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MODEST tVlLLQiV GROVE FARMER LAD WINS
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AND SMALL FORTUNE AS 'WONDER BOY" OF TURF,
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. Year- Old Arneld BMhe- Picks Real
Thoroughbred at Auctimef Derelicts
Mjnd Collects $l,4ffr incizes With
j', ' JX hnlr In tllO l" '
T&sLj worship of crowds
STDISTASTEFUL TO YOUTH
W AFTER TRACK TRIUMPHS
) Call of the Seil Is Stronger With Yeung
ster Than Excitement of the Race
Track and Winnings Ge te Buy
- Tractor for Heme Use
The wonder boy of the turf I
' A thoroughbred, he rides thoroughbreds!
A boy whose" keen judgment, of horse flesh enabled him te make an
K01dOPIug" a winner in eight out of nine starts.
1 A boy who outguessed his father and who convinced him that 845 was
j geed investment in this same horse, which eventually wen $1400 in
purses in a single season.
A boy who loves the farm and who can handle any piece of machinery
died in its cultivation.
This sums up Arneld Blythe, fif-'
teen years old, of Willow Greve.
Arneld has been racing runners and
jumpers since he was eleven. A
horse is his hobby. '
Temperamental, yet modest in the
extreme, is this blue-eyed prodigy
ef the turf. Ever en the alert te
detect an opponent's weakness in a
rice, sportsmanlike and game te the
core, he has made friends by the
thousands and made admirers of
' his challengers.
William Blythe, the father, is a
horseman and also superintendent
of the Carsen Simpsen Methodist
Heme at Willow Greve. He smiles,
involuntarily, when he mentions the
combination, but leeks you square in
the eye and tells you he is net
ashamed of .his fondness for the
tttrf.
Arneld has inherited his dad's
'traits. He first displayed intelligent
merest in horses when he was five
years old. Instead of rempfng with
I ether children, he spent his time
bout the stables watching his
.father get his mounts in condition
for the steeplechase and the "flats."
Toek His First Mount
When Only Six Years Old
, r At the age of six he was riding,
and he has been at it ever since.
4 Winter before last Arneld's
father took hit l te a horse bazaar in
West Philadelphia. Here, scrawny-
i necked steeds with ring bones, beg
spavins and wind puffs were led out,
en by one, upon the auction block
and sold te the highest bidders.
Arneld viewed the proceedings with
no particular interest until a bay
horse was brought from its stall.
"Pad, I like the leeks of that
horse; buy him, will you?"
"that herse7 Why, I wouldn't
, live a nickel for him. He leeks as
if, he had spent his days hitthed te
aplew. What geed is he?"
"He leeks, like a thoroughbred te
me. Buy him, please; won't you,
dad?"
William Blythe bought the horse
te $45, and Arneld, with halter
rope in hand, started home. He was
tused by neighbors and members of
dren. He spent hours In the stable
working ever the derelict. v
"What are you going te call your
nag?" asked the boy's father.
"Cyclbne," shot back the boy
without a moment's hesitation. "Yeu
say the horse, is juat a selling plat
ter, and I guess that name is as geed
as any. But don't forget, dad, I'll
show you some day that he is some
cyclone."
Cyclone developed into a real tor
nado. He blew se wfrll in his first eight
starts that he werr all. In his only
ether start last year he was a geed
second.
Arneld made $1400 en his dad's
$45 investment His judgment had
been vindicated. But all stars have
their ups and downs, and Arneld
and Cyclone had theirs.
Officials at one of the meets where
the horse wen declared he was a
"ringer." An investigation was
started, but no one .was able te get
a line en the horse's breeding.
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Arneld Blythe, his father, William
Blythe, and "Cyclone"
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"Cyclone," Arneld's famous "come-back"
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"Cyclone" anil his trainer
ft 0Wn household as he led his steed
into a stall.
ain!USt you wnit ftnd aee- Yeu cnn
Imi i a g00d lnu8b, but soma day
"" b my turn, nndI'll show you
where you're wrenft."
J;1 "" t0l better care of that
jJe for the following four months
Mua eme mothers de of their chil-
Weeks nftenvnrd a veteran rnil
bird passed by Cyclone's stall.
"Holle, old boy, hew nre you?"
he said n3 he stroked the head of
the herse. "I ain't seen you for six
years; whbre you been keeping your
self?" Cyclone cocked his ears and whin
nied a greeting.
