Justin Morgan & The Little Fellow
Justin Morgan Had a Horse
1945, Chicago, Wilcox & Follett (illustrated by Wesley Dennis)
This is the story of the singing teacher, Justin Morgan, and a little nondescript colt he took as part payment (along with another horse) of a debt owed to him. The colt, named Little Bub by Henry (but Figure according to the Morgan Horse Society) grew to become the foundation sire of the Morgan horse breed. The unlikely colt proved to be a faster trotter, stronger draft horse and faster race horse than anything matched against him, despite his small size of only about 14 hands. All his foals resembled him no matter what they were bred from.
His value wasn't realized until after his death around age 30 when he was kicked by another horse and left unattended in cruel winter weather. Even today, the Morgan is one of the outstanding American breeds and the only one with a single foundation sire. The breed, of course, took its name from Justin Morgan, the singing teacher, and Figure was always referred to as "the Morgan horse." The cover illustration is a picture of Justin Morgan, the man, and Little Bub, the colt.
There is a Walt Disney fillm (Justin Morgan Had A Horse) which does not follow the book, but still has plenty of good horse action in it! [Info by Fran Fignar]
Other info:
American Morgan Horse Association
The Little Fellow
1945, Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York, illus Diana Thorne
Second edition: Rand, McNally & Company, New York, 1973, illus Rich Rudish
Reprinted
in paperback
This, Marguerite Henry’s first pony story, is long out of print in this edition and is now considered "politically incorrect". It's a cute story about Chip, a thoroughbred foal, who is the pet of his owner and his family until Strawberry, a younger foal, is born and Chip no longer gets the prized sugar lump. Jealous of Strawberry, Chip eventually learns they really can be good friends when he has to rely on the young Strawberry to help him swat flies. Obviously, just a children's fictional tale. The drawings are lovely. Diana Thorne, best known for her dog illustrations, does a good job in this one except the text states Chip has a white star and all the illustrations picture him with a long white blaze.
The reason this book went out of print is that the groom is an African American named "Whitey" who talks in typical Negro slang. Here's a sample: "He (Whitey) was exactly the same color as Chocolate (Chip's mother), but still everyone called him Whitey. Soon Whitey's face appeared over the top of the stall.
"Mawnin', Miz Choclit," he grinned. "Lan' sakes! Dat foal ob yo's is growin' jes' lak a weed. Fack is, he's most nigh growed up. An a thororbred ef I evah seed one! De white folks gwine be mighty proud o' yo' baby."
The second edition has almost identical text except now Chip does have a blaze, not a star, and the groom is a white man named Dooley who has a slightly different conversation with Chocolate and Chip as he takes them to pasture.
I love Rich Rudish's art work. He does magnificent horse illustrations! The cover illustration is a picture of Chip, the foal, resting in a straw filled stall. [Info by Fran Fignar]