168 THE TROTTING-HORSE OF AMERICA. 



thereby. On the contrary, reason and experience, to my 

 mind, lead to the conclusion that they would have been dam- 

 aged. Our trotting-horses, as a rule, endure much longer 

 than our running-horses. If it be said that the conditions 

 of training and racing are not the same, I reply, that in old 

 times the running-horse endured and was kept upon the 

 turf more than twice as long as he is at present, and ran 

 much harder races. 



The distance and weights in England used to be three 

 and four mile heats, and the weights from about 140 pounds 

 to 168 pounds ; yet the horses used to run until they were 

 not merely " aged," but old. Whereas, at the present 

 time, they commonly retire before they are seven ; and take 

 away two geldings, Throgsneck and Bed Oak, there is not 

 a prominent race-horse in this country, England, or Ireland, 

 to-day, that is eight. Now, that arises in a great measure 

 from the forcing system adopted to make colts at three 

 years old as forward as they used to be at five ; and, with 

 regard to the trotter, it ought to be avoided. He must last 

 many years to make a first-rate one ; whereas the running- 

 horse is commonly as good at four or five years as he ever 

 would be, if he could run on until he was twenty. There 

 is nothing in the thoroughbred horse that entails earlier 

 decay than other strains are liable to. If of good sound 

 family, such as Messenger belonged to, and not subjected to 

 severer treatment and greater strain than horses of other 

 breeds are called upon to endure, I am satisfied that the 

 thoroughbred is the hardiest as well as the speediest and 

 stoutest animal that the art of man has been able to 

 perfect. 



Another point against which I warned the owners and 

 handlers of young trotting-horses was the practice, beginning 

 to obtain to a mischievous extent, of taxing their powers 

 severely while they are in the sap and green of youth. We 

 find that Dutchman never trotted a race until he was six 



