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Patch, as the sporting world knows, was
the most remarkable horse this country
ever produced. On October 22, 1903,
he smashed the world's pacing record
(his own) by doing the mile in 1:56^.
He began his remarkable career in 1901,
being at that time five years old. In that
year the pacing record was held by Star
Pointer, made back in 1897, 1:59}4. In
1902 Star Pointer still held the record.
In August of that year Dan Patch set a
new record of 1:59.
He had a rather irregular pedigree behind
him. Flis father, Joe Patchen, and
his mother Tellica, while of good stock,
did not come of spectacular ancestry.
Personality, instead of pedigree, was
being considered more in horse breeding
in the closing years of the nineteenth
century.
His mother was a fast
trotter, but of a disagreeable
temper. Dan Patch
was the only one of his
line that seems to have
escaped this curse of temperament.
Also he seems
to have been the only one
that was really a superior animal, all his
brothers, sisters, and offspring, showing
no real speed, but plenty of crankiness,
thereby proving that genius and irritability
may be incompatible, after all.
In the same year that Dan Patch electrified
the sporting world by his fleetness
at Memphis, Tennessee, Lou Dillon
smashed all trotting records. Her pedigree
is well worthy of note, being decidedly
short on her dam's side. She had
distinguished ancestors on her father's
side, but her granddam is unknown.
In 1892 Nancy Hanks established a
"ibiJPERCRITTERS" 765
new trotting record of 2:04. It took
nine years to reduce this to 2:02^4, made
by Cresceus, in 1901.
In 1903, the great year, Lou Dillon
cut the record down to 1:58^. Cresceus
that same year had brought his record
down to 1:59j4, but Lou Dillon quickly
regained the title.
In the horse racing world there is the
story of two mares, whose personality
triumphed over apparent physical defects.
They had been thrown into the
discard, but they lived to prove that just
as genius does not necessarily beget
genius, so even among horses the imperfect
may be the parents of prodigies.
The story is, that over thirty years ago
a telegraph operator was bitten by the
racing bug. He had little money and
no opportunity therefore to
acquire a "blooded" animal.
About this time, the Stout
Brothers, lumber merchants,
had established one of the
most famous stock farms in
America. They had bought a
famous stallion Nutwood and
a stable of pedigreed mares.
Two of these were considered worthless
either for racing or breeding purposes,
one being what is known as "curbylegged",
the other of doubtful ancestry
and of no particular appearance so far as
racing was concerned.
Both were bought by the telegraph
operator, for the price of $225. The new
owner, whose name was Williams,
shipped them to Kentucky. With this
handicap of parentage, nevertheless,
these mares had for offspring, Axtel and
Allerton, in their time two famous racers
and sires.