A GREAT HORSE 



The meeting opened on September 4, and the day 

 marked the return of New York to the Grand Circuit 

 ranks. It was the day of days to the metropolitan 

 roadite and horse enthusiast ; the day when the $800,- 

 ooo Empire City Track, the finest in the world, opened 

 to the public, and a new lease of life should be guar- 

 anteed clean turf sport along the light harness line to 

 Greater New York. Words can scarce tell of -the mag- 

 nificent success the opening day was. A heavy thun- 

 der-storm Sunday night threatened to cause a post- 

 ponement, but Monday dawned clear as a bell, with 

 that crisp fall atmosphere which causes the blood to 

 fairly dance in one's veins. It was a drying wind, 

 which aided old Sol to prepare the upper layer of the 

 track for the various processes to which the veteran 

 Seth Griffin subjected it, and by eleven o'clock horses 

 were reeling off work-out miles around 2:10 over it. 

 A good-natured holiday crowd it was, with appetites 

 whetted for the races to follow. 



Nearly every person of prominence in the horse 

 world was present: David Bonner, the Nestor of 

 New York horsemen, was a conspicuous figure on the 

 club-house veranda. Col. Lawrence Kip was there, 

 and so was Gen. John H. Shultz. John Shepard, one 

 of the most loyal of the old-timers, came down from 

 Boston to add his presence to the great throng ; Cicero 

 J. Hamlin, the veteran breeder, was a guest at thfc 

 club house, and he found little comfort personally in 

 the day's racing, as he saw his leading stallion go 



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