RELATIONS OF THE AMERICAN PACER TO THE TROTTER. 179 1 



It appears to be a law of our civilization that each generation 

 produces somebody who, out of pure love for the curious and 

 forgotten, devotes the best years of his life to hunting up old 

 things that have well-nigh slipped away from the memory of 

 man. In this class Mr. John F. Watson stands conspicuous 

 in what he has done for Philadelphia and New York. In 1830 

 he published a work entitled "Annals of Philadelphia and Penn- 

 sylvania," in two volumes, and among all the antiquated manners 

 and habits that he again brings to our knowledge, he has some- 

 thing to say about the horse of an early day: 



"The late very aged T. Matlack, Esq., was passionately fond of races 

 in his youth. He told me of his remembrances about Race Street. In 

 his early days the woods were in commons, having several straggling forest 

 trees still remaining there, and the circular course ranging through those trees. 

 He said all genteel horses were pacers. A trotting-horse was deemed a base 

 breed. These Race Street races were mostly pace-races. His father and 

 others kept pacing stallions for propagating the breed." 



Mr. Watson further remarks, on the same subject: "Thomas 

 Bradford, Esq., in telling me of the recollections of the races, 

 says he was told that the earliest races were scrub and pace-races 

 on the ground now used as Race Street." 



The Rev. Israel Acrelius, for many years pastor of the Swedish 

 church of Philadelphia, wrote a book early in the last century, 

 under the title, "History of Xew Sweden," which has been trans- 

 lated into English. In describing the country and people, in 

 their habits and amusements, he thus speaks of the horse: 



" The horses are real ponies, and are seldom found over thirteen hands 

 high. He who has a good riding horse never employs him for draught, which 

 is also the less necessary, as journeys, for the most part, are made on horse- 

 back. It must be the result of this, more than to any particular breed in the- 

 horses, that the country excels in fast horses, so that horse races are oftea 

 made for very high stakes." 



It will be noted that Mr. Acrelius does not say that these races 

 were pacing-races; but when his remark is taken in connection 

 with what Mr. Matlack said about the pacers, and when it is con- 

 sidered that he is speaking of the speed of the saddle horses as 

 such, we can easily understand his true meaning. In our turf 

 history I supposed I was getting well back when I reached 

 the great race between Galloway's Selim and Old England, in 

 1767, but here we find that race was comparatively modern, and 

 that the pacers antedated the gallopers by many, many years. 



