THE AMERICAN TROTTER 43 



THE AMERICAN TROTTER 



The true modern trotting horse is a most remarkable instance of 

 what may be done by keeping an animal to one kind of work for generations, 

 and selecting the specimens best fitted for it to breed from. In this country 

 a thoroughbred horse, or even one of nearly pure blood, could not be found 

 at any price to trot a mile in three minutes, yet in America there are 

 plenty, of blood almost entirely derived from the English turf horse, which 

 will perform the distance in 2 minutes and 40 seconds, and some in 

 considerably less time. In America private and public trotting matches 

 in harness have been for many years the chief amusement of the town 

 population, and, until very recently, when flat racing or running, as it is 

 called there, has been more developed, a fast trotter fetched a higher price 

 than any other description of horse. Trotting matches are, in fact, the 

 national sport, just as racing is that of our own country. 



The trotting time given in the original edition of this work, when Flora 

 Temple did a mile in 2 minutes 19f seconds, was thought too marvellous 

 an achievement to be ever surpassed, yet we have seen the record broken 

 by Maud S. and plenty of others since. " Jay Eye Sie " did the mile in 

 2 minutes 8f seconds in 1885, and more seconds have been chipped off the 

 record in this last decade of the nineteenth century. 



The most extraordinary performances of these trotters, as recorded in 

 the American Racing Calendar, are as follows : — 



MILE HEATS. 



iiiin. sec. 



Flora Tenii)le, b. m. in liarness . . . Kalamazoo, Mich. . . Oct. 15, 1859 . 2 19| 



Ditto ditto . . . Cincinnati Oct. 7, 1859 . 2 21i 



Ditto ditto . . . Eclipse Course, L. I. . Aug. 9, 1859 . 2 21^ 



Tacony and Mack in 1853, Lancet iu 1856, and Patchen in 1859, each iu harness . 2 25^ 



Ethan Allen, stallion, 105 lb. wagon . Union Course, L. I. . . Oct. 28, 1858 . 2 28" 



TWO MILE HEATS. 



Flora Temple in harness L.I Aug. 16, 1859. 4 50i 



Ditto to wagon L.I July 6, 1859 . 5 7" 



Lady Franklin, ro. m. to wagon . . L. I July 30, 1858 . 5 11 



THREE MILE HEATS. 



Dutchman, b. g. imder saddle . . . Beacon Course, IST. J. . August 1839 . 7 32^ 

 Ditto in harness .... Beacon Course, N. J. . July 1839 . . 7 42" 



FOUR MILES. 



Trustee, ch. g. in harness L. I June 13, 1849. 11 6 



Sally Green, br. m. 250 lb. wagon . . L. I May 6, 1850 . 13 56 



FIVE MILES. 



]\rary Warren, b. m. to road wagon . L. I July 5, 1854 . 14 42 



Lady Agnes, gr. m. in harness . . . L. I Nov. 25, 1850. 15 18 



TEN MILES. 



^1veTgh?65U;s.'\^'™\'^"^^^^ Oct. 20, 1849 . 28 SJ 



TWENTY MILES. 



Trustee, ell. g. to ord. trotting sulky, 1 ^ t -nt h ioco er> oei 



weighing 150 lbs., driverl45 lbs. .7 L-^ Nov. 11, 1853. 59 35^ 



Lady FultoD^ b. m. in harness . . . L. I July 12, 1855 . 59 65 



