LIFE WITH THE TEOTTEES, 347 



ting horse, from the rubbing cloth to the judges' stand, as 

 he is one of the okl-time drivers who had to serve an 

 apprenticeship at the business wlien a boy, and one of the 

 self-made men of the turf. John Murphy is perhaps the 

 most versatile man connected with the trotting turf, 

 and in the matter of riding a trotter or i)acer is unquestion- 

 ably at the head of his profession. To begin with he was 

 the first man to ride a trotter a mile better than 2:20, hav- 

 ing j)erf onned that feat when a mere boy, the occasion being 

 the match made for Dexter to beat the 2:19| of Flora Tem- 

 ple, then the best on record, and Hiram AYoodruff, who 

 was training Dexter, paid Murphy the compliment of select- 

 ing him as the Jocky on this most important occasion. In 

 a j)revious chapter I have told how Murphy rode the pacer 

 Billy BoA^ce to his record of 2:14|, a mark that never was 

 beaten until last year. 



When trotters and running mates were in fashion a few 

 years ago, Murphy gave the bay gelding Frank, that is a 

 member of the Ethan Allen family, a mark of 2:08^ at that 

 way of going, and this was the best on record until Golden 

 came out vrith H. B. Winshij), another member of the same 

 family, and went the distance in 2:06. Murx)hy has ridden 

 and driven a great deal for Mr. Robert Bonner, and on two 

 occasions when I have seen him ride in a manner that made 

 a great imx)ression on me. The first trotting race I ever saw, 

 Murphy rode the winner. I did not at that time consider 

 myself much of a judge of trotters^ but there was one thing 

 I was sure of, that being that I would never see a better 

 rider than JMurphy, and on that point I have never changed 

 my mind. The last time I saAv him on a horse's back was a 

 few years ago when I fell in one bright morning with Mr. 

 Robert Bonner while he was on his way to Fleetwood. Mr. 

 Bonner said to me that if I \vould accomj)any him I v*'ould 

 see a man do something better than I had ever seen the 

 same thing done before. I accepted the invitation, and when 

 we arrived at Fleetwood Mr. Bonner asked Murphy to put 

 the saddle on his mare Pocahontas and ride her a slow, mile, 



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