AMERICAN TROTTlNCx HORSE. 521 



years stood at the head of the record, until the mighty Dexter 

 surpassed it at Buffalo in 1867. 



After this great exploit Flora went to Cleveland, where she beat 

 Princess with great ease and in poor time ; and at Cuyahoga Falls, 

 on the 28th of October, she did the same for Ike Cooke. After 

 the crushing defeats of poor Princess, few imagined that any horse 

 would be so bold as to challenge the little bay mare's premiership. 

 But now the Jcrsoy stallion George M. Patchen threw down the 

 gauntlet, and at the Union Course, November 21, they met in the 

 first of those memorable contests, the recital of which even now causes 

 the cheeks of the old turfman to burn with excitement, George M. 

 Patchen was four years her junior, being foaled in 1849, and was very 

 well bred, his sire being Cassius M. Clay, and his dam by a son of 

 Imported Trustee out of a daughter of American Eclipse. He was 

 a powerful brown horse, above 16 hands high, with great strength 

 and much bone. He was coarse about the head, and heavy in the 

 carcass ; but, though he was what might be called a plain horse, 

 his pi)ints were uncommonly strong and good, and his action capital. 

 He had defeated such horses as Lancet, Brown Dick, Lady Wood- 

 ruff, Miller's Damsel, and Pilot, and was no mean opponent even 

 for the little bay mare ; but to make the match more open, she was 

 to go in harness while he went under the saddle. The mare won 

 the first two heats, in 2m. 28 s. and 2m. 23 s., with the stallion close 

 up in each. In the third, Flora was first over the score, in 2 m. 24 s., 

 but it was given to Patchen, because of her crossing him and run- 

 ning. Darkness coming on, the race was postponed, and never 

 trotted out. On June 6, 1850, Flora and Patchen met for the 

 second time, Hiram Woodruff thus describes the race : " It came 

 off on the 6th of June, over the Union Course. The start was 

 even ; but Flora soon made a skip, and the stallion got the lead ; 

 but the mare caught, and, g'ling on with uncommon resolution, 

 headed him, and led a length at the quarter in H5 s. On the 

 straight work, she drew away a little more; but the stallion now 

 made a great burst of speed, and she broke. At the half-mile, in 



1 m. 11 s., he had a lead of a length, and soon increased it to two 

 lengths ; but, upon the turn, the mare squared herself, drew up to 

 him, and came in to the stretch with him. The struggle home was 

 one of the fastest and closest things that ever were seen. They 

 came on neck-and-neck at an amazing rate; and within three 

 strides of home it seemed to be a dead heat. McMann, at the 

 very last, struck Flora sharply with the whip, let go of her head, 

 and with one desperate effort she was first, by a throat-latch, in 



2 m. 21 s., the best time that we had then seen on the Island. 

 The last half-mile had been trotted in Im. 10 s., and was a neck- 

 and-neck race nearly "all the way. In the second heat, Flora was 



