Career of Famous Rider Recalled: Something of the Achievements of Tommy Burns, Who Has Now Taken Up Training, Daily Racing Form, 1910-09-25

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CAREER OF FAMOUS RIDER RECALLED. Something of the Achievements of Tommy Burns, Who Has Now Taken Up Training. Louisville. Ky., SeptemlKT 24.— The achievements of jockev Thomas 11. Burns, who figured as Americas premier rider in 1808 and 1800, and who for several years thereafter continued to hold high rank among American jockeys, after which he repeated his American successes abroad, are still fresh in the minds of turf patrons. And Tommy Burns, no heavier, now than when he left the saddle last year, not locking a dav older than when be was the idol Of race track followers a few years ago, is going to try to •"come back" at the fall race meeting which opens at Churchill Downs next Saturday. Prosperous now, because he is a wise fellow and always has been frugal. Tommy is hero with two good racers. In a bank in New York, his close friends say. Tommy las a rich nest egg. big enough to drive from his door any prowling wolf wailing to take advantage of adversity. Besides Tommy Is happily married. He has a son. Thomas Irving limns. who will be five years old on Novemlvor 117 of this year, and this lad is the grandson of James McLaughlin, himself a great rider in the long ago. To recall the successful "areer of Tommy Burns on t!e turf is to bring to mind such riders as Arthur Redfern. Oeorge M. Odom. Jay Ranch. Harry Cochran. John Pullman. Lucien Lyne. Jack Martin. Winnie OConnor. Henry McCue, Nash Turner. J. Wink field. Sam Doggett and Danny Matter. When Burns was at his best his fellow jockeys with whom he had to compete were the equals of any of the star riders of other times. For, to l e added to the list as quoted. Burns hooked up against the celebrated barley Thorpe, two great colored riders, Tony Hamilton and Willie Simms, and the best of them all. Tod Sloan. As long ago as 1003 Burns, then a mi get of midgets, was riding at St. Louis -under the tutelage of Ton Hums and Dave Waldo. In 1S! S and 1800 he earned the proud position of leading jockey of the I Hited States in numlier of winning mounts, and ranked among tin- leading riders of the country in other years as well. When Burns was at the zenith of his fame no rider had anything on him. He started in riding at seyeuty-live jMiunds and won his first success at St. Paul in 1804 on Uncle Jim. owned by Deaf Tom" Hums, a well-known turf character of that period. Burns began to show his good form in IS.iO and 1SP7. lie was engaged by John W. Schorr, and Charley Lllison. since famed as a plunger, look him in hand. It was with Burns that Mr. Ellison made bhl fortune. The lxiys success brought to them many thousands of dollars. So successful was he on the Schorr racers that it became ihe talk of the track that the "two Is-st horses" Schorr owned were trainer Walker ami jockev Burns. It was u| on such performers as Macv, Meadowthorpo. Charley Christy. Cathedral. Presbyterian, Judith Campbell. Lady Schorr. Sea Robber, Algol, Thpeoaaker, Ordnung. Greenock and Ueber Karl that he won fame. For several seasons Burns was little known to metropolitan turf patrons for the reason that Mr. Sehon Mined his efforts to weslern courses. HOW ever, in 1000 Mr. Schorr took a whirl at the big tracks and the horsemen of New York ipiickly dis covered thai they bad more to fear from bis rider than from his racers. That astute horseman. John V.. Madden, forthwith sizid up Burns and was not long In persuading W. C. Whitney thai the Schorr rider was the one In" was looking for. In the winter of V.MM a deal was made whereby Burns entered the service of Mr. Whitney. He began riding for the Whitney stable in the spring of IMS. Without delay he won with Brae Girl in Ihe Juvenile Stakes at Morris Park. Henceforth Burns star dazzb-d. Burns remained with Whitney until that great turfman and capitalist died. Next he rbde for Oapt. S. S. Brown and biter for E. E. Smathera, In whose colors he rode the great McChes-ney. Grgnd Opera, and other cracks. Mr. Smathers ceased racing when McCbeaney brake down. Bums career began in 1803. Born in Canada, he was nicked up when hardly more than a child by