254 LIFE WITH THE TEOTTEES. 



invariable rule lie had was that when he found a chicken 

 that was an extraordinary fighter he always bred the own 

 brother, and never the chicken himself, and in explanation 

 told me he was sure that when a chicken had gone through 

 a severe i:)rocess of training and then had the strain of a 

 severe battle with the steels it would leave his whole system 

 in a weakened condition and he would not be as liable to 

 transmit to his descendants the qualities necessary to make 

 them successful as would an own brother to him that had 

 not gone through such a severe j)reparation. In talking 

 with Colonel West about Dictator before that horse had made 

 his reputation, I told him what my friend had said. It 

 seemed to strike him very forcibly, and as I was always a 

 great admirer of Dexter I told the Colonel that I considered 

 him the greatest race-horse I had ever ^een and gave him 

 my reasons for thinking so, which were that Dexter had 

 beaten every horse of his day every race that horses had 

 trotted from one to three miles, in harness, to wagon, under 

 saddle. He had also beaten every other horse's time, and 

 long before we had the developments in the way of tracks, 

 harness, sulkies, boots, etc., that we now have, and in the 

 hands of a mere boy, Budd Doble, showed his ability .to 

 trot a mile in 2:15 in public. Taking into consideration all 

 those facts. Dexter was certainly a wonderful horse. Dicta- 

 tor, I think, is a good example of the success of the theory 

 my old friend claimed was the proper one. If this is so 

 Clingstone II must certainly be a success in the stud, he 

 being an own brother to a horse that has proved by j)ublic 

 performance that he is entitled to be called first class in any 

 com^Dany. Mr. Gordon has always shown the greatest con- 

 fidence in Clingstone' s ability. Having made races for him 

 at different times when, from want of condition and other 

 things he had him overmatched, Clingstone has always 

 repaid his confidence by winning when it looked like a 

 forlorn hope. As an employer Mr. Gordon is kind and just. 

 In some of what I consider the star performances of my 

 life I have been in connection with his stable. Whatever 



