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JOE CANNONS EMPLOYERS Five Gentlemen Sportsmen Always Short of Ready Cash. 1 Honorable George Lamliton Recounts Experiences of Count Kinsley, the Murrl-etta Brothers and Others. The Hon. George Lambton, writing in the London Weekly Dispatch, discusses the turf careers of several gentlemen sportsmen for whom Joe Cannon trained in the following article : Before I knew Joe Cannon he had first of all trained for Captain Machcll, and left him to become private trainer to Lord Rosebery. For both these men he had done well, trained many good horses, and won big races. But when I sent my horses to him the stable was of rather a different sort, the owners being Count Kinsky, the two brothers Chris and Frankie. Murrietta, Sir Charles Harlopp, and Baron Max de Tuyll, who, like myself, were all people inclined to be rather short cf ready money. Later on Jack Hammond, Captain Whittaker and the Duke of Bcau- fort came to him, though the latter only had one or two jumpers. As I look back on this time the owners seem to be more interesting than the horses they owned. Charles Kinsky I have already written much about The Murriettas came of a Spanish family which had settled down in England. They were wealthy to start with, but became involved in a famous City failure. I have always heard that they might j have escaped great financial loss, but chose I honor before riches. I A TYPICAL DON. Chris was the typical Don a tall, distinguished-looking man, rather eccentric, with a hasty temper. As long as his money lasted lie lived like the great gentleman that i he was. The best of everything was just good enough for himself and his friends, ! especially the latter, so long as it was in his power to give it to them. Frankie was different a dear little fellow in his way, clever, with an eye to the main. chance and with a great show of being a hard, shrewd man of business; but au fond he was one of the best and kindest-hearted men in the world. I remember Captain Ma-chell, after he had been staying in some house with him, saying, "I like that little Murrietta; a clever fellow, and a bit of a. rogue too." That was the impression Frankie wanted to leave, but in reality he was as straight as a die. The two brothers owned horses together; they never had anything of much class, but at the end of each year Chris was a little ! poorer and Frankie a little better off. One horse I bought for them had a curious career. This was a great big brown geld- ing1 called The Lown, by Lowlander, and I Frankie won a lot of money with him. I had ! seen the horse running all over the country I in every sort of race over fences, over hurdles and on the flat. He won many of them carrying big weights. He was owned by Colonel Clitheroe and trained by Tom Leader, father of the three Leader brothers now training, members of one of those families who have made the English turf what it is. THE LOWN SnOWS SPEED. One day I was riding a fast horse against The Lown, and he showed such a turn of speed when my horse was still full of running that I bought him for Frankie for ?2,500, thinking he would probably win a good hurdle race. When we took him home and tried him he was winning easily at one and one-half miles, but did not stay it out. He was a great big heavy horse, and I could never ride him properly myself, although I Avon a hurdle race on him at Four Oaks Park, where he showed such a dash of speed that I felt confident he would win a nice race on the flat. So, although he was seven or eight years old and had been running all his life over a country, Joe Cannon turned his attention to flat racing. He soon found that what I said was right and that his real course was three-quarters to seven-eighths of a mile. Frankie put on his most cunning look ana said : "Now you must leave this to me ; I shall manage the horse myself and win a lot of money." I dont recollect the details of the "coup," but I do remember the horse running fcr a handicap at Epsom in the Derby week and winning in a canter. I also remember Frankie being angry with Chris for bavins given the good thing away at a supper party the night before. And then, again, this gallant old "horse won a seven-eighths handicap at Doncaster from a big field. In Uiose days there was an awkward bend in the course, but so great was his speed that, although ha drew on the outside, before they had gone an eighth he was on the rails and never headed again. I shall always think it was a marvelous thing that a horse which had all his life been trained for long races and carried welter weights should have retained his speed when he was eight years old. Old Alec Taylor took a fancy to Frankie, who worked several good commissions for him, and so quiet was he about it that no one ever suspected that he was the agent of that powerful stable.
