riders of some of the unfortunate favorites. They could by these unfair means lose the race and at the same time win much more than the value of the stake. Investigations had disclosed nothing dishonest and had, moreover, shown that Galy en tered to win and substantially backed up his entry in the books. The temptation was great for a man with a string of animals like Galy’s and pos sessing, as he did, the confidence of the betting public, but so far no one could show that Macus Galy had entered the handicaps for aught but the stake and the winner’s fame. When the training season was opened in the spring a new blouse and cap appeared in the pad dock and over the old Tori Hard quarters were the Magenta and Olive of a newcomer—a western turf man named Telmont. Frank Telmont’s turf reputation was not a very savory one; this year was only the second from his reinstatement on eastern tracks after being ruled off for enter ing and running a “ringer.” He had various other charges, some proven and others unproven, of “pulling” and of backing other horses against his own so that the Cradlesend judges always gave his entries and their mounts more than the usual amount of watching. Throughout the first part of the season he had run straight races and was attended with unusual success, twice winning races in which the crimson and black of Galy were expected to win. The swiftness of the Telmont stables seemed to blind the public to the unsavory reputation of their owner, and soon solicitations came from prominent patrons of the track to Telmont asking him to name his entry for the Sea Side which was an invitation event. After some hesitation Tel mont entered Stafford, a lank black with a well rounded reputation for viciousness. His reluc tance was thought by some to be from fear of marring his season’s fine record ; there was cause for this, for beside the traditional entry from the Galy stables there was a veritable “dark horse” being trained for this event which had already evinced considerable speed. THE FREE LANCE. Persecutor was billed to represent Galy in the handicap, and when the weights were announced it was found that he had top weight at 130 lbs. with Stafford and the dark horse, Alien, next in or der. The training on the horses went on briskly, none of them running in any races for fear of weight penalties. Now one heard of Alien’s quarter in twenty five, now it was a half by Persecutor in fifty-one and then Stafford would do a quarter in twenty-seven under a beautiful pull. These three horses were destined beyond question to be placed in the Sea Shore—but in what order? The public divided its favor between Persecutor and Stafford for winners, and small odds could begot- ten against them. About the middle of the season Galy was taken ill and suddenly died ; his son Dick came into immediate possession of the stables, and contrary to the commonest laws of propriety declared his intention of fulfilling all racing engagements of his new possession. Dick did not possess the in tegrity and sobriety of his father and had several times been in affairs where both these qualities were sadly in question. Nevertheless he was a good judge of horses, and increased his income considerably by the use of his faculty among the bookmakers. When he became the owner of Persecutor he watched keenly the performance of the animal when doing his distance, and compared his gait and condition with those of Alien and especially of Stafford. As the time for the race drew near, Dick Galy was one of not a small number who be lieved in the superiority of Stafford over Persecu tor and moreover believed the former a winner, barring any stubbornness which the brute was lia ble to show at the last moment. Convinced of the slim chances of his horse being the winner, he gave his trainer confidential orders to do his ut most to put Persecutor out of condition without it being noticed. The next day Galy went up to New York to “attend a stock-sale” ; a few days later there appeared at Cradlesend a well dressed man who seemed to every one, including Galy,
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