404 GOVERNOR SPRAGUE. 



state of the defect which it is necessary to correct. This involves the 

 study and knowledge of diverse physical and mental proportions 

 and conformation; a matter which is so exceedingly novel — almost 

 incomprehensible and passing strange to some of our very learned 

 ones, who have for a long time taught us horse lore, that the bare 

 proposition to ascertain by actual measure and comj^arison the relative 

 proportions of different animals is received as something that should 

 stagger and disturb the equilibrium of these staid and deeply philo- , 

 sophical minds. The real fact is, that there is nothing so dishonest as 

 sheer ignorance, and nothing so willfully ignorant as downright 

 dishonesty. 



I can, in this connection, appeal to the well-known fact that our 

 great trotters or trotting sires do not, as a general rule, come from the 

 long and brilliantly drawn out pedigrees. Take the stallions from some 

 distinguished sire, and from dams whose pedigrees are six to eight 

 generations deep — every link bringing out the name of some distm- 

 guished family or animal — and these are generally failures. But Ham- 

 bletonian, from the mare by Patriot, has produced the first trotting 

 sire of America; and from the mare by Bay Roman he produced the 

 renowned sire of Goldsmith Maid, Almont and Thorndale ; from 

 Princess he produced Haj^py Medium ; from Sally Feagles he pro- 

 duced Peacemaker. Amazonia produced Abdallah; and the dams of 

 Blackwood, Thomas Jeiferson, Smuggler, Dexter, Startle, Mambrino 

 Chief, Lady Thorn, Ericsson, Clark Chief, and the most of our great 

 trotters and trotting stallions were short-pedigree mares; while, as 

 before stated, the long-pedigreed stallions have not generally been 

 very successful — almost proving that one good mare is better than 

 half a dozen, and most clearly showing that one good mare is more 

 reliable than a long pedigree, and of far greater value. And in this 

 connection, let me ask the question, why is it that so many of our 

 short-pedigreed and part-bred mares that have no trotting crosses 

 whatever, have been so noted as the dams of great trotters from this 

 and that particular sire? 



Why is it that so mam'- trotting stallions of strong and positive 

 trotting quality have succeeded so well as sires with fair road mares 

 not noted for great trotting qualities, and generally coming from one 

 or two thoroughbred crosses — such, for example, as the dams of Lady 

 Thorn, Lula, May Queen, Music, Lady Stout, Lucy, Pilot Jr., .John 

 Morgan, Jenny, Woodford Mambi-ino, Brignoli, Jim Porter, JSIolsey, 

 Great Eastern, Grafton, and niany other superior trotters? To the 



