(50 THE TJROTTING-IIORSE OT*' AMEHICA. 



the strong preparation necessary to the accomplishment of 

 those feats. 



It does not follow, however, that a subsequent failure 

 of a horse to carry out his early promise resulted from 

 the fact that he was trained at an early age. These colta 

 -ire liable to the vicissitudes which attend other horses; and, 

 therefore, they may go amiss in a mamer which in nowise 

 depends on their early work. Still, th<^re is a presumption 

 where a fast colt gives out at a time of life when he ought 

 to improve, that he had too much work for his stamina at 

 three or four years old ; and, with one of much promise at 

 tliree, I should decline to match him, unless I was convinced 

 that I had a tolerably easy thing. It is not the fast trotting 

 that will do the mischief, but the amount of work needful 

 to put the youngster in fix for a repeating race. Yet it is 

 well known that some colts and fillies who did great things 

 in 2:)ublic at three and four years old have since turned out 

 good horses. 



It will have been gathered from what I have said hereto- 

 fore, that my system contemplates the development of much 

 speed without much work. Some may say that this is 

 impossible ; but my experience is that it is quite practicable, 

 and a great deal more likely to be followed by the result 

 lesired, than keeping the colt continually hamme^-ing at all 

 le knows. The system which I have laid down heretofore 

 for the management of the two-year-old is still to be fol- 

 lowed in its general principles when he is three, with such 

 modifications as his increase of age justifies. It will be 

 much better to err on the side of a little indulgence, than 

 to run the risk of knocking him oft* his legs and so over- 

 board, by too much work. The first race that I remembc^r 

 between three-year-old trotters was some tliirty-four years 

 igo. It took phvce on the Hunting-Park Course, Philadel- 

 phia and tliere were three engaged. Peter Whelan had 

 Gij^s}', George Woodruff had a gray filly that I looked 

 niter, and there was another one. Gipsy won it in two 



