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GREEK B MORRIS THE AMERICAN TURFMAN OF THE LONGEST EXPERIENCE IN RACING OF late yours It lias been the custom tJ refer to Green 15 Morris in terms to convey the im ¬ pression that ho is one of the oldest men on earth Quito erroneous this It is true that he lias been around quite a while but there are plenty of older men who are still quite spry and iuwardly of the belief that they are en ¬ tirely capable of holding their own with their juniors Green B is only 7J years of age Most of the people now connected with racing found him a prominent figure on the turf when the sport lirst engaged their attention hence without reflection unconsciously contracted the habit of considering him in the same light as if he had quite really and truly been a cen ¬ tenarian Ho is by birth a Mississippian and was born at Madison in that state in ISi His folks moved to Missouri wliile he was a lad and when he was but fourteen years old he bullwhackcd In a cattle train across the plains and mountains to California There in min ¬ ing stock trading and other pursuits he re ¬ mained until lt 4 TJien he returned to Mis ¬ souri and it was not long before he drifted into racing Such records as are available show that he raced a horse called Zuzu at Mobile Ala late in 1SC 9 This may have Inen his iirst thoroughbred but of this there is no certainty ZUZH had won races for Jen Abe Buford but does not appear to have won after she passed into the iHissession of Mr Morris She was a chestnut lilly by Diversion Minnow breeding that reads quaintly now It is thus established that he was racing at least one horse as long away as fortyfour years ago and it is probably the case that there is not now another active tnrfuian who can match that record recordISarly ISarly in the seventies Morris formed a rac ¬ ing partnership with the Missouri breeder James D Iatton and it was not long until the linn name of Morris Iatton gained recogni ¬ tion east and west Bill Dillon Fellowplay and Mintzer were renowned horses that he campaigned in those early days and good ones they were He throve in his calling anil grew in skill as a trainer and judge of horses and marked success and success that stayed with him for a long time lie achieved a sensational triumpn in 1SS2 when he won the Kentucky Derby with Apollo That yeir Dwyer Bros owned a lino colt by Billet Mercedes named Itunnymede He was an even money favorite and by virtue of his record and the presence of the redoubtable Jimmy McLanglin in the saddle deserved to be such Apollo was such an outsider that he sold in the field in the auction pools and was tO to t in the books But in a sensational linish Apollo won by a half length with Itiinnyuicde second and Mike Dwyer lost a barrel of money over this unexpected result Green Morris assured him and others that the best horse had won but this was not sen When it came to the running of the Clark Stakes a few lays later Hunny mede simply lost ApoKo and woa by Ion lengths while Billy Lakelands Babcoek beat Apollo for sec oiuj place Still Apollo was quite a good colt and won a number of other races that year including the Kentucky St Leger of two miles at the Ixiuisville fall meeting This was then an important race which might very well be revived by the New Louisville Jockey Club Morris found the exper ¬ ience of winning the Kentucky Derby quite agreeable and tried to repeat but did not quite succeed finishing second to Leonatus with Drake Carter in 1SS and second to Joe Cotton with Bersan in 1SS5 Borsau was a capital race horse and because of a peculiar bony protrusion above his oyes was called the horned horse As in the case of Riinnyinedc alid Apollo lie had Ills revenge on JoV Cotton In the Clark Stakes which he won easily with Troubadour second and Joe Cotton third Korean be ¬ longed to Morris singly but Morris Iatton had another excellent threeyearold that year in the Pat Ma Hoy colt Favor which ran second to Lucky Baldwins Volante In the American Derby at Washington Park and was favorite in the betting He was not equal to beating Volante but won many important races oast anil west that year and in the year or two following Many followingMany devoted turfmen ply tlieir calling year in and year out always cherishing the hope of some day coming into iwssession of one of those gems of horsedoni which bring fame and fortune to an owner without ever realizing that hope Until in recent years Green B Morris knew but little of such disappointment From the time he Itegau to race his first good horse Bill DiKon he had in his ownership or charge a remarkable succession of highclass racers Sir Dixon Stratlimeath Judge Morrow Apollo Mintzer Drake Carter Freeman Ten Stone Star Ruby Cunard Ilex Sombrero Old England Fellowplay Favor Pupil Knight Templar Tipstaff Rcna B Modrine Bedeck Star Chime Janice Slave Money Mtss Duke of Kent Lolwngula Sallie CMcquot Moderoeio and Ellen were names to conjure with in the host of brilliant performers he trained and sent to victorious careers on the track Sir Dixon he only raced as a twoyearold and having won with him the Camden Stakes and the Select Stakes at Moiimouth Park and the Flatbush Stakes at Sheepshead Bay sold him to Dwyer Bros for a big sum but most of the others named raced in his charge until their days of use ¬ fulness on the track had waned Sir Dixon was the