Of the Rival Trainers: Careers of Samuel C. Hildreth and Basil Jarvis Reviewed, Daily Racing Form, 1923-10-19

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0F THE RIVAL TRAINERS i Careers of Samuel C. Hildreth and Basil Jar vis Reviewed Conditioner of Payprns Is One of Three Sons of Famous English Trainers Hildreth Also from Racing Family. Basil Jarvis Is one of three sons of the rcll-known English trainer W. A. Jarvis, all of whom are following the vocation of their father. He was thirty-seven years old on Thursday last, the day that Papyrus showed the American public that he is the sort of thoroughbred one would look for in a Derby horse. The Jarvis boys, Basil, "William R. and Jack were brought up in the atmosphere of the turf, being born at Newmarket, which Is headquarters of racing and training operations in the United Kingdom. It is sixty-six miles from London, and when the big race meetings are not on it is much like other English towns of the same size, with the exception that one sees constantly in the street men of all sizes that have that ruddy complexion and clear eyes which are associated with those who live much in the open. Basil Jarvis was fourteen years of age and weighed eighty-five pounds when he rode his first race. .He had a fair measure of success as a jockey, his first winning mount heing on Shiltoe, but being above the average in physique he became .too heavy for the saddle and took to training. His first winner, Honolulu, which scored at Liivcrpool, was ridden by the American jockey Danny Maher, who was as great a public favorite in England at that time as Steve Donoghue is today. tAFYRUS BEST JARVIS EVER TRAI3TED. Papyrus is the best horse that Mr. Jarvis lias ever trained, though Periosteum, winner of the Ascot Gold Cup and other fine races, Svas a good one also. "With Papyrus he won :8ix races out of eight starts in 1922 and the Epsom Derby, Chester Vase and Duke of York Stakes .this year. 1 Mr. Irish, who owns Papyrus and Periosteum, is only one of Basil Jarvis patrons. jOthers are Lord Harewood, Lord Allendale id J. P. Hornung. As he has thirty-five ihorses in his care at the present time, among .them the crack two-year-old filly, Appleby, it lis evident that he is making a sacrifice in coming to this country before the close of English racing when many important events are being decided. The gentlemen named above. In giving their consent for Mr. Jarvis to make the trip with , Papyrus, showed the right sort of spirit, a fact which will not be lost on the American public, who will remember them with grati- tude. J Basil Jarvis Newmarket establishment Is ,known as Green Lodge. It is a lovely old brick house with green shutters and has a warmth and color to it that is heightened iby a flower garden and neat hedge. The stables are also of red brick and the boxes are commodious, while the stone-paved yard Jls as neatly garnished and swept as the kitchen of the best housewife in that part of England. j The English expert horseman is of more than average height, with the ruddy face and clear eyes of those of his profession who have Anglo-Saxon blood in their veins. He is and widower with one daughter, Miss Thelma, eight years of age, who made her father happy by remembering his birthday with a cablegram of congratulations, j The trainer of Papyrus knows his business, Undertands his horse perfectly and may be depended upon to bring him to the post in perfect condition on Saturday next, i Samuel C. Hildreth, the trainer of Zev and other horses for the Rancocas Stable, is .fifty-eight years of age and was born in ;Pike County. Missouri. He is as finished a I horseman as this country has ever known, .having come by his knowledge of his chosen profession naturally, his father being an old-time horseman who raced and trained a stable that took part in the fairs and "bush" races in the middle "West for many years. Sam was the rider for the outfit until he hecame too heavy for the saddle. His experiences at that time have helped materially in achieving the success which has made .him a notable figure among the trainers of the present-day. BUYS A FEW HORSES. Although the young westerner was attached to other stables than that of his father he J "was early imbued with the idea of going Into business for himself. After a short apprenticeship in the establishment of Walter IP. Jennings, who is still connected with the. .turf, Mr. Hildreth bought a few horses for his own account and raced with a fair amount of success west of the Mississippi. About this time he laid the foundation of-his knowledge of farriery, which has helped jhim greatly in keeping unsound horses in racing form. i Sam Hildreth was first seen in the East during the early part of the nineties when he brought a fair stable of selling platers to Guttenburg. He attracted the attention at once of the public and was marked as a coming man. With the close of Guttenburg, where racing was made a reproach, the track being operated during the winter months, and in defiance of the law, Mr. Hildreth returned to the West, where he speedily gathered together a stable that made itself conspicuous on the winning lists in California and Chicago. It was late in the nineties that an eastern invasion was determined upon. The success of his horses on the tracks around New York mado Mr. Hildreth a desirable acquisition to any big establishment and it was not long before he was approached by the late William C. Whitney, ex-secretary of the navy, who was engaging in racing as a pastime following a busy career in diplomacy and finance. Hildreth was engaged to train for him and was given carte blanche to add to the stable. His natural spirit of independence brought about a condition where he resigned and once more raced successfully in his own colors, some of the good horses he owned at that time being Waring, Beau Gallant and Toluca. The turf in the East at that time was on the crest of a wave of prosperity. Men of wealth and influence were coming into the sport every season. Hildreth had many offers to train privately at this time, but preferred to go it alone. It was not until he had campaigned a big stable all over the country and added the good horse McChes- ney to his establishment that he accepted an offer from E. E. Smathers, who took over the horses that had been racing in the Hildreth colors. Mr. Smathers after two years retired from the turf and an alliance was -made with the late Charles Kohler. When racing was interdicted in 1910, Mr. Kohler sent his horses abroad, the outfit going to France, where it had already been preceded by several other big American establishments. Hildreth was a success in France, just as he had been here. When Mr. Kohler died the Western horseman took over the stable and continued taking an active part in the sport on all the French tracks until 1913, when it became possible to renew the sport in this country. For a period of years he "was in charge of the stable of August Belmont, for whom he won conspicuous success. Some of the best horses developed by him were Friar Rock, Hourless, Stromboli and Rock View. When the chairman of the Jockey Club was curtailing his racing activities Mr. Hildreth bought Mad Hatter, Lucullite and other horses of class and raced them in his own name and colors. When Harry F. Sinclair displayed an interest in the turf six years ago, his choice of trainers was Hildreth, and the combination has been a winning one. The establish-ment has had great success particularly with horses that were selected by the trainer, whose judgment of animals in the rough has been at times unerring. Several of the best, like Purchase and Grey Lag, had shown winning form before they passed into Hil-dreths hands. In every instance they improved. Cirrus was a notable example of what clever handling will accomplish for a horse in the hands of an expert While Rancocas affords every opportunity for the breeding and training of good race horses, success cannot be won there or elsewhere unless sound judgment and expert treatment of the material at hand is to the fore. There is no harder worker nor closer observer of conditions in connection with his profession than Samuel C. Hildreth, who will send Zev to the post in the great International race on Saturday, October 20. Mr.. Hildredth is married and is thoroughly domestic, being fond of his home. "When he was in France his establishment was noted for its beauty. When he had a place at Sheepshead Bay the same conditions existed. It is the same in his New Jersey establishment, which is near the great Rancocas farm, where so many fine thoroughbreds are housed and from which it is expected still greater ones will come when the breeding plans of its owner have come to full fruition.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1920s/drf1923101901/drf1923101901_16_1
Local Identifier: drf1923101901_16_1
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800