view raw text
I 1 j SAVAGE TRAITS OF FAMOUS RACERS, Famous English race horses, like famous people, are often eccentric in their behavior, and the-re have been many cases in England of celebrated animals that have turned "savage." Otto Madden, the famous jockey, who in 1S98 won the Derby on the 100 to 1 chance Je-d.lah, was violently "savaged" by a horse at Brighton races. He was riding Center down to the post for the Worthing Plate, when a horse called Marigold I". overtook him, dragged him out of the saddle by the shoulder and, seizing him by the; throat, shook him as a terrier sliake-s a rat. The jockey of Marigold IV.. who had himself been unseated, used his whip freely on the brutes he-ad to make him release Madden, and otlu-rs jockeys coming to his assistance. Marigold IY. was eventually beaten off. Madden returned to the paddock bleeding from a wound on the throat, which had to have se-ve-ral stitches put into it. and it was some time before he was able to ride again. Sweet Sounds, in spite of his name, was an irreclaimable savage. One morning at exercise his girths came undone; he got his boy off. and rushed at him like a lion, the result of the unlucky lad being a month in the hospital. Good Morning was another of the ngly-tempercd sort. Once- he bit his leading rein clean through with one- vicious snap, caught hold of his attendant, and shook him fe-rociously. Ladas, another famous race horse, was perfectly quiet under ordinary circumstances but for some reason he had a great dislike for ladies, and would "go for them" if any members of the fair sex approached tie- paddock. Diamond Jubilee was another famous horse that gave a good deal of trouble to its trainer owing to the -v iidene-e of its likes and dislikes. He hated Mornington Cannon, the famous jockey, and on one oe-casion flew at him while exercising on New-iaarke-t Heath, knocking him flying, and "Morny" would certainly have bttcn killed if assistance had not been at hand. Years afterwards Cannon visited his stable, and the horse still remembered his old grudge-, and attempted to "go for him" again directly he heard his old jockeys voice. An old Irish steeplechase horse called Tornado, rather well known at one time, was a perfectly good-tempered horse, but he had a hatred of bicycles, and whenever he saw one he would try to put his forelegs through the wheels. For what reason nobody ever knew, for he never seemed to be afraid of them. Some famous horses that race with obvious enjoyment have- a Mated objection to being saddled, and will roll and lie on their backs when the time comes to prepare for the fray. Others throw thc-m-se-lve-s into an absolute state of frenzy if they feel the slightest drop of rain, while many others, perfectly normal in other respects, will only allow themselves to be groomed or fed by the same individual. Prince of Tyre used to amuse himself by walking round and round his box on his hind legs. He would serape all his bedding into a heap in the center of the floor, and then would slowly pound it to chaff. All sorts of ways were tried to break him of the habit, and eventually he found solace in the company of an old black cat. Best Man had a cat which shared his box whenever he traveled. Pretty Polly and Sceptre both had a similar affection for another pony, without Which they refused to sleep, cat or run. Robert the Devil also had a stable- companion of this sort, and he used to amuse himself by gnawing his friends tail, which was conseciuently in a state of perpetual raggedness.
