3 2 THE MORGAN HORSE 



an officer of the British army in the war of the Revolution, at King's 

 Bridge, near New York city, and ridden within the American lines 

 at White Plains. 



The narrative given, in 1842, in the "Albany Cultivator", as fur- 

 nished by John Morgan, states that the horse was captured by one 

 Smith, who sold him to Joseph Ward, a merchant of Hartford, for 

 three hundred dollars, that Ward kept the horse three or four years 

 for a saddle and carriage horse and traded him to Selah Norton, who 

 kept him for mares, while the hqrse lived. This narrative was pub- 

 lished long before any of the advertisements of the horse were dis- 

 covered, and was borne out in a remarkable manner by the adver- 

 tisements when they came to light. 



The earliest known advertisement offers the services of Beauti- 

 ful Bay at Landlord Miles Powell Jr.'s stable in Lanesboro, Berkshire 

 county, Massachusetts, in 1784, naming no owner. Terms, twenty 

 shillings the season. The next season (1785) he is advertised to 

 stand at Justin Morgan's stable in West Springfield, at the same price. 

 The next is the advertisement of John Morgan Jr., who advertises 

 "True Briton or Beautiful Bay" at his stables in Springfield, the sea- 

 son of 1788, at eighteen shillings the season; and the next season 

 (1789) John Morgan Jr., advertises him again at the same place, 

 at two dollars the season. The next is in 1791, when Selah Norton 

 advertises him at his stables in East Hartford, Connecticut, at fifteen 

 shillings the season, but soon inserts a notice that he will not do 

 service there. And again he is advertised to stand at the stable of 

 Landlord White, in South Hadley, Massachusetts, in 1793, at eight 

 shillings the season. 



In 1794 and 1795 Selah Norton advertised, at his stable in Ash- 

 field, Massachusetts, the full-blooded beautiful bay horse Traveler, 

 fifteen hands, saying : "He was sired by the famous old Traveler, im- 

 ported from Ireland. His dam was Col. De Lancey's imported 

 racer". Terms, fifteen to twenty-four shilling. (For advertisement, 

 see appendix). This is unquestionably True Briton under the name 

 of his sire. 



True Briton's pedigree is given by Selah Norton in the adver- 

 tisement of 1791 thus: "His sire was the imported horse Traveler, 

 owned in New Jersey. His dam, De Lancey's imported racer". 

 John Morgan, in the "Albany Cultivator" in 1842, says: "It was 

 also said at that time that he was sired by the noted imported horse 

 called Traveler, said to be kept in New Jersey". 



The following account of the capture of De Lancey's horse, is 

 from the "Connecticut Gazette" of October 31, 1780: 



