ii4 THE MORGAN HORSE 



who had hired him before. He seems to have had him as early as 

 1 80 1. Mr. Evans was a poor man with a large family and was a great 

 worker. In addition to the work on his own place, he was- constantly 

 undertaking jobs for his neighbors, such as building fence, hauling 

 logs and clearing land. This horse was his only team, and his work 

 was very severe. According to Mr. Linsley, Evans kept the horse 

 till 1804, when he was sued for debt, and Col. John Goss of Randolph 

 became his bail, took the horse for security, and finally paid the debt 

 and kept him. Col. John Goss, not being much of a horseman, took 

 the horse to his brother, David Goss of St. Johnsbury (who was 

 quite a horseman), to be kept for a stock horse. After David had 

 kept him for a year, he was so much pleased with him that he ex- 

 changed a fine mare with his brother for him, adding cash or other 

 property. That he stood in St. Johnsbury, in 1805 and 1809, is shown 

 by the advertisement of Weasel (see Weasel, Fenton Horse), and Mr. 

 Linsley is doubtless accurate in stating that David Goss kept him 

 seven years, or until 181 1, and that the Sherman and Hawkins horses 

 were sired by him during this period. But he was sent back to Ran- 

 dolph and kept by John Goss the season of 1807, as appears by this 

 advertisement in the ''Randolph Weekly Wanderer" from May 4 to 

 June 15, 1807 : 



"The Morgan horse will stand for covering this season at the 

 stable of John Goss in Randolph. 



Randolph, May 4, 1807." 



And John Goss visited Claremont, New Hampshire, that season, 

 as appears by the statement of Charles M. Lamb, a very reliable law- 

 yer, late of South Royalton, Vermont, born in 1803. The statement 

 was taken by A. W. Thomson and published in his article in the 

 "Turf, Field and Farm", in 1884. This statement and the letter fol- 

 lowing serve to fix several points in the history of Justin Morgan, 

 and add the testimony of another excellent witness that the origin of 

 the horse was then stated as here given : 



"Mr. Lamb says that he lived with Lemuel Ainsworth of Clare- 

 mont, New Hampshire, until sixteen ; that Mr. Ainsworth removed 

 from Randolph, Vermont, to Claremont in 1799; that he knew Justin 

 Morgan and his horse at Randolph; knew when Justin Morgan took 

 the horse to Randolph, and knew that he got him where he had lived. 

 In the summer of 1807, John Goss came to Claremont with the horse 

 Justin Morgan and stopped a few days with his (Mr. Goss') brother, 

 who lived about half a mile from Mr. Ainsworth's. The horse was 

 bred to some eight or ten mares at this time, and the colts were all 



