1 1 6 Making the American Thoroughbred 



deuce showed that the horse was raced in the name of Col. George 

 Elliott, and that this gentleman owned one-half of him. After all 

 the evidence had been taken, Mr. Cryer was asked by the Judges if 

 he had anything to say in his defense. * Nothing,' was his reply, 

 ' except that I would like for you to let me know how I can arrange 

 it for my half of the horse to stand in the stable while Col. Elliott's 

 half is racing. The horse belongs to us jointly. He has the same 

 right to control him that I have, and he will race him and I cannot 

 keep him from it.' It is needless to say that the defense was com- 

 plete and an acquittal inevitable." 



The fortune inherited by Cryer was not squandered 

 on race horses; $50,000 of it went to discharge surety 

 obligations incurred for three friends. 



Cryer, like Saunders, was more orthodox in one 

 respect, at least than many Methodists of the present 

 day who taboo the race horse he was the father of 

 thirteen children. Nor were these two ministers any 

 the less pious because of their race-horse affiliations. 

 Cryer and Saunders "talked horse" till time for family 

 prayers and after rising from their knees "talked horse" 

 late into the night. Cryer was not able to attest his de- 

 votion to Methodism by founding a church; but his faith 

 he put of record in his Bible, in his hours of darkest 

 ~gioom, as one after the other of his little ones was laid 

 to rest. Which being so, who can doubt or criticise after 

 reading this Bible entry written and signed by one of 

 his sons: 



"Hardy M. Cryer Departed this life on the evening of the seventh 

 of February, 1846 He was a kind Father and Christian." 



The name of Thomas Foxhall, an adventurer from Eng- 

 land, got into the thoroughbred annals of Sumner County 

 by reason of the fact that he, a very young man, married the 

 aged widow of James Cryer. For mistreating her he had 

 the honor of being horsewhipped by her ministerial son. 



