THE FRENCH STORY RESTJMED 217 



is said that M. Rigot owned or controlled more good 

 Percheron mares in his day than any other dozen 

 men in the district. Many of the best horses Mr. 

 Dunham had from Ernest Perriot in the earlier days 

 were from these Rigot mares. Edmond Perriot at- 

 tained the top-most round of success, and during 

 the Paris Exposition year, 1900, sold $100,000 worth 

 of horses to America for cash. His reminiscences of 

 the American trade will therefore be of interest in 

 this connection: 



"One of my earliest recollections is that of see- 

 ing Mark W. Dunham, the father of the present "W. 

 S. Dunham, who comes over here to buy every year. 

 That was long before the stud book was known here, 

 when horses could be shipped to America without 

 pedigree. Mr. Dunham came here for 20 years, 

 buying from 100 to 150 head annually. He was 

 a keen judge and only wanted the best, for which 

 he was willing to pay a good price. His earliest 

 competitor in buying that I recollect was Mr. Dil- 

 lon, who was also an excellent judge of a horse, but 

 who was getting on in years before he came out to 

 the Perche and did not continue very long. The 

 EUwoods took his place and for long years the buy- 

 ing of mares and stallions in the Perche was prac- 

 tically monopolized by them and Mr. Dunham. Prom 

 the very beginning prices have been relatively high 

 for good breeding stock, and Mr. Dunham did not 

 hesitate, even in the early days, to go as high as 

 $3,000 and even $5,000 for the horse he wanted. 



"Gradually other importers came to swell the 

 field, and I remember when I was about 18 or 20 

 years old that my father and all his neighbors in 

 the Perche were selling all the good horses they 



