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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 1912)
4 TIIE SUNDAY OREGONIAN, PORTIAND, APRIL 21, 1912. fimous Equines Of Long Ao Leave Fast Progeny Many Notable een Bred In State Racers nave Pioneers Brought Purpose to Develop a Noble Breed of Horses and Turf History Grew Apace Altamont and Other Famous Sins, Produce Many Fast Performers Some Oregon Horsemen and Their Achievements. IS' C.T cm If gift ' MO I J03 77z43.S732g. Oregon Soj-jejS" J&rpi'fz ort fj?a lis BT G- A- WESTGATE. iHKRK Is a certain persistency about a horseman. Ha ts apt to find his share of bad luck. In fact. career Is full of It. But. Just be yond. Is the time when a certain colt In the pasture Is to pad up the family fortunes. The old man sees his picture in the Horse Review, with floral horse shoe and other accompaniments. It is tlia hopefulness of the horseman and t!ie breeder that keeps alive Interest In the harness horse. In the midst of vast exploitation for mechanical substitutes. To the born horseman the horse Is the king of beasts and the noblest of the four-footed, while a gocd pair, on a smooth road. Is the pleasantest earth ly means of transportation. Oregon has had a share of this type of humanity. Ortgon horsemen live ions and reach Bt!:ov age still with a held on the relr.1. Lute Llndssy Is the dean cf the corps, and Is an active roan, though we.'l up In the eighties. Pap Mcshler Is in California, halo and hearty. The Chi-ds family cow comprises several gcr.e-a'.ions of drivers. John Sawyer is but a boy and appears every Fall for the word when the races are called. U oli-t'.me Oresron breeders have joined on, but their wor't remains, and f.o (trains of e".ulne blood they estab l'shed are still potent, as the sum tr.srloa show. The late 5f. D. Wisdom was the Northwest historian of the harness hone. For many years he wrote, planned and directed for the best In terests of the turf. To his view, the , Northwest was the natural home of the horse and in his vision, better blood, better racing programmes, witn tne elimination of objectional track feat ures, would Interest good men In the gsir.e and keep them there. It Is a mistake to assume that a wellbred trot ter Is a mere racing machine. He Is a business horse, a fun horse, a work Sorse. a war horse and can answer more ra'.is than any other, besides man. In ihc "creaturehoodJ In the states where men really live, where regard 'for out of doors Is a principle of conduct, the horse Is an in stitution. In the Northwest. In the South. In California and through the Hlii- Grass region, the parts of the I'nion with most romantic flavor in their history, the horse has been and l.i held In high esteem. The pioneers of Oregon had In their number men who brought to the new soil turf tradi tions and a purpose to develop here a noble tribe of horses. C at Faaou Ileraea. So came Oregon Pathfinder, Rock wood. Hambletonlan Mambrlno. Fred Hambleton, Planter, Autocrat and Alta mont. to become In their hour "lords of the ascendent." Turf history in Oregon was easier to make, it seems, than to write. A well-known local trainer commenced a while ago to set down his experiences and recollections, but the first chapter noon became an orphan, for the hoot marks of the early days are hard to find. Ghosts there are. four-footed and swift, along the old White House road, at Witch Hazel. Vancouver, HHlsboro, F road mead. Salem. Albany and about the tracks east of the mountains, for a horses has his claim to spookhood quite as much as another, and the equine greatness of the past Is not departed. At least, this theory Js held where the Winter smoke curls above the training quarters. Old-timers in Oregon liked the long gun and the fishing rod. Also, they liked the harness horse. Good blood, for the times, was brought out and from the foundation of many years ago soma really notable race perform ers rose. It is hard to say on which side of the Columbia certain horses were foaled, and for proper purposes of ap preciation It is fair to consider North west horses, rather than merely those bred in what is now the Ctate of Ore gon. Mostly, though. Oregon