The New York herald., 1922-01-15
PETER THE GREATS
PEDIGREE AGAIN
w. II. Gocher's Discoveries
!, as to Lexington Cross More
Romantic Than Convincing.
Bya. CHAPLIN.

=, 10 ny 3s. CnAFLANs
A story in the Sunday HERALD Of
November 81 questioning the reported
assertions OF jefferson Wells that a
man named Graves trained Lexington
for his races with Lecomte in 1854, or
that the great racehorse was bred to
mare called Edith belonging to Gen..
T. ]. Wells. or to any other mare, while
he was in training at New Orleans in
that year, sent w. II. Gocher. secretary
of the National Trotting Association,
to Louisiana after tho meeting OF the
y. II. A. in December to obtain affi-
davits from Mr.. Wells and. to investi-
gate these and other matters concerning
the pedigree of Peter the Great, 2 :07N.
In his romantic account of the an
cestry OF the greatest Of trotting .sires
in last Sundays HERALD Mr.. Gocher
blithely avoided any reference to these
pertinent questions. but in writing from
Alexandria, La, to reporter Of THE
HERALD he said while still in the South !:
Pryor never trained Lexington He
lived in Natchez ard trained for Col
Bindman."
If Mr.. Goeher's other discoveries con-
!
the Great are on par with this one
it is unlikely that the board OF censors
of the American Trotting Register AS
sociation will entertain his latest version
of the pedigree. One has only to turn
to contemporaneous records Of Lexing-
tons performances to impeach the
memory of Mr.. Wells, who is now nearly
30 years old. respecting the happenings
Of nearly seventy years ago in which he
was not directly concerned.
BY consulting that Incompatible re-
pository Of early American sporting
history the Spirit Of the Times, Mr..
Gocher might have found in the issue
OF July 8. 1854, this direct statement
over the signature of Lexington's 8
owner, Richard Ten Brock. as to who
trained the horse at this particular
period:
Now for the proof. Mr.. Pryor. who
trained Lexington, strongly objected to
starting him. declaring him unfit to
rum"
And in letter dated May 8. 1868. Mr..
Pryor himself said II gave him (Lex-
ington) four mile gallop at Natchez
over the Pharsalia course, a few days
before he went to New Orleans to run
for the Post Stakc.'s
The Great State Post Stake, referred
to by Pryor. was run over the Metaire
course at New Orleans. on Saturday,
April 1, 1854. and won by Lexington in
slow time and in very heavy going, from
Lecomte. Highlander and Arrow. The
race referred to by Mr.. Ten Brock was
the Jockey Club Purse, run over the
same track just one week later, Lecomte
winning from Lexington and Rube. In
1926 and 1884, then the fastest time
IN record af four ypfIa heofc
The next day but one after Lexing-
toms defeat, Mr.. Ten Brock addressed
to the owner of Lecomte q note that
read a little like a challenge for a duel
saying 1t had been reported to him that
Gen. Wells had stated publicly that his
horse stood ready to meet Lexington at
any time. for any money. at any dis
tance, and he. Ten Brock, was there
fore ready to match him for $4,000 a
side to run four mile heats on Wednes-
day of The next week. Without replying
to the charge that he had been rubbing
1t in"aby proclaiming the superiority OF
his horse. the owner Of Lecomte replied:
II beg leave to decline"
Then began an acrimonious, not to
say bitter, controversy in the columns
of the Spirit between the owners and
friends OF the rival horses, which con-
tinued until they met again in the
Jockey Club Stakes at New Orleans the
next year. Lexington smothered Lee
comte on this occasion by winning. hard
held. in 1894. and setting the record at
z :19% I'm a match against time for $20,-
900 stakes. .
Shortly after this race Lexington went
blind and was sent to the stud, standing
at w. Il. Harpcrs farm, near Midway,
KY, in 1856 and 1856. While he was
still there and the property of Mr.. Ten
Broeck, II. A. Alexander met his owner
in England and bought the horse to head
his Woodburn stud.
In The face of these long accepted and
hitherto undisputed facts of turf history
Mr.. Wells, who Is a nephew of Gen.
Wells, asserts that Lexington was
trained In 1854 by one Graves: that he
ran a trial on the Metaire course Just
one day before he was to meet Lecomte;
that he was bred to Gen. Wells's marc
Edith while at the track and while un-
pleasant challenges were being issued by
his owner, aimed at Gen. Wells and
Lecomte. and. finally. that he went from
the track to Duncan Il. Kenner's place
near New Orleans and remained there
until he was sold for $4,000 to 60 in
the stud"
That Mr.. wells's memory Is at fault
the events of three-score and
seven years ago need hardly be said
nor wondered at.
Mr.. Gocher's ideas of what constitutes
evidence in relation to pedigrees are dis
closed by his qualified acceptance OF
the thoroughbred horse Cumberland as
the sire OF Peter the Greats fourth dam.
If his Information Is accurate she was
q gray mare, owned about sixty years
ago in, Clarksville, Tenn, by the widow
of Samuel Wilson. Nobody processes to
know who bred her or where Mrs. Will
son got her. SO far as the secretary OF
the n. 4. A. has made known. but she
was tne same color as the thoroughbred
stallion Cumberland that stood in that
section few years before her time, and
a horseman has been found who says:
81 have never been able to learn any
thing OK her breeding. but she was In all
probability sired by Cumberland"
On this statement Mr.. Gocher tacks
on what John II. Wallace used TO call
the taipiece, fourth dam Bette Wilson.
said TO be by Cumberland. son OF I'M
ported Ambassador"
This cross belongs IN the class with
the proof in all good faith and sincerity
recently submitted to the American
Hackney Horse Society by the owner of
one OF those innumerabe saddle horses
reputed to be by Warwick Model.
MY horse looks just like Driftwood
Blaze. and Joe Collins says Warwick
Model Is the sire OF Driftwood Blaze"
he said.
When informed that better evidence
would be required for registration OF the
horse he replied:
"why. nobody claims my horse is by
any other sire. What reason Is there 70