32 EVERY MAN HIS OWN TRAINER. 



beat her easy in 2:21^. Then it was amusing to hear the 

 arguments between the old man Wilson and his son as they 

 laid on the grass in the shade of a tree. The old man would 

 say, "If you had done as I wanted to, we would have plenty 

 of money for this race." The son would respond in about 

 the same words, and I don't know but they are quarreling yet 

 over it ; but that did not get their money back. 



I will give you an example of conditioning these two 

 horses, as they were both of different temperaments and re- 

 quired different treatment. Great Eastern was delicate and a 

 light feeder, although he was so large a horse. He would not 

 eat more than ten or twelve quarts of oats a day and a little 

 wheat or corn, and not more than one pint of that. He re- 

 quired but little work as he always had his speed. I had my 

 man jog him on the road to wagon five or six miles a day and 

 not faster than a four or five mile an hour gait, rarely starting 

 the sweat on him in his work. I gave him plenty of grass 

 each day, except the days I was going to speed him. That 

 was twice a week. Tuesday was the first day as I never make 

 it a practice to work ahorse on Sunday. That day he was 

 idle. Monday he would get his road work, Tuesday I gave him 

 a mile and repeat, a heat in 2:40, another in 2:o5. On Friday 

 he would get three or four heats, if sharp and strong, four, if 

 not, only three, commencing at 2:40, next heat 2:35 ; if only 

 three heats that day^the third heat would be 2:27 or 2:28, not 

 any faster. If I was giving him four heats the third would be 

 2:32, fourth heat 2:27 or 2:28. Then at night I would give 

 him a mash and wash- his logs and feet with nice luke-warm 

 water, pack his feet with clay, spoken of before, and also give 

 him all the good timothy hay he could cat. I never put a 

 muzzle on or had a sweat hood on him but once while I had 

 him. This was a horse that sort of conditioned himself. v\s 

 I said, he always hatl his speed and only required work enough 

 to keep up his muscle. If he was-worked stiff and given fast 

 miles he would lose his flesh and appetite and be no good. 

 He always wanted to feel well to trot. I used to tell Tom 