"I've seen that bird run many a
race, and' he sure was n canie pony,"
remarked the rnilbird. '
"Why, when he was three year3
e!d he was groomed for the Preak Preak
ness and the Kentucky Derby. I
trained him. One of hia tortdens be
came bowed and he was 'pin-fired.' "
Derelict of the Stables
Proved te Be Thoroughbred
"What was the horse's name when
you knew him?" asked Mr. Blythe.
"Holiday, by Broomstick, and out
of Leisure."
"Then the herse is a thorough
bred?" '
"Well, I reckon he is, and a hum hum
dinger, tee."
Arneld Blythe heard the conver
sation, but instead of rushing up te
his dnd and exclaiming, "I told you
se," he walked into the stall te super
vise a rub-down that n groom was
giving the horse. And he didn't go
home that night and tell mother or
the neighbors who had teased him
what he had learned.
After dinner was ever and the
dishe3 cleared away, William Blythe
drew a chair up te Arneld and said:
"Bey, you nre a wonder. I have
been in the herse game all my life
and nlways thought I could tell a
thoroughbred the minute I eyed him.
But I'll admit that I couldn't hand
your Cycloe much when you led
him home from that auction.
win, boy; you win."
Fourteen hundred dollars and the
reputation that Arneld had wen was
enough te make any boy stick out
his chest till his coat buttons gave
away, tyet se with Arneld. He
banked his winnings, pondered
awhile and one night exclaimed te
his father:
"Dad, I like the farm, evcry inch
of it. I like te work en it and see
the results in the crops. Wo've get
a let of plowing te de and I'm net
going te make Cyclone de it, either.
I am going te buy a tractor with the
money that I wen." The tractor was
purchased by the boy and given te
his father.
Last fall Arneld plowed seventy
six acres. It matters net whether
it is a mewing machine, a harrow,
a cultivator; Arneld knows hew te
handle all of them.
This farmer-jockey is as difficult
te interview as a temperamental
prima denna. lie hates publicity
the here stuff. Hu would much
lather fade from the picture te some
secluded spot after a noteworthy
feat he has performed. He doesn't
like te have a crowd make a fuss
ever him.
He scoots for the stables like a
r.treak of lightning nfter each lace.
If he happens te have only ene
mount in a day, he gets out of his
bright rcd-nnd-whlte silken colors
as quickly as possible, dens his
street garb and gees te a far-off
corner in the grandstand, thore in
quietude te view the remaining
events en the program.
Arneltl Ims Ills own UIehh nbent llfe
for n boy en the farm. Anil us this
llfteon-year-eld .veunghter exprciisrs
tliee, iiM well ns ether ideas, the lla
tcner marvels at his diction net that
of the racetrack nor (lint of the usual
rough-and-tumble hey. He talks al
most like a high school teacher. He
ays that there mufct be attraction,
ether than just work. He Is a nrni
believer In the doctrine that "nil work
nnd no piny makes .Tnck a dull boy."
"Parmere today eftfn wonder" why It
is their beyh pack up and hike for
the city as foeii as they've reached the
nse of eighteen," Arneld says. "The
answer Is simple. If a boy 1ms a hobby
he bheuld be allowed te ride it. Toe
many fathers think 1eyn should drudge,
day In and day out, without ever having
any pleasure. They're narrow-minded.
They must wake up. They're behind
'the times.
, Real Sportsmanship
Is One Characteristic
itl DON'T like publicity this
here stuff. I had much rather
the crowd would net makr such
a fuss when I ride a horse," says
Arneld.
Thin blendc-haircd idol of turf
fans is modest in the extreme. He
brags net about his riding feats.
As seen as a race is ever he gets
away from the grandstand as
seen as possible.
He is mere concerned ever the
cai-e of his tneuiU than the cheers
of the throngs. His sportsman
ship en or off the track is the
source of admiration net only
from hia followers but his chal
lengers. He rides horses because he
likes them. He has been at it
since he was eleven years old. He
has had two chances te ride for
prominent furfmen in New
Yerk, -but his mother objected,'
He Wees the farm, can drive any
piece of machinery en it.
He's a thoroughbred, every
inch of hm
"My father has always been a horse
man. Frem the time that I was able
te walk ar.d understand. I have always
loved horses. If I can just be around
them in the stables I am happy.
