The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-03-06
TWICE BEATEN BY A NOSE AT
 SANTA ANITA.
Later Beat War Admiral. Then Broke Down on
 California Track
Editors Note: This is the third of four dispatches on the life of Seabiscuit.
By JACK GUENTHER Limited Press Racing EdikOrl

NOhAwCu ACoo AsSCAhAk ASNAAvVA
 Arcadia, Cal, March G. (UP) = Seabiscuit returned to Santa Anita Park in 1888 hailed as champion. At the age of five he had earned S210,000, and apparently had the $100,000 Santa Anita handicap at his mercy. After the handicap at the Sun Beau mark was just a step away.
 But Seabiscuit lived up to his nickname of Hard Luck Kid" First he lost his tune-up race, the $10,-S 900 San Antonio, to Esposa by a nose, then, favored at 1910, he went into the Santa Anita and there was Stagehand, one of the great stretch runners of the turf. 7
 Stagehand came to California a maiden and in five starts scored three triumphs. One of the races he won was the $50O00 Santa Anita derby. He was 8 beautiful thing. full of long-striding run, but he was just three years old and young sters seldom carry their weight against a good older horse. But everyone forgot that Stagehand's Santa Anita weight was feather of 100 pounds while the rugged Biscuit drew 130.
 Maybe you remember how that race ended. Johnny Pollard, the Biscuits jockey, lay in a hospital with a shattered leg while Georgie 'Woolf took his baby to the post. For the first 120 seconds of the race, Pollard's shouts rang through the hospital halls. Two seconds later, his tears puddled the top of his beside radio. For during those two. seconds Stagehand came out of the clouds to whip the champ by 8 nose. So in the space of four sec- onds and the distance of a tea- cup, Seabiscuit lost $l80,OOO in the Santa Anitas of 1897 and 1888.
 Pollard stayed in the hospital for almost another year but the Biscuit went back on the road. He develop ed game knee around this time but on he went = through Agua Caliente, Bay Meadows, Arlington Park, Hollywood Park, Del Mar, Belmont, Havre De Grace and Laurel. By October his winnings had scared to $325, ,480-just a step from Sun Beau row--a1d Seabiscuit went into the race of the century against War Admiral at Pimlico. Beat The Admiral
 They all knew the Biscuit then, but Pimlico is in Maryland and the horse in the heart of the east was the Admiral, Old Man o'War's fav- orite son. War Admiral had swept the triple crown of the derby, the preakness and the Belmont stake and he was the king. Men sWore by this king. a There was hush in the golden haze of that November afternoon in Maryland as the two of them were of. But not for long. Within a dozen strides, the close packed spectators were gasping. War Ad- miral, the fastest post horse in rac- ing, the horse who had taken the. track from every opponent he had faced, was beaten away from the tape and the Biscuit beat him all the way.
 The ugly runt was the king of them all that day, but off the track he walked and into a train to be- away to the wars again. He was off for another shot at the $100,0OOt Santa Anita purse he had missed. twice by noses before. Then, in his first start in California, the new king broke down and the veterin- arians said he would never come back, He went to his barn three- legged horse, still $35, 900 shy of the Sun Beau mark, while tears streak led the cheeks of silent Tom Smith, the man whose heart was supposed to be as hard as his horny hands.