Ill 



same thing-, and if they had persisted Mr. Hess would have 

 sent for a policeman. 



That night *' Riley " Grannan, the penniless Lexington 

 country boy, slept with the saloon keeper. The next morn- 

 ing they went around to the Turf Exchange, the pool room 

 of the town, and saw the entries for the foreign races. Gran- 

 nan made notes of them, and in the afternoon they went 

 back, 



" What about this first race, boy ?'' asked Hess. 



" Play this one," said Grannan, " and put about $ioo on 

 him." 



He pointed out a long shot. Hess hesitated, but he put 

 a $ro bill down. The odds were long and no one thought the 

 animal had a chance. He won, and the capital of the 

 saloon keeper was added materially to. He wanted the 

 young fellow to go and get a drink with him on the strength 

 of their victory, and this is what Grannan said, as told the 

 writer by Mr. Hess himself: 



" I thank you, Mr. Hess, but a man who has any busi- 

 ness to attend to has no business drinking. I need all the 

 nerve I can muster, and drinking will injure it. As you 

 have been accustomed to taking a drink occasionally, you do 

 it, but I want nothing. I will figure out the next race for 

 you." 



He went to work on the matter, and when they left the 

 pool room that evening they had won six races and not 

 lost a bet. 



The next day was a repetition of the first, Grannan re- 

 fusing to take a cent of the winnings. 



" What do you want?'' said Hess finally. 



" I am after $700," said Grannan. 



"Here it is," said Hess. "What are you going to do 

 with it?" 



•' Go to California and make a book on the races with 

 it," said the Lexington rustic. 



" Go on," said Hess, knowing his money was in the 

 hands of an honest man. 



Grannan went away and spent the winter. When he 

 returned he divided $42,000 with Mr. Hess, making it share 

 and share alike. Then he went back to the Biuegrass cap- 

 ital, the place the Kentuckians are wont to say with pardon- 



