HOW THE TROTTIXG HORSE IS BRED. O09 1 



ting horse, therefore, as we contemplate him in his position of 

 superiority to all others of his kind, is simply the result of great 

 labor in collecting the facts and sound reasoning from the lessons 

 taught by those facts. With all the facts placed in his hand, 

 any breeder of intelligence, if he were honest, could not fail to 

 reach the truth; but, unfortunately, all breeders have never 

 learned to divest themselves of their prejudices, and to accept 

 the plain teachings of the facts, just as they are. 



To be able to think intelligently and honestly and to reason 

 soundly, is the first requisite to success in breeding the trotter. 

 It is a seeming paradox, but it is nevertheless true, that many 

 men who are able to think a little are not able to think honestly. 

 It is easy to understand why a man may act dishonestly, for there 

 is the hope of gain to impel him; but why he should think dis- 

 honestly is not so apparent. Let us illustrate this matter of 

 thinking dishonestly. On an occasion a correspondent asked a 

 breeding journal to give a list of the thoroughbred horses that 

 had sired trotters. A list of horses, represented as thoroughbred 

 in the reply, was given, embracing some ten or twelve, about half 

 of which were either unknown or dependent npon the most flimsy 

 kind of representation as to their blood. It is not with the 

 actual misrepresentation of the blood of most of the animals 

 named, but with the use that was made of the list that I will now 

 speak. After accepting the list as true and genuine, the corre- 

 spondent comes before the public with his conclusions. H& 

 shows that these dozen performers from about as many horses 

 made an average record of 2:24 and a fraction, and then trium- 

 phantly raises the question whether any single trotting-bred sire 

 can show as many performers with as low an average record. 

 Having satisfied himself that all the running-bred sires, real and 

 imaginary, put together could more than equal any one trotting- 

 bred sire in the average high rate of speed, he reaches the pro- 

 found conclusion that the way to breed the trotter is to go to the 

 runner. This is a real and not an imaginary instance of a few 

 years ago. No doubt this man thought he was thinking when he 

 reached this conclusion, and that he had solved the problem of 

 breeding the trotter; but, poor man, he was simply trying to 

 advertise a half-and-half-bred stallion he had in his stable. 



I have no old scores to pay off against the breeding and sport- 

 ing press, for I generally managed to pay them off as we went 

 along, and the triumph of the views I advanced and sustained 



