30 THE VETERINARY DOCTOR. 
stinct. Now, a year ago last September I wrote you a letter inquiring about Jim Irving 
and your views about his thoroughbred pedigree, and you wrote me that his sire was a 
pacer and not a thoroughbred, which you have since proved to your satisfaction. Shortly 
afterward I was in Chicago, looking at Goldsmith Maid with a view of trying to make 
out her likeness to a thoroughbred, as others had, having in my mind at the time that. 
breeding gave a trotter his speed; but I failed. I could see no particular resemblance, 
but those hips, thighs and stifles set my mind inquiring what particular breed they be- 
longed to, for they looked decidedly familiar. At last I was persuaded and exclaimed 
that Goldsmnith Maid was a pacer in form, consequently in breeding, although I was 
aware that there was no known pacing blood in her. So firmly was I convinced that 
pacing blood gave the trotter his speed that I then referred to all the known instances. 
from Highland Maid down to the pacing sires and trotters of the present day. 1 wrote 
you a long letter, but destroyed it, not willing to trouble you before I had investigated 
further, a d not wishing to disturb the Messenger theory on which you had already 
written one book and were compiling another. I did investigate and found every circum- 
stance strengthened the proposition that the pacing element in a trotter gives him speed. 
* * * The question whether the world will be benefited by a knowledge of the 
fact that our grand trotters, our beautiful fast flyers, are after all descended from an 
insignificant scrubby pony, or worse, the long-despised pacer, will be answered by asking 
whether the world will be set right, or go on blindly breeding to horses and from mares. 
that have no more trot thana Newfoundland dog, simply because they are Hambletonians, 
Mambrinos, or thoroughbred.” 
In reply, Mr. Wallace wrote as follows, from Allegheny, Penn., under 
date March 16, 1874: 
“Your very interesting letter is before me, and it is a real sorrow that I have not 
tinae to consider it in detail. * * - It is a truth as firm as the everlasting 
hills that English Mambrino and his son Messenger did found a race of trotters, without 
any known assistance. It is a truth also, just as well established, that fast trotters have 
come from pacing ancestors. All the trotting speed of this country comes from one or 
the other of these sources, except possibly from the dam of Vermont Black Hawk. What- 
ever speed the Morgan possesses and imparts comes from the Canadian. I propose to 
make the Canadian a subject of careful investigation the very first leisure and opportunity 
that I have. He is worthy of great consideration in the problem, but he cannot displace 
Messenger as a fountain of trotting blood. Why not give your ideas to the public 
through the Sfzr7t? I assure you they are valuable.” 
Since that time Mr. Wallace endeavors to show that. his ideal trotting 
founder, Messenger, derived his faculty from the old English pacing breed. 
TROTTING BREEDS, ETC. 
The foundation is already laid for a breed of trotters; the Hambletonians 
being noted for general make-up, for substance and quality, as well as for 
positive trotting capacity; the Mambrinos for size and lasting endurance; 
the Clays for tenacity of trotting action; the Black Hawk and other Mor- 
gans for their general utility; and other strains for remote crosses. Other 
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