Father Gave Hint Leeway
, te Ride His One Hebby
"Dad was quick te realize this.
stead of putting his feet down he en
courages me. He premised thnt just a
i,een ns I get big enough te ride L
would have the chance. He has kept
his word, and jeu couldn't drag ine
off the old farm with a steam roller.
"Mether was a bit opposed te my
being a jockey. She saw evils In the
game and feared that because of my
ascodatlens with elder riders I would
fall Inte some of their ways. Shj even
asked Dad te forbid me te ride in
races.
"I had my own ideas about riding
when I first started In. I said te my
self, 'If you ride thoroughbreds you
must be a thoroughbred yourself.' - I
have always followed that motto.
"I don't consider myself above riders
who have been in the game for years,
but I jut don't associate with them.
After I have ridden a race I leek after
my mount nnd then I get away from the
bunch ns quickly as I can.
"I hate ridden" many runners nnd
jumpers. My father has mere than
bixty horses new. I school all the
jumpcrb. Have I ever been spilled?
Ycb, many times, but that s part of
the game. There is danger in almost
any sport. If there wasn't it wouldn't
be a sport. Yeu havp te take chances,
nnd that's the thrilling part of it.
"A short time age I was working a
horse en the track te get her ready for
a race. Coming around the turn into
the stretch she faltered, two streams
of bleed spurted from her nostrils, and
she fell dead. I was thrown ever the
marc's head when she tumbled, but I
um light nnd I wasn't hurt.
"It is hard te say which I like bet
ter, the runners or jumpers. Of course
there is mere nctien 'going ever the
I brushes.' But you can get plenty of
excitement out of the 'fiats.' "
Arneld lode Holiday, as new offi
cially calls "Cyclone," in a race at
llyberry Fair. He was pitted against
eternn jockeys. It bad rained for
three hours befere the race and the
track was deep in mud. When the
barrier was sprung Cyclone and his
youthful jockey were awny like a shot.
Fer a time it looked ns though the kid
was going te keep en with the spec
tacular work started In 1021. Hut Cy
clone, ns the boy explained bitpr, is net
n mud horse. He finished fourth. How Hew
I'vcr. thut mnde no difference. Arneld
mvthp
15'Year-Old Bey Better
"Picker" Than HJs Father
CIFTEEN yearn old and a Mn
er judge of hersefleth than
many vcttrant is Arneld Btytht.
He outguessed his father at an
auction, pleaded with him te pay
HS for a herse that apparently
had no breeding and then went
out and wen fliOO in puree
money in a single eeasen. He
etarted in nine races againtt
riders who have been in the game
for years, wen eight of them and
was eeeend in the ether start.
He was teased by hit parente
and friends when he brought the
horse home. He took the joshing
goed-naturedly, but back of it all
he was determined. He made up
hie mind that his judgment ae te
the horse's breeding would be
vindicated. It trad. Instead of
being a selling plater, Cyclone,
proved te be Holiday t a thorough,
bred, just as this youthful jockey
had said.
He schools jumpers for hie
father and is a trainer par excel'
lence. He likes books, is a prom
inent athlete in his school and i
among the leaders in his claeteei
dragged hnlf-carried the boy te the en- $ T S the barS Mr Illvt he'hLsT
te congratulate him for his showing
he hnd run for the rtnble.
The next morning Cyclone was taken
onto the track for his usun! workout.
Then Arneld discovered thnt me faith
ful old warrior hnd broken down.
He had bowed a tendon.
Quiet "Chat" With Herse
Decides Fate of Racer
"Well, dad, what will we de, try
nnd get him In shape te race again this
year or will we 'pin Are' him?" asked
the boy.
"He's your home, nnd whnt you ay
gees, jny boy." replied the father. Ar.
neli 'led the herse bnck into the stall
nnd for fifteen minutes he was in whis
pered convcrsntlen with the groom.
"I have decided, dad, ihat Cyclone
is tee geed a horse te take chances with.
V. l"i " is nei serious, ana
I with a long rest and geed care he will
nreservliii; the- Ktisar
Mippiy, ler i'.uici nlunys lias her pock
ets stuffed. Hlie makes the rounds nf
the stalls of her favorite hert.es auJ
trentH them.
There isn't a vicious herrc In the
Blythe stables. If Mr. Blythe gets
one he proceeds te get rid of it as
toen ns possible.