breeders and Oregon horses are to be considered. Jay Beach. Van De Lashmutt. Thom as H. Tongue and Ladd tc Reed had a large place in foundation breeding. The sirs that has produced the most speed in Oregon 1 Altamont H9i, with. fit 5r X ', , JUL" IT I " ' '.ir Jiace Of ! . Oassz Sj3- zxi: 2Ves zsi per: a wagon record of 1:2 3-4. Altamont was a bay or brown stallion foaled In 1875. bred by Colonel R. West. George town, Kentucky, and brought to the West by Jay Beach, then of Fort Klamath, Or. His sire was the famous Almont 33. son of Alexander's Ab dullah 15. sire of Goldsmith Maid. ::1, and a family builder. Altamont's dam was by Brown Chief, son of Mambrlno Chief, his other maternal foundation being thoroughbred. Altamont was a horse of medium size, good finish and fixed his type upon his descendants tn a remarkably potent manner. His claims to greatness have been quite generally admitted and his name is a household word with harness horsemen. His opportunities were limited for many years, as good mares were scarce and Altamont rose to greatness through merit, lacking the prompt ing of wealthy ownership. Fast Stock la Bred. The Altamonts were a game race, in clining to splclness of disposition, liv ing to old age and able to come back in long-drawn-out races. Of 2:10 per formers. Altamont sired seven, the pacers Chehalls, 2:04 'i; Del Norte, 1:08; Ella T, 2:08U. Doc Sperry. 2:0; Path mont, 2:0S4. and the trotters Ala meda, 2:04. and Altao, 2:09. Daugh ters of Altamont produced five In the 2:10 list, and his sons Chehalls, Del Norte and others are recoglnxed In the "Great Table." It is a curious circum stance that much of Altamont's great ness is ahared by the famous brood mare Tecora. who, mated with him. produced eight performers In the list. Including Chehalls. 2:04 Si. and Del Norte, 2:0S, and a daughter of Alta mont and Tecora, Beulah, is the dam of The Zop, 2:09, one of the fastest trotters in Oregon history; a hsndsome stallion bred by Jasper Reaves, of Cornelius, Or., raced through the East and later sold for export. Tecora has been termed the "Beautiful Belle of the North. Another matron whose blood united famously with that of Altamont was Sally M. known as Sally-Come-Up, and the dam of Alrao, 2;0, and Path moot, p. 2:0 4. ' What speed Tecora had Is not known to the writer. But Lute Undaey Is au thority for the statement that Sally M was a mare with nitx-h speed and a good bruaher on the White House Koad. Pt tsf mora famous descendants el Altamont and Tecora. Del Norte re mains, in a hale old age, near Walla Walla. Altacora, 2:13, is In Portland. Chehalls, 2:04 4. a stallion of rare beau ty Is dead. He appeared In many cam paigns' and in addition to the usual routine, for a time held the world's two-mile pacing record. If memory serves, of 4:19Vi. taken at the State Fair grounds track. Del Norte raced his turn and was then put to "guldeless',' exhibitions, with a mile claimed In 2:04 In this way of going. Altao was a mighty racehorse and Alameda a sweet-going trotter and' one of the handsomest of the Altamont family. The Altamonts are going on through second and third generations. What this horse might have done at Palo Alto, or some such establishment. Is an Interesting problem. Perhaps he was cast for his Oregon environment, but evidently would have been one of the world's really great sires with op portunity. Altamont died some ten years ago in California, having been for a long time "like Homer and like Be llsarlus. blind." Klamath, 2:07H, by Morookus. son of Altamont, wa one of the world's fa mous trotters in bis day and was per haps the greatest trotter of about 1896 or 1897. Klamath was bred at Olene, Or, and took his record at Columbus, Ohio, August 5, 1896. Svsse Enlsut Oregoa Breeders. Van B. De Lashmutt, once Mayor of Portland, had at Witch Hazel a horse farm famous In Its day, and WMch Hazel colts and matured horses were first In many races. Here was the home of Hambletonlan Mambrlno 5241, a horse of which much was expected, and which sired Carlye Came. 2:114, and several other speedy animals. Blondle was another Witch Hazel farm stallion. Mr. De Lashmutt was an en thusiastic horseman, and probably Is yet. Pathfinder, Rockwood, Autocrat and Caution were useful sires. Tbos. H. Tongue, who for several terms, and until the time of his death, ably represented the First District In Congress, was a horseman of wide in formation and bred many good ones. Fred Hambleton, 2:26, Planter, 2:18, son of Pancoast and. later, Lovelace, 2:20, a fashionably bred sire, were used at the Tongue Farm. Loveluco sired Lord LovtUeo, fattest Oreson bred, pater, aa ft " i ! flip 'JO R. .v. 1 1 - if -s rr - -;fri," . a r Chehalls. 