LIFE WITH THE TEOTTEKS, 171 



lacked the other qualities that go to make up a race horse, 

 was the gray gelding Sweetser. Whenever I hear his name 

 it brings to mind the time I sold him to my life-long friend 

 Capt. John De Mass of Detroit. When I bought Sweetser 

 I gave $2,500 of my own money for him, and while I owned 

 him gave him a record of 2:17 to wagon and 2:lo in harness, 

 but for all that I decided that he would not do for a race 

 horse. One day at Cleveland we were discussing the 

 qualities of the different horses, and Sweetser' s name was 

 mentioned. I said that I owned him, and that I would be 

 glad to sell him at a loss. De Mass asked how much of 

 a loss I would stand, and I told him I gave $2,500 and was 

 willing to lose $1,250. He said that if I split the balance 

 he would take the horse, meaning of course that he AA^uld 

 give me $625 for him. I told him that was a good ways 

 to fall, from $2,500 to $625, but I should let him have 

 Sweetser. He got his money out, paid me $500, and 

 said that he would give me the other $125 at the hotel. 

 I told him that he need not do that, I would bet him 

 $125 that he had cheated himself, give him thirty days to 

 figure, and let him decide it. I met De Mass a few days 

 afterward. He handed me the $125 and said he was glad 

 he did not accept my proiDosition to bet, as he had decided, 

 without Availing thirty days, that he would lose. As De 

 Mass is one of the men that never cry if they do not get the 

 best of everything, this horse trade never interfered with our 

 friendship. 



Gem, another pacer, that I had, was a handsome bay 

 mare by Tom Rolfe. The only remarkable thing that I can 

 think of about her was that she got a record of 2:13|, which 

 I gave her, and that she never won for me but one race, 

 and tried lo lose that one, the only reason that she did not 

 do so being that the other horses could act worse than she 

 could, one of her opponents getting distanced after beat- 

 ino' her two heats. 



12 



