542 THE HOUSE OF AMERICA. 



and joint responsibility of some half a dozen rich men, and they 

 were as gleeful and happy over their investment as though they 

 had obtained a gold mine for a song. But, while these men were 

 rejoicing over their acquisition, there were many others cursing 

 the deception that had been practiced upon them by promising 

 them places and perquisites and, in short, whatever they wanted 

 in order to secure their adherence to the conspiracy. Of all this 

 numerous class, Messrs. Mali and Packer had so little sense as to 

 make the nature and terms of their agreement public, namely, 

 that they were to be clothed with the power to annually appoint 

 the Board of Censors for the new organization. Poor fools! they 

 didn't know Brodhead. For a consideration of place they had 

 betrayed a trust to him that as honorable men they should have 

 sacredly guarded, and the more they complained the more bit- 

 terly they were condemned by all right-thinking men. Hence, 

 after they had served his purpose he kicked them aside as he 

 would an old shoe, and thus he punished the traitors with whom 

 he had dealt. When the multitude of writers, statisticians, etc., 

 who had received private assurances of "something equally as 

 good" in the new deal, saw the fate of Mali and Packer, they 

 had sense enough to keep their mouths shut. A man who knew 

 anything about the trotting families and their lines of descent 

 was not the kind of man that Mr. Brodhead wanted to put in 

 charge of registration. The only man who could suit Mr. Brod- 

 head was the man who would implicitly and without doubt follow 

 his instructions, right or wrong. When Mr. J. H. Steiner was 

 appointed Registrar it was wholly evident that this was the pur- 

 pose of the proprietor, for of all the men in my knowledge, in 

 any way connected with trotting horse interests, Mr. Steiner 

 seems to be the most profoundly ignorant of horse history and 

 horse lineage, and till this day he does not seem to have learned 

 anything thereof. 



At this point the public confidence received a shock from 

 which it has never recovered, and never will recover. From that 

 day till the present the estimate of value of the publications 

 of the company, in the minds of breeders, has been on the 

 "down grade," and coupled with this is the ever-obtruding doubt 

 as to whether these publications are managed for the advantage 

 of the general breeding public, or for the little clique of which 

 Woodburn is the center. The lack of knowledge displayed' has 

 resulted in a profound disgust. This has been shown most con- 



