FABULOUS BAWD

A racy (oops, sorry) running (what, again?) commentary on the famous watering-hole, Saratoga, which takes it from its beginnings through its heydays and to its current quiescence, hastened by too pertinent investigations. The earliest recognition of its salubrious atmosphere and springs, its first boniface, Gideon Putnam, and, after a go at Puritanical measures, the steps along the primrose path -- liquor, and gambling, brought in by John Morrissey, who also sponsored horse racing, -- a road which led to scandals, reforms and cleanup crusades. And there are the horses, famous and popular, and the crowds who followed their races and the stables that sponsored the fabulous four-foots, and eventually the betting and the bookies who blackened the sport of kings. There are too the whores, odd souls, eccentrics, and the past days of glory when High Society and internationally famous made Saratoga an elegant, if sometimes bizarre gathering place. It's quite a story, raffishly and gaudily treated.