Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 06.pdf/331

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The Green Bag.

only about eight hundred pounds; and beside being small, he had the infirmity of lameness in one of his forefeet, and was spavined behind. His gait was a pace, and although not of the best mode, he yet could pace pretty fast for a little way. For any honest purpose he was worth per haps one hundred and twenty-five dollars. Be fore he left Prince Edward Island he was getting better of his lameness, and he was valued at the custom house at two hundred dollars. On his arrival here, he passed into the hands of the importer's brother, who had him trained and put him into some races, which he was accustomed to lose. As is said above, this brother swapped him with these two claimants when he had been here about a year, after which the claimants en tered him in several races. And among other pacers, he was paced against one called " Nina." This Nina was a clever and steady pacer who could work out her miles pretty low in the twenties. The horse was called " Ned Hanlon." Hanlon and Nina appeared to understand each other quite well. He could go to her very fast and she didn't want to go away from him. Hanlon wouldn't pass her if he could, and could not if he would. He always lost, but it was said his owners made money by pacing him against Nina. One day, the two, with some others, were pacing at Beacon Park. Hanlon was driven by an experienced and skillful driver. The horses had paced one heat, which Hanlon, as usual, had lost. Then there arose a great cry among the ticket holders in the pool box that the driver of Hanlon was pulling him; and they went to the judges and made a great clamor. The driver of Hanlon protested that he was doing his best to win. The judges decided to let him drive another heat, when one of the pro testors who had considerable money in the poolbox, went to the owners of Hanlon and said he would buy the horse, then and there. They told him that they did not want to sell; that the driver was doing his best to win, but they did not believe he could beat the mare, and that the proposed purchaser had better not buy. But the more they persuaded him not to buy the more determined he was to become the owner. He asked them to name their price. They were equal to the occasion, and named $10oo. He accepted the offer at once, and paid something on account. As soon as the horse was delivered

to him, he went to the driver, told him he was the owner, and that now he must drive as he directed. The driver told him he had better get somebody else to drive in his place as he could not drive Hanlon to beat Nina. But the owner told him he knew better, and that all he had to do was to drive as he told him. " Be it so," said the driver, " how shall I drive in this-next heat?" "Drop it," said the owner. "That," said the driver, "I can do easy." He went on, and, of course, lost the heat. Then he went to the owner and said " How about this third heat?" "Go on, of course, and win it," said the owner. " I can't do it," said the driver; " you had better put somebody else in my place." But the owner re peated, go on and drive to win. The driver went on; Hanlon paced very fast and stayed with Nina until they came to the distant stand, when her driver dropped his whip on her, and she came away and won the heat. Then the owner, with the whole crowd of ticket holders, went to the judges and complained that the driver of Hanlon had pulled him and purposely lost the race; and then the judges declared the heat " no heat" and put a new driver in for a fourth heat. The new driver went on, Hanlon struggled hard; the driver did his best, but was distanced in the race. And this, we believe, was the end of HanIon's pacing in Boston. He became lame, and found his way back to a hospital in the East. But the owner paid the balance of his thousand dollars, as they say, like a little man; and did not know so much as before.

The Geography of Crime. — A number of the most eminent criminologists of Europe have latterly been attempting to frame a geography of crime, and have met with considerable success, having found incontrovertible proof in suicide that crime has its well-marked lines and latitude. It is found, for instance, that the suicidal centre of Europe is Saxony, where four hundred out of every million people kill themselves each year. From all parts of the compass, according to its greater or lesser distance from the Saxon centre, arises the colossal suicide mountain of Germany. As you go from Dresden north, south, east, or west, the suicidal ratio grows smaller. In Austria it is the greatest in Bohemia, on the