21 8 THE world's CHAMPION 



he was ready for carrying out the intention of Nature and 

 he went at it in splendid style. 



In this connection it is well worth while to tell the story 

 which Charles (''Doc") Tanner loves so well to tell on him- 

 self. To fully understand its import one must remember 

 that "Billy" Andrews appeared to have set his heart on 

 making a trotter of Lee Axworthy and the mental torture 

 through which he suffered was not suspected at the time, nor 

 will some of the inside history of the matter ever be dis- 

 closed because it is nobody's business. Be that as it may, 

 Tanner took a great interest in everything connected with the 

 winter training operations at Thomasville and he had, with 

 his keen eye, discovered that Andrews had a tough problem 

 not only but that he had evidently made up his mind that he 

 would solve it or die in the attempt. 



One day, it was about the middle of March, Tanner took 

 "Billy" to one side, led him to a secluded spot back of the 

 barn where no other ears could catch a word and said to 

 him : 



"Don't take these fellows' money for training a thing 

 like that; he is nothing but a piece of meat; put a halter on 

 him, hand it to the first black man that comes along and tell 

 him to lead him as far away as he can go and keep him." 



History does not record what Andrews said in reply but 

 it does bear in plain words the fact that inside of a very 

 few days the "piece of meat" set his head and went to trot- 

 ting and it further records that what he finally did was far 

 more and far greater than any other stallion ever did. 



He took a record of 2:08 in his first race, which was 

 as a three-year-old, and he never needed any racing educa- 

 tion. But, great doer and hearty feeder as he was, he had 

 some periods of ailing that, while never particularly ser- 

 ious, did cause a heap of anxiety and sometimes required 

 patient treatment. One of the anxious hours was at North 

 Randall when he warmed up for the first race of his four- 

 year-old career and suddenly went lame behind, unable to 

 put one hind foot to the ground. Mr. Andrews tried to draw 

 him and went to the judges — for the race had been called — 

 and made his request. Under the rules he was required to 



