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SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PERFORMANCES OF A NOTED AMERICAN AMERICANDERBY DERBY WINNER The Picket was a horse of great speed a stayer of marked stamina and as good a weight carrier as liny owner could have desired yet high class racer as he undoubtedly was his career ou the track presents the quite singular feature that in his four years of racing he only won three times It was his lot to be t called upon to do battle with a band of truly great race horses and worthily as he comported himself iu antagonism to such grand warriors of the race course as Irish Lad Watcrboy Claude Africander Herniis Ileno Alajor Daingcrfield AlcChesuey Proper Highball Runnels Hurstbourne Ort Wells Delhi Bryn Alawr and others of great merit it was his ill fortuue to be frequently second or third in highly important and valuable events instead of irst In the words of one of his admirers he was considerable of a hard luck horse When a twoyearold he was started in thirteen races but won none of them although placed iu sir He did not race badly and was as a rule close up at the finish of his races but something always con trlved to finish In front of him It thus came about that when it came to the running of the American Derby the year following he had the advantage of the allowance for maidens a factor that contributed in some measure to his runaway victory His first two starts as a twoyearold held out promise since he was second in both but that was as far as he got His first start was in a four and a half furlongs purse race at Churchill Downs Alay 0 1002 If Pat Dunnes fine colt Savable had not chanced to be in that race The Picket would have won at the first time of asking but Savable was in it and he won by six lengths in 55 V with The Picket second and Grand Alary third His second race was at the same track Alay 9 at five eighths of a mile and this time he ran second to Von Itouse in 101 4 with Estrada Palma third and four other starters unplaced At Latonia June 12 he was an oddsoil favorite for a purse at liveeighths of a mile but tLe GO to 1 outsider A Lark nosed him out in a hair line finish In the Junior Stakes at Harlem September 11 he was beaten a length and a head by Sidney C Love and Gregor K lu a race he would have won but for being pocketed and roughtly buffeted about until his chance was gone His debut as a threeyearold was at Harlem June 13 in the AL Lewis Clarke Stakes at a mile and an eighth Not yet wound up he yet ran well and finished a good third to Savable and Bornays in 153 witli Bad News Grcgor K Linguist Alanru Early Gilfaiu and Estrada Palma behind him This race bvnoflted him greatly His owners AHddlcton Jungbluth were true sportsmen and to their credit on June 10 took the local public into their confidence by giving their colt a sensational public trial at the American Derby distance of a mile and a half over the Harlcin track He was sent along at full speed but not urged and with many experts timing the trial covered the route in time that made It practically a certainty that he would win the American Derby ou the Saturday following if repeated iu that great race His trainer Carroll Reid made the time of the trial 233 but the other timers caught it faster Daily Ilacing Forms representative making It 232 Up to that time Robert Waddells 233 was the fastest time in which the American Derby had ever been run but The Pickets trial made it obvious that a new record for the race was in sight The public took the trial at its face value and at once made such rm assault 011 the future books that an that day the price quoted against him tumbled from 20 to 1 down to 12 to 1 In those days future booking on the American Derby was heavy and it required quite a volume of nioucVto make much of an impression on prices especially iu a year when there was a bewildering host of llect aspirants to the honors of the race raceIt It was run June 20 aud had nineteen starters nearly all possessed of distinguished racing credentials Claude had won the California Derby at San Francisco Tennessee Derby at Memphis and St Louis Derby at St Louis Judge Hinies had won the Kentucky Derby with Early second Savable had won the Futurity of 1002 and had a a threeyearold won all of his four races in one of which lie had beaten the famous touryearold AlcChesney aud to go no farther into particulars the field represented a quite extraordinary aggregate of proved equine racing talent of the highclass grade the starters and weights lieing Claude 127 pounds Judge Himcs and Fore and Aft winner of the Cumberland Derby 125 pounds each Bernays Savable Au Kevoir Sinner Simon Linguist Bonnie Burr High Chancellor Gold Bell Alonsleur Beaucaire aud Gilfain 122 pounds each Bad News 119 Flocarllne 117 The Picket Kate AIcGowan and Alaxy Blum enthal 115 each The weather was as If made to order that lovely June afternoon and the track at its test with its velvety cushion Alore than 70000 people with representations from probably every state in the Union were gathered within the Washington Park enclosure and It was their good fortune to witness a race worthy of the assemblage John A Drakes pair Savable and High Chancellor went to the post coupled favorites at 3 to 1 Claude was at 7 to 1 The Picket Judge Illuies and Bernays 8 to 1 each and quotations against the others had their limit in the 100 to 1 laid against Bonne Burr The race was spec ¬ tacular but it