THE POOL SELLERS. 277 



A little bit of cotemporaneous history will cast some light on the 

 above report. Mr. Thorne having taken an active part in securing 

 the passage by the legislature of New York, of the law prohibiting 

 pool selling, he thereby incurred the hostility of all that fraternity 

 for himself and his horse, and there was a combined effort to defeat 

 the horse — a combination that greatly influenced the reports of the 

 race and the incidents attending the same. 



It is stated in the foregoing report that there was a combination to 

 score Thorndale to death, and that they scored seventeen times before 

 getting the word for the third heat. The true number scored was 

 twenty-six times before the word was given. 



It is also perfectly clear that Thorndale won the false heat by six 

 lengths, in 3:26^, notwithstanding which the judges declared it no 

 heat, in consequence of the misconduct of the driver of Nil Desperan- 

 dum; that Doble was not in the wrong, is shown by the fact that he 

 was not even reprimanded or censured for dropping into the open 

 gap, which was his duty and his right. As it stands, Thorndale has a 

 record of 2:23^, and ten heats in 2:30 or better; while it is also 

 clear that he is entitled to the record of another in 2:26^, in the face 

 of a combination to secure his defeat of a most formidable character. 



It will be observed that the time made at the Centennial was not 

 equal to 2:30. It is well known, perhaps, to many that owing to bad 

 weather and other causes, fast time was not made in any of the races 

 at the Centennial meeting. There were originally thirty-five entries 

 for this race, but when the day came for the trial only two horses, 

 Nil Desperandum and Robert Fulton, appeared against Thorndale, and 

 the drivers or managers of these refused to start unless Mr. Doble 

 would agree not to distance them — hence the slow time. 



His racing career is not probably over yet. He is now understood 

 to be ready to carry the flag of his family and contend for supremiicy 

 in the stallion trot for 1878. 



When he shall have closed his career on the turf he will return to 

 the stud, carrying laurels that will do honor alike to his owner and to 

 the lines of blood which he represents, and when the three lines of 

 Duroe, Bellfounder and Messenger shall produce other as good or 

 better and greater trotting stallions, it will be a further proof of the 

 very high estimate I have in these pages placed on that grand com- 

 bination. 



His colts are mostly too young to enter the lists for fast work, but 

 from the company in which he is found at present he will be likely to 



