MAY QUEEN. 37 



A short time before the war Turner happened to be 

 in Buffalo with his horses. Hearing of a meeting at 

 Homer, a little hamlet, or rather a hotel, blacksmith 

 shop, store and race track about three miles from St. 

 Catherines, Ontario, he decided to invade Canada with 

 May Queen and a green horse which he had picked up 

 for a trifle. When Turner and his horses arrived in 

 St. Catherines, he found that if he wanted to go to 

 Homer he would have to walk. The road, after cross- 

 ing the Welland Canal, was sandy with considerable 

 fine gravel in it. This annoyed him, as he was wear- 

 ing a pair of patent leather shoes which he had 

 purchased in Buffalo, so he pulled them off and 

 trudged on to Homer on nature's sandals. The fol- 

 lowing morning when Turner tried to get his shoes on 

 he found that they were too small. His feet had 

 swollen, and nothing remained for him to do but to 

 travel to St. Catherines for another pair or go bare- 

 footed. He chose the latter and won a race with May 

 Queen and two with the green horse in that make-up. 

 Tom Brown, the party giving the meeting, wanted to 

 buy the green horse before he started, as Tow Boy 

 was getting to be a back number. Turner's price was 

 $400. The old man hesitated, but after the horse had 

 won his races paid $600 in silver. With it and the 

 purse winnings in a bag which was tied to May 

 Queen's sulky, Turner and his mare turned their backs 

 on Homer forever. 



When May Queen returned to Philadelphia she 

 had speed enough to defeat all but three or four of the 

 best trotters on Long Island and her owner was not 

 very anxious to meet them, as in those days the earn- 

 ing capacity of the trotter depended largely upon his 



