LIFE WITH THE TROTTEES. 21 



by the name of Jolm Suyclam. He was what you would 

 call a country horseman ; at one time had an hiterest in a 

 stage line and lived in Kingston, N. Y. Through the win- 

 ter I had been telling Mr. Suydam of my hopes and pros- 

 pects, and he said he had two friends who lived in Columbia 

 County on the Hudson River, and that they had a farm and 

 track, and he thought they would like to make arrange- 

 ments with me to go there and train some colts they had. 

 He also said he had a friend of the name of Lasher, a hotel 

 keejDer, who had a horse called Black Doctor that could trot 

 a mile in 2:50. Through his influence I was given the posi- 

 tion, and Black Doctor was the first horse I ever had to 

 train under my own management ; also the first horse I ev^er 

 drove in a race. He was a handsome black gelding, about 

 fifteen and a half hands high. He was a good actor and 

 breaker. I staii:ed in to take care of him myself, as well as 

 to train him, rightly arguing that I could not afford to hire 

 too much heli3, and thinking that Avith the experience I had 

 I ought to be able to rub him as well as any man I could hire. 

 I soon found that the Doctor could trot a mile in about 2:40, 

 and you may be sure that I keiDt that to myself, and my 

 first move was to enter him in a race where he would not 

 have to go better than about three minutes. Then i sent 

 word to the owner, and he came over the day of the race, 

 bet what money he could that the horse would win, and 

 when the bell tai^ped I went out with my war paint on to 

 make the best fight I could for the money, and at the same 

 time to make my bow to the public as a professional trainer 

 and driver. 



The track Avas laid out on a man's farm, without any 

 fence or grand stand, and there was only a little i3latform 

 built for the judges tq stand on. There was no i^oolselling, 

 everybody betting his money out of hand, and probably 

 five hundred people were on hand to witness the contest. 

 There were no four-in-hand drags there, no band of music 

 playing French operas or German symx^honies, no beautiful 

 club house with its balconies filled with pretty women, 



