. The driving clubs of greater Boston .. . ROBERT BONNER sought after by men of refinement and wealth. Robert Bonner paid what were, in the earlier days, fabulous prices for trotters, and retired them from the track to comfortable quarters and his own private use. The first team to trot a mile faster than 2:30, was owned and driven by Mr. Bonner. In 1861 he hitched Flatbush Maid and Lady Palmer together, and drove them a mile over Union Course, Long Island, in 2 â .2'j. At that time the feat was of such extra- ordinary character as to attract wide atten- tion, and its credibility was questione
. The driving clubs of greater Boston .. . ROBERT BONNER sought after by men of refinement and wealth. Robert Bonner paid what were, in the earlier days, fabulous prices for trotters, and retired them from the track to comfortable quarters and his own private use. The first team to trot a mile faster than 2:30, was owned and driven by Mr. Bonner. In 1861 he hitched Flatbush Maid and Lady Palmer together, and drove them a mile over Union Course, Long Island, in 2 â .2'j. At that time the feat was of such extra- ordinary character as to attract wide atten- tion, and its credibility was questioned by gentlemen of such character that a doubt was expressed quite frequently as to the authenticitv of the record. Mr. Bonner was a gentleman who kept his own counsel, but later events proved that he was not only annoyed by these reports, but decided to prove to the world conclu- sively that the time was not only correct, but that the team was capable of repeating the performance. On May 10, 1862, Mr. Bonner arranged with the management of the club at Fashion Course, Long Island, to start the team against their record of 2 127, and on that day, in the presence of a large crowd of repre- sentative gentlemen, including a great many of those who had doubted the previous per- formance, Mr. Bonner drove Flatbush Maid and Lady Palmer a cleverly rated mile in 2:26. It is needless to say that when this mile was finished and the time was announced, the applause which followed clearly demon- strated that all doubt regarding the ability of this then sensational team was removed. Three days later, on May 13, Mr. Bonner drove the same team two miles in 5:01 1-4, the first mile being in 2 126 1-2. Until the advent of the pneumatic sulky, after which world records followed each other in such rapid succession, Mr. Bonner became the owner of almost every champion trotter. He paid $35,000 for Dexter, 2:17 1-4; $40,000 for Maud S., 2:08 3-4; $41,000 for Sunol, 2:08 1-4; $20,000 for Edward Everet
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjecthorses, bookyear1914
