The Kentucky Thoroughbred

Hamburg

HAMBURG YoUNG MAN, do you own that colt?" "That depends on whether you want to buy him or attach him," replied John E. Madden. The stranger was thinking about buying. He clasped his hands behind his back and circled the horse, studying the colt which had just accomplished what no other two-year-old in Turf history had managed, carrying a monstrous burden of 135 pounds to victory in the important Great Eastern Stakes. "What's your price?" Madden was preoccupied, checking his colt for cuts, feeling his ankles for heat, which might indicate a serious injury. "Fifty thousand dollars," he said over his shoulder and continued his careful inspection. "Hmmmm," said the stranger, for this was 1897, and the highest price ever paid for a racehorse in training was $40,000, a sum paid thirty-three years earlier when millionaire Leonard Jerome purchased champion Kentucky as a sire prospect. There was more circling, some casual counteroffers, and more hmmmms. Madden was a horse trader; he owned none that he was not ready to sell-at his price. The stranger finally offered $40,000, and Madden seemed tempted, but then shook his head, as though he 87 just could not bring himself to let go of such a marvelous horse for mere money. The stranger thereupon wrote out a Wells-Fargo draft for $40,000, took a silver dollar from his vest pocket, and flipped it into the air. Madden caught the coin and the deal was made, at $40,001. Subject of the trade was Hamburg, which horsemen were calling a better two-year-old than brilliant Domino. Purchaser of Hamburg was copper king Marcus Daly, to whom money was a burden. The seller was America's greatest professional horseman. This is legend. As with most legends, it is partly true. It is one of many that grew around the extraordinary person ofJohn E. Madden. As a rule, one should not tamper with legends, but the simple facts relating to this man's phenomenal success with Kentucky horses are every bit as interesting as the fanciful tales in which he actually took no part. For example, he was not John L. Sullivan's sparring partner. While said to be a veteran of some two hundred ring encounters, Madden flatly denied ever having fought professionally. As a youth in Pennsylvania, he was one ofthose who could be counted on to emerge from the crowd to challenge the bareknuckle fighter who was part of every county fair; by staying three minutes, he would pick up in side bets $100 or so, which invariably was invested in a horse. In later years, when Madden's horse investments totaled more than a million dollars, his friend Gentleman Jim Corbett, who took the title from Sullivan, was a guest at Hamburg Place and may have given an exhibition of his footwork in Madden's well-appointed gymnasium at the farm. A former featherweight champion, Billy Murphy, was hired by Madden to give boxing instructions to his sons. In the days when Sullivan was chopping wood on the vaudeville circuit and challenging everybody in the bar, Madden won a race with a trotter that cost some betting sharks a good deal of money; they set upon him in the 88 bam area and apparently drew some blood. Madden returned to his hotel, washed, and changed his clothes. In the lobby he encountered some friends ofhis latest adversary and suggested he still thought he could beat the man if given a fair show. This perked interest, particularly when Madden offered to bet the $200 purse he had won in the race. A match was quickly arranged, a ring set up in a stable. According to a newspaper account, "When the men faced each other, Madden's antagonist was stripped to the waist and full of confidence. Madden turned up his coat collar, walked up to the 'rough guy' and lambasted him all over the bam. In five minutes he was master of the situation, collected $400, and quietly returned to the hotel. He was never challenged again by anyone in that gang." It is easy to see how from this startling reversal of form, a legend could emerge that Madden could handle even the mighty John L. when the money was down. While in his teens, Madden was a champion runner, claiming all Pennsylvania records from 100 yards to five miles, but he had...