bis first cousin. Tom Hums, who had the horses Cashier. Outcry. First Day. Blue Kyes and Milwaukee. Burns showed antitude fr.nn the beginning. His first Important victory was on Milwaukee in a race in Chicago at a mile and a quarter. This event was the Clark Stakes, at Harlem. He rode naSny winners prior to this ami at Roby. in ]S.i:;. in an owners handicap he finished second on Governor Porter, making Weight that day at exactly tilly live pounds. Right after that be rode at fifty three pounds, and he piloted Helen Wrenn first to the wire when he weighed barely sixty pounds. Bums developed rapidly. He was as quick as lightning at the post and as a front rider lie was a wonder, frequently he nosed out Toll Sloan. He often lid things least expected from him. but never Was he ac used of Iwdng dishonest. Bams sever was able to ride a winner in the Kentucky Derby. Twice be finished second. He was up on Lleher Karl when that horse was a 1 to :: shot over Plaudit. AH Tennessee went into mourning when Ueber Karl drew tile place in that great race. He n*M in the saddle when Lady Navarre Bntahed behind Sir Hnon in the Derby of 1900. But if Burns failed in the great Kentucky fixture ■ he established the fastest American time for a mile I and a half with Goodrich at. Washington Park, Chicago. The record is 2:301, and stands to this day. lie set another mark in Chicago when be rode Algol in the Wheeler Handicap, distance one mile and a quarter. The time was U:04. Algol was a 10 to 1 shot. Burns rode Algol in many handicaps and won many mile races with him in 1:40, with weight ranging from 120 to 129 pounds. The day Algol ran a . mile and a quarter in 2:04* the records established by Teuny and Salvator were smashed. In 1007 Burns rode in France and Germany, and ranked as the third l»est jockey in the former country. As chief rider for the Emperor of Germany he received from the kaiser 40.000 marks, or $.S.OO0. the most liberal salary ever paid by that ruler to a rider of hi.s racers. At the international meeting he won the Baden-Baden, worth 1910.sh,000. He won fining Hamburg prize and finished third in the Herman Derby, which was won by Willie Shaw. He won many races in Germany at two miles and a quarter and witli one horse captured ten straight races. Burns reappeared on the turf in this country in the Rammer of 1000. At Latonia lie rode Font home in front of the fleet Jeff Bernstein and up to that time Jeff Bernstein bad been invincible. Later on he rode at Fort Crie. In a jam Burns went down and sustained a broken collarbone. That settled it. Burns thought, and lie went home to New York. Now he feels as well as ever. He is at Churcbiil Downs wilb GluCOse, the five-year-old son of th-gohlsby. and a black eolt by Mac, Hie racer best loved by Bums. With Mac.v he won many races, some of them in sensational fashion. These horses Burns expects to ride at tin- Downs. In referring to his little son. Burns said: "This lad weighs thirty-two pounds. If blood tells. In- will be a rider. His grandfather won fame ahd I had considerable success myself, anil the boy;: uncle. Guy Burns, .is a good rider today. One day I showed the son Of Macv to my lioy and lie said: " Throw ma on his back. "I did so and he sal t. ere just as natural as could be. 1 said to him: "I rode that horses daddy and now my son rides his son." Few jockeys that have ridden in this country can duplicate or approach the record which Tommy Burns lias to his credit, as shown in the following tabulation of his saddle showing in America from the time that he first headed the list of American riders in ISPS down to date: Year. Mis. 1st. 2d. .Id. Tnp. P.C. 1888 07:: 277 21:. 149 334 .2S 1*90 i.oo4 27:: 17:: 266 332 .20 1900 SOS 138 1P7 .hi 330 .21 1901 717 190 151. 07 ::u .21 1!H 2 040 I".:: 110 77 320 -2l 1003 S2:: IS6 1:4 102 4::i .10 I1XI4 040 00 PHI !»S 9H .12 1005 545 74 114 70 .".:.7 .13 1908 17! 15 Ti IS 119 .US 1007 Rode in Prance and Germany. 1008 05 13 14 14 54 .14 1909 152 IP 2:: is !IL .VI Totals ...C,405 1,328 1.121 999 2,957 .20 Burns, at Ihe close of the racing season in Ken-tacky, will go to Juarez, Max., to race during the winter.


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Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800