the union pacific at that time had recently completed the steamer "t.j. potter", which was operating on puget sound. when captain troup, who was the manager of the union pacific's maritime division, noticed one day that john leary and j.j. holland, to honor "bailey gatzerts speedy time between tacoma and seattle, were installing a silver-plated statue of a greyhound in the "gatzerts pilot house. troup bet leary and holland that if "t.j. potter" could best the "gatzert" in a race, that they would turn over the greyhound trophy to the "potter".