The Project Gutenberg EBook of Bred In The Bone, by Thomas Nelson Page

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Title: Bred In The Bone
1908

Author: Thomas Nelson Page

Release Date: November 16, 2007 [EBook #23516]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BRED IN THE BONE ***

Produced by David Widger

BRED IN THE BONE

By Thomas Nelson Page

Charles Scribner's Sons New York, 1908

Copyright, 1891, 1904, 1906

I

It was the afternoon before the closing day of the spring meeting of
the old Jockey Club that so many people know. The next day was to be the
greatest ever known on that course; the Spring Meeting was to go out in
a blaze of glory. As to this everybody in sight this spring afternoon
was agreed; and the motley crowd that a little before sunset stood
clustered within the big white-painted gate of the grounds about
the Jockey Club race-stables rarely agreed as to anything. From the
existence of the Deity to the effect of a blister on a windgall, through
the whole range of stable-thought and horse-talk, there was no subject,
speaking generally, on which that mongrel population agreed, except, of
course, on one thing--the universal desirability of whiskey. On this one
subject they all agreed, always.

Yet they were now all of one mind on the fact that the next day was to
be the record on that course. In the first place, the prize in the great
over-night event, the steeplechase set for the morrow, was the biggest
ever offered by the club, and the "cracks" drawn together for the
occasion were the best ever collected at a meeting on that course.

Even such noted steeplechasers as Mr. Galloper's Swallow, Colonel
Snowden's Hurricane, and Tim Rickett's Carrier Pigeon, which had
international reputations, were on hand for it, and had been sent "over
the sticks" every morning for a week in hopes of carrying off such a
prize.

There was, however, one other reason for the unwonted unanimity. Old Man
Robin--"Col-onel-Theodoric-Johnston's-Robin-suh"--said it was to be the
biggest day that was ever seen on that track, and in the memory of the
oldest stable-boss old Robin had never admitted that any race of the
prese