Itost son of Billet and an extremely successful sire after his retirement from racing heading the American sire list in 1001 Of all the horses he owned and raced Stratlimeath was the greatest winner This was a bay gelding by Stratliinoro Flower of Mcath which among other races won for him the Spring Stakes and Partridge Stakes at Sheepshead Bay Tyro Stakes and Junior Champion Stakes at Moiimouth Park and the Algeria Stakes at Gravesend as a twoyearold ami the American Derby at Washington Park Stockton Stakes at Moiimouth Park and the Twin City Handicap at Sheepshead Bay when a threeyearold lie raced on successfully for several years and ranks thirteenth in the American list of winners of 100000 or more with a total of 114958 won At the same time Morris owned the flue racer Judge Morrow wlilch won the Brooklyn Handicap of 1S92 for him as well as many other races and a total of 77 21 It was at this time that he attained Ills condition of greatest prosperity and was a wealthy man BrooklynIn and the possessor of a tine residence property In Brooklyn In racing he was a careful and resourceful man overlooking little that might be conducive to success On the day when the American Derby of 1891 was to be run the track was spotty and drying out from a drenching rain of the night previous Shortly after the first races of the day had been disposed of Morris and his jockey George Covington walked around the track for its entire length and carefully noted Its condition at every point The result of this inspection was seen in the race Covington raced Stratlimeath along with the other horses for the lirst half mile then be began to veer him in and out in a way puzzling to he vast throng of spectators but exactly as had been mapped out by Morris carefully following the course that had been selected in the stroll around the track It resulted from this that while Stratlimeath really ran farther than the other horses lie was running comfortably over sound going all through that last important mile while his competitors were now and then unbalanced in their stride by plunging into soft spots In no small measure was Strathnieaths easy triumph over Poet Scout and Kingman due to this intelligent measure which did not occur concernedAnother to any other owner or rider concerned Another striking illustration of his skill and shrewdness Jii meeting an emergency was furnished in connection with the horse Star Huby This animal had been imported from England by T B liaggin and was Ills property but was raced in partnership by Mr Morris as was also the case in regard to many other Ilaggiuowned horses Being a horse extreme speed Star Huby Uid been nced almost exclusively in sprints and was considered a sprinter only But be had been entered in the fourmiU Thornton Stakes of INMi run at the old Bay District track Morris was racing liis horses at San Francisco then but did not intend to start Star Ruby in the long race However de ¬ siring to send the horse to the stud with more than a sprinting record Mr Haggin ordered him to be started in the Thornton Stakes This occurred shortly prior to the date of the race that no time remained in which to give Star Huby an orthodox preparation for a dash of four miles His sagacious jockey W Martin was called into council ami the two wise heads devised what proved to be a novel but highly successful plan for winning a fourmile race by a dash of threequarters of a mile Only three started the other two being Gilead which had won the event In 1S95 and the proved stayer Claudius No such fourmile race was ever witnessed Claudius went off in the lead with Giiead Iapl ed on him and ran thus for the lirst two miles At the end of the first mile Star Huby and Willie Martin wore just turning Into the homestretch as the two leaders dashed by the grandstand At the end of two miles the gap had widened to all of a half mile and it was nearly the same wheii three miles had been covered with Gilead now leading Of course to all appearances Star Huby did not possess the ghost of a chance and the spectators wore giving their attention and applause to the really exciting struggle going on between Olload and ClaudIus with exhausting effect for l otli It was not until in the fourth and lust mile that the bit of racing strategy devised by Morris and Martin and carried out with signal skill and coolness by the latter was made manifest to the astonished ple who had lost sight ot Star Huby When he turned into the backstretch Gilead now bavin peo ¬ Claudius well beaten was turning out of it on the far turn With threequarters to go Martin leased Star Huby from restraint and the way he closed up on the two tired toilers far in front re seemed almost magical to the startled beholders Yet it was a simple enough affair Star Hubv had been so skillfully saved that lie was a comparatively fresh horse when lie began his sprint of three quarters He ran that threequarters in 11 and such a rate of speed in the last mile of a fourmile race was bound to be decisive He passed Claudius l efore reaching the homestretch and nailiii Gilead when iKginning the last eighth passed him and won pulling up by a length Good Id ireon B He has no Sir Dixon Strathmeath or Judge Morrow now and his wealth has goue as it came but lie does tlio iKst he can with what he has and is an ornament to American rac ¬ ing May lie still live long and prosper
