224 LIFE WITH THE TROTTEKS. 



satisfied himself tliat it was more than that distance. When 

 the farmer returned he introduced himself and hitched up his 

 trotter to a vehicle that Colonel West told me he had never 

 seen the like of on any of the circuit tracks, and under these 

 conditions the sire of Guy showed him a half mile in 1:12. 

 People may say: "What of 1:12? I have colts that can beat 

 that." Yes, but a half mile under these conditions con- 

 vinced Colonel West, than whom no better judge of trotting- 

 horses ever lived, that Kentucky Prince was a trotter of the 

 first water, and he never for one moment lost his faith, and 

 lived long enough to have the pleasure of seeing the horse 

 demonstrate all that he had ever claimed for him. 



At the time of which Colonel West spoke there was not 

 much done in Bourbon County in the way of breeding trot- 

 ters. A man named WUlets, who lived in Bourbon County,, 

 came up to Edge Hill, Colonel West's farm, on business, 

 and while there told about a wonderful three-year-old colt 

 that was owned by a neighbor of his named Thomas. This 

 colt, he said, was a son of Clark Chief, and had shown half 

 a mile in 1:16. Colonel West, Avas ahvays on the look- 

 out for fast colts, and he and George Brasfield made the trip- 

 to above. They drove their own team to Paris, and there 

 hired another conveyance with which they made their way 

 across the country to Thomas's farm. Brasfield says the 

 place had the forlorn and deserted appearance described by 

 Colonel West. The track was in a cornfield and all that 

 could be seen of it was a space wide enough for a sulky to 

 travel upon. 



When the horse came back from the trip after the cows 

 he was pretty wet, having forded a creek only a little while 

 before, but when Thomas hitched him up, Brasfield 

 remarked at once how wonderfully handsome he was. 

 They had previously paced ofE the track and found the 

 length to be all right. The boy who was to do the driving 

 was rather excited and started across the field from the 

 stable at a good stiff i hree-minute gait. After he reached 

 the track he drove the horse to a break and this put 



