RACE 



490S 



RACE 



twenty to twenty-five pounds. Their stout 

 bodies are covered with long, coarse hair, which 

 is grayish and black-tipped. The tails are 

 bushy, grayish-white, with definite rings of 

 black. A coon's face, with its sharp, delicate 

 nose, and patch of black around each eye, set 

 off by surrounding whitish hairs, is foxlike and 

 has a look of cunning. These animals are fa- 

 mous tree climbers, having long legs and strong 

 claws. Their favorite haunts are hollow trees, 

 and in cold climates they hibernate in such 

 woodland homes (see HIBERNATION). Although, 

 like bears, coons eat almost anything which 

 comes their way, frogs, crabs, turtles and other 

 water animals are favorite articles of diet, and 

 juicy corn crops are often ruined by visits from 

 these greedy visitors. They always wash their 

 food before eating it and are fond of paddling 

 in water. Robbing birds' nests and chicken 

 coops are perhaps their worst faults. 



From three to six young are born at one 

 time, usually in April or May. They are blind 

 and helpless at first, and are cared for by the 

 parents for at least a season. The cry of the 

 young resembles that of human babies. Coons 

 are easily tamed and are amusing pets. 



The agouara, or crab-eating raccoon, is found 

 in South America. A Himalayan species is 

 called the punda. 



From 1838 to 1844 the raccoon was the em- 

 blem of the Whig party in the United States, 

 and members of that party were popularly 

 called coons. The famous log cabins of the 

 Harrison and Tyler campaign of 1840 always 

 had coonskins nailed to the exterior. 



Consult Stone and Cram's American Animals; 

 Seton's Life-Histories of Northern Animals. 



RACE, any trial of speed among contestants, 

 such as running, rowing, swimming, riding and 

 driving. Since the days when the prehistoric 

 peoples escaped the cave bear by fleetness of 

 foot contests of speed have continued to ex- 

 cite the keenest interest. The successful run- 

 ner in the Greek games was crowned with a 

 wreath of laurel, and was honored by all the 

 people. The games at Rome were not less 

 popular. In modern times, such contests are 

 a regular part of the rivalry among colleges, 

 especially in America. 



With the invention of mechanical devices for 

 increasing the speed with which man was able 

 to propel himself, bicycle, motorcycle and au- 

 tomobile races were added to trotting, pacing 

 and running races as popular diversions. Of 

 these, the automobile race is the most thrilling, 

 because of the very great speed attained by 



expert drivers. Yachting and rowing races 

 have their enthusiastic followers, but they can 

 hardly be called popular sports. The only 

 yachting event in America which rouses general 

 public interest and excited partisan loyalty is 

 the race for an international cup, for which rep- 

 resentatives of England and America have 

 sailed at intervals since about 1890. 



Bicycle racing was once almost a rival of 

 horse racing in America, but is very little fol- 

 lowed now except in contests on prepared 

 courses in large buildings, continuing for six 

 days without interruption. Records of 1,700 

 miles for winning "teams" have been earned. 

 Horse racing itself, once the most royal of 

 sports, called "the sport of kings," has fallen 

 upon evil days as a result of the demoralization 

 that came from the betting ring. Races fre- 

 quently were "fixed," that is, arranged between 

 owners; and when the public came to under- 

 stand that it was not always' permitted to see 

 the best horse win, interest declined, and in 

 nearly all great centers of population racing 

 has been prohibited by law. However, the 

 American tradition of the turf is a fine one, 

 for American breeders produced some of the 

 swiftest animals on the track in the days when 

 racing was at its cleanest and best. Horses are 

 matched in trotting, pacing and running races, 

 and are further divided into classes correspond- 

 ing to their speed. 



Speed Records by Horses. The harness race 

 was developed in America, and the early trot- 

 ters and pacers of the United States had no 

 equals. In harness races, the mile has been the 

 standard distance, and the time was lowered 

 from a little more than three minutes at the 

 time of the death of the first great trotter, 

 "Imported Messenger," in 1808, to 2:08% in 

 1884. The latter record was made by one of 

 the greatest of American harness horses, "Maud 

 S," in competition with her equally great rival, 

 "Jay Eye See." The introduction of ball-bear- 

 ing axles and pneumatic tires a little later was 

 an important mechanical aid to speed, and its 

 effect has been shown in still lower records for 

 the mile. "Lou Dillon," a comparatively un- 

 known mare, was the first horse to trot a mile 

 in two minutes. She accomplished this feat, 

 not in a race but in an exhibition mile behind 

 pacemakers. Later, under similar conditions, 

 she went a mile in 1 :58%. The fastest time 

 made by a trotter up to 1917 was 1 :54Ms- "Uh- 

 lan," accompanied by a pacemaker and pro- 

 tected by a wind shield, covered a mile in that 

 time at Lexington, Ky., in 1913. "Dan Patch" 