"Animals aren't given hnlf the credit
for intelligence due them," said Mr,
Blythe. Yeu cnn mnke n horee de al
most anything but talk. Of ceurne,
the greiitct-t asset in training is kind
ness. Ne animal let trustworthy If It 1
beaten. I have hnd several grooms and
If I catch one nbuslng un animal out
he gees. Abuse isn't necessary.
"Occilslenully you will find n herM
mat is just naturally mean, I work
easy with him anil ti te tench him te
be kind. If that mfttheil falls, I mII
him. I have owned hen-cn nil my lib
and probably will for the remainder T
my days. And ufter that It will he
Arneld."
come back into form again. I think I
will take .the horse home and turn him
out for the remainder of the season.
This winter I can work en him and
get him In shnpe for next year."
And se Cyclone went home, his rac
ing ended for the year.
William Blythe never questions his
son's judgment whether It be regard
ing the condition of a horse or hew te
ride him.
"That boy's ability te detect the
slightest fault with a runner or jumper
Is almost uncanny," said Mr. Blythe.
"He has the cleverest hand I have ever
seen in the saddle. He nlways plans
before a race just what he is going
te de. He has yet te get left at the
barrier. He's up there all the time,
and when the barrier drops he's off."
A croup of veterans of the turf were
seated en feed boxes near Cyclone's
stall swapping varns when they learned
that Arneld had decided te lay bis horse
up for the year. Holiday, with ears
cocked and eyes gleaming, was eating
sugar from the Hand of his trainer.
"I swan, don't it bent all," ex
claimed one. "Here's a kid in his early
teens racing against some of the crafti
est in the business. It's remnrkable
when you step te think of It. He is
the coolest bird I ever sew. Never
gets excited and gets out of some pretty
tight places when seme of his opponents
try te box htm en the turns. If he
gets out of the trap, all right; if net
he never grumbles. But all the time
he is doing some tall thinking. He
never forgets if he Is once tricked. He
keeps his eye en the jock that did it
when he starts in the next race and he
outguesses them every time.
"I saw him ride a horse In a steeple
chase at I'heenixville last spring. I
think the horse wns called Jigger. He
belonged te a woman. She had been
impressed with the boy nnd asked him
te ride for her. Arneld consented.
The race wns ever n course of two
miles, a rcrtl test for any horse.
"The Jdd get away flying and led the
field for the firt mile and a half. Dur
ing the last lap the old nag weakened
and barely managed te get ever the last
brush without falling in a heap. The
kid made a gnme try in the stretch,
but the horse bad simply 'run out of
gas.'
Green Bey Made Veteran
Race en Green Herse
"The remarkable part of the boy's
exhibition I did net learn until after
the race. Thp horse hnd had some
schooling, but had never raced. Here
was n fifteen-year-old kid with a) green
lierj-edn a big field and he bandied him
like n veteran.
Arneld has had chances te go te
New Yerk te ride for two prominent
turfmen, according te his father. The
boy was eager te accept, but his mother
objected.
The boy's rnclng for this year is
about ever. He will seen enter the
Junier High Scheel at Willow Greve.
He has been n star nthlete from the
time he entered grammar school. He
plnyed second base nnd enptnined his
school baseball team, is a geed swim
raw and is a flash en the basketball
fleer. In -ddltien, be is an excellent
student, alwayi ranking among the
leaders in his clashes.
"De I like school. Certninly. I In
tend te pet thej best education possible.
I never nllew nnythlng te interfere with
my studies. I have often heard elder
boys and men say. 'If I only had a
geed education.' In most enses there
Is no excuse for this. Any boy can
at least go through high scchoel if he
only makes up his mind.
"I always loved books nnd I haw
get my nose btuck into one at every
opportunity."
The Bljthe fnrm In Willow Greve it
one of the most picturesque in the
neighborhood. Bread, green fields
htretch for acres en nil hides of the
buildings. It is under excellent culti
vation. Trees with long sweeping
branches murmur a greeting ns you
enter the spneieus jaid. It is jubt the
fort of a place one would pick for a
summer vacation.
Sister Likes Horses Like '
Her Father and Brether
Arneld Blythe has n bister. Ethal
May. six years old. Like her brother,
he is fend of horses. She spends al
most as much time around the stables
as does Arneld. She likes te ride and
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