336 TRAINING THE TROTTING HORSE. 



Though in the second and third generations we find many descend- 

 ants of Messenger noted as trotters in their time, and figuring fre- 

 quently in the trotting genealogies of our day, it is incompatible with 

 the purposes and extent of this article to consider any but the chief 

 lines — those upon which the place in history of Messenger's blood as 

 a source of the greatest trotting-families chiefly depend. His three 

 most noted sons were Winthrop Messenger, Bishop's Hambletonian 

 and Mambrino. 



Winthrop Messenger was taken to Maine in 1816, and was the 

 founder of that sterling race frequently spoken of as the Maine Mes- 

 sengers. He was a large, coarse horse, and was, I judge, very little 

 appreciated in his time. Among the best descendants was his son 

 Witherell Messenger, sire of Belle of Portland, 2:26. A daughter of 

 Witherell Messenger, mated with a son of his, produced the famous 

 Belle Strickland, 2:26. Six other daughters figure in the records as 

 the dams of trotters with records faster than 2:30. Fanny Pullen, 

 daughter of Winthrop Messenger, was a great trotter in her time, 

 and to imported Trustee she produced the famous Trustee that 

 trotted in 1848 twenty miles in 59:35^. He was the first horse to trot 

 twenty miles within the hour; to this day only six have done it, and 

 it is earnestly to be desired by every decent horseman that no horse 

 will ever again be subjected to this cruel exaction. 



Bishop's Hambletonian, originally called Hambletonian, was a bay 

 horse, foaled 1804, bred by General Coles, at Dosoris, Long Island, 

 and was by imported Messenger, out of Pheasant, by imported Shark. 

 He was a race-horse quite nearly first class, especially at long dis- 

 tances, being successful at four miles. He was the best of all Mes- 

 senger's progeny as a race-horse, if we except Miller's Damsel, the 

 dam of American Eclipse. As a sire of trotters and trotting-progeni- 

 tors he won distinction. One of the most gifted of early turf writers, 

 who wrote with singular severity of this horse, conceded that "he 

 got some excellent roadsters, good trotters," but probably in so 

 speaking of the race-horse the writer meant to be anything but 

 complimentary. 



Among the progeny of Bishop's Hambletonian, the most distin- 

 guished on the trotting-turf were the famous Whalebone, and 

 another early trotter of less note, Sir Peter. In 1830 and 1831 the 

 former ranked with the best of his day as a long distance trotter, and 

 has to his credit a performance of thirty-two miles in 1:58:05. Daugh- 

 ters of Bishop's Hambletonian produced Paul Fry and Topgallant, 



