Evening star., 1923-03-11
Famous Horseback Rides.

THE famous ride OF Dick Turpin
the highwayman, to York on hia
brown mare Bess, was. as matter
of fact. an impossibility, seeing that
1t was claimed that Dick rode from
. .Gadshill. a distance OF nearly one
hundred miles, In less than Yous
hours At any rate, his presence in
York At 7:45 o'clock cleared him from
the charge Of robbing sailor In
Gadshill at 4 o'clock the same morn.
ing.
Cooper Thornhill's ride to and fro
between Silton and London. on April
20, 1746, however. was actually per-
formed He rode 21S miles in eleven
hours, thirty-three minutes and forty-
six seconds, but he bestrode nineteen
horses In doing this. This was an
average of nineteen miles an hour.
George Osbaldeston. in 1881, on a
WAGER Of $1,000 that he would ride
200 miles in ten hours, accomplished
the distance in ten minutes over
seven hours. He had ridden twenty
eight horses, and was allowed ono
hour, thirty-two minutes and nfty-
six seconds for changes, while hs
had kept round and round the CIR
cu,ar course on Newmarket heath.
He rode over twenty-eight miles an
hour.
Capt. Selvi of the Italian cavalry
performed the exploit Of riding $50
miles in ten days AS the Italian
miles are shorter than ours, he
travelled ffty-five and a. half miles
per day, even then no slight feat
Passing over the famous flights OF
old-time heroes, whose mythical ac-
counts read we'll in story. but do not
bear the light OF investigation, we
find that the most remarkable rides
have been made ON our frontiers by
the scouts and plainsmen, whose
hardy horses enabled them to ac-
complish as a matter OF course such
tests as Capt. Brownson's journey OF
400 miles through an Indian country
on the same steed in six days, with
no feed other than the scanty herb
age that grew in a mountainous
region.
Fremont's extraordinary ride from
Los Angeles to Monterey. Calf. ana
back again, in March, 1s47, has be-
como a matter of history. Accom-
panied by two companions and with
six lead horses to take their turns
under the saddle, the great explorer
set out on his tremendous journey
over q. mountainous country, with no
road but a trace or stock trail, at
a sweeping gallop. to pass over 12'
miles the first day. fifteen or them
along the maritime defle Of Ell Rinco.
where a spur of the mountain JUL
ting into the sea compelled them TO
ride at ebb tide. and even tnen ioF
a long distance through water.
As often as the horses showed signs
Of fatigue the saddle was shifted
70 one of the lead animals and the
tourney continued almost without a
break.
On their return from Monterey. a
cinnamon-colored horse, ridden oy
Fremont himself, was put to a severe
test After carrying his rider ten
leagues one evening. the next oas
he bore him ninety consecutive miles
without the least show OF WEAKNESS
In fact, upon his freedom frohi
the saddle the cinnamon led his
equine companions into San Luis at
a flying Eallop, his nostrils dfsteno-
ed and neighing with evident delighL
at his return to his native pastures.
This wonderful journey Of 500 miles
was performed in eight days. count"
ing two days stop while en- route
1t Is but proper that It should De
added, however, that the Spanish mile
Ia shorter by 1868 yards than our
American mile, which would make @
difference OF about sixty miles Oh
the whole distance.
Rankin, the scout, at the time oL
the Meeker massacre, fastening Will
all speed possible to RaWiins Aor
reinforcements to relieve the dis
tressed garrison, under Maj. Thorn
hurr. rode $50 miles from midnight
to midnight
To perform this twenty-four-noor
perslous journey he rode four horses'
two Of them to their death.
Kit Carson, in his checkered career,
made several remarkable rides OF
which mono was more terrible than
his flight ON the burning prairie WIN
two companions. both OF whom tei.
by the way. The poet Miller mas
made this the theme OF one Oh hiS