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MESSENGER IN RETIREMENT Owing to a Slight Injury Probably Will Not Start in the Hopeful or Futurity. SARATOGA SPRINGS. N. Y., August 28. For a day or two there has been a rumor that the great colt Messenger had bowed a tendon and that it was because of this mishap that he was not a starter in the Grand Union Hotel Stakes and would be an absentee from the Hopeful, Futurity and the other big races of the autumn. August Belmont, the owner and breeder of Messenger, when asked about it said: "Messenger has not bowed a tendon, but he did grab himself and is now under treatment. Dr. McCully thinks he could fill his engagements, but I am not going to take any chances. You can say that he will not be seen in either the Hopeful or the Futurity. If the colt had really been tightly wound up my course might have been different, but he was only coming to the top of his preparation. AVill he start in anything this fall? That will depend entirely on how he comes along." This is bad news for the racing public, but it would have been worse if the regal chestnut had gone wrong. The bruise he sustained will yield to treatment. Time plays as important a part as medicine in such cases. It is a coincidence that Man o War grabbed himself in the race with Sir Barton at Windsor and was lame the morning after that contest. Messenger may be ready for a late engagement at Jamaica or Aqueduct. If he doesnt start until next year the public will have him as a topic of discussion during the winter. The impression now prevailing is that he is a Aery great colt. His looks and work as well as his last public appearance all strengthen the belief that ho will take his place among the best.
