EARLY RACES. 131 



Long prior to this time, however, the improvement of the 

 breed of horses had created much interest in that State, and as 



early as 1764 and 1765 two celebrated horses were imported 



Wildair, by Cade, and Lath, by Shepherd's Crab— by Col. De- 

 lancy, of King's Bridge, who also imported the Cub mare, dam of 

 Mr. Gibson's Cub mare, killed on the course at Lancaster. Both 

 Wildair and Lath greatly distinguished themselves as sires, the 

 former was esteemed so valuable, that he was re-imported to 

 England. Another horse, Sloven, said to be by Cub, is stated 

 by Skinner and by Edgar, on the faith of a pedigree signed 

 Jacob Adlie, to have been imported also into New York in 

 about 1764 ; he is not, however, to be found in the British stud- 

 book, Weatherby's ; and I am not aware that any of the greater 

 champions of the American turf trace their descent to Sloven. 



Li ;N'orth and South Carolina racing commenced with spirit, 

 second, if second, only to the date of its commencement in Vir- 

 ginia and Maryland. Flimnap, Sweeper and Toby, all horses 

 held in high estimation at the time, were imported between the 

 years 1760 and 1770 ; the former a grandson on both sides of 

 the Godolphin Arabian, and both the others tracing to the same 

 great progenitor, and to other ancestors scarcely of inferior note ; 

 the last named was imported by Col. Alston, of racing celebrity 

 in North Carolina. 



Into Pennsylvania, which State lias never shone particularly 

 on the racing turf, were brought two horses, Gray Northumber- 

 land, also called L-ish Gray, said to have been bred by Lord 

 Mazarine, and to have been a racer in high form, supposed 

 imported by Mr. Crow, and, about the same time. Old England, 

 pedigree also unknown, but supposed begot by Old England, 

 son of the Godolphin Arabian. 



To these must be given the credit of running one of the old- 

 est great American time races on record, so long ago as 1767, 

 against two other horses, one of whom, Selim, it is not easy to 

 identify, on account of there aiDpearing to have been three of 

 the same name, covering nearly at the same time. I presume 

 he was the son of the imported horse Selim, by Othello, grand- 

 dam the large Hartley mare, described at page 55 of Edgar's 

 stud-book, as imported in his mother's belly in 1753 ; this date 



