414 The American Thoroughbred 



zations combined, because it has elevated the 

 character of the sport and has brought to the 

 admiration of the American race-horse the best 

 class of people who live in the Lake and the 

 Mississippi River country. ^ 



The season of 1885, for some reason or other, 

 distincdy lacked brilliancy, and not a horse 

 cropped up to become a turf giant. The Sub- 

 urban, which was supposed to bring together the 

 best of the all-age division, was a poor race 

 indeed, and was won by an ordinary horse called 

 Pontiac. General Monroe was again started, but 

 it was evident that the old hero was not himself, 

 and it was not expected that he could win. 



Dew Drop made her bow as a two-year-old. 

 Though she ran admirably, she was not so much 

 better than Portland and other two-year-olds of 

 that season as to be called a champion. It was 

 the season in which we first had substantial hear- 

 ing of Volante, the Grinstead colt in E. J. Bald- 

 win's stable. He won the American Derby, 

 carrying 123 pounds, and beat Favor, Trouba- 

 dour (then owned by Milton Young,) AltaJ; and 

 others. Volante came along to be a good horse 

 for us. Hidalgo, the black Spaniard from Cali- 

 fornia, came east to show us a three-year-old 