2:0 4 '4. hails In the books from Vancouver, Wash. It remained ' for Lord Lovelace to meet the crack south, ern pacers a few years ago In the pac ing classic at the Oregon State Fair and defeat them both in the mud and the dry, which was certainly pacing quite a bit. Dr. T. W. Harris, of Eugene, a phys ician learned in horse lore, a judge at horse shows, to whom the horse game In all Its phases was Interesting, brought out a number of trotters. Memo, son of Sidney, was a stallion, he expected much from. Memo sired hand some roadsters and many of his get had speed. A daughter of Memo pro duced the fast pacer Charley D 2:064.. Dr. Harris at one time owned Ante volo and Farosltus Wilkes. Some of the old-time horsemen started at Hamble tonlan 10 and went back In their the ories, but njany others were and are strictly Up . to date. Lady Jones, 2:074, the only trotter to defeat The Harvester, 2:01, was raised here by J. A. Jones, of Newberg, her sire being Captain McKlnney, also being owned by Mr. Jones. To this recollection Mack Mack, 2:08, la the fastest Oregon-bred trotter. Mack Mack was a big bay gelding, bred in the Umpqua country, and met the good trotters of the Grand Circuit. He is a son of McKlnley, 2:114. king of speed sires. McKlnney spent several Springs in Oregon, as did his distinguished sons, Zombro. 2:11, and Zolock, 2:054. Belle mont, 2:094, daughter of Daisy Q. Hill, by Altamont, a famous race mare, waa the result of Zombro's first season In this state, Diablo, p., 2:094. a great sire, also spent a couple of years at Salem, and some of his Northwest descendants are most promising race material. Last year Captain C. P. McCan. of Hood River, a. young man of wealth, who was attracted to the Oregon coun try and established his home in the happy valley of the apples, determined to become a breeder of fine horses. So he bought The Patchen Boy (3), 2:10i. Kood pactr and a successful giro and , 7 a son of the century sire, Wilkes Boy. Fsancis J.,-p., 2:08, added laurels last season to his house. Captain McCan wished to bring a trotting sire of the first rank to the Pacific Coast, so he attended the New York sale In 1911 and paid $11,000 for The Bondsman, sire of the world's champion 3-year-old trotter, Colorado E.. 2:044, and many other distin guished race horses and futurity, win ners. So The Bondsman is owned In Oregon. Paul Wessinger a few years ago bought Hal B., 2:04. son of Hal Dillard, 2:04, own brother to Fanny Dlllard, 2:04. Hal B. was the great est Grand Circuit pacer of 1899 and at the time Mr. Wessinger purchased him Hal B.'s colts were beginning to write their names In the hall of fame. In 1911 ten of the Hal B.'s took race rec ords, stamping Hal B. as the greatest pacing sire of the year. In his list are Hal B., Jr., 2:03; Hal Raven, 2:03, and 3T. others with fast records. Hal B. is now owned by S. J. Vaughn and W. A. Kendall, of Canby, Or. Probably the largest breeding estab lishment in the world devoted to the standard-bred and Morgan horse is Brook Nook Ranche, Montana, owned by a Portland man, C. X. Larrabee. At Brook Nook some 15,000 acres of meadow and pasture form the home of hundreds of matrons and colts, carry ing the rich blood of George Wilkes, Mambrlno Patchen, Robert McGregor and the historic family lines of the Black Hawk Morgans. At present Bonaday Farm, near Roseburg, Or., owned by Frank E. Alley, is probably the largest Oregon harness horse es tablishment. At Bonaday Farm such stallions as Sonoma Boy, 2:20, brother to Sonoma Girl, 2:044; Bonaday (2), 2:274, scion of the Wilkes-Electloneer families, with a royal band of brood