TE^it^ ' ii ' t . KIHG H 40 ) RSE
BRED TO WALK ( Continued from Page 15 )
to all her colts — such as BUD ALLEN , MAJOR ALLEN , SKIP , SNIP and LAST CHANCE — history must show that it has been through MERRY BOY that her most lasting influence on the breed has been transmitted .
As we have observed indirectly , MERRY BOY was , like WILSON ’ S ALLEN , a double grandson of ALLAN F-l and a son of ROAN ALLEN F-38 . Also like WILSON ’ S ALLEN , MERRY BOY has no show record of any importance in Walking Horse history and has left his mark upon the breed solely as a prepotent sire who was able to pass along to his descendents the desirable qualities which he had inherited from his progenitors . Again like WILSON ’ S ALLEN , MERRY BOY was able to produce in his get a greater fineness and perfection in conformation and a greater performance under saddle than he himself could show . Perhaps this quality is the hallmark of the truly prepotent sire . It is really striking that stallions so apparently different as these two are actually so closely kin and so important , each in his own way , to the development of the breed .
Foaled in 1925 and an active producer almost to the end of his unusually long life ( he died January 13 , 1957 ), MERRY BOY was the last of these “ old-time stallions .” Among the most famous of his progeny are : BLACK ANGEL , World ’ s Grand Champion in 1943 , OLD GLORY , himself the sire of a Grand Champion , and the famous son to which we shall return in a moment . We must not overlook , however , the large number of mares by this grand old sire who have transmitted his excellent blood to the many Champions and Grand Champions crowned at the National Celebration , as well as hundreds of winners in shows all over the nation . The most noted of these mares is , of course , MERRY WALKER , the dam of two Grand Champions — GO BOY ’ S SHA DOW and RODGERS ’ PERFEC TION — - and of several other superior show horses .
On May 4 , 1943 , was foaled the son of MERRY BOY through which his most powerful influence on the breed is being transmitted . A product of the great Walking Horse bloodlines , which we have been tracing , into which a strain of American Saddle Horse blood had been infused through GIOVANNI , MERRY GO BOY proved to be an exciting combination of fine conformation and performance of the true gaits of the Walking Horse under saddle . A consistent winner in his classes at the National Celebration from his weanling days , MERRY GO BOY was crowned World ’ s Grand Champion in 1947 and repeated this victory in 1948 . His trainer was the inimitable Winston Wiser of Shelbyville . Some observers continue to label this son of MERRY BOY the greatest Walking Show Horse yet produced in the breed ; all must agree that he was a splendid show horse and has exerted a great influence upon the way Walking Horses have been shown since his time .
MERRY GO BOY has already proved his right to be included in a list of the all-time great sires of the breed and continues at age twenty-one to be in great demand for breeding to some of the best mares now living . A glance at the records of the winners of classes at the National Celebration since 1950 will quickly indicate something of the success with which his progeny have been made into winning show horses . One of his outstanding sons , GO BOY ’ S SHA DOW , was Grand Champion in 1955 and 1956 . A visit to any show where good Walking Horses are being shown will find the offspring of MERRY GO BOY pleasing the spectators with their fineness of conformation and their fast Walking gaits . A conversation with an informed owner of a horse by this popular stallion ' will demonstrate the pride of ownership felt by those who possess his descendents . Through this greatest son of MERRY BOY the blood of renowned foundation sires and dams is being transmitted to hundreds of younger horses who will continue the development of the Tennessee
JANUARY
Walking Horse as the most wonderful horse in the world for both show and pleasure .
Likewise , the line descending from ALLAN F-l and ROAN ALLEN F-38 through WILSON ’ S ALLEN has lengthened into a worthy and prepotent son , the incomparable MIDNIGHT SUN . The first stallion to be crowned World ’ s Grand Champion at the National Celebration ( 1945 , and again in 1946 ), this powerful black stallion impressed veteran horsemen and novices alike with the beauty of his conformation and the perfection of his Walking Horse gaits . In the report of the 1945 Celebration published in The Tennessee Walking Horse Magazine , an unidentified author ( probably the late Jimmie Joe Murray ) wrote : “ MIDNIGHT SUN is a regeneration of the old-fashioned , easy-slipping , flowing gaited Tennessee Walking Horse of fifty and seventy-five years ago ”. With his relaxed and determined flat-foot walk , his fast running walk which showed unusual stride and motion , and his graceful , rolling canter , MID NIGHT SUN was called “ the matchless performer ” and was a favorite of the spectators wherever he was shown . Trained by Harlin Hayes and usually shown by the late Fred Walker , MIDNIGHT SUN brought new prominence to the Harlinsdale Farm , Franklin , Tennessee , as he won class after class and stake after stake in competition with all the great horses of his day .
But of course it is as an all-time great sire that the influence of MIDNIGHT SUN upon the Walking Horse breed deserves the most attention . In the article referred to above , the writer concludes with these words : “ Long be bis years in lending the glory of noble ancestry for the achievement of the Tennessee Walking Horse . Let his tribe increase . May many future stars in the Walking Horse firmament be placed there by the get of Midnight Sun !” These wishes have been more than amply fulfilled — witness that only three years after his second Grand Championship his daughter , MIDNIGHT MERRY ,