RECOLLECTIONS OF MEN AND HORSES 



such mares as Goldsmith Maid, Lady Thorn, and 

 Lucy, concealing ownership for a time and trotting 

 them against each other until I began to sharply criti- 

 cise him in print, and then there was a change for 

 the better. Fashion Stud Farm, near Trenton, N. J., 

 was perfectly appointed, and there were gay gather- 

 ings in the mansion. Mr. Smith bred performer to 

 performer, and the union of General Knox, Lady 

 Thorn, and Goldsmith Maid, and of Jay Gould and 

 Lucy furnish gratifying results. The soil of Fashion 

 Stud Farm was sandy, and it was difficult to grow 

 nutritious grass there. When convinced of this, Mr. 

 Smith transferred a large number of his best stal- 

 lions and brood mares to Walnut Grove Farm near 

 Lexington, Ky. Colonel R. P. Todhunter was in 

 charge of the Blue Grass division. I was in Mr. 

 Smith's New York office one morning, and he di- 

 rected my attention to a large railroad map which 

 hung on the wall: " You can see for yourself that 

 these lines are handicapped by non-productive coun- 

 try. Their value is forced. I am picking the sand 

 from the foundations and a crash is inevitable." I 

 think that Mr. Smith was sincere in what he said, but 

 the crash did not come. He was forced to retreat, 

 and his fortune was greatly impaired. He recovered 

 some of his losses, and placed one million dollars 

 in the name of his wife, as Mrs. Smith told me her- 

 self, to guard against another rainy day. The trust 

 was not faithfully observed, Mr. Smith borrowing 

 from the fund and losing it in speculation. The 



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