19 



TARKE was bred by General T. J. Wells, the 

 former owner of Lecomte. He was foaled in 

 1855, and his sire was the four-niiler Wagner, 

 and his dam the famous Reel, the dam of Le- 

 comte and Prioress. He was a nicaly chestnut 

 horse, about fifteen hands three inches high, rather short- 

 bodied, but with plenty of depth of girth and capitally 

 arched loins. He ran very creditably at the winter meeting 

 of the Metairie Jockey Club in 1859, where, when not in 

 condition, he ran against La Variete, two-mile and four-mile 

 heats ; and, though beaten in both races by the mare, he so 

 pleased Mr. Ten Broeck, that he immediately purchased 

 him for $7,500, to add to his stable in England. May 

 12th, little over one month after landing in the "old coun- 

 try," carrying 124 Ibs , he started at the Newmarket First 

 Spring Meeting in a Handicap Sweepstakes of 15 sovereigns 

 each, and, not being acclimated, was unplaced. At Royal 

 Ascot, June 15th, carrying 115 Ibs., he ran fifth and last 

 for the Royal Stand Plate, 2 miles 174 yards. July 6th, 

 at Newmarket, carrying 11G Ibs., he was beaten twelve 

 lengths by the Duke of Bedford's Killigrew, 4 years, 119 

 Ibs., in a match for 100 sovereigns, over the Bunbury mile. 

 But he had now run himself into condition, and at Good- 

 wood, July 27th, carrying 105 Ibs., to the astonishment of 

 the betting public, he won the Goodwood Stakes by half a 

 length from Lifeboat, 4 years, 119 Ibs., and. Blue Jacket, 

 5 years, 118 Ibs., with fourteen others beaten off. Two 

 days afterwards, carrying as much weight as any horse of 

 his year in the race, with one exception, and giving weight 

 to the second horse, he won the Bentinck Memorial Plate 

 in a canter by six lengths. In this race America was 

 third with Prioress, and the Stars and Stripes suffered no 

 discredit from their champions that day. Starke's next race 

 was at York, August 18th, for the Ebor Handicap, 2 miles. 

 Thirteen ran, and, notwithstanding the fact that he carried 

 more weight than any horse of his year in the race, and 

 more weight for age than any of his competitors, he started 

 first favorite, but came in third ; Underhand and Arch- 

 duchess being before him. At Warwick, September 7th, 

 carrying 119 Ibs., he gained for Mr. Ten Broeck his first 

 cup trophy, the Warwick Cup, defeating easily Liveryman, 

 3 years, 79 Ibs., and Lifeboat, 4 years, 119 Ibs., considered 

 one of the best distance horses in England. At the New- 

 market First October Meeting, September 29, carrying 147 

 Ibs., he ran for a Royal Plate, three and a half miles, and 

 was beaten half a length by Independence, 3 years, 128 Ibs., 

 the rest of the field being beaten off. In the Cesarewitch, 

 he was unplaced, and on the Cambridgeshire day, he ran for 

 a 50 Plate, but was only fourth in a field of five, Zuyder 

 Zee, 5 years, 122 Ibs., winning. Starke made. his first 

 appearance, in 1860, at the Newmarket Craven Meeting, 

 April 11, in the Subscription Plate, a weight-for-age race, 

 five furlongs (140 yards), for which seven horses started, 

 and only obtained the third place, Gallus, by Chanticleer, 

 winning, with Cynricus second. At the Newmarket First 

 Spring Meeting, carrying 126 Ibs., in a handicap, 1 mile 2 

 furlongs 73 yards, he was second in a field of twelve. 

 The winner, Precursor, by Pyrrhus the First, 4 years old, 

 carrying 115 Ibs., while the third horse, Toucher, though 

 of the same age as Starke, only carried 110 libs. At 

 Goodwood, the scene of his last year's unexpected triumph, 

 in the Goodwood Cup, won by Sweetsauce, he was fourth ; 

 and on the next day he was pulled out again for the 



Queen's Plate, but was beaten by the three-year-old Crater, 

 by Orlando, to whom he was conceding 36 Ibs. At the 

 Newmarket Second October Meeting, he was defeated for 

 the whip by Mr. Merry's Special License, who had, at the 

 Spring Meeting, beaten Prioress for it. 



In 1861 he commenced badly, being unplaced in the 

 Great Metropolitan Handicap at Epsom, won by Parmesan, 

 since famous as the sire o the Derby winners, Favonius and 

 Cretnorne. He was now kept for the Goodwood Meeting, 

 and in the Stakes (which event he had won two years 

 before) he started a hot favorite. Eleven ran, and Umpire 

 made the running for Starke at his best pace for two miles, 

 when he was passed by Starke and Jingling Johnny, who 

 raced neck and neck to the distance, where Elcho, a three- 

 year-old by Rifleman, dashed past them both, and, after a 

 game struggle with Starke, won by half a length, Jingling 

 Johnny being third, the rest nowhere. Notwithstanding 

 this severe race, Starke was brought out the following day 

 for the Goodwood Cup. In this race Mr. Ten Broeck had 

 three horses engaged, Starke, Optimist, by Lexington, and 

 Wallace, an English horse. The Wizard, the winner of the 

 2000 guineas, and second in the Derby the year before, was 

 the favorite, with 5 to 2 against him. The mighty Derby 

 hero, Thormanby, was second favorite at 3 to 1, while 7 to 

 1 was freely offered against Starke, and 20 to 1 against his 

 stable companion, Wallace. The race is thus described in 

 the Illustrated London News : 



Betting : 5 to 2 against the Wizard, 3 to 1 against 

 Thormanby, 9 to 2 against Mon Etoile, 100 to 15 against 

 Doefoot, 7 to 1 against Starke, 20 to 1 against Optimist, 

 100 to 4 each against Royallieu and Lady Clifden. Wal- 

 lace made the running, Starke second, Royallieu third, 

 Wizard fourth, and Doefoot fifth ; Lady Clifden, Thorm- 

 anby, and Mon Etoile being the last three. They proceeded 

 in this order by the " ladies' lawn" towards the top end of 

 the course, when Wallace, whose rider fully obeyed his 

 strong-running orders, to make a greater pace than in the 

 Starke race of the day previously, increased his lead to 

 seven or eight lengths. When they again appeared in sight, 

 Wallace was still splitting away at the head of affairs, hut 

 with a sadly-diminished lead ; Starke second ; Wizard, the 

 northern hope, third ; and Optimist and Thormanby fol- 

 lowed next, Doefoot being close on their flanks. Wallace, 

 having fulfilled his required duty, shut up before the dis- 

 tance was reached. Wizard then took the lead. Starke 

 joined him at the half-distance, and a splendid race ensued 

 home between them. At the stand the couple were neck 

 and neck, but the Wizard, at the last moment, was " bested " 

 by Starke, who won a terrific and quickly-run race by a 

 head only. Optimist (who had been so judiciously steered 

 by Edwards as to be ready for any possible emergency) was 

 close in the wake of the two just named, and finished third, 

 but two lengths from the quarters of the Malton crack. 

 Thormanby, evidently overpowered with the weight, was 

 declining every stride he took towards the close, but finished 

 a moderate fourth. Mon Etoile, who was beaten thoroughly 

 a mile away from home, pulled up next, and then came 

 Doefoot. 



Starke followed up his victory by winning the Brighton 

 Stakes, August 7, "in a walk" by four lengths, beating 

 Blue Jacket and others. This was his last race ; in No- 

 vember, 1861, Mr. Ten Broeck sold him for $7000 to go to 

 Prussia, where he was put to the stud. 



