view raw text
GOSSIP OF THE 1X1 RF. The Lanark Silver Bell Scotlands oldest racing trophy, is said to have been given as a racing prize to the town of Lanark in 1160 by King William the Lion, fully 00 years before Englands most ancient trophy, the Newmarket Whip, came into existence. This Lanark Bell appears to have been run for until the Commonwealth, when, horseracing having been suppressed, it disappeared,. and was only discovered again as recently as 1852 in the Lanark Town Councils repository. Since then it has been regularly contested for, the race being held at the Lanark meeting in autumn, under Jockey Club rules. The bell, which has the burgh of Lanark arms engraved in front, stands fully four inches high, and is a fine specimen of what was once a favorite form of prize offered by many of the old Scottish burghs for the promotion of horse-racing. Of its antiquity there are many proofs. It bears, for instance, the trade-marks of an Edinburgh goldsmith who lived in the reign of James VI. of Scotland, afterwards James I. of England; while besides there is engraved upon it a peculiar scroll, which antiquarians hold to be the manufacturers mark, confirming the tradition, therefore, that the bell was founded by King William. At one time it was the custom to attach shields bearing the names of the winners to the bell, but these are now suspended to the pedestal upon which the boll rests. Of these shields only one is of a date prior to 1852; and this one is another proof of the antiquity of the bell, as it bears the following odd inscription : "Vin be me, Sir Jonhe Hamilton, of Trabroon, 1629." The demands for stable room at Saratoga have been so great that the management have found it i necessary to provide 200 additional stalls, which are now in course of construction. This will give stable room for 1,600 horses at the track, and it is bolieved that there will be horses to fill them all, The track is now in splendid condition and 150 horses now quartered there are taking their work regularly. Requests from, the west are mainly responsible for the increased stable room, and there will be more western horses at Saratoga this season than ever before.
