Education: The Horse Trader

In the brilliantly lighted auction ring at New York's Saratoga race track one night last week stood a handsome bay colt. Among the overflow crowd of 1,600 at the open-air pavilion moved white-jacketed "spotters," alert for the telltale gestures—a casual nod, a lifted finger—that signifies a bid. The first horse went quickly. "Sold for $30,000," boomed Auctioneer Milton Dance Jr., rapping his gavel for emphasis. By the time Auctioneer Dance's gavel had fallen for the 48th and last time. $319,500 worth of horseflesh—all paid for in cash—had changed hands.

Social Fixture. A Saratoga fixture since 1917, the annual yearling sale is a...