LIFE WITH THE TEOTTEES. 399 



as well as they imagine he ought to in his work after the 

 trouble they have taken to time him, they will be more than 

 likely to conclude they had liim overrated and will not 

 take as much pains to watch him as they would if you had 

 not asked them to time him. If, on the contrary, you act 

 in a mysterious manner with your horse, they will be sure 

 to watch you all the closer. Never tell a man an untruth 

 about your horse or business in any way. If you are asked 

 any questions which you think you can not afford to give a 

 truthful answer to, tell the gentleman in a polite and pleas- 

 ant manner that you would be glad to give him a tip but on 

 this particular occasion for reasons which you can not 

 explain, you are in a position where you will be unable to 

 furnish the information he desires and the chances are that 

 by so doing you wiU make the man your friend instead of 

 four enemy by telling him an untruth. 



Many a man has labored under a disadvantage from the 

 simple fact of his not being a good talker. Oftentimes points 

 arise in races where the manner in which the facts are placed 

 before the judges count for as much as it would in a lawyer 

 making a plea before a judge and jury. I once had an 

 acquaintance of the name of John Hornbeck, and with cer- 

 tain classes of horses in training and driving he was an 

 expert, and the simple fact of his being unable to express 

 hiniself in proper language, I am sure often worked to his 

 disadvantage. The smartest lawyer in the world would not 

 do as well before a jury were he unable to exj)ress himself 

 in a pleasant and intelligent manner as another man with 

 less ability, who had more of the Daniel O'Connell style 

 about him. Never feel that because you are a beginner that 

 you will never make a reputation for yourself equal to that 

 of Hiram Woodruff or Budd Doble. Start out with the 

 determination of not only making a reputation equal to 

 theirs but of excelling it, and if you are born with the same 

 natural ability that they had, it ought to be an easy matter 

 for you to excel them from the fact of you having their 

 experience to study from, something that I think of very 