mares, are kept In meadowed luxury and hope rests that a future world's champion may como from Bonaday Farm. N. K. West, La Grande. Or., was for many years a larj?e breeder. Mr. West brought out the good Onward stallion. The Commonwealth, 2:13, and devel oped Satin Royal. S.l&ft, one f Js i most handsome representatives of the harness horse produced in Oregon and a descendant of old Sally M. W. L. Whitmore, of Pomeroy, Wash., bred many winners. Including Vinnie Mann, p., 2:11A. Judge Thomas S. Brents, of Walla Walla, had the rare distinction of breeding from Laurelia, by Caution, two 2:10 performers. There are others, not a few, who liked the horse and with whom the kindly sentiment Is not abated. Oregon race meetings have grown to Grand Circuit character. Oregon soil, climate, hay and oats tend to produce and ma ture good horses and thera Is still en couragement to follow the horse In dustry, in spite of the inroads of things mechanical on our roads and streets. BLOW TO THE BACONIANS J Documents long Thought Spurious Found to Bo Genuine. The Bacon-Shakespeare controversy Is again brought up In Ernest Law's recent book, "Some' Supposed Shakes peare Forgeries." Some documents pub lished 70 years ago by Peter Cunning ham, the author of the "Story of Nell Gwyn" and treasurer of the Shakes peare Society, who in 1842 edited "Ex tracts From the Accounts of the Rev els at Court in the Reigns of Eliza beth and James I," for 60 years have been considered spurious forged con temporary evidence that Shakespeare wrote the plays. Cunningham himself died a broken man, crushed by the ac cusation of forgery. Now says the London Graphic: That the documents were forged has ever since been accepted by all Shakes pearean scholars as an Incontrovertible fact. Now, however, Mr. Law claims to have proved them to be absolutely genuine. The writing and ink were tested mi croscopically by Professor James Dob bie, F. R. S.. chief analyst to the gov ernment, and head of the state labor atories, and they have been closely scrutinized by the greatest paleograph ers of the present day, by Sir George Warner, head of the manuscript de partment of the British Museum; by Sir Henry Maxwell-Lyte, deputy keep er of the public records; by other of ficers in his department, and by Dr. Wallace, the American scholar and Shakespearian discoverer. All these high authorities have ec cepted without qualification Mr. Law's conclusions with results that Peter Cunnlngbm's name Is now entirely cleared of the charge of forgery brought against him and the stigma ftfflxed by. thfl documents half a cen tury ago completely and once for all removed. Sir Sidney Lee, when presiding re cently at the annual meeting of the Shakespeare birthplace trustees, de clared that "Mr. Law has proved Ms point up to the hilt. He has estab lished beyond any possibility of doubt that these suspected papers are per fectly genuine and that their accounts of the earliest recorded performances of "Othello," "Measure for Measure," "The Tempest," and "Winter's Tale" are gospel truths." "Every Shakespearian student," he proceeded to say. "is under a deep debt of gratitude to Mr. Law, for not mere ly, has he added materially to our stock of indisputable knowledge of Shakespeare's work in his own lifetime but he has relieved an old Shakespear ian student of an unmerited imputa tion." "The fact," added Sir Sidney, "that in. these documents Shakespeare is mentioned categorically a3 the 'poet which made the plays' should be es pecially interesting, if a little disap pointing, to certain persons who think that there is no genuine contemporary evidence of the existence of any such author." . James I's Master of the Revels at, any rate, who read every play before, licensing it for production and who was responsible for the mounting of the performances at court, evidently had no doubt about the matter, for it Is duly recorded In 'his account book that the "poet who mayde the plales" was "Shaxberd" an his somewhat il literate clerk spelled the immortal name. The newly revealed authentic ity of these documents is indeed alto gether a rather nasty blow for our "Baconians," New York Sun,
