ which kept four men busy. Coming TO
! the show the coach had TO have its
wheels removed before it could be loaded
| on the express car a difficult JoD. IL
| had to be hauled to and from the car
and to and from the show. all of which
meant considerable expense and trouble.
Jumper won Himself Out.
Every exhibitor OF harness horses
knows the trouble carriages cause
! They take up most OF the car. leaving
but little space for horses and chests,
and one must find careful express
man to haul them TO and from the
/ show They are constantly getting dam
| aged and must be painted and vanished
at regular intervals. The initial cost OF
show carriages is considerable. One
must keep a man to wash them, and
one must keep a man TO clean the har-
ness which goes with them, which
/ harness is quite expensive.
The point | want remembered is that
this outfit won $55 in the four-in-hand
class. The man who was third got
$40. the fourth man, nothing.
The class following the four-in-hands
1 was for jumpers. II was won by an old
thoroughbred horse, fired In front and
/ ridden 10y darky. There was no place
! on earth where this horse would bring
$3.50. lie could carry his entire equip
ment on his back. and when the shows
were not too far apart the darky rode
| him over the road. Yet. with very little
/ trouble or expense he won as much as
| the high priced four. In fact, lie and
his stable mate won more az this show
than any six OF my harness horses COM
blned. Some contrast With one saddle
and bride a man could have shown
the entire jumping class.
why saddle Classes FIJI.
| When man takes four hunters or
/ saddle horses TO a show he may be
able to enter several In each class. thus
4 giving him more chances to win. He
has no carriages or harness. One man
can take care Of four horses and the
tack No wond er the shows are flooded
with hunters and saddle horses. Where
| twenty men can be found to ride. only
/ one can he found to drive n tandem
or a four. Only those who have tried
| il know the difficulty OF matching four
| horses the changing of their shoes I'm
order TO get them going right, the drill
/ ing together as pairs and four. Per-
haps a horse goes lame and has 10 be
\ replaced. SKIN, patience and energy
must be expended plus money, to turn
out the finished equipags--to be ex-
hihited for $50 or less.
/ The absence OF support or encourage
ment on the part OF the horse shows
and the n,ggardly prizes are some Of
the causes OF the harness horses
! threatened disappearance from these
exhibitions.
Suggests Larger Prizes.
| Exhibitors do not expect to make
money showing horses; that is lmpos-
/ sible. They do II for the sport ana the
| thrill that goes with II. But they do
| expect to win little; enough. perhaps,
to pay transportation and the entry fees
or the shoeng bill. If very lucky they
4 may he able TO feed the horses at the
show, but the pitiful little prizes do not
\ 20 far TO help them.
II the harness entries are dying out
/ why not make an effort TO revive them?
\ Double the harness prizes; offer $3.50 or
800 for four-in-hands. tandems, &c;
/ feed the exhibitors horses free while
at the show pay transportation one
way; feed the grooms or st least pro-
/ vide place for them 10 cat a reasou-
\ able rates Exhibitors have had to pay
I extortlonate prices for their grooms'
/ food at certain shows. Rochester is the
I only show 7 know OF that stables and
I feeds tho exhibitors horses free. also
/ giving large sums for prizes, with
\ low entrance fee And Rochester Is a
/ bowling success.
I Personally I do not think offering
large stake" classes solves the prob
lem. First. the heavy entrance fee Is
IN added burden 20 the exhibitor: sec-
NJ