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« I | I • • , . : i i I _ . : . I l I J t i i I i r » 1 5 f ,- s 1 1 e 3 r e n in n to ,- • ■ *• h h a a a a n THE BELMONT STAKES HISTORY OF TEE OLDEST AND GREATEST SWEEPSTAKES FOR THREE-YEAR-OLDS, 1867-1921— THE RACE FROM 1874 TO 1878 BY W. S. VOSBURGH. "T " SAXONS YEAR, For the Belmont of 1874 nine passed the starter out of fifty-three nominated, Mr. Belmont again adding valuable plate. The field 18/4 was quite up to the average, but hardly as good as the previous year. Aaron Pennington, fresh from his triumph in the Phoenix Stakes at Lexington, sported Price McCIraths "green and gold" as became a son of old Lucy Fowler. Mr. Belmont had the gray celt Steel Eyes — fast, but unfortunate. Brigand sported the "dark blue" of Mr. Sanford, with Bill Hayward up. Elkhorn, a stylish chestnut, carried Mr. Swigerts "blue and white," worn by Walker. Mr. Littclls "black and tan" was represented by the lop-eared Reform. The Rutherford Park confederacy of Colonel Puryear had a strong pair in Grinstead and Rutherford, winne rs of the previous years Champagne and Nursery in the "orange and red sleeves." iinally, there came a small brown colt bearing a new set of colors — the "cherry and black" of Mr. Pierre Lot Bald. He was called Saxon, and George Barbee was in the saddle. A new feature was added to the Belmont this year. A straight half mile had been built by the church at Kingsbridge Road to the stand and the distance was made a mile and a half. The reports of great trials at Rutherford Park made Grinstead a favorite. The race was a desperate one, Steel Eyes fairly stood still from the effects of "pace complaint," and Reform, Brigand and Rutherford "cracked," one after the other. Grin«tead and Pennington fought it out stride for stride, but when Grimtead looked a winner Barbee brought up Saxon with a rush. He came so suddenly he seemed to have started out of the ground, as no one had noticed him before, and, nailing Grinstead on the post, won. "Well, the imported colt won," remarked Mr. Withers, who was a great believer in imported stock. "It was the jockey," replied Captain Moore, who had a prejudice against modern English blood. "Hes imported, too," retorted Mr. Withers. Saxon was a rotund, brown celt about 15. 1, bred in England by Sir Joseph Hawley and imported by Mr. Lorillard. He was a son of Beadsman from Girasol, by Asteroid. He went amiss and never won afterward. As a sire he was quite a success; his daughter Hiawassec was a highly successful race mare and his mm Gerald was so good that Mr. Lorilard sent him to England. The time of the Belmont of 1874 was 2:39. Value ,200. CALVINS YEAR, The season of 1S75 was remarkable for the high quality of the three-year-olds. In the East were Aristides, Calvin, Tom Ochiltree, 1875 Olitipa, DArtagnan, Ozark and Viator, and in. the West King Alfonse and Ten Broeck. Out of fifty-three nominations, fourteen came to the post. Aristides had been the all-winter favorite in the "future books," and had just confirmed public confidence in him by winning the first Kentucky Derby at Louisville. Mr. McGrath had a very strong hand in Aristides, Calvin and Chesapeake and he made the most of his chances. His plan of campaign had been to win the Kentucky Derby with Chesapeake, reserving Aristides for the Withers Stakes. But Chesapeake was not good enough, and Aristides had to save the day at Louisville. Arriving at Jerome Park, Aristides won the Withers Stakes from a field of twelve and the McGrath stable became a strong favorite for the Belmont. Mr. McGrath started his entire fleet. Aristides, Calvin and Chesapeake, chestnut, brown and bay; they made a pretty sittht as bedecked in green and orange ribbons they paraded with Lewis, Swim and Lakeland in the saddles. The race resulted in the success of Calvin, Lewis on Aristides pulling the sturdy little chestnut double to allow Calvin to win. People along the rails shouted, "Let go that horses head !" Aristides could, in the modern and mysterious parlance of the turf, have "walked in." There were ugly feelings shown over it, but after the race it transpired that during the winter, while Aristides was at 6 to 1, Mr. McGrath had backed Calvin heavily to win at 25 to 1 in John Morrisseys book. McGrath acted strictly within his rights, as Mr. Keene did in the Withers four years later, for in those days the Rules of Racing did not provide for "declarations to win." Calvin was a whole-colored brown cr black, 15.2, smoothly turned, with the action j of an old dog fox leading a pack of hounds, a sort of lope close to the ground. He was a son I j I of Tipperary from Lucy Fowler, by imported Albion, and was a good race horse. His career came to an end the same year, when he was cut down in the race for the Manhattan Handicap, Aristides, which finished second, was one of the best horses of the decade at all distances. The I race was run in 2 :42V4- Value ,450. ALGERINE S YEAR, It was rather a moderate field that contested the Belmont of 1876. Out of forty-seven nominations five started. Mr. Bel- . 1876 mont had won the Withers with Fiddlestick so handily that the Belmont was voted "a moral" for him, and yet some [ people say the turf has no morals. The Fillagree family, from which Fiddlestick descended, never bred a stayer, and after a terrific finish Billy Donohue, on Major Doswells Algerine, beat 1 Hayward on Fiddlestick by a head, with Barricade third. Algerine was bred by Major Doswell I in Virginia. He was an all-bay celt, by Abd-el-Kader, and one of the la«t foals of the great mare Nina Planets dam, by Boston. He struck his leg after the Belmont and never ■ amounted to much after that. But he was a colt of amazing beauty and quality, and no doubt | a fine race horse. As a sire he got the fine mare Aurelia, also Torso. Algerines daughter . Margarine foaled Rhoda B., the dam of Orby, the English Derby winner of 1907, and thus Algerine is partly responsbile for not alone Orby, but Grand Parade Derby, 1919, Diadem, Diadumenos, Orpheus, etc., in England. Time of the race, 2:40%. Value ,700. CLOVERBROOKS A large field faced the starter for the Belmont of 1877. and. as is s usual, a great field means poor quality. Thirteen start, and, as . YEAR, 1877 an instance of public infatuation, the favorite was Mr. James Galways colt Rifle, and only on the strength of his wonderful trials, as he had never started for a race. The best colt on that day was Baden Baden, which i had been purchased after winning the Kentucky Derby by the late Mr. William Astor for 2,500, and arrived at Jerome Park very light in flesh and evidently in need of rest. Mr. P. Lorillards Basil was so knocked about that he was pulled up. It was a rough race, Mr. E. A. Clabaugh of Baltimore winning with his homebred colt Cloverbrook, with Loiterer second and Baden Baden third. Mr. Lorillard was so dissatisfied with the rough usage his J Basil had received that he matched him against Cloverbrook a week later for ,000 a side and Basil won in a canter. Walker, who rode Baden Baden, was positive that his colt was second, but having finished on the far outside the judges overlooked him. Cloverbrook, the winner, , was a big chestnut with a blaze and white legs, by Vauxhall from Maudine, by Australian. The time of the race, 2 :4C. Value ,200. ■ DUKE OF MAGENTAS The twelfth Belmont, 1878, was a hollow affair. Duke of f Magenta which represented Mr. George L. Lorillard, and ■ YEAR, 1878 the best two-year-old of the previous year, was a strong s winter favorite. Besides, he had won the Withers Stakes s so easily that he started at 100 to 70 on. Six started out of the forty-nine engaged, and the B Continued on seventh page, ME BELMONT STAKES Continued from page one. Duke, rk!;len by Lloyd Hurhes, v.on by trwo lengths in a heavy rainstorm. Bramble finished nettnd v-nd Fpartan third. Duke of Magenta was a liht bay with a star and snip and both hind | psstera3 v.hiie and WMa by Lexington from Magenta, by imported Yorkshire. While he was a June f.Aa!. «raa cebby lx;king aso, yet he could gallop all his contemporaries to a standstill. At three he came ouL better grown and improved, winning eleven out of twelve races. The 1 only race he last, the Jersey Derby at Monmouth, was due to a heavy cold he contracted owing to carelessness of a groom, and he was very cong sted. At the end of the season Mr. G. L. Lorillnrd sold him to his brother, Mr. Pierre Lcrillard, who sent him to England with Parole, but on shipboard he contracted epidemic influenza, turned "rearer and was brought , home. In the stud he did only moderately, sharing the same fate as the other sons of Lexington. Bramble, which finhhed second for the Bc-lmont, would have been "the celt of the year had Duke of Mageata never existed. The Duke was always the lion in his path. In the Withers, Belmont, Travers and Kcm;er Stakes it was the same story — the Duke first, Brambe second. It was similar to the caue of L inlass vs. Ravensbury in England in 1893. But after lb? Duke was tt:ken to England Bramble rose to the dignity of champion and performed the feat of winning all the Cup races —the Baliimore, Westchester, Monmouth and Saratoga Cups all fell to him. In the stud he sired Clifford and then Ben Brush and thu3 carried en the succc3.-ir,n of the house of Bonnie Scotland through Broomstick, Delhi, Whiskbroom, BJiiiin?. etc. This year the weights were: celts, 118 pounds; fillies, 113. Time of race, 2:431. Value 53,850. To be continued.
