Mighty White Man

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Mighty White Man A Living Legend.... By DOW COLET, Paladin Editor -- A shining knight atop a mighty white steed ... a lance glinting in the evening sun... a contest is about to begin. The spectators cheer wildly for the valiant warriors... one triumphs and emerges as victor. Little has changed since the days of Charlemagne and the French crusades. Only the time and the place are not the same. The setting has moved from France to a southern portion of America, and the date is not in the 8th Century, but 19th. The knight is symbolic of the Paladins of the Court of Eleanor of Aquitaine, and the horse, the mighty white steed, brings the legend to life. This stallion was bred by a sire and dam with a long ancestry of crowning characteristics, and he has been trained to carry his rider, and to carry him well and faithfully. He has been taught to perform with perfection. The dazzling horse is strong, and he knows the meaning of doing his best. His name, in fact, suggests a strong will to win. The name is Mighty White Man. * * * "By Gold's Bond, by Wilson's Allen, by Roan, out of Moore's Maid, by Merry Boy, by Roan Allen. This strikingly handsome white stallion has proven himself as one of the most popular of Southern Champions in his breed." These words about Mighty White Man appeared in the "1940-1951 Official Record of Show Horse Sires and Dams." This is the "Who's Who" book of champion horses, and few horses ever obtain the honor of having their names placed in this exclusive book, but Mighty White Man proved himself to be one of the all-time greats in just a few short years. Foaled May 28, 1945, he entered his first competition on July 8, 1949; and he started off a long list of first-place prizes in this show. This mighty walking machine swept awards from every part of the nation for six years before he began to leave competition. And during those years, he captured 29 grand championship awards. Probably the greatest award won by Mighty White Man was the Strolling Jim Challenge Trophy which he won at Miami in 1950. This trophy was established in memory of the first World Champion Walking Horse -- Strolling Jim -- and it has never been won more than once by any horse. In 1950, the Mighty White amassed 2240 points in competition, and these points were enough to rank him in sixth place in the world among other all-time great point scorers. And Mighty White Man won over 200 awards during his strutting career. * * * With a wistful look in her eyes, Mrs. McAbee recently said she could "well remember" the day when Mighty White Man was given to her as a birthday present in 1948. "He was three years old then," said Mrs. McAbee, "and since that time he has claimed the hearts and admiration of horse lovers all over the nation." "You know," she continued, "during all these years that show horse judges have lavished praise on him, I really can't remember any place or time where he has become so loved as he is right now by the students of Furman." "These other people admire him from the standpoint of being a great showhorse with exceptionally fine qualities," she said "but to the Furman students... well, to them, he's more than just a show horse, he's something in which they can place pride and to which they can point and say 'this is our's.'" "I realized at the first ball game," she said, "those students love him as much as I do." Mrs. McAbee smiled and fondly patted the great white horse on his nose and then said simply, "I'm proud of him." Furman Student Body President Buddy Revels summed up the feeling of the Furman students in the same simple manner, "so are we."