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RACING HELD NECESSAKY ARMY OFFICERS EXPRESS KEEN CONCERN OVER DEPLETION OF THOROUGHBREDS. Representatives of Federal Government in Favor of Action That Will Lead to Resumption of Racing. New York, recomler 20. Following the recent report oC Major-General Wood deploring the depletion of i he thoorughbred stock In this country, other officials have expressed them-silvi" forcibly along the same lines. With all it is agreed that the only salvation of the thoroughbred is the protection and fostering of racing. The Evening Telegram of yesterday published a number or Interviews on the subject that are particularly pertinent and of vastly interesting importance in the present movement that is on foot to save the America n thoroughbred. licorge Rommel, chief of the animal hus bandry division of the bureau of animal industry. Agricultural Department, is quoted as having said: Eliminate the gambling element and the incentive to gambling which 5s so often a feature of a long drawn out, short distance race meeting, cut off an army of bookmakers and a horde of poolrooms and .1 running race, honestly run, can surely lie objected to by no one. Thoroughbred blood has been used as the means of improvement in the establishment of almost every breed of light horses in the world. The Trakenhnen, Oldenburg, East Frie--,ian and Hanoverian breeds in Germany: the hackney and hunters in England and Ireland: the standard bred and American saddle horses in the United Stales, all owe a debt to the thoroughbred of incalculable value. In the importation of the thoroughbred horse Messenger to the United .States was laid the foundation of what we now know as the standard bred horse; to the thoroughbred horse Denmark is now accorded the distinction of being designated the foundation sire of the American .addle horse." Major General Wood, following up his report to ConuTcss, said: "While 1 do not approve of the gambling features t of facing as formerly conducted in certain parts of Hie country, I do believe that racing can be conducted under proper restrictions in such a way as not to be demoralizing to the public, and at the same time keep up interest in horse breeding. The present situation is a most lamentable one. Entire studs of thoroughbreds are going out of the country, and all we seem to be holding on to is the draught horse strain. The effect of the present procedure, if carried mt. will be to eliminate very largely from the broe ing strains in this country the blood so necessary to make good cavalry horses. I hope that that portion of the public interested in horse breeding will take up the matter with a view to securing legislation necessary to prevent the wholesale removal of thoroughbred blood." .lames Wilson, Secretary of Agriculture, who is alive to the backwardness of the American army in suitable mounts, said: "The Department of Agriculture Is doing all in its power to aid the War Department in solving the remount problem. We have stations in Vermont, Virginia and Colorado handling the breeding problem, and the wants of the army are kept in mind as well as those of the farmers. While the army requires horses somewhat different from running and trotting horses, the strain of the latter in the animals used by " the army would be a most important factor. This strain, however, should be from thoroughbreds." The Agriculture Department at the last session of Congress offered a solution of the question, but it received no attention. It was proposed that about one hundred stallions should le purchased by a beard of three, composed of an ollicer of the army, an otlicer of the Department of Agriculture, and a practical horseman, whose knowledge of breeds, pedigree and markets and whose integrity could le relied upon. In selecting the stallions, suitability of the purpose and freedom from unsoundness likely to appear in progeny would, of course, be first considered and the stallions be old enough to have shown their worth as sires of the class of horses desired. . Major General Wood is in favor of some such pystein. He called attention to the minute attention paid to this subject by some of the European governments and expressed the hope that inllucritial horse breeders in the United States-would lend their assistance in obtaining legislation to put some systematic plan into operation. It is the opinion of army officers, in view of the ban on racing in this country, which is taking the suitable light-weight strain of thoroughbreds needed for military breeding out of the country, that the American people should be fully awakened to the great, danger threatening the arms of the United States if Congress continues to refuse the comparatively small appropriation desired to encourage proper horse breeding. The objection to an appropriation by Congress last session for this purpose was that breeders would not Ik; sufficiently interested to enter into agreements with the government. This argument was proven without foundation through the patriotic action of August Belmont, of New York, who presented the government with two of his best known stallions. Henry of Navarre and Octagon. Fortunately the Department of Agriculture had sufficient 1 unds and placed the animals at the command of farmers in the vicinity of Front Royal, Va. By the approval of the War Department, the price to be paid for the resulting foals at three years of age was Sinn. No difficulty whatever was experienced in getting farmers to breed their mares under these terms. About fifty mares were bred. The small numlcr wns due to the late arrival of the stallions. The interest of the Virginia farmers is keen and already fifty additional marcs have been offered for the season of 1012 and the services of more stallions can he easily utilized if more could be made available. Mai Henry T. Allen of the general staff, who has given the subject a life study, is quoted as say- ""The galloping horse, the thoroughbred, has heen developed by careful breeding and by racing trials than 150 The result is over a period of more years. today a horse of quality and substance, superior in certain respects to any equine animal that has ever existed. The Arabs or Eastern horses, are the progenitors of the present thoroughbreds, but as the latter have been a continual improvement in speed ami strength on the former, it would not now Iks wise to consider the Eastern horses as suitable sires lor the class of horses required by tho army. "All the lightweight horses, such as standard breds saddle breds, Morgans, and even coach horses, owe much of their superiority to the thoroughbred blood of their ancestors. The best types of the thoroughbreds would make superior cavalry Horses, but to obtain such in large quantities is not pos- 8 "If all our valuable studs be shipped abroad it is clear that instead of an improvement there will be n retrogression. That is the phase of the question that specially causes anxiety to the War Department. "For many years I have felt that the government would sooner or later be required to raise Its sires. Recent events are going to make that a necessity sooner. The War Department is keenly interested in the proposition of the Agricultural Department to have the Congress enact a law whereby valuable sires mav be placed throughout the country in suitable districts. P.y this means farmers and breeders would be able to secure the services of valuable animals at most reasonable rates. Horses that are truly lit for army purposes should also have much value as general utility animals both on the farm and in cities." Washington, D. C, December 20. Taking up the question of the danger of a national calamity in the shipment of thoroughbred horses abroad, as pointed out bv Mai.-Gen. Leonard Wood in a statement submitted to the Secretary of War, tho Southern Commercial Congress has become actively interested and announced today a program for the consideration of the whole subject of horse and mule breeding at the annual meeting of the congress. This meeting will be held at Nashville in April. The discussion will be directed by George M. Rommel, chief of animal husbandry, United States Department of Agriculture. Capt. C. II. Conrad, Jr., of tho army quartermasters department, in charge of the army remount deiKit, Front Royal. Va., will deliver an address oil "The South As a Source of Army Remounts." Gen. John 11. Castleman. the famous Kentucky horseman, of Louisville, will speak on "The American Saddle Horse." J. L. Jones, of Columbia, Tenn.. has been assigned the subject of "Tho Mule Breeding. Feeding, Management and Market Requirements." E. I!. White, of Leeslnirg, Va., will take "Tho Draft Horse in the South" as his subject.
