Show SHOES FOR FAST NAGS A Talk with a Klacksmith the Shocr of Trotting Horses llhiladclphia News To shoe 11 fast horse takes as much care and precision as to fit a ladys foot sud 1fr John Murphy the wellknown horecshocr to a ATcws gatherer this morning The majority o f radehorse that come to this city are shod in this shop John Splan was here early this rSlngHlth BelIe F and another fast horse He was the owner of Rams I wIll remember and is the owner of some you good horses on the track now In this shop we have shod St Julien Trinket Darby Hopeful Hannis the noted stal lion Edwin Thorn and a score of others that I cannot remember Is there much difference in the shoes of horses 1 All the difference in the world A big draught horse like the Percheron will take a shoe weighing two and a half i pounds made of iron with toecork and Heels The toecork is a piece of iron seton set-on the head or toe of the shoe A horse that travels in a business wagon or carriage car-riage will take about a twentyounce I shoe or a one and a quarter pound shoe These shoes are made heavy and arc about an inch in width W A trotting horses shoe is entirely dif ferent They do not weigh more than from fourteen to sixteen ounces The I shoes on the hind feet are invariably made of steel and those in front are often made of the same metal There is no toe cork on a trotters shoes and but a slight rise on the back part of them for a heel The shoes of running horses are called plates They weigh but four or five ounces and are perfectly flat and are only about a half inch wide all the way round and as thin as possible They are put on to strengthen the hoof and keep it from breaking but they are an inch longer than the hoof behind This is to give power and support to the tendons of the leg Noticing a number of curiously shaped and uncommon looking shoes the News gatherer asked in perfect innocence if they were for crippled horses The young man smilingly replied No the are for trotting horses There is a great deal of difference in the feet of fast horses just as much as there is in the feet of men Some horses hoofs we have to cover with more weight on the outside of the shoe than the inside some vice I versa some with the heaviest part of the shoe in front others behind Many horses spread their feet out in trotting I others work close with their feet and unless they are shod perfectly they will go lame There may be a halfdozen tine thoroughbreds brought into the shop tomorrow morning and not one of them be shod alike A pacer is most always shod light We shod some fast horses for McCarthy who drove Little Brown Jug the pacer A runner is the lightest stepping horse a pacer and racker next then a trotter HDo the fast horses stand the shoeing process well HOh yes quite as well as any of them The fast horses are always brought to the shop in the cool of the morning They are gentle horses generally |