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AM PURDY was foaled June 21, 1866, in 

 Sonoma County, Gal. His sire was George M. 

 Patchcn Jr., often called California Patchen, 

 who was got by George M. Patchen, the great 

 son of Cassius M. Clay, his dam by Top-Bell-Founder, a 

 grandson of imp. Bell-Founder, the maternal grandsire of 

 Rysdyk's Haiiibletonian. The dam of Sam Purdy was a 

 mare called Whiskey Jane, by Illinois Medoc, dam of un- 

 known blood. Whiskey Jane went to California from 

 Illinois in 1852. Sam Purdy is a bright bay, stands just 

 sixteen hands, and weighs, in trotting condition, a little 

 over one thousand pounds. He has no white or black 

 points. His owner is C. W. Kellogg, Esq., of San Fran- 

 cisco. The stallion did a limited amount of service in the 

 stud before he was six years old, covering thirteen mares 

 and producing eleven colts. These colts are all in Califor- 

 nia, and have shown good speed, but are all young, as yet, 

 and the commendable practice of not training too young has 

 been followed with them. Sam Purdy 's reputation has 

 been made on the turf, rather than in the stud. He 

 showed signs of great speed at an early age, but was not 

 trained until he was seven years old, and trotted his first 

 race June 14, 1873, at Oakland, Cal., in which he beat a 

 good field of horses, and got a record of 2:30}. He after- 

 wards appeared, in the same year, in seven races, winning 

 five of them, and became famous on Sept. 15, that season, 

 by winning second, third and fourth heats, at Sacramento, 

 in 2:23} 2:23f2:23}. This race established both his 

 speed and staying powers, and gave him a stallion record 

 surpassed at that time by very few. He was now consider- 

 ed a formidable horse in the stallion championship race at 

 Boston, in 1874, and was entered for that event, but did 

 not come East. The only race he trotted in 1874 was 

 one in September, at Sacramento, in which he defeated 

 Occident and Blackbird, after the former had won two 

 heats, in 2:21 2:24}. Sam Purdy's best time was 2:25}. 

 Although he did not lower his record in this race, he 

 enhanced his reputation, as in it he defeated the great flyer 

 of the Pacific Slope, Occident. Last season he was let up 

 entirely, but this year he showed so much speed, having 

 been put into Doble's hands, that it was concluded to send 

 him East with the stable of that driver, and let him try 

 conclusions in the Septilateral Circuit with the trotters of 

 the 2:22 class. He was entered throughout the Circuit, 

 except at Rochester, and his very successful campaign 

 therein is now a matter of history. At Cleveland he was 

 not thought likely to win, having to encounter Badger : 

 Girl, Joe Brown, and Cozette, but he did so in fine style, j 

 making the first heat dead with Badger Girl, in 2:23}, and 

 winning the next three, in 2:25J 2:23} 2:25}. This 



race did not open the eyes of the betting men to his merits, 

 and when Buffalo was reached, the California stallion still 

 sold in the field. His victory here was a great triumph, 

 over Cozette, Prospero, Lady Turpin, and Badger Girl. 

 Cozette took the first heat, in 2:22}, and then Sam Purdy 

 won the next three, in 2:20} 2:22} 2:23}. His record 

 in the second heat has only been beaten by two stallions, 

 and equaled by one other. The Buffalo race was a very 

 trying one, and holly contested throughout, and the reso- 

 lute style of the winner, in his finishes, was much admired. 

 At Rochester, Sam Purdy was not entered, none of Doble's 

 stable going to that point. At Utica he met his first de- 

 feat. He encountered here some new competitors, notably 

 the mare Adelaide, who won the race in fine style, Sam 

 Purdy being obliged to content himself with fourth money. 

 The track was very bad for him at Utica, being covered 

 with pebbles, which were constantly striking him and irri- 

 tating him. At Poughkeepsie, Sam Purdy did not take 

 part in the contest, which was protracted to eight heats, 

 and would have been just the kind of a race for him. 

 The 2:22 race at Hartford was another protracted struggle. 

 On account of his former victories, Sain Purdy was made 

 the favorite. Bella won the first heat, Adelaide the second, 

 and Slow Go the third, and matters looked very squally for 

 the favorite. He managed, however, to wrest the fourth heat 

 from Slow Go. in 2:23, and took the fifth handily in 2:26}, 

 the party beginning to tire, but Adelaide, who had been 

 laid up in the fifth heat, won the sixth, in 2:27}, and the 

 finish was postponed on account of darkness. The next 

 morning, the four heat winners had a very close and excit- 

 ing struggle for victory, but Sam Purdy showed the stuff 

 that was in him by taking the lead early in the heat, never 

 being headed, and winning by a length, in 2:22|, the fastest 

 seventh heat ever trotted, and the race may be considered, 

 on the whole, the best one ever trotted by this stallion. 

 At Springfield he had to yield first place to Bella, who won 

 in three straight heats, Sam Purdy getting second money. 

 It will be seen that out of five races, in which he started, 

 pitted against famous flyers, he won three, took second 

 money in one and fourth money in one. This is a most 

 flattering record. Late in the Fall he returned to the 

 Pacific Slope, and on January 13, 1877, at the Bay District 

 Course, San Francisco, was defeated by the "glorious geld- 

 ing" Rarus to wagon in three straight heats in poor time. 

 He has shown great speed, steadiness, and endurance, his 

 fault being a lack of courage, rendering it necessary to use 

 the whip freely on him. This is attributed to the effect 

 upon him of the warm nights in this climate, as he never 

 showed a lack of courage in California. Spirit of the 

 Times. 