was always a cake of one horse and eighteen others The one horse was The Picket which swept into the lead at once and playing the part of hare before the hounds set a wonderful pace with fricttonlesg ease and never closely approached rushed over the winning line first by six lengths in 233 an accurate reproduction of his public trial at Harlem In a head and head finish Claude was second BIT nays third and Savable fourth That was The Pickets only race at Washington Park and he was taken cast to see what he could do against the cracks of that section His first start there was in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga August 8 In this he was burdened with 12 pounds and was not placed J B Haggius good filly Ada Nay carrying 10G pounds winning from start to finish with Reliable second and Gimcrack third His next eastern race was for the Century Stakes of a mile arid a half at Sheepshead Bay September 5 In this he fully re ¬ produced his American Derby form by running a good second to Waterboy in 231 Heno was third with Herniis and Alajor Daingerfield unplaced The Picket being the onlv threeyearold in the nice carried 115 rounds while the others all fouryearolds carried 12i each It was now conceded that The Picket hat qualified against the best horses of the older division in training Three days afterwards with 12 pounds on each he met and vanquished the noted threeyearold Africander In the September Stakes at mile and threeeighths As winner of the Lawrence Realization Belmont Stakes Suburban Handicap Ad a ¬ vance Stakes and Saratoga Cup Africander was held to be the star threeyearold of the and year was a 4 to 5 favorite The Picket was at 0 to 5 the only other starter a colt called Beverly starting at 100 to 1 It was a case of American Derby tactics again for taking a quick lead The Picket outraced Africander every foot of the way and was an easy winner by two lengths in 220 He only ran two more races as a threeyearold finishing second to AlcChesnny in tiie Second Special at Gravcscnd and unplaced in the OeanvIcw Handicap in which as one of a big field he was so much buffeted aud interfered with as to have no chance Then he was sent into wellearned retirement The retirementThe 20000 Brooklyn Handicap was selected for The Pickets initial race as a fouryearold Since it was destined to be the only race ho was to win that year or afterwards it was obviously a fortunate selection The big event attracted sixteen starters of which AlcChesney was top weight at 129 ttounds Then in order of weights followed Herniis 127 Africander 125 Irish Lad 125 Tho Picket 119 Shorthose 118 Hurstbourne 117 Runnels 11 Alizzen 114 Proper and Eugenia Burcli 110 Claud and Highball 105 TolKjggan 103 City Bank 100 and Lord Badge 93 The race was run May 20 1001 Irish Lad eno of the gamest horses which ever stood on iron had won the Aletropolltan Ilandican at Alorris Park was the favorite at 11 to 5 with Hermis second choice at 4 to 1 The Picket was at 8 to 1 Highball iw tined to win the last American Derby and AlcChesney were each at 12 to 1 and so on down to 0 to des 1 ¬ against several of the outsiders Irish Lad made the running for the first mile with Hermi at his heat all the way with The Picket reserved in close up attendance in third place Irish Lad ami Hermis vitle into the stretch which let The Picket make a close turn next to the rail and steadily closin swun in sternly Contested drive through the stretch he finally nailed Irish Lad and won a magnificent up bv head The California crack Proper got off badly but came through the homestretch with a wet race i sail got up in time to rob Hermis of third money Highball finished sixth but AlcChesney was alwavs ant in the 205 205The rciir division The race was run iu 200 With 103 pounds up Irish Lad had won it the year previous in The Picket won no more races but carrying 124 pounds he ran second to Hermis in the Suburban Handicap In 205 Irish Lad was third with Proper Major Daingcrfield and Africander unplaced He unplHccd in the Advance Stakes to Irish Lad Ort Wells and Bryn Alawr second to Ort Wells in the wis monwealth Handicap unplaced to Lord of the Vale Bad News and Canghnawaga in the Saratoga Com ¬ Hilrd to Delhi aud Mercury in the 5UOOQ Great Republic Sntkes third to Beldame and Africander Handicap in Saratoga Cup and wound up his campaign by running unplaced to Africander AlcChesnry and the Burcli in the Cup Preliminary at Brighton Beach In 1905 he started but once In 100G he placed Kugenin four out of six races and his record and pedigree are as follows was Ji Totals 6 Leamington FaughaBallagh i Sir Hercules I Glijceioli GlijceioliJ Enquirer Daughter of J ilantaloou 1 Daphne DaphneJ tLida Lexington J Boston Alice Caracal j Caracalj American Eclipse I EclipseI Gabriella Gabriellaj West Australian j Alelbourne Australian Alowerina Alowerinaj Emilia j Young Emilias Persian Persianj Lexington j Boston BostonAlice Llkhoma Alice Caracal Gleucoua JGIencoe JGIencoeDaughter Daughter of Envoy EnvoyLexington Gilroy Lexington jAlagnolia jAlagnoliat Sister to Rurie t Sovereign fVolante Levity Levityj I Glenelg j Citadel Sister Anne GlenelgAnne J JTheNun Babla I Voltarlo TheNun 1 Lexington Novice Novicej j Leamington Leonatus Nantura LeamingtonNantura Semper Felix FelixColOSSUS j Phaeton PhaetonrCriicliix t 1 ColOSSUS ColOSSUSsc j rCriicliixj rCriicliix Sovereign Kiln Rreckcnrlilsc J SovereignSister sc Sister to Pryor No 1 I Zlngara j 1j Star Davis Eenobia
