92 LIFE WITH THE TEOTTEES. 



Mr. Covey said: "Mr. Conklin, I will give you $45,000 

 for that horse, and you need not take the harness from 

 him." I expected to hear my partner say, "I am going to 

 let you have the horse," but he answered " No," in about 

 the same tone of voice that he might have used had he been 

 offered a respectable price for a barrel of flour. When Mr. 

 Covey left us, Mr. Conklin asked me how well I thought I 

 could drive Rarus a mile if I sent him for all he was worth. 

 I told him I thought about 2:12, and asked him if he did 

 not think he had better take the $45,000. He said, no; 

 that Rarus could earn that much money, and that he thought 

 he would be able to sell him for that price at almost any 

 time, all of which became history afterward. I afterward 

 learned that Mr. Covey made the offer for a wealthy citizen 

 of San Francisco, who was anxious to own the best horse in 

 the world. 



After I got my horse in condition Mr. Doble and myself 

 started out to trot a few races with the Maid and Rarus, 

 it being now the latter part of March. These races, by 

 the way, were advertised as exhibition purses, it being 

 announced on each occasion that there would be no pool- 

 selling, and that Goldsmith Maid would try to beat her 

 record. The reason why we advertised it in that manner 

 was that I did not think that Rarus was in order to beat the 

 Maid, and I did not want to go out and tear him to pieces 

 against such a mare as I knew she was. I never deceived 

 anybody in any way with regard to my tr_}ing to beat the 

 Maid with Rarus, and no one ever expected when thej' paid 

 their dollar at the gate that I would. The reason I make 

 this explanation is, that a race came off afterward about 

 which there was a great deal of newspaper criticism, and 

 which I will explain when the proper time arrives. At San 

 Jose, on the 31st of March, we trotted the first of these 

 races, the Maid winning in straight heats, going the fastest 

 mile in 2:16|. Nearly a month later, on April 28, we 

 took the horses to Los Angeles to give another exhibition. 

 Budd was taken sick, and was not able to leave his bed